News in a nutshell

This week's news includes a possible mechanism of how infections can lead to Parkinson's disease, the discovery of the earliest freshwater ecosystems to date, lessons from the Census for Marine Life, a national plan for saving bats from white-nose syndrome, stem cells not involved in zebrafish regeneration of limbs, and bacteria and a squid launched into space.

Paralysis in hands of a Parkinson's patient Image: National Library of Medicine

Pathogens linked to Parkinson's Although pathogens have long been suspected to play a role in the neurodegeneration of Parkinson's and related diseases(see our linkurl:December 2010 feature),;http://www.the-scientist.com/2010/12/1/40/1/ very little is understood about the mechanics of the process. Specifically, scientists have been at a loss to explain what kills the dopamine-producing neurons in a region in the mid-brain that's important for movement -- resulting in motor problems such as tremors and paralysis. But last Sunday, researchers working with mice reported in __Nature Neuroscience__...