Phys.org news

Phys.org / Artificial metabolism turns waste CO₂ into useful chemicals

In a breakthrough that defies nature, Northwestern University and Stanford University synthetic biologists have created a new artificial metabolism that transforms waste carbon dioxide (CO2) into useful biological building ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Ancient sea anemone sheds light on animal cell type evolution

One of the biggest quests in biology is understanding how every cell in an animal's body carries an identical genome yet still gives rise to a kaleidoscope of different cell types and tissues. A neuron doesn't look nor behave ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / PFAS concentrations can double with every step up the food chain

A new UNSW-led global meta-analysis shows that PFAS concentrations can double at every step up the food chain, leaving top predators—and humans—potentially exposed to higher chemical loads.

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Smile and the world will trust you: How mimicry shapes first impressions

How does mimicry affect the way we judge other people? Whose behavior do we imitate, and in what situations? It turns out that we are more likely to mimic people who express joy, and we perceive those people as more attractive ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Leaves' pores explain longstanding mystery of uneven tree growth in a carbon-enriched world

The basics of photosynthesis are something that every student learns in school: carbon dioxide, water and light in; oxygen and sugar for growth out. In a world where atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are rising, it is plausible ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / East Antarctic Ice Sheet's history tells a relevant story for today and beyond

Though ice sheet melting is widely talked of and debated, there is limited knowledge about what happens after the period of melting. Researchers dig into this "after" period and see how it relates to previous patterns.

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Deepest gas hydrate cold seep ever discovered in the Arctic at 3,640 m depth

A multinational scientific team led by UiT has uncovered the deepest known gas hydrate cold seep on the planet. The discovery was made during the Ocean Census Arctic Deep–EXTREME24 expedition and reveals a previously unknown ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / NAC protein complex slows early synthesis to optimize cellular protein production

Proteins are among the most important molecular building blocks of life. They are chains of amino acids assembled in our cells by ribosomes, the molecular "protein factories" of our bodies. The genetic code of our genome ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / More eyes on the skies can help planes reduce climate-warming contrails

Aviation's climate impact is partly due to contrails—condensation that a plane streaks across the sky when it flies through icy and humid layers of the atmosphere. Contrails trap heat that radiates from the planet's surface, ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / Fishing fleet tracking can reveal shifts in marine ecosystems

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have already leveraged the vast troves of geolocation data from vessel-tracking systems to pinpoint where whales and other large marine species are endangered by ship ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / The way our cells respond to estrogen depends on how DNA is 'supercoiled'

Although it also performs some functions in men, estrogen, the main female sex hormone, is involved in a myriad of processes, which is why the body changes so much during menopause. This is because estrogens regulate hundreds ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Cells reveal 'survival of the fittest' through ribosome competition

Ribosomes—the tiny factories that build proteins in our cells—don't all work with the same efficiency. Researchers from Japan have discovered that ribosomes actually compete with one another, and those that perform poorly ...

Dec 22, 2025 in Biology