A specific retinal pathway enables mice to detect incredibly dim shadows -- nearly reaching the limit of what's physically possible. The same circuit is in human eyes, which might enable researchers to probe visual diseases at unprecedented resolution.

New research suggests high levels of dietary cholesterol make mice sicker when infected with influenza. This study links cholesterol in the diet with exacerbation of a viral infection.

Repurposed drugs may have a speedier path to clinical use because they have already been shown to be safe in people. A new study suggests clofoctol may be an effective treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infections in mice.

In most mammals, females have two X chromosomes and males have one X and one Y chromosome in each of their cells. To avoid a double dose of X-linked genes in females, one of the Xs is silenced early in the developmental process. This silencing is critical, yet how it happens has been relatively mysterious. Two new studies reveal more about this silencing process and insights that could improve stem cell research.

Scientists saw for the first time hallmarks of concussions and other head trauma in the brains of deceased headbutting animals -- muskoxen and bighorn sheep. The results may contradict the commonly-held belief that ramming animals do not suffer brain injuries and support the notion that studies on animals with brains evolutionarily similar to those of humans may help researchers understand and reduce traumatic brain injuries.

New gene-editing techniques are shedding light on how hormones impact social behavior in animals and possibly, humans.

The microbes that help break down food actually tell the gut how to do its job better, according to a new study in mice. The researchers said it appears that the microbes are able to influence which of the gut's genes are being called into action, and in turn, that interaction might lead to a remodeling of the epithelial cells lining the gut so that they match the diet.

Patients prescribed antibiotics in hospital are more likely to get fungal infections because of disruption to the immune system in the gut, according to a new study.

A single hormone appears to coordinate the lifespan extension produced by a low-protein diet. Low-protein diets produce beneficial metabolic effects in aged mice, improving metabolic health, reducing frailty, and extending lifespan. These beneficial effects were also apparent when protein intake was reduced in middle-aged mice, even protecting against the detriments of obesity. Importantly, these beneficial effects were lost in mice that lacked FGF21, suggesting that its action in the brain is […]

Researchers have equipped gut bacteria with data logger functionality as a way of monitoring which genes are active in the bacteria. These microorganisms could one day offer a noninvasive means of diagnosing disease or assessing the impact of a diet on health.