Science
press releases.

Science24 Sep 2025

Researchers at the Josep Carreras Institute describe for the first time the delicate balance of longevity

Recent studies suggest that the steady rise in life expectancy observed over the past 200 years has now stagnated. Data indicate that a limit has been reached, and that medical and healthcare advances no longer affect longevity in developed countries as they did in previous decades. Today, ageing itself, rather than disease, is the real frontier of human longevity. But what exactly is ageing? And can it be addressed in the same way as a disease? A team led by Dr Manel Esteller, Head of the Cancer Epigenetics group at the Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, has just ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Ancient Plant, new insights: IPK research team reveals the mosaic origin of barley

The research team conducted an in-depth study of the evolution and domestication of barley (Hordeum vulgare). They focused on so-called haplotypes - sections of DNA that are inherited together and act like genetic “building blocks.” To trace barley’s history, the scientists analysed the genetic material of 682 barley accessions from the IPK genebank and 23 archaeological barley finds, including ancient charred grains up to 6,000 years old. The team specifically studied 380 wild barley samples from regions across western and central Asia, and compared them with 302 samples ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Researchers identify four-step process of mammalian jaw joint evolution

During the course of evolution, the mammalian cranio-mandibular secondary joint—formed by the dentary condyle and the squamosal glenoid fossa, which replaced the reptilian articular–quadrate joint—represents an innovative structure in vertebrate evolution. By CT-scanning two classic fossils, Chinese researchers found previously unknown jaw joints and proposed a clear, four-step sequence showing how chewing and hearing functions were gradually split between jaw and ear. The research was led by Prof. MAO Fangyuan from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

ESMT Berlin study: Radical leadership rarely delivers as planned

Steve Jobs berated his teams. Jack Welch laid off a quarter of his workforce. Still, both are seen as visionary leaders and continue to serve as role models for many. A recent study takes a closer look at the logic and conditions of such leadership approaches. It shows that such radical leadership styles only work under specific circumstances and in some cases do more harm than good. The study Annealing as an Alternative Mechanism for Management was authored by Matthew S. Bothner, professor of strategy ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

The 12th Heidelberg Laureate Forum has conluded

The 12th Heidelberg Laureate Forum (HLF) has come to a close. This year’s HLF took place from September 14 to 19 and brought together 28 Laureates of the most prestigious prizes in mathematics and computer science as well as 200 of those disciplines’ brightest Young Researchers of the next generation. The week featured a host of fascinating talks, panels and interactive formats where some of the timeliest issues relating to mathematics and computer science were discussed, with a particular attention paid to the effects of AI on a host of issues. The program included a talk by Richard S. Sutton (2024 ACM A.M. Turing Award), pondering “The Future of Artificial Intelligence,” ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

An app to better manage cannabis use

Scientists at Université de Montréal’s affiliated hospital research centre (CRCHUM) are testing out a mobile application to help young adults who have a first episode of psychosis to support safer cannabis consumption. The nationwide clinical trial, a first in Canada, is led by Université de Montréal psychiatry and addictology professor Didier Jutras-Aswad, a researcher at CRCHUM. Called CHAMPS (Cannabis Harm-reducing App to Manage Practices Safely), the pilot study is described in an article published in the August issue of Psychiatry Research. The new study is backed by $800,000 in funding ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Predictive lab test for cardiac events still rare but increasing

Researchers from University of California San Diego School of Medicine have found that testing for lipoprotein(a) — a genetic risk factor for heart disease — remains uncommon in the United States, despite modest increases over the past decade. The findings were published on Sept. 26, 2025 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Advances. Lipoprotein(a) — or Lp(a) — is a type of cholesterol particle in the blood. Elevated levels are strongly linked to a higher risk of heart attack, stroke and aortic valve disease. Roughly 20% of the U.S. population has elevated Lp(a), yet testing rates have historically been low. In the ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Supercritical subsurface fluids open a window into the world

Researchers including those from the University of Tokyo build on past studies and introduce new methods to explore the nature and role of subsurface fluids including water in the instances and behaviors of earthquakes and volcanoes. Their study suggests that water, even heavy rainfall, can play a role in or even trigger seismic events. This could potentially lead to better early warning systems. The study improves models of seismic activity and can even help identify optimal sites for drilling to tap sources of supercritical geothermal energy. As far ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Magic mushrooms invent active compound twice

“This concerns the biosynthesis of a molecule that has a very long history with humans,” explains Prof. Dirk Hoffmeister, head of the research group Pharmaceutical Microbiology at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI). “We are referring to psilocybin, a substance found in so-called ‘magic mushrooms’, which our body converts into psilocin – a compound that can profoundly alter consciousness. However, psilocybin not only triggers psychedelic experiences, ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

New peer-reviewed EWG study finds eating some produce hikes pesticide levels in people

WASHINGTON – Consuming some types of fruits and vegetables can increase the levels of harmful pesticides detected in people’s bodies, according to a new peer-reviewed study by Environmental Working Group scientists. Pesticides have been linked to cancer, reproductive harm, hormone disruption and neurotoxicity in children. Residues of these chemicals are often detected on produce, creating exposure concerns for consumers. The new study may help inform future research into how dietary exposure to pesticides through fruit and vegetables might affect human health. “The findings reinforce that what we eat directly affects the level of pesticides ...

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Science24 Sep 2025

Longer body size means more female calves for baleen whale moms

Long baleen whale mothers are more likely to have female calves than males, according to a new study led by the University of Washington. The findings contradict a popular evolutionary theory postulating that strong mammals benefit more from birthing males. In 1973, Robert Trivers and Dan Willard proposed that fit female mammals can improve their odds for grandchildren by having males. Large strong mothers will raise large strong calves that can outcompete other males for mates. But, according to the theory, female fitness is less consequential. The studies backing this argument focused ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

BMJ Group retracts trial on apple cider vinegar and weight loss

BMJ Group has retracted research suggesting that small daily quantities of apple cider vinegar might help people who are overweight or obese to lose weight. The small clinical trial was published in the open access journal BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health in March 2024 and its findings press released. The study findings generated widespread international attention at the time, and continue to be frequently referred to in media coverage. The retraction was prompted by concerns raised about the quality of the work, ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Significant rise in use of low/alcohol-free drinks among ‘risky’ UK drinkers in past 5 years

There’s been a significant rise in the use of low and alcohol-free drinks to curb alcohol intake among ‘risky drinkers’ over the past 5 years in England, Wales, and Scotland, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Public Health. The proportion of those using them to make serious attempts to cut down their alcohol intake rose from 35% in 2020 to 44% in 2024, while those using them in any attempt to cut down increased from 26% to 39%. The trends were especially noticeable ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Centenary of the birth of IVF pioneer Sir Robert Edwards

Saturday 27th September marks the centenary of the birth of Sir Robert Edwards, who with colleagues Patrick Steptoe and Jean Purdy oversaw the conception and birth of the world’s first IVF baby in 1978.(1) It was a breakthrough in reproductive medicine which would bring immeasurable benefits to people with infertility and whose demographic importance today is greater than ever. Now, from various reports published by this journal, we can confidently say that the global impact of IVF continues to grow in terms of children conceived and the extent of its use. There are few causes of infertility which today are not amenable to treatment while ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

New multi-registry study highlights ocrelizumab’s superior relapse control in multiple sclerosis

(Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, 24 September 2025) New research presented at the 41st Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS 2025) demonstrates that ocrelizumab provides superior control of multiple sclerosis (MS) relapses compared with fingolimod, natalizumab, and alemtuzumab.1 Ocrelizumab, a monoclonal antibody targeting CD20+ B cells, was evaluated using real-world data from three large MS registries: MSBase, OFSEP, and the Danish MS Registry. The analysis compared ocrelizumab-treated patients ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Erdinc Sezgin to receive 2026 Early Independent Career Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Erdinc Sezgin, of SciLifeLab, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, has been named the recipient of the 2026 Early Independent Career Award. Sezgin will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Sezgin will be recognized for combining chemistry, physics, biology and computer science to gain fundamental and translational insights into how the biophysics of cells affect health and disease. “I am delighted that Erdinc ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Jie Xiao to receive 2026 Carolyn Cohen Innovation Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Jie Xiao, of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, USA, will receive the 2026 Carolyn Cohen Innovation Award. Xiao will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Xiao will be recognized for her pioneering work in developing single-molecule imaging and analysis approaches to investigate the molecular and cellular mechanisms of bacterial cell division and transcription. “Jie’s ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Elizabeth Hinde and Jorge Alegre-Cebollada to receive 2026 Michael and Kate Bárány Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce Elizabeth Hinde, of the School of Physics, University of Melbourne, Australia and Jorge Alegre-Cebollada, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), Spain, have been named recipients of the 2026 Michael and Kate Bárány Award. Hinde and Alegre-Cebollada will be honored at Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Hinde will be recognized for the creative application of physical principles to biological systems, particularly in the development of spatiotemporal correlation spectroscopy ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Nuria Assa-Munt to receive 2026 Rosalba Kampman Distinguished Service Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Nuria Assa-Munt, of the Center for Scientific Review, National Institutes of Health (retired), USA has been named the recipient of the Society’s 2026 Rosalba Kampman Distinguished Service Award. Assa-Munt will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Assa-Munt is being recognized for her tireless efforts and exemplary leadership in setting the highest standards for NIH reviews, advancing biophysics research, and training the next generation of scientists. “Nuria, through her two decades of federal service, dedicated herself to ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

A. Joshua Wand to receive the 2026 Ignacio Tinoco Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that A. Joshua Wand, of Texas A&M University, USA, will receive the 2026 Ignacio Tinoco Award. Wand will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Wand is being recognized for pioneering contributions to understanding the structural and mechanistic bases of biomolecular function. “Josh is an outstanding scientist. His recognition aptly honors the legacy of Ignacio “Nacho” Tinoco, who challenged our community to continually push our fundamental understanding of biophysics,” said BPS President ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

The Italian Communist Party and the pursuit of revolutionary science

Although scholarship has demonstrated the inextricability of the history of science from the histories of industry and politics, little attention has been paid to the role of political parties in the shaping of scientific inquiry. A new article in Isis, “The Political Elaboration on Science and Technology of the Italian Communist Party Between the 1960s and the 1980s,” investigates how political parties mediate social change and scientific progress, using the Partito Comunista Italiano as its object of analysis. After WWII, the leadership of the PCI, mostly predominated by humanists and social scientists, considered ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Hawa Racine Thiam to receive the 2026 Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Hawa Racine Thiam, of Stanford University, USA, will receive the 2026 Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award. Thiam will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Thiam is being recognized for being a trailblazer of subcellular biophysics and unveiling new paradigms of biophysical immunology through her dynamic measurements of physical forces on organelles in real time. “I am delighted that Hawa Racine’s name will be added to the list of remarkable women in biophysics,” said BPS President ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Ashley R. Carter to receive 2026 PUI Faculty Award

BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society is pleased to announce that Ashley R. Carter, of Amherst College, USA, has been named the recipient of the 2026 PUI Faculty Award. Carter will be honored at the Society’s 70th Annual Meeting, being held in San Francisco, California from February 21-25, 2026. Carter will be recognized for her remarkable contributions to biophysics research, mentoring of undergraduate students, and leadership in guiding the next generation of scientists to advance the field of biophysics. “Ashley has clearly demonstrated excellence in undergraduate research ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

Wiener studying perception of time & memorability in the visual hierarchy

Martin Wiener, Associate Professor, Psychology, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), received funding for the study: “CRCNS US-Israel Research Proposal: NSF-BSF: The Perception of Time and Memorability in the Visual Hierarchy.” Dr. Wiener is collaborating with Ayelet Landau, Associate Professor, Cognitive Science and Psychology, Hebrew University, and Yuval Benjamini, Associate Professor, Statistics and Data Science, Hebrew University. Dr. Wiener will conduct research at George Mason in consultation with the co-principal investigators, who will be conducting their own ...

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Science23 Sep 2025

European colonizers altered the genetic ancestry of Indigenous peoples in southern Africa

A genomic analysis of over 1,200 people from across South Africa reveals how colonial-era European, Indigenous Khoe-San peoples, and enslaved people contributed to the modern-day gene pool in South Africa. Publishing September 23 in the Cell Press journal The American Journal of Human Genetics, the study found that genes inherited from both colonial Europeans and enslaved people are most common in Cape Town and become less frequent with distance from the colony’s epicenter. The results also show that European ancestors were more likely to be male, ...

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