Transgenic plants ??on acid survive without water


Scientists designed transgenic plants that survive drought-like conditions by bumping up acetic acid production only when water is scarce.

Real webshooters? Synthetic spider silk spun from artificial gland


Scientists create a microfluidic device that spins artificial spider silk from spidroins proteins, duplicating silk’s complex molecular structure.

Telework: a societal game-changer


COVID-19 series — installment #3: Team Leader Osamu Sakura (@RIKEN Center for Advanced Intelligence Project) talks about how the pandemic has affected society through the need for telework.

Robotic exoskeleton learns to help people stand up


This new robotic exoskeleton uses machine learning to know when users want help standing up.

In living color: imaging the brain with synthetic bioluminescence


A new way to image the brain from outside the head using bioluminescence.

Brainless memory makes the spinal cord smarter than previously thought


The spinal cord learns how to direct limb muscles to avoid aversive sensations and recalls the memories using separate neural circuitry. Oh, and without a brain!

Follow Us

Topics

Latest research animations

Self-assembly of spider silk

This gut microbe might protect against diabetes and reduce insulin resistance

NEW: One-way hydrogel guides motion of tiny worms!

Latest Posts

Dec

21

The stars align

The stars align


The stars align. That’s what you say, when things work out perfectly. In the case of an eclipse, of course, it’s not stars that align but rather the moon and sun.

Microbial infections are a parasitic plant’s dream


Parasitic plants use quinones produced by their host to attack. Now we know that crops produce quinones as an immune response against microbial infection. How can we protect crops from both kinds of attack?

What’s that smell? The advantage of sniffing


Rhythmic sniffing boosts phase-coded neuronal signals in the mouse olfactory bulb that allow odors to be identified.

Telework: a societal game-changer


COVID-19 series — installment #3: Team Leader Osamu Sakura (@RIKEN Center for Advanced Intelligence Project) talks about how the pandemic has affected society through the need for telework.

Super-thin wearable electronics just got more flexible


A method for making super-flexible and ultra-thin wearable electronics uses water-vapor plasma to create gold-gold bonds.

Melatonin in mice, circadian rhythms, and daily torpor


A new breed of lab mouse allows the study of naturally occurring melatonin. These mice will adjust better to jetlag than regular lab mice and experience daily torpor.

Blocking obesity with a protein-sugar combination


Discovery of an enzyme that prevents obesity in mice through glycosylation of a protein involved fat-cell differentiation.

Why (mouse) mothers take risks to protect their infants


The calcitonin receptor and its ligand amylin act in the brain to motivate mouse mothers to protect their pups, even in risky/dangerous situations.

Social contact-seeking behavior and loneliness in the brain


Levels of the peptide amylin in the brain are related to loneliness; activating amylin neurons in the MPOA drives isolated mice to seek social contact.

How does gravity affect antimatter?


Scientists find that antimatter reacts to gravity the same way that regular matter does.

Diazoxide pills for Alzheimer’s disease?


Drug therapy with with diazoxide relieved symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in the brains of mice and improved memory.