news 2026

A four-year study in the Dutch part of the North Sea shows that a small-scale offshore solar farm did not cause measurable changes in currents and water mixing. At the same time, multiple species settled on the floating installations within a short period of time, including mussels, barnacles and other small marine animals.

Research published in Science Advances has uncovered new insights into why the most aggressive oesophageal cancers are so difficult to treat and how the body's own defence systems are helping them to thrive. The study, led by Professor Eileen Parkes and her team in the Department of Oncology at the University of Oxford, analysed patient-donated tumour samples and found that the most dangerous types of oesophageal cancers share a key feature: high chromosomal instability.

This weekend we will be switching to a new system for handling student queries. From 16 March you can track the status of your question or request in your portal. Click to read the news article. Better insulation and ventilation in social housing means that children need less medication for asthma or allergies.

The new experimental compound works through an epigenetic mechanism that acts not only on the symptoms of the disease, but directly on the molecular mechanisms that contribute to its progression. Health A team from the University of Barcelona has designed and validated in animal models an innovative compound with a pioneering mechanism of action for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

The University and University Hospital of Würzburg have demonstrated magnetic particle imaging on humans for the first time. The new procedure enables radiation-free visualisation of blood vessels in real time. 131 years ago, the physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered the rays named after him in Würzburg, enabling completely new methods for visualising the human body.

Three striking new species of rock-dwelling monitor lizards have been  formally described  from the savannas of north-eastern Queensland, revealing a previously unrecognised evolutionary lineage. The discovery, led by researchers from The Australian National University (ANU), identified the Rainbow Rock Monitor ( Varanus iridis ), the Orange-headed Rock Monitor ( Varanus umbra ) and the Yellow-headed Rock Monitor ( Varanus phosphoros ).

Does feeding less protein over a longer period not only reduce nitrogen losses, but also affect methane emissions? Researchers at Wageningen University & Research (WUR) investigated this in a multi-year study with dairy cows, funded by the Vereniging Diervoederonderzoek Nederland (VDN), LVVN and the Melkveefonds.

There is more than just graphene: In an interdisciplinary project, researchers have focused on a new class of two-dimensional materials known as MXenes. This versatile group of materials is suitable for a wide range of applications, from energy storage to medicine. Two-dimensional materials consisting of a single layer of atoms are currently the subject of intense research.

In Yellowstone National Park, birds primarily search for food in areas where wolves frequently hunt prey Ravens and wolves: Ravens are often seen flying with wolves, following their tracks, or gathering quickly at fresh carcasses A twist in the tale: New research reveals that ravens don't simply follow wolves, they remember common hunting grounds and regularly check back for fresh meat.

How does a tiny cluster of cells become an embryo with a head, trunk, and tail? And how do thousands of genes coordinate this development? A new imaging method makes it possible to visualize the activity of thousands of genes simultaneously throughout the entire zebrafish embryo. Using this technology, a research team at the University of Basel has created an atlas of all genes and cells involved in turning a cluster of cells into an embryo.

Although invasive alien species are very often reduced to predators eliminating defenseless prey, in reality they do more than simply weaken certain species: they fundamentally reshape the environment itself. In order to better assess the impacts of the roughly 3,500 invasive species on the environment, an international team of scientists led by a researcher from the CNRS 1 has developed an evolution of the " Environmental Impact Classification of Alien Taxa " (EICAT) standard.

Inflammation-related protein changes could help predict cognitive impairment after a strokeespecially in smokers Researchers at The University of Manchester have found that tracking changes in a protein linked to inflammation (interleukin-6) after a stroke could help identify people at risk of later memory and thinking problems (also known as cognitive problems).

News from At Leipzig University Medicine, scientists are researching how bodies, organs, cells and microbes talk to each other. In an article in the newspaper "Die WELT", Dr. Rima Chakaroun and Veronica Witte, among others, show how close laboratory and life, molecules and people, stomach and brain really are - and what all this reveals about our health and the possibility of personalized therapies.

An international research team including Stefan Kimeswenger, astrophysicist at the University of Innsbruck, has tested a new approach to studying Earth-like exoplanets. The idea is to combine a large, earth-based telescope with a "sunshade" orbiting in space. How likely are habitable exoplanets, i.e. Earth-like planets outside our solar system? This is the question behind large-scale feasibility study , a project in which Nobel Prize winners Michel Mayor and John Mather were among those involved.

A research team from the University of Valencia has analysed the scientific evidence available suggesting that cancer and cardiovascular disease are not independent conditions but share important metabolic and biological mechanisms.

People affected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes AIDS, did not develop more severe forms of mpox - compared to HIV-negative people - during the multiregional outbreak of this disease that occurred in Spain in 2022.

New analysis of ancient parrot DNA has revealed vibrant Amazonian parrots were transported alive across the Andes to coastal Peru centuries before the Inca Empire, highlighting a sophisticated pre-Inca, long-distance trade network spanning rainforest, highlands and deserts. The international team of researchers, including scientists from The Australian National University (ANU), analysed parrot feathers that were discovered at Pachacamac, Peru - one of the preeminent religious centres of the Andean civilisation - far outside the birdsnative rainforest range.

A bone-like composite developed at EPFL uses naturally occurring enzymes to accelerate mineralization through an energy-efficient, room-temperature process. The strong, lightweight material shows promise for bone repair applications. Inspired by the resilient and self-repairing mechanical properties of bone, scientists have been developing synthetic materials using one of bone's main components: a mineral called hydroxyapatite (HA).

Breakthrough discovery provides new clues about how these celestial bodies - that push the known laws of physics to their limits - find each other. Scientists have uncovered the first robust evidence of a black hole and neutron star crashing together but orbiting in an oval path rather than a perfect circle just before they merged.

A Europe-wide citizen science study reveals common buzzards are becoming more uniform in colour Mapping colour: Scientists used nearly 100,000 citizen science observations to map and track common buzzard plumage colour across Europe. Unexpected patterns: Buzzard colours vary geographically with patterns that defy theories linking colour to habitat and climate.