Researchers at the University of Navarra in Spain, have developed RNACOREX, a new open-source software tool that reveals hidden genetic regulatory networks involved in cancer and helps predict patient survival. Tested across 13 different tumor types using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), RNACOREX identifies key interactions between microRNAs and messenger RNAs—molecular relationships that are often missed by conventional analyses.

Unlike many artificial intelligence models that function as “black boxes,” RNACOREX produces interpretable molecular maps that show how genes interact within tumors. These networks can stratify patients according to survival probability with accuracy comparable to advanced AI approaches, while clearly explaining the biological mechanisms behind the predictions.

Published in PLOS Computational Biology, the study demonstrates how RNACOREX can uncover shared molecular patterns across cancers, highlight individual molecules of biomedical interest, and generate new hypotheses about tumor progression. Freely available via GitHub and PyPI, the tool is designed to be accessible for research laboratories worldwide and represents a step forward in explainable AI for precision oncology.

Building prolific ant legions takes tons of resources—but a new study finds that certain species cut corners by skimping out on protective armor. 

A new study from the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences (LMS) in London, UK reveals how ancient viral DNA once written off as “junk” plays a crucial role in the earliest moments of life. The research, published today in Science Advances, begins to untangle the role of an ancient viral DNA element called MERVL in mouse embryonic development and provides new insights into a human muscle wasting disease.

Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center have found that a cellular housekeeping mechanism called autophagy plays a major role in ensuring that T stem cells undergo normal cell division. The findings, published in “Nature Cell Biology,” could help boost vaccine response in older adults.

Using human liver samples and a mouse model of cirrhosis, researchers identified epigenetic overactivation of the inflammatory PAF–PAF-R pathway in hepatic macrophages as a key driver of liver damage. Published in Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, the study shows that blocking this pathway improves liver structure and vascular function, highlighting a promising target for future cirrhosis therapies.

An interdisciplinary team of University of Tennessee, Knoxville researchers recently published in Biophysical Journal on their development of a new statistical method that improves analysis in single-molecule fluorescence experiments, which are used to study important protein complexes in cells.