Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Alien frog invasion wreaks havoc on natural habitat
Indiscriminate feeding by an alien population of the carnivorous spotted-thighed frog—could severely affect the native biodiversity of southern Australia according to a new study by the University of South Australia.
NASA fosters innovative ways to understand biodiversity
The yellow-billed cuckoo has soft brown wings, a white belly, a long tail with black and white spots, and is running out of places to live. The cuckoo's population in...
Records reveal new trends in Australian temperature extremes
Researchers have developed Australia's longest daily temperature record, identifying a decrease in cold extremes and an increase in heatwaves since 1838.
Coronavirus: Can superspreading be stopped?
Identifying superspreading events could be crucial in the fight against the virus, scientists say.
Why developing nerve cells can take a wrong turn
A group of scientists from CECAD has found a mechanism by which neurodevelopmental diseases concerning neurons can be explained. The loss of a certain enzyme, UBE2K, impedes the differentiation of...
Science Book Roundup, Social Distancing Edition
When I posted my last science book roundup, few of us knew what was about to come. We had heard about a novel coronavirus and an outbreak of a new...
Study reveals continuous pathway to building blocks of life
A new study marks an important step forward in the effort to understand the chemical origins of life. The findings of this study demonstrate how 'continuous reaction networks' are capable...
Human activity threatens 50 billion years of vertebrate evolutionary history
A new study maps for the first time the evolutionary history of the world's terrestrial vertebrates: amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles. It explores how areas with large concentrations of evolutionarily...
Researchers evaluate 2020 Census data privacy changes
After the US Census Bureau announced that it was changing how it protects the identities of individuals for the 2020 Census, researchers began to evaluate how these changes may affect...
Pronghorn exhibit little genetic variation despite landscape obstacles
While previous research shows landscape features such as major highways restrict the daily and seasonal movements of pronghorn and increase mortality risk, this study found little, if any, evidence that...
Why developing nerve cells can take a wrong turn
Loss of ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme leads to impediment in growth of nerve cells. A link has been found between cellular machineries of protein degradation and regulation of the epigenetic landscape in...
Synthetic red blood cells mimic natural ones, and have new abilities
Scientists have tried to develop synthetic red blood cells that mimic the favorable properties of natural ones, such as flexibility, oxygen transport and long circulation times. But so far, most...
Hairy, lab-grown human skin cell model could advance hair loss research
A new, hair-sprouting dollop of human skin created in the lab might one day help prevent hair loss. An article describes the hairy creation as the first hair-baring human skin...
New laser system provides 3D reconstructions of living deep-sea animals and mucus filters
Living in an essentially zero-gravity environment, many deep-sea animals have evolved soft, gelatinous bodies and collect food using elaborate mucus filters. Until now, studying these delicate structures has been virtually...
A promise to restore hearing
For the first time, researchers have used base editing to restore partial hearing to mice with a recessive mutation in the gene TMC1 that causes complete deafness, the first successful...
Researchers study genetic outcomes of translocating bighorn sheep
Translocation is an important management tool used for nearly 100 years to increase bighorn sheep population numbers in Wyoming and to restore herds to suitable habitat throughout their historical range....
Genetic outcomes of translocating bighorn sheep
Bighorn sheep have maintained a distinctive population genetic structure in Wyoming, even with historical population losses and translocations.
Social status, not size, determines reproductive success for female mountain gorillas
Dominance rank among female mountain gorillas is not related to body size but does increase their reproductive output according to new research.
Neanderthals, Denisovans, humans genetically closer than polar bears, brown bears
New research suggests the trio of populations were so genetically similar that they most certainly produced healthy, fertile hybrids.
Cephalod protein changes optical properties of human cells
Advance marks step toward developing human camouflage
Researchers discover a system essential for limb formation during embryonic development
Researchers at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) have discovered a system that provides cells with information about their position within developing organs. This system, studied in developing limbs,...
Researchers document the first use of maize in Mesoamerica
Almost any grocery store is filled with products made from corn, also known as maize, in every aisle: fresh corn, canned corn, corn cereal, taco shells, tortilla chips, popcorn, corn...
Social status, not size, determines reproductive success for female mountain gorillas
Dominance rank among female mountain gorillas is not related to body size but does increase their reproductive output according to research publishing June 3, 2020 in the open-access journal PLOS...
Two lefties make a right -- if you are a one-in-a-million garden snail
A global campaign to help find a mate for a left-coiling snail called 'Jeremy' has enabled scientists to understand how mirror-image garden snails are formed. The findings show that the...
Harvard bee experts discuss the murder hornet threat
They’re here. Native to East Asia, the so-called murder hornets were spotted in North America for the first time late last year and just again in May. The presence of the predators,...
Did life emerge in the 'primordial soup' via DNA or RNA? Maybe both
Scientists have long debated which genetic information carrier—DNA or RNA—started life on Earth, but a new study suggests life could have begun with a bit of both. The research, led...
Synthetic red blood cells mimic natural ones, and have new abilities
Scientists have tried to develop synthetic red blood cells that mimic the favorable properties of natural ones, such as flexibility, oxygen transport and long circulation times. But so far, most...
2-in-1 base editors make two DNA edits at once
New dual base editors that can make A to G and C to T edits could have applications in plant science and synthetic biology