Developmental biology is the branch of biological sciences that investigates the processes by which organisms grow, differentiate, and acquire their form from fertilization to adulthood and often through regeneration and aging. It integrates molecular genetics, cell biology, genomics, and systems biology to elucidate mechanisms such as cell fate specification, pattern formation, morphogenesis, and organogenesis. Developmental biology examines regulatory gene networks, signaling pathways (e.g., Wnt, Hedgehog, Notch, TGF-β), epigenetic modifications, and mechanical forces that coordinate spatial and temporal control of gene expression and cellular behavior, providing a framework for understanding congenital disorders, tissue regeneration, and evolutionary changes in body plans.
Stem cells are the original cell type from which all other cells and tissues in the body develop through a very tightly regulated process. However, how stem cells differentiate in addition to gene-control systems, such as ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 12, 2026
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Most of what scientists know about face development comes from studies in bony vertebrates such as mice, chickens, and zebrafish. However, their evolutionary counterparts, cartilaginous fishes, have remained largely unexplored. ...
Evolution
May 11, 2026
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53
What are the first steps that chart the path for a cell to become a blood cell, neuron cell, or pigment cell? Scientists have developed increasingly powerful tools to track those changes, but one challenge has persisted: ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 11, 2026
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22
We are all born completely helpless, with little of the knowledge and skills we will need to survive as adults. Even our ability to communicate is almost entirely learned from our parents or caregivers.
Plants & Animals
May 11, 2026
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14
A new computational method could dramatically accelerate efforts to map the body's cells in space, according to a study published in Nature Genetics. Spatial multi-omics technologies—often described as ultra-high-resolution ...
Biotechnology
May 7, 2026
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37
Shapes of beaks and snouts come in an extraordinary range of forms, reflecting adaptations to different lifestyles and environments. Yet beneath this diversity lies a paradox: across birds and mammals, faces are built using ...
Evolution
May 7, 2026
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13
For decades, scientists have sought to explain the so-called "Cambrian Explosion," a pivotal period over 500 million years ago when a remarkable diversity of animal life appeared in the fossil record. But rather than a sudden ...
Evolution
May 5, 2026
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69
A Hiroshima-University-led research team has discovered a key gene responsible for the initiation of gemma development, acting as a "master switch" to start asexual reproduction (cloning) in the model plant Marchantia polymorpha ...
Plants & Animals
May 4, 2026
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14
Cell walls are a crucial structure of plant life, protecting cells from damage, giving plants shape, and containing energy-rich nutrients. And yet the process of how the walls begin to form remains mysterious.
Plants & Animals
May 4, 2026
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24
A University of California, Riverside study reports that cells in the earliest stages of human development could be susceptible to infection by SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, offering new insight into how the virus interacts ...
Molecular & Computational biology
May 2, 2026
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