Phys.org Biology

• Mexican authorities rescue 3,400 trafficked baby turtles

  Mexican authorities said Friday they had rescued over 3,400 protected baby turtles stuffed into cardboard boxes set to be trafficked.

• Chromosomes and spindles in mature oocytes are stabilized by histone modification, study shows

  The accurate distribution of chromosomes in an oocyte is essential for the correct transmission of genetic information to the next generation. Now, researchers from Kyushu University have demonstrated that the histone modification H3K4me3 in mature mouse oocytes is directly involved in chromosome and spindle stabilization and is crucial for normal oocyte development and subsequent embryonic competence. Their results were published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

• Global study reveals surprising flexibility in mosquito feeding patterns

  In a global study, scientists have uncovered far greater diversity and flexibility in mosquito feeding patterns than previously thought, challenging long-held assumptions about how the disease-carrying insects select their hosts.

• Embryos can eliminate bacterial infections before forming their immune system, new research shows

  Research led by scientists from the Institute of Molecular Biology of Barcelona (IBMB) of the CSIC and the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) has managed to film how a few days-old embryos defend themselves from a potential infection by bacteria. The work is published this week in the journal Cell Host and Microbe.

• Caught in the crossfire: How phages spread Salmonella virulence genes

  A global study uncovers the hidden role of viruses in driving bacterial evolution and highlights a surprising bacterial gene that helps fight back.

• Microbial consortium achieves complete biodegradation of persistent herbicide acetochlor in contaminated soil

  Researchers led by Dr. Xu Mingkai from the Institute of Applied Ecology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have identified a highly effective microbial consortium capable of fully degrading acetochlor, a widely used and persistent herbicide. This discovery offers a promising, environmentally friendly approach to mitigating soil pollution caused by herbicide residues on soil ecosystems, food quality, and overall environmental safety.

• How a genetic tug-of-war decides the fate of a honey bee

  Despite having identical genetic instructions, female honey bee larvae can develop into either long-lived reproductive queens or short-lived sterile workers who help rear their sisters rather than lay their own eggs. Now, an interdisciplinary team led by researchers at Penn State has uncovered the molecular mechanisms that control how the conflict between genes inherited from the father and the mother determine the larva's fate.

• A leap in canine medicine: Researchers create high-quality stem cells from urine

  Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which can be harvested from fat and bone marrow, have immune-modulating and anti-inflammatory effects that are beneficial for both human and veterinary medicine. However, MSCs have a limited proliferation capacity, with their quality varying depending on the donor's age and where they were harvested from.

• Jaws helped spur a fishing frenzy—so how have the world's sharks fared since the 1975 release?

  Steven Spielberg's Jaws opened across North America on June 20, 1975, and immediately tapped into the primal human fear of being hunted by a huge, savvy predator.

• Using ancient DNA to predict the future

  Antarctica appears sparse. Nothing but white ice, glaciers and harsh conditions that only a few animals have adapted to survive in.

• Colorful reef fish beauty linked to conservation: Study highlights human connection

  An international research team led by the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) with the participation of the Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) in Bremen has taken a close look at reefs worldwide to determine the location of the fish communities that appear most beautiful to the human eye, and what explains these patterns—an important topic, given that fish beauty is a nonmaterial contribution of reefs to human well-being, which directly impacts people's willingness to conserve these vulnerable ecosystems.

• Insect-specific 'immune priming' affects the evolution of pathogenic bacteria

  A research team at the University of Münster has investigated for the first time how the confrontation of bacteria with hosts that have an activated innate immune system affects the evolution of bacterial virulence.

• New homes for endangered native skink aim to improve survival chances

  Climate change and habitat loss are affecting animal populations around the world and reptiles such as South Australia's own endangered pygmy bluetongue are susceptible to higher temperatures and declining long-term rainfall trends.

• Research shows how emotional responses are motivating divers to help restore the Great Barrier Reef

  Dr. Ella Vallelonga, from the University of Adelaide's Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, examined how reef conservation diving dissolves "human exceptionalism"—the idea that humans are separate from, or superior to, other animals—and builds deep interspecies connections.

• Sea spiders found farming methane-eating microbes in cultivated biofilm

  A research team led by Occidental College has identified a previously unknown symbiosis; deep sea spiders that cultivate and feed on bacteria that oxidize methane.

• Wildfires can spark shifts in water microbes, threatening ecosystem balance

  Wildfires profoundly influence the unseen microbial world within our waters, directly impacting water quality and ecosystem health, according to a study presented at ASM Microbe 2025.

• Study reveals how birds have adapted to tolerate sour food sources

  Sour foods are often avoided by mammals, but many birds regularly feed on highly acidic fruits. Evolution has provided them with a clever strategy to eat extremely acidic fruit.

• Octopus species uses taste sensors on sucker cups to detect harmful chemicals

  A team of molecular and cellular chemists and biologists from Harvard University and the University of California, San Diego, has found that at least one type of octopus has taste sensors on its sucker cups that allow it to detect harmful chemicals. In their study, published in the journal Cell, the group tested the sensing ability of California two-spot octopuses.

• Thailand credits prey releases for 'extraordinary' tiger recovery

  In the thick, steamy forests of western Thailand, 20 skittish sambar deer dart from an enclosure into the undergrowth—unaware they may find themselves in the jaws of one of the habitat's 200 or so endangered tigers.

• Placenta and hormone levels in the womb may have been key drivers in human brain evolution

  The placenta and the hormones it produces may have played a crucial role in the evolution of the human brain, while also leading to the behavioral traits that have made human societies able to thrive and expand, according to a new hypothesis proposed by researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford.

• Skin biopsies offer less invasive studies of the reproductive status of sharks

  Researchers from the UAB have shown that sex hormones accumulate in the skin of sharks. This finding opens a new way for the evaluation of their reproductive status by the biopsy of a sample that can be taken remotely in their own environment. The researchers are committed to further use of this new method, as it is less invasive than others that require greater manipulation or the capture of the animals.

• Iron-stealing Pandoraea bacteria deploy unique molecules to tip balance in lung microbiome

  An interdisciplinary research team led by the Leibniz-HKI in Jena has discovered a new group of bioactive natural compounds in pathogenic bacteria of the genus Pandoraea: pandorabactins. They enable the bacteria to extract vital iron from other microorganisms and can thus influence the microbial balance in the human lung.

• Two transparent worms shed light on evolution

  Two species of worms have retained remarkably similar patterns in the way they switch their genes on and off despite having split from a common ancestor 20 million years ago, a new study finds.

• Simple yogurt production tweak cuts bacterial culture costs and extends shelf life

  A new method for producing yogurt has been developed by a research team at the DTU National Food Institute, and it all began with a straightforward question.

• Trees use summer solstice as natural calendar for growth and reproduction

  People have been celebrating the summer solstice with elaborate rituals since prehistoric times. But humans aren't the only species to take mark June 21 as a special time. Studies are showing the summer solstice is an important cue for plants too.