The function of the visual photopigment rhodopsin and its action in the retina to facilitate vision is well understood. However, there remain questions about other biological functions of this family of proteins (opsins) and this has ramifications for our understanding of several evolutionary pathways. Now, an international research team led by the University of Göttingen has shown there are other functions of opsin outside vision and this…

An international research team led by the University of Göttingen has deciphered the defence mechanism of filamentous fungi. Moulds are a preferred food source for small animals. As fungi cannot escape predation by running away, they produce defence metabolites, thereby rendering themselves toxic or unpalatable. After decades-long unsuccessful investigation, these defence compounds have now been identified. The results were published in Nature…

The flight through our atmosphere can be quite turbulent for an insect: In addition to long periods of calm flight, extreme accelerations can occur from time to time, especially when the insect encounters small-scale turbulence in the form of vortices. Such vortices also play a major role in the formation of rain, for example, as they significantly influence the collision of very small droplets in clouds, from which falling raindrops eventually…

"Birds of a feather flock together" or rather "opposites attract"? The recently published study on male macaques in Thailand speaks for the former: Behavioral biologists from the German Primate Centre - Leibniz Institute for Primate Research and psychologists from the University of Göttingen have observed that the more similar male Assamese macaques are in their personality, the closer they get and the stronger their social bonds. The scientists…

The pain-relieving effect of salicylic acid, now sold as Aspirin, has been known for thousands of years. Besides being a useful drug with numerous health applications, it is a stress hormone made by plants which is essential in enabling them to fight off damaging pathogens. What was not known, however, is how plants generated this hormone. Now, an international research team led by the University of Göttingen with the University of British…

The current reform proposals of the EU Commission on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) are unlikely to improve environmental protection, say researchers led by the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) and the University of Göttingen in the journal Science. While the EU has committed to greater sustainability, this is not reflected in the CAP reform proposal. The…

Herpesviruses are loyal companions. Once infected, they remain in the body for a lifetime and can cause new symptoms of disease in the event of stress or a weakened immune system. A common example in humans is the herpes simplex virus type 1, which causes the known cold sores. Herpesviruses also cause childhood chickenpox or Pfeiffer's glandular fever. The viruses can be found in practically all vertebrates. Eight herpesviruses are specific to…

An international team of researchers with participation from the University of Göttingen has discovered three new planets, one of which is located far enough from its star to be potentially habitable. The new worlds orbit a star named GJ 357, an M-type dwarf about one-third the Sun’s mass and size located 31 light-years away in the constellation of Hydra. The results were published in Astronomy & Astrophysics. In February 2019, cameras on NASA’s…

Understanding how biodiversity is shaped by multiple forces is crucial to protect rare species and unique ecosystems. Now an international research team led by the University of Göttingen, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), together with the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, has found that biodiversity is higher on older islands than on younger ones. Furthermore,…