Primates are an order (Primates) of eutherian mammals characterized by a suite of derived traits associated with arboreal locomotion and enhanced sensory and cognitive capacities. Defining features include grasping extremities with opposable thumbs and, in many taxa, opposable great toes; nails instead of claws on most digits; a postorbital bar or plate; forward-facing orbits enabling stereoscopic vision; and a relatively enlarged brain, especially in regions mediating vision and complex behavior. The order encompasses strepsirrhines (lemurs, lorises), tarsiers, and haplorhine simians (monkeys and apes, including humans), and is a core model group in evolutionary biology, comparative anatomy, neurobiology, and behavioral ecology.
Leipzig Zoo in central Germany is a world-leading center of great ape research. Recent studies have seen chimpanzees there using touchscreen controls to navigate virtual forests and locate food rewards—applying similar techniques ...
Evolution
Jun 3, 2026
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Walking through the savanna-woodland landscape of Boé National Park, Guinea-Bissau, you might encounter a tree covered in gnarled scars, with an accumulation of rocks surrounding its base.
Plants & Animals
Jun 3, 2026
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A fossil mammal tooth smaller than a grain of rice does not announce itself loudly. It must be hard won from sediment and stone. Then, under a microscope, it reveals itself—no longer just a speck of blackness but a surface ...
Evolution
Jun 2, 2026
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A team of researchers led by Luigi Naldini at the San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-Tiget) has developed a new strategy to significantly improve the precision and safety of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in human ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 1, 2026
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Australian researchers have trained lab-grown brain cells on a silicon computer chip to play the nineties shooter game "Doom" and say they are just scratching the surface of what the neurons could be capable of doing.
Biotechnology
May 31, 2026
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It's tricky to make an exact copy of yourself. Or at least it is for cells undergoing mitosis, where cells replicate everything inside of them, including their neatly packaged DNA, then split in half. Rice University professor ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 29, 2026
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Orangutans have one of the slowest life histories among mammals, and a new study now shows just how long orangutan mothers continue to breastfeed their offspring. An international team has demonstrated that wild orangutan ...
Plants & Animals
May 29, 2026
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During animal cell division, a highly synchronized and tightly regulated dance of chromosomes takes place, ensuring the chromosomes split correctly into the two cells. Spindle fibers—complex machinery responsible for choreographing ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 27, 2026
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A 2021 outbreak of leptospirosis that sickened more than 200 dogs in Los Angeles County reveals critical gaps in vaccination practices and raises broader concerns about the spread of the disease between animals and people, ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 26, 2026
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While scientists have known for more than two decades that all cells use a strategy called RNA interference to regulate gene expression, a new study is the first to describe how a specific protein manages the step-by-step ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 26, 2026
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