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A common medicine used to relieve mild to moderate pain and reduce fever. Acetaminophen (N-acetyl-p-aminophenol), or paracetamol, is a white crystalline compound with the molecular formula C8H9NO2 (Fig. 1). It is a member of the aniline family of…

An ongoing current event in which a large number of living species are threatened with extinction or are going extinct because of environmentally destructive human activities. The Earth is presently in the midst of a mass extinction event. In the…

A neurodevelopmental condition that impairs the way that a person relates to and communicates with other people. Persons with autism have difficulties with social communication and interaction. They also can have unusual behaviors, such as…

The ongoing lower level of species extinction intensity occurring between episodes of mass extinctions. Extinction is a normal part of the history of life. Out of every 100 species that have ever lived on Earth, 99 are no longer in existence.…

The function and transport of the bicarbonate ion for maintaining the acid level (pH) throughout the body for stable physiological processes; disfunction of bicarbonate transport results in disease. Bicarbonate (HCO3−) is a small inorganic negative…

Any of the cells within a tumor that possess the capacity to self-renew and cause the heterogeneous lineages of cancerous cells that comprise the tumor. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) typically represent a small percentage of all cells in a tumor (rarely…

The portion of the nervous system composed of the brain and spinal cord in vertebrates. The division of the vertebrate nervous system comprising the brain and spinal cord is known as the central nervous system (see illustration). In general, the…

Wind-pollinated plants—including trees, grasses, and weeds—produce most of the pollen that affects seasonal allergy sufferers. Wind-pollinated plants produce great amounts of pollen grains that are very small in size. For example, one ragweed plant…

Neuroscientists have long sought to explain how the brain correctly recognizes a stimulus despite the stimulus appearing under different circumstances with widely variable external factors. For example, with regard to olfactory stimuli, humans can…

A genome-engineering technique that allows precise targeting of specific stretches of genetic code and editing of DNA at designated locations. The CRISPR/Cas9 system has been used as a general tool to engineer the genomes of many different…