A surprising discovery inside desert mosses could reshape scientists’ understanding of plant evolution. In some of the driest places on Earth, the ground itself can be alive. What looks like a thin, dark crust on desert soil may actually be a miniature ecosystem, packed with mosses, fungi, bacteria, algae, and tiny animals. These biological soil [...]

A century after one of developmental biology’s most influential experiments, researchers have revisited the concept of the embryonic “organizer” in one of the oldest animal lineages alive today. A tiny cluster of cells in an embryo can act like a construction manager for an entire body. It helps determine which end becomes the head, which [...]

Researchers have uncovered a critical mechanism behind battery failure in solid-state batteries, offering new insights that could help unlock safer, longer-lasting energy storage technologies. Every time a smartphone is charged or an electric vehicle is plugged in, billions of lithium ions move through a battery to store energy. Future devices could perform far better with [...]

Scientists have uncovered a shared target used by multiple diarrhea-causing bacteria to invade the gut. Despite decades of research, scientists still do not have vaccines against two of the world’s most common causes of severe bacterial diarrhea: enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) and Shigella. Together, these pathogens infect hundreds of millions of people each year and [...]

Vitamin B12 is needed in only trace amounts, yet its absence can have far-reaching effects. Two micrograms is an almost unimaginably small amount. It weighs less than a tiny fragment of a grain of table salt. Yet adults need only around this amount of vitamin B12 each day, depending on the guideline used, to support [...]

A new study suggests that altering the gut microbiome with probiotics may provide additional benefits for older adults being treated for depression. Could a daily probiotic help ease depression in older adults? A new clinical trial suggests the answer may be yes, adding to growing evidence that the gut and brain are more connected than [...]

A genetic study of 2,000-year-old grape seeds is shedding new light on ancient winemaking. For centuries, the vineyards of Tuscany have been associated with some of the world’s most celebrated red wines. But a cache of grape seeds buried in ancient wells is revealing a very different story about what people were growing and drinking [...]

Scientists discovered that the visual brain may secretly “feel” what it sees, turning sight into physical experience and helping make empathy possible. Working with researchers from institutions around the world, Nicholas Hedger (University of Reading) and Tomas Knapen (Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience & Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) investigated one of neuroscience’s biggest questions: how humans experience [...]

A new study suggests plague was already a deadly threat 5,500 years ago, striking small hunter-gatherer communities long before cities and agriculture emerged. For centuries, plague has been remembered as the disease that devastated medieval Europe, killing millions and reshaping societies. But new research suggests its deadly history stretches much further back than previously thought. [...]

Scientists identified an autoimmune mechanism linked to a major IBD risk gene, opening the door to targeted diagnosis and personalized therapies for thousands of patients. For decades, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been treated as a single disorder, even though patients often experience dramatically different symptoms, disease courses, and responses to therapy. A new study [...]

Swimming matched running for fitness gains but delivered greater heart growth and more favorable molecular changes, making it potentially more beneficial for cardiovascular health. For decades, swimming and running have been considered two of the best forms of aerobic exercise for cardiovascular health. But new research suggests they may not strengthen the heart in exactly [...]

Lower vitamin C levels were linked to reduced brain volume and weaker neural connectivity in older adults, suggesting a potential connection between nutrition and brain health. Could a common vitamin help preserve the brain as we age? A new study of more than 2,000 older adults in Japan found that people with lower levels of [...]

Harvard researchers found that adding a little randomness to robot movements can prevent gridlock and dramatically boost efficiency in crowded swarms. Imagine a swarm of robots sent into a tight space to handle an urgent job, such as cleaning up an oil spill or assembling complex equipment. At first, adding more robots speeds things up. [...]

A single transistor that behaves like a brain cell in the deep freeze could help unlock the next generation of quantum computers and space exploration systems. Researchers at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) have developed a new type of brain-inspired electronic hardware that can operate at temperatures close to absolute zero. The breakthrough could [...]

Scientists found that some inherited traits can bypass the traditional rules of genetics, revealing a surprising new layer of inheritance beyond DNA. For more than a century, Gregor Mendel’s laws of inheritance have served as the foundation of genetics. But new research suggests that inheritance can be more complicated than the DNA sequences passed from [...]

DNA carries the instructions for life, but additional molecular systems help determine how those instructions are used. New research in a sea anemone reveals an unexpected role for one of these systems. DNA is often described as the blueprint of life, but a blueprint is only useful if someone knows how to read it. Across [...]

A new long-read DNA test improves rare disease diagnosis, replaces multiple existing tests, and could become the preferred global standard for genetic diagnostics. A new DNA test is providing a far more detailed view of the genome than current standard diagnostic methods, helping doctors identify rare genetic disorders more often. The test can replace up [...]

A Yale-led study uncovered unexpected communication between retinal visual pathways that were thought to operate separately. Researchers at Yale School of Medicine (YSM) have discovered unexpected insights into how the eye handles visual information. When we view a scene, the visual system quickly separates different features, including color, contrast, and motion, and processes them independently. [...]

A new cosmic bounce model suggests that remnants from a pre-Big Bang Universe may still exist today. What if some of the Universe’s oldest objects are actually older than the Big Bang itself? A new study from the University of Portsmouth suggests that ancient black holes may have survived from a time before the Universe [...]

A quantum “mini universe” made from ultracold atoms revealed that time can emerge from entropy changes inside a system, offering experimental insight into one of physics’ deepest mysteries. A scientist at the University of Birmingham has created a “mini universe” that could help answer one of science’s most fundamental questions: What is time? In a [...]