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. Mercury remains one of our solar system's most elusive and difficult planets to study. It's easier to send probes to the icy moons of Saturn or Jupiter, or even to Pluto, than to land on our innermost planet, Mercury. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-enigmatic-mercury-puzzle-lander.html Planetary Sciences Mon, 19 Oct 2026 09:20:02 EDT news711610218 When the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 turned our world upside down, mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 brought a breakthrough. Their success established modified mRNA as a powerful foundation for vaccines and opened the way for new mRNA-based technologies, with potential applications ranging from vaccines against other infectious diseases to cancer immunotherapy. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-sequence-mrna-protein-errors-vaccine.html Biotechnology Tue, 13 Oct 2026 16:40:07 EDT news711120361 An international research team led by TU Darmstadt Professor Beatrix Süß, working in close collaboration with partners in Germany and Denmark, has elucidated how an RNA switch newly developed at TU Darmstadt recognizes the antibiotic doxycycline and thereby selectively activates or deactivates gene expression. This makes doxycycline a promising basis for synthetic biology and, potentially, for gene therapies as well. The team recently published its findings in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-small-rna-huge-potential-possibilities.html Biotechnology Tue, 13 Oct 2026 13:02:08 EDT news711110941 MIT engineers have developed a new way to program natural killer (NK) immune cells to target cancerous T cells or T cells that have become autoreactive, leading to diseases such as lymphoma and autoimmune hepatitis. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-nanoparticle-reprograms-nk-immune-cells.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 13 Oct 2026 12:20:16 EDT news711107494 The cells of higher organisms such as mammals, flies and fungi enclose their genetic material in a nucleus. A nuclear envelope, consisting of two stacked membranes, protects it. For the cell to survive, the nucleus must constantly exchange molecules with the rest of the cell. This exchange relies on channels called nuclear pores, which act as selective gates that transport proteins or messenger RNA in or out. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-cells-center-accessible.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 13 Oct 2026 09:20:08 EDT news711099061 When a person falls and gets a cut or a scrape, they often use hydrogen peroxide to clean the wound. This molecular compound is also produced within our cells, helping our immune system build its defenses against harmful bacteria or other pathogens. Hydrogen peroxide is produced inside plants, too, where it acts as a messenger, telling cells to beef up a plant's defenses when it is stressed, wounded or under attack. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-tiny-channels-cells-wound-hydrogen.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 06 Oct 2026 14:50:01 EDT news710514961 Francis Halzen won the Nobel Prize in physics on Tuesday for his efforts to demystify a rare group of neutrinos, tiny cosmic particles that scientists believe offer clues to how the universe evolved. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-francis-halzen-nobel-prize-physics.html General Physics Tue, 06 Oct 2026 06:12:06 EDT news710485847 When you walk into a bakery and smell fresh cookies, the enticing smell draws you in. After you eat a handful of cookies, though, the same smell likely doesn't send you back for more. Researchers in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis sought to determine the biological mechanisms in the brain that controllably alters odor-evoked behavior by using an unlikely model—a locust. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-locust-neuromodulators-odor.html Plants & Animals Mon, 05 Oct 2026 18:40:10 EDT news710440622 Deep space travel comes with a huge potential downside—radiation exposure that can kill an astronaut either quickly or slowly over time if not managed correctly. But what exactly does that mean, and is there any way to handle it other than sticking more and more protective layers between the squishy biological systems inside a spacecraft and the radiative void of deep space? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-space-biological-cascade-cancer.html Astronomy Mon, 05 Oct 2026 12:40:20 EDT news710407742 Recently, spatial omics has become a powerful tool, enabling researchers to see not only what molecules are present in a tissue, but also where they are located and how they are organized across cells, tissue structures and local microenvironments. This spatial context has deepened our understanding of cancer, neurobiology and immunology. Yet as the field advances, an important question remains: How many of these powerful technologies are ready for routine clinical use? https://phys.org/news/2026-09-nanoneedle-arrays-rna-fresh-tissue.html Bio & Medicine Sun, 04 Oct 2026 17:00:06 EDT news709827261 More than half of New York City's app-based food delivery workers have been injured on the job, and 40% meet the criteria for severe psychological distress, according to a new study from the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy (CUNY SPH), in partnership with the Worker's Justice Project (WJP). https://phys.org/news/2026-09-nyc-delivery-workers-national-intense.html Economics & Business Tue, 29 Sep 2026 19:40:04 EDT news709904758 Scientists at Cornell University have found a human genetic element in a poxvirus and discovered that it is both an important gene for brain function and a jumping gene capable of moving and inserting itself into genomes. A study published in Science reports that the gene, called BC200, combines characteristics never before seen together. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-human-gene-poxvirus.html Evolution Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:40:01 EDT news709544957 A study conducted by the University of Liège and Rockefeller University reveals, with near-atomic precision, the three-dimensional structure and function of a gigantic molecular machine essential to the survival of trypanosomatid parasites, which cause serious diseases in humans, animals and plants. The work has been published in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-snapshots-reveal-key-molecular-machine.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 23 Sep 2026 05:00:05 EDT news709292041 An ironic development emerging alongside the "Make America Healthy Again" movement is the portrayal of nicotine as a wellness and performance-enhancing product. Across social media, podcasts, wellness communities and tech startups, prominent wellness personalities and other influencers are portraying nicotine as a misunderstood compound whose potential benefits have been overshadowed by its negative association with cigarette smoking. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-pronicotine-wellness-movement-rebranded-addictive.html Economics & Business Tue, 22 Sep 2026 20:00:01 EDT news709291363 A synthetic biology technology has been developed that converts easily degraded messenger RNA (mRNA) into a ring-shaped form inside microbial cells, increasing protein production. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-circular-mrna-cell-factories-protein.html Biotechnology Mon, 21 Sep 2026 19:40:06 EDT news709221963 During infection, bacteria encounter rapidly changing and stressful environments inside the body. To understand how they adapt, researchers often measure messenger RNA (mRNA), which carries information from genes that can be translated into proteins. While mRNA levels are widely used to monitor bacterial responses, proteins carry out much of the work inside the cell and are influenced by processes that occur after RNA has been produced. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-stress-bacterial-rna-proteins-stories.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 21 Sep 2026 13:00:12 EDT news709212121 One evening in August 2025, a Pakistani shepherd, Abuzar Hussain, was tending sheep and goats on the mountain slopes of Shijar. At about 6 p.m., a thunderous roar shattered the silence of the valley. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-emergency-people-extreme-weather.html Environment Fri, 18 Sep 2026 14:20:04 EDT news708955801 Across parts of the internet where young men trade tips on self-improvement, the latest project is scent. Deodorant is out, and washing less is in. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-showers-latest-trend-science-pheromone.html Social Sciences Tue, 15 Sep 2026 17:00:02 EDT news708683941 Messenger RNA, or mRNA, is best known for carrying genetic instructions from DNA to the cellular machinery that makes proteins. But all RNA molecules have another, less appreciated property: They are naturally sticky. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-sticky-situation-cells-messenger-rnas.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 15 Sep 2026 13:40:10 EDT news708691081 Research underway in the lab of Rebecca Alexander, a professor in Wake Forest University's Department of Chemistry, is shedding light on an unusual human bacterium, Mycoplasma penetrans. Alexander's work to understand how and why this unique pathogen acts as it does could one day lead to new classes of drugs that better target illnesses associated with this particular pathogen, as well as others that act similarly. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-unusual-bacterium-penetrates-human-cells.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 10 Sep 2026 16:20:01 EDT news708262168 Mercury's surface is riddled with wrinkles, evidence of a once-larger planet that has shrunk over time. A new study finds that Mercury may have contracted 10% to 30% more than previously thought—a loss of nearly 12 miles (19 kilometers) of total diameter since the planet formed—due to debris from impact craters obscuring signs of the planet's shrinking. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-mercury-thought.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 10 Sep 2026 09:00:05 EDT news707736901 Fire ants have earned their reputation as one of Australia's most damaging invasive pests. From ruined picnics to serious impacts on agriculture, biodiversity and public health, they are notoriously difficult to control. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-ants-genomics.html Plants & Animals Wed, 09 Sep 2026 12:20:08 EDT news708161701 Every cell relies on ribosomes, the molecular machines that read genetic instructions and use them to assemble proteins. A cell needs thousands of types of proteins at any one time, so ribosomes must be generalists, capable of using instructions to produce any protein. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-rewire-ribosomes-specialize-protein.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 08 Sep 2026 19:40:01 EDT news708105962 After an eight-year journey, a spacecraft carrying European and Japanese probes began the monthslong, high-risk approach to Mercury on Thursday to study the sun-scorched planet. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-spacecraft-bound-mercury-tricky.html Planetary Sciences Sat, 05 Sep 2026 06:20:01 EDT news707723332 As the BepiColombo mission prepares to enter the final phase of its journey to Mercury, a series of studies conducted by researchers at the University of Liège and KU Leuven sheds new light on the early stages of the evolution of the planet closest to the sun. Using experimental petrology, the researchers are reconstructing in the laboratory the formation of Mercury's core, the crystallization of its magma ocean and the formation of its mantle. The studies are published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Nature Communications and Advances in Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-mercury-graphite-crust-core.html Planetary Sciences Fri, 04 Sep 2026 16:00:01 EDT news707746443 Two Mercury-bound spacecraft left their mother ship behind on Thursday and headed down the home stretch of their nearly decade-long voyage to the solar system's smallest and closest-to-the-sun planet. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-pair-spacecraft-closer-mercury-decade.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 03 Sep 2026 12:30:02 EDT news707656831 When plants are attacked by herbivores or pathogens, they must respond rapidly while also preparing for potential future attacks. Calcium, a cellular second messenger, and the plant hormone jasmonic acid play important roles in this response. Within seconds of an injury, the plant generates calcium waves that relay information about the attack. At the same time, the synthesis of jasmonic acid is initiated in the chloroplast, triggering, through several intermediate steps, the expression of defense genes in the cell nucleus. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-important-role-plastid-ion-channels.html Plants & Animals Mon, 31 Aug 2026 19:40:04 EDT news707408983 Earlier this summer, the four of us spent three days in a room with a dozen others whose jobs sound nothing like ours, or like each other's: a cosmologist, an emergency management scholar, a genetic counselor, a hydrologist, a neuropsychologist, a health risk communication scholar, a cognitive neuroscientist, a theater director, an investigative journalist and a meteorologist. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-communicating-uncertainty-hard.html Education Mon, 31 Aug 2026 13:40:07 EDT news707392862 While a colleague traveled along the East Coast from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico collecting oysters, Northeastern University bioinformatics graduate student Megha Prasad worked away at her computer. She zeroed in on DNA, the molecule containing instructions for making proteins that shape the critters' traits. It also holds the key to their adaptation to the changing climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-ai-uncover-oyster-dna-linked.html Ecology Thu, 27 Aug 2026 09:00:07 EDT news707033222 While quantum computing could be the future, it is currently plagued by finicky hardware. To make the technology practical, researchers must demonstrate that it consistently and continuously works and performs at scale. In a new study, published in Physical Review Letters, researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and the Ion Storage Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colorado, created a robust process for entangling trapped-ion qubits. The result means better building blocks for ion-based quantum computers. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-ramped-fields-robust-entanglement-ion.html Quantum Physics Wed, 26 Aug 2026 18:20:06 EDT news706969261