For generations, scientists have relied on a handful of organisms to study the fundamentals of biology. The usual suspects—fruit flies, zebrafish, and mice, among others—all have short lifespans, small body size, can ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 22, 2021
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83
Every 6 minutes someone is told they're going blind. One of the major causes of human blindness is a disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP), which causes progressive degeneration of the retina and vision loss. Approximately ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Dec 17, 2021
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8
The treadmills in Rachel Wilson's laboratories at Harvard Medical School aren't like any you'll find at a gym. They're spherical, for one, and encased in bowling ball–sized plastic bubbles. They're also built for flies.
Biotechnology
Dec 16, 2021
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180
Humans and fruit flies respond to many of the same tastes—sweet, salty, bitter and so on. The receptors that identify these substances, however, are very different between us and insects. Except when it comes to sour.
Molecular & Computational biology
Dec 13, 2021
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206
Caltech researchers have discovered certain conditions that enable different laboratory animals to regenerate amputated appendages. Upon consuming a diet high in sugar and an essential amino acid, three different species—the ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 8, 2021
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90
Nature is full of big questions that are easy to ask and hard to answer. With some good old-fashioned hard work and help from a humble, gilled vertebrate, though, Michigan State University's Sarah Fitzpatrick and Isabela ...
Evolution
Dec 7, 2021
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152
Fruit flies (Drosophila) are important model organisms for biological research. Molecular tools exist that can turn on (or induce) gene expression in fruit flies, allowing researchers to learn more about the functions of ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 26, 2021
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256
Switching from a restricted diet to eating as much as you like could be beneficial for reproduction in later life, according to new research from the University of East Anglia.
Molecular & Computational biology
Nov 23, 2021
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72
The human genome is littered with selfish genetic elements, which do not seem to benefit their hosts, but instead seek only to propagate themselves.
Evolution
Nov 11, 2021
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126
Why do human look like humans, rather than like chimps? Although we share 99% of our DNA with chimps, our faces and bodies look quite different from each other.
Evolution
Nov 11, 2021
0
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