Disrupted Neuronal Microexons Drive Hyperarousal and Insomnia

Summary: A new study found that altered neuronal microexons cause hyperarousal and insomnia in zebrafish. The researchers discovered that abnormal alternative splicing spikes cAMP signaling, which acts as an internal…

Andrés F. Ramírez-Mejía | The commonness of rarity: why there are so many rare species – Functional Ecologists

In this week’s blog post, we’re discovering how common it is to be rare! Through his paper: “Functional divergence drives the prevalence of low-abundance species in bat assemblages”, author Andrés…

A textbook assumption about early land vertebrates may be wrong

New fossil evidence is overturning a long-held assumption about how vertebrates first transitioned from water to land. The hatchlings of three different animals related to the earliest land-goers show that…

Brain Inflammation Linked to Chronic Depression and Anxiety

Summary: A global meta-analysis of over 4,700 survivors has revealed that psychiatric and behavioral complications, such as depression, anxiety, and emotional instability, are widespread following encephalitis (brain inflammation). Researchers found…

TBI and Common Neurological Conditions Accelerate One Another

Summary: A study of 55,204 older veterans demonstrates a dangerous bi-directional risk loop between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and neurological diseases.The research found that older adults who sustained a TBI…

Great Apes Shatter Human Models of Social Intelligence

Summary: Great ape cognition is highly individualized, dynamic, and structurally distinct from human intelligence. Tracking 48 chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans over 18 months, researchers determined that individual cognitive differences…

Probiotics Show Promise as Add-On Treatment for Depression

Summary: Adding probiotic therapy to standard care can provide modest but meaningful relief for older adults suffering from moderate depression. The study monitored 58 participants aged 60 and older over…

A deadly fungus that can infect cats and people is spreading

WASHINGTON — Microbiologists are used to looking at gross pictures and hearing scary statistics. So when a moderator of a session on emerging fungal infections at the ASM Microbe meeting…

How real is the Cyclops in ‘The Odyssey’?

The iconic one-eyed monster coming to movie screens in July in The Odyssey might have more in common with tiny water critters than with humans.

Caitlin Terry | Forest type and leaf habit mediate thermal and drought tolerance across a tropical elevational gradient – Functional Ecologists

In this ‘Behind the Paper’ blog post, we’re dealing with drought! Author Caitlin Terry – a PhD student at Cornell University – delves into their research article “Forest type and…