Bee disease spreading via flowers

One in 11 flowers carries disease-causing parasites known to contribute to bee declines, according to a new study that identifies how flowers act as hubs for transmitting diseases to bees...

How mosquitoes got their taste for human blood and what it means for the future

To predict and help control the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses, it's important to know where and why certain mosquitoes got their taste for biting humans in the first place. Now,...

Shifts seen in breeding times and duration for 73 boreal bird species over 40 years

Forest ecologist report finding ''clear evidence of a contraction of the breeding period'' among boreal birds in Finland over a 43-year span for which good quality data were available.

Hot or cold, venomous vipers still quick to strike

Most reptiles move slower when temperatures drop, but venomous rattlesnakes appear to be an exception. The cold affects them, but not as much as scientists expected.

Coronavirus lockdowns reduced human 'rumble'

Ground vibrations produced by human activity took a big dive when Covid restrictions were in force.

COVID-19 kills 13 Felician sisters in Michigan convent

Thirteen Felician sisters at a Michigan convent have died from COVID-19, 12 in a one-month span, and another six weeks later.

Biologists shed light on how cells move resources

Florida State University researchers have new insight into the tiny packages that cells use to move molecules, a structure that is key to cellular metabolism, drug delivery and more.

Boats and ships leave baby reef fish vulnerable to predators

Juvenile fishes have one of the highest mortality rates compared to other life stages. Within two days of settling into a reef almost 60 percent are consumed by predators. Our...

Foxes have been eating humans' leftovers for 42,000 years

The diets of ancient foxes were influenced by humans, and these small carnivores might be tracers of human activity over time.

Meet Cosmo, a bull calf designed to produce 75% male offspring

Scientists have successfully produced a bull calf, named Cosmo, who was genome-edited as an embryo so that he'll produce more male offspring.

Neanderthals may have had a lower threshold for pain

Pain is mediated through specialized nerve cells that are activated when potentially harmful things affect various parts of our bodies. These nerve cells have a special ion channel that has...

Highly stable amyloid protein aggregates may help plant seeds last longer

Highly stable polymeric "amyloid" proteins, best known for their role in Alzheimer's disease, have been mostly studied in animals. But a new study on the garden pea publishing July 23,...

New CRISPR DNA base editor expands the landscape of precision genome editing

New genome-editing technologies developed by researchers in J. Keith Joung's laboratory at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have the potential to help understand disease-associated genetic mutations that are based on...

New native Hawaiian land snail species discovered, first in 60 years

Scientists have described a new native Hawaiian land snail species, sounding a rare, hopeful note in a story rife with extinction.

Genome-mapping reveals 'supermutation' resulting in cryptic coloration in stick insects

Traits that form an organism's appearance, including color, are determined by many different genes and the creature's environment.

Look: Police use 'Animal Crossing' game to find owner of lost Nintendo Switch

Police in Taiwan said they identified the owner of a lost Nintendo Switch by using a function in the popular game Animal Crossing to send postcards to other players.

Learning how to battle harmful algae blooms

Throughout the world's oceans in global nutrient cycles, food chains, and climate, as well as increasingly in human-made industrial processes, a diverse set of planktonic microbes, such as algae, play...

Where are arctic mosquitoes most abundant in Greenland and why?

Bzz! It's mosquito season in Greenland. June and July marks the period when Arctic mosquitoes (Aedes nigripes) are in peak abundance, buzzing about the tundra. While Arctic mosquitoes serve as...

PolyA-miner assesses the effect of alternative polyadenylation on gene expression

Researchers with an interest in unraveling gene regulation in human health and disease are expanding their horizons by closely looking at alternative polyadenylation (APA), an under-charted mechanism that regulates gene...

Diverse variola virus (smallpox) strains were widespread in northern Europe in the Viking Age

Smallpox, one of the most devastating human diseases, killed between 300 million and 500 million people in the 20th century alone. We recovered viral sequences from 13 northern European individuals,...

Erratum for the Research Article: "Global wildlife trade across the tree of life," by B. R. Scheffers, B. F. Oliveira, I. Lamb, D. P. Edwards

Cell growth dilutes the cell cycle inhibitor Rb to trigger cell division

Cell size is fundamental to cell physiology. For example, cell size determines the spatial scale of organelles and intracellular transport and thereby affects biosynthesis. Although some genes that affect mammalian...

Large-scale mutation in the evolution of a gene complex for cryptic coloration

The types of mutations affecting adaptation in the wild are only beginning to be understood. In particular, whether structural changes shape adaptation by suppressing recombination or by creating new mutations...

An evolution-based model for designing chorismate mutase enzymes

The rational design of enzymes is an important goal for both fundamental and practical reasons. Here, we describe a process to learn the constraints for specifying proteins purely from evolutionary...

Structural basis for membrane insertion by the human ER membrane protein complex

A defining step in the biogenesis of a membrane protein is the insertion of its hydrophobic transmembrane helices into the lipid bilayer. The nine-subunit endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane protein complex...

Chaperone-mediated autophagy regulates the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells

Embryonic stem cells can propagate indefinitely in a pluripotent state, able to differentiate into all types of specialized cells when restored to the embryo. What sustains their pluripotency during propagation...

Much maligned elsewhere, bats get star treatment in central France

At a museum in central France, researchers tenderly feed insects and kitten milk formula to tiny orphaned bats—creatures widely reviled for their role in human disease outbreaks, most recently COVID-19.

Complex developmental patterns are under the control of surprisingly simple signals

Proper embryonic development of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is governed by patterns of protein activity bequeathed to the fertilized egg by its mother. While the embryo is still a...