https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. A University of California, Riverside team of scientists has found that Toxoplasma gondii, a common parasite affecting up to one-third of the global population, is far more complex than previously believed. The findings, published in Nature Communications, offer new insight into how T. gondii causes disease and why it has been so difficult to treat. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-parasite-toxoplasmosis-multiple-distinct-subtypes.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:10:01 EST news688744841 From the moment an embryo starts to take shape, two-way communication is critical for making sure tissues and organs develop correctly. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-uncovering-early-embryonic-communications-stem.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 16 Dec 2025 12:50:29 EST news685111801 A new study, led by the University of Vienna and the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven, shows how the eyes of adult marine bristleworms continue to grow throughout life—driven by a ring of neural stem cells reminiscent of vertebrate eyes. What's more, these stem cells respond to environmental light. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-functional-principles-eye-evolution-sensitive.html Evolution Mon, 01 Dec 2025 14:32:19 EST news683821921 Past psychology and behavioral science studies have identified various ways in which people's acquisition of new knowledge can be disrupted. One of these, known as interference, occurs when humans are learning new information and this makes it harder for them to correctly recall knowledge that they had acquired earlier. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-humans-artificial-neural-networks-similar.html General Physics Sat, 29 Nov 2025 07:50:01 EST news683388766 What is the evolutionary advantage of our consciousness? And what can we learn about this from observing birds? Researchers at Ruhr University Bochum published two articles on this topic. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-species-consciousness-conscious.html Evolution Mon, 24 Nov 2025 16:49:04 EST news683225342 Spin glasses are physical systems in which the small magnetic moments of particles (i.e., spins) interact with each other in a random way. These random interactions between spins make it impossible for all spins to satisfy their preferred alignments; a condition known as 'frustration." https://phys.org/news/2025-10-driven-dissipative-ising-glass-cavity.html Quantum Physics Fri, 31 Oct 2025 08:00:01 EDT news681061214 When Darwin Quiroz first started working with optics as an undergraduate, he was developing atomic magnetometers. That experience sparked a growing curiosity about how light interacts with matter, an interest that has now led him to a new technique in optical imaging. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-fluid-based-laser-scanning-brain.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 15 Oct 2025 11:59:03 EDT news679748341 Modern humans have existed for more than 200,000 years, and each new generation has begun with a single cell—dividing, changing shape and function, organizing into tissues, organs, and limbs. With slight variations, the process has repeated billions of times with remarkable fidelity to the same body plan. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-cells-anthrobots-biologically-younger.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 18 Jun 2025 10:20:01 EDT news669460515 When a fruit fly is navigating straight forward at high speed, why does it know that it's not straying off course? Because as long as the fly moves directly forward, the visual scene shifts from front to back in a near-perfect mirror image across both retinas—generating, in other words, a symmetrical visual motion pattern. This pattern, known as "optic flow," provides a powerful cue for detecting self-motion and maintaining direction. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-fruit-flies-neurons-tiny-visual.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 01 May 2025 09:56:02 EDT news665312156 In developing hearts, cells shuffle around, bumping into each other to find their place, and the stakes are high: pairing with the wrong cell could mean the difference between a beating heart and one that falters. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-cells-date-neighbors-tissues.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 12 Mar 2025 11:00:05 EDT news660900901 Ibogaine—a psychoactive plant derivative—has attracted attention for its anti-addictive and anti-depressant properties. But ibogaine is a finite resource, extracted from plants native to Africa like the iboga shrub (Tabernanthe iboga) and the small-fruited voacanga tree (Voacanga africana). Further, its use can lead to irregular heartbeats, introducing safety risks and an overall need to better understand how its molecular structure leads to its biological effects. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-total-synthesis-ibogaine-opportunities-psychoactive.html Biochemistry Fri, 07 Feb 2025 10:14:41 EST news658145678 Microgravity is known to alter the muscles, bones, the immune system and cognition, but little is known about its specific impact on the brain. To discover how brain cells respond to microgravity, Scripps Research scientists, in collaboration with the New York Stem Cell Foundation, sent tiny clumps of stem-cell derived brain cells called "organoids" to the International Space Station (ISS). https://phys.org/news/2024-12-brain-cells-mature-faster-space.html Space Exploration Tue, 17 Dec 2024 16:47:48 EST news653676463 University of Pittsburgh researchers have identified evidence of H5N1 adaptation in domestic cats. Work centered on a rural outbreak in South Dakota, where multiple cats died after showing neurological and respiratory symptoms. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-south-dakota-outbreak-reveals-potential.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 12 Dec 2024 15:34:11 EST news653240044 Blue-throated macaws, a critically endangered parrot species, have demonstrated automatic imitation of intransitive (goal-less) actions—a phenomenon previously documented only in humans. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-blue-throated-macaws-advanced-motor.html Plants & Animals Mon, 09 Dec 2024 08:58:04 EST news652957081 The brain is a marvel of efficiency, honed by thousands of years of evolution so it can adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing world. Yet, despite decades of research, the mystery of how the brain achieves this has remained elusive. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-brains-fruit-flies-monkeys-scientists.html Evolution Thu, 07 Nov 2024 09:34:29 EST news650194465 Researchers have developed a new two-photon fluorescence microscope that captures high-speed images of neural activity at cellular resolution. By imaging much faster and with less harm to brain tissue than traditional two-photon microscopy, the new approach could provide a clearer view of how neurons communicate in real time, leading to new insights into brain function and neurological diseases. https://phys.org/news/2024-08-photon-microscopy-method-reveal-insights.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 15 Aug 2024 10:00:02 EDT news642929641 Theoretical physicists at Utrecht University, together with experimental physicists at Sogang University in South Korea, have succeeded in building an artificial synapse. This synapse works with water and salt and provides the first evidence that a system using the same medium as our brains can process complex information. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-experimental-proof-brain-salt.html General Physics Thu, 25 Apr 2024 10:03:37 EDT news633258212 Social interaction is key to survival and reproductive success in primates, including humans. Optimizing outcomes from these encounters requires a calculated approach to cooperation and competition—knowing whom to trust, whom to avoid, or whom to confront confers an evolutionary advantage. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-uncovers-neural-pathways-primate-reciprocity.html Plants & Animals Wed, 27 Mar 2024 09:34:05 EDT news630750841 Researchers at Ruhr University Bochum explain how it is possible for the small brains of pigeons, parrots and corvids to perform equally well as those of mammals, despite their significant differences. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-birds-smart.html Plants & Animals Wed, 06 Mar 2024 11:26:03 EST news628946761 Researchers report December 5 in the journal Neuron that mice display behavior that resembles self-recognition when they see themselves in the mirror. When the researchers marked the foreheads of black-furred mice with a spot of white ink, the mice spent more time grooming their heads in front of the mirror—presumably to try and wash away the ink spot. However, the mice only showed this self-recognition-like behavior if they were already accustomed to mirrors, if they had socialized with other mice who looked like them, and if the ink spot was relatively large. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-mice-mirror-classic-indicator-self-recognition.html Plants & Animals Tue, 05 Dec 2023 11:00:01 EST news620987711 They look like storm clouds that could fit on the head of a pin: Organoids are three-dimensional cell cultures that play a key role in medical and clinical research. This is thanks to their ability to replicate tissue structures and organ functions in the petri dish. Scientists can use organoids to understand how diseases occur, how organs develop, and how drugs work. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-organoids-combining-spatial-transcriptomics-optogenetics.html Biotechnology Mon, 30 Oct 2023 12:59:35 EDT news617889572 Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have used fruit flies to study how daily eating patterns are regulated. They found that the quasimodo (qsm) gene helped sync feeding to light/dark cycles, but not in constant darkness: instead, the genes clock (clk) and cycle (cyc) keep eating/fasting cycles, while other "clocks" in nerve cells help sync it to days. Deciphering the molecular mechanism behind eating cycles helps us understand animal behavior, including our own. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-fruit-fly-feedingfasting.html Plants & Animals Mon, 30 Oct 2023 09:42:03 EDT news617877721 Neuroscientists at the University of Zurich have developed innovative objectives for light microscopy by using mirrors to produce images. Their design finds correspondence in mirror telescopes used in astronomy on the one hand and the eyes of scallops on the other. The new objectives enable high-resolution imaging of tissues and organs in a much wider variety of immersion media than with conventional microscope lenses. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-scallop-eyes-microscope.html Biotechnology Fri, 31 Mar 2023 11:04:04 EDT news599479440 Induced pluripotent stem cells offer great therapeutic potential and are a valuable tool for understanding how different diseases develop. New research shows that such stem cell lines should be regularly screened for genetic mutations to ensure the accuracy of the disease models. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-important-accurate-stem-cellbased-disease.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 24 Mar 2023 11:55:28 EDT news598877723 With the aid of some sea slugs, University of Nebraska–Lincoln chemists have discovered that one of the smallest conceivable tweaks to a biomolecule can elicit one of the grandest conceivable consequences: directing the activation of neurons. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-mirror-imaging-molecules-neuron.html Biochemistry Tue, 14 Mar 2023 09:06:24 EDT news598003578 If serine racemase is the magician that for decades disguised its trick—inverting an amino acid to assist learning and memory but also levitate risks of Alzheimer's and stroke—chemists just snuck a high-res camera behind the curtain. https://phys.org/news/2023-02-technique-probes-chemistry-enzyme-implicated.html Biochemistry Mon, 27 Feb 2023 10:32:17 EST news596716330 During image analysis, researchers use light sheet microscopy of cleared tissue as a preferred method for high throughput volumetric imaging. A flexible system can provide a range of sizes, resolution and tissue-clearing protocols. In a new report now published in Nature Methods, Adam K. Glaser and a team of interdisciplinary scientists in mechanical engineering, bioengineering, and synthetic biology in the U.S. and Japan presented a new hybrid imaging system. Using the new method, the team combined non-orthogonal dual-objective and conventional open-top light-sheet microscopy for multi-scale volumetric imaging to visualize an intact, cleared mouse brain at the sub-micron scale. The team achieved high-throughput automated imaging of multiple specimens, and compared the outcomes with existing light-sheet microscopy systems to show a unique combination of versatility and performance in the hybrid setup. https://phys.org/news/2022-05-hybrid-open-top-light-sheet-microscope-versatile.html Biotechnology Wed, 18 May 2022 09:11:03 EDT news572083856 Amino acids are the basic building blocks of living organisms and typically occur in a configuration known as the L-form. However, there are a few exceptional examples of the structural mirror image of the L-form (known as the D-form) present in animals. D-serine is a representative D-form amino acid and has crucial roles in mammals, but its role in non-mammals is unclear. Researchers from Japan recently uncovered a functional role of D-serine in a marine invertebrate, which may provide insight into the evolution of D-amino acid function in organisms. https://phys.org/news/2022-03-mirror-image-biomolecule-marine-sea.html Evolution Fri, 11 Mar 2022 14:00:11 EST news566220518 A pioneering technique developed by the Prevedel Group at EMBL allows neuroscientists to observe live neurons deep inside the brain – or any other cell hidden within an opaque tissue. The technique is based on two state-of-the-art microscopy methods, three-photon microscopy and adaptive optics. The paper reporting on this advancement was published on 30th September 2021 in Nature Methods. https://phys.org/news/2021-09-microscopy-technique-deep-vivo-brain.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 30 Sep 2021 12:47:30 EDT news552224845 Isaac Newton's groundbreaking scientific productivity while isolated from the spread of bubonic plague is legendary. University of California San Diego physicists can now claim a stake in the annals of pandemic-driven science. https://phys.org/news/2021-09-artificial-brain-networks-simulated-quantum.html General Physics Wed, 08 Sep 2021 09:44:32 EDT news550313069