Sensory neurobiology: Muscles power pheromone sensation
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R257-R259. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.020.ABSTRACTWhile we understand how the five main sensory organs enable and facilitate stimulus detection, little is known about how the vomeronasal organ enables pheromone sensation. A new study finds specialized muscles poised to coordinate stimulus delivery, dynamics, and arousal.PMID:38531322 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.020 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Jennifer Jensen Lisa Stowers Source Type: research
The WIP6 transcription factor TOO MANY LATERALS specifies vein type in C < sub > 4 < /sub > and C < sub > 3 < /sub > grass leaves
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 19:S0960-9822(24)00303-8. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.007. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTGrass leaves are invariantly strap shaped with an elongated distal blade and a proximal sheath that wraps around the stem. Underpinning this shape is a scaffold of leaf veins, most of which extend in parallel along the proximo-distal leaf axis. Differences between species are apparent both in the vein types that develop and in the distance between veins across the medio-lateral leaf axis. A prominent engineering goal is to increase vein density in leaves of C3 photosynthesizing species to facilitate the introduction ...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Daniela Vlad Maricris Zaidem Chiara Perico Olga Sedelnikova Samik Bhattacharya Jane A Langdale Source Type: research
Ancestry dynamics and trait selection in a designer cat breed
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 21:S0960-9822(24)00304-X. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.075. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe Bengal cat breed was developed from intercrosses between the Asian leopard cat, Prionailurus bengalensis, and the domestic cat, Felis catus, with a last common ancestor approximately 6 million years ago. Predicted to derive ∼94% of their genome from domestic cats, regions of the leopard cat genome are thought to account for the unique pelage traits and ornate color patterns of the Bengal breed, which are similar to those of ocelots and jaguars. We explore ancestry distribution and selection signatures in the Be...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Christopher B Kaelin Kelly A McGowan Anthony D Hutcherson John M Delay Jeremiah H Li Sarah Kiener Vidhya Jagannathan Tosso Leeb William J Murphy Gregory S Barsh Source Type: research
Learning leaves a memory trace in motor cortex
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 21:S0960-9822(24)00298-7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.003. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTHow are we able to learn new behaviors without disrupting previously learned ones? To understand how the brain achieves this, we used a brain-computer interface (BCI) learning paradigm, which enables us to detect the presence of a memory of one behavior while performing another. We found that learning to use a new BCI map altered the neural activity that monkeys produced when they returned to using a familiar BCI map in a way that was specific to the learning experience. That is, learning left a "memory trace" in the...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Darby M Losey Jay A Hennig Emily R Oby Matthew D Golub Patrick T Sadtler Kristin M Quick Stephen I Ryu Elizabeth C Tyler-Kabara Aaron P Batista Byron M Yu Steven M Chase Source Type: research
Anna-Liisa Laine
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R222-R223. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.075.ABSTRACTInterview with Anna-Liisa Laine, who studies the ecology and evolution of plant-microbe interactions at the University of Helsinki.PMID:38531307 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.075 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Anna-Liisa Laine Source Type: research
Meiofauna
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R223-R225. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.017.ABSTRACTChristopher Laumer introduces meiofauna - a community of microscopic animals and microbial eukaryotes that occur in aquatic habitats, often in the sediment.PMID:38531308 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.017 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Christopher Laumer Source Type: research
Ecological niche modelling
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R225-R229. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.018.ABSTRACTOne of the central research questions in ecology and biogeography revolves around understanding the spatial distribution patterns of organisms, the factors influencing species abundance, and why in certain areas there are more species or individuals than in others. Addressing these questions not only forms the bedrock of scientific research in ecology and evolution but also has critical implications for biodiversity conservation and management. To safeguard species, restore habitats, prevent invasions and anticipate future impacts, it is imperat...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Wilfried Thuiller Source Type: research
The overlooked role of unisensory precision in multisensory research
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R229-R231. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.057.ABSTRACTZhu et al. present an alternative explanation for the weaker multisensory illusions in football goalkeepers compared with outfielders and non-athletes, showing that better unisensory precision in goalkeepers can also account for this effect.PMID:38531310 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.057 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Haocheng Zhu Ulrik Beierholm Ladan Shams Source Type: research
The 'after you' gesture in a bird
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R231-R232. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.030.ABSTRACTGestures are ubiquitous in human communication, involving movements of body parts produced for a variety of purposes, such as pointing out objects (deictic gestures) or conveying messages (symbolic gestures)1. While displays of body parts have been described in many animals2, their functional similarity to human gestures has primarily been explored in great apes3,4, with little research attention given to other animal groups. To date, only a few studies have provided evidence for deictic gestures in birds and fish5,6,7, but it is unclear whether...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Toshitaka N Suzuki Norimasa Sugita Source Type: research
Notes from Beethoven's genome
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R233-R234. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.025.ABSTRACTRapid advances over the last decade in DNA sequencing and statistical genetics enable us to investigate the genomic makeup of individuals throughout history. In a recent notable study, Begg et al.1 used Ludwig van Beethoven's hair strands for genome sequencing and explored genetic predispositions for some of his documented medical issues. Given that it was arguably Beethoven's skills as a musician and composer that made him an iconic figure in Western culture, we here extend the approach and apply it to musicality. We use this as an example to i...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Laura W Wesseldijk Tara L Henechowicz David J Baker Giacomo Bignardi Robert Karlsson Reyna L Gordon Miriam A Mosing Fredrik Ull én Simon E Fisher Source Type: research
Disambiguating vision with sound
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R235-R236. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.043.ABSTRACTAn important task for the visual system is to identify and segregate objects from background. Figure-ground illusions, such as Edgar Rubin's bistable 'vase-faces illusion'1, make the point clearly: we see either a central vase or lateral faces, alternating spontaneously, but never both images simultaneously. The border is perceptually assigned to either faces or vase, which become figure, the other shapeless background2. The stochastic alternation between figure and ground probably reflects mutual inhibitory processes that ensure a single percep...
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Monica Gori David Burr Claudio Campus Source Type: research
Dendrochronology: Large datasets help explain when and how trees grow but not why
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R237-R239. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.051.ABSTRACTA meta-analysis of a large dataset of wood cell formation observations from several tree species in the Northern Hemisphere suggests that the 5th of June is favorable for cell division and enlargement, while the summer solstice promotes cell wall thickening.PMID:38531314 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.051 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Paolo Cherubini Source Type: research
Self-recognition: From touching the body to knowing the self
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R239-R241. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.007.ABSTRACTRecognizing oneself in a mirror is a classic test of self-concept. A new study has revealed the perceptual-motor foundations of conceptual self-knowledge: infants' success in the mirror test was accelerated after touching a tactile stimulus while viewing themselves in a mirror.PMID:38531315 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.007 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Karen E Adolph Catherine S Tamis-LeMonda Source Type: research
Sexual reproduction: Is the genetic pathway for female germ cell specification conserved in land plants?
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R241-R244. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.062.ABSTRACTLand plants share several core factors responsible for female gametophyte development, despite their differing structures and developmental programs. New work providing molecular dissection of reproductive phases in non-angiosperm plants is a powerful tool for elucidating the underlying genetic network.PMID:38531316 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.062 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Emiko Yoro Keiko Sakakibara Source Type: research
Cancer cell invasion: Caveolae and invadosomes are partners in crime
Curr Biol. 2024 Mar 25;34(6):R244-R246. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.006.ABSTRACTDuring cancer progression, tumor cells need to disseminate by remodeling the extracellular tumor matrix. A recent study sheds light on the intricate cooperation between caveolae and invadosomes that facilitates the spread of cancer cells.PMID:38531317 | DOI:10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.006 (Source: Current Biology)
Source: Current Biology - March 26, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Laura Sotodosos-Alonso Miguel A Del Pozo Source Type: research
