https://phys.org/biology-news/molecular-computational/ en-us Medical Xpress provides the latest news on molecular and Computational biology Honeybees are among the widely studied insects, due to their sophisticated, hierarchical social organization and their essential ecological role. Bees can move swiftly in natural environments, passing through narrow openings and identifying the best paths to reach their destinations without colliding with other objects. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-honeybees-reveal-weber-law-flight.html Plants & Animals Sat, 23 May 2026 13:20:01 EDT news698589412 Like schools of fish and flocks of birds, our cells can also migrate collectively in coordination with their neighbors. This harmonious movement of cells occurs during embryonic development, wound healing, and cancer metastasis. However, since individual cells can only sense limited local information, how they are able to coordinate as a larger collective has remained poorly understood. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-mechanisms-cell-movement.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 22 May 2026 18:20:03 EDT news698677743 For decades, doctors have widely used tetracyclines for conditions ranging from acne to tick-borne illnesses. Using high-resolution imaging technology, researchers in the laboratory of Christopher Bunick, MD, Ph.D., associate professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine (YSM), captured a never-before-seen look into how different kinds of tetracyclines bind to and kill bacteria. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ribosome-site-tetracyclines.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 22 May 2026 14:20:04 EDT news698668741 Over the course of evolution, plants have developed an elegant strategy to counteract a lack of phosphate in the soil—they form symbiotic relationships with soil fungi. These mycorrhizal fungi efficiently supply their plant partners with phosphate and other essential minerals. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-key-soil-fungi-symbiosis-longstanding.html Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 22 May 2026 14:00:08 EDT news698672461 A research team from Kiel University has demonstrated which specific cellular mechanisms lead to the targeted weakening of bacterial pathogens, thereby increasing the effectiveness of antibiotic treatment. The research is published in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-sequential-antibiotic-strategy-weaken-dangerous.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 22 May 2026 13:20:01 EDT news698667301 Scientific discovery is often portrayed as the result of long hours alone in a lab, but true science is inherently collaborative. The most robust experimental processes are developed through partnerships across multiple areas of research. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-agentic-ai-electron-microscopes.html Biotechnology Fri, 22 May 2026 13:00:04 EDT news698666764 In a cramped, windowless room on the University of California, Berkeley, campus, two bespoke microscopes—each a Swiss Army knife for high-resolution imaging—operate around the clock gathering data that will help train a game-changing technology for the field of biology: AI. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-res-microscopes-biologists-petabytes-scientists.html Biotechnology Fri, 22 May 2026 11:40:06 EDT news698664421 Northwestern Medicine scientists have developed a new experimental method to analyze conformational fluctuations in protein domains on a uniquely large scale, which may improve data-driven modeling, biology and protein engineering, as detailed in a recent study published in Nature. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-multiplexed-method-reveals-protein-energy.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 21 May 2026 17:10:01 EDT news698600041 Scientists have reported it for decades: overpopulation can impair reproduction. Crowded chickens lay fewer eggs. Crowded mice have smaller broods. In humans, several studies have associated increased population density with reduced fertility. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-overpopulation-impair-fertility.html Evolution Thu, 21 May 2026 17:00:01 EDT news698593801 Researchers at the University of Guelph have developed a faster way to identify potential drug targets against a dangerous fungal pathogen, allowing for the study of hundreds or thousands of genes simultaneously instead of one at a time. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-faster-gene-screening-method-deadly.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 16:40:02 EDT news698593561 The element sodium plays a key role in nervous system function. An international research team headed by the Institute of Neurobiology at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) has now conducted a closer examination of the sodium concentration in astrocytes—special cells in the brain. To achieve this, the researchers developed a method via which they can make the sodium content of individual cells in tissue directly visible, as they now describe in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cell-sodium-reveals-astrocytes-uniform.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 16:20:04 EDT news698593262 When researchers test whether an antibiotic will work, they usually do so in a controlled laboratory environment. But when an infection happens inside the human body, things aren't so clean and tidy. New research from the Levin Lab at WashU published in mBio, found that even a slight change in acidity may dramatically shift how bacteria respond to treatment. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-antibiotics-body-ph-conditions-bacteria.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 15:00:06 EDT news698591522 Hair, nails, and horns, all made up of keratin, are some of the hardest and most resilient structures in animals. Inside zebrafish cells, keratin plays a distinct role, giving them the strength they need to move together as a coherent tissue while modulating the driving forces behind their movement during early development. But what happens when keratin is missing? https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cell-movement-embryo-zebrafish-keratin.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 13:40:07 EDT news698582521 Certain epigenetic modifications can directly control how genetic material is packed in the nucleus, RIKEN researchers have shown. This has important implications for our understanding of how genes are expressed in different cell types. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-uncovering-link-epigenetic-modifications-chromatin.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 13:00:05 EDT news698581861 G protein-coupled receptors, or GPCRs, sit in the plasma membrane, the boundary that defines the inside and outside of a living cell. They communicate with nearly every physiological process in our bodies—from the ability to see and smell, to sensing of adrenaline, insulin, nutrients and medicines. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ai-miniproteins-key-cell-receptors.html Biotechnology Thu, 21 May 2026 11:00:12 EDT news698574662 Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have created a new artificial intelligence (AI) model that helps reveal how genes function together inside human cells, offering a powerful new way to understand biology and disease. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ai-genes-human-cells.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 21 May 2026 11:00:04 EDT news698479815 Seeds like wheat, rice, and corn are at the center of the global food supply and provide most of the daily calories consumed worldwide. But despite their importance, scientists still do not fully understand many of the basic biological processes that allow these seeds to grow, transport nutrients, and develop traits that determine crop resiliency. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-seed-atlas-uncovers-genes-crop.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 21 May 2026 05:00:08 EDT news698509562 In a silent war that has raged for millions of years, plants have evolved a sophisticated chemical arsenal to fight back against invading pathogens. Now, a team of researchers from Peking University and Tsinghua University has finally mapped out the blueprints for one of nature's most effective deterrents, solving a biological puzzle that has baffled scientists for nearly half a century. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-scientists-year-mystery-immunity-debneyol.html Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 20 May 2026 15:40:07 EDT news698500987 Scientists have long known that the DNA code in genes is not the only way to pass genetic traits from parents to offspring. "Epigenetic" marks—chemical modifications to DNA that don't change the DNA code itself—can also be passed down. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-mendel-dont-mouse-reveals-hidden.html Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 20 May 2026 11:20:06 EDT news698492093 Early in development, a group of migrating cells called cranial neural crest cells go on to form many different parts of the face, including the nose, jaw, ears, and throat. To build these structures correctly, genes must switch on in the right cells at the right time. But many of the DNA switches that control those genes sit far away on the genome, and scientists still know little about how genes find and communicate with these distant switches during development. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-genes-ready-early-genome-prime.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 20 May 2026 07:40:10 EDT news698479924 Like fireflies and many deep-sea creatures, certain fungi can naturally emit light through bioluminescence pathways in which specialized enzymes convert chemical energy into visible light. Medical researchers have used fungal light-producing enzymes in the fungal bioluminescence pathway (FBP) to visually track processes like tumor progression and inflammatory responses. New research published in The FEBS Journal provides insights that may help improve and expand such bioluminescence-based tools and applications. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fungi-expose-enzyme-bioluminescent-tools.html Biotechnology Wed, 20 May 2026 03:10:01 EDT news698399101 Researchers at Bar-Ilan University have successfully restored youthful patterns of DNA organization in the livers of old mice, reversing key molecular features associated with aging. The study, published in Nature Communications, identifies the protein SIRT6 as a powerful protector against age-related breakdown in chromatin, the complex system that packages DNA and controls how genes are switched on and off. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-sirt6-protein-age-breakdown-chromatin.html Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 19 May 2026 19:20:06 EDT news698426761 In a new study, researchers show how so‑called TriPcides can target the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, including antibiotic‑resistant strains such as MRSA. The compounds disrupt the bacteria's ability to cause infection and can also kill dormant bacterial cells, which are often difficult to treat with existing antibiotics. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-tripcides-mrsa-suppress-infection-dormant.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 19 May 2026 16:00:09 EDT news698419141 Scientists at Children's Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) have discovered that large pieces of DNA can transfer directly between human cells, and the DNA can persist and change how the recipient cell functions. The findings, published in Cell, challenge a long-standing view that the genomes of individual human cells evolve independently from one another. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-human-cells-exchange-genomic-dna.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 19 May 2026 15:20:08 EDT news698415721 In every organism, the regulation of cell populations is a constant process. This balance relies on a continuous interplay between "guardian" proteins that promote cell survival and "killer" proteins that trigger programmed cell death, known as apoptosis. Any disruption of this balance can lead to diseases such as cancer. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-decoding-life-death-proteins.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 19 May 2026 13:00:02 EDT news698408941 Bacteria from the Middle East have caused precipitation all the way out in California. The same bacteria, which are known to attack plants, have also been found embedded within lumps of hail in West Africa. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-proteins-ice-cool-applications-cryomedicine.html Biotechnology Tue, 19 May 2026 11:00:09 EDT news698321282 DNA is everywhere in the world's oceans—not only packaged inside cells from skin, scales, mucus, feces, and blood, but also floating freely. Sequencing such "environmental DNA" (eDNA) from open water has long been used as a cost-effective way of gauging the number and identity of species in a region, especially when they are rare and elusive or living at great depths. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-dna-seawater-scientists-health-america.html Ecology Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:04 EDT news698326022 Proteins are critical to life—and to industry. There are countless proteins that could be engineered to treat and even cure serious diseases and cellular dysfunctions. Industrial applications are similarly promising, with proteins increasingly used as enzymes in food manufacturing and in consumer detergents. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-bioengineers-condense-protein-day.html Biotechnology Mon, 18 May 2026 19:40:02 EDT news698341021 Every bumble bee colony has a queen, but a new study led by researchers at Penn State suggests the process of determining which baby bee reigns supreme may be less monarchal than the royal title suggests. The study, published in the journal Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, explored why some bumble bee larvae become workers and others become queens, despite coming from the same eggs. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-worker-bumble-bees-baby-bee.html Ecology Mon, 18 May 2026 15:40:01 EDT news698324655 Researchers at the Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM), Nagoya University, together with collaborators from RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (RIKEN CSRS) and The University of Osaka, have uncovered a previously unknown mechanism by which plants detect hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), a key signaling molecule involved in stress responses and immunity. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-copper-based-sensor-key-defense.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 18 May 2026 05:00:02 EDT news698057702