As the ocean warms across its temperate regions, kelp forests are collapsing and turf algae species are taking over. This shift from dense canopies of tall kelp to low-lying mats of turf algae is driving biodiversity loss and altering the flow of energy and nutrients through reef ecosystems. It’s also fundamentally altering the chemical ecology of coastal ecosystems. New research in Science, led by researchers at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, has shown for the first time how turf algae release ...

The ability to engineer shapeshifting proteins opens new avenues for medicine, agriculture, and beyond.    Proteins catalyze life by changing shape when they interact with other molecules. The result is a muscle twitching, the perception of light, or a bit of energy extracted from food.   But this crucial ability has eluded the growing field of AI-augmented protein engineering.   Now, researchers at UCSF have shown it is possible to make new proteins that move and change shape like those in nature. This ability will help scientists engineer proteins in ...

Ancient sloths ranged in size from tiny climbers to ground-dwelling giants. Now, researchers report this body size diversity was largely shaped by sloths’ habitats, and that these animals’ precipitous decline was likely a result of increasing human pressures, which also triggered the extinction of the large-bodied ground-dwelling animals. Today’s small arboreal sloths are the last remnants of a once-diverse group, surviving likely because they inhabited secluded forest canopies and avoided direct human pressures, say the authors. While only two small, tree-dwelling genera survive today – confined largely to the tropical rainforests of South ...

As kelp forests decline in the warming coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine, turf algae – dense mats of red algae replacing kelp in many regions – may chemically interfere with kelp recovery, a new study reports. This complicates efforts to restore these crucial marine ecosystems. Kelp forests are ecologically and economically vital marine ecosystems that support diverse life forms and functions. However, despite their widely recognized importance, kelp forests worldwide are threatened with collapse due to climate change and/or overfishing. In many regions where kelp forests have disappeared, they have ...

Astronomers have identified a rare type of binary star system containing a rapidly spinning millisecond pulsar and a helium star companion, formed via common envelope evolution. Although such systems are rare, the authors of this new study predict that others do exist; they estimate there are 16 to 84 undiscovered examples in the Milky Way. Millisecond pulsars – rapidly spinning neutron stars that emit radio waves – achieve their extraordinary rotation rates by siphoning matter from a close stellar companion. The formation of these exotic binary systems is not fully understood, because it can involve a variety of complex processes. ...

Most relapsing fever bacteria that infect humans are spread by ticks, but Borrelia recurrentis is unique in being transmitted between humans via body lice. Now, new genomic evidence from ancient British remains suggests that B. recurrentis diverged from its tick-borne relatives and began adapting to transmission by lice between 6000 and 4000 years ago – coinciding with the widespread use of wool textiles by humans. The findings underscore how ancient DNA can illuminate the origins and evolution of infectious diseases and how pathogens like B. recurrentis have been shaped by human social transformations. Several pathogenic bacterial species that ...

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and UCL have analysed ancient DNA from Borrelia recurrentis, a type of bacteria that causes relapsing fever, pinpointing when it evolved to spread through lice rather than ticks, and how it gained and lost genes in the process. This transition may have coincided with changes in human lifestyles, like living closer together and the beginning of the wool trade. Borrelia recurrentis bacteria cause relapsing fever, an illness with many recurring episodes of fever, which is typically found ...

New standards in nuclear physics An international research team led by the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI has measured the radius of the nucleus of muonic helium-3 with unprecedented precision. The results are an important stress test for theories and future experiments in atomic physics. 1.97007 femtometre (quadrillionths of a metre): That’s how unimaginably tiny the radius of the atomic nucleus of helium-3 is. This is the result of an experiment at PSI that has now been published in the journal Science. More than 40 researchers from international institutes collaborated to develop and implement a method that ...

As legally required by the European Union, sustainable fisheries may not extract more fish than can regrow each year. Yet, about 70 per cent of commercially targeted fish stocks in northern EU waters are either overfished, have shrunken population sizes or have collapsed entirely. So why does the EU continue to miss its sustainable fisheries targets, despite a wealth of scientific data and policy instruments? Researchers at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and Kiel University examined this question using the well-explored ...

The Cluster of Excellence "The Politics of Inequality" at the University of Konstanz will continue to receive funding through the German Excellence Strategy for another seven years. The German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Council of Science and Humanities (WR) made the announcement on 22 May 2025. The Cluster of Excellence applied for around 52 million euros in funding. Clusters of Excellence are large, transdisciplinary research networks that study relevant research topics at the highest level internationally; they are one of the funding lines of the Excellence Strategy. "Our Cluster of Excellence 'The Politics ...

Using a novel lab method they developed, McGill University researchers have identified nine molecules in the blood that were elevated in teens diagnosed with depression. These molecules also predicted how symptoms might progress over time. The findings of the clinical study could pave the way for earlier detection, before symptoms worsen and become hard to treat. “Alarmingly, more and more adolescents are being diagnosed with depression, and when it starts early, the effects can be long-lasting and severe,” said senior author Cecilia Flores, James ...

Research confirms that social isolation and loneliness significantly impact health and mortality, even if not listed on death certificates. BYU psychology and neuroscience professor, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, has published extensively on the topic, including a landmark 2010 meta-analysis and a 2023 framework on assessment and treatment. She also served as lead scientist on the 2023 Surgeon General Advisory and is advising the World Health Organization on an upcoming report that addresses the pressing health threat of loneliness and isolation and a global agenda on social connection. Social connection is now a legitimate health factor, but Holt-Lunstad ...

The University of Cologne is once again highly successful in the Excellence Strategy: Five Clusters of Excellence will be funded in the next funding period. This was announced today by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Science and Humanities Council. The following Clusters will be funded for seven years: CECAD for aging research, CEPLAS for plant sciences, DYNAVERSE for astrophysics, ECONtribute for economics and ML4Q for quantum research. These Clusters reflect the academic fields of the natural sciences, life sciences, humanities and social sciences represented at the University of Cologne. “We ...

The global impact of Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) research is set to increase under a new open access (OA) agreement with publisher Taylor & Francis. The three-year partnership will enable UNAM researchers to publish OA articles in more than 2,400 journals. OA publishing supports UNAM's ambition to be a leading international hub of excellence in research and innovation, through fostering collaboration and ensuring the latest work can be freely accessed by researchers, policymakers, and practitioners worldwide. Taylor & Francis’ first ‘read & publish’ agreement in Mexico maintains the academic community’s reading ...

What: National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists have developed a new surgical technique for implanting multiple tissue grafts in the eye's retina. The findings in animals may help advance treatment options for dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which is a leading cause of vision loss among older Americans. A report about the technique published today in JCI Insight.   In diseases such as AMD, the light-sensitive retina tissue at the back of the eye degenerates. Scientists are testing therapies for restoring damaged retinas with grafts of tissue ...

Most people have encountered the black, grey, or pink stains of bacterial biofilms built up on the bathroom tiles or kitchen sink. Even with vigorous scrubbing and strong cleaning chemicals, this grime can be difficult to remove and often returns with vengeance. A new study, published in Chemical Engineering Journal, reports a novel, two-step method to effectively dismantle bacterial biofilms and prevent regrowth. “Biofilms are everywhere, from bathrooms to food factories,” said Hyunjoon Kong (M-CELS leader/EIRH/RBTE), a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering. “Biofilms are also responsible for cross contamination ...

A new study from researchers at Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital found no increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in children whose fathers were treated with valproate during spermatogenesis. The results have just been published in JAMA Network Open and cast new light on the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA's) recent recommendation for precautionary measures. In January 2024, EMA recommended precautionary measures for treating male patients with valproate, based on ...

SAN ANTONIO — May 22, 2025 — Southwest Research Institute’s Dr. Robin Canup has received the 2025 Dirk Brouwer Career Award from the American Astronomical Society’s Division on Dynamical Astronomy (AAS DDA). As the vice president of SwRI’s Solar System Science and Exploration Division in Boulder, Colorado, Canup leads a team of about 120 contributing to a wide variety of space programs. Canup is best known for studies concerning the formation of planets and their satellites, including research that demonstrated how the Earth-Moon system could have been produced from a giant impact ...

The Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) is one of the winners of the Excellence Strategy. MLU applied for the Cluster of Excellence "Center for Chiral Electronics" (CCE) together with the Freie Universität Berlin, the University of Regensburg and the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle. The Cluster of Excellence will receive up to 64.5 million euros in funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) and will start in January 2026. It will initially run for seven years. Research will focus on new concepts ...

When the workload on the heart increases, the ventricular wall may thicken too, known as cardiac hypertrophy. This is an adaptive response that reduces pressure on the heart and maintains the activity of this vital organ. It is often a reversible process that does not cause serious effects on the structure or function of the heart, but if the factor causing cardiac overload becomes chronic, it can lead to pathological hypertrophy with more serious effects (dilatation of the ventricular cavities, alterations in cardiac function, heart failure, etc.). People with diabetes — specially type 2 diabetes (DM2) — are at increased risk ...

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection represents a critical intersection of viral-induced inflammation and cardiovascular pathology. This review explores the dual mechanisms driving SARS-CoV-2-associated ACS and evaluates emerging therapeutic strategies, including phytomedicine and nanotechnology, to address both viral and cardiovascular complications. SARS-CoV-2 and ACS Pathogenesis SARS-CoV-2 infection exacerbates ACS through systemic inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, and plaque destabilization. The virus triggers a cytokine storm, marked by elevated inflammatory ...

NEW ORLEANS, May 22, 2025 – Coral reefs are vital to marine biodiversity, but their livelihood is under threat due to climate instability and the impacts of human activities. Rehabilitating marine environments requires innovative solutions. Océane Boulais, a doctoral student at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, studies one of these potential solutions: the impacts of acoustics on coral larval recruitment and settlement. After spawning, coral larvae drift or swim through the water column, seeking suitable sites to find a home to attach to along the ocean floor. “Multiple chemical compounds have already been identified as ...

Women who choose to stop treatment during pregnancy and breastfeeding are putting their health at risk, and have to weigh their desire to have children and breastfeed against a risk that we know very little about. In two ongoing clinical trials, researchers establish a new standard for human lactation studies that includes sampling of breast milk and plasma from both mothers  and breastfed infants.  “The lack of scientific evidence is an ethical problem for women and doctors, considering that around 70 percent of women need to use medicines sometime during their pregnancy. In many cases, women are recommended ...

Neuroscientists and materials scientists have created contact lenses that enable infrared vision in both humans and mice by converting infrared light into visible light. Unlike infrared night vision goggles, the contact lenses, described in the Cell Press journal Cell on May 22, do not require a power source—and they enable the wearer to perceive multiple infrared wavelengths. Because they’re transparent, users can see both infrared and visible light simultaneously, though infrared vision ...

Ammonia released from penguin guano may help to reduce the effects of climate change in the Antarctic by contributing to increased cloud formation, according to an analysis published in Communications Earth & Environment. The conclusion is the result of measurements taken downwind of a colony of Adelie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae). Antarctic ecosystems are facing significant pressures because of human-driven climate change, including a recent decreasing trend in the area covered by sea ice. Penguins are key species in the Antarctic ecosystem whose habitat is threatened by this ongoing ice loss. They are also, along with other ...