Phys.org news

Phys.org / Milkweed evolves 'mind-blowing' tactic to fight monarchs

Milkweed has found a new strategy in its epic evolutionary battle with monarch butterflies: upgrading its toxins to outmaneuver the monarch's resistance. In a new study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / An AI-guided gene-editing tool for more precise and safer DNA correction

Researchers at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) have developed a revolutionary new method to improve compact gene-editing tools known as base editors, which enable smaller, ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Invasive grasses may be turning British Columbia's burn scars into the next wildfire

After a wildfire, the flames may fade, but the danger does not. A new study by UBC researchers reveals that burned landscapes remain vulnerable for years, with large areas still bare and at risk of invasion by fast-growing, ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Durum wheat lines combine freezing tolerance with high pasta quality

Researchers from Skoltech, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico, the Research Center for Cereal and Industrial Crops in Italy, and other international organizations have developed new durum wheat ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Light-activated medicines may cut side effects: How a switchable beta blocker works

Rendering a drug effective or ineffective in a flash at the appropriate location—this is the focus of research in photopharmacology. The goal is to develop drugs that can be switched on and off with light of a specific ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Fluorescent dye that works in superacidic conditions expands possibilities for imaging in extreme environments

Since the 1960s, boron–dipyrromethene dyes, commonly called BODIPY dyes, have been widely used for their strong fluorescence, especially in bioimaging, molecular and ion sensing, and as photosensitizers. Researchers especially ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / How a tryptophan-rich allosteric communication network helps activate a major drug target receptor

A multinational research team led by researchers at Institute of Science Tokyo, RIKEN, and the University of Toronto has revealed how a tryptophan-rich allosteric communication network regulates receptor dynamics and activation ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Old-growth forests store a lot more carbon than managed forests, study finds

Swedish old-growth forests store 83% more carbon than managed forests, according to a new study from Lund University. The difference is substantially larger than previous estimates and is mainly due to large carbon stocks ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Changing leafcutter ants' food reshapes their microbial gardens, scientists find

A colony of leafcutter ants is home to more than just one species. Each year, studies reveal new layers of complexity in these ecosystems, where various fungi and bacteria thrive alongside the ants, resulting in countless ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / 'Mini earthquakes' turn tiny chips into radio signal powerhouses

From GPS satellites to mobile networks, modern technology relies on ultra-precise radio signals. Engineers have long tried to generate them on chips using interactions between light and sound, but the effect was too weak. ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Humans and animals have the same preference in mating calls, citizen science experiment finds

The bright colors of butterfly wings, the sweet aromas of flowers, and the euphonious melodies of songbirds all evolved as signals that help individuals propagate, yet humans also find these very same signals pleasing to ...

Mar 19, 2026
Phys.org / Study uncovers mineral 'sink' that reduced phosphorus in early oceans, potentially delaying Earth's oxygen rise

Scientists have long sought to explain a key mismatch in Earth's early history: oxygen-producing photosynthesis evolved hundreds of millions of years before atmospheric oxygen began to rise during the Great Oxidation Event. ...

Mar 19, 2026