Biological Science

The Old Irish Goat isn’t just part of folklore — it’s genetically linked to goats that lived in Ireland 3,000 years ago. Scientists analyzed ancient remains and discovered that today’s rare breed shares its strongest DNA ties with Late Bronze Age animals. The finding suggests an unbroken Irish lineage stretching back millennia. It also adds urgency to protecting this critically endangered survivor of Ireland’s agricultural past.

Biomolecular condensates were long believed to be simple liquid blobs inside cells. Researchers have now uncovered that some are actually supported by fine protein filaments forming an internal scaffold. When this structure is disrupted, cells fail to grow and divide properly. The discovery suggests scientists may one day design drugs that target condensate architecture to fight cancer and neurodegenerative disease.

A team in China has demonstrated the simultaneous teleportation of multiple sideband qumodes in a continuous-variable system, overcoming a longstanding technical barrier. Quantum teleportation is one of the key tricks behind entanglement-based quantum communication. It does not move matter from place to place. Instead, it transfers the information that defines a quantum state from one [...]

A massive cell-by-cell map of aging reveals it’s a synchronized, body-wide process—and scientists may finally know where to intervene. As people grow older, their risk of developing conditions such as cancer, heart disease, and dementia rises sharply. For decades, medical research has tackled these illnesses individually. Increasingly, however, scientists are asking a bigger question. Instead [...]

An international team proposes replacing Hockett’s feature checklist with a model of language as a dynamic, multimodal, and socially evolving system. For more than sixty years, Charles Hockett’s ‘design features’ have been widely used as a framework for defining what distinguishes human language from other forms of communication. These features were long treated as a [...]

A rare deep-field Antarctic flight campaign has uncovered unexpected aerosol concentrations over the continent’s interior. Antarctica is a key driver of Earth’s climate because it reflects a large share of the Sun’s energy back into space. Its vast ice sheets and persistent cloud cover are central to that cooling effect. Yet scientists still do not [...]

New analysis of Neanderthal bones from Belgium indicates targeted cannibalism of outsiders that may signal territorial conflict before their regional disappearance. A detailed examination of Neanderthal bones recovered from the Troisième caverne of Goyet (Belgium) has uncovered evidence of selective cannibalism dating to between 41,000 and 45,000 years ago. The remains indicate that adult women [...]

A single genetic “switch” may be the secret to how the body’s cleanup crew grows up and keeps our organs running smoothly. Scientists at the University of Liège have identified a crucial genetic regulator that allows macrophages to fully mature and help maintain healthy organs. This regulator, known as MafB, acts as a “molecular switch” [...]

Hidden within cancer DNA data, researchers uncovered viruses and bacteria that may influence both diagnosis and survival. Cancer genome sequencing is designed to read human DNA, but it also captures tiny traces of DNA from microbes that ride along in the sample. In a new study from the University of East Anglia (UEA), those microbial [...]

A growing body of research suggests the brain plays a central role in diabetic ketoacidosis, opening the possibility of treating type 1 diabetes in an entirely new way. More than 10 years ago, scientists made an unexpected discovery about a life-threatening complication of type 1 diabetes. They found that diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) could be reversed [...]

Natural speech timing patterns may offer a practical and sensitive way to detect early cognitive decline. How we talk in casual conversation may offer a window into how well our brains are functioning. In a new study from Baycrest, the University of Toronto, and York University, researchers found that small details in speech timing, including [...]

Scientists testing a popular climate theory in Antarctica found that melting glaciers deliver far less iron to the ocean than previously believed. Most of the iron feeding carbon-hungry algae actually comes from deep water and sediments, not from the ice itself. A Climate Hope in the Southern Ocean For years, researchers studying the Southern Ocean [...]

A new breakthrough in orbitronics reveals that atomic vibrations can control the orbital motion of electrons. As demand for faster and more powerful computing continues to grow, scientists are exploring quantum physics for new ways to process and store enormous amounts of data. One emerging approach, called “orbitronics,” focuses on the motion of electrons around [...]

A new electrolyzer turns waste-derived syngas into ethylene with significantly lower energy input. Ethylene sits at the center of modern manufacturing. It is used to make plastics and many other everyday materials, but producing it often comes with a major climate penalty. For every ton of ethylene created, one ton of carbon dioxide is produced. [...]

A newly discovered jellyfish galaxy, seen as it existed 8.5 billion years ago, is challenging assumptions about conditions in the early universe. Astrophysicists at the University of Waterloo have identified a newly discovered jellyfish galaxy that is now the most distant example of its kind ever observed. Jellyfish galaxies get their name from the long, [...]

Horses have a vocal trick no one fully understood until now. Scientists have discovered that when a horse whinnies, it produces two completely different sounds at the same time. One is a deep tone created by vibrating the vocal folds, similar to how humans sing. The other is a high-pitched whistle generated inside the larynx, something never before confirmed in a large mammal. This rare ability, known as biphonation, likely helps horses send multiple emotional signals in a single call.

A long-term study using DNA from whale scat has revealed surprising complexity in the diets of southern Alaska’s fish-eating killer whales. Fish-eating killer whales in southern Alaska consume a wide range of prey that changes with the seasons, according to a new study published in Ecosphere. Their food choices include several salmon species as well [...]

Research has uncovered a surprising biological twist: molecules that help support healthy aging can also contribute to cancer growth. Polyamines are small molecules found naturally in every living cell, where they play a central role in essential biological functions such as cell growth and specialization. In recent years, these compounds, particularly spermidine, have attracted widespread [...]

Human DNA constantly refolds in 3D space, and these looping dynamics regulate gene expression and cell identity. Active genes show faster structural turnover, linking genome organization to diseases like cancer and developmental syndromes. How does the body pack and manage the enormous amount of genetic information required to build a person? And what are the [...]

A surprising new function of essential hearing proteins may explain why some genetic mutations and common antibiotics lead to permanent deafness. Scientists have uncovered an unexpected second role for proteins that are critical for hearing. In addition to enabling the ear to detect sound, these proteins also help control how fatty molecules move within the [...]

Researchers tested new CAR designs in NK-92 cells and found the modified cells killed tumor cells more effectively, showing stronger anti-cancer activity. Researchers at the Ribeirão Preto Blood Center and the Center for Cell-Based Therapy (CTC) are exploring a key question in cancer immunotherapy: how to “wire” engineered natural killer (NK) cells so they respond [...]

Researchers have identified a natural compound from pomegranate leaves and branches that can directly dismantle the protein aggregates responsible for transthyretin amyloidosis. Pomegranate trees are best known for their fruit, but researchers at Kumamoto University are pointing to a different part of the plant as a potential source of new medicine. The team reports that [...]

Antibiotic resistance is rising fast, killing tens of thousands each year in the U.S. alone—and scientists are racing to find new ways to stop deadly bacteria. Now, researchers have uncovered how tiny viruses that infect bacteria, called phages, use specialized “protein antibiotics” to shut down a crucial bacterial machine known as MurJ. This protein acts [...]

A blue-light-powered iron catalyst just replaced rare metals — and unlocked a milestone in precision drug synthesis. Photocatalysts are materials that trigger chemical reactions when exposed to light. In modern organic chemistry, metal-based photocatalysts are especially valuable because they are stable and can be fine-tuned by adjusting the ligands attached to the central metal atom. [...]

Isotope evidence from fossil otoliths shows Caribbean reef food chains have shrunk by up to 70%, signaling a major loss of trophic complexity. Coral reefs across the Caribbean are facing severe decline. Researchers have recorded widespread bleaching, steep losses in coral cover, and significant reductions in fish and shark populations over the past several decades. [...]

For decades, scientists have warned that climate change could trigger simultaneous droughts across multiple continents. But a century-long analysis of global climate data suggests a more complex picture. Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), working with international collaborators, report that patterns in ocean temperatures play a key role in preventing droughts from [...]

Scientists in Brazil have uncovered evidence of a previously unknown impact event recorded in hundreds of glassy fragments scattered across the country. Scientists have confirmed the first known field of tektites ever discovered in Brazil. Tektites are pieces of natural glass created when an extraterrestrial object strikes Earth with tremendous force, melting surface rock and [...]

Women’s heart health is heading toward a crisis, with nearly 60% projected to have cardiovascular disease by 2050. Heart disease in women is projected to climb dramatically over the next 25 years. By 2050, nearly 60% of women in the United States could have high blood pressure, a major driver of cardiovascular disease. That is [...]

Duke researchers study an approach that may help millions manage diabetic neuropathy and chemotherapy-induced nerve pain. For millions of people with chronic nerve pain, even gentle contact can trigger intense discomfort. Researchers have suspected that injured nerve cells struggle because their internal energy producers, known as mitochondria, stop working efficiently. A study published in Nature [...]

Insomnia may be driven by delayed circadian rhythms that prevent the brain from powering down at night. Australian scientists have uncovered strong evidence that chronic insomnia may stem from disruptions in the brain’s internal 24-hour cycle of mental activity. The findings help explain why some people find it so difficult to “switch off” at night, [...]