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The Backstory: Padmanabhan Babu and the isolation of the e912 mutant (lin-4)
For many years there was only one lin-4 mutant allele (e912), and this single allele enabled the studies reported by Lee et al. (1993) from the Ambros lab, describing the first microRNA. The e912 mutant was first reported by Horvitz and Sulston (1980) - “lin-4(e912) was obtained by P. Babu”. Who is P. Babu?
The Backstory: An interview with Candy Lee on the discovery of microRNAs
The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for the discovery of microRNAs. Rosalind (Candy) Lee has been a member of the Ambros lab since 1987. She is the co-first author of the 1993 paper describing the unusual product of the lin-4 locus in C. elegans, the first described microRNA.
Universities and the government: Which needs the other more?
An op-ed by Carole LaBonne
We frequently hear of late that universities are “dependent on federal money,” as though they were passive beneficiaries of government largesse. The reality is closer to the opposite: The federal government depends on universities to conduct the research that keeps our nation healthy, safe and economically competitive.
Crawling towards the evolutionary origin of novel structures
Heather Bruce’s childhood attempts to raise crawfish in a kiddie pool were excellent foreshadowing for her future work maintaining millipede colonies in the lab. Bruce, formerly a postdoc at Marine Biological Laboratory and a new faculty member at University of British Columbia was the recipient of a 2023 Society for Developmental Biology Emerging Research Organisms (ERO) grant.
Bioluminescence sheds light on the developmental origin of novel organs: An interview with Lisa Mesrop
Most of us know about fireflies, but did you know that some of their distant relatives live underwater?Lisa Mesrop, a 2023 Society for Developmental Biology Emerging Research Organism Grant awardee, studies exactly that–bioluminescent ostracod Vargula tsujii, colloquially known as “sea fireflies”.
Establishing the sea cucumber as an emerging model in developmental biology
Margherita Perillo, a research scientist at the Marine
Biological Laboratory (MBL), was awarded the 2024 Society for
Developmental Biology Emerging Research Organism Grant for her work on
establishing the sea cucumber (Holothuria tubulosa), as an emerging model for developmental biology research.
Opportunity, Exploration, and Change in Metamorphosis
The new moon perpetuated the darkness, lapping waves broke the silence, and titans of the deep surrounded her. Emma Rangel-Huerta was there to witness a marine marvel, the coordinated birth of millions of microscopic individuals. She put on her diving mask and steadied her breath. With a jump and a surge of bubbles, she sank into an alien world. Rangel-Huerta was incandescent as she recounted her first dive to witness the spawning of rice coral, Montipora capitata.
The embryo and our peers as the best mentors: How the Research Preparation and Resilience Program sets up students for success in developmental biology
Many of us, now passionate about our careers in developmental biology, know the struggle of securing our first lab position. Without this first opportunity, many doors remain closed and we fall out of the pipeline before ever getting in it. “How will I get experience when I am expected to already have experience?" Marta Truchado-Garcia has stepped up to help students who have fallen victim to this inherent circularity of the job market.
Why we study shrimp on treadmills: The case for curiosity-driven research
An op-ed by Carole LaBonne on basic science
In recent debates about government funding, certain quirky-sounding research projects — like studying shrimp on treadmills — have grabbed headlines and become easy targets for criticism. Politicians and the public alike ask: “Why should we pay for shrimp running on treadmills?”
The biological truth: Trump’s gender directives ignore science
Developmental Biology
Developmental Biology, the official journal of the Society for Developmental Biology, publishes original research on mechanisms of development, differentiation, and growth in animals and plants at the molecular, cellular, genetic and evolutionary levels.
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WIREs Mechanisms of Disease
WIREs Developmental Biology, previously published in association with the Society for Developmental Biology, has merged into WIREs Mechanisms of Disease. All SDB members can access WIREs Mechanisms of Disease articles for free by signing in to their SDB Membership Portal.
