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In today's medical landscape, antibiotics are pivotal in combatting bacterial infections. These potent compounds, produced by bacteria and fungi, act as natural defenses against microbial attacks. A team of researchers delved into the intricate world of glycopeptide antibiotics - a vital resource in countering drug-resistant pathogens - to uncover their evolutionary origins.

Slow waves that usually only occur in the brain during sleep are also present during wakefulness in people with epilepsy and may protect against increased brain excitability associated with the condition, finds a new study led by researchers at UCL.

Levels of banned chemicals in UK-stranded orcas are 30 times over the toxic threshold, uncovers new research. Levels of banned chemicals in UK-stranded orcas are 30 times over the toxic threshold, uncovers new research. The finding is just one alarming discovery from the investigation into the scale at which chemical pollution threatens the future of marine mammals.

Researchers at CHU Sainte-Justine find a way to use 3D printing to produce heart valves for eventual use in surgery on children with cardiac defects. In a breakthrough in pediatric cardiac science, Canadian researchers have successfully produced a bio-ink that could someday be used to print functional, durable heart valves, offering hope for improving the prognosis of children with heart defects.

Freiburg neuroscientists identify signals in the brain of zebrafish larvae that suppress the activity of nerve cells during locomotion When the eye jumps from one point to another, the image of our surroundings rapidly passes across the retina and triggers a wave of neuronal activity. In order not to be overwhelmed by the sensory impressions produced by our own movements, the brain suppresses processing of the stimuli as this happens.

Angiosperm flowers reached their greatest morphological diversity early in their evolutionary history An international team of researchers around botanists at the University of Vienna, Austria, has now analyzed the morphological diversity of fossilized flowers and compared it with the diversity of living species.

Flavonoids & Co: Microorganisms in the human gut utilise so-called beta-elimination to break down plant natural products and thus make them available to humans. Fruit and vegetables contain a variety of plant natural products such as flavonoids, which give fruits their colour and are said to have health-promoting properties.

A study co-led by the Institut de Biologia Evolutiva and the Pompeu Fabra University with Illumina and the Baylor College of Medicine identifies hundreds of thousands of constrained regions, in the noncoding human genome, by comparing the largest database of primate and placental mammal genomes. The genomic elements discovered are exclusively constrained among primates and humans, and their function could shed light on how the human genome works.

One in 200 newborns is admitted to a neonatal unit with sepsis caused by a bacteria commonly carried by their mothers - much greater than the previous estimate, say Cambridge researchers. The team has developed an ultra-sensitive test capable of better detecting the bacteria, as it is missed in the vast majority of cases.

UCLA researchers detail how prostate cancers grow more aggressively to evade treatment Science + Technology UCLA researchers detail how prostate cancers grow more aggressively to evade treatment Key takeaways Some prostate cancers evolve into a rare, treatment-resitant tumor known as a small cell neuroendocrine, or SCN, cancer.

Heidelberg scientists unveil genetic programmes controlling the development of cellular diversity in the cerebellum of humans and other mammals The evolution of higher cognitive functions in human beings has so far mostly been linked to the expansion of the neocortex - a region of the brain that is responsible, inter alia, for conscious thought, movement and sensory perception.

Efficient removal of abnormal myelin allows survival of nerve fibers targeted by adaptive immune cells, according to a novel study by scientists of the University Hospital Würzburg. Myelin is an insulating sheath around axons - the processes connecting nerve cells - that is mostly composed of lipids and proteins.

Bonn researchers uncover contribution of Cylicin proteins to male fertility For successful fertilization, sperm should move forward rapidly and be shaped correctly. The unique structure of the sperm cells forms during spermiogenesis. Now, researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the Transdisciplinary Research Unit "Life & Health" at the University of Bonn have found that fertility problems in both mice and humans can be caused by loss of so-called cylicines.

Damage to the body's peripheral nerves can cause pain and movement disorders. Researchers at the Leipzig University have recently investigated how damaged nerves can regenerate better. They found that fat tissue strongly supports the Schwann cells needed for repair during the healing process. The results were published in the renowned journal "Cell Metabolism".

Researchers at Bath have developed a way of joining up the head and tail of a protein, making it more stable and easier to get into cells. Published on Tuesday 28 November 2023 Last updated on Tuesday 28 November 2023 Scientists at the University of Bath have used nature as inspiration in developing a new tool that will help researchers develop new pharmaceutical treatments in a cleaner, greener, and less expensive way.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Using fluorescent labels that switch on and off, MIT engineers can study how molecules in a cell interact to control the cell's behavior. Living cells are bombarded with many kinds of incoming molecular signal that influence their behavior. Being able to measure those signals and how cells respond to them through downstream molecular signaling networks could help scientists learn much more about how cells work, including what happens as they age or become diseased.

All animals start out as a single-celled organism and then start growing. At some point, of course, they need to stop getting bigger, but the process by which this happens is poorly understood. New research from Alexander Shingleton at the University of Illinois Chicago and colleagues identifies a potential trigger that makes fruit flies stop growing, which has implications for understanding human development.

Discovery may lead to medical advances in bio-implants, wearable sensors, and more How do you create strong, yet quick-release connections between living and non-living tissues? This is a question that continues to puzzle bioengineers who aim to create materials that bond together for advanced biomedical applications.

Protein-like aggregates known as amyloids can bind to molecules of genetic material. It is possible that these two types of molecules stabilised each other during the development of life - and that this might even have paved the way for the genetic code. How organisms develop from inanimate matter is one of the biggest questions in science.

A groundbreaking study reveals how Mycobacterium tuberculosis forms resilient cords within host cells, opening the way for a deeper understanding and innovative treatment of tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a lung disease caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium (Mtb). According , tuberculosis afflicts 10 million people globally and claims 1.5 million lives.