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Categories: Biology: Cell Biology, Ecology: Extinction

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New research reveals a chain of environmental disasters. These took place in what is today's South Africa, during an ancient time period called the Early-Middle Devonian. The crises led to the extinction of a unique group of marine animals called the Malvinoxhosan biota.

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People who eat just two servings of red meat per week may have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to people who eat fewer servings, and the risk increases with greater consumption, according to a new study. Researchers also found that replacing red meat with healthy plant-based protein sources, such as nuts and legumes, or modest amounts of dairy foods, was associated with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.

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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 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.

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Yeast cells are widely used to study G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), a large group of cell surface proteins in humans. However, several of these proteins lose their function when introduced into yeast cells. To tackle this issue, researchers developed an innovative strategy to restore GPCR function in yeast cells by inducing random mutations. Their findings can help understand GPCRs better and could pave the way to therapeutic breakthroughs for many diseases.

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A research team has discovered that parasites manipulate their hosts using stolen genes that they likely acquired through a phenomenon called horizontal gene transfer.

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New soft, implantable fibers can deliver light to major nerves through the body. They are an experimental tool for scientists to explore the causes and potential treatments for peripheral nerve disorders in animal models.

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Researchers have harnessed the power of baker's yeast to create a cost-effective and highly efficient approach for unraveling how plants synthesize medicinal compounds, and used the new method to identify key enzymes in a kratom tree.

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Study creates a mosquito family tree to better understand disease transmission and host choice.

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A vaccine designed to protect against three different deadly coronaviruses shows success in mouse studies, demonstrating the viability of a pan-coronavirus vaccine developed by researchers at the Duke Human Vaccine Institute.

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A microscopic discovery will not only enable scientists to understand the microbial world around us but could also provide a new way to control CRISPR-Cas biotechnologies.

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The crown-of-thorns starfish is nature's ultimate coral predator that has a circle of life perfectly adapted to warming waters.

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Octopuses are fascinating animals -- and serve as important model organisms in neuroscience, cognition research and developmental biology. To gain a deeper understanding of their biology and evolutionary history, validated data on the composition of their genome is needed, which has been lacking until now. Scientists have now been able to close this gap and, in a new study, determined impressive figures: 2.8 billion base pairs -- organized in 30 chromosomes. What sounds so simple is the result of complex, computer-assisted genome analyses and comparisons with the genomes of other cephalopod species.

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A new study finds that greenspace -- the vegetation in a neighborhood's yards, parks and public spaces -- has a positive impact on a key genetic marker associated with exposure to stress. However, the study also finds that the positive impact of greenspace isn't enough to compensate for other environmental challenges, such as air pollution.

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A research group has developed a new method for studying how cancer cells function in softer and stiffer tissue environments. This insight challenges the existing paradigm, opening up new possibilities for research in cancer biology and tissue engineering.

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Using a small bird's nest-making process as a model, researchers have developed a nontoxic process for making cellulose gels. 

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Whaling in the 20th century destroyed 99% of the Eastern North Pacific fin whale breeding population. Because there is enough genetic diversity, current conservation measures should help the population rebound without becoming inbred. The future of fin whales in the Gulf of California depends on the recovery of the Eastern North Pacific population.

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Researchers say mapping the genetic code of the brushtail possum will benefit those working to both conserve and control the animal.

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The DNA double helix is composed of two DNA molecules whose sequences are complementary to each other. The stability of the duplex can be fine-tuned in the lab by controlling the amount and location of imperfect complementary sequences. Fluorescent markers bound to one of the matching DNA strands make the duplex visible, and fluorescence intensity increases with increasing duplex stability. Now, researchers have succeeded in creating fluorescent duplexes that can generate any of 16 million colors -- a work that surpasses the previous 256 colors limitation. This very large palette can be used to 'paint' with DNA and to accurately reproduce any digital image on a miniature 2D surface with 24-bit color depth.

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A team has studied the mountainous star coral, Orbicella faveolata, to determine whether coral populations that have survived higher temperatures can pass their heat tolerance on to their offspring.  To the scientists' surprise, the results showed the opposite: The offspring from a population that is less heat-tolerant performed better when exposed to high temperatures than their counterparts from a heat-tolerant population. The findings counter the commonly held notion among scientists that if coral parents can handle the heat, so should their offspring. 

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Now is the time to identify the conditions that cause plants to die. Doing so will allow us to better protect plants by choosing conservation targets more strategically, botanists argue.