Why humans have a philtrum, the groove above your lip, explained by an evolutionary biologist — from embryonic face-building to vestigial anatomy.

By tracking neural crest cells in catshark embryos, researchers discovered that the molecular toolkit behind face-building is ...

Like all complex organisms, every human originates from a single cell that multiplies through countless cell divisions. Thousands of cells coordinate, move and exert mechanical forces on each other as ...

Men have nipples because embryos are sexually neutral for their first six weeks. Here's the developmental blueprint behind ...

In order for vertebrate embryos to develop their body axes, they require what is known as an embryonic signaling center. This ...

Small fold – big role: A tissue fold known as the cephalic furrow, an evolutionary novelty that forms between the head and the trunk of fly embryos, plays a mechanical role in stabilizing embryonic ...

In the earliest hours after fertilization, an embryo takes its first steps toward becoming a living organism by shedding maternal control and activating its own genetic program. This critical process, ...

Is there only one optimal configuration an organism can reach during evolution? Is there a single formula that describes the trajectory towards the optimum? And can we 'derive' it in a purely ...

The morphological transformation of the pectoral/shoulder girdle is fundamental to the water-to-land transition in vertebrate evolution. Although previous studies have resolved the embryonic origins ...