Biology News

MicroRNAs Play Key Role in Regulation of Circadian Rhythms

Zhou et al. revealed that the miR-183/96/182 cluster has functional impacts on circadian rhythms in mammals; they can modulate circadian systems either by direct targeting of the core clock machinery or through a more indirect mechanism that ultimately feeds into the circadian clock. Image credit: Kelvin Ma / CC BY 3.0.
Jan 6, 2021 by News Staff

Formerly thought to be ‘junk DNA,’ microRNAs (miRNAs) are small chains of about two dozen non-coding nucleotides. They are emerging as important regulators of diverse physiological and pathological processes. However, our knowledge of their potential role in regulation of circadian rhythms is limited. In new research, a team of U.S. scientists successfully identified mature miRNAs as cell-autonomous circadian modulators. Zhou et al. revealed that...

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Arabidopsis thaliana. Image credit: Carl Davies, CSIRO / CC BY 3.0.

Flowering Plants Can Be Larks or Night Owls: Study

Jan 4, 2021 by News Staff

A single letter change in DNA code can potentially decide whether a plant is a lark or a night owl, according to a study published in the journal Plant,...

A palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus). Image credit: Doug Janson / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Australian Palm Cockatoos Threatened with Extinction

Dec 29, 2020 by News Staff

Palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus), renowned for their human-like musical drumming behavior, are in severe decline, according to a paper published...

Cancellus heatherae, female holotype, shield length - 4 mm: (A) habitus, dorsal; (B) habitus, right side; (C) habitus, ventral; (D) sixth tergite and telson, dorsal. Image credit: Felder & Lemaitre, doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4890.4.10.

New Species of Hermit Crab Discovered in Gulf of Mexico

Dec 29, 2020 by Natali Anderson

Marine biologists from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History have described a new species of...

Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii). Image credit: Elliott Devries.

Weddell Seals Can Produce Ultrasonic Vocalizations: Study

Dec 28, 2020 by News Staff

Marine biologists from the University of Oregon and the University of New Brunswick have recorded common, previously unknown, ultrasonic vocalizations...

Photographs of the Waray dwarf burrowing snake (Levitonius mirus): holotype (A) and paratypes (B and C). Scale bars - 10 mm (thick) and 1 mm (thin). Image credit: Weinell et al., doi: 10.1643/CH2020110.

Scientists Find Remarkable New Snake Species in Philippines

Dec 24, 2020 by News Staff

The Waray dwarf burrowing snake (Levitonius mirus), a new, ‘miniaturized’ genus and species of cyclocorid snake known from both Samar and Leyte Islands,...

A female tree hyrax in Ngangao Forest, Taita Hills, Kenya. Image credit: Hanna Rosti.

Possible New Species of Tree Hyrax Discovered

Dec 23, 2020 by Natali Anderson

Zoologists believe they have found a previously unknown species of tree hyrax in the Taita Hills, Kenya. A female tree hyrax in Ngangao Forest, Taita Hills,...

Atopopsyllus cionus may carry evidence of an ancestral strain of the bubonic plague (Yersinia pestis). Image credit: George Poinar Jr.

Fleas are Parasitic Scorpionflies, Genetic Analysis Reveals

Dec 23, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

Fleas are not a separate insect order, as previously thought, and are a lineage of scorpionflies, which evolved when they started feeding on the blood...

The flower of Gastrodia agnicellus, showing the stem and part of the rhizome. Image credit: Rick Burian.

Botanist Discovers New Species of Potato Orchid in Madagascar

Dec 21, 2020 by Natali Anderson

Dr. Johan Hermans, a botanist specializing in orchids and an honorary research associate of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, has discovered a new species...

The western gray kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus) in Donnelly Mills, Western Australia. Image credit: Sean Mack / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Study: Kangaroos Can Intentionally Communicate with Humans

Dec 17, 2020 by News Staff

Kangaroos, marsupial mammals that have never been domesticated, can intentionally communicate with humans, according to new research led by the University...

Pika et al. conducted the first systematic, quantitative large-scale assessment of physical and social cognitive performance of common ravens (Corvus corax) with a special focus on development. Image credit: Ralph Capri23auto.

4-Months-Old Ravens Parallel Great Apes in Cognitive Skills, Study Shows

Dec 15, 2020 by News Staff

By 4 months of age, the cognitive performance of common ravens (Corvus corax) in experimental tasks is similar to those of two great ape species, chimpanzees...

An eastern honeybee (Apis cerana). Image credit: Rushen B.

Eastern Honeybees Use Animal Feces to Protect Their Colonies from Giant Hornets

Dec 11, 2020 by News Staff

In a paper published this week in the journal PLoS ONE, an international team of researchers described an extraordinary collective defense used by eastern...

Possibly a new species of beaked whale. Image credit: Simon Ager / Sea Shepherd.

Marine Biologists Discover Possible New Species of Beaked Whale

Dec 10, 2020 by News Staff

Marine biologists working with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society believe that they have discovered a previously unknown species of beaked whale in...

Beta-caryophyllene and caryophyllene oxide-induced horse manure rolling behavior of Ginny, the giant panda at Beijing Zoo. Image credit: Zhou et al., doi: 10.1073/pnas.2004640117.

Wild Giant Pandas Roll in Horse Manure to Increase Cold Tolerance

Dec 9, 2020 by News Staff

Wild giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) not only frequently sniff and wallow in fresh horse manure at low ambient temperatures, but also actively rub...

A microbial cell (center of the picture) detected from a sediment core sample at the depth of 1176.8 m at 120 degrees Celsius. Scale bar - 20 μm. Image credit: JAMSTEC / IODP.

Scientists Find Single-Celled Microorganisms in Deep, Hot Subseafloor Sediments

Dec 4, 2020 by News Staff

An international team of researchers has discovered microbial life, in particular bacterial vegetative cells, in up to 1.2-km-deep and up to 120 degrees...

Ilyophis arx eels swarm around a small bait package deployed on the summit of an unnamed abyssal seamount in the southwestern Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the central Pacific Ocean. Image credit: Deep Sea Fish Ecology Lab, University of Hawaii.

Marine Researchers Discover Largest Aggregation of Fishes Ever Observed at Abyssal Depths

Dec 2, 2020 by News Staff

Marine biologists from the United States and the United Kingdom have recorded over 100 deep water-dwelling cutthroat eels, identified as Ilyophis arx,...

Acromyrmex echinatior worker (left) aggressively interacts with Atta cephalotes soldier (right). Image credit: Li et al., doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-19566-3.

Leaf-Cutter Ants Have Biomineral Armor

Nov 26, 2020 by Natali Anderson

A team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Smithsonian Institution has discovered a dense layer of biogenic high-magnesium...

Willis et al. performed comparative transcriptomic analysis of Caenorhabditis elegans responses to varying degrees of hypergravity and to two spaceflight experiments. Image credit: Willis et al., doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2020.101734.

Spaceflight-Induced Microgravity Affects Genes, Study Shows

Nov 25, 2020 by News Staff

A genetic analysis of transparent nematodes Caenorhabditis elegans  on the International Space Station showed ‘subtle changes’ in about 1,000 genes;...

Xu et al. present the first anatomical and histological evidence of tail repair with regrowth in an archosaur, the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis); the regrown alligator tails constituted approximately 6-18% of the total body length and were morphologically distinct from original tail segments. Image credit: Norbert Nagel / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Young American Alligators Can Regrow Their Tails, Study Shows

Nov 24, 2020 by News Staff

Young American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) have the ability to regrow their tails up to 18% of their total body length, according to a study...

High-resolution bee species richness projections. Image credit: Orr et al., doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.10.053.

Scientists Map Distribution of Bee Species Worldwide

Nov 19, 2020 by News Staff

Using a uniquely comprehensive checklist of bee distributions and over 5,800,000 public bee occurrence records, a team of researchers from China, the United...

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