Exploring a valley and caves on Mars, searching for life: These are the goals of the German research initiative VaMEx. The Professorship for Space Technology at the University of Würzburg is involved. An enormous canyon stretches across Mars: Valles Marineris is 3,000 kilometres long, 600 kilometres wide and on average eight kilometres deep. Its Latin name goes back to the Mars orbiter “Mariner”, which discovered the valley in the early 1970s. Since 2012, this largest known canyon in the solar…
Interdisciplinary research team uses DNA microbeads to control the development of cultivated tissue. A new molecular engineering technique can precisely influence the development of organoids. Microbeads made of specifically folded DNA are used to release growth factors or other signal molecules inside the tissue structures. This gives rise to considerably more complex organoids that imitate the respective tissues much better and have a more realistic cell mix than before. An interdisciplinary research team from the Cluster of Excellence “3D Matter…
Human-made climate change is not confined by national borders. The AGELESS Consortium explores the question of how marine life affected by climate change can be protected beyond areas of national jurisdiction. The Federal Government funds the interdisciplinary project with 2.5 million euros over a three-year period. The open ocean, which, for the most part, lies beyond national jurisdiction, is just as severely impacted by climate change as are nationally regulated coastal waters. With the new international Agreement on Marine Biodiversity…
A multidisciplinary research team based across China and Brazil has used a dog-like robot and AI to create a new way to find fire ant nests. Published in the SCI journal Pest Management Science, the study highlights how a ‘CyberDog’ robot integrated with an AI model can automate the identification and control of Red Imported Fire Ants (RIFA), a globally destructive pest. Field tests carried out by the researchers reveal the robotic system can significantly outperform human inspectors, identifying three…
Researchers from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Queensland University of Technology (QUT) have made groundbreaking advancements in the field of soft robotics by developing film-balloon (FiBa) soft robots. These innovative robots, designed by a team led by Dr Terry Ching and corresponding author Professor Michinao Hashimoto, introduce a novel fabrication approach that enables lightweight, untethered operation with advanced biomimetic locomotion capabilities. The core innovation for these robots involves the development…
– glial cells also produce harmful proteins. Memory loss, confusion, speech problems – Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting about 35 million people worldwide, and the number is growing. The protein amyloid beta, which occurs naturally in the brain, plays a central role in the disease: It accumulates in patients in insoluble clumps that form plaques between neurons in the brain, damaging them. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Multidisciplinary Sciences have now shown…
A research team from HIRI and THWS develops a tool for visualizing single-cell data. Modern cutting-edge research generates enormous amounts of data, presenting scientists with the challenge of visualizing and analyzing it. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI) in Würzburg and the Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS) have developed a tool for visualizing large data sets. The sCIRCLE tool allows users to explore single-cell analysis data in an interactive and user-friendly way. Their results…
Risks for anglers and the environment. An interdisciplinary research team led by the Thünen Institutes of Baltic Sea Fisheries and Fisheries Ecology demonstrated in their new study that harmful phthalates and endocrine disruptors are released from common soft plastic baits. Soft plastic lures are increasingly being used in recreational angling worldwide. Their loss in the environment has raised concerns among anglers and environmentalists regarding possible environmental and health risks. A study on the potential effects of soft plastic lures on…
New long-term microscopy method shows differences to long bones. Living bone is fascinating because of its unique ability to adapt to mechanical stress and regenerate without scarring. During fracture healing, blood vessels and bone cells work closely together to gradually replace the initial cartilaginous wound tissue with ingrowing blood vessels and new bone tissue. The bone progenitor cells closely follow the course of the newly formed vessels, an observation known as angiogenic-osteogenic coupling. This is how a broken leg heals….
The interdisciplinary research group “nature4HEALTH” has recently started its work. The team from Friedrich Schiller University Jena and Jena University Hospital is developing holistic natural compound-based therapeutic approaches for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. Chronic inflammation contributes to many common diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, fatty liver and intestinal diseases, and also increases the risk of cancer. To treat these diseases, medicine has so far mainly relied on substances that inhibit the body’s immune response….
New multidisciplinary research from the University of St Andrews could lead to more efficient televisions, computer screens and lighting. Researchers at the Organic Semiconductor Centre in the School of Physics and Astronomy, and the School of Chemistry have proposed a new approach to designing efficient light-emitting materials in a paper published this week in Nature (27 March). Light-emitting materials are used in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that are now found in the majority of mobile phone displays and smartwatches, and some…
New DFG research program at Kiel University. The German Science Foundation (DFG) funds a new Research Unit “PlantsCoChallenge” at Kiel University to investigate plant adaptation mechanisms to biotic and abiotic stress. The successful strategic orientation of plant research in Kiel was again confirmed yesterday as the German Research Foundation’s (DFG) announced that it is funding the new Research Unit (RU) 5640 “PlantsCoChallenge” at Kiel University for four years with more than four million euros. The consortium of scientists aims to…
Rochester researchers are uncovering the unexpected role of grain shape in the mixing of granular systems such as pharmaceuticals, cereal, and landslides. Your morning cereal, a jar of nuts, the sands of distant planets, and even the concrete in your city are all examples of granular systems surrounding us. And such systems are harboring secrets that could change the way we mix things up. In a new paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), scientists at the University…
This year, the Carl Zeiss Foundation’s funding for interdisciplinary research topics goes twice to the University of Jena: Starting 1st February, 2024, the funding for Dr Sina Saravi begins, who is developing optical neural networks to make image recognition faster and more resource-efficient. And since 1st January, 2024, Dr Desirée Leistenschneider has been funded for developing innovative batteries. Both research groups receive 1.5 million euros each for a period of five years. Image Recognition at the Speed of Light “Put…
Wash U researchers amplify neuron signals from insect brain to achieve better chemical sensing performance. Our sensory systems are highly adaptable. A person who cannot see after turning off a light in the night slowly achieves superior power to see even small objects. Women often attain a heightened sense of smell during pregnancy. How can the same sensory system that was underperforming can also exceed the expectation based on its prior performance? Since nature has perfected its sensory systems over…
Around one million individuals worldwide become infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, each year. To replicate and spread the infection, the virus must smuggle its genetic material into the cell nucleus and integrate it into a chromosome. Research teams led by Dirk Görlich at the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Science and Thomas Schwartz at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have now discovered that its capsid has evolved into a molecular transporter. As such, it can directly…
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