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.
An international research team has deciphered a mechanism of the evolutionary arms race in human cells. The findings provide insights into how mobile elements in DNA hijack cellular functions—and how cells can defend themselves ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jul 11, 2025
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118
Scientists have shed new light on the rhino family tree after recovering a protein sequence from a fossilized tooth from more than 20 million years ago. The recovered protein sequences allowed researchers to determine that ...
Evolution
Jul 9, 2025
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78
Proteins degrade over time, making their history hard to study. But new research has uncovered ancient proteins in the enamel of the teeth of 18-million-year-old fossilized mammals from Kenya's Rift Valley, opening a window ...
Evolution
Jul 9, 2025
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54
A new study that looked at gut length variation between cichlid fish species found that some of the genetic loci for the trait are sex-specific even though males and females of the same species have the same gut length. The ...
Evolution
Jul 8, 2025
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17
People often consider evolution to be a process that occurs in nature in the background of human society. But evolution is not separate from human beings. In fact, human cultural practices can influence evolution in wildlife. ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 6, 2025
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45
By using a genetic technique developed at UT Southwestern Medical Center that forces cells to rid themselves of mitochondria, researchers are gaining new insights into the function of these critical organelles. Their findings, ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jul 4, 2025
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414
Like all complex organisms, every human originates from a single cell that multiplies through countless cell divisions. Thousands of cells coordinate, move and exert mechanical forces on each other as an embryo takes shape.
Evolution
Jul 3, 2025
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27
Mitochondria are the body's "energy factories," and their proper function is essential for life. Inside mitochondria, a set of complexes called the oxidative phosphorylation (OxPhos) system acts like a biochemical assembly ...
Evolution
Jul 3, 2025
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23
An international research team led by scientists from the University of Vienna has uncovered new insights into how specialized cell types and communication networks at the interface between mother and fetus evolved over millions ...
Evolution
Jul 3, 2025
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222
It's not easy to look at a sea spider and see an animal so representative of its kind that it may help scientists sort out the evolution of almost everything with eight legs. But that's the potential a new study finds in ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 3, 2025
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196
