Myths in magnetosensation

Nimpf, Simon und Keays, David A. (2022): Myths in magnetosensation. In: iScience, Bd. 25, Nr. 6, 104454

Abstract

The ability to detect magnetic fields is a sensory modality that is used by many animals to navigate. While first postulated in the 1800s, for decades, it was considered a biological myth. A series of elegant behavioral experiments in the 1960s and 1970s showed conclusively that the sense is real;however, the underlying mechanism(s) remained unresolved. Consequently, this has given rise to a series of beliefs that are critically analyzed in this manuscript. We address six assertions: (1) Magnetoreception does not exist;(2) It has to be magnetite;(3) Birds have a conserved six loci magnetic sense system in their upper beak;(4) It has to be cryptochrome;(5) MagR is a protein biocompass;and (6) The electromagnetic induction hypothesis is dead. In advancing counter-arguments for these beliefs, we hope to stimulate debate, new ideas, and the design of well-controlled experiments that can aid our understanding of this fascinating biological phenomenon.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Biologie
• Themengebiete: 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik > 570 Biowissenschaften; Biologie
• Sprache: Englisch