News by Subject Biology

Researchers evaluated the performance of a Hyb-Seq (hybrid capture with high-throughput sequencing) probe set designed for the large and diverse sunflower family (Asteraceae) and found it effective in reconstructing relationships at multiple taxonomic levels. As part of the study, an optimized pipeline is presented for the preparation and analysis of Hyb-Seq data. These findings are important both for evolutionary studies in Asteraceae and to demonstrate the broad use of phylogenetic studies using Hyb-Seq.

Scientists have created the largest phosphoproteome resource to date, which is set to help other researchers identify new functionally-relevant phosphosites. The research demonstrates an exciting use for machine learning methods to effectively compile and analyse large phosphorylation related biological datasets. Identifying new functional phosphosites has enormous potential to progress research into many biological processes and diseases.

With the construction of a building, one of the first steps before creating the upright structure is to set the foundations and the floorplan. Mammalian development is not so different. A multi-disciplinary group of Cambridge researchers has provided the first single-cell epigenomic analysis of gastrulation, a crucial process in early embryo development.

To uncover the relationship between variation in genes and phenotypic diversity, geneticists use a set of fully sequenced fruit-fly genomes. But little is known about the variation in the mitochondrial genome, for which mutations are linked to an array of diseases. Now, EPFL scientists have created a high-resolution map of mitochondrial DNA variants in the fruit fly, connecting mitochondrial genes to metabolic traits and diseases.

A crab's nervous system could help scientists learn what causes single neurons in the human brain to become 'out of whack,' which can contribute to the development of neurological diseases like Alzheimer's disease. Knowing exactly how a single neuron operates among the billions housed in the human brain could one day help scientists design innovative ways to prevent and treat these diseases, such as targeted therapies.