Differences in expression of male aggression between wild bonobos and chimpanzees
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 5:S0960-9822(24)00253-7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.071. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTResearchers investigating the evolution of human aggression look to our closest living relatives, bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), as valuable sources of comparative data.1,2 Males in the two species exhibit contrasting patterns: male chimpanzees sexually coerce females3,4,5,6,7,8 and sometimes kill conspecifics,9,10,11,12 whereas male bonobos exhibit less sexual coercion13,14 and no reported killing.13 Among the various attempts to explain these species differences, the self-domestication hyp...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Maud Mouginot Michael L Wilson Nisarg Desai Martin Surbeck Source Type: research
The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris dramatically upregulates DNA repair pathway genes in response to ionizing radiation
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 2:S0960-9822(24)00316-6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.019. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTTardigrades can survive remarkable doses of ionizing radiation, up to about 1,000 times the lethal dose for humans. How they do so is incompletely understood. We found that the tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris suffers DNA damage upon gamma irradiation, but the damage is repaired. We show that this species has a specific and robust response to ionizing radiation: irradiation induces a rapid upregulation of many DNA repair genes. This upregulation is unexpectedly extreme-making some DNA repair transcripts among the most ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Courtney M Clark-Hachtel Jonathan D Hibshman Tristan De Buysscher Evan R Stair Leslie M Hicks Bob Goldstein Source Type: research
Colonial-driven extinction of the blue antelope despite genomic adaptation to low population size
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 9:S0960-9822(24)00391-9. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.051. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTLow genomic diversity is generally indicative of small population size and is considered detrimental by decreasing long-term adaptability.1,2,3,4,5,6 Moreover, small population size may promote gene flow with congeners and outbreeding depression.7,8,9,10,11,12,13 Here, we examine the connection between habitat availability, effective population size (Ne), and extinction by generating a 40× nuclear genome from the extinct blue antelope (Hippotragus leucophaeus). Historically endemic to the relatively small Cape Floris...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Elisabeth Hempel J Tyler Faith Michaela Preick Deon de Jager Scott Barish Stefanie Hartmann Jos é H Grau Yoshan Moodley Gregory Gedman Kathleen Morrill Pirovich Faysal Bibi Daniela C Kalthoff Sven Bocklandt Ben Lamm Love Dal én Michael V Westbury Michae Source Type: research
Claustrum projections to the anterior cingulate modulate nociceptive and pain-associated behavior
In this study, we sought to define claustrum function in acute and chronic pain. We found enhanced claustrum activity after a painful stimulus that was attenuated in chronic inflammatory pain. Selective inhibition of claustrocingulate projection neurons enhanced acute nociception but blocked pain learning. Inversely, chemogenetic activation of claustrocingulate neurons had no effect on basal nociception but rescued inflammation-induced mechanical allodynia. Together, these results suggest that claustrocingulate neurons are a critical component of the pain neuromatrix, and dysregulation of this connection may contribute to ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Christian A Faig Gloria H K Kim Alison D Do Zo ë Dworsky-Fried Jesse Jackson Anna M W Taylor Source Type: research
Pathological claustrum activity drives aberrant cognitive network processing in human chronic pain
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 8:S0960-9822(24)00318-X. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.021. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTAberrant cognitive network activity and cognitive deficits are established features of chronic pain. However, the nature of cognitive network alterations associated with chronic pain and their underlying mechanisms require elucidation. Here, we report that the claustrum, a subcortical nucleus implicated in cognitive network modulation, is activated by acute painful stimulation and pain-predictive cues in healthy participants. Moreover, we discover pathological activity of the claustrum and a region near the posterior ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Brent W Stewart Michael L Keaser Hwiyoung Lee Sarah M Margerison Matthew A Cormie Massieh Moayedi Martin A Lindquist Shuo Chen Brian N Mathur David A Seminowicz Source Type: research
Productivity declines threaten East African soda lakes and the iconic Lesser Flamingo
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 3:S0960-9822(24)00302-6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.006. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTSoda lakes are some of the most productive aquatic ecosystems.1 Their alkaline-saline waters sustain unique phytoplankton communities2,3 and provide vital habitats for highly specialized biodiversity including invertebrates, endemic fish species, and Lesser Flamingos (Phoeniconaias minor).1,4 More than three-quarters of Lesser Flamingos inhabit the soda lakes of East Africa5; however, populations are in decline.6 Declines could be attributed to their highly specialized diet of cyanobacteria7 and dependence on a networ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Aidan Byrne Emma J Tebbs Peter Njoroge Ally Nkwabi Michael A Chadwick Robin Freeman David Harper Ken Norris Source Type: research
Differences in expression of male aggression between wild bonobos and chimpanzees
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 5:S0960-9822(24)00253-7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.071. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTResearchers investigating the evolution of human aggression look to our closest living relatives, bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), as valuable sources of comparative data.1,2 Males in the two species exhibit contrasting patterns: male chimpanzees sexually coerce females3,4,5,6,7,8 and sometimes kill conspecifics,9,10,11,12 whereas male bonobos exhibit less sexual coercion13,14 and no reported killing.13 Among the various attempts to explain these species differences, the self-domestication hyp...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Maud Mouginot Michael L Wilson Nisarg Desai Martin Surbeck Source Type: research
The tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris dramatically upregulates DNA repair pathway genes in response to ionizing radiation
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 2:S0960-9822(24)00316-6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.019. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTTardigrades can survive remarkable doses of ionizing radiation, up to about 1,000 times the lethal dose for humans. How they do so is incompletely understood. We found that the tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris suffers DNA damage upon gamma irradiation, but the damage is repaired. We show that this species has a specific and robust response to ionizing radiation: irradiation induces a rapid upregulation of many DNA repair genes. This upregulation is unexpectedly extreme-making some DNA repair transcripts among the most ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Courtney M Clark-Hachtel Jonathan D Hibshman Tristan De Buysscher Evan R Stair Leslie M Hicks Bob Goldstein Source Type: research
Colonial-driven extinction of the blue antelope despite genomic adaptation to low population size
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 9:S0960-9822(24)00391-9. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.051. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTLow genomic diversity is generally indicative of small population size and is considered detrimental by decreasing long-term adaptability.1,2,3,4,5,6 Moreover, small population size may promote gene flow with congeners and outbreeding depression.7,8,9,10,11,12,13 Here, we examine the connection between habitat availability, effective population size (Ne), and extinction by generating a 40× nuclear genome from the extinct blue antelope (Hippotragus leucophaeus). Historically endemic to the relatively small Cape Floris...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Elisabeth Hempel J Tyler Faith Michaela Preick Deon de Jager Scott Barish Stefanie Hartmann Jos é H Grau Yoshan Moodley Gregory Gedman Kathleen Morrill Pirovich Faysal Bibi Daniela C Kalthoff Sven Bocklandt Ben Lamm Love Dal én Michael V Westbury Michae Source Type: research
Claustrum projections to the anterior cingulate modulate nociceptive and pain-associated behavior
In this study, we sought to define claustrum function in acute and chronic pain. We found enhanced claustrum activity after a painful stimulus that was attenuated in chronic inflammatory pain. Selective inhibition of claustrocingulate projection neurons enhanced acute nociception but blocked pain learning. Inversely, chemogenetic activation of claustrocingulate neurons had no effect on basal nociception but rescued inflammation-induced mechanical allodynia. Together, these results suggest that claustrocingulate neurons are a critical component of the pain neuromatrix, and dysregulation of this connection may contribute to ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Christian A Faig Gloria H K Kim Alison D Do Zo ë Dworsky-Fried Jesse Jackson Anna M W Taylor Source Type: research
Pathological claustrum activity drives aberrant cognitive network processing in human chronic pain
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 8:S0960-9822(24)00318-X. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.021. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTAberrant cognitive network activity and cognitive deficits are established features of chronic pain. However, the nature of cognitive network alterations associated with chronic pain and their underlying mechanisms require elucidation. Here, we report that the claustrum, a subcortical nucleus implicated in cognitive network modulation, is activated by acute painful stimulation and pain-predictive cues in healthy participants. Moreover, we discover pathological activity of the claustrum and a region near the posterior ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Brent W Stewart Michael L Keaser Hwiyoung Lee Sarah M Margerison Matthew A Cormie Massieh Moayedi Martin A Lindquist Shuo Chen Brian N Mathur David A Seminowicz Source Type: research
Productivity declines threaten East African soda lakes and the iconic Lesser Flamingo
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 3:S0960-9822(24)00302-6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.006. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTSoda lakes are some of the most productive aquatic ecosystems.1 Their alkaline-saline waters sustain unique phytoplankton communities2,3 and provide vital habitats for highly specialized biodiversity including invertebrates, endemic fish species, and Lesser Flamingos (Phoeniconaias minor).1,4 More than three-quarters of Lesser Flamingos inhabit the soda lakes of East Africa5; however, populations are in decline.6 Declines could be attributed to their highly specialized diet of cyanobacteria7 and dependence on a networ...
Source: Current Biology - April 13, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Aidan Byrne Emma J Tebbs Peter Njoroge Ally Nkwabi Michael A Chadwick Robin Freeman David Harper Ken Norris Source Type: research
Dynamic prediction of goal location by coordinated representation of prefrontal-hippocampal theta sequences
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 9:S0960-9822(24)00372-5. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.032. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTPrefrontal (PFC) and hippocampal (HPC) sequences of neuronal firing modulated by theta rhythms could represent upcoming choices during spatial memory-guided decision-making. How the PFC-HPC network dynamically coordinates theta sequences to predict specific goal locations and how it is interrupted in memory impairments induced by amyloid beta (Aβ) remain unclear. Here, we detected theta sequences of firing activities of PFC neurons and HPC place cells during goal-directed spatial memory tasks. We found that PFC ensem...
Source: Current Biology - April 12, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Yimeng Wang Xueling Wang Ling Wang Li Zheng Shuang Meng Nan Zhu Xingwei An Lei Wang Jiajia Yang Chenguang Zheng Dong Ming Source Type: research
Coral-infecting parasites in cold marine ecosystems
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 2:S0960-9822(24)00323-3. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.026. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTCoral reefs are a biodiversity hotspot,1,2 and the association between coral and intracellular dinoflagellates is a model for endosymbiosis.3,4 Recently, corals and related anthozoans have also been found to harbor another kind of endosymbiont, apicomplexans called corallicolids.5 Apicomplexans are a diverse lineage of obligate intracellular parasites6 that include human pathogens such as the malaria parasite, Plasmodium.7 Global environmental sequencing shows corallicolids are tightly associated with tropical and sub...
Source: Current Biology - April 12, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Morelia Trznadel Corey C Holt Samuel J Livingston Waldan K Kwong Patrick J Keeling Source Type: research
Transfer of polarity information via diffusion of Wnt ligands in C. elegans embryos
Curr Biol. 2024 Apr 5:S0960-9822(24)00370-1. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.030. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTDifferent signaling mechanisms concur to ensure robust tissue patterning and cell fate instruction during animal development. Most of these mechanisms rely on signaling proteins that are produced, transported, and detected. The spatiotemporal dynamics of signaling molecules are largely unknown, yet they determine signal activity's spatial range and time frame. Here, we use the Caenorhabditis elegans embryo to study how Wnt ligands, an evolutionarily conserved family of signaling proteins, dynamically organize to estab...
Source: Current Biology - April 11, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Pierre Recouvreux Pritha Pai Valentin Dunsing R émy Torro Monika Ludanyi Pauline M élénec Mariem Boughzala Vincent Bertrand Pierre-Fran çois Lenne Source Type: research
