Reptiles could overtake amphibians as the highest priority for conservation among vertebrates as threats like climate change and invasive species worsen in the future, according to a new conservation index tool developed by Gabriel Henrique de Oliveira Caetano at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel and Université Paris-Saclay, France, and colleagues, publishing October 21^st in the open-access journal PLOS Biology.

A University of Michigan study investigates why gobies exhibit such a size range, focusing in particular on how gobies are able to regulate size in order to stay miniature. It finds that certain gobies overexpress two genes that inhibit growth, keeping some species of goby miniaturized. 

Farmers handle a wide range of responsibilities to keep operations running — and a routine but often overlooked duty is safely disposing of dead livestock. Left unattended, carcasses can spread disease and jeopardize entire herds or flocks.

The ability of CD8⁺ T cells, a type of immune cell, to rapidly proliferate inside tumors is key to the success of cancer immunotherapy. In a new study, scientists from Tokyo University of Science, Japan, have identified a set of ‘signature’ genes that can determine whether these immune cells will multiply or stall within the tumor. Their findings provide a powerful pan-immunotherapy biomarker for treatment monitoring and pave the way for next-generation immunodynamic therapies.