Biology

An international team of researchers has discovered a new species of tree growing in the forests of the Usambara Mountains in Tanzania. Mischogyne iddii grows white flowers. Image credit: Andrew R. Marshall. The newfound tree species belongs to the genus Mischogyne (family Annonaceae, tribe Monodoreae), a group of small- to …

Insects can enter a neuropathic pain-like state after nerve injury, according to a new study in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster). Khuong et al offer the first genetic evidence of what causes chronic pain in Drosophila melanogaster. Image credit: Virvoreanu Laurentiu. Chronic pain is defined as persistent pain that continues after …

Using a technique called cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), a team of scientists from the United States and Canada has captured atomic-level, 3D images of the Cas9 enzyme before and after cutting the DNA. The images reveal new information about how the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing works, which may help researchers develop versions …

According to new research, gorillas have complex social structures, from lifetime bonds forged between distant relations, to social tiers with striking parallels to traditional human societies. The results, published in the July 3 issue of the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, indicate that the hierarchical social organization observed in …

In a study published online this week in the journal eLife, researchers from the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth examined how environmental stressors put on fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) can influence the phenotypes of their offspring. A fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster). Image credit: Sanjay Acharya / CC BY-SA 4.0. …

Snowball is a male sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua galerita eleonora). In 2007, he garnered YouTube fame for his uncanny ability to dance — including head bobs and foot steps — to the beat of the Backstreet Boys. According to a new study published in the journal Current Biology, Snowball has a …

In a review paper published this week in the journal Trends in Plant Science, University of California, Santa Cruz’s Professor Lincoln Taiz and colleagues argue against the suggestion from ‘plant neurobiologists’ that plants possess consciousness. According to Taiz et al, plants don’t think, they grow. Image credit: Johannes Plenio. The …

Free-floating mats of brown macroalgae called Sargassum in the center of the North Atlantic were first reported by Christopher Columbus in the 15th century CE. Since 2011, these mats have increased in density and size to generate a 5,500-mile (8,850 km) long belt that extends from West Africa to the …

A team of scientists at MIT has developed a system for converting protein sequences into audible sound that resembles musical passages. Then, reversing the process, the researchers can introduce some variations into the sounds and convert them back into brand-new proteins. Yu et al report a method to translate amino …

An international team of ornithologists has identified two new, cryptic species of birds — a long-tailed cuckoo and a barbet — living in West Africa. The yellow-spotted barbet (Buccanodon duchaillui). Image credit: Romain Risso / CC BY-SA 3.0. Belgian ornithologist Peter Boesman and Professor Nigel Collar of the UK’s Natural …