Study reveals lactose tolerance happened quickly in Europe

The ability for humans to digest milk as adults has altered our dietary habits and societies for centuries. But when and how that ability—known as lactase persistence or lactose tolerance—occurred and became established ...

A 'door' into the mitochondrial membrane

Mitochondria—the organelles responsible for energy production in human cells—were once free-living organisms that found their way into early eukaryotic cells over a billion years ago. Since then, they have merged seamlessly ...

Genetic mutation trade-offs lead to parallel evolution

Organisms in nature adapt and evolve in complex environments. For example, when subjected to changes in nutrients, antibiotics, and predation, microbes in the wild face the challenge of adapting multiple traits at the same ...

Gene found that causes eyes to wither in cavefish

Mexican cavefish spend their entire lives in the dark. With no need for vision, many of them lost functional eyes. In more than 30 varieties of Mexican cavefish, the eyes stop developing as embryos grow into larvae. Although ...

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