SCIENCE A Tokyo University research team has identified an amino acid mutation in an avian influenza virus they believe to be the vector for a possible human influenza pandemic. [YOMIURI]

SCIENCE Japan’s Kaguya lunar probe, launched last month in the largest moon exploration mission since Apollo, approached the moon in the predawn hours of Thursday as the Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency (JAXA) prepared to inject the craft into orbit. [MAINICHI]

SCIENCE A large amount of safflower pollen found in a ditch dating back to the third century could explain the dyed red silk that legendary queen Himiko supposedly sent to China, researchers said. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE Researchers have found that a molecule in the brain that regulates appetite also functions to control bone mass levels, a finding they say could help develop new drugs to treat osteoporosis. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE Bad weather has forced the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to postpone the launch of a lunar orbiter that aims to collect data for research on the moon’s origin and evolution. (1) [AFP]

SCIENCE Japan’s ecosystem could be at grave risk following a finding that at least 15 varieties of wildlife are carriers of anti-biotic-resistant bacteria. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE A research team has found a tapeworm egg in the excrement of a pet cat in Hokkaido–the first such case in the country of the parasite common in feral animals. [YOMIURI]

SCIENCE Japan is digging in deep to curb its carbon dioxide emissions–a kilometer into the ground to be more precise. The Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE) based in Kizugawa, Kyoto Prefecture, is developing technology to store carbon dioxide underground before the greenhouse gas is emitted into the atmosphere. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry plans to conduct from next fiscal year a study into dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, with the goal of producing a usable antidementia drug within 10 years, according to ministry sources. [YOMIURI]

SCIENCE A health ministry panel has given its approval to a medical venture company to start producing and selling cultured skin. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE Chinese and Japanese scientists have discovered a new species of dinosaur that lived about 100 million years ago in eastern China, state-run media reported Wednesday. [THE JAPAN TIMES]

SCIENCE The first inhabitants of North and South America could have been fishermen from Japan who traveled there in small boats, according to research in the latest edition of New Scientist magazine. [KYODO]

SCIENCE A major government survey probing the relationship between large intestinal cancer and people’s lifestyle habits has found that coffee reduces women’s likelihood of contracting the disease, while vitamin B6 has the same effect for men. [MSN MAINICHI]

SCIENCE Breaking up an exercise session, by adding a rest period in between, may boost a workout’s fat-burning efficiency, a team of Japanese and Danish researchers reports. [REUTERS]

SCIENCE An international team of astronomers using NASA’s Swift satellite and the Japanese/U.S. Suzaku X-ray observatory has discovered a new class of active galactic nuclei. [SCIENCE DAILY]

SCIENCE Scientists in Japan have created a “womb” for incubating artificially fertilized eggs in their earliest days, helping them grow nearly as fast as they would in the uterus, a researcher said on Friday. [REUTERS]

SCIENCE The incidence of cardiovascular diseases among those who suffer from metabolic syndrome is 2.5 times higher for men and 1.8 times higher for women, a researcher at the University of the Ryukyus said Thursday. [THE JAPAN TIMES]

SCIENCE The life expectancy of male smokers at age 40 is 3 1/2 years shorter than that of nonsmokers, according to a health ministry study released Tuesday. [KYODO]

SCIENCE Greenhouse-gas emissions have made parts of the Northern Hemisphere wetter, according to Japanese researchers studying drastic changes in global rainfall patterns during the last century. [ASAHI]

SCIENCE Seventy-eight chimpanzees once used for medical testing will now give researchers insights into how to improve geriatric care for humans. [ASAHI]