Phys.org news

Phys.org / Spider venoms could stop deadly varroa mites killing honey bees

Spider venoms contain ingredients that could lead to a new treatment to protect honeybees from the deadly Varroa destructor mite, according to a study led by the University of the Sunshine Coast. Researchers identified components ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Scourge of satellites lighting up the sky could be mitigated with help of ultra-black coating

Astrophysicists working to tackle the growing impact of satellite constellations have pioneered a new ultra-black coating as one possible way to mitigate the problem.

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / A WRAP for biology's greasiest problem

Embedded in the boundary between the inside and outside of each cell are membrane proteins. They act as first responders by sensing signals, regulating which molecules enter and leave the cell, and enabling cells to quickly ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Hunting behavior drives the evolution of spider eye arrangements, study finds

Vision shapes how many animals find food, avoid danger and navigate their world. In animals with two eyes, eye placement is often linked to lifestyle: predators such as lions tend to have forward-facing eyes that help them ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / MOF thin films reveal hidden dense packing, challenging decades of porous assumptions

Due to their high porosity, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are regarded as promising materials for innovative applications, which is why the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded in 2025 for their discovery. They are used, ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Austin neighborhood tap water tests uncover lead and arsenic in homes

For more than a decade, residents of Austin's Colony, a neighborhood in an unincorporated area of southeast Austin outside the city service area, have voiced concern about their tap water's intermittent discoloration and ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Microtubules in ovarian cell bridges may be key to fertility

Female fertility depends on the successful growth and maturation of eggs (oocytes) within ovarian follicles. Within these follicles, the oocyte is surrounded by granulosa cells that supply nutrients, signaling molecules and ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Light flips bacterial signaling enzyme between two shapes, unlocking how signals travel

Researchers at the University of Bayreuth and Forschungszentrum Jülich have demonstrated that specific light-sensitive enzymes—so-called sensor histidine kinases (SHKs)—transmit their signal through a light-controlled change ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Quiet outings linked to more frequent dangerous wildlife encounters

The more people expand into previously natural areas, the more wildlife and humans step on each other's toes, leading to more interactions that may result in conflict. This includes national parks, where people flock to recuperate ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / New biosensor reveals rare lipid gathers in membrane hotspots during cell stress

Inside every cell are lipid molecules that make up cellular membranes, helping organelles communicate and respond to stress. Researchers have struggled to observe lipids in action because current detection tools lack sufficient ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / Deliberate slow growth could explain bacteria survival strategies

Escherichia coli (E. coli) are mostly harmless bacteria that live in the intestines of animals and humans. They are the most well-studied bacteria and, often, when scientists discover something about E. coli, they extrapolate ...

Jul 2, 2026
Phys.org / How much do friends influence teens' mental health? What a new study can (and can't) tell us

During adolescence, young people become especially sensitive to peer influence—more so than at any other time in life. So how does this affect their mental health?

Jul 2, 2026