Brief Points, February 2006

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▪ Transgenic peas set off an immune reaction in mice, even though the new gene came from a nonallergenic bean. The cause: a subtly different array of sugar molecules on the gene's protein. The finding, which abruptly ended a field trial, indicates that modified crops could create unanticipated allergy risks unless they are evaluated case by case.

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, November 16, 2005

▪ Salt cravings may depend on birth weight: smaller babies preferred saltier water than heavier infants did, a fondness that persisted into preschool.

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European Journal of Clinical Nutrition online, November 23, 2005

▪ Ground-penetrating radar on the Mars Express orbiter has revealed what appears to be thick subsurface water ice at the Martian north pole and at a buried impact crater.

Science online, November 30, 2005

▪ Relieved of the glacial weight from the last ice age, northeastern North America is slowly springing up and, researchers now find, moving south, by about a millimeter a year.

Nature, December 15, 2005

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