News: Integrative Biology

Read the latest news from the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin

Podcast

Some Bacteria Have Lived in the Human Gut Since Before We Were Human

New study suggests that evolution plays a larger role than previously known in people's intestinal-microbe makeup.

Illustration of green and purple microbes enlarged under a microscope

UT News

Rare, Blind Catfish Never Before Found in U.S. Discovered in Texas

An extremely rare eyeless catfish species previously known to exist only in Mexico has been discovered in a National Recreation Area in Texas.

A pair of eyeless catfish

Research

Supporting Pollinators Could Have Big Payoff for Texas Cotton Farmers

Researchers at UT Austin find the secret to increasing cotton production.

A bee hovers near a pink flower

UT News

Genetic Potential of Oil-Eating Bacteria from the BP Oil Spill Decoded

Microbiologists led by Brett Baker have discovered potential in bacteria that helped to clean up the BP oil spill.

An Oil Slick stretches across a span of ocean

Accolades

Evolutionary Biologist James Bull Elected to National Academy of Sciences

“James Bull’s election to the National Academy honors the significant research he has done in evolutionary and population biology and experimental evolution.”

James Bull and the symbol of the National Academy of Sciences

Accolades

Biology Professor Nancy Moran Receives Lifetime Contribution Award

The award is intended to recognize individuals with “a record of truly outstanding research that has contributed broadly to the field of Molecular Biology and...

Nancy Moran inspects bees in a rooftop hive atop the Patterson Labs Building. Photo by Bill McCullough for Quanta Magazine.

Features

Graduate Students Ensure Science Under the Stars Shines Bright

The free, monthly public lecture series was founded and is run completely by students in the Plant Biology and Ecology, Evolution and Behavior (EEB) graduate...

A mother and child attend Science Under the Stars.

Podcast

Saving the Bees, Two Perspectives

How do you move 100,000 honeybees—a living laboratory for research on the gut microbiome—half way across the country?

A busy hive of honeybees

UT News

Sociable Chimps Harbor Richer Gut Microbiomes

Spending time in close contact with others often means risking catching germs and getting sick. But being sociable may also help transmit beneficial microbes, finds...

Two chimpanzees interact in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Photo by Steffen Foerster, Duke University

UT News

Some Prairie Vole Brains Are Better Wired for Sexual Fidelity

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that natural selection drives some male prairie voles to be fully monogamous and others to...

A pair of voles. One bears an ear tag that is used as a unique identifier for the vole. Photo by Aubrey Kelly/Cornell University.