When thinking, the human brain performs a true masterpiece of information processing: around 100 billion neurons communicate with each other via approximately 100 trillion connections. An international team of researchers, including scientists from the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM), has discovered that the mechanical properties of the developing brain influence both synapse formation and the emergence of electrical signals. The findings could open up new approaches to understanding neurodevelopmental disorders.

The sorghum salt tolerant gene SbTEF1 was identified by genome-wide association study (GWAS) and the PAV284 which located in the promoter region of SbTEF1 was the key regulatory locus governing the salt tolerant ability.

How much food an animal needs to consume on a daily basis is a crucial part of the jigsaw of life and now an international team of researchers reveal in Journal of Experimental Biology that individual short-finned pilot whales off Hawai’i consume between 82 and 202 squid per day, adding up to 88,000 tonnes of squid per year for the Hawaiian population, which, fortunately, is a drop in the ocean for the local squid population.

Seven new species of a distinctive frog-like insect have been discovered by a scientist from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in Cambridge, England. The seven species of Batracomorphus leafhopper, with their large eyes and long hind legs tucked alongside their bodies, are the first to be found in Africa in over four decades.

For the first time, the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), the Society for Developmental Biology (SDB), and the Allen Institute are collaborating to present a three-day scientific symposium led by early-career scientists. The Stem Cell & Developmental Biology Early Career Symposium is designed to nurture the next generation of researchers and provide a platform for professional growth while fostering collaboration at the intersection of developmental biology and stem cell science.