Research announcements from universities, hospitals and scientific institutions. Explore the stories, people and discoveries behind the headlines.
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A review of global research on livestock and aquaculture waste finds that modern animal farming generates contaminants - including antibiotic resistance genes, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and microplastic particles - that persist and spread through environments in ways that traditional nutrient-focused regulation does not address.
Read the releaseGrowing fish, shrimp, or crabs alongside rice in flooded paddies can improve nitrogen-use efficiency by 20 to 40 percent while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, according to a review that identifies the soil-water interface as the critical mechanism behind these gains.
Read the releaseUniversity of Queensland scientists have pinpointed the genomic region in the wild Calcutta 4 banana subspecies that controls resistance to Fusarium wilt Sub Tropical Race 4 - a soil-borne disease threatening Cavendish banana crops worldwide and for which no chemical control exists.
Read the releaseJapanese scarab beetles of two closely related species use mirror-image versions of the same pheromone molecule to attract mates of their own species and repel males of the other - a chemical system that prevents wasted mating attempts between species sharing the same habitat.
Read the releaseA study published in Neurology used baby teeth donated decades ago to measure prenatal lead levels, finding that second-trimester lead exposure is associated with lower performance on cognitive tests in adulthood - with each additional one part per million in tooth lead levels linked to cognitive aging equivalent to three extra years in women.
Read the releaseAn analysis of the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health - the first to include sexual identity categories beyond lesbian, gay, bisexual, and heterosexual, and the first to survey adolescents on identity - finds significantly higher substance use rates across all non-heterosexual groups, including those who identify as queer, pansexual, asexual, or uncertain.
Read the releaseScientists at the Cambridge Veterinary School have confirmed 12 additional dog breeds face significant risk of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, with overweight dogs and those with narrow nostrils or shorter, wider heads facing the greatest danger regardless of breed.
Read the releaseA study measuring 898 dogs from 14 brachycephalic breeds identifies flat skull geometry, excess body weight, and collapsed nostrils as the three strongest predictors of breathing obstruction - with Pekingese and Japanese Chins showing the highest disease burden among breeds not previously well studied.
Read the releaseA survey of 2,714 participants across nine countries finds that high socioeconomic status improves social attitudes toward women more than toward men, while low status worsens attitudes toward men more than women - with both patterns amplified in societies with conservative gender norms.
Read the releaseMachine learning models trained on weather data can predict both grass and birch tree pollen concentrations with over 80% accuracy up to seven days in advance - a finding with direct implications for hay fever management and allergy treatment planning.
Read the releaseIsotope analysis of fossils from Yunxian, China places Homo erectus in eastern Asia 1.7 million years ago - roughly 600,000 years earlier than previous studies indicated - requiring a fundamental revision of when our ancestors left Africa.
Read the releaseExtreme fire weather is increasingly striking multiple countries simultaneously, shrinking the window when nations can share firefighting resources. A global analysis spanning 1979 to 2024 attributes more than half of this increase to human-caused climate change.
Read the releaseHoney bee waggle dances convey precise information about food source location - but the 'dance floor' regions where these dances occur inside hives have never been rigorously defined. A new data-driven method from Canadian and U.S. researchers quantifies dance floor boundaries from observational data, removing the subjectivity that has complicated comparisons between colonies and experiments.
Read the releaseA 12-week program combining standing exercises and protein-rich nutritional drinks improved physical function in 102 nursing home residents, but reduced care time only in dementia wards - not in general care. The finding is promising but comes from a secondary, retrospective analysis, and the researchers call for prospective trials where care time is the primary outcome.
Read the releaseMichelson Medical Research Foundation awarded $150,000 each to five early-career immunologists in 2026, its largest cohort to date. The recipients - from UC Irvine, Stanford, Lund University, Columbia, and the University of Washington - are pursuing high-risk research in areas including computational protein design for cancer immunotherapy and topical vaccine strategies that harness skin immunity.
Read the releaseThe Society for Neuroscience selected 10 early-career scientists and clinicians from across the United States for its 2026 Early Career Policy Ambassador program. Over 10 months, the ambassadors will develop advocacy skills, participate in Capitol Hill Day, and engage their home institutions in conversations about science funding and neuroscience policy.
Read the releaseScreening more than 20,000 published studies on spirituality and health, Harvard researchers identified 55 rigorous longitudinal studies covering over half a million people. The meta-analysis found a consistent 13% reduction in hazardous substance use risk associated with spiritual practices, rising to 18% for those attending religious services weekly - with consistent effects across alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and illicit drugs.
Read the releaseNearly 500,000 Americans get C. diff infections each year; 29,000 die, and 30% of treated patients relapse. Vanderbilt researchers report in Nature that a multivalent vaccine delivered to the colon's mucosal surface - rather than injected - clears both vegetative and spore forms of C. diff, prevents tissue damage, and provides durable protection through 200 days post-vaccination in animal models.
Read the releasePlants balance shoot and root growth through a mechanism involving their circadian clock that was unknown until now. Research published in Cell shows the clock protein CCA1 functions as an electrical controller, shifting proton gradients in different tissues to prioritize stem elongation or root growth at different times of day by regulating how efficiently sugar is exported through the phloem.
Read the releaseThe largest genomic study of acral melanoma in a Latin American population found this rare skin cancer - which arises on palms, soles, and nails - divides into three biologically distinct subtypes with differing prognoses. Genetic ancestry influenced which driver mutations appeared, with BRAF mutations far more common in patients with European ancestry than in those with Indigenous American ancestry.
Read the releaseEuropean colonists dredged away an estimated 85% of Australia's coastal oyster reefs to make building lime. A new Nature study using 3D photogrammetry and field-tested concrete tiles across three Sydney estuaries has now identified the geometric attributes that maximize juvenile oyster survival - pointing to specific design specifications for effective artificial reef restoration.
Read the releaseA large cohort study published in JAMA Network Open found gestational diabetes and prenatal depression each independently raise childhood obesity risk. Children exposed to both conditions faced the greatest risk overall. Effect sizes were larger for gestational diabetes, and combined exposure effects appeared additive rather than synergistic.
Read the releaseA meta-analysis of 55 longitudinal studies finds that individuals who engage in spiritual practices face a 13% lower risk of hazardous alcohol or drug use compared to those who do not. Weekly religious attendance showed the strongest association, with an 18% reduced risk, though causal interpretation requires caution.
Read the releasePolymer capacitors fail above 212 F, limiting their use near car engines and in data centers. A Penn State team mixed PEI and PBPDA into a self-assembling alloy that holds four times the energy of conventional capacitors across a temperature range from -148 F to 482 F, using only cheap, commercially available plastics.
Read the releaseMeasuring mRNA levels has long served as a proxy for protein production in brain cells, but in neurons the two are often disconnected. A new method called Ribo-STAMP directly detects which mRNAs are being translated in individual cells, revealing that CA3 memory neurons make proteins at far higher rates than neighboring CA1 neurons - and that isoform length predicts translation efficiency.
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