Genetics

An international team of scientists has sequenced and assembled the genome of a venomous shrew-like insectivore called the Hispaniolan solenodon. The Hispaniolan solenodon (Solenodon paradoxus). Image credit: Eladio Fernandez, Caribbean Nature Photography. The solenodon is a venomous, nocturnal, burrowing, insectivorous mammal belonging to the family Solenodontidae. As one of the …

A team of researchers from the University of Washington and Princeton University has found that the genomes of two groups of modern humans with Denisovan ancestry — individuals from Oceania and from East Asia — are uniquely different, indicating that there were two separate episodes of Denisovan admixture. Ancient hunter-gatherers. …

A large-scale international collaboration called MEGASTROKE has identified 22 new genetic risk factors for stroke, thus tripling the number of gene regions known to affect stroke risk. The findings, published in the journal Nature Genetics, demonstrate shared genetic influences with multiple related vascular conditions, especially blood pressure, but also coronary …

Elephants were once among the most widespread megafaunal families. However, only three species exist today: two species of the genus Loxodonta, the forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis) and the savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana), which are restricted to Africa; and one of the genus Elephas, which is endemic to Asia (Elephas maximus). …

Scientists have produced the first high-quality genomic sequence for the Tasmanian tiger (Thylacinus cynocephalus), also known as the thylacine. Tasmanian tigers (Thylacinus cynocephalus) in captivity. Image credit: University of Melbourne / Museums Victoria. The Tasmanian tiger was a carnivorous marsupial about the size and shape of a medium-to-large size dog: …

New research overturns a long-held assumption that Przewalski’s horses (Equus ferus przewalskii), a rare and endangered animal native to the steppes of central Asia, are the last wild horse species. Instead, phylogenetic analysis shows Przewalski’s horses are the feral descendants of horses herded by the Botai people of northern Kazakhstan …

Cheddar Man — a hunter-gatherer who lived 10,000 years ago — had blue eyes, dark colored curly hair and ‘dark to black’ skin pigmentation, according to new research. Cheddar Man’s facial reconstruction. Image credit: University College London / Natural History Museum, London / Tom Barnes / Channel 4. Cheddar Man …

Researchers have for the first time mapped the entire genome of the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata), one of the most challenging agricultural pests to manage. The results appear in the journal Scientific Reports. The Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata). Image credit: Ben Pélissié / University of Wisconsin – Madison. …

Human skeletal muscles have an epigenetic memory of earlier encounters with growth, according to a Keele University-led study. According to Seaborne et al, ‘muscle memory’ exists at DNA level. Image credit: Composita. Using the latest genome wide techniques, Keele University researcher Adam Sharples and colleagues studied over 850,000 sites on …

An international team of researchers has successfully sequenced, assembled and analyzed the genome of the Mexican axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), an enigmatic salamander-like creature capable of extraordinary regenerative abilities. The Mexican axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum). Image credit: Bouboulski / CC BY-SA 4.0. Axolotls are known only from central Mexico, on the southern …