Four winners have been selected in the 2025 Faces of Biology Photo Contest, sponsored by the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) and the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB).

Exogenous ochronosis is a rare but serious skin condition characterized by bluish-black pigmentation, linked to long-term hydroquinone use for treating hyperpigmentation. It was previously believed to stem from inhibition of homogentisate dioxygenase, an enzyme absent in human skin. A new international study reveals that instead, hydroquinone is metabolized by tyrosinase into reactive compounds that accumulate in the dermis, causing ochronosis. This insight highlights the need for safer, true tyrosinase inhibitors in treatment.

A Danish research group has designed proteins that search for specific DNA sequences and produce light if they find them. A light that a phone's camera easily captures.