Using an aging clock, researchers from the University of Cologne have used the Caenorhabditis elegans model organism to demonstrate that nerve cells age differently. They identified both the causes of aging and molecules that keep the nervous system healthy in old age / Publication in ‘Nature Aging’

To the point:

Cellular energy threats: Presence of mercury was linked to inefficient fuel use during energy production in wild birds’ cells, while certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may prevent protective responses to cell stress

Foraging shapes exposure: Older birds and males carried more mercury through diet, food choice and lifetime accumulation in a key component of the birds’ blood, however PFAS levels showed no such links, suggesting different contamination routes

Conservation questions: Scientists fear cell-level impacts may compound with those of other ocean threats like global heating and overfishing, raising critical questions about long-term effects on breeding and survival

Researchers in China validated the updated SOFA-2 score specifically in sepsis using data from a multicenter randomized trial. In more than 1000 ICU patients with sepsis, SOFA-2 produced score patterns closely matching the original SOFA and showed similar ability to distinguish ICU survivors from non-survivors. Machine-learning models that added five immune-related blood markers did not meaningfully improve prediction, underscoring the complexity of immune dysfunction in sepsis.

New pieces have been added to the puzzle of the evolution of some of the oldest fish that lived on Earth more than 400 million years ago.

In two separate studies, experts in Australia and China have found new clues about primitive lungfishes, the closest living relatives of land vertebrates.

As concerns rise about the effects of tiny plastic particles on human health, Flinders University researchers have led new research on whether nanoplastics can accumulate or cause damage in kidneys – our body’s major blood filtering system.

Their study, published in high-ranking international journal Cell Biology and Toxicology, calls for more investigations into the long-term risks, warning that high nanoplastics (NPs) particle ‘burden’ could seriously compromise kidney cell health and function.  

Early marine algae adapted their light-harvesting systems for weak blue-green light, suggesting how photosynthesis evolved.

RNA, or ribonucleic acid, is a short-lived molecule copied from DNA that enables cells to use genetic information. Specific DNA sequences are copied into RNA, which then delivers these instructions to the cellular machinery responsible for making proteins. Through this process, RNA acts as the go-between, translating DNA’s blueprints into real-time cellular activity. This research reveals an RNA molecule that regulates key cellular functions without turning into protein, thus functioning as a “non-coding” RNA CUL1-IPA that originates from the well-characterized CUL1 protein-coding gene. Unlike the canonical RNA that produces the CUL1 protein, this newly discovered RNA stays in the nucleus. Instead, it performs a completely different cellular function, supporting the structural integrity and activity of the nucleolus, the essential center for ribosome production.