Dragonfly larvae serve as biosentinels for mercury pollution

Citizen scientists use the insects to investigate freshwater habitats in national parks

An immune system quirk may help anglerfish fuse with mates during sex

For deep-sea anglerfishes, sex resembles an organ transplant. It’s hard to find a partner in the dark depths, so a tiny male anglerfish fuses its tissues to a more massive female during mating,...

Swiss prosecutor launches criminal proceedings against FIFA head Gianni Infantino

FIFA President Gianni Infantino faces criminal proceedings in Switzerland in connection with undocumented meetings with former Swiss Attorney General Michael Lauber.

The virus that causes COVID-19 has been silently brewing in bats for decades

The viral lineage leading to the novel coronavirus—SARS-CoV-2—might have been “circulating unnoticed in bats for decades.” (Pixabay/)Scientists have been searching for the origins of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) since the pandemic began....

Studying interactions between ground-nesting bees and soils

Research gives possible answers to increase pollinator populations on farms.

Scientists expose fascinating 'compartments' in bacteria

A new review article casts light on organelles, the internal compartments in bacterial cells that house and support functions essential for their survival and growth.

Images of Antibodies as They Neutralize the COVID-19 Virus

As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the globe in the first half of 2020, researchers worldwide worked around-the-clock to understand and combat it. Caltech postdoctoral scholar Christopher Barnes is one...

Long-lost sisters reunite more than 50 years later thanks to COVID-19

A pair of Nebraska sisters who hadn't seen each other in more than 50 years were reunited when one ended up as the other's medication aide while she was recovering...

Erratum for the Report "Global distribution of earthworm diversity" by H. R. P. Phillips, C. A. Guerra, M. L. C. Bartz, M. J. I. Briones, G. Brown, T. W. Crowther, O. Ferlian, K. B. Gongalsky, J. van den Hoogen, J. Krebs, A. Orgiazzi, D. Routh, B. Schwarz

Structural insights into differences in G protein activation by family A and family B GPCRs

Family B heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide–binding protein (G protein)–coupled receptors (GPCRs) play important roles in carbohydrate metabolism. Recent structures of family B GPCR-Gs protein complexes reveal a disruption in the α-helix of transmembrane segment 6...

Genomic surveillance reveals multiple introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into Northern California

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally, with >365,000 cases in California as of 17 July 2020. We investigated...

Allele-specific open chromatin in human iPSC neurons elucidates functional disease variants

Most neuropsychiatric disease risk variants are in noncoding sequences and lack functional interpretation. Because regulatory sequences often reside in open chromatin, we reasoned that neuropsychiatric disease risk variants may affect...

In-cell architecture of an actively transcribing-translating expressome

Structural biology studies performed inside cells can capture molecular machines in action within their native context. In this work, we developed an integrative in-cell structural approach using the genome-reduced human...

Human-specific ARHGAP11B increases size and folding of primate neocortex in the fetal marmoset

The neocortex has expanded during mammalian evolution. Overexpression studies in developing mouse and ferret neocortex have implicated the human-specific gene ARHGAP11B in neocortical expansion, but the relevance for primate evolution...

ANGEL2 is a member of the CCR4 family of deadenylases with 2',3'-cyclic phosphatase activity

RNA molecules are frequently modified with a terminal 2',3'-cyclic phosphate group as a result of endonuclease cleavage, exonuclease trimming, or de novo synthesis. During pre-transfer RNA (tRNA) and unconventional messenger...

An immune system quirk may help anglerfish fuse with mates during sex

For deep-sea anglerfishes, sex resembles an organ transplant. It’s hard to find a partner in the dark depths, so a tiny male anglerfish fuses its tissues to a more massive female during mating,...

Ancient mountain formation and monsoons helped create a modern biodiversity hotspot

One of the big questions in biology is why certain plants and animals are found in some places and not others. Figuring out how species evolve and spread, and why...

Stay or leave? A tale of two virus strategies revealed by math

As small and relatively simple as they may be, even viruses have strategies. Now, researchers in Japan report that they can evaluate two of these strategies through a combination of...

New understanding of CRISPR-Cas9 tool could improve gene editing

Within a mere eight years, CRISPR-Cas9 has become the go-to genome editor for both basic research and gene therapy. But CRISPR-Cas9 also has spawned other potentially powerful DNA manipulation tools...

Aidan Gallagher teases Season 2 ‘Umbrella Academy’ bloodbath

Aidan Gallagher says Season 2 of Netflix's superhero drama, "The Umbrella Academy," will show his character, Five, like he never has been seen before.

Researchers discover a new and unique class of carbohydrate receptors

An international team of researchers led by Aarhus University are the first to determine the crystal structure of an exopolysaccharide receptor. The results give insight into how plants and microbes...

Cubs' Kris Bryant turns rare triple play in loss to Reds

Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant completed a triple play during a loss to the Cincinnati Reds, but he needed a little help from an umpire to complete the rare...

Rapid test for the determination of antibodies against Sars-Cov-2

Researchers present a test that determines the amount of neutralizing antibodies within a short period of time.

Whale airway mucus reveals likely poor health during migration

Researchers have linked the burden of humpback whales' annual migration to depleted microbial diversity in their airways - an indicator of overall health.

In defence mode: This is how Zika virus protects key parts of its genome

To fight viruses, cells can deploy defense enzymes that progressively destroy viral genome strands starting from one of the two strand ends. However, this degradation mechanism is not effective against...

Remote islands: Stepping stones to understanding evolution

For millions of years, remote islands have been hotbeds of biodiversity, where unique species have flourished. Scientists have proposed different theories to explain how animals and plants colonize and evolve...

Inbreeding detrimental for survival

Biologists have long known that inbreeding can be detrimental. Inbreeding results in less genetic variation, making species more vulnerable if changes occur that require them to adapt.

Gorilla relationships limited in large groups

Mountain gorillas that live in oversized groups may have to limit the number of strong social relationships they form, new research suggests.