The It Ain't Magic Science Blog

Marsupial heart regeneration ability given to mice

Regeneration of mouse hearts ? ?? after birth achieved by figuring out how it’s possible in opossums.

Microcolumns: elementary neuronal units that carpet the (mouse) brain

A hexagonal lattice organizes major cell types in the cerebral cortex, with similar cells synchronizing their activity in microcolumns.

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The brain’s GPS has a buddy system

In addition to encoding self location, brain cells in the rat hippocampus act like a GPS that encodes the location of other rats.

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Staining that lights up whole organs and bodies

Scientists have developed a staining procedure that makes see-through tissue, organs, and bodies useful.

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RIKEN discovers new T cells related to immune disorders

Immune-related diseases like multiple sclerosis associated with genetic variation in newly discovered, rare T cells.

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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.

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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!

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Promising mouse model for Ngly1 deficiency

A recent study of Ngly1 deficient mice used a secondary knockout to create double knockouts with symptoms similar to human NGLY1 deficiency.

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A researcher’s journey: from surfing to studying pain

Joshua Johansen from RIKEN CBS tells us about his journey from surfer to pain researcher and beyond. Stay tuned for part II …

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Centennial RIKEN Research

???This Spring we’ve put together a special centennial issue of RIKEN Research ???

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Physiological origami and proper body development in flies

Genetics and mechanical origami in the fly embryo helps proper body development by fighting off “noisy” fluctuations is the environment.

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A new imaging biomarker for the aging brain

Enlarged ventricles is a sign of an aging brain. New research shows that this phenomenon can be predicted by lagging brain circulation that is detected by MRI.

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H2AK119ub1: How you inherit acquired traits from your mom

H2AK119ub1. Say that three times really fast! But seriously, it allows maternally acquired traits to be inherited.

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Apr

Chaos theory provides hints for controlling the weather

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

Computer simulations were used to show that small adjustments to certain variables in the weather system could modify weather phenomena such as sudden downpours.

Mar

Robotic exoskeleton learns to help people stand up

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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

Feb

Nanocarrier spray: better crops without genetic modification

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Gene expression, but not genomes, altered in plants and crops with a spray containing bioactive molecules tethered to nanocarrier peptides

Feb

Introducing Nikola, the emotional android boy

by adam phillips | Featured, Hot Off the Press

A new android named Nikola will help researchers study facial expressions, emotions, and social interactions.

Feb

Green hydrogen production for fuel cells and fertilizers

by adam phillips | Featured, Hot Off the Press

A new method of water electrolysis avoids rare metals, making hydrogen production green and sustainable.

Feb

Social contact-seeking behavior and loneliness in the brain

by adam phillips | Featured, Hot Off the Press

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.

Feb

New treatment assembles cancer drug inside the body

by masataka sasabe | Featured, Hot Off the Press

Cancer drugs assembled inside the body on cancer cells should reduce harmful side effects to other tissue.

Jan

New lab-grown retinal sheets almost ready for clinical trials

by adam phillips | Featured, Hot Off the Press

A new retinal transplant technique works by preventing bipolar cells from maturing in lab-grown retinal sheets.

Jan

The free-energy principle explains neural network behavior

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Scientists show that the free-energy principle can explain how neural networks work.

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.

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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.