Have you ever wondered how insects are able to go so far beyond their home and still find their way? The answer to this question is not only relevant to biology but also to making the AI for tiny, autonomous robots.  TU Delft drone-researchers felt inspired by biological findings on how ants visually recognize their environment and combine it with counting their steps in order to get safely back home. They have used these insights to create an insect-inspired autonomous navigation strategy for tiny, lightweight robots. The strategy allows such robots to come back home after long trajectories, while requiring extremely little computation and memory (0.65 kiloByte per ...

Researchers have developed soft, stretchable ‘jelly batteries’ that could be used for wearable devices or soft robotics, or even implanted in the brain to deliver drugs or treat conditions such as epilepsy. The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, took their inspiration from electric eels, which stun their prey with modified muscle cells called electrocytes. Like electrocytes, the jelly-like materials developed by the Cambridge researchers have a layered structure, like sticky Lego, that makes them capable of delivering an electric current.   The self-healing jelly batteries can stretch ...

The most threatened reef fishes are also the most overlooked by scientists and the general public. That is the startling finding of a team of scientists led by a CNRS researcher.1 In a study to be published in Science Advances on July 17, they measured the level of human interest in 2,408 species of marine reef fish and found that the attention of the scientific community is attracted by the commercial value more than the ecological value of the fishes. The public, on the other hand, is primarily influenced by the aesthetic characteristics of certain species, such as the red lionfish ...

Mindfulness training may lead participants to experience disembodiment and unity – so-called altered states of consciousness – according to a new study from researchers at the University of Cambridge. The team say that while these experiences can be very positive, that is not always the case. Mindfulness teachers and students need to be aware that they can be a side-effect of training, and students should feel empowered to share their experiences with their teacher or doctor if they have any concerns. Mindfulness-based programmes have ...

When electronic devices like laptops or smartphones overheat, they are fundamentally suffering from a nanoscale heat transfer problem. Pinpointing the source of that problem can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. “The building blocks of our modern electronics are transistors with nanoscale features, so to understand which parts of overheating, the first step is to get a detailed temperature map,” says Andrea Pickel, an assistant professor from the University of Rochester’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. “But you need something with nanoscale ...

Peek inside the human genome and, among the 20,000 or so genes that serve as building blocks of life, you’ll also find flecks of DNA left behind by viruses that infected primate ancestors tens of millions of years ago. These ancient hitchhikers, known as endogenous retroviruses, were long considered inert or ‘junk’ DNA, defanged of any ability to do damage. New CU Boulder research published July 17 in the journal Science Advances shows that, when reawakened, they can play a critical role in helping cancer survive and thrive. The study also suggests that silencing certain endogenous retroviruses can make cancer treatments work better. “Our study shows that diseases ...

Researchers have uncovered an under-the-sea phenomenon where coral-destroying crown-of-thorns starfish larvae have been feasting on blue-green algae bacteria known as ‘sea sawdust’. The team of marine scientists from The University of Queensland and Southern Cross University found crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) larvae grow and thrive when raised on an exclusive diet of Trichodesmium – a bacteria that often floats on the ocean’s surface in large slicks. UQ’s Dr Benjamin Mos from the School ...

Mental health training for line managers is strongly linked to better business performance, and it could save companies millions of pounds in lost sick days every year, according to new research led by experts at the University of Nottingham.  The results of the study, which are published in PLOS ONE, showed a strong association between mental health training for line managers and improved staff recruitment and retention, better customer service, and lower levels of long-term mental health sickness absence.  The study was led by Professor Holly Blake from the School of Health Sciences at the University of Nottingham and Dr Juliet Hassard of Queen’s ...

When it comes to diatoms that live in the ocean, new research suggests that photosynthesis is not the only strategy for accumulating carbon. Instead, these single-celled plankton are also building biomass by feeding directly on organic carbon in wide swaths of the ocean. These new findings could lead researchers to reduce their estimate of how much carbon dioxide diatoms pull out of the air via photosynthesis, which in turn, could alter our understanding of the global carbon cycle, which is especially relevant given the changing climate.   This research is led by bioengineers, bioinformatics experts and other genomics researchers ...

UC Riverside environmental engineering team has discovered specific bacterial species that can destroy certain kinds of “forever chemicals,” a step further toward low-cost treatments of contaminated drinking water sources. The microorganisms belong to the genus Acetobacterium and they are commonly found in wastewater environments throughout the world.  Forever chemicals, also known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, are so named because they have stubbornly strong carbon-fluorine chemical bonds, which make them persistent in the environment.  The microorganisms discovered by UCR scientists and their collaborators ...

Research by the Technion has demonstrated that activation of the brain’s reward system could boost recovery from a heart attack. The research, which was conducted at the Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, was led by Ph.D. student Hedva Haykin under the supervision of Prof. Asya Rolls and Prof. Lior Gepstein. The Technion research group focused on the reward system, a brain network activated in positive emotional states and motivation and evaluated its potential in improving recovery ...

ATLANTA — A research team at Georgia State University has developed tiny, potent molecules that are capable of targeting hidden strains of HIV. The source? Antibody genes from llama DNA. The research, led by Assistant Professor of Biology Jianliang Xu, uses llama-derived nanobodies to broadly neutralize numerous strains of HIV-1, the most common form of the virus. A new study from this team has been published in the journal Advanced Science. “This virus has evolved a way to escape our immune system. Conventional antibodies are bulky, so it’s difficult for them to find and attack the virus’ surface,” ...

You join a swing dance class, and at first you’re all left feet. But – slowly, eyes glued to the teacher – you pick up a step or two and start to feel the rhythm of the big band beat. A good start. Then you look over and realize the couple next to you has picked up twice the steps in half the time. Why? According to a new study from University of Florida biomechanical researchers, the quick, athletic learners among us really are built differently – inside their brains. That’s what UF Professor of Biomedical Engineering Daniel Ferris, Ph.D., and his former doctoral student, Noelle Jacobsen, Ph.D., discovered when they studied how people learn ...

-With images- Researchers at Durham University, UK and Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran have developed an innovative approach to diagnosing Multiple Sclerosis using advanced eye imaging techniques. This groundbreaking method could revolutionise how Multiple Sclerosis is detected, offering a faster, less invasive, and more accessible alternative to current diagnostic procedures. The study, led by Dr Raheleh Kafieh of Durham University, integrates two types of eye scans: optical coherence tomography (OCT) and infrared scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (IR-SLO). By training computer models ...

Traveling to and from a clinic or a laboratory for treatment can be difficult and expensive for older Americans. To address this, scientists developed and tested a new training and supervision program for older adults so they can receive Transcranial Electrical Stimulation (tES), a promising intervention for various clinical conditions, in their homes. Published in Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface, this groundbreaking training and supervision program was designed to introduce and teach caregivers, family members, and patients how to administer home-based transcranial electrical stimulation (HB-tES), equipping them ...

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (July 17, 2024) — Van Andel Institute scientists have identified more than 1,000 previously undetected proteins in common metabolite samples, which persist despite extraction methods designed to weed them out.   The findings, published in Nature Communications, give scientists new insights and tools for improving future metabolomics experiments, including a novel protocol for removing these proteins during the extraction process. The study does not invalidate prior results but instead reinforces the importance ...

A new study found that increased exposure to residential greenery may help stave off cognitive decline by an annual rate of eight months. This delay was observed more among people living in low-socioeconomic status and highly populated neighborhoods, as well as people who carry the APOE-ɛ4 gene, which is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Research has shown that about 40 percent of dementia could be prevented or delayed worldwide by addressing modifiable risk factors associated with the condition, particularly during midlife.  A new study led by a Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) ...

When trying to understand the present, it's helpful to look to history. New research from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln examined the fossil record going back 66 million years and tracked changes to mammalian ecosystems and species diversity on the North American continent.  The study, led by Alex Shupinski, who earned her doctorate in May, and co-authored by Kate Lyons, associate professor in the School of Biological Sciences, provides a large-scale view of how species diversity changed over the first 65 million years of the Cenozoic era — up until the arrival of humans — ...

Winston-Salem, North Carolina — July 17, 2024 — The RegeneratOR Test Bed, located in Innovation Quarter, announces the inclusion of Cytoink into its pioneering ecosystem dedicated to advancing biomedical research and development. Cytoink brings cutting-edge biomaterials manufacturing, with over 100 custom formulations, and bioprinting expertise that merges biofunctionality with high-throughput production. Cytoink specializes in the biofabrication of in vitro 3D tissue phantoms, extrusion-based and light-based (DLP/VAM) bioinks, and integrated perfusion microfluidics bioreactors. Additionally, Cytoink provides bespoke biomaterial solutions ...

Jeffrey Spraggins, associate professor of cell and developmental biology, biochemistry, and chemistry, has been named director of the Mass Spectrometry Research Center. He succeeds Richard Caprioli, Stanford Moore Chair in Biochemistry, who established the MSRC in 1998 and who is retiring this summer. Spraggins is a leading scientist in spatial biology and imaging mass spectrometry—an untargeted molecular imaging approach that enables molecular mapping at cellular resolution—a technology originated by Caprioli. Spraggins’ research lies at the intersection of technology development, data science, and biomedical research. His research group ...

An ageing population will bring colossal health, social, and economic challenges over the coming decades[1]. As people live longer, staving off the physical decline and frailty that come with age has become a holy grail, with effective interventions projected to unlock significant societal and economic benefits. Estimates suggest that a slowdown in ageing that increases life expectancy by one year alone is worth US$38 trillion.[2]  In a discovery published in Nature, a team of scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore may have found a key to slow ageing. The ...

Researchers have analysed data from 127 studies to reveal ‘thresholds’ for when logged rainforests lose the ability to sustain themselves. The results could widen the scope of which forests are considered ‘worth’ conserving, but also show how much logging degrades forests beyond the point of no return. The first-of-its-kind study, led by researchers from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London with collaborators from around the world, is published today in ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Astronomers have discovered a planet that has the most oblong orbit ever found among transiting planets. The exoplanet’s extreme circuit — which looks closer to a cucumber than a circle — follows one of the most drastically stretched-out orbits of all known exoplanets, planets that orbit stars outside our solar system. It is also orbiting its star backwards, lending insight into the mystery of how close-in massive gas planets, known as hot Jupiters, form, stabilize and evolve over time. The research, led by Penn State scientists, was published today (July 17) in ...

Scientists at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Medical Science and Imperial College London have discovered that ‘switching off’ a protein called IL-11 can significantly increase the healthy lifespan of mice by almost 25%. The scientists, working with colleagues at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, tested the effects of IL-11 by creating mice that had the gene producing IL-11 (interleukin 11) deleted. This extended the lives of the mice by over 20% on average. They also treated 75-week-old mice – equivalent to the age of about 55 years in humans – with an ...

A new gene therapy treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy shows promise of not only arresting the decline of the muscles of those affected by this inherited genetic disease, but perhaps, in the future, repairing those muscles. The UW Medicine-led research focuses on delivering a series of protein packets inside shuttle vectors to replace the defective DMD gene within the muscles. The added genetic code will then start producing dystrophin, the protein lacking in patients with muscular dystrophy.  Currently, there is no cure for the disease ...