Current Biology

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Current Biology

Current Biology (http://www.cell.com/current-biology/) publishes original research, overview and com Current Biology is published by Cell Press.

Current Biology is a general biology journal that publishes original research across all areas of the life sciences together with an extensive and varied set of editorial sections. Editor: Geoffrey North

Senior Deputy Editor: Deborah Taylor
Senior Reviews Editor: Florian Maderspacher
Senior Editor: Cyrus Martin
Senior Editor: Anne Knowlton
Associate Editor: Christine Cosma

Senior Editorial and F

eatures Administrator, Assistant Features Editor: Maxine Herman-Oakley
Editorial and Features Administrator: Maddie Wilson

Production Editor: Sarah Bryer
Deputy Production Editor: Zyanya Louis

15/08/2025

A cell type in the visual system that receives feedback about limb movement

Hartman et al. describe a cell type in the Drosophila visual system that is activated during head grooming through visual and non-visual signals arising from foreleg movements. These neurons inhibit a central brain region involved in visual-motor control and are poised to prevent the fly from steering toward self-generated stimuli.

📷 Graphical abstract © Hartman et al.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00816-4

14/08/2025

Ocean acidification is an underappreciated consequence of the rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. New analyses suggest it has already surpassed its safe planetary boundary. At least three of the “big five” mass extinctions can now be linked to similar changes in the oceans. Michael Gross reports.

1st 📷: Carbonate crisis: Crabs are among the many marine calcifying organisms vulnerable to a drop in carbonate saturation. The photo shows a Sally Lightfoot crab (Grapsus grapsus) in the Galapagos Islands. (Photo: mountainamoeba/Flickr (CC BY 2.0).)

2nd 📷: Paradise lost: Coral reefs are in acute danger from both ocean warming and acidification. The photo shows elkhorn corals (Acropora palmata; Critically Endangered) in Cuba. (Photo: q.phia/Flickr (CC BY 2.0).)

Read this feature (for free) here: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1lYLj3QW8SA3iA

13/08/2025

Fungal pathogen promotes caterpillar feeding and weight gain using a host-like trehalase

Zhao et al. report that Cordyceps militaris fungi induce feeding and weight gain in silkworm larvae using an insect-like trehalase. Fungal infection induces a sharp drop in insect blood sugars and the consequent upregulation of the orexigenic peptide HemaP. The promotion of caterpillar feeding and weight gain benefits fungal fruiting.

📷 Graphical abstract © Zhao et al.

To find out more, check out the link in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00690-6

12/08/2025

How do animals avoid spooking themselves when they move? A new study reveals that proprioceptive signals inhibit visual input resulting from self-generated leg movements during grooming.

📷 Proprioception during grooming behavior of a fly. To avoid confusion, ascending proprioceptive signals from a fly’s leg alert neurons in the visual system when its grooming. (Artwork by Corwin Parker.)

To find out more, check out the link in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00803-6

11/08/2025

Cambrian origin of the arachnid brain

Strausfeld et al. show that fossilized neural tissues of the middle Cambrian genus Mollisonia reveal a small brain defined by a unique organization that characterizes today’s spiders, scorpions, and other arachnids.

📷 Graphical abstract © Strausfeld et al.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00822-X

08/08/2025

Check out our latest issue where we interview Felicity Muth, who studies bees to better understand animal behavior, cognition and health at the University of California, Davis.

Read the interview to find out more about why Felicity chose to study zoology, her latest projects, and what inspired her to write a children’s book!

To read the Q&A, check out the link in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00882-6

07/08/2025

Experience and motivation shape the flight performance of white storks migrating long-distance

Individual animals make decisions to balance their costs and benefits. This balance can be affected by experiences gained with age but also by breeding pressure. Brønnvik and Flack show that age reduces soaring performance in white storks. This demonstrates one way that age can rebalance a trade-off by changing the costs and payoffs to an individual.

📷 Graphical abstract © Brønnvik and Flack.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00804-8

06/08/2025

No consistent size responses in radiolarians to the climatic changes and mass extinctions during the Paleozoic-Mesozoic transition

Xiao et al. present novel and surprising results on size evolution in radiolarians, the important plankton group in the Palaeozoic and earliest Mesozoic oceans. The results allow us to contest two major biological phenomena: the Lilliput effect of size reduction during extinction events and the close links between temperature and size.

📷 Graphical abstract © Xiao et al.

To find out more, check out the link in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00817-6

05/08/2025

Whole-genome sequences provide insights into the formation and adaptation of human populations in the Himalayas

Arciero et al. analyze whole-genome sequences from diverse Himalayan populations and uncover deep population structure, widespread Denisovan introgression, and multiple adaptive signals that together shaped genetic diversity and high-altitude survival in this challenging environment.

📷 Graphical abstract © Arciero et al.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00808-5

04/08/2025

Our newest issue is now live!

On the cover: Bluebottles or man-o’-war, cnidarians in the genus Physalia, use a gas-filled float and sail to catch the wind and sail the ocean surface. Church et al. use global genomics and citizen science photography to identify multiple species of Physalia found in the open ocean around the globe. Shown here is a P. physalis specimen from Florida. Image credit: Keara R. Giannotti via iNaturalist.org.

Link here and in Instagram bio: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/current

31/07/2025

Highly siloed nutrient pathways fuel meso-predator fishes on coral reefs 🪸

McMahon et al. use a dual molecular isotope approach to reveal highly siloed carbon pathways in coral reef food webs. Multiple snapper species rely on food webs based on distinct primary producers, indicating that reef consumers across multiple trophic levels forage within compartmentalized energy channels shaped by microhabitat use.

1st 📷: A kaleidoscope of coral forms and colors at the Red Sea’s surface illustrates the habitat complexity that drives fine-scale energy partitioning among reef-associated fishes. Image credit: Kelton McMahon.

2nd 📷: Rays of sunlight pierce the water column over a Red Sea reef, energizing primary producers that underpin the siloed food webs explored in our study. Image credit: Randi Rotjan.

3rd 📷: Sampling snapper on coral reefs to assess their role in complex reef food web dynamics. Image credit: Simon Thorrold.

4th 📷: Focal species Lutjanus kasmira. Image Credit: Simon Thorrold.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00794-8

29/07/2025

Planthopper-induced volatiles suppress rice plant defense by targeting Os4CL5-dependent phenolamide biosynthesis

Yao et al. uncover how herbivore-induced plant volatiles boost planthopper performance by suppressing plant defense signaling and toxin biosynthesis. Their findings advance our understanding of this counterintuitive plant-plant interaction and lay the groundwork for novel strategies to harness such interactions for sustainable pest control.

📷 Graphical abstract © Yao et al.

To find out more check out this open access article linked in our bio and here: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)00762-6

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