Woodrats survive on toxic creosote plants by copying detox genes, producing more enzymes to break down plant toxins and avoid ...

Caption A captive desert woodrat, also known as a packrat, stands on a rock near branches from a toxic creosote bush. A new University of Utah study shows how microbes in the gut play a key role ...

lepida along with N. bryanti, a woodrat species that also independently evolved to feed on creosote. First, they fed all animals the same low dose of creosote toxins to compare gene activity in ...