What makes the human brain distinctive? A new study published in Cell identifies two genes linked to human brain features and ...

Most organisms fit comfortably into standard definitions of “life,” i.e., cells that grow, reproduce independently, and ...

In the vast and often unseen world of microscopic life, a recent discovery may force scientists to rethink what it means to ...

Because they rely on hosts for a majority of functions, viruses aren’t considered alive. But entities like this one ...

DNA replication is an extremely accurate process and cells have evolved intricate control mechanisms to ensure that each region of their genome is replicated only once during S phase. Here, we compare ...

The eukaryotic cell, the most significant increase in complexity in the history of life's evolution on Earth, emerged as a phase transition and unlocked the path toward other major transitions ...

Eukaryotic cells form the foundation of complex life, their defining feature being the presence of membrane-bound organelles. This article details the structure of eukaryotic cells and provides ...

Prokaryotes are unicellular organisms that lack membrane-bound structures. This article details the structure of prokaryotic cells and provides examples of prokaryotic organisms.

Pathogens hijack host cell functions by expressing or secreting effector proteins, creating environments conducive to their ...

This complex multicellularity has evolved independently in at least five lineages: animals, land plants, brown algae, red algae and fungi. As different as these multicellular creatures might be, their ...