A snapshot of the most highly ranked articles in developmental biology, from Faculty of 1000

With the help of directed evolution, scientists inch closer to developing viral vectors that can cross the human blood-brain barrier to deliver gene therapy.

The scenarios that run through our sleeping brains may help us explore possible solutions to concerns from our waking lives.

Ferreting out the biological function of dreaming is a frontier in neuroscience.

In the absence of a precise definition of brain, pinning down its origins is difficult. But scientists have a theory.

Why can science still not define this most basic biological process?

Novel genes, rather than regulatory DNA, underlie the evolution of morphological traits, according to research published today (Nov. 17) in __PLoS Biology__. The new linkurl:study;http://biology.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pbio.0060278 reports that genes found in simple freshwater animals -- but not in any other evolutionary lineage -- can drive changes in body plan, and stokes the flames of a long-standing debate among evolutionary developmental biologist

A phallus-less reptile goes through a developmental stage with external genitalia, suggesting a common origin for the organ among amniotes.