Research announcements from universities, hospitals and scientific institutions. Explore the stories, people and discoveries behind the headlines.
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Researchers used scanning thermal microscopy to watch multiple conductive filaments form and dissolve inside a volatile memristor in real time, finally explaining the randomness that makes these devices useful for encryption keys and probabilistic computing.
Read the releaseEuropean hedgehogs hear ultrasound up to at least 85 kHz, with peak sensitivity around 40 kHz, Oxford researchers found by testing 20 animals. The discovery could lead to car-mounted ultrasonic devices that warn hedgehogs off roads, a major cause of population decline.
Read the releaseAmong 3 million Swedes, suicide attempts clustered most strongly among sisters, with nearly four times the risk. Heritability was 42% with no sex difference, suggesting that non-genetic factors, including shared family environment, explain why women attempt suicide more often.
Read the releaseAmong all gut bacteria tested, only Roseburia inulinivorans was positively associated with human muscle strength. In mice, it increased forelimb grip strength by 30% and converted muscle fibers to fast-twitch type II, suggesting a gut-muscle axis that could target age-related muscle wasting.
Read the releaseAmong semaglutide drugs, Wegovy shows the strongest association with ischaemic optic neuropathy, a form of sudden vision loss. The odds are nearly five times higher than for Ozempic and three times higher in men than women, according to FDA adverse event data.
Read the releasePsilocybe ochraceocentrata, a new species discovered in South Africa and Zimbabwe, is the closest wild relative of the domesticated magic mushroom P. cubensis. The two diverged about 1.5 million years ago, challenging the idea that P. cubensis arrived in the Americas with European cattle.
Read the releaseResearchers at Harbin Institute of Technology found that snowflake size and distribution significantly affect how snow accumulates on roofs, with larger particles creating greater loads, especially under high-wind conditions.
Read the releaseResearchers modeled airflow through individual trees and found that a tree's species and physical structure dramatically affect how far and where its pollen disperses, providing data that could inform urban planning decisions about green spaces.
Read the releaseUniversity of Michigan researchers identified a neural pathway connecting tooth sensory neurons to the brain's dopamine system, revealing that gnawing in rodents is actively reinforced by a biochemical reward signal, not just a mechanical necessity.
Read the releasePeking University engineers built a robotic suction disc modeled on lamprey anatomy that grips objects from 0.01-gram microchips to 11.4-kilogram desks, works in air and underwater, and maintains adhesion even after vacuum failure.
Read the releaseAstronomers traced a short gamma-ray burst to a tidal tail of debris between colliding galaxies about 8.5 billion light-years away, suggesting that galactic mergers trigger star formation that eventually produces the neutron star collisions responsible for creating heavy elements like gold and platinum.
Read the releaseFrom the 1950s to 2024, the annual hours of heat severe enough to limit activity beyond light sweeping rose from about 25 to 50 for young adults and from 600 to 900 for older adults globally. In Qatar, older adults now face such conditions for roughly one-third of the year.
Read the releaseIn a double-blind experiment with 120 regular cannabis users, THC caused significant impairment in 15 of 21 memory measures. The strongest effects appeared in false memory, where intoxicated participants recalled words never presented, and source memory, where they lost track of where information came from.
Read the releaseUniversity students in five countries played economic games in rooms ranging from 18 to 34 degrees Celsius. Heat above 30 degrees increased frustration and unhappiness but had no systematic effect on sharing, selfishness, spite, or competitiveness.
Read the releaseResearchers found that the call of the treefrog Gracixalus weii closely mimics the Black-Breasted Thrush's song pattern: a longer introductory note followed by two shorter notes at almost identical pitches. The resemblance has caused surveyors to undercount frog populations.
Read the releaseResearchers analyzing over 400 faba bean varieties found that a single gene locus containing CBF/DREB transcription factors distinguishes winter-hardy from summer varieties, with the same locus also linked to stable yields across environments, offering a clear target for breeding winter-tolerant lines.
Read the releaseA synthesis of large-scale genomic studies reveals that common epilepsies are shaped by thousands of genetic variants, with genetic generalized epilepsy showing unusually high heritability relative to its polygenicity, making it one of the most cost-efficient targets in complex disease genomics.
Read the releaseNumerical models reveal that chemical weathering beneath continental ice sheets during snowball Earth events could have consumed CO2 at rates approaching volcanic emission levels, offering a new explanation for why the Sturtian glaciation lasted far longer than the Marinoan.
Read the releaseThe Simplified Adolescent Factors for Endometriosis (SAFE) score uses six questions about pelvic pain, menstrual symptoms, and family history to identify at-risk girls and young women, aiming to cut the average 6-8 year diagnostic delay for endometriosis.
Read the releaseA new IgG ELISA assay for mpox antibodies was developed and validated at Rwanda's National Reference Laboratory during the clade 1b outbreak, using just four key antibody signatures to keep the test affordable and accessible in remote settings.
Read the releaseA Drexel and University of Washington study analyzing all 203 American Indian/Alaska Native people killed by police from 2013-2024 finds 73% of deaths occurred on or within 10 miles of reservations, despite only 40% of AIAN people living there, with disproportionate risk persisting after controlling for population density.
Read the releaseA study of over 4,500 Baltic Sea herring from 150 spawning locations reveals genetically distinct populations adapted to local salinity and temperature, including clusters and subgroups that do not correspond to current fishery management boundaries.
Read the releaseWashington University researchers have built a state-level vulnerability index for influenza-like illness using machine learning and 39 census-derived indicators, revealing that population density, uninsured populations, aging demographics, and poverty create distinct risk profiles across states.
Read the releaseIn a randomized trial of 958 older adults, two years of daily multivitamin use slowed biological aging by approximately four months as measured by five epigenetic clocks, with statistically significant effects on the two clocks most predictive of mortality.
Read the releaseInterviews with 33 individuals who traveled from states with abortion bans to Illinois reveal an average one-month delay between deciding to seek an abortion and receiving care, with stigma, cost, and information gaps compounding the burden.
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