Thomas Cronin, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
We’re used to thinking of our eyes detecting light as the foundation of our visual system. But what’s going on in other cells throughout the body that can detect light, too?
Simple and inexpensive gene-editing technology such as CRISPR has made the creation of genetically modified organisms much easier. But could nature still keep the upper hand?
Is the evolution of human-like intelligence inevitable, or exceptional?
Anton Jankovoy/shutterstock
How can life on Earth help us understand life in space? To answer this question, we compare biological clocks and geological rocks and find that they tick uniformly.
Today algorithms are ubiquitous, yet often misunderstood. Rather than mysterious entities, they’re closer to recipes, and the quality of the output depends on the input – in their case, data.
Once the coat around the seed is moistened, the embryo cells expand and burst out in a process called germination.
shutterstock/NUM LPPHOTO
A seed contains nearly everything a tree needs to get growing. Just add a dash of water, a bit of warmth and the right location, and you’ll be seeing green in no time.
Laboratory mice are among the first animals to have their diseases treated by CRISPR.
tiburi via Pixabay.com
A new research paper reports dangerous side effects in CRISPR-edited mice. Some scientists are pushing back, placing blame for the unwanted mutations on the experiment, not the technique.
The beautiful Chinese cave gecko, or Goniurosaurus luii, is highly prized by poachers.
Carola Jucknies
Biologists have a centuries-old tradition of publishing on rare and endangered species. But poachers are using open-access information to target valuable and fragile new species.
These birds spend long periods, often asleep, standing on one leg. Is it passive biomechanics or active nervous system control of their muscles that allows them to do easily what’s impossible for us?
Precision editing DNA allows for some amazing applications.
Ian Haydon
Researchers are starting to harness the potential of this much-hyped gene editing technique – with coming applications in medicine, biology and agriculture.
Polysaccharide molecules such as cellulose, seen here, are long chains of sugars that are very hard to break apart. Enzymes – proteins that can degrade polysaccharides – have many industrial uses.
CeresVesta/Wikipedia
Bio-prospecting is the search for useful materials from natural sources. A biologist explains what we can learn from bacteria about breaking down plant material, and how we can use that knowledge.
Enzymes, the catalysts of biology, can engulf and break down hundreds of nerve agent molecules per second.
Image: Pymol. PDB 4E3T rcsb.org
Scientists invented chemical weapons; some are now working to destroy them. New biomolecular design techniques let researchers design proteins that can destroy nerve agents in bodies.
Developing lizard embryo beneath placental tissues.
Oliver Griffith
Taking the placenta as a case study, researchers are able to piece together how new organs evolve, by repurposing old tissues and using them to do new jobs.
How does one set of genes result in huge horns in males and none at all in females?
Alex Wild
How can the same basic genome produce such different forms in the two sexes of a single species? It turns out one gene can encode for various things, depending on the order its instructions are read.