Whenever bats use echolocation when foraging for food or to communicate with other bats: sounds are omnipresent. How Seba’s short-tailed bat, a species native to South America, filters out important signals from the wide diversity of ambient sound is being examined by researchers at the Institute of Cell Biology and Neuroscience at Goethe University Frankfurt. The most recent finding: the brain stem, which to date had been regarded as being solely responsible for very basic tasks, already processes the probabilities…

Real-time aberration-free dynamic speckle microscopy was realized using compressed time-reversal matrix. Microscopes are an important tool in biomedical research as it allows for detailed observation and imaging of tissues. Since biological materials are opaque by their nature, severe light scattering occurs as light travels through tissues, which induces a high level of background noise and complex optical aberration. Therefore, typical light microscopes mostly allow us to see the surface of the tissues, and details that are multiple cell layers deep…

… are the latest innovation from SFU Empowering small, humanoid-sensing robots to take a patient’s blood pressure—using only a simple touch—is Simon Fraser University researcher Woo Soo Kim’s latest health care technology development. Based on the intricacies of origami—and inspired by the movements of nature’s leeches—his research is advancing how robots could carry out basic health care tasks in certain conditions, including in remote regions, or where minimal personal contact is needed, such as during pandemics. The research is published…

Study by the University of Bonn: Self-learning software could help detect atherosclerosis at an early stage. Researchers at the University and the University Hospital of Bonn have developed a method that could be used to diagnose atherosclerosis. Using self-learning software, they were able to identify vascular changes in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), often at an early stage. Although these early stages do not yet cause symptoms, they are nevertheless already associated with increased mortality. The algorithm used photos…

Wildfires are devastating, but they can also bring new life by clearing existing vegetation and allowing new plants to spring up. Many plants in fire-prone areas actually require exposure to fire for seeds to germinate. In the past decade, scientists have discovered an ancient receptor protein that can detect molecules called karrikins in smoke from burnt plant material. The “smoke detector” protein, called KAI2, initiates molecular signals that speed up germination of seeds. Curiously, KAI2 proteins also show up in…

How hermaphroditic worms distribute their resources. Hermaphroditic species face a fundamental question: how much energy should they expend on their male and female sides? Flatworms have found various answers to this question over the course of evolution – and the solutions are directly correlated with their mating behavior. Many plants and animals have both male and female reproductive organs. To ensure that reproduction is successful and that they can pass their genes on to as many offspring as possible, these…

Research team from Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy finds clue to possible extraterrestrial origin of peptides. Chains of amino acids All life as we know it consists of the same chemical building blocks. These include peptides, which perform various completely different functions in the body – transporting substances, accelerating reactions or forming stabilising scaffolds in cells. Peptides consist of individual amino acids arranged in a specific order. The exact order determines a peptide’s eventual…

A recent study explains an essential component for proper mitochondrial function: The protein complexes MICOS and ATP synthase can communicate with each other. Dr. Heike Rampelt and Prof. Dr. Nikolaus Pfanner at the Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the University of Freiburg have uncovered an important mechanism that ensures efficient metabolic adaptation of mitochondria. The research is a collaboration with the groups of Prof. Dr. Martin van der Laan of Saarland University, Prof. Dr. Claudine Kraft of the…

Epigenetic data have enormous potential… The cells of our body all have the same genetic material. Their genome is identical, but the cells are different, because their genes are differently active. Chemical marks on the DNA, for example through methylation or modification of histones, control the activity of the genes and shape their cell identity (epigenetics). Using methylation data from great apes, researchers at the Leibniz Institute on Aging – Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) in Jena, Germany, were able to…

Cerebral venous thrombosis is a rare, often severe disease that has been brought to public attention by the Covid 19 pandemic. A research group from Würzburg has now succeeded for the first time in deciphering a molecular cause of this disease. This opens the way to new therapeutic approaches. Published in Nature Cardiovascular Research. Cerebral venous thrombosis is a rare form of cerebral circulatory disorder that, unlike classic stroke, more often affects younger people. For unknown reasons, blood clots (thrombi)…

Heidelberg plant researchers discover cellular mechanism that extends the life of proteins. Plants are tied to one location and need to adjust to their environment, including adverse conditions. Adaptive responses include synthesising new proteins and breaking down those that are no longer needed. For this task, plants use a considerable amount of energy. Thus, regulation of protein turnover in the plant cell has to be appropriately thorough. Researchers at the Centre for Organismal Studies of Heidelberg University led by Dr…

Newly discovered brain circuit in motor learning. Learning new motor skills is a critical aspect of our lives. From playing the piano to riding a bike, it would be difficult to imagine life without it. But how does the brain do it? A new study published today (February 9th) in the scientific journal Science Advances sheds light on a newly discovered brain circuit that may endow us with this remarkable ability. How the Cortex Talks to the Striatum The cortex…

What happens inside neurons when we memorize a password or learn the cello? Some of our basic understanding about learning and memory comes from the study of conditions in which cognitive development is disrupted. For example, FMRP, a protein whose loss causes fragile X syndrome, intellectual disability, and some forms of autism has been shown to play a key role in these brain functions, helping regulate synaptic connections between neurons. A new study now suggests that the role of this…

What otherwise takes hours in the laboratory, involves annoying waiting times and many sources of error, can now be accomplished by a robot in less time, well digitally documented and with high reproducibility. Automation of synthesis processes for nanoparticles can be a milestone for the use of new therapeutic and diagnostic medical devices – and at the same time increase occupational safety and relieve highly qualified laboratory personnel from monotonous routines. Biofunctionalized nanodiagnostics and therapeutics have been predicted for some…

Smartwatch developed at UCLA measures key stress hormone. Device opens new possibilities for personal health monitoring. The human body responds to stress, from the everyday to the extreme, by producing a hormone called cortisol. To date, it has been impractical to measure cortisol as a way to potentially identify conditions such as depression and post-traumatic stress, in which levels of the hormone are elevated. Cortisol levels traditionally have been evaluated through blood samples by professional labs, and while those measurements can…

… nanofoams are key to surviving mass extinctions. Scientists from the Natural History Museum, London (United Kingdom), and the ESRF, the European Synchrotron, Grenoble (France), have found that some pollen has survived mass extinctions thanks, in part, to its nanofoam wall structure. This may explain why the survival of certain plants. It is the first time scientists have described a biological nanofoam structure. Their results are published in Science Advances. Pollen grains protect plant’s genetic material from environmental threats during…