https://phys.org/biology-news/ en-us Read the latest science news from Phys.org on biology, evolution, microbiology, biotechnology Urbanization and human activities have transformed a significant proportion of the land on Earth, resulting in the formation of urban environments. These urban environments are man-made habitats that often impose several selective pressures on their inhabitants. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-urbanization-trigger-evolution.html Plants & Animals Evolution Fri, 20 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news617009730 In an article published in the journal Flora, researchers at São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil examine some of the strategies developed over eons of evolution by plants in the Cerrado, Brazil's savanna-like biome, to protect themselves and resprout quickly after fire. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-cerrado-combine-strategies-survive.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 12:49:04 EDT news617024941 With the aid of innovative statistical methods, researchers explore the complex interplay between life cycle, environmental factors and genetic information using wheat as an example. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-insights-crop-climate.html Agriculture Fri, 20 Oct 2023 12:37:03 EDT news617024221 Why are so few species able to regenerate damaged or missing body parts, even though regeneration might seem an obvious survival advantage? Researchers at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Multidisciplinary Sciences in Göttingen, Germany, and colleagues have now found a possible explanation in planarian flatworms. Analyzing head regeneration abilities in a large collection of planarian species, they found that these capacities vary greatly and depend on how the different species reproduce. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-worms-regenerate.html Evolution Cell & Microbiology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 11:27:04 EDT news617020021 One third of the global terrestrial carbon stock is stored in grasslands. A new global study implies that this stock may decrease as plant biodiversity is reduced, especially in warm and arid areas. The reason is that a species-poor vegetation seems to decompose faster in the soil. The study was led by Marie Spohn from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-loss-biodiversity-soil-carbon-sequestration.html Ecology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 11:25:03 EDT news617019901 The ability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), a serious respiratory infection, to form snake-like cords was first noted nearly 80 years ago. In a study published October 20 in the journal Cell, investigators report the biophysical mechanisms by which these cords form and demonstrate how several generations of dividing bacteria hang together to create these structures that enable resistance to antibiotics. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-cord-like-aggregates-bacteria-tuberculosis-infections.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news617009720 A team of marine biologists with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Alaska Fishery Science Center has solved the mystery of why approximately 10 billion snow crabs vanished from the Bering Sea back in 2018/2019—the water there was too warm for them. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-billion-crabs-starved-death-bering.html Plants & Animals Ecology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 10:16:05 EDT news617015762 Scientists have discovered flagella in an unexpected place: hot spring-dwelling bacteria from the phylum Chloroflexota. Research shows that flagella were lost in other forms of Chloroflexota that adapted to marine environments hundreds of millions of years ago. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-marine-bacteria-ditched-flagella-traits.html Evolution Cell & Microbiology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:45:48 EDT news617013944 In a Finnish study, significant differences in the gene activity of the fetal intestine, brain and placenta were identified, depending on the microbes in the mother's body and the compounds produced by them. The findings indicate that maternal microbes are important to her offspring's development and health. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-maternal-microbiota-affect-fetal.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:32:02 EDT news617013119 Golden retrievers are one of the most popular breeds of dogs. But research shows they have up to a 65% chance of dying from cancer. In a new study, University of California, Davis, researchers set out to find if certain genetic factors could help their survival rate. But instead of searching for genes associated with a cancer diagnosis in the breed, they instead chose to look for genes associated with longer life. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-golden-longer-gene-longevity.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Thu, 19 Oct 2023 17:06:04 EDT news616953962 In an ancient hot spring haunt of Incan rulers, researchers discovered a new species of tiny, shrimp-like scavengers known as amphipods thriving at record temperatures that can cook other crustaceans to death. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-ancient-hot-inca-rulers-scientists.html Evolution Ecology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 16:23:04 EDT news616951381 Rice University scientists used a commercially available mixed-reality headset with custom-designed software to measure and analyze forest floor vegetation, demonstrating a correlation between animal diversity and the mapped habitat of a Tanzanian national park. According to the paper published in the journal Ecology, the greater the microhabitat surface area, the richer the biodiversity of its mammals. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scans-tropical-forest-mixed-reality-device.html Ecology Biotechnology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 16:02:03 EDT news616950121 They're one of the most endangered mammals in the world, and a species you may never have even heard of: North Atlantic right whales. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-boats-north-atlantic-whales.html Ecology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:23:22 EDT news616944195 Every 13 or 17 years, billions of cicadas emerge from the ground to reproduce in eastern North American deciduous forests. One of the largest emergence events of these insects happened in 2021 when the Brood X cicadas emerged. Researchers who studied that once-in-a-generation event are now unveiling the impact this occurrence had on forest ecosystems, specifically on birds, caterpillars and trees. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-unearthing-ecological-impacts-cicada-emergences.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news616929643 For tens of thousands of years, evolution shaped tomatoes through natural mutations. Then, humans came along. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-genome-natural-mutation-variations-tomato.html Molecular & Computational biology Agriculture Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news616926610 Bird populations are in rapid decline across North America. While climate change is just one of the many factors influencing North American birds, its effects are significant and can interact with other stressors, such as habitat loss. A team of University of California, Davis, researchers found that the effects of extreme temperatures on avian reproduction can vary depending on the type of environment that birds call home. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-bird-reproduction-agricultural.html Ecology Agriculture Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news616926619 To help struggling salmon populations, the state of Washington is legally required to replace hundreds of culverts that divert streams under roadways. The state transportation department is replacing old, rusting metal pipes with broad, concrete promenades that provide more gradual gradients and gentler flows for salmon swimming upstream to access more spawning grounds. The full scope of the effort will last 17 years and cost $3.8 billion. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-dna-washington-culvert-spawning-salmon.html Ecology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 13:30:57 EDT news616941052 Touch plays a fundamental role in our physical, emotional, and social well-being. From a primary way of conveying emotions to sensory integration, it is crucial for the complex growth of cognitive, emotional, social, and behavioral abilities especially during the early development of infants and children. Touch allows us to build connections with others, eases pain and stress, and helps us to understand the world around us giving crucial information such as the texture, temperature, and shape of objects. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-rigidity-function-protein-condensates-involved.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:49:42 EDT news616934978 Researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have created a cutting-edge platform consisting of a dual-laser nonlinear optical microscope to investigate the dynamics of muscle satellite cells (MuSCs) during the process of muscle regeneration. This breakthrough has identified new mechanisms of MuSC behavior in muscle repair, paving the way for the development of targeted therapeutic strategies for muscle-related disorders. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-microscope-platform-unveil-intricacies-skeletal.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:15:05 EDT news616932784 A team led by Tappei Mishina at the RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR) has discovered that parasites manipulate their hosts using stolen genes that they likely acquired through a phenomenon called horizontal gene transfer. The study was published in Current Biology on October 19. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-stolen-genes-parasitic-behavior-host.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616924497 Humanity must cut carbon emissions and use farmland more efficiently to protect our planet's remaining wilderness, new research shows. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-high-latitude-wilderness-threatened-agriculture-climate.html Ecology Agriculture Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616924554 Scientists at Tufts University School of Medicine have developed a genome-scale metabolic model or "subway map" of key metabolic activities of the bacterium that causes Lyme disease. Using this map, they have successfully identified two compounds that selectively target routes only used by Lyme disease to infect a host. Their research was published October 19 in the journal mSystems. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-subway-lyme-disease-pathways-potential.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616926170 A Ph.D. researcher at the University of St Andrews studying microbes in the human gut has discovered a new molecule that acts as a "distress signal" when viruses are detected. The research is published in the journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-molecule-combats-viral-infection.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:57:03 EDT news616931821 Researchers are studying the dramatic physical transformation that some insects undergo to give birth to live young. This includes suppressing their immune systems to accommodate babies, which is something some insects and people have in common. Understanding how these systems work can help improve treatments for fibromyalgia and other immune disorders. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-roaches-suppress-immune-birth.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:56:04 EDT news616931762 An international team of biologists, public health specialists and infectious disease experts reports that the current near-global bird flu epidemic has its roots in Europe and Africa. In their study, published in the journal Nature, the group analyzed bird flu data from multiple animal health databases. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-current-bird-flu-epidemic-europe.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:46:11 EDT news616931166 G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are the largest and most diverse group of cell surface proteins in humans. These receptors, which can be seen as "traffic directors," transmit signals from the outside to the inside of cells and are involved in many physiological processes. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-function-human-cell-surface-protein.html Cell & Microbiology Biotechnology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:38:04 EDT news616930681 An international team of biologists, animal management specialists, geneticists and forestry managers has discovered a new species of "dragon lizard" in Laos—one with very impressive camouflage capabilities. In their paper published in the journal Zoological Research, the group describes how the lizards were found and what they learned from two samples they captured. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-dragon-lizard-species-camouflage-capabilities.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:20:37 EDT news616929629 Of all the mammals, bats have one of the poorest fossil records, with paleontologists estimating that about 80% of it is missing. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-fossilized-skull-vital-piece-evolution.html Evolution Paleontology & Fossils Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:04:04 EDT news616928641 Scientists have discovered the deepest known evidence of coral reef bleaching, more than 90 meters below the surface of the Indian Ocean. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-deepest-evidence-coral-reef.html Plants & Animals Ecology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:02:04 EDT news616928521 Proteins are important molecules that perform a variety of functions essential to life. To function properly, many proteins must fold into specific structures. However, the way proteins fold into specific structures is still largely unknown. Researchers from the University of Tokyo have developed a novel physical theory that can accurately predict how proteins fold. Their model can predict things previous models cannot. Improved knowledge of protein folding could offer huge benefits to medical research, as well as to various industrial processes. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-physical-theory-protein.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 05:00:01 EDT news616863677