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For millions of people with osteoarthritis, pain and stiffness can make everyday activities increasingly difficult. Common treatments, including over-the-counter medications and steroid injections, may reduce symptoms for a time, but they do not prevent the underlying joint damage from progressing. New research from Yale suggests a different approach. In a…
A routine experiment involving a microscopic organism from a freshwater pond led scientists to an extraordinary genetic discovery. The tiny creature was found to interpret DNA instructions in a way researchers had never documented before, challenging a long held assumption about how the genetic code works. The surprise came when…
Scientists surveying underwater mountains off Costa Rica have identified a remarkable new coral that is unlike any known coral family. Its genetic makeup and physical features were so distinctive that researchers created an entirely new family to classify it. The bright yellow coral, which has a branching, tree-like appearance, was…
Archaeologists from La Trobe University have described 18 newly published hominin fossils from South Africa, including a second skull fragment belonging to Homo erectus. The discovery adds stronger evidence that the species was present in southern Africa 2.0 million years ago, about 200,000 years earlier than traditionally believed. The fossil…
NASA is moving closer to establishing humanity’s first Moon base with the selection of three scientific investigations designed to answer some of the biggest questions about living on the lunar surface. The missions will search for underground caves that could shelter astronauts, investigate hidden deposits of lunar ice, and monitor…
Short gamma-ray bursts, or short GRBs, are believed to occur when two compact objects, such as neutron stars, spiral toward one another before colliding and merging. These extraordinarily violent events produce gravitational waves and rank among the most powerful explosions in the Universe. For decades, astronomers have mainly detected these…
Just one week of strength training was enough to increase visceral fat breakdown in obese mice, even though their body weight had not yet changed. Researchers at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) found that seven days of exercise activated biological processes that break down stored fat, reduced the size…
A common vitamin D supplement may have an unexpected effect inside the body. Research published in 2025 found that taking vitamin D2 can reduce levels of vitamin D3, the form humans naturally make when skin is exposed to sunlight. That distinction matters because vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 are often…
A new study suggests that the trans fats naturally present in dairy foods, including milk, butter, and cheese, do not increase the risk of heart disease or type 2 diabetes. Researchers reviewed evidence from 22 studies involving thousands of participants in Europe, Canada and the United States. Their findings indicate…
Maternal mortality has become widely recognized as an urgent public health problem in the United States, although it took decades for the issue to receive sustained attention. The deaths of fathers, however, have attracted far less scrutiny. Research has shown that fathers, especially men in their 20s through early 40s,…
Stanford Medicine researchers have developed a two-part molecule that turns a major driver of B-cell lymphoma against the cancer cells that depend on it. In mice, twice-daily treatment with the experimental compound caused aggressive lymphoma tumors to disappear within 11 days. The work advances a strategy the research team has…
Scientists think one of the most important events in the early solar system was a colossal collision between the young Earth and a Mars-sized body known as Theia. The impact likely vaporized huge quantities of rock and hurled material into space. Some of that debris eventually came together to form…
Eating more sugar while taking antibiotics may intensify the disruption those drugs cause to beneficial gut bacteria, according to new research. The study focused on the intestinal microbiome, the vast community of bacteria that has evolved alongside humans and helps with digestion, immune function, and other essential processes. Antibiotics are…
A new Australian study suggests that zoo lions behave more like their wild counterparts when they are given whole animal carcasses as part of a feast and fast feeding schedule. Published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science, the research was conducted by Adelaide University and Monarto Safari Park in South Australia.…
Physicists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Grainger College of Engineering have uncovered evidence of an unusual form of superconducting behavior in uranium ditelluride. Their experiments show that Cooper pairs, the paired electrons that make superconductivity possible, can arrange themselves into uneven patterns even when the material is no longer…
Scientists may have found a new way to reduce harmful inflammation in the brain by targeting a receptor that can already be blocked with existing drugs. The research, published in Brain and led by Professor Nicholas Barnes at the University of Birmingham, identifies the P2X7 receptor as an important driver…
For scientists searching for life beyond Earth, rocky planets with atmospheres are among the most promising places to investigate. An atmosphere is essential for maintaining liquid water on a planet’s surface. Yet among the more than 6,300 exoplanets cataloged thus far, most are not rocky, and only a small number…
Earth’s center of mass does not stay perfectly still. As water, ice, and air move around the planet with the seasons, they redistribute enough weight to push the center of mass back and forth by fractions of an inch relative to Earth’s geometric center. NASA scientists carefully track this subtle…
CAR-T cell therapy has transformed the treatment of certain blood cancers, but getting the therapy to patients remains complicated, expensive, and slow. The standard process requires doctors to collect a patient’s immune cells and send them to a specialized facility, where the cells are genetically modified to recognize cancer. The…
Bacteria are remarkably good at adapting. That ability helps them survive changing conditions, but it can also create problems when harmful species become resistant to antibiotics and disinfectants. At the same time, bacteria are not simply enemies to eliminate. Many species play important roles in human health, including the hundreds…
New research from the University of Lincoln, UK, is questioning a long standing idea about the evolutionary roots of human violence. The findings suggest that everyday aggression does not necessarily build toward deadly conflict. Published in the international journal Evolution Letters, the study indicates that mild aggression and lethal violence…
New research suggests animals may have evolved up to 200 million years before they first appear clearly in the fossil record, challenging a key assumption scientists have used to estimate when animal life began. A study led by the University of Oxford suggests the earliest animals may have existed hundreds…
Northwestern scientists have identified, for the first time, a specific group of neurons — cells in the brain — that appear to contribute to anxiety caused by cannabinoid drugs, particularly when those drugs are combined with stressful conditions. Cannabinoids are a category of substances that includes THC, the main psychoactive…
New research suggests that advanced colorectal cancer is becoming more common in young patients, raising concerns that warning signs may be missed or recognized too late. The findings were presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics 2026 National Conference & Exhibition Oct. 2-6, 2026, at the San Diego Convention Center.…
Scientists have identified a way to restore cartilage in aging knee joints, at least in mice, by blocking a protein whose levels rise with age. The approach not only reversed naturally occurring cartilage loss in older animals, but also protected mice from developing arthritis after knee injuries similar to ACL…
About a century ago, archaeologists excavating pottery fragments around Tampa Bay encountered something puzzling. Some of the pieces carried decorations that looked strikingly similar to pottery found hundreds of miles farther north. On appearance alone, the fragments seemed connected to the Mississippian culture, which emerged more than 1,000 years ago…
Exercise is well known for supporting physical fitness and mental well being. New research from BYU suggests it may also offer benefits for marriage, particularly when spouses are active together. The study, recently published in Family Relations, found that couples who exercised together reported better communication, more effective conflict resolution…
In the universe’s earliest moments, temperatures reached trillions of degrees, creating an intensely hot mixture of quarks and gluons. These elementary particles raced around at nearly the speed of light in a state of matter known as quark-gluon plasma (QGP). This primordial material existed for only a few millionths of…
Becoming a mother can be difficult under any circumstances, but for some women, everyday obstacles can make getting medical care after childbirth especially challenging. Limited health literacy, unreliable transportation, difficulty navigating a complicated healthcare system, lack of childcare, and unstable housing can all determine whether a new mother receives needed…
Some of the most important reactions in nature depend on positively and negatively charged particles moving in a coordinated way. These reactions are essential to processes such as photosynthesis, catalysis and biological energy conversion, but they happen so quickly that they are extremely difficult to observe. A team led by…