The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) in Klosterneuburg receives over 10 million Euro by the European Research Council (ERC). Four research projects – in astrophysics, neuroscience, brain imaging, and math – were awarded around 2.5 million Euro each in the form of a competitive ERC Advanced Grant. ISTA is one of the most successful institutions at winning grants from this EU funding body. The European Research Council awards Advanced Grants to “active researchers who have a track-record of significant research achievements.” They are awarded for a period of up to 5 years and for up to 2.5 ...

The future of gene therapy is arriving in the form of intelligent genetic circuits. Diego di Bernardo, Genomic Medicine Program Coordinator at the Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM) and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Naples “Federico II,” has been awarded a prestigious €2.5 million ERC Advanced Grant for DIMERCIRCUITS — a project that merges synthetic biology, artificial intelligence, and biomedical engineering to transform how we ...

Scientists have used clues locked into tree rings to reveal major changes in the Amazon’s rainfall cycle over the last 40 years:  wet seasons are getting wetter and dry seasons drier. Oxygen isotope signals in rings from two Amazon tree species allowed the international research team to reconstruct seasonal changes in rainfall for the recent past. Publishing their findings today (17 June) in Communications Earth and Environment, the researchers reveal that wet season rainfall has increased by 15 - 22%, and dry season rainfall decreased by 5.8 - 13.5% since 1980. The study is a result of a collaboration ...

Plants and trees extend their roots into the earth in order to draw nutrients and water from the soil—however, these roots are thought to decline as they move deeper underground. But a new study by a multi-institutional team of scientists shows that many plants develop a second, deeper layer of roots—often more than three feet underground—to access additional nourishment.  Published in the journal Nature Communications, the study reveals previously unrecognized rooting patterns, altering our understanding of how ecosystems respond to changing environmental conditions. More importantly, the study suggests that plants might transport and store fixed carbon deeper than ...

Osaka, Japan – Treating rare diseases can be complicated at the best of times, and it gets even more complicated when different patients with the same disease exhibit different symptoms. Now, researchers from Japan have reported a cellular signature that might explain why some patients with autoimmune disease are stable while others face life-threatening complications. In a study to be published in Nature Communications, a multi-institutional research team led by The University of Osaka has revealed that, for patients with systemic sclerosis, this variation in disease severity seems to be due to the proliferation ...

WASHINGTON -- Liver transplant is a lifesaving surgery, but a significant number of patients experience organ rejection or other complications. Now a new study by scientists from Georgetown University and MedStar Health describes how a single blood sample can be used to catch problems at the earliest stages, allowing tailored treatment to prevent the organ’s failure. The research, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, is a major step toward the development of a liquid biopsy that could not only quickly detect post-transplant complications but also ...

Bladder tumors that have been excluded from clinical trials have a few things in common that could lead to new therapies.  Scientists at UC San Francisco have found a way to identify and possibly treat a mysterious type of bladder cancer that affects up to 1 in 4 cases.  First, they found a marker on the surface of the tumor cells that until now had only been associated with ovarian cancer; then they designed CAR-T therapy to kill the tumors in mice.  The discovery, which was made possible through funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), appears ...

In a world-first breakthrough, researchers have used an epilepsy-like disease model in a laboratory dish and showed that improved information processing and neural function can be achieved using a medication designed specifically to treat the disease. Published in Communications Biology, the research was led by Cortical Labs and marks a significant breakthrough in the study and treatment of neurological disorders in real time.      Cortical Labs is an Australian start-up which created the world’s first commercial biological computer, the CL1, which fuses lab-cultivated neurons from human stem cells with hard silicon to create ...

Wildfires pollute waterways and could affect their ability to sequester carbon, recent University of British Columbia research shows. Dr. Brian Hunt, professor in the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries (IOF), and Emily Brown, IOF research scientist, discuss how wildfires affect our waters and what this means in a changing climate. What did you find about how fire affects water? BH: We focused on the mighty Fraser River basin. When forests burn, they release ash, soil particles and chemicals into the environment. In a recent study which analyzed water quality and wildfire data, we were able to link increases in the concentrations of compounds like arsenic and lead, as well as nutrients ...

It might be hard to imagine, but dropping a limb or two is routine for spiders. If moulting goes wrong or a leg gets stuck, the pragmatic arachnids simply detach the limb just beyond the body joint. Then it regrows within a month when they are young. But how do impaired spiders cope when suddenly relieved of a couple of limbs? Capturing dinner and evading predators could become an issue. However, going down from eight to six legs might not be a problem if spiders are adaptable. Maybe they relearn how to manoeuvre on just ...

For the first time, a research team led by Markus Koch from the Institute of Experimental Physics at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) has tracked in real time how individual atoms combine to form a cluster and which processes are involved. To achieve this, the researchers first isolated magnesium atoms using superfluid helium and then used a laser pulse to trigger the formation process. The researchers were able to observe this cluster formation and the involved energy transfer between individual atoms with a temporal ...

Six out of ten people with type 2 diabetes had fatty liver in a new study from Linköping University. Of these, only a small percentage had developed more severe liver disease. The study, published in the Journal of Internal Medicine, also helps confirm that those who have type 2 diabetes in combination with obesity are at greater risk of fatty liver leading to more severe liver disease. When metabolism does not work normally, as with so-called metabolic syndrome, many organs in the body are affected. “Metabolic syndrome is a combination of factors leading to the body accumulating fat and not managing blood sugar levels in a good way. This entails an increased risk of developing ...

A new study from the Stockholm School of Economics finds that the competitiveness of green steel production in Romania partly hinges on hydrogen sourcing—requiring a 15 percent price premium if hydrogen is purchased externally as supposed to produced on-site. Without this premium, decarbonizing the country’s only primary steel producer could result in billions of losses. The research, published in the Journal of Industrial Ecology, evaluates the financial viability of Liberty Steel Galați’s transition to low-carbon steelmaking using green hydrogen and electric arc furnace-based technologies. The plant, one of the EU’s top 10 most polluting steel facilities, aims ...

According to the first-ever survey fielded to RAND’s new American Youth Panel (AYP), 49% of students in middle and high school grades reported losing interest in math about half or more of the time, and 75% of youths reported losing interest for at least some class time.   Loss of interest in math is consistent across genders and racial and ethnic groups.   In the fall of 2024, RAND asked youths in grades 5 through 12 about their math class experiences with plans to measure these math attitudes annually to track trends over time. This nationally representative report was fielded to a group of ...

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem proudly congratulates three of its esteemed researchers – Prof. Dorit Aharonov, Prof. Israel Nelken, and Prof. Tamar Ziegler – on being awarded the highly competitive European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grants. This prestigious recognition, part of the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, supports senior researchers in pursuing ambitious, curiosity-driven projects with the potential to make significant scientific breakthroughs. The ERC Advanced Grant competition is one of ...

Amid concerns over rising petroleum prices and resource depletion, organic compounds such as methanol are attracting attention as potential replacements. Though this bodes well in theory, the production of raw materials from methanol relies on costly chemical processes. An energy-saving, bio-based process is necessary for fully tapping into this resource. To make this a reality, Associate Professor Ryosuke Yamada’s team at Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Engineering has developed a Komagataella phaffii (K. phaffii) yeast strain that can efficiently produce D-lactic acid, a raw material for ...

Cellulose-based textile material can make the clothing sector more sustainable. Currently, cellulose-based textiles are mainly made from wood, but a study headed by researchers from Chalmers University of Technology points to the possibility of using agricultural waste from wheat and oat. The method is easier and requires fewer chemicals than manufacturing forest-based cellulose, and can enhance the value of waste products from agriculture. Making clothing from water-intensive cotton has a major impact on the climate. That’s why cellulose from other raw materials has come into focus in recent years as a more resource-smart method of textile production. Up to now, the ...

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 17 June 2025 - In a comprehensive Genomic Press Innovators & Ideas interview, Dr. Claire J. Foldi, an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at Monash University, shares her journey and groundbreaking work in the field of eating disorders. Dr. Foldi's research focuses on the neurobiology of eating disorders, particularly anorexia nervosa, and explores how novel therapeutics, including psychedelics, may offer new avenues for treatment. Early Inspirations and Career Trajectory Dr. Foldi's fascination with human behavior and the brain's processing of experiences began during her undergraduate studies. A pivotal moment ...

Would you like living next door to a solar farm? Traditionally, it’s been thought that although people like the idea of renewable energy plants, they don’t want them close by. Now research investigating how people who live near large-scale solar projects feel about them has found that 82% of people living within an hour’s walk of current projects would support, or are neutral towards, new projects in their area.   “Most neighbors of existing large-scale solar projects either support or feel neutral about additional ...

Dr. Seunggun Yu and his team at KERI's Insulation Materials Research Center have developed a groundbreaking ‘Hybrid Supraparticle Synthesis Technology’ that can attach inorganic nanoparticles to the surface of polymer microparticles through simple mechanical collisions. The ‘Hybrid Supraparticle Synthesis Technology’ that combines functional inorganic nanoparticles with polymer microparticles is being widely applied across various industries, including battery electrode materials, catalyst systems, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, semiconductor packaging, and insulating ...

A simple classroom activity involving a classic childhood staple, LEGO, could improve children’s maths and spatial ability, leading researchers to demand for policymakers to shake up the school curricula and teachers’ professional development.  A new study, led by the University of Surrey, tested incorporating LEGO building into the daily teaching curriculum, leading to tangible improvements and boosting abilities for students aged six to seven.   The study, which involved 409 children from schools in Surrey and Portsmouth, demonstrated ...

Despite overall progress in bringing down low birthweight numbers across India over the past 30 years, rates remain stubbornly high in certain states, with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and West Bengal, accounting for almost half of all such births, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health. Low birthweight is important, because it often signals underlying maternal health issues and poor nutrition as well as the child’s future cognitive development and susceptibility to chronic conditions in later life, note ...

Over half of primary and secondary school teachers in England have not been trained in how to support parents’ involvement in children’s learning and education at home and at school.     That’s according to research published today in the peer-reviewed journal Educational Review, which is a first study of its kind based on a survey of more than 1,700 teachers reveals concerning gaps in skills.    Led by academics from the University of Warwick and UCL, the paper shows teachers’ essential pre-qualification training fails to ...

University of Cambridge media release   Evolution made us cheats, now free-riders run the world and we need to change, new book warns   UNDER STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL 00:01AM (UK TIME) ON TUESDAY 17TH JUNE 2025   To save democracy and solve the world's biggest challenges, we need to get better at spotting and exposing people who exploit human cooperation for personal gain, argues Cambridge social scientist Dr Jonathan Goodman.   In Invisible Rivals, published by Yale University Press today, Dr Goodman ...

A QUT report published today into Australia’s bioeconomy has called for a national strategy and outlined the five key steps needed to grow a sustainable economic future.  The report, published by researchers from QUT and the ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology Madeline Smith, Dr Jerome Ramirez and Professor Ian O’Hara, says “now is the time for Australia to act, or risk losing the ability to compete in this rapidly growing global market”.  Professor O’Hara said the global bioeconomy, currently valued at US$4 trillion, was predicted by the World Bioeconomy Forum to grow ...