Current Biology Archives

Ediacaran time period -- University of Cambridge

Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Earth’s Earliest Sea Creatures Drove Evolution By Stirring The Water

by Keith CowingJune 3, 2024June 3, 2024

A study involving the University of Cambridge has used virtual recreations of the earliest animal ecosystems, known as marine animal forests, to demonstrate the part they played in the evolution […]

Tardigrades dramatically increase expression of certain DNA repair transcripts in response to ionizing radiation. (A) Volcano plot of Log2FC by -Log10(FDR) showing the transcriptional response of H. exemplaris to 500 Gy IR. The top 15 most significantly enriched 5 transcripts (by FDR) are marked in gray. DNA repair pathway genes among the top 15 are labeled. (B-D) MA plots displaying Log2FC of H. exemplaris transcripts in response to 500 Gy IR with (B) transcripts encoding BER proteins marked in orange, (C) transcripts encoding NHEJ proteins marked in light blue, and (D) transcripts encoding NER, MMR, HR, and TMEJ proteins marked in yellow, pink, green, and dark blue, respectively. Transcripts encoding DNA repair 10 proteins that are significantly enriched are indicated by name. Note that LIG1 functions in two pathways. -- biorxiv.org

Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Radiation, Space Life Science, Tardigrades

UNC-Chapel Hill Researchers Discover New Clues To How Tardigrades Can Survive Intense Radiation

by Keith CowingApril 16, 2024April 16, 2024

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers have discovered that tardigrades – microscopic animals famed for surviving harsh extremes – have an unusual response to radiation.