The colour of dragonfly communities reacts to seasonal variation in solar radiation. Over the last 30 years, however, this colour pattern has changed – probably as a result of climate change. In a new study, researchers at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) in Bavaria, Germany, have discovered that the colour of dragonfly communities reacts to seasonal fluctuations in solar radiation. In spring and autumn, dragonflies with darker colour nuances are more likely to fly, while the specimens that appear in summer tend…
Whether spider silk is stronger and tougher depends on the environmental influences to which it is exposed. Prof Dr Thomas Scheibel, Chair of Biomaterials at the University of Bayreuth, and his team have now published a study in which they show that spider webs are particularly robust in areas of heavy rainfall. They are now presenting the results of the study with 50 spider species in the journal Current Biology. In the course of evolution, spiders have developed “orb webs”…
KIT researchers present new method of high dose efficiency and micrometer resolution for biology and biomedicine. X-ray imaging visualizes hidden structures and processes in living cells and organisms. The radiation that consists of highly energy-rich electromagnetic waves, however, has an ionizing effect and may damage the genetic material. This limits the possible observation period. While conventional X-ray images of soft tissue are of low contrast, phase contrast methods produce far better image contrasts at a reduced radiation dose. With higher…
Light-induced whole-molecule vibration can rupture melanoma cells’ membrane. The Beach Boys’ iconic hit single “Good Vibrations” takes on a whole new layer of meaning thanks to a recent discovery by Rice University scientists and collaborators, who have uncovered a way to destroy cancer cells by using the ability of some molecules to vibrate strongly when stimulated by light. The researchers found that the atoms of a small dye molecule used for medical imaging can vibrate in unison ⎯ forming what…
A microbial sensor that helps identify and fight bacterial infections also plays a key role in the development of blood stem cells, valuable new insight in the effort to create patient-derived blood stem cells that could eliminate the need for bone marrow transplants. The discovery by a research team led by Raquel Espin Palazon, an assistant professor of genetics, development and cell biology at Iowa State University, was published last month in Nature Communications. It builds on prior work by…
Scientists have so far identified around 800 different neuromuscular diseases. These conditions are caused by problems in the way muscle cells, motor neurons and peripheral cells interact. These disorders, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and spinal muscular atrophy, lead to muscle weakness, paralysis, and in some cases death. “These diseases are highly complex, and the causes of the dysfunction can vary widely,” says Dr. Mina Gouti, head of the Stem Cell Modeling of Development and Disease Lab at the Max Delbrück Center….
Researchers find that Ebola virus creates the very tunnels it uses to hide and move within the human body. Understanding how viruses travel once inside the human body is critical to develop effective drugs and therapies that can stop viruses in their tracks. Scientists at Texas Biomedical Research Institute (Texas Biomed) recently published findings in the Journal of Infectious Diseases indicating that Ebola virus creates and uses intercellular tunnels to move from cell to cell and evade treatments. “Our findings…
Study using SERS technology reveals a new type of interaction between tumor cells and their environment and demonstrates the potential of SERS spectroscopy for cancer metabolism research. A study conducted by pre-PhD researcher Pablo S. Valera and recently published in PNAS demonstrates the potential of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to explore metabolites secreted by cancer cells in cancer research. The study, which has been led by Ikerbasque Research Professors Luis Liz-Marzán (from CIC biomaGUNE) and Arkaitz Carracedo (of CIC bioGUNE)…
New mathematical model of genetic interaction identifies master regulators in biological networks. A team of researchers around Berlin mathematics professor Michael Joswig is presenting a novel concept for the mathematical modeling of genetic interactions in biological systems. Collaborating with biologists from ETH Zurich and Carnegy Science (USA), the team has successfully identified master regulators within the context of an entire genetic network. The research results provide a coherent theoretical framework for analyzing biological networks and have been published in the…
Movements of water molecules change depending on the applied voltage. A collaborative team of experimental and computational physical chemists from South Korea and the United States have made an important discovery in the field of electrochemistry, shedding light on the movement of water molecules near metal electrodes. This research holds profound implications for the advancement of next-generation batteries utilizing aqueous electrolytes. In the nanoscale realm, chemists typically utilize laser light to illuminate molecules and measure spectroscopic properties to visualize molecules….
Oceans cover most of Earth’s surface and support a staggering number of lifeforms, but they’re also home to a dilute population of uranium ions. And — if we can get these particular ions out of the water — they could be a sustainable fuel source to generate nuclear power. Researchers publishing in ACS Central Science have now developed a material to use with electrochemical extraction that attracts hard-to-get uranium ions from seawater more efficiently than existing methods. Nuclear power reactors…
Using optogenetics, Würzburg researchers have detected a new acid sensor in plant cells that is addressing a cell-internal calcium store, as they report in the journal “Science”. When plants are infected by pathogens, suffer from a lack of water or have to react to other external stimuli, the first thing they do is increase the proton and calcium concentration in the affected cells. The protons and calcium ions then act like messenger substances that trigger further reactions in the cell….
A combination of two new substances effectively kills methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. “Antimicrobial resistance is a major problem, and being able to help solve it is really great,” says Amanda Holstad Singleton, a PhD candidate at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). Singleton is the lead author of a study that shows how a combination of two new substances effectively kills methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). These substances have been developed at NTNU and may become a completely new antibiotic that is…
For the first time, the molecular structure of a complete tailed virus with a flexible tail has been solved in unprecedented detail. The word “virus” is often associated with negative connotations. However, it is important to note that not all viruses are harmful. In fact, there are many viruses that live inside our bodies and play important roles in our health. One example is bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria and can be used to keep bacterial infections under control. These…
With the holiday season in full swing, gifts of all shapes and sizes are being shipped around the world. But all that packaging generates lots of waste, including cardboard boxes and plastic-based foam cushioning, such as Styrofoam™. Rather than discard those boxes, researchers publishing in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering developed a cushioning foam from cardboard waste. Their upcycled material was stronger and more insulating than traditional, plastic foam-based cushioning. Among the many kinds of trash that accumulate within a…
Using generative AI, MIT chemists created a model that can predict the structures formed when a chemical reaction reaches its point of no return. During a chemical reaction, molecules gain energy until they reach what’s known as the transition state — a point of no return from which the reaction must proceed. This state is so fleeting that it’s nearly impossible to observe it experimentally. The structures of these transition states can be calculated using techniques based on quantum chemistry,…
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