science wire

An invasive insect with an insatiable appetite can cause serious problems for a favorite native moth that likes the same food source - even though the two are never in direct competition for a meal, according to new research from University of Wisconsin-Madison ecologists.

A unique influenza vaccine candidate that's inhaled and based on technology developed by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers is safe and could bolster protection against seasonal and pandemic influenza for people vulnerable to severe disease when they receive it in addition to the annual flu shot.

People with Parkinson's disease are receiving a new treatment in a clinical trial started after University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists demonstrated the safety and feasibility of the therapeutic delivery method in a study of non-human primates. Parkinson's disease damages neurons in the brain that produce dopamine, a brain chemical that transmits signals between nerve cells.

An invasive fungus that colonizes the skin of hibernating bats with deadly consequences is a stealthy invader that uses multiple strategies to slip into the small mammals' skin cells and quietly manipulate them to aid its own survival.

In a rare opportunity to study carnivores before and after wolves were reintroduced to their ranges, researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that the effects of wolves on Isle Royale have been only temporary.

The small footprint and dim light of white dwarfs, remnants of stars that have burned through their fuel, may make excellent backdrops for studying planets with enough water to harbor life.

On a hot summer day, nothing hits the spot quite like ice cream, especially here in the Dairy State. But while a frozen treat can help you cool off, it also puts you in a race against the clock to finish your scoop before it becomes a puddle - or worse, a sticky mess coating your hands, favorite shirts and new jeans.

In a future scenario where astronauts chart long-distance space flights, they won't be able to call down to earth for a shipment of replacement hardware components like they do today.

Many pancreatic tumors are like malignant fortresses, surrounded by a dense matrix of collagen and other tissue that shields them from immune cells and immunotherapies that have been effective in treating other cancers. Employing bacteria to infiltrate that cancerous fortification and deliver these drugs could aid treatment for pancreatic cancer, according to newly published findings from a team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.

In the last few months, the same strain of bird flu virus that has been circulating since 2022 has spread to dairy herds, with confirmed infections in at least nine states.

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable way to make a popular pain reliever and other valuable products from plants instead of petroleum.

Walleye are one of the most sought-after species in freshwater sportfishing, a delicacy on Midwestern menus and a critically important part of the culture of many Indigenous communities. They are also struggling to survive in the warming waters of the Midwestern United States and Canada. According to a new study published Feb.

Women took on more education-related childcare responsibilities than men during the first several months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and this disparity was even sharper for some lower-income women, according to a new University of Wisconsin-Madison study.

Air samplers placed in school cafeterias provided an accurate look at a flu epidemic and at constant low levels of COVID-19 infections in a K-12 school district during the 2022-23 school year, accord

People who were more skeptical of human-caused climate change or the Black Lives Matter movement who took part in conversation with a popular AI chatbot were disappointed with the experience but left the conversation more supportive of the scientific consensus on climate change or BLM.

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health has been awarded funding from the National Institutes of Health for a nationwide research initiative to investigate the neurobiology of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

We often look to the smallest lifeforms for help solving the biggest problems: Microbes help make foods and beverages, cure diseases, treat waste and even clean up pollution. Yeast and bacteria can also convert plant sugars into biofuels and chemicals traditionally derived from fossil fuels - a key component of most plans to slow climate change.

This year, the University of Wisconsin-Madison achieved something it never has before: The university exceeded $1.5 billion in research expenditures.

Trying something new is a risk every child undertakes as they explore and learn about the world. While risk can be costly, it can also pay off in rewards or knowledge. But new research suggests children without predictable support from the adults in their lives are less willing to take those risks - and reap those rewards.

COVID-19 caused an alarming surge in premature births, but vaccines were key to returning the early birth rate to pre-pandemic levels, according to a new analysis of California birth records. "The effect of maternal COVID infection from the onset of the pandemic into 2023 is large, increasing the risk of preterm births over that time by 1.2 percentage points," says Jenna Nobles, a University of Wisconsin-Madison sociology professor.

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies that could be critical tools to combat climate change have developed in line with other technologies from the last century. However, according to new studies led by Gregory Nemet, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, these technologies need to develop faster to meet policy targets aimed at limiting global warming.

Leonardo da Vinci may have been a genius, but he was also a hot mess - at least in terms of organizing his works.

With new funding from the U.S. Office of Naval Research, an interdisciplinary initiative led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison will continue to grow its research on concussions and other traumatic brain injuries. Christian Franck , a professor of mechanical engineering at UW-Madison, started the initiative, called PANTHER , in 2017.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison made an unexpected discovery while studying a strain of yeast closely related to the kind used to ferment beer - they observed the yeast left half its genetic material behind while evolving.

Removing a gene that manages stress within insulin-producing beta cells draws helpful attention from the immune system, protecting mice predisposed to Type 1 diabetes from developing the disease, a new University of Wisconsin-Madison study shows. The study also found that changes discovered in the modified mouse beta cells are also present in human beta cells that manage to survive the widespread beta-cell death that characterizes Type 1 diabetes.

It's 1982 and Karen Strier is walking uphill in a small, fragmented section of Brazil's Atlantic Forest.

A multi-disciplinary team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers, led by the Center for Healthy Minds and the Wisconsin Institute for Sleep and Consciousness, is set to begin a highly novel,

You're in a room, and everyone is talking at the same time. It's loud and chaotic. You hear many voices, and while you occasionally pick out a word, for the most part it's all noise.

The risk of incarceration for Black men in the United States was cut nearly in half between 1999 and 2019, according to a new study that assesses the impact of falling rates of imprisonment in each of the 50 states.

Successful kidney transplants rely on the biological compatibility of the donor and recipient but still require long-term use of drugs to tamp down the recipient's immune system and prevent donor organ rejection.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are taking part in a new collaboration built on open-science principles that will use machine learning to advance our knowledge of promising sources of magnetic fusion energy.

Thanks to Barbie, the new live-action film that's setting box-office records globally, Barbie is not only making us think pink - she's really making us think .

Teens and young adults who received a brief social media counseling session during a health care visit remembered the lessons and reported safer online behavior six months later, according to a large new study from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. The study involved nearly 11,000 young people ages 14 to 25 and was published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

Researchers are in an arms race with hackers to prevent data theft. Their standard tools include strategies like multi-factor authentication systems, fingerprint technology and retinal scans.

Conventional wisdom among ecologists holds that the more species there are inhabiting an ecosystem, the less vulnerable any one species will be to a threat like a parasite. A new study of tadpoles at the University of Wisconsin-Madison illustrates how overlapping biological and environmental factors can complicate how we value protecting diverse animal communities.

Freshwater ecosystems account for half of global emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Rivers and streams, especially, are thought to emit a substantial amount of that methane, but the rates and patterns of these emissions at global scales remain largely undocumented.

Although many Americans dutifully deposit their plastic trash into the appropriate bins each week, many of those materials, including flexible films, multilayer materials and a lot of colored plastics, are not recyclable using conventional mechanical recycling methods. In the end, only about 9 percent of plastic in the United States is ever reused, often in low-value products.

Researchers led by a team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have created the first tool to map and visualize the areas where human settlements and nature meet on a global scale.

Communicating science to a general audience can be challenging. Successfully conveying research on polarizing topics such as climate change can be even more difficult. But a new study from University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher Nan Li shows that intentionally integrating art with data visualizations can help non-expert audiences more meaningfully engage with climate change while also bridging political divides in ways that data alone cannot.

Chronic inflammatory diseases can compromise brain health and increase dementia risk, but why and how that happens is a lingering scientific puzzle.

With new support from the National Institutes of Health, a team of researchers at the Wisconsin Institute of Discovery will lead drug therapeutics testing for two diseases known to cause blindness. Over the next five years, the collaborative project will use the $29 million NIH grant to merge new drug delivery systems with advanced genome CRISPR technology, innovating new treatments for Best Disease (BD) and Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA), both of which are currently untreatable hereditary diseases.

Climate change is subjecting plants to rapid shifts in temperature and precipitation, pushing them into new ranges and stressing them in old ones. Trees may have an easier time adapting in both cases by making new microbial friends underground, according to new research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Corporate investments in climate-tech start-ups are a growing but overlooked aspect of energy innovation.

University of Wisconsin-Madison pediatrician Bruce Klein is trying to save bats.

While recent studies and polls indicate the nation is in the midst of a mental health crisis, the situation in academia is even more grim: Within the high-stress, high-pressure, often socially isolat

Editor's note: When it comes to helping Wisconsin residents and the state's economy, you Can't Stop a Badger . This March, see how UW-Madison scientists conduct cutting-edge research that delivers tangible benefits for Wisconsinites and the world. Follow along using #CantStopABadger on social media.