Biological evolution is the heritable change in characteristics of biological populations over successive generations, driven by mechanisms such as mutation, recombination, genetic drift, gene flow, and natural and sexual selection. It operates through changes in allele frequencies within gene pools, constrained and shaped by developmental, physiological, and ecological contexts. Evolutionary processes generate adaptation, diversification, and extinction, producing hierarchical patterns from microevolutionary shifts within populations to macroevolutionary dynamics among lineages. At the molecular level, evolution involves sequence variation, genomic rearrangements, and changes in gene regulation, which collectively underlie phenotypic diversity and the emergence of complex biological organization.
A team from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology has discovered a new class of bacterial mobile genetic elements that use giant viruses—known as jumbo phages—to move between cells. The work, published in the ...
Cell & Microbiology
Nov 3, 2025
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28
The next time you go wild swimming, whether in a lake, river or sea, you are probably sharing the water with one of your tiniest, yet closest relatives.
Evolution
Oct 29, 2025
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Could yeast and humans be any more different? Going by looks alone, probably not. But peering into our genomes reveals surprising similarities. That's because we share a common ancestor called LECA (last eukaryotic common ...
Cell & Microbiology
Oct 28, 2025
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For billions of years, bacteria have waged an ongoing arms race against viruses, evolving many defense mechanisms against the infectious invaders. Now, these evolutions may offer innovative ways for humans to fight viruses, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Oct 27, 2025
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28
New research has revealed how more upright limb postures helped ancient reptiles overcome the biomechanical constraints of body size, paving the way for the evolution of larger sizes in archosaurs—a group that includes crocodilians, ...
Evolution
Oct 24, 2025
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65
Body size evolution has long been a core topic in paleontological research. Cope's rule describes the tendency for body size to increase during the evolution of many lineages. However, a new study focusing on bryozoans, a ...
Evolution
Oct 23, 2025
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Evolutionary biologists have long believed that the human-biting mosquito, Culex pipiens form molestus, evolved from the bird-biting form, Culex pipiens form pipiens, in subways and cellars in northern Europe over the past ...
Evolution
Oct 23, 2025
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26
Humans evolved large brains and flat faces at a surprisingly rapid pace compared to other apes, likely reflecting the evolutionary advantages of these traits, finds a new analysis of ape skulls by UCL researchers.
Plants & Animals
Oct 21, 2025
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907
An international study changes the view that exposure to the toxic metal lead is largely a post-industrial phenomenon. The research reveals that our human ancestors were periodically exposed to lead for over two million years, ...
Evolution
Oct 15, 2025
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For more than a century, scientists have been piecing together the puzzle of human evolution, examining fossil evidence to understand the transition from our earliest ancestors to modern humans.
Evolution
Oct 15, 2025
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