Summary Addressing the global plastic waste crisis, particularly hard-to-recycle blended PET fibers, demands environmentally friendlier recycling methods. Researchers engineered a novel PET hydrolase PET2-21M and established large-scale production in yeast. This enzyme dramatically boosted PET bottle-grade PET breakdown. In parallel, its direct precursor PET2-14M-6Hot successfully degraded challenging blended fibers (PET/cotton, PET/PU) at moderate temperatures. This breakthrough offers a promising, energy-efficient path for a circular plastics economy, accelerating industrial-scale recycling of diverse polymer wastes. A research team led by ...

To succeed at university, Italian students need to pass interview-style oral exams. Now scientists have found that the time of the exam could be a critical factor influencing their success… or failure. Even when other factors were excluded, the chances of passing were highest around lunchtime, and lowest at the beginning or end of the day.   “We show that academic assessment outcomes vary systematically across the day, with a clear peak in passing rates around midday,” said Prof Carmelo Mario Vicario, director of the Social-Cognitive ...

New research details how our brains are drawn to and spot faces everywhere  If you have ever spotted faces or human-like expressions in everyday objects, you may have experienced the phenomenon of face pareidolia. Now, a new study by the University of Surrey has looked into how this phenomenon grabs our attention, which could be used by advertisers in promoting future products.  The study, published in i-Perception, investigated the differences between our attention being directed by averted gazes – when a subject looks away from another subject’s eyes or face  – and when it’s directed by pareidolia – imagined ...

A new national study from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, with colleagues at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, University of Chicago, National Opinion Research Center, and Emory University finds that stigma toward patients with substance use disorders (SUD) remains widespread among U.S. healthcare providers—and varies significantly across types of substances. The findings are published in the journal Addiction. The study is the first national analysis to compare provider stigma across opioid (OUD), stimulant, and alcohol use disorders (AUD) with other chronic ...

The study led by Dr. Xiangsong Chen (Wuhan University) and Dr. Haiya Cai (Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences) analyzed the transcriptomes of two rice cultivars, Nagina22 and 93-11, under high-temperature stress. It was found that the expression of JAZ genes specifically increased significantly in N22 at the early stage of heat stress, accompanied by a significant decrease in the expression of downstream response genes of the Jasmonic acid (JA) signaling pathway. Additionally, exogenous application of JA significantly reduced the heat tolerance of N22, indicating that the suppression ...

A new study from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus shows that free, open-source artificial intelligence (AI) tools can help doctors report medical scans just as well as more expensive commercial systems without putting patient privacy at risk. The study was published today in the journal npj Digital Medicine. The research highlights a promising and cost-effective alternative to widely known tools like ChatGPT which are often expensive and may require sending sensitive data to outside servers. “This is a big win for healthcare providers and ...

University of Adelaide researchers have discovered that applying a beneficial fungus to soil leads to some varieties of wheat accumulating more bioavailable zinc and iron in the grain. The researchers inoculated eight widely grown Australian bread wheat varieties with a commercially available arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus product and found the plants had more grain and accumulated greater amounts of nutrients – in particular, the essential human micronutrient zinc. “Our research shows inoculating agricultural soils with mycorrhizal fungi could be a promising strategy for producing wheat grain with higher ...

Yolk proteins (vitellogenins, VITs) are crucial lipid-carrying molecules that supply nutrients from the mother to embryos in oviparous animals. In humans, their functional analog apolipoprotein B-100 (apoB-100) is a core component of low-density and very low-density lipoproteins (LDL and VLDL, respectively), playing a pivotal role in systemic lipid transport. Understanding how these lipoproteins are secreted may help unravel the mechanisms underlying conditions like atherosclerosis and fatty liver disease. In a recent article published in Life Metabolism, researchers report that VIT secretion in Caenorhabditis elegans is ...

The endangered golden-shouldered parrot, a technicolour species native to Far North Queensland’s Cape York Peninsula, is abandoning areas of grassland it usually nests in because woody plants are encroaching upon its preferred vegetation. Dr Gabriel Crowley, from the University of Adelaide, assessed the fate of 555 golden-shouldered parrot eggs from 108 nests monitored on Artemis Station by its owner, Susan Shephard, and Charles Darwin University researcher, Professor Stephen Garnett. They discovered that the spread of woody plants increased the probability of predation, and reduced nest success and survival of nesting adults. “The ...

A research team led by Dr. Xiaoqin Liu at the Peking University Institute of Advanced Agricultural Sciences has discovered and characterized a native peanut Ubiquitin4 promoter (AhUBQ4) with strong and consistent transcriptional activity. Recognizing the limitations of foreign promoters like CaMV 35S in peanut transformation—such as gene silencing and expression variability—the team sought a native solution to boost genetic engineering efficiency in this vital crop.   Using transcriptome data ...

In a key advance for regenerative medicine and gut health, scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have uncovered a precise and unexpected communication system in the gut. Support cells known as telocytes use fine extensions—like neurons in the brain—to deliver signals directly to intestinal stem cells. Their study, published in the journal Developmental Cell, challenges long-standing assumptions about how the gut maintains and repairs itself, possibly leading to better treatments for conditions like IBD ...

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) plays a central role in maintaining energy balance in cells, especially under energy stress. While upstream activation by the kinase LKB1 is well recognized, the precise mechanism by which LKB1 is mobilized under energy-deficient conditions has remained elusive. A recent study published in Life Metabolism reports that ROS, molecules often associated with oxidative stress, serve as critical signaling intermediates in this process. Under conditions such as glucose deprivation or metformin treatment, intracellular ROS levels rise, promoting the S-glutathionylation of PKCζ at cysteine 48. This post-translational modification facilitates the ...

Computer scientists at the University of Rochester have developed an AI-powered, speech-based screening tool that can help people assess whether they are showing signs of Parkinson’s disease, the fastest growing neurological disability in the world. A study published in the journal npj Parkinson’s Disease introduces a web-based screening test that asks users to recite two pangrams—short sentences using all 26 letters of the alphabet. Within seconds, the AI analyzes the voice recordings for subtle patterns linked to Parkinson’s, with nearly 86 percent accuracy. Parkinson’s ...

Researchers led by UC Davis Health scientist Sanchita Bhatnagar have developed a promising gene therapy that could treat Rett syndrome. The therapy works on reactivating healthy but silent genes responsible for this rare disorder and possibly other X-linked conditions, such as fragile X syndrome. Their findings were published in Nature Communications. About Rett syndrome Rett syndrome is a genetic condition that affects mostly girls. It is caused by a defective MECP2 gene located on the X chromosome. This ...

Infants, toddlers and preschoolers exhibit symptoms of long COVID, but the symptoms can be different and more difficult to identify in these children, according to Rutgers Health research.    The new study is part of the National Institutes of Health–funded Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) initiative and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics.  Lawrence Kleinman, a professor and vice chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and a professor of global public health at Rutgers School of Public Health, is the lead investigator for the Collaborative Long-term study of Outcomes ...

University of Utah researchers have developed a material that addresses an urgent environmental challenges: the efficient removal and real-time detection of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a toxic and persistent member of the PFAS “forever chemicals” family, from contaminated water. In an industry-funded study published in the Journal of Materials Chemistry C, Ling Zang, professor in the John and Marcia Price College of Engineering’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and his research team introduced a dual-functional metal-organic framework (MOF) known as UiO-66-N(CH₃)₃⁺, a zirconium-based material known ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A groundbreaking study led by Oregon State University scientists shows that multiple Portland neighborhoods have levels of noise that are likely unhealthy. The research, the first of its kind in the United States, provides a framework for studying noise pollution in other cities in the U.S., which lags behind European nations in examining the effects of noise on human health. The project directed by assistant professor Matthew Bozigar and graduate student Carson Mowrer of the OSU College of Health indicates that the loudest parts of Portland are also the most socially vulnerable, with lower incomes and higher proportions ...

TUCSON, Ariz. — Signs reading “slippery when wet” frequently warn about the dangers of slipping and falling. But floors made slick by dry spills are also a significant hazard – one that’s overlooked and understudied, according to University of Arizona Health Sciences researchers who developed a new way to assess floor slipperiness caused by dry contaminants.  “Most people think materials like oil or soapy water are the main cause of slips,” said study lead Jonathan Lee-Confer, PhD, an assistant professor of physical therapy in the School of Health Professions at the U of A Mel and Enid Zuckerman College ...

Many self-tests available on the UK high street are unfit-for-purpose and need much greater regulation to ensure they are safe and reliable, conclude two studies published by The BMJ today. The findings show that most self-tests lack essential information about who should use them, how to interpret the results, and what actions to take next. Some also contradict evidence-based guidance, “creating risks for misinterpretation and inappropriate healthcare decisions,” say the authors. Self-testing is increasingly popular, with a wide range of tests available to UK consumers without needing healthcare professional involvement. The ...

A comprehensive new study analysing data from over 160,000 adults finds that walking approximately 7,000 steps per day is associated with reductions in the risk of several serious health outcomes, including all-cause mortality (47% reduction), cardiovascular disease (25% reduction), cancer (6% reduction), type 2 diabetes (14% reduction), dementia (38% reduction), depression (22% reduction), and falls (28% reduction).* Unlike earlier studies that mainly focused on heart health or overall death rates, this research, published ...

A new study has found that the bone fracture protection women get from menopausal hormone therapy (MHT, also known as HRT) disappears within a year of stopping treatment. In the new study, published in Lancet Healthy Longevity, experts from the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham, also found that in most cases, stopping treatment is then followed by some years of elevated fracture risk compared to women who have never used MHT. Fracture risks then falls to be similar to, and then lower than women who have never used ...

Walking 7000 steps a day can lower the risk of an early death by up to 47 percent Health benefits increased with every 1000-step increment up until 7000 steps, at which point the benefits began to taper off   A major new study led by the University of Sydney suggests that walking 7000 steps a day offers similar health benefits across several outcomes as walking 10,000.   Led by Professor Melody Ding from the School of Public Health, the study was published in The Lancet Public Healthand analysed data from 57 studies from ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Speeding up chemical reactions is key to improving industrial processes or mitigating unwanted or harmful waste. Realizing these improvements requires that chemists design around documented reaction pathways. Now, a team of Penn State researchers has found that a fundamental reaction called oxidative addition can follow a different path to achieve the same ends, raising the question of whether this new order of events has been occurring all along and potentially opening up new space for chemical design.  A paper describing the research appeared in the Journal of the American Chemical ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Golf course managers have much more insight into which fungicides to use to suppress turfgrass diseases, such as the common and costly dollar spot disease, without damaging the grass on their fairways, thanks to a new study by researchers at Penn State. The team evaluated variation in turfgrass injury caused by nine commercially available demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicides — a class of fungicide widely used in turfgrass management — commonly used ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A total collapse of the roughly 80-mile-wide Thwaites Glacier, the widest in the world, would trigger changes that could lead to 11 feet of sea-level rise, according to scientists who study Antarctica. To better predict fractures that could lead to such a collapse — and to better understand the processes driving changes in Antarctic ice shelves — a team led by researchers at Penn State developed a new method to evaluate cracks that destabilize ice shelves and accelerate those losses. They reported ...