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Phylogenomics Provide Insight About Mosquitoes’ Previous Host Use

The mapping of the mosquito’s tree of life by North Carolina State University researchers and international partners is a significant step in comprehending key characteristics, such as how the insects select their hosts, feed on blood, and transmit disease.

19 Oct 2023

The Story of Sapiens and Neanderthals as Told by Genomes

Neanderthals, who had lived for hundreds of thousands of years on the western half of the Eurasian continent, gave way to Homo sapiens, who had come from Africa, some 40,000 years ago.

19 Oct 2023

Bat Skull Sheds Light on Evolution of Echolocation

Bats have one of the poorest fossil records among mammals, with approximately 80% of it estimated as missing.

19 Oct 2023

Genomic Surveillance Shows Antibiotic Resistance in Ghana Driven by Clinical Use of Antibiotics

Some strains of heavily antibiotic-resistant bacteria in Ghana are not successful at spreading outside of the hospital, suggesting that control measures can be focused on clinical settings to help curb treatment-resistant infections.

17 Oct 2023

"Old School" Genetics may be Just Fine for Species Conservation, Study Suggests

In the world of threatened and endangered species conservation, the genomic revolution has raised some complicated questions: How can scientists justify assessing species genetic diversity without consulting entire genomes now that they can be sequenced?

17 Oct 2023

Study Reconstructs Skull of 12-Million-Year-Old Great Ape Species

A new study led by scientists at the American Museum of Natural History, Brooklyn College, and the Catalan Institute of Paleontology Miquel Crusafont has reconstructed the well-preserved but damaged skull of a great ape species that lived about 12 million years ago.

17 Oct 2023

FSU Scientists Uncover Role of Oxygen in Ordovician Marine Life Boom

Florida State University scientists have uncovered answers to a conundrum in Earth's history: Why did marine life experience an extraordinary boom millions of years ago?

16 Oct 2023

New Findings Suggest Endosymbiotic Origin of Apoptosis

Apoptosis, frequently described as programmed cell death, is a fundamental mechanism essential for the growth and development of multicellular organisms.

13 Oct 2023

DNA from 19th Century Fruit Flies Sheds Light on Evolution

Back when the biggest fly enthusiasts of 19th century Sweden -; Carl Fredrik Fallén, for one, and later Johan Wilhelm Zetterstedt -; were collecting insects for what would become Lund University's entomological collections, they wondered exactly what was that buzzing coming from their can of raisins.

13 Oct 2023

Increased Pain Sensitivity and Neanderthal Gene Variants

According to a recent study co-led by UCL researchers, those who contain three gene variations acquired from Neanderthals are more susceptible to specific types of pain.

11 Oct 2023

Uncovering the Genetic Landscape of Lactic Acid Bacteria

An international team of researchers has released the initial all-encompassing comparative analysis of the pan-genome of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), a group of microorganisms crucial to both natural ecosystems and the food industry.

11 Oct 2023

Measuring the Long-Term Survival of Lizards in the Wild

Over extended periods of time, many species change little or not at all. The same justification is frequently used by biologists to explain why this is so: natural selection prefers those with more balanced traits.

11 Oct 2023

Gene-Edited Chickens in Fight Against Bird Flu

Scientists have used gene editing techniques to identify and change parts of chicken DNA that could limit the spread of the bird flu virus in the animals.

11 Oct 2023

Plants Evolve Benzoxazinoid Biosynthesis Independently

Individual species of very different plant families produce special indole-derived defense compounds called benzoxazinoids.

10 Oct 2023

Ancient Frogs Provide First Molecular Evidence of Ginger Coloration

Paleontologists at University College Cork (UCC) have achieved a significant breakthrough by discovering the first molecular evidence of phaeomelanin, the pigment responsible for producing ginger coloration, within the fossil record.

9 Oct 2023

Grass Gene Transfer Could Inform Future Crop Development

Grass may transfer genes from their neighbors in the same way genetically modified crops are made, a new study has revealed.

6 Oct 2023

The Distinct Divergence in the Genetic Code

A protist’s genome revealed an apparently unusual divergence in the DNA coding signaling the end of a gene, indicating the need for more research to better comprehend this varied group of creatures.

6 Oct 2023

New Genomic Study Could Help Save Pangolins From Extinction

A new research paper, published in Molecular Biology and Evolution by Oxford University Press, has introduced an extensive collection of genomic resources for pangolins, commonly known as scaly anteaters.

6 Oct 2023

Research Provides a Comprehensive Set of Genomic Resources for Pangolins

A new paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution, published by Oxford University Press, for the first time provides a comprehensive set of genomic resources for pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, that researchers believe will be integral for protecting these threatened mammals.

5 Oct 2023