A powerful satellite called XRISM (X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission) is set to provide astronomers with a revolutionary look at the X-ray sky. XRISM, led by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) in collaboration with NASA and with contributions from ESA (European Space Agency), is scheduled to launch on an H-IIA rocket from Japan’s Tanegashima Space Center at 8:26 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Aug. 27 (9:26 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 28, in Japan). JAXA will stream the launch live on YouTube, with a broadcast in both English and Japanese starting at 7:55 p.m. EDT….
Approach is a step toward using single photons in quantum communication and information processing. A new approach to quantum light emitters generates a stream of circularly polarized single photons, or particles of light, that may be useful for a range of quantum information and communication applications. A Los Alamos National Laboratory team stacked two different, atomically thin materials to realize this chiral quantum light source. “Our research shows that it is possible for a monolayer semiconductor to emit circularly polarized…
Sandia researchers develop molecule that reduces wear and tear. A team at Sandia National Laboratories developed a molecule that helps change the way some materials react to temperature fluctuations, which makes them more durable. It’s an application that could be used in everything from plastic phone cases to missiles. Polymers, which include various forms of plastics, are made up of many smaller molecules, bonded together. This bond makes them especially strong and an ideal product to be used to protect…
MHH molecular physician Professor Dr. Dr. Schambach wants to use genetically modified natural killer cells to find new therapeutic options against three particularly malignant cancers. The EU is funding the project with 3.8 million euros. Natural killer cells (NK cells) are part of the first line of defense of our immune system. They eliminate virus-infested cells and tumor cells. This makes NK cells interesting helpers in cancer therapy. Professor Dr. Dr. Axel Schambach, head of the Institute of Experimental Haematology…
In the form of DNA, nature shows how data can be stored in a space-saving and long-term manner. Würzburg’s chair of bioinformatics is developing DNA chips for computer technology. The hereditary molecule DNA can store a great deal of information over long periods of time in a very small space. For a good ten years, scientists have therefore been pursuing the goal of developing DNA chips for computer technology, for example for the long-term archiving of data. Such chips would…
In the ADIUVO clinical trial, Professors of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology Massimo Terzolo (University of Turin, Italy) and Martin Fassnacht (University of Würzburg) and their teams were able to demonstrate that not all patients with adrenocortical carcinoma require the previous standard therapy Mitotane after complete tumour resection. In 2017, the teams of Massimo Terzolo and Martin Fassnacht published a study in the New England Journal of Medicine that provided evidence for the efficacy of Mitotane in the prevention of recurrence…
A new study, led by Hirofumi Nakagami at the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne, Germany, demonstrates that one of the two branches of plant immunity was likely to have evolved early during the establishment of plants on dry land. This insight into prehistoric plant immunity may have implications for breeding more resistant plant species. During plant terrestrialization, plants evolved from being aquatic organisms to those that live on land, a crucial shift in shaping the planet’s…
In recent years, some car manufacturers have already presented the first vehicle models with photovoltaics integrated into the roof. The roof is the easiest surface to use for on-board solar power generation. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have now gone one step further. As part of two publicly funded research projects, they have integrated solar cells into the standard sheet metal hood of a regular passenger car. Coupled with the research institute’s MorphoColor® technology, the…
MARUM team retrieves deep-sea observatory developed in Bremen. How much methane escapes from the ocean floor? This question is the focus of an international project in which MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen is also involved. An expedition to the underwater observatory off the west coast of the USA is now starting, at the end of the M³ project (Sonar Monitoring of Marine Methane emissions), with the research vessel THOMAS G. THOMPSON and the…
A team of chemists from the University of Münster developed a novel concept in which a mixture of molecules that behave like mirror images is converted to a single form. To this end, they use light as external energy source. The conversion is relevant e.g. for the preparation of drugs. The study is now published in the journal “Nature”. Just like our hands, certain organic molecules relate to each other like an image and its reflection – a phenomenon that…
Using ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have observed a large dark spot in Neptune’s atmosphere, with an unexpected smaller bright spot adjacent to it. This is the first time a dark spot on the planet has ever been observed with a telescope on Earth. These occasional features in the blue background of Neptune’s atmosphere are a mystery to astronomers, and the new results provide further clues as to their nature and origin. Large spots are common features in the…
When Dr. Bodo Beck first saw the three children of a family who had fled Syria sitting in his consultation room at University Hospital Cologne, the human geneticist was surprised. His genetic analysis diagnosed Bartter syndrome type 3, but never before had he seen such severe joint changes in patients with this rare disease. The kidney disease is hereditary – affected individuals lack the CLCNKB gene, which is responsible for a specific chloride channel. The electrolyte balance becomes disrupted because…
Spinoff of KIT facilitates moves and replacements of production plants. Old production machinery has to be replaced due to changed requirements. However, high weight and limited space in plants often make it very difficult to assemble and disassemble big machines or to reposition them. Frequently, this is done by hand using heavy-duty rollers. FORMIC Transportsysteme, a spinoff of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), has developed a semi-automatic transportation system for the replacement of production plants, which works like a swarm….
A tool for understanding the molecular mechanism of autism and the mind. Autism is difficult to study and more difficult to treat because it is an individual condition lacking precise quantification. The development of mouse models of human mental disorders has proven a tractable approach to studying the molecular mechanisms, a new review argues and highlights the current state of the art in autism research. Whether or not the autism spectrum is a disorder to be treated or a disability…
… by learning from simulation. An innovative bimanual robot displays tactile sensitivity close to human-level dexterity using AI to inform its actions. The new Bi-Touch system, designed by scientists at the University of Bristol and based at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, allows robots to carry out manual tasks by sensing what to do from a digital helper. The findings, published in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, show how an AI agent interprets its environment through tactile and proprioceptive feedback, and…
… unlocking the secrets to brain diseases. Nanoscale view of proteins opens window to treat neurodegenerative illness. Many diseases affecting the brain and nervous system are linked to the formation of protein aggregates, or solid condensates, in cells from their liquid form condensate, but little is known about this process. This liquid-to-solid transition can trigger the formation of what are called amyloid fibrils. These can further form plaques in neurons causing neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Biomedical engineers at the…
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