human

A paper argues that the evolutionary loss of a thin vocal membrane in the larynx may have facilitated oral communication.  

Researchers are going beyond fecal samples to understand how the patterns of commensal microbes in the gastrointestinal tract influence development and health.

New techniques have shown that people reached the New World far earlier than the long-standing estimate of 13,000 years ago, but scientists still debate exactly when humans arrived on the continent—and how.

Diverse lines of evidence point to humans’ presence in the New World long before the dawn of Clovis culture. But rewriting this chapter of human history raises many questions about how these early people came to inhabit these continents.

Researchers link a missense mutation in the B4GALT1 gene to lower levels of LDL cholesterol and the blood clotting factor fibrinogen.

Multiple white tailed deer tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 likely transmitted from humans, a study finds, indicating the species could act as a reservoir for the virus.

Researchers link the ability of the cells to bind and present DNA from pathogens and cell death to anemia, which is common in COVID-19, and immune activation.

A transposable element that jumped into the TBXT gene, which is linked to tail morphology, appears to be to blame for our missing appendage.

Engineered antibodies trap and immobilize human sperm in the reproductive tract of female sheep, paving the way for possible use as a nonhormonal contraceptive in people.

Not only is the humble fluid a boon for keeping humans cool, it also contains a wealth of biological information.

Some of the blood specimens collected in the United States for the NIH’s All of Us research program starting on January 2, 2020, have antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.

Researchers identify live bacteria in fetal guts, skin, lungs, and placentas that activate memory T cells, indicating that early exposure to microbes could help educate the developing immune system.

Researchers integrated information from 45 protein, metabolite, and immune data points to identify a window two to four weeks before a pregnant person will go into labor.

In Chapter 1, “The Indelible Stamp,” author Melanie Challenger addresses the idea of human exceptionalism.

Since Darwin published his landmark work on natural selection, we’ve understood that we’re animals. But that doesn’t mean we really believe it.

A new analysis of the hand of the 4.4-million-year-old partial skeleton of Ardipithecus ramidus indicates that the human ancestor may have climbed and swung through trees like chimpanzees do.

Researchers determined that when introduced into damaged mouse or donated human livers, these lab-grown tissues could integrate into bile ducts and function normally.

See a news report on a study of expectant mothers with SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Compared with Zika and cytomegalovirus, the virus that causes COVID-19 appears to have a harder time penetrating the placenta and moving to a woman’s unborn baby.