Study published in Nature identifies novel approaches for anti-allergic therapies. Inflammation and increased mucus production are typical symptoms of worm infections and allergies. This immune response involves our innate immune cells, but their exact functions are not yet fully understood. A research team from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin has now shed light on the key tasks that these cells perform. In the study, which has been published in the journal Nature*, the researchers also identify potential therapeutic approaches for the treatment of allergies….
A peculiar property of the Earth’s magnetic field could help us to work out how our planet was created 4.5 billion years ago, according to a new scientific assessment. There are several theories about how the Earth and the Moon were formed, most involving a giant impact. They vary from a model where the impacting object strikes the newly formed Earth a glancing blow and then escapes, through to one where the collision is so energetic that both the impactor…
Planets can force their host stars to act younger than their age, according to a new study of multiple systems authored by scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP) using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. This may be the best evidence to date that some planets apparently slow down the aging process for their host stars. While the anti-aging property of hot Jupiters, that is, giant gas exoplanets that orbit a star at Mercury’s distance or closer, has been…
Fraunhofer at MEDICA/COMPAMED 2022. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering IBMT have developed the “BioSensoLab“, a mobile biological laboratory with which they can demonstrate new developments to customers and test them together – on site at their companies. These new technologies rely in particular on intelligent sensors combined with artificial intelligence to perform analyses. The lab will be presented at the joint Fraunhofer booth at the MEDICA 2022 trade fair in Düsseldorf from November 14 to 17. “Never…
Within the project secureAR (funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research), a cross-industry and open cloud-based service platform with open industry interfaces is being developed. Within secureAR, the Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP is researching a novel hardware platform that is used in an innovative AR assistance system for the location- and situation-specific provision and visualization of data in different industrial scenarios. This hardware platform will be presented at electronica 2022, from…
DSMZ publishes unique database for the cultivation of microorganisms. Researchers at the Leibniz Institute DSMZ-German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures GmbH in Braunschweig, Germany have published a freely accessible database for growth media of microorganisms. The content and functions of this worldwide unique database – MediaDive (https://mediadive.dsmz.de/) – are explained by the researchers in their article published in the renowned journal Nucleic Acids Research. Microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi are the basis for life and survival on Earth….
Scientists funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation have been exploring the special properties of the star Gamma Columbae. Their hypothesis: it is a binary star whose heart has been laid bare. A bright star visible to the naked eye, but until recently a star that was of no particular interest to scientists. Gamma Columbae, a star in the Columba constellation located some 900 light years from Earth, has just revealed its astonishing history: it is thought to be the…
Advances and challenges in molecular nanoscience. Molecular nanoscience and magnetic materials: In the field of molecular magnetism, the design of devices with technological applications at the nanoscale —quantum computing, molecular spintronics, magnetic cooling, nanomedicine, high-density information storage, etc.— requires those magnetic molecules that are placed on the surface to preserve their structure, functionality and properties. Now, a paper published in the journal Coordination Chemistry Reviews analyses the most updated knowledge on the processes of deposition and organization of magnetic molecules on…
Researchers from the NanoPhoton Center at DTU have developed a nanostructure that compresses the light to become 10,000 times thinner than a human hair. This fundamental scientific breakthrough can be important for multiple fields, including energy-efficient technology. Until recently, it was widely believed among physicists that it was impossible to compress light below the so-called diffraction limit (see fact box), except when using metal nanoparticles, which unfortunately also absorb light. It therefore seemed impossible to compress light strongly in dielectric…
Microsphere assistance enables interferometric topography measurements. When measuring with light, the lateral extent of the structures that can be resolved by an optical imaging system is fundamentally diffraction limited. Overcoming this limitation is a topic of great interest in recent research, and several approaches have been published in this area. In a recent study published in the Journal of Optical Microsystems, a team of researchers from the University of Kassel in Germany present an approach that uses microspheres placed directly on…
A seismic shift in advanced technology is on the way. The Quantum Collaborative is Arizona State University’s answer to this upheaval, uniting quantum technology research efforts and developing a prepared workforce. Arizona State University has launched the Quantum Collaborative, a major 21st century initiative poised to profoundly impact society and the American economy with new discoveries and applications in advanced quantum technology. The promise of quantum technology has kicked off an international contest the likes of which have not been…
This machine-learning system can simulate how a listener would hear a sound from any point in a room. Imagine the booming chords from a pipe organ echoing through the cavernous sanctuary of a massive, stone cathedral. The sound a cathedral-goer will hear is affected by many factors, including the location of the organ, where the listener is standing, whether any columns, pews, or other obstacles stand between them, what the walls are made of, the locations of windows or doorways,…
Researchers have developed a technique that could help fine-tune the production of monoclonal antibodies and other useful proteins. Using an approach based on CRISPR proteins, MIT researchers have developed a new way to precisely control the amount of a particular protein that is produced in mammalian cells. This technique could be used to finely tune the production of useful proteins, such as the monoclonal antibodies used to treat cancer and other diseases, or other aspects of cellular behavior. In their…
Can we survive three minutes without air or three days without water? How about without batteries? Imagine not having a battery for three hours. Lightweight, high-capacity lithium-ion batteries are widely used in mobile phones, laptops, and other necessities in today’s world. However, the organic electrolytes in conventional lithium-ion batteries are highly flammable, leading to fatal fires or explosions. As lithium-ion batteries are widely used in our lives, such accidents can cause direct damage to users, which has led to a…
A team of Canadian researchers from Université de Montréal has designed and validated a new class of drug transporters made of DNA that are 20,000 times smaller than a human hair and that could improve how cancers and other diseases are treated. Reported in a new study in Nature Communications, these molecular transporters can be chemically programmed to deliver optimal concentration of drugs, making them more efficient than current methods. Optimal dosing at all times: a medical challenge One of…
Federal Minister of Research Stark-Watzinger christens research cutter Uthörn. Today, German Federal Minister of Education and Research Bettina Stark-Watzinger christened the Alfred Wegener Institute’s new research vessel Uthörn at the Fassmer shipyards in Berne. The new ship, measuring 35 metres long and with a price tag of ca. 15 million euros, will be the first seaworthy German ship powered by environmentally friendly, low-emissions methanol, setting new standards for sustainability in German shipping. After a two-year construction phase, the cutter is…
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