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. Rice University engineers have developed a new strategy for controlling how therapeutic peptides are released from gelatin-based materials, a step that could make the small but powerful molecules more useful in tissue engineering and drug delivery. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-based-strategy-delivery-therapeutic-peptides.html Biotechnology Sun, 09 Aug 2026 07:20:01 EDT news705327575 "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" turns organic web production into a superpower. In the 2026 film, Tom Holland's character, Peter Parker, begins producing webbing inside his body and shooting it from his wrists, rather than firing synthetic web fluid from the wrist-mounted mechanical web-shooters he used in earlier films. The switch transforms a familiar superhero technology into a biological ability and highlights the spectacular properties of real spider silk. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-spider-silk-biological-feat.html Plants & Animals Tue, 04 Aug 2026 18:00:05 EDT news705060796 A University of California San Diego research team has found a better way to understand and stabilize hydroxyapatite, the calcium phosphate mineral that makes up much of our teeth and bones. By adding tiny amounts of europium, a rare-earth element that mimics calcium, the team discovered a way to make the material potentially more useful for medical imaging. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-bone-minerals.html Biochemistry Thu, 30 Jul 2026 23:20:03 EDT news704633811 A naturally abundant plant material best known for giving trees and crops their strength may one day help repair broken bones, according to a new study led by postdoctoral researcher Dr. Srinath Palakurthy and Professor Rivka Elbaum of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-derived-lignin-bone-minerals.html Biochemistry Tue, 28 Jul 2026 14:40:01 EDT news704463362 Researchers from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) are playing a key role in the summer exhibition wONDERLAND at the Yper Museum. Thanks to interdisciplinary research on more than 1,000 excavated skeletons, they have succeeded in giving the anonymous medieval city dweller a face and a voice once again after centuries. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-migration-lifestyle-health-social-status.html Archaeology Fri, 24 Jul 2026 21:20:01 EDT news704104742 Researchers from the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences (FCMS) at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC-SP) in Sorocaba, in the interior of the state of São Paulo, Brazil, have developed a biomaterial containing jackfruit latex, pomegranate peel extract, and simvastatin (a statin-based medication) that shows promising efficacy in treating periodontitis. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-biomaterial-jackfruit-latex-treatment-periodontitis.html Biochemistry Tue, 02 Jun 2026 19:40:03 EDT news699632101 Stanford scientists have discovered a new type of immune cell that kills surrounding cells via explosion—a cellular detonation so fast and complete that the cell vanishes within minutes, leaving no trace behind. This discovery comes from an unlikely source: planarian flatworms. These aquatic, slithering pancake versions of worms are famous for their ability to survive dismemberment and grow whole new organisms from the sliced-up segments of their formerly unified body. Understanding how these flatworms' immune systems have managed to endure for hundreds of millions of years could hold important insights for modern medicine. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-flatworms-reveal-immune-cells-tissue.html Evolution Tue, 02 Jun 2026 11:00:07 EDT news699543121 The Mexican axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is famous because adults look like overgrown babies, or tadpoles, retaining juvenile features as adults and capable of remarkable regeneration of lost limbs or tails. New studies at the National Autonomous University of Mexico have revealed a new species related to this living form. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fossil-salamander-species-famous-axolotl.html Plants & Animals Tue, 26 May 2026 17:40:01 EDT news699005399 For centuries, the inability to regrow lost body parts has been considered a defining limitation of humans and other mammals. While animals like salamanders can regenerate entire limbs, humans are left with scar tissue. But new research from the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) suggests that this limitation may not be permanent. Instead, the capacity for regeneration may still exist—hidden within the body's normal healing process. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-humans-regrow-tissue-science-closer.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 23 Apr 2026 15:00:01 EDT news696165421 Investigating a common gene in three very different species—salamanders, mice and zebrafish—scientists have discovered the potential for a novel gene therapy aimed at eventually regrowing limbs in humans, according to new research published this week. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-regrowing-human-limbs-salamander-gene.html Biotechnology Thu, 16 Apr 2026 14:40:07 EDT news695562421 New research by an interdisciplinary team in Lithuania has revealed a promising and unconventional approach to cartilage regeneration. Using extracellular vesicles derived from menstrual blood stromal cells, the researchers demonstrated their potential to stimulate cartilage repair—paving the way for a future cell-free therapy for osteoarthritis. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-menstrual-blood-derived-particles-osteoarthritis.html Bio & Medicine Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:40:03 EDT news695034481 Experiments conducted in Brazil using laboratory rats have shown that graphene-based structures can act as a powerful ally in bone regeneration. These structures are made of sheets of the chemical element carbon that are just one atom thick. They can help heal fractures or bone loss. In the tests, the biocompatible matrix containing graphene facilitated nearly 90% repair of the damage sustained by the test subjects one month after the fracture was induced in the laboratory—a superior performance to that of other materials used in the research. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-graphene-scaffold-bone-cells-body.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 01 Apr 2026 14:30:01 EDT news694271641 In a study published in Cell Research, researchers have identified a fibrous-layer resident subpopulation of P-SSCs labeled by Angptl7. They found that these cells are crucial for bone fracture repair by mediating endochondral ossification, but exhibit minimal osteogenic capacity during postnatal bone development and maintenance. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-stem-cell-subpopulation-essential-bone.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 19 Jan 2026 16:30:01 EST news688058575 Teeth function not only because of the hard enamel on the surface, but also because they have roots that anchor them firmly in the jawbone beneath the gums. Eating, speaking, and maintaining the shape of the face—teeth are essential for supporting our daily lives. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-center-cell-orchestrates-tooth-root.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 09 Jan 2026 09:45:40 EST news687174296 An international collaboration study reveals how evolution and locomotion patterns, such as bipedalism, shaped bone structures through proteins present in the bone matrix. The findings of the study, led by researchers from the University of Turku, the UAB and the URL, are important for understanding bone fragility and regeneration and could help guide the development of biomaterials inspired by natural skeletal adaptation. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-key-proteins-reveal-evolution-locomotion.html Evolution Thu, 18 Dec 2025 13:08:22 EST news685285681 A research team in South Korea has successfully developed a novel technology that combines nanoparticles with stem cells to significantly improve 3D bone tissue regeneration. This advancement marks a step forward in the treatment of bone fractures and injuries, as well as in next-generation regenerative medicine. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-nanoparticlestem-cell-hybrids-horizon-bone.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 12 Nov 2025 10:14:03 EST news682164841 A research team from the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology at the University of Hong Kong's LKS Faculty of Medicine (HKUMed) has successfully developed a novel elastic calcium phosphate material that mimics the structure of human bone. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-nano-bone-material-high-elasticity.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 13 Oct 2025 09:55:05 EDT news679568102 A pioneering liquid metal combination is shaping up as a potential secret weapon in the global fight against antimicrobial resistance, and promises to outlast existing implant materials. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-orthopedic-implants-aim-longer-liquid.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 08 Oct 2025 11:17:03 EDT news679141021 A set of bones belonging to sauropods, as long-necked dinosaurs are called, found in the municipality of Ibirá in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, reveals that the region was conducive to a bone disease that was fatal to these animals. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-deadly-bone-disease-doomed-southeast.html Paleontology & Fossils Wed, 27 Aug 2025 17:11:03 EDT news675533461 In a breakthrough for regenerative medicine, a new study from IMDEA Materials Institute researchers has demonstrated the potential of 3D-printed carbon microlattices as structurally tunable scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-3d-carbon-scaffolds-potential-bone.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 22 Jul 2025 11:00:09 EDT news672399718 The sugar glucose, which is the main source of energy in almost every living cell, has been revealed in a Stanford Medicine study to also be a master regulator of tissue differentiation—the process by which stem cells give rise to specialized cells that make up all the body's tissues. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-glucose-life-reveals-role-master.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 26 Mar 2025 12:02:00 EDT news662209316 Apical periodontitis, a chronic and hard-to-treat dental infection, affects more than half of the population worldwide and is the leading cause of tooth loss. Root canal is the standard treatment, but existing approaches to treat the infection have many limitations that can cause complications, leading to treatment failure. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-nanoparticles-treatment-root-canal-infection.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 24 Feb 2025 12:31:04 EST news659622661 Hidden within our bones, marrow sustains life by producing billions of blood cells daily, from oxygen-carrying red cells to immune-boosting white cells. This vital function is often disrupted in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiation, which can damage the marrow and lead to dangerously low white cell counts, leaving patients vulnerable to infection. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-nature-blueprint-scientists-replicate-bone.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 30 Jan 2025 08:57:07 EST news657449821 The world's thinnest spaghetti, about 200 times thinner than a human hair, has been created by a UCL-led research team. The spaghetti is not intended to be a new food but was created because of the wide-ranging uses that extremely thin strands of material, called nanofibers, have in medicine and industry. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-chemists-world-thinnest-spaghetti.html Nanomaterials Thu, 21 Nov 2024 13:10:01 EST news651416913 Scientists have created a new 'biocooperative' material based on blood, which has been shown to successfully repair bones, paving the way for personalized regenerative blood products that could be used as effective therapies to treat injury and disease. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-scientists-blood-regenerative-materials-paving.html Biochemistry Sun, 17 Nov 2024 11:50:01 EST news650893810 The efficient use of cellulose—the primary plant scaffold and a major natural building block—could address many issues associated with petroleum-based polymers across various industries. In the search for more sustainable uses of cellulose, Lithuanian scientists have developed a production method for a nanofibrous cellulose matrix, which has the potential to replace non-renewable industrial even in biomedical applications. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-eco-friendly-nanofibrous-cellulose-matrix.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 30 Oct 2024 15:09:04 EDT news649519741 Each year, about 2.2 million bone-grafting procedures are performed worldwide, the gold standard of care being autografting, which uses the patient's own bone for tooth implantation and to repair and reconstruct parts of the mouth, face and skull. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-bone-grafts-nanofibrous-scaffolds-main.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 26 Sep 2024 16:30:03 EDT news646587001 Scientists from Sun Yat-sen University's School of Biomedical Engineering have developed tubular scaffolds made from electrospun membranes, which significantly enhance bone regeneration in critical skull defects. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-tubular-scaffolds-boost-stem-cell.html Biochemistry Thu, 12 Sep 2024 14:16:03 EDT news645369361 3D bioprinting is an advanced tissue engineering technique that builds complex tissues using bioactive substances like living cells and scaffolds. It provides personalized tissue repair solutions, reducing immune rejection by using patient-specific cells. Common-used 3D bioprinting materials include polycaprolactone (PCL) and poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) for hard tissue and hydrogels for soft tissue. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-3d-bioprinting-materials-possibility-bone.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 02 Sep 2024 12:59:59 EDT news644500796 A new technique developed by McGill researchers for mechanically manipulating stem cells could lead to new stem cell treatments, which have yet to fulfill their therapeutic potential. https://phys.org/news/2024-08-advance-stem-cell-therapy-technique.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 13 Aug 2024 11:56:21 EDT news642768979