When you get better at a skill—recognizing a familiar face in a crowd, spotting a typo at a glance, or anticipating the next move in a game—sensory neurons in your brain become more coordinated, sharing information rather than acting more independently. That’s the conclusion of a new study by researchers at the University of Rochester and its Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience, published in Science, which challenges a long-held assumption in neuroscience that learning improves efficiency ...

After decades of intense research, surprises in the realm of semiconductors – materials used in microchips to control electrical currents – are few and far between. But with a pair of published papers, materials engineers at Stanford University debut a promising approach to using a well-studied semiconductor to improve infrared light-emitting diodes and sensors. They say the approach could lead to smaller, sleeker, and less expensive infrared technologies for environmental, medical, and industrial uses. “We taught an old dog new tricks,” ...

Scientists led by a physicist at the University of Oregon have taken a major step in solving an enduring mystery that we encounter every time we look through a window or stare at a phone screen. For centuries, scientists have studied how and why glass forms from a molten state into a rigid, solid material, while still maintaining an amorphous or disordered internal structure like a liquid. UO physicist Eric Corwin and a team of current and former students have now created on a computer the first “ideal ...

ITHACA, N.Y. – The “hygiene hypothesis” suggests exposure to diverse types of microbes may protect against developing diseases caused by allergens, but a new Cornell University study in mice reveals that adults’ exposure to diverse microbes and allergens may in fact worsen certain allergic conditions. “Our data suggests that it’s important to think about how we go through the world and protect ourselves from exposure to microbes, because depending on your condition, if you’re moving from a clean to a dirty environment, or dirty to clean environment, you might have a different response in terms of developing allergic ...

Forest damage in Europe caused by wildfires, storms and bark beetle outbreaks is projected to increase compared to recent decades under all analysed climate scenarios, according to a new international study, published in the scientific journal Science, with contributions from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).    Even in a scenario with warming limited to roughly 2°C, annually disturbed forest area could rise from about 180,000 to roughly 216,000 hectares per year by the end of the century, compared to the already unprecedented ...

According to a new genomic study of Australia’s koala populations, rapid demographic rebound may be able to restore once-lost genetic variation and drive recombination in ways that re-establish long-term evolutionary potential in previously bottlenecked populations. Population bottlenecks can lead to evolutionary dead ends by eroding genetic diversity and intensifying inbreeding. Over time, these genetic repercussions can reduce fertility, survival, and resilience to environmental change, driving a so-called “extinction ...

Genetically altered astrocytes that express chimeric antigen receptors offer a promising immunotherapy system capable of clearing accumulations of amyloid-β in the brains of mice – a hallmark pathological feature of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study. Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the leading cause of dementia in aging populations worldwide, is marked by a distinctive pathological cascade: amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques accumulate in the brain, triggering harmful changes in tau proteins, which may ultimately drive widespread neurodegeneration. ...

A unique Rubisco subunit from the hornwort plant carries a built-in extension that enables the enzyme to cluster into carbon-concentrating structures like algae, according to a new study – an innovation that successfully triggered similar condensates when introduced into Arabidopsis plants. The findings reveal a novel and evolutionarily independent solution for Rubisco condensation in land plants and open the door for engineering similar systems in agricultural crops to potentially boost nutrient efficiency and yield. Rubisco, or ribulose-1,5-biphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, is the central enzyme responsible for carbon fixation in photosynthesis, but it also reacts with ...

Across Europe, climate-driven forest disturbances, such as wildfires and insect outbreaks, are expected to increase over the next century, according to a new large-scale modeling study, substantially altering forested landscapes continent-wide. Global forests are increasingly shaped by climate-driven disturbances, such as wildfires, storms, and insect outbreaks, resulting in large pulses of tree mortality. These events can have profound impacts on forest landscapes and biodiversity with long-lasting environmental and socio-economic ...

The new generation of Alzheimer’s disease drugs — the first proven to change the course of the disease — typically extend independent living for patients by 10 months. Called monoclonal antibodies, they reduce the accumulations of a harmful protein, amyloid, in the brain and require high-dose, once- or twice-monthly infusions of the medication. Now, to reduce the frequency of treatment and potentially improve the efficacy of an anti-amyloid therapy, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have engineered a new cellular immunotherapy that requires just ...

An international team of researchers has uncovered a remarkable molecular trick used by a unique group of land plants, one that could eventually be engineered into crops like wheat and rice to dramatically boost how efficiently they convert sunlight into food. The study, led by researchers at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI), Cornell University, and the University of Edinburgh, focuses on a fundamental problem in agriculture: the enzyme responsible for capturing carbon dioxide from the air during photosynthesis—called Rubisco—is slow and inefficient. "Rubisco is arguably the most important enzyme on the planet because ...

ITHACA, N.Y. – When a species lives in two distinct types of habitats, individuals with traits better suited to each habitat will thrive and reproduce, naturally selecting descendants with those traits. But what about mobile aquatic species that live across a broad range of temperatures and latitudes? New research from Cornell University and the University of Connecticut finds that chromosomal inversions – which occur when a chunk of chromosome containing tens to thousands of genes breaks off, flips and reattaches – help these species maintain genetic differences ...

A new study published in Science is challenging long-held assumptions about how we measure genetic risk in endangered species. Researchers analysed whole genomes from hundreds of koalas, finding that populations previously considered most at risk are now showing early signs of genetic regeneration. Conservation biologists have long assumed that when a population crashes, known as a bottleneck, genetic diversity declines and extinction risk increases through inbreeding and the build-up of harmful mutations. This study provides world-first evidence that the story is more complex. A large-scale ...

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) researchers have used a form of artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze anatomical changes in the brain and predict Alzheimer’s disease with nearly 93% accuracy. Their research, published in the journal Neuroscience, also revealed that the anatomical changes, involving loss of brain volume, differ by age and sex. “Early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease can be difficult because symptoms can be mistaken for normal aging,” says Benjamin Nephew, assistant research professor in the Department ...

Three new studies from Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) highlight the use and advantages of osseointegration (OI) for individuals with an amputation, in some instances challenging prevailing beliefs about which patients would benefit. Osseointegration is a surgical procedure that enables a prosthetic limb to be attached directly to the bone of someone who has had an amputation, eliminating the need for a traditional socket prosthesis. The studies, which looked at safety and outcomes in both femur-level (above-the-knee) and tibia-level (below-the-knee) OI, were presented at the 2026 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) in New Orleans this week. “Osseointegration ...

The Buck Institute for Research on Aging today announced the launch of Healthspan Horizons, a new initiative designed to address one of the most urgent challenges in modern medicine: how to measure, understand, and extend healthspan—the years of life spent in good health. People are living longer—but too many of those added years are spent managing chronic disease. In other words, healthspan—the years of life lived in good health—hasn’t kept pace. A growing body of evidence suggests that many aspects of ...

Researchers at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, the University of Ottawa and McGill University have launched ARCHIMEDES (Advanced Research Collaboration for Health Integration, Medical Exploration, and Data Synthesis), a national platform designed to give Canadian health researchers secure access to diverse health data, enable responsible data sharing across institutions and health data types, and support the development of advanced analyses, including AI algorithms.  Health research in Canada is often slowed by fragmented data systems, lengthy approval processes to transfer data, and limited mechanisms for secure cross-institutional collaboration. As a result, valuable ...

The Brain Prize 2026 is awarded to Professors David Ginty (US) and Patrik Ernfors (Sweden) for their pioneering discoveries on how the nervous system detects and processes touch and pain. Their work has rewritten textbooks and opened new avenues for the development of targeted treatments for conditions such as chronic pain and hypersensitivity to touch. Copenhagen, March 5, 2026 The somatosensory system provides us with the sense of our own body and its physical interactions with the world. Our sense ...

In left atrial appendage occlusion, traditional interventional techniques are confronted with challenges such as poor adaptability between metallic devices and the left atrial appendage, incomplete postoperative endocardialization, and long-term complications including device-related thrombosis and peri-device leaks. Although liquid materials can adapt to the chamber geometry and avoid myocardial injury, traditional liquids are unable to withstand the impact of high-speed blood flow and disturbances from vigorous heartbeat within the left atrial appendage, making ...

Accumulation of the protein tau in the brain is one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. In a paper publishing March 5 in the Cell Press journal Cell Press Blue, researchers report a previously unknown mechanism that appears to enable the build-up of tau. The study, which employed animal and cellular models as well as patient tissues, suggests a key role for tanycytes—specialized brain cells that regulate brain-body signaling.  “Our ...

Researchers have found that targeted delivery of messenger RNA (mRNA) can restore sperm production and fertility in genetically infertile male mice. The findings, published today in Stem Cell Reports, demonstrate that transient mRNA treatment restored sperm production and enabled the birth of healthy offspring. Up to 10% of couples worldwide are affected by infertility, according to World Health Organization estimates, and male factors are the primary cause in about half of those cases. In many instances, ...

A study published today in Stem Cell Reports demonstrates that genetically engineered human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) can overcome immune rejection in mice with humanized immune systems, surviving for five months in a stringent transplantation model. The findings provide proof-of-principle for the development of a potential universal donor hPSC line designed to resist immune attack. Led by Danny Chan, University of Hong Kong, China, and Andras Nagy, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health, Toronto, Canada, the research team inserted eight immunosuppressive genes into a single hPSC line to render the cells resistant to immune rejection. When transplanted under ...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health specialists started using telemedicine much more frequently. Despite many benefits, a new study finds that virtual visits did not make it easier for psychiatrists, psychologists and therapists to reach significantly more people in areas where access to care has long been limited. By analyzing Medicare billing records from providers practicing across the country, researchers from the Brown University School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital showed that greater use of telemedicine among mental health specialists did not substantially change whether they were seeing ...

PITTSBURGH, March 5, 2026 – University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers have developed an early-stage, experimental “living eye drop” that uses naturally occurring eye bacteria to support corneal wound healing. The proof-of‑concept study, published today in Cell Reports, demonstrates that the harmless eye-dwelling microbe Corynebacterium mastitidis can be genetically modified to secrete an anti-inflammatory therapeutic that promotes healing following corneal injury in a mouse model. “This is the first demonstration that a microbe that lives on the ocular surface could ...

About The Study: In this secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial, fewer than 1 in 10 older adults with advanced cancer participating in the trial prioritized extending survival over maintaining quality of life. Patient preference for extending survival or maintaining quality of life was not associated with up-front treatment modifications or downstream outcomes, suggesting a possible lack of responsiveness of the current oncology care delivery system to patient preference.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding ...