Phys.org news
Phys.org / Next-generation pesticide disrupts bumblebee reproduction
Bumblebees are only an inch long, but they help power the global food system. Roughly one-third of the food we grow depends on pollinators like bees—and those bees are regularly decimated by pesticides.
Phys.org / Four-decade mystery solved as PKCβ structure reveals new drug target
After nearly four decades of research, Mayo Clinic scientists have revealed the molecular structure of protein kinase C beta (PKCβ), a key protein linked to cancer and neurological diseases. The findings, published in Nature ...
Phys.org / Self-driving chemistry lab discovers catalysts that can switch products on demand
Researchers have developed a self-driving chemistry lab that can autonomously search through hundreds of catalyst recipes and reaction conditions to identify faster, more selective and more programmable ways to make important ...
Phys.org / New energy-boosting quantum mechanism discovered in photosynthetic bacteria
Researchers have discovered how certain photosynthetic bacteria use a sophisticated quantum mechanism to increase their efficiency when capturing sunlight. The study, published today in the journal Nature Chemistry and led ...
Phys.org / Discovery of how cells maintain their DNA could shield key healthy cells from chemotherapy side effects
A new study conducted by scientists at the University of Sheffield in collaboration with researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center in the U.S. has found a protein that could help guide which cells chemotherapies target. ...
Phys.org / Researchers find microplastics in hedgehogs—then trace them back to pet food
When colleagues and I found microplastics in hedgehog droppings, we wanted to know where they were coming from. One answer was surprisingly close to home: pet food.
Phys.org / Controlling ice crystal growth using polymer nanoparticles
Ice formation can damage biological samples, tissues and materials during freezing and thawing. In nature, specialized molecules known as ice-binding proteins prevent ice crystals from growing too large, helping organisms ...
Dialog / Liquid ripples rewrite 130-year-old biological classic: New reflections on the lock-and-key model
This April, when the spring breeze carried the formal acceptance notice of our paper by the Journal of the American Chemical Society to my desk, my thoughts instantly drifted back to the late Phil Geissler. A legendary physical ...
Phys.org / Plant protein pair reveals new wood-formation mechanism
Researchers from the Biosciences Department at Durham University have discovered a previously unknown mechanism that helps plants control the formation of wood, a finding that could open new directions for research into plant ...
Phys.org / New AI tool identifies wild animals by their unique patterns in real time
Patterns reveal the individual: A novel AI algorithm equips researchers with a powerful new tool to accurately identify individual jaguars, zebras and giraffes in real time based on their unique coat patterns. Biologists ...
Phys.org / Amazon fish reveal a synchronized survival tactic that could transfer to drone swarms
Some fish swim in synchrony. Others, it turns out, breathe in synchrony. This is true for arapaimas, an obligate air-breathing species living in the Amazon. A new study in Communications Biology, led by the Leibniz Institute ...
Phys.org / Although woodland salamanders have looked the same for millions of years, their physiology has evolved rapidly
For her doctoral dissertation, Yale's Nathalie Alomar decided to study a small amphibian that appeared to have eluded the forces of evolution. She found that there is more to its evolution than meets the eye.