Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) is an important technology for converting carbon-rich resources such as coal, natural gas, and biomass into clean fuels and high-value chemicals through synthesis gas. Iron-based catalysts are widely used in industrial applications due to their low cost and strong adaptability, especially for syngas derived from coal or biomass with low H2/CO ratios. However, the catalytic process is complicated by frequent phase transformations among metallic iron, iron oxides, and iron carbides, which ...

DALLAS, Sept. 25, 2025 — Six NFL (National Football League) club mascots are stepping up to inspire kids to move more to support mental and physical health. These NFL mascots are serving as members of the inaugural NFL PLAY 60 Ambassador class supporting the NFL and the American Heart Association’s work to help kids achieve a minimum of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each day. Rooted in the American Heart Association’s physical activity guidelines, NFL PLAY 60 supports the evidence-based guidance that students who are active learn better, focus more, think more ...

Background and Aims The causal biomarkers for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and their clinical value remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to identify biomarkers for MASLD and evaluate their diagnostic and prognostic significance. Methods We conducted a Mendelian randomization analysis to assess the causal effects of 2,925 molecular biomarkers (from proteomics data) and 35 clinical biomarkers on MASLD. Mediation analysis was performed to determine whether clinical biomarkers mediated the effects of molecular biomarkers. The association ...

INDIANAPOLIS -- Chest pain ranks as the second most common reason for emergency department (ED) visits, making it a key concern for patients and doctors. However, 80 percent of these cases are considered low-risk and not related to heart disease, and for these patients, anxiety and panic disorders are frequent diagnoses. A new study led by the Indiana University School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute researchers shows that many patients who visit the ED with low-risk chest pain might benefit more from treatment for underlying psychological conditions than from extensive cardiac testing. Anxiety is not only common among low-risk ...

Key Points: Microbiologists have previously studied the bacterial species found in subway stations, but fungi have often been overlooked. An international team of researchers collected monthly samples from subway stations in Beijing and found high fungal diversity, mostly non-pathogenic. Some opportunistic pathogens were also detected. Fungal communities were observed to vary significantly by season and station types. The work could guide better strategies for air quality control in urban transit systems. Washington, D.C. — Subways don’t just bring people together. They’re also ...

New York, NY [September 25, 2025]— A new study from researchers at the Mount Sinai Health System suggests that a simple tweak to how artificial intelligence (AI) assigns diagnostic codes could significantly improve accuracy, even outperforming physicians. The findings, reported in the September 25 online issue of NEJM AI [DOI: 10.1056/AIcs2401161], could help reduce the time doctors spend on paperwork, cut billing errors, and improve the quality of patient records. “Our previous study showed that even the most advanced AI could produce the ...

Scientists know that social isolation can alter brain structure and lead to the breakdown of myelin, the fatty coating that insulates nerve fibers in the brain. But they don’t yet know exactly how or why it happens. A new, five-year study, supported by the National Science Foundation, investigates the potential mechanisms that drive the process. “We’re looking at the role of dopamine in regulating changes in myelin caused by social isolation,” said study leader Leora Yetnikoff, a professor of Biology and a member of the CUNY Neuroscience Collaborative at the CUNY Graduate Center, and a professor of psychology at the College of Staten Island. Yetnikoff ...

Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, has been awarded a five-year, $720,446 grant from the United States EPA to support a pioneering project aimed at restoring sponge populations in Florida Bay through a genetics-based approach. Florida Bay is a shallow body of water between the southern tip of mainland Florida and the Florida Keys. It is part of Everglades National Park, which supports important marine life like sponges, fish and spiny lobster. The project marks the first genetic assessment of sponge restoration ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study provides evidence of the explosive growth of private club and travel teams in youth sports over the past 60 years.   Researchers found that kids who were born in the 1990s were about three times as likely to participate in private club and travel sports as those who were born in the 1950s. Findings were based on adults’ retrospective reports of their experiences while growing up.   About 4% of surveyed adults who were born in the 50s said they ...

Researchers from the Research Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (MANA), one of the centers under the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Japan, report an inexpensive iron hydroxide catalyst that could support the use of sodium borohydride as a hydrogen storage material. As the world moves toward hydrogen-powered societies, one major challenge remains: storing and releasing hydrogen efficiently. Sodium borohydride (SBH) is a promising hydrogen storage material that can generate hydrogen ...

The mechanism of skeletal muscle contraction is a process that relies on calcium signaling. However, the physiological role of calcium-induced calcium release (CICR) through the ryanodine receptor type 1 (RyR1) has remained unresolved for decades. A new study led by Associate Professor Takashi Murayama from Juntendo University in Japan, along with his team members Drs. Takuya Kobayashi and Nagomi Kurebayashi from Juntendo University, and Dr. Toshiko Yamazawa from Jikei University School of Medicine, published ...

Before a chain of amino acids can become an active and useful protein, it must be processed and folded into the appropriate conformation. Much of this processing occurs in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of every cell. However, any disruptions in protein homeostasis can be very stressful to the ER, and when the ER gets overwhelmed, a safety system called the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) engages to slow down protein synthesis and allow the ER to catch up. If a temporary slowdown of protein synthesis isn’t enough ...

The transcription factor NF-κB is a key regulator of cell fate, extensively involved in various physiological and pathological processes such as immune responses, inflammatory reactions, cell differentiation, development, and proliferation. Since its transcriptional regulatory function was first identified in B cells by Ranjan Sen and David Baltimore in 1986, the NF-κB signaling pathway has been intensively studied for almost four decades. However, its complex regulatory network and continuously discovered ...

Scientists at the NYU Pain Research Center have identified which receptor in prostaglandins—the hormone-like substance targeted by common painkillers—causes pain but not inflammation. The findings, published in the journal Nature Communications, may help researchers to develop more selective drugs to treat pain with fewer side effects.  “Inflammation and pain are usually thought to go hand in hand. But being able to block pain and allow inflammation—which promotes healing—to proceed is an important step in ...

Average tree size across the Amazon has increased by 3.2% every decade consistent with a response to rising carbon dioxide levels, a new study suggests.    The new research published today (25 Sep) in Nature Plants by a global team of tropical forest scientists shows that the average size of trees in Amazon forests has increased over recent decades. The team of almost a hundred researchers monitored the size of trees in 188 permanent plots and discovered that the increase has continued for at least 30 years.   The study is the result ...

Researchers at the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have developed a groundbreaking brain imaging technique that reveals how tiny blood vessels in the brain pulse with each heartbeat—changes that may hold clues to aging and diseases such as Alzheimer’s. The study, published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, introduces the first noninvasive method for measuring “microvascular volumetric pulsatility”—the rhythmic expansion ...

Osaka, Japan — Why do glass and other amorphous materials deform more easily in some regions than in others? A research team from The University of Osaka, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Okayama University, and the University of Tokyo has uncovered the answer. By applying a mathematical method known as persistent homology, the team demonstrated that these soft regions are governed by hidden hierarchical structures, where ordered and disordered atomic arrangements coexist. Crystalline solids, such as salt or ice, have atoms neatly arranged in repeating ...

A study published today in Nature Communications describes how lymphatic endothelial cells assist in generating robust immune memory, offering new insights into how the immune system functions. Specifically, the researchers found there is a particular genetic program within the lymphatic endothelial cells that enables storage and archival of portions of an immunization or pathogen (antigens) for future use. The research is among the first to outline that there’s a genetic “transcriptional” program within lymphatic endothelial cells that impact the immune response and could be manipulated. The study was led ...

In Indonesia, cattle are not just cattle. The large island-nation houses a variety of different breeds, locally preferred for their unique set of physical attributes and strongly linked to culture and ceremonies. There is even a distinct species of domesticated bovine here, namely the Bali cattle, a domesticated version of the wild banteng (see Box 1). Little is known about the history of cattle in this archipelago, which is positioned at a crossroad between major historical trading empires and cultures, notably India and China. Local ...

A new study, led by experts at the University of Nottingham, has found that the production of meat-based pet foods has a much greater impact on the environment in comparison to plant-based alternatives. The study, led by Rebecca Brociek from the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, and published in Frontiers in Nutrition - Nutrition and Sustainable Diets, showed that plant-based diets for pets had the lowest impact across all measures of environmental impact. This included the land needed ...

Earth scientists often face huge challenges when researching the earth’s history: many significant events occurred such a long time ago that there is little direct evidence available. Consequently, researchers often have to rely on indirect clues or on computer models. The team led by ETH Professor Jordon Hemingway, however, has now discovered a unique natural witness to this period: tiny egg-shaped iron oxide stones that can be used to directly measure the carbon reserves in the primordial ocean.  Viewed ...

Earth was not always the blue-green world we know today: the early Earth's oxygen levels were about a million times lower than we now experience. There were no forests and no animals. For ancient organisms, oxygen was toxic. What did life look like at that time then? A recent study led by Fatima Li-Hau (graduate student at ELSI at the time of the research) along with the supervisor Associate Professor Shawn McGlynn  (at the time of research) of the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan, explores this question by examining iron-rich hot springs that mimic the chemistry of Earth's ancient oceans around the time ...

Tunas, billfishes, and some sharks, such as white sharks and shortfin mako sharks, have an ability known as regional endothermy, which allows them to maintain body temperatures higher than the ambient water. This ability has been regarded as an adaptation to cold environments. However, its role in warm-water species such as shortfin mako sharks, bigeye tuna, and swordfish has been unclear.   In this study, we attached data loggers to shortfin mako sharks caught off southeastern Taiwan to record water temperature, body temperature, and swimming depth (Fig. 1). During repeated deep dives, ...

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has captured the motion of spirals of dust around a young star and shown that the winding motion of the spiral pattern is conducive to planet formation. This provides new evidence for planet formation around this young star. The results could have implications for other young stars as well. Observations have revealed a spiral pattern in the disk of gas and dust around the young star IM Lup located 515 light-years away in the direction of the constellation Lupus. Spiral patterns are thought to be one of the signs that a new planet will form soon, but ...

Imagine the benefits if the entire internet got a game-changing upgrade to speed and security. This is the promise of the quantum internet - an advanced system that uses single photons (particles of light) to operate. Researchers at Tohoku University developed a new photonic router that can direct single and (quantum) entangled photons with unprecedented levels of efficiency. This advancement in quantum optics brings us closer to quantum networks and next-generation photonic quantum technologies becoming an everyday reality. The findings were published in Advanced Quantum Technologies on September 2, 2025. Photons are the backbone ...