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Protein Synthesis Enzymes Have Evolved Additional Jobs
Amber Dance | Jun 1, 2020 | 10+ min read
Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, which help translate the genetic code into protein, also function in angiogenesis, fat metabolism, and more.
Killifish Embryos Pause Development Without Consequence: Study
Lisa Winter | Feb 21, 2020 | 3 min read
Contrary to popular thinking, the period of arrested development is an active state of maintaining muscle integrity.
Image of the Day: Regenerating Worms
Amy Schleunes | Feb 3, 2020 | 1 min read
Planarian flatworms grow to double their normal size when scientists inhibit a gene that suppresses growth.
How Evolution Made the Highveld Mole Rat Impervious to Ant Stings
Shawna Williams | Sep 1, 2019 | 5 min read
Researchers identify changes to a pain receptor and to an ion channel that appear to enable the rodents to colonize otherwise inhospitable burrows.
shinkai submersible
Elusive Asgard Archaea Finally Cultured in Lab
Nicoletta Lanese | Aug 12, 2019 | 3 min read
The 12-year-long endeavor reveals Prometheoarchaeum as a tentacled cell, living in a symbiotic relationship with methane-producing microbes.
spinyfin Diretmus argenteus deep sea vision fish photopigment opsin
This Deep-Sea Fish Has the Most Types of Opsins Among Vertebrates
Katarina Zimmer | May 9, 2019 | 4 min read
The silver spinyfin has an extraordinary diversity of rod photopigments, which researchers propose may allow it to see color in the deep, dark sea.
Ribosomal DNA Can Predict an Animal’s Age
Abby Olena, PhD | Feb 14, 2019 | 3 min read
A clock constructed of rDNA methylation sites can estimate both chronological and biological age across species.
Fastest-Ever Cell Contractions Observed in Primitive Invertebrate
Abby Olena, PhD | Dec 13, 2018 | 4 min read
The microscopic marine animal Trichoplax adhaerens may use rapid changes in cell shape to avoid being ripped apart by forces in the ocean.
Infographic: Resurrecting Ancient Proteins
Amber Dance | Jul 1, 2018 | 2 min read

Learn the basic steps researchers take when reconstructing proteins from the past and how these biomolecules can inform engineering projects.

Scientists Bring Ancient Proteins Back to Life
Amber Dance | Jul 1, 2018 | 10+ min read
Researchers are resurrecting proteins from millions of years ago to understand evolution and lay the groundwork for bioengineering custom molecules.
Pancreatic Cell Size Negatively Relates to Lifespan in Mammals
Sukanya Charuchandra | Jun 19, 2018 | 2 min read
Species with larger pancreatic cells tend to have shorter lives, according to a study.  
Contributors
Jim Daley | Jun 1, 2018 | 3 min read
Meet some of the people featured in the June 2018 issue of The Scientist.
Animals’ Embryonic Organizer Now Discovered in Human Cells
Jim Daley | May 23, 2018 | 4 min read
The finding confirms that a cluster of cells that directs the fate of other cells in the developing embryo is evolutionarily conserved across the animal kingdom.
Monitoring Mutations with Microfluidics
Ruth Williams | Mar 15, 2018 | 3 min read
A device dubbed the “mother machine” enables real-time observation of mutagenesis in single bacterial cells.  
The Unlikely Relationship Between a Brittle Star and a Sea Pansy
Aggie Mika | Jul 16, 2017 | 2 min read
The presence of similar light-emitting enzymes in the distantly related organisms lends new insight into bioluminescence evolution.
Week in Review: October 17–21
Jef Akst | Oct 20, 2016 | 2 min read
Report finds that pathologist involved in anonymous defamation case committed multiple acts of misconduct; growing eggs from stem cells; neutrophils’ role in metastasis; convergent evolution in birds
Sugar Time
Catherine Offord | Mar 1, 2016 | 2 min read
Metabolic activity, not light, drives the circadian clock in cyanobacteria.
Week in Review: February 22–26
Jef Akst | Feb 26, 2016 | 3 min read
Questions about how E. coli evolves; spermatids in a dish; fighting bacteria with virus-like molecule; what drives metastasis; antibodies fight Ebola in monkeys
How Multicellularity Arose
Jef Akst | Jan 11, 2016 | 1 min read
Researchers identify a molecule that may have been key to the surprisingly common transition from single-celled ancestors to today’s complex, multicellular organisms. 
Evolutionary Rewiring
Ruth Williams | Feb 26, 2015 | 3 min read
Strong selective pressure can lead to rapid and reproducible evolution in bacteria.
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