When most wild animals first encounter humans, they respond as they would to any predator — by running, swimming or flying away. Over time, some species become more tolerant of humans’ presence, but the extent to which they do is largely driven by the type of environment in which the animals live and by the animal’s body size, according to…
Probiotic exposure during the first 27 days of an infant’s life may be associated with reduced risk of islet autoimmunity among children at increased genetic risk for type 1 diabetes, although further studies are needed before any recommendations for probiotics can be made, according to a University of South Florida-led study published online by JAMA Pediatrics. Ulla Uusitalo, PhD, of…
A baby girl with aggressive leukaemia has become the first in the world to be treated with designer immune cells that were genetically engineered to wipe out her cancer. The one-year-old, Layla Richards, was given months to live after conventional treatments failed to eradicate the disease, but she is now cancer free and doing well, a response one doctor described…
Congratulations to ISG Faculty, Jessica Lynch Alfaro and Michael Alfaro, who were awarded a grant through the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), “Phenotypic plasticity of robust Capuchin monkeys (genus Sapajus): research on the effects of distinct ontogenetic trajectories and context-dependent activation,” under PI Patricia Izar, Psychology Department, University of São Paulo, Brazil. This is an interdisciplinary grant that will study behavioral…
A fragmented skeleton dug out from a Spanish landfill may force scientists to redraw their theories on the ancestor of humans and all other apes. Pliobates cataloniae, described in the journal Science, reveals that the common ancestor of humans, gorillas and gibbons may have looked more gibbon-like than previously thought. Researchers believe that Old World monkeys and apes split off from…
To gain a clearer picture of health and disease, scientists have now provided an independent reference for all human variation by looking through the evolutionary lens of our nearest relatives. Such a powerful approach has been developed by Temple University professor Sudhir Kumar and colleagues and was detailed in the advanced online publication of Molecular Biology and Evolution. “There are…