In a recent study from UCSF and MIT, researchers found that they could identify evolutionary differences in biological function by comparing the results of CRISPR screens in humans and chimpanzees. Continue reading Scientists compare CRISPR screens in chimpanzee and human cells to understand evolution
No one can escape aging. But scientists have found that turtles and tortoises live much longer and barely age compared to humans and other animals. Continue reading Turtles barely age compared to humans and other animals
A new look at the louse family tree has revealed that many lice hosted by mammals, including the human head louse, have coevolved with mammals over tens of millions of years. Continue reading Itching for a change? Some lice have evolved alongside their hosts for millions of years.
by Misha Guptafigures by Xiaomeng Han For close to two centuries, humans have been studying the biological past using fossil records. In recent history, we have added the ability to reconstruct the sequence of our DNA to our arsenal. Furthermore, phylogenetic trees (structures that define the evolutionary relationships in the line of descent from a common ancestor) have been created for all manners of organisms, … Continue reading Viral Fossil Records: A Look into the Past! (and the Future?)
Scientists have characterized a component of bull ant venom that causes hypersensitivity to touch and heat in mammals Continue reading Ant Venom Holds Clues for Pain Pathways in Mammals
by Piyush Nandafigures by Corena Loeb Around 600 million years ago, single-celled life transitioned to multicellular life forms, begetting a paradigm shift in the definition of life on earth. This was an event so remarkable in earth’s timeline that it would set the stage for the evolution of complex organisms, from sponges to the human body we each reside in. These complex life forms eventually … Continue reading Grand Evolutionary Transitions: The eruption of multicellularity
A new study shows that some lizards can use air bubbles to breathe underwater. Continue reading Air Bubbles Allow Some Lizards to Breathe Underwater
An international team of researchers sequenced the microbes from dental scrapings of Neanderthals to understand more about their diet. Continue reading Understanding Our Evolution through our Mouth Microbes
Research has revealed distinct sleeping pattern in octopuses, providing new evolutionary insights into speciation. Continue reading Cephalopod Resting Cycles Provide Evolutionary Insights
by Sophia Swartzfigures by Shreya Mantri The first reports of a mysterious, pneumonia-like illness surfaced in early December 2019. Fast-forward to 2021, and the culprit—SARS-CoV-2, a virus a thousand times smaller than a speck of dust—has sickened more than 111 million people, infected all seven continents, and killed approximately 2.5 million. The toll of COVID-19 is heart-wrenching and borders on dystopian. Our pandemic present is … Continue reading Mutation Madness: How and why SARS-CoV-2 keeps changing