Hydra can modify its genetic program

Champion of regeneration, the freshwater polyp Hydra is capable of reforming a complete individual from any fragment of its body. It is even able to remain alive when all its neurons have disappeared. Researcher the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, have discovered how: cells of the epithelial type modify their genetic program by overexpressing a series of genes, among which some are involved in diverse nervous functions.

A fault line runs through the stalls

“THESE children have fewer rights than prison inmates,” says Tom Morrison, a Republican state representative in Illinois. Mr Morrison is talking about girls at a high school in his constituency, Palatinate, who share a locker-room with a transgender girl.