A newly identified protein may be one of the biggest obstacles holding CAR T-cell therapy back. Researchers found that NFIL3 causes these engineered immune cells to become exhausted and lose their cancer-fighting power over time. When NFIL3 was disabled, the cells remained stronger for longer and controlled tumors more effectively in animal models.

A major study suggests that some of the groundwork for brain development may be shaped before birth through a surprising partnership between a baby’s genes and gut microbes. Researchers found that epigenetic changes present at birth can influence how the gut microbiome develops during the first year of life, and certain combinations were linked to early signs of autism and ADHD by age three.

A massive global analysis found that nitrogen pollution can either speed up or dramatically slow the natural "breathing" of forest soils, depending on the ecosystem's condition. The results reveal hidden tipping points that could affect how forests store carbon and cope with climate change.

Scientists are venturing into the Grand Canyon’s hidden cave networks to solve a mystery: how snowmelt travels underground to supply the park’s vital springs. Their discoveries could help protect the canyon’s water from drought, contamination, and other growing threats.

Deer keds rely on flight and vision to find a host, but everything changes once they land. After shedding their wings forever, these parasites reduce the activity of key vision-related genes by about half. Scientists believe they are effectively trading sharp eyesight for extra energy that can be used for feeding and reproduction.

Astronomers have finally cracked the mystery behind a strange class of repeating cosmic signals that has baffled scientists for years. Using Australia’s ASKAP radio telescope, researchers traced the bursts to a rare stellar duo in which a dense white dwarf is relentlessly siphoning material from a nearby red dwarf companion. As the stolen matter spirals inward, the system unleashes powerful radio waves and X-rays every 1.4 hours.

Researchers found that social behavior begins in the brain before it becomes visible as movement. In zebrafish, a coordinated pattern of activity spread across the brain several seconds before the animals approached another fish. A higher brain region called the pallium played a key role, and fish with stronger neural signals were generally more social.

A surprising new study suggests that when it comes to pancreatic cancer, the kind of fat you eat may matter more than how much. Researchers found that oleic acid—the main fat in olive oil and several other common foods—sped up tumor growth in mice predisposed to pancreatic cancer, while omega-3-rich fats from fish oil dramatically slowed disease development.

A breakthrough hydrogen-production method could make clean fuel far cheaper and easier to generate. Researchers at the University of Birmingham developed a perovskite-based catalyst that splits water into hydrogen at much lower temperatures than existing technologies, potentially allowing factories, steel plants, cement works, and renewable energy sites to turn waste heat into valuable hydrogen.

Scientists have created a tiny chip that can generate, steer, and read light-based information all in one device, marking a major leap toward ultra-fast, energy-efficient computing. The breakthrough uses atomically thin materials and nanoscale structures to control a unique quantum property of light called the “valley” degree of freedom, allowing information to be encoded in new ways.