Phys.org news
Phys.org / Enzymes that assemble into droplets can speed up cellular reactions, biologists find
Within the past decade, biologists have discovered that one strategy cells use to keep their contents organized is a phenomenon known as phase separation. Similar to the way oil forms droplets that float in a vinegar solution, ...
Phys.org / Space station dust maps slash climate uncertainty over iron-rich particles
New research from a team of scientists led by Cornell is transforming how researchers understand one of the atmosphere's most abundant and least understood constituents: mineral dust.
Phys.org / Why dirty farm plastic matters: Cleaner mulch film could cut landfill waste and fossil fuel use
Nearly a billion pounds of plastic film mulch is used in American agriculture each year, and most of it is dumped into landfills. New research from Washington State University shows that recycling could be a feasible alternative, ...
Phys.org / How drought rewires roots, cutting iron uptake across major food crops
New research by scientists at the University of Calgary has found that plants, ranging from canola to rice to tomatoes, actively shut down their own ability to take up iron when they experience drought. It's a finding that ...
Phys.org / Better math discriminates exotic from classical materials
The planar Hall effect is a tabletop diagnostic tool for special quantum properties useful in basic research and technological applications. Or so it was thought, because careful calculation by Kobe University researchers ...
Phys.org / Box jellyfish reveal secret life cycle with implications for coastal safety
Box jellyfish are often feared as dangerous animals, with some species capable of causing severe or even fatal stings. However, box jellyfish nematocysts—organelles responsible for this toxic sting—are theorized to also play ...
Phys.org / Fifty-year protein mystery breaks open as acid-driven water loss comes into view
Proteins systematically lose their protective hydration shell when their environment becomes more acidic. Until recently, this was just a theory. State-of-the-art imaging techniques have helped researchers at Martin Luther ...
Phys.org / Famous wildlife coexistence scheme is slipping due to frozen funding
A celebrated scheme for human-wildlife coexistence is now at risk of failing due to lack of long-term government investment, new research has found.
Phys.org / Precise polymer 'knots' uncover hidden slack for designing ultra-tough and responsive smart materials
From household plastic packaging to the flexible frameworks that support wearable electronics, polymer materials form the invisible backbone of modern life. At a microscopic level, polymers consist of long, ribbon-like molecular ...
Phys.org / New 'SMArT' platform makes gene editing in hematopoietic stem cells more efficient and safer
A team of researchers led by Luigi Naldini at the San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-Tiget) has developed a new strategy to significantly improve the precision and safety of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in human ...
Phys.org / Synthesized peptides can slip into cells to block hard-to-target protein interactions
Many diseases are driven by proteins interacting with each other inside cells. But blocking these interactions with drugs is difficult because typical "small-molecule" drugs often prove to be too small to grip the broad, ...
Phys.org / One of our planets may be missing, and it could explain why the solar system looks the way it does
Our solar system has two ice giants, Uranus and Neptune, but there may have been a third. According to a new study published in the journal Icarus, this extra world might have triggered a violent planetary shuffling billions ...
