Plants & Animals

More than a decade after the Nagoya Protocol, which aims to fairly share the benefits of utilizing genetic resources, became law, microbiologists and other scientists still face practical challenges and confusion. A new guide published by a team of microbiologists provides universally applicable frameworks for anyone working with biological resources.

A Hiroshima-University-led research team has discovered a key gene responsible for the initiation of gemma development, acting as a "master switch" to start asexual reproduction (cloning) in the model plant Marchantia polymorpha (common liverwort).

A subset of bat alphacoronaviruses are found to have the potential to enter human, according to a study published in Nature.

New research reveals unexpected intruders in a classic tropical tree–ant relationship, raising concerns for forest recovery in human‑altered landscapes.

Matcha surprise, Smart sea urchin spines, Breaking biomass bonds, Hybrid air-conditioning, Alga in gloom & A touch of tech. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus Early Bird submissions for Asia Research News 2027

A team led by Professor Julia Beatty, Chair Professor of Veterinary Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences of CityUHK, recently published a review in the prestigious journal Nature Reviews Cancer, exploring how feline tumour viruses offer vital insights into human oncology and viral carcinogenesis from a comparative oncology perspective.

Light enhances adhesion between epidermal and inner tissues in plant stems

Dragonflies have evolved special light-sensing proteins that let them see deeper red light than most animals. Researchers have now discovered that the mechanism of red vision is shared with humans and this ability comes from small molecular changes that could inspire new biomedical technologies.

Researchers have confirmed that golden sweeper fish steal the bioluminescence enzymes from their prey rather than produce them naturally.

Psst, have you heard that mushrooms can “gossip” and spread information to their neighbours? Researchers at Tohoku University showed how electrical information flows between mushrooms in response to a unique stimulus: urine.

Researchers identified the tegmentum in the midbrain as an ‘integration center’ of fish. The area receives visual information from the eyes that is combined with color information detected by the pineal organ—the ‘third eye.’ These inputs are integrated to control how fish orient themselves in the water.

A new international survey reveals clear differences in how veterinarians and animal welfare scientists in Japan and the UK perceive animal welfare, particularly animal behaviour.

Researchers at Hiroshima University have developed a new tool to quickly and accurately map fungal gene functions, even for species that have never been studied before.

Assessing the Impact of Chemical Contaminants on Finless Porpoises Using In Vitro Data and Mass Distribution Modeling

Published in Nature Ecology and Evolution, a novel study led by National Taiwan University connects plant and insect physiology, chemical ecology, molecular function, and evolutionary analysis to offer a new perspective on plant–insect coevolution.

According to a 20-year study in mice published in Nature Communications, repeated cloning cannot be sustained indefinitely in mammals.

A single-celled predator maintains stolen chloroplasts with its own proteins, linking the host cell and stolen organelles at the molecular level. This process, now supported by biochemical evidence, may offer clues to early steps in the evolution of plant cells.

Researchers discovered that a freshwater alga captures low-energy far-red light by precisely arranging ordinary chlorophyll molecules, rather than inventing new pigments. The finding reveals a new structural strategy for photosynthesis in low-light environments and could inform future bioenergy and protein design.

Changes in male hormones and excessive sugar intake work together in progressing liver damage

Testing air and surfaces can detect dangerous viruses earlier and more comprehensively than testing birds alone

The oldest-known articulated bony fish and an early example of teeth from a bony fish have been detected in a collection of fossils from China. Two Nature papers offer new insights into the origins of bony fish.

Cleaner fish interacted with a mirror in their tank in a way that suggests ‘contingency testing’ intelligence, a higher form of smarts typically found in mammals. This finding coupled with faster self-recognition than previously thought, expands our image of intelligence in these social fish.

A study finds that shelterbelts, trees planted as windbreaks, in Japan’s wet farmlands boost edge-dwelling bird population but cut grassland species by about 74%, with numbers rebounding roughly a kilometer away, revealing an overlooked conservation trade-off.

As the Year of the Horse approaches, Prof Cai Zongqi, Director of the Advanced Institute for Global Chinese Studies and Lee Wing Tat Chair Professor of Chinese Literature of Lingnan University, and Mr Jerry Wang Junzhe, Research Officer of the Advanced Institute for Global Chinese Studies, offer a detailed interpretation of the Horse zodiac sign from the cultural perspectives of customs, classical texts, history, management, and literature, and link this explanation to contemporary Chinese New Year greetings.

When cultivated tobacco is crossed with a wild relative it erases lethal genes, allowing normally fatal hybrids to survive.

A Hiroshima University-led project has secured a $1.8 million grant to develop a way to store bull semen using simple refrigeration instead of costly cryopreservation, a shift that could remove a major barrier to modern dairy cattle breeding that has long shut out farmers in low-resource regions. If successful, the technology is expected to boost milk yields, stabilize incomes for small-scale dairy farmers, and improve nutrition.

More than 190 students from 13 local secondary schools will take part in a year-long programme to gain hands-on experience in preparing an extremely rare whale specimen for public exhibitions scheduled for 2027. The Environment and Conservation Fund “Sea” Through Cetacean: STEAM Student Ambassador Programme & Cetacean Conservation Exhibition, organised by the Division of Science of Lingnan University in collaboration with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Cetacea Research Institute, and Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong, was officially launched on 1 February 2026. This initiative builds on the rare stranding of a Longman’s beaked whale in Hong Kong in 2024, providing students with a unique opportunity to assist in the preparation of skeletal specimens of one of the world’s most mysterious marine mammal species. The project also promotes cetacean conservation and will educate the public in key marine environmental issues, including plastic pollution in the oceans.

Sticky life beginnings. Precarious pitcher plant, Breaking the cobalt "cage", Toxic algae killer & “Pure-bred” stem cell medium. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus Asia Research News 2026 is out now and SciCom Coffee talk by Rachael Smith at Wellcome Sanger Institute.

Skeletal muscle stem cells in hibernating Syrian hamsters preserve their ability to function by suppressing their activation during the hibernation period, a research team led by Hiroshima University has shown. This insight may lead to a broader understanding of the maintenance of muscle tissue under prolonged low temperature conditions and may eventually lead to therapeutic applications.

New research led by WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) documents recovery of Critically Endangered Siamese crocodiles through local stewardship and long-term protection.