Phys.org news

Phys.org / Epigenetic switch found to halt fat cell formation in adipose tissue

Metabolic diseases such as obesity, fatty liver, and insulin resistance are rapidly increasing worldwide, but fundamental methods to regulate the process of fat formation remain limited. In particular, once adipocytes (fat ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Molecular arrangement strategy targets multiple Alzheimer's disease factors at once

Conventional treatments of Alzheimer's disease, one of the most common forms of dementia, have been largely focused on targeting individual pathological features. However, Alzheimer's disease is a multifactorial disorder ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Chemistry
Phys.org / New DNA 'page numbers' method enables accurate assembly of long genetic sequences

The power of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing has made it possible to design genetic sequences encoding for diverse biological applications, such as proteins that form the building blocks of materials stronger ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Cryo-EM structures reveal conformational dynamics behind AP-4 membrane trafficking

Adaptor protein (AP) complexes play central roles in intracellular vesicular trafficking by coupling cargo selection to vesicle formation. AP-4, an important member of the AP family, plays a key role in this process. AP-4 ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / AI tool Helixer identifies genes in newly sequenced organisms

Researchers at Forschungszentrum Jülich and Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf have developed a tool that could significantly transform genome research: Helixer identifies genes directly from DNA sequences—without laboratory ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Perceiving AI as a 'job killer' negatively influences attitudes towards democracy, study suggests

Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing our society and economy. A new study shows that the majority of people believe that artificial intelligence is displacing more human labor than it is creating new opportunities. ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Stealth and manipulation: Strategies of bacterial plasmids investigated

The problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has many health experts worried. As disease-causing bacteria adapt to some of our ways to reduce them, especially with antibiotics, it presents an arms race which we appear to ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Environmental conditions can influence evolution of gut microbiomes in African herbivores

A study of wild African herbivores offers new insight into how environmental conditions—not just diet and anatomy—can influence the evolution of gut microbes that play a critical role in animal health and well-being.

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / New data show reduced overall PFAS exposures in subarctic ocean

Beginning in the early 2000s, some of the most common and well-studied PFAS were phased out through a combination of industry shifts and international regulations. A new study from Harvard has found that since that phaseout, ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / Visualizing how cancer drugs reshape proteins linked to lung cancer

Researchers at Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) and the Cancer Research Institute at Kanazawa University have uncovered how targeted lung cancer drugs alter the shape and behavior of a key cancer-driving protein—revealing ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Tapping the engines of cellular electrochemistry and forces of evolution

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have a unique resource in the form of the Center for Biomolecular Condensates at the McKelvey School of Engineering, which draws scientists from around the world to study ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Lit bots beware: AI creative writing faces reader skepticism, study shows

When it comes to creative writing, score one for the humans over the machines. For now, anyway. New research finds that people evaluate creative writing less favorably when they learn it was generated in whole or part by ...

Jan 26, 2026 in Other Sciences