https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from Washington State University For decades, two different viruses were believed to be responsible for a common, untreatable disease in dahlias, a colorful, high-value flower grown worldwide. Virologists at Washington State University have now learned that the two viruses, known as dahlia mosaic virus and the dahlia common mosaic virus, are variants of the same viral species. Based on the sequencing and comparison of the viruses' genomes, the discovery was published in the journal Archives of Virology. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-dahlia-viruses-variants-species.html Plants & Animals Wed, 22 Apr 2026 16:20:05 EDT news696081482 A pilot study of a new method for treating sewage sludge from a wastewater treatment plant efficiently created renewable natural gas while reducing the cost of the treatment. The work, reported in the Chemical Engineering Journal, could help communities sustainably clean up waste while getting renewable natural gas for their energy needs. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-wastewater-sludge-treatment-boosts-renewable.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 21 Apr 2026 10:40:06 EDT news695986124 Repeated menstrual cycles may do more than trigger endometriosis. They may rewire the brain. That is the key finding from a new Washington State University study showing that recurring inflammation linked to the disease can sensitize the nervous system, driving lasting pain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-endometriosis-chronic-debilitating-pain.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 09:20:01 EDT news695549521 A simple test developed at Washington State University could eventually allow astronauts and others in round-the-clock occupations to monitor their biological rhythms in just minutes using a drop of blood, a paper test strip, and a smartphone-based reader. An interdisciplinary team of WSU researchers created an inexpensive, 15-minute test using fluorescent nanoparticles to measure melatonin levels, which rise and fall along with a person's internal biological clock. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-rapid-melatonin-astronauts-easily-biological.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 15 Apr 2026 12:40:07 EDT news695467081 An extract of turmeric and ginger helps bone implants bond strongly while killing bacteria and cancer cells, according to new research from Washington State University with implications for millions of patients with joint replacements and bone cancer. In early tests, the extract roughly doubled bone bonding within six weeks around the implant site, killed more than 90% of bacteria on implant surfaces, and sharply reduced cancer-causing cells. The findings marry elements of a naturopathic approach drawing on traditional medicine with current medical technologies. Turmeric, a golden-orange spice, and ginger root have been used for food and medicinal purposes in China and India for thousands of years. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-turmericginger-multiple-benefits-bone-implants.html Materials Science Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:40:04 EDT news694774262 The New York Yankees took the baseball world by storm with the newly designed torpedo bat last year, but the revolutionary design has ended up being no better than a standard bat for hitting the ball out of the park. In the first-ever laboratory experiments done on the bat, a research team determined that the torpedo bat and traditional bat perform equally well in hitting power with only a slight difference in the location of the bat's sweet spot. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-lab-yankees-torpedo-standard-power.html Engineering Thu, 02 Apr 2026 10:00:10 EDT news694340571 In an era of nonstop headlines and growing political division, many workplaces still follow a familiar rule of thumb: Don't talk politics at work. New research from Washington State University suggests the issue is more nuanced, and talking about politicized news at work may help employees better manage stress and foster improved well-being. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-politics-employee.html Economics & Business Tue, 24 Mar 2026 20:40:01 EDT news693564474 Idaho's Silver Valley has produced about 1.2 billion ounces of silver since the late 1800s, enough to cast a solid cube roughly as tall as a five-story building, along with huge amounts of lead and zinc. Now a new study led by Washington State University researchers helps explain how mineral deposits in the Silver Valley and other mineralized parts of the Belt Supergroup began to form more than 1.2 billion years ago. The Belt Supergroup is a massive stack of rocks stretching across eastern Washington, Idaho, and Montana that also hosts the Idaho Cobalt Belt, the most significantly mineralized cobalt district in the United States. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ancient-brines-idaho-silver-valley.html Earth Sciences Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:00:01 EDT news693134445 A catalyst developed by a Washington State University research team efficiently converts abundant, renewable ethanol into valuable molecules needed for production of plastics, fuels, and everyday products. The advance could someday make it easier to use renewables rather than petrochemicals to make common products. Led by Regents Professor Yong Wang, the researchers, including from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), report on their work in the journal, Chem Catalysis. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-atoms-renewables-viable-plastics-fuels.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 19 Mar 2026 11:20:01 EDT news693133742 Entomologists have discovered a new species of mining bee that has an unusually tight relationship with cenizo, the official state shrub of Texas. Silas Bossert, assistant professor in Washington State University's Department of Entomology, worked with colleagues in Texas and Kansas to identify and describe the new mining bee, Andrena cenizophila. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-bee-species-native-texas.html Plants & Animals Wed, 18 Mar 2026 17:30:01 EDT news693044290 As self-driving cars begin operating in cities, a question remains about how to make them work in rural areas with limited telecommunications infrastructure. New research from Washington State University suggests a potential answer, demonstrating that a small, affordable computer running a compressed large-language model may be an effective decision-maker for autonomous vehicles. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-small-edge-cars-rural-areas.html Automotive Tue, 17 Mar 2026 07:40:01 EDT news692951942 Livestock breeders could soon have more tools to improve the health and quality of their animals, thanks to a recent study that sheds new light on regulatory elements in the sheep genome. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-insight-tissue-specific-gene-sheep.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Mar 2026 18:10:06 EDT news692897701 Again and again, Washington State University professor Mesut Cicek and his colleagues fed hypotheses from scientific papers into ChatGPT and asked it to determine whether the statements had been upheld by research—whether they were true or false. They did this with more than 700 hypotheses, repeating each query 10 times. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ai-d-chatgpt-struggles-scientific.html Computer Sciences Mon, 16 Mar 2026 10:20:03 EDT news692874542 A man-made food source provided honey bees a nutritious diet at a commercial scale over the course of two winter seasons, according to a new study led by Washington State University researchers. The study, published in the journal Insects, looked at the new feed as used by five commercial beekeepers in California and Idaho from fall 2022 to spring 2024. This study is a follow-up to an initial paper describing the bee feed. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-pollen-honey-bee-colonies-term.html Plants & Animals Thu, 12 Mar 2026 15:40:01 EDT news692534881 Research led by scientists at Washington State University has revealed insights on how plants form a microscopic landscape of proteins crucial to photosynthesis, the basis of Earth's food and energy chain. The discovery provides a new view of the molecular engine that converts sunlight into bioenergy and could enable future fine-tuning of crops for higher yields and other useful traits. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-electron-microscopy-protein-landscapes-photosynthesis.html Plants & Animals Tue, 10 Mar 2026 16:20:05 EDT news692373021 Smoking cannabis can do more than blur memories. It can reshape them. A new Washington State University study found that people who consumed THC were more likely to recall words that were never presented and struggled with everyday tasks such as remembering to do something later. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-cannabis-intoxication-disrupts-memory.html Tue, 10 Mar 2026 10:00:01 EDT news692354738 Washington State University researchers have developed a 3D-printed model of the left side of the heart that contracts and beats, offering the chance for surgeons and medical students to rehearse important heart surgeries on a model that acts like the real thing. The WSU researchers, in fact, did a valve repair on their heart model, using ultrasound imaging and customized sensors attached to the model to show a successful repair. They report on their work in the journal Advanced Materials Technologies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-3d-heart-surgical.html Surgery Wed, 04 Mar 2026 13:20:03 EST news691848421 Promoting women's ownership in wineries can boost sales among the largest group of U.S. wine consumers, who happen to be women. Messages like "proudly made by a woman winemaker" increased women's intentions of purchasing wines, particularly when the label's artwork reinforced the point with feminine gender cues such as flowers. Women were also willing to pay higher prices for those wines, according to the research from Washington State University and Auburn University. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-women-wine-female-winemakers.html Economics & Business Sun, 01 Mar 2026 16:30:01 EST news691238642 A tiny region in a little-known muscle protein may hold the key to a healthy, steady heartbeat, as well as possible clues to future treatment of devastating heart ailments. Washington State University researchers have found a region of a protein called leiomodin that is critical in maintaining the length of tiny filaments that control a person's heartbeat. The work, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Arizona and Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, is featured in the journal Circulation Research. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-important-clue-healthy-heartbeats.html Cardiology Thu, 26 Feb 2026 10:40:01 EST news691321120 When the federal government brings its toughest environmental enforcement actions against polluters, they tend to be in communities of greater wealth, not the most polluted places. That's the takeaway from a new paper co-authored by a Washington State University researcher that examined criminal prosecutions by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from 2011 to 2020 in every U.S. county. The findings are published in the journal Nature Sustainability. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-epa-criminal-sanctions-align-county.html Social Sciences Mon, 23 Feb 2026 16:20:01 EST news691082796 A single exposure to a toxic fungicide during pregnancy can increase the risk of disease for 20 subsequent generations—with inherited health problems worsening many generations after exposure. Those are the findings of a new Washington State University study of rats that expands the understanding of how long the intergenerational effects of toxic exposure may last, as they are passed down through alterations in reproductive cells. The study, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was co-authored by WSU biologist Michael Skinner, who has been studying this "epigenetic transgenerational inheritance" of disease for two decades. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-toxic-exposure-disease-generations-epigenetic.html Genetics Fri, 20 Feb 2026 13:00:03 EST news690812600 The urgent onset of "the munchies" after cannabis use isn't imaginary—it's a cognitive response that occurs regardless of sex, age, weight or recent food consumption and could offer clues to help people struggling with appetite loss. Those findings from a collaborative study, conducted by researchers at Washington State University and the University of Calgary, were recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-munchies-real-benefit-appetite.html Health Thu, 19 Feb 2026 11:20:03 EST news690716041 Exposure to infection and other immune stress in the womb increases the likelihood of alcohol misuse in adulthood, a risk that may be reduced through prenatal antioxidant treatment, a new Washington State University study shows. The findings, published in the journal Psychopharmacology, provide insight into how early biological stress shapes addictive behaviors and identifies a potential approach for lowering the risk of alcohol use disorder—a problem with massive social and financial costs. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-prenatal-infection-adult-alcohol-misuse.html Addiction Thu, 19 Feb 2026 10:40:02 EST news690716029 Restaurants looking for new ways to engage and inform customers may benefit from incorporating augmented reality (AR) technology into their menus, according to new research from Washington State University. The study, published in the International Journal of Hospitality Management, finds that AR menus can significantly increase customers' interest in visiting a restaurant and may result in more positive word-of-mouth marketing, when compared to printed or QR-code menus. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-02-augmented-reality-menus-restaurants-customers.html Business Wed, 18 Feb 2026 14:59:27 EST news690649141 NBA teams that paid their core players inequitably won fewer games as a result of reduced cooperation, according to a Washington State University study with implications for workplace management. While it draws on data from professional basketball, the study suggests that managers in the workplace should ensure they're paying top performers fairly in relation to each other and emphasize the goal of team coordination—organized, synchronized effort, with each team member carrying out their role. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-nba-pay-differences-erode-cooperation.html Social Sciences Mon, 16 Feb 2026 09:29:16 EST news690456541 A wearable biosensor developed by Washington State University researchers could improve wireless glucose monitoring for people with diabetes, making it more cost-effective, accurate, and less invasive than current models. The WSU researchers have developed a wearable and user-friendly sensor that uses microneedles and sensors to measure sugar in the fluid around cells, providing an alternative to continuous glucose monitoring systems. Reporting in the journal The Analyst, the researchers were able to accurately detect sugar levels and wirelessly transmit the information to a smartphone in real time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-biosensor-technology-glucose.html Diabetes Wed, 11 Feb 2026 16:30:57 EST news690049801 The secret to youthful appearance and repairing scars may lie in a microscopic skin structure humans share with pigs and grizzly bears—but, surprisingly, not monkeys. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-pigs-grizzlies-monkeys-clues-youthful.html Health Wed, 04 Feb 2026 11:00:02 EST news689421406 A debilitating hoof disease affecting elk herds across the Pacific Northwest appears to be driven not by a single pathogen but by multiple bacterial species working together, according to a study led by researchers in Washington State University's College of Veterinary Medicine. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-multiple-bacteria-elk-hoof-disease.html Plants & Animals Mon, 02 Feb 2026 09:25:31 EST news689246702 The class of anti-inflammatory drugs known as TNF-inhibitors has brought relief to many sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis, but they don't work for up to 4 of every 10 patients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-alternate-path-inflammation-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Arthritis & Rheumatism Fri, 30 Jan 2026 11:00:22 EST news688993201 A new tool developed by Washington State University researchers could someday provide daily or weekly forecasts of water availability in the mountains similar to a weather forecast that agencies could use for important water management decisions. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-mountain-tool-aims-refine-availability.html Environment Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:10:43 EST news688752601