Roundworms are a colloquial designation for nematodes, a highly diverse phylum of unsegmented, bilaterally symmetrical pseudocoelomate animals characterized by a cylindrical body, complete digestive tract, and a chitinous cuticle that undergoes molting. As a research topic, roundworms encompass free-living and parasitic species that serve as models in developmental biology, genetics, neurobiology, ecology, and host–pathogen interactions, with Caenorhabditis elegans being the most extensively studied. Investigations focus on their conserved molecular pathways, reproductive strategies, environmental adaptations, and impact on human, animal, and plant health, including their role in soil ecosystems and as agents of helminthic disease.
A newly published study from the University of Guam sheds light on a tiny but powerful ally in the soil and how it could help Guam farmers and growers protect their crops naturally. Published on Dec. 11, 2025, in the journal ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 2, 2026
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Studying social behavior is crucial for understanding how certain neuromodulatory pathways—like the serotonin pathway, which influences mood and social interactions—are regulated. Kavita Babu, Professor at the Centre for ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Feb 25, 2026
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Researchers at the School of Biological Sciences of The University of Hong Kong (HKU) have uncovered how eukaryotic cells can control gene activity even after losing one of their major gene-regulatory systems during evolution. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 2, 2026
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Soybean farmers around the world face a persistent and costly enemy hidden beneath the soil: soybean cyst nematode (SCN), a microscopic roundworm that attacks plant roots and drains yields. SCN is one of the most damaging ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 24, 2026
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When observing small worms under a microscope, one might observe something very surprising: the worms appear to make a sweeping motion to clean their own environment. Physicists at the University of Amsterdam, Georgia Tech ...
General Physics
Jan 5, 2026
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While the spread of raccoons in Europe is often discussed, their companion tends to remain unnoticed: The raccoon roundworm Baylisascaris procyonis arrived in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century with the first raccoons ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 19, 2025
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Halalaimus is a microscopic nematode genus commonly found in sediment on the seafloor. It lives 1–5 cm below the sediment surface and grazes on bacteria or organic materials in the sediment.
Plants & Animals
Dec 18, 2025
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31
Nematodes discovered in the Great Salt Lake belong to at least one species that is new to science, and possibly two. A University of Utah research team has published a new paper characterizing the tiny roundworm. The team ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 12, 2025
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68
A crew of tiny worms will be heading on a mission to the International Space Station in 2026 that will help scientists understand how humans can travel through space safely, using a Leicester-built space pod.
Space Exploration
Nov 20, 2025
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36
UC Davis nematologists, including Valerie Williamson, professor emerita in the Department of Plant Pathology, and associate professor Shahid Siddique, Department of Entomology and Nematology, have long wondered how a plant-parasitic ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Nov 19, 2025
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