A recent study shows that certain immune cells can restore their normal functions when introduced back into the body, even after being multiplied in the laboratory to large numbers – the results pave the way to new cell therapies. Macrophages are immune cells crucial for immune response, tissue repair, and the removal of cancer cells. Scientists see macrophages as promising living therapeutics. However, to be effectively used for therapies, macrophages have to be grown to large numbers in laboratory culture…
An international team of astronomers including those from the University of Freiburg and Leibniz Institute for Solar Physics (KIS), Germany, found that the axis of rotation of a black hole in a binary system is tilted more than 40 degrees relative to the axis of the stellar orbit. The finding challenges current theoretical models of black hole formation. The study has been published in “Science”. Astronomers made the first reliable measurement of a large difference between the axis of rotation…
With steep walls and deep valleys, the Grand Canyon in the western United States or the massive gorges that saw through the margins of the Tibetan Plateau are some of the most awesome and spectacular landforms on the planet. But have you ever wondered how they are formed? Some studies have proposed that canyons form when a mountain range grows in height and a river running through it cuts into the rock formation like a knife, ultimately forming gorges. Other…
Researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas and Oklahoma State University have developed an innovative terahertz imager microchip that can enable devices to detect and create images through obstacles that include fog, smoke, dust and snow. The team is working on a device for industrial applications that require imaging up to 20 meters away. The technology could also be adapted for use in cars to help drivers or autonomous vehicle systems navigate through hazardous conditions that reduce visibility. On…
Scientists at UCL have developed a new technique that uses microscopic magnetic particles to remotely activate brain cells; researchers say the discovery in rats could potentially lead to the development of a new class of non-invasive therapies for neurological disorders. Published in Advanced Science, the pioneering technique called “magnetomechanical stimulation” or , allows touch sensitive brain glial cells called astrocytes to be stimulated with a magnetic device outside the body. Microscopic magnetic particles, or micromagnets, are attached to astrocytes, and used as…
A superior new material for optoelectronic devices. Liquid crystals derived from borophene have risen in popularity, owing to their immense applicability in optoelectronic and photonic devices. However, their development requires a very narrow temperature range, which hinders their large-scale application. Now, Tokyo Tech researchers investigated a liquid-state borophene oxide, discovering that it exhibited high thermal stability and optical switching behavior even at low voltages. These findings highlight the strong potential of borophene oxide-derived liquid crystals for use in widespread applications….
Living organisms produce an abundance of small molecular compounds, called metabolites. Although, it is clear that small molecules are central to all aspect of life, their exact functionalities are often unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, and because small molecules act by binding with proteins, Aleksandra Skirycz’s group at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology developed a novel strategy to identify such protein-molecule complexes. An important group of small molecules identified by this novel strategy are 2′,3′-cAMP nucleotides,…
Würzburg researchers have highlighted and quantified a three-fold coupling between exciton, photon, and phonon in a microcavity with embedded two-dimensional materials. Atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) materials can provide highly interesting excitonic properties, which render them an attractive platform to explore polaritonic physics. In the literature, a variety of inorganic exciton-polariton systems have been studied experimentally and described theoretically using the broadly accepted model of two coupled oscillators, where only the coupling between excitons and cavity photons is considered. Now, Donghai…
Infections with several pathogens simultaneously increase the risk of cervical cancer—these results from a study conducted on artificial 3D tissue models at the University of Wuerzburg. Patients who develop cervical cancer are often infected not only with the human papillomavirus (HPV) but also simultaneously with the bacterial pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis. The suspicion is, therefore, that the two pathogens work together in a kind of team to “reprogram” the cells they infect in such a way that they degenerate and multiply…
Autonomous vehicles are not only a major challenge in road traffic. Solutions for highly automated, fully automated and autonomous ships are also being developed for the maritime world. But how can autonomous ships be integrated into conventional maritime traffic? To avoid accidents, shipping traffic in coastal areas with very high traffic density is regulated by traffic control centers on shore. What support can science offer operators in their efforts to monitor mixed shipping traffic in the future? These are the…
MHH programme PRACTIS for the training of clinician scientists is supported with 1.3 million euros for another two years. In order to provide patients with the best possible care, the latest scientific findings must be incorporated into diagnostics and therapy. This requires so-called clinician scientists. These are doctors who not only have excellent clinical but also scientific training. They carry urgent questions from everyday clinical practice into research and at the same time translate scientific findings into patient care. In…
Scientists from the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Vanderbilt University, City University of New York, University of Nebraska, and University of Iowa have just published new results on asymmetric light-matter waves in the reknowned magazine „Nature“. They have uncovered that low-symmetry crystals can support a new type of wave enabled by optical ‘shear forces’. The results offer new possibilities for compact optical technologies to enable new ways to guide light or to store information optically. We typically…
NASA is launching a prototype instrument that could make it easier to monitor volcanic activity and air quality. Perched aboard a CubeSat about 300 miles (480 kilometers) above Earth’s surface, the “Nanosat Atmospheric Chemistry Hyperspectral Observation System,” or NACHOS, will use a compact hyperspectral imager to locate sources of trace gases in areas as small as 0.15 square miles (0.4 square kilometers) – about the size of the Mall of America in Minnesota. NACHOS is part of Northrop Grumman’s 17th resupply mission to the…
Arctic researchers and remote sensing experts use AI and HPC to characterize large, unexplored parts of the Earth. Permafrost — ground that has been permanently frozen for two or more years — makes up a large part of the Earth, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere. Permafrost is important for our climate, containing large amounts of biomass stored as methane and carbon dioxide, making tundra soil a carbon sink. However, permafrost’s innate characteristics and changing nature are not broadly understood….
Researchers create minimalistic Sars-CoV-2 virions and discover the spike protein switching mechanism. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg and their collaborators at the Max Planck Bristol Center for Minimal Biology at the University of Bristol have developed a new approach to study Sars-CoV-2. For systematic and standardized research of Sars-CoV-2 they built minimalistic synthetic virus particles where they can incorporate distinct structures of the Sars-CoV-2 virus like the spike protein. This allowed scientists to study…
An international team of experts under the lead of Margrete Emblemsvåg from Møreforsking AS and the Arctic University of Norway and Dr. Karl-Michael Werner from the Thünen Institute of Sea Fisheries in Germany discovered an unexpected connection between bottom fish and the impacts of climate change in East Greenland. While the researchers analysed large time-series of data they observed that ecosystems across the entire depth range from 150-1500 m responded synchronously to changes in the atmosphere, sea ice concentration and…
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