Ongoing global environmental changes demand cost-effective strategies to restore ecosystem functioning. Within this context, the reintroduction of large mammalian herbivores has emerged as a promising approach to recover ecological processes and foster self-sustaining, biodiverse ecosystems. However, the impacts of such initiatives remain poorly understood, particularly regarding their effects on soil functions and ecological processes. We […]
Phylogeny, ecology, and allometry: hierarchical controls of insect elemental composition
Elemental composition links organismal physiology to biogeochemical cycles, yet the relative importance of evolutionary and ecological drivers remains unresolved for insects. Integrating a global stoichiometric database with a comprehensive phylogenetic backbone, we demonstrate hierarchical control of insect stoichiometry, with phylogeny accounting for ~50% of variation in C:N:P ratios, followed by temperature, body mass, trophic group […]
Predicting porcini: a decade of sporocarp monitoring reveals the meteorological triggers of Boletus edulis fruiting in central European beech forests
The reproductive biology of ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) is difficult to study because sporocarp formation cannot be reliably induced under laboratory conditions. This limitation partly reflects our incomplete understanding of the short-term meteorological conditions that trigger fruiting in most EMF species. To address this knowledge gap, we analyzed a decade-long (2015-2024) dataset of near-exhaustive sporocarp observations […]
The effect of environmental enrichment on social dominance and welfare in a cichlid fish
Environmental enrichment can have complex, contradictory effects on aggression and animal welfare. Although increasing enrichment may reduce aggression by limiting the visibility of competitors, it may also intensify territorial defense and harm the welfare of subordinates who are the target of territorial aggression. However, it remains unclear how variation in the complexity of an enrichment […]
IDR-dependent MORC1 bodies limit chromatin accessibility to tune transposon repression
Germline-specific MORC1-mediated transposon repression intersects with the MIWI2-piRNA pathway and involves H3K9me3 deposition, yet the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we show that MORC1 assembles nuclear bodies in gonocytes. Using a doxycycline-inducible MORC1 expression system in NIH3T3 cells, we find that condensate formation is confined to the nucleus via an IDR containing a bipartite NLS, […]
Chemical proteomics reveals regulation of bile salt hydrolases via oxidative post-translational modifications
The gut microbiome is the vast, diverse ecosystem of microorganisms that inhabits the human intestines and provides numerous essential functions for the host. One such key role is the metabolism of primary bile acids that are biosynthesized in the host liver into a plethora of secondary bile acids produced by gut bacteria. These metabolites serve […]
The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Ku C-terminus orchestrates LigD activity through domain-specific interactions
Bacterial non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) is a key DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair pathway that relies on the Ku-LigD complex to alleviate genomic instability. The Mycobacterium tuberculosis Ku C-terminal region has previously been highlighted for its role in both LigD recruitment to DNA DSBs and stimulation of LigD ligase activity. However, it remains unclear how […]
How big is enough? Movement-informed zoning for African swine fever mitigation
1. African swine fever (ASF) poses a serious threat to domestic pigs and wild boar populations. Wild boar can disperse the virus, making effective containment crucial. One of the main control strategies involves establishing restricted zones around detected cases, i.e., areas with temporary restrictions on access and hunting; however, determining the appropriate size of these […]
Where Climate Change and Sampling Bias Collide: Challenges of Predicting Biodiversity Change in Canada
Anticipating biodiversity change is critical in rapidly warming regions, yet challenging because these areas often coincide with poor sampling. Data gaps are widely understood to interfere with species distribution models (SDMs), but this is difficult to detect with biased data. We test SDM bias-correction methods with a new occurrence-checklist-range (OCR) validation approach and evaluate prediction […]
Molecular basis of tRNA substrate recognition and modification by the atypical SPOUT methyltransferase Trm10
The evolutionarily conserved methyltransferase Trm10 modifies the N1 position of guanosine 9 (G9) in some tRNAs, but how the enzyme recognizes and modifies its substrate tRNAs remains unclear. Here, we used an S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) analog to trap the Trm10-tRNAGly complex and enable determination of its structure in a post-catalytic state by cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM). […]