https://phys.org/biology-news/biotechnology/ en-us The latest science news on biotechnology Researchers from Ruhr University Bochum have partnered with colleagues in Göttingen, Berlin, Paris and Essen to develop new optogenetic tools that can selectively inhibit cellular activity through light. These tools could help investigate diseases in which the balance between excitation and inhibition is disrupted, such as cardiac arrhythmias. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-optogenetic-tool-inhibits-neurons-heart.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 19:20:01 EDT news711814801 Viruses are sneaky intruders, hijacking the internal machinery of host cells and replicating out of sight. Understanding these dynamics is the first step to developing effective antiviral strategies that could stop infections, but scientists have largely been left in the dark because there are limited tools to study how viruses move in space and time inside live infected cells, according to Joyce Jose, associate professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Penn State. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-tool-tracks-viral-rna-infected.html Biotechnology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 13:00:13 EDT news711800341 Scientists have proposed what they believe is the first method for detecting "mirror life"—a hypothetical form of life made from molecular building blocks that are the mirror image of those found naturally on Earth. Researchers at the University of Strathclyde and the Department of Chemistry at Durham University have outlined a new approach that could identify mirror organisms using molecules which emit left- and right-handed light. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-based-method-hypothetical-mirror-life.html Biotechnology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 12:00:14 EDT news711798483 Bacteria get a bad reputation—with all the outbreaks, infections and deaths. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-infections-bacteria-reveal-medicines-crops.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 09:40:13 EDT news711785956 In recent years, researchers at the University of Eastern Finland have been both leading and contributing to collaborative genome projects. These efforts have produced reference-quality genome assemblies for the Finnish brown hare and the mountain hare, as well as the Saimaa ringed seal, in collaboration with research partners. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-genomes-eastern-finnish-species-unique.html Ecology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 08:20:01 EDT news711783026 Researchers at Uppsala University have adapted Cell Painting, a widely used imaging method in drug discovery, to look at individual cells inside small 3D clusters of cancer cells. Two drugs that looked almost identical in ordinary flat cell cultures behaved differently in 3D, and the team linked the difference to how each drug switches on the cell's p53 stress response. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-transparent-minispheres-reveal-alike-cancer.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 05:00:02 EDT news711713161 Advances in weed management technology could reduce reliance on herbicides and manual labor, but a new review from the University of Mississippi and Cornell University indicates those tools also bring steep costs and potential challenges. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ai-weed.html Biotechnology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 20:00:07 EDT news711718874 A research team led by distinguished professor Giuseppe Pezzotti at the Biomedical Engineering Center, Kansai Medical University (Japan), has demonstrated that differences in the molecular structures of viral RNA can be captured as "Raman barcodes," enabling the identification of 20 SARS-CoV-2 variants and subvariants. These findings are expected to contribute to the development of a rapid method for identifying newly emerging viral variants. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-raman-barcodes-distinguish-sars-cov.html Biotechnology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 13:40:27 EDT news711713502 Curtin University researchers have detected traces of hundreds of plants and animals by collecting DNA from the air as they drove more than 1,100km (684 miles) across Western Australia. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-road-discovery-dna-air-biodiversity.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 12:20:01 EDT news711708616 It is a dietary staple found in sushi, rice wraps and ramen toppings. Commonly known as nori in Japan and gim in Korea, red seaweed is especially popular across Asia. Yet, despite its widespread consumption, many of its nutritional benefits remain poorly understood. Now, research led by Hokkaido University scientists has discovered that digestion of a particular red alga releases a peptide, or a small fragment of protein, with potential benefits for blood glucose control and diabetes prevention. The study was published in Food Bioscience. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-blood-sugarregulating-compound-red.html Biotechnology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 11:40:14 EDT news711708140 According to a study conducted by researchers at Sultan Qaboos University, the material used to support microbial biofilms could influence their potential role in treating water generated during oil production. The research was led by Ph.D. candidate Arwa Al-Hadhrami under the supervision of Dr. Daniel Blackburn and conducted by a Sultan Qaboos University team representing the College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences and the Water Research Center, Oman. The results are published in Environmental Advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-wood-home-oil-degrading-microbes.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:40:16 EDT news711701111 If you've ever created a snowflake by folding, cutting and unfolding a piece of paper, you've practiced the art of kirigami. Like origami, kirigami has inspired innovations far beyond the elementary school classroom, with applications ranging from deployable structures for spacecraft to semiconductors. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-4d-biofabrication-technology-tissue-wound.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 19:40:12 EDT news711648422 Scientists at NPL, with the University of Surrey, University of Oxford, the Francis Crick Institute and IONTOF GmbH, have developed a technique to distinguish and map molecules that share the same chemical formula and mass but have different structures and functions. The research is published today (Oct. 19) in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-molecular-surfaces.html Biotechnology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 18:40:01 EDT news711639909 John Innes Centre researchers have trained scientists from across Tanzania to use new loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assays to rapidly detect wheat blast, a looming fungal threat to wheat harvests. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-wheat-disease-tool-tanzania.html Biotechnology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 17:00:13 EDT news711628817 What happens when scientists start changing the brain—the very system through which an animal's mental states are expressed in behavior? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-human-brain-tissue-mice.html Plants & Animals Mon, 19 Oct 2026 16:40:04 EDT news711625511 The use of robots, drones and AI tools in agriculture is already paying off on 42% of the world's cropland. This could increase to 50% in the next 20 years and to as much as 75% if every country tightened environmental regulations. If every country loosened its regulations, it would fall to 31%. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-smart-farming-profitable-regions-global.html Biotechnology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:00:01 EDT news711618121 Viral infections can be difficult to treat because viruses evolve rapidly, allowing them to develop resistance to drugs designed to attack viral proteins directly. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-artificial-intelligence-potential-antiviral-compounds.html Biotechnology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:06 EDT news711613031 A brief period of heat and drought early in a corn plant's life can affect its growth and flowering months after the stress ends, according to new research from the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and the University of Minnesota. The findings could help guide efforts to develop crops better equipped to withstand hot, dry growing conditions. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-early-drought-stress-effects-corn.html Biotechnology Mon, 19 Oct 2026 08:40:02 EDT news711609310 For the first time, scientists have observed bleached corals on the brink of death fully recover through brief contact with healthy clones. Ghostly white corals returned to full health in a laboratory setting within seven weeks, the fastest documented recovery to date, according to a study published in Science Advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-scientists-reverse-coral.html Ecology Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:00:01 EDT news711300075 When someone is badly injured, doctors urgently need two facts: the patient's blood type, so that a transfusion is safe, and their hematocrit, the share of the blood made up of red blood cells, which reveals blood loss or anemia. Hospitals measure both with large machines that need electricity and trained staff, which are often unavailable in ambulances, disaster zones or remote clinics. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-cranked-device-blood-red-cell.html Cell & Microbiology Sat, 17 Oct 2026 12:00:01 EDT news711200507 With about 30 visual pigments, compared to just three in humans, mantis shrimp possess a visual system that remains a mystery. Researchers from ULiège and Humboldt University in Berlin have, for the first time, analyzed these pigments one by one and discovered that some detect red light that very few animals can perceive. This finding, published in Science Advances, has potential applications in optogenetics. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-red-sensitive-pigments-mantis-shrimp.html Plants & Animals Sat, 17 Oct 2026 09:00:01 EDT news711300101 Alzheimer's disease is best known for its effects on memory and cognition, but the disease also involves changes in how brain cells produce and use energy. Mitochondria, the structures that supply much of a cell's energy, can become dysfunctional in Alzheimer's disease. At the same time, changes in blood flow and oxygen availability may place additional demands on brain tissue. Understanding how these processes interact could help researchers characterize metabolic changes that accompany the disease. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-optical-imaging-links-metabolism-oxygen.html Biotechnology Sat, 17 Oct 2026 04:16:41 EDT news711429340 Proteases are naturally occurring enzymes that break down proteins into peptides and even single amino acids. They are useful in medicine and industrial processes, where they clean tissue, digest waste and help in the manufacture of everyday products. Now scientists have used artificial intelligence to design new versions from scratch. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ai-molecular-scissors-protein.html Biotechnology Fri, 16 Oct 2026 12:40:06 EDT news711294937 Environmental DNA (eDNA) is increasingly being investigated by forensic scientists as a tool to help solve criminal cases that lack biological traces—and attention is also turning to collecting trace airborne eDNA left behind by intruders in residential burglaries. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ways-thief-intruders-airborne-edna.html Biotechnology Thu, 15 Oct 2026 09:00:09 EDT news711272461 A University of Queensland study has outlined a practical pathway for accelerating the development of heat-adapted chickpeas using data from new 'omic' technologies. Ph.D. candidate Callum Jamie said the suite of technologies offered tremendous opportunities to understand how a complex trait like heat tolerance works. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-chickpea-yield.html Biotechnology Thu, 15 Oct 2026 08:00:02 EDT news711263415 Scientists have long used a powerful gene-editing tool called CRISPR to make precise changes to DNA. But a different version of the technology, known as Cas13a, targets RNA, the genetic material found in viruses such as HIV. Now, researchers at Rice University have developed an improved version of Cas13a that could make it easier to detect HIV and other RNA viruses in blood and environmental samples. The study was published in Cell Chemical Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-enzyme-hiv-viruses.html Biotechnology Wed, 14 Oct 2026 17:00:11 EDT news711206461 Different tissues need different amounts of blood depending on what they are doing. Meeting those changing demands requires the circulatory system to continually balance how much blood flows to different regions of the body. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-muscle-cells-spirals-advancing-efforts.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 14 Oct 2026 14:40:01 EDT news711196562 A new study by researchers at the University of South Florida and Florida Atlantic University has demonstrated that a DNA sequencing tool can rapidly identify harmful algae in coastal waters, offering a new approach for monitoring species that could lead to improved methods for detecting potentially dangerous species before blooms become widespread. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-dna-tool-algal-blooms.html Ecology Wed, 14 Oct 2026 14:00:37 EDT news711185581 Cement manufacturing is one of the largest sources of CO₂ emissions in the construction industry. At the Department of Architecture, Karen Antorveza Paez, who has just completed her doctorate at ETH Zurich, is researching an alternative that works in a different way: instead of firing rocks at over 1,000°C, she is getting bacteria to bond grains of sand together into solid architectural elements. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-bacteria-3d-sand-solid-elements.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 14 Oct 2026 13:20:24 EDT news711194941 The team, led by professors Simon Lewis and Tony James and Dr. Dan Pantos in the university's Department of Chemistry, has transformed azulene, a naturally occurring blue compound found in certain mushrooms and corals, into a versatile tool for biological imaging and chemical sensing. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-chemists-blueprint-powerful-fluorescent-materials.html Biotechnology Wed, 14 Oct 2026 10:00:01 EDT news711186792