EurekAlert! News by Subject: Biology - News by Subject: Biology

Biology

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 4-Nov-2025 19:11 ET (5-Nov-2025 00:11 GMT/UTC)

“Dual feeding” strategy helps Mediterranean coral thrive in rising sea temperatures

Center for Genomic Regulation
Peer-Reviewed Publication

An exceptional “dual feeding” strategy underlies a Mediterranean coral’s resilience to rising sea temperatures, according to a study in Nature. The stony coral Oculina patagonica is known to feed itself with or without algae. Now, the first direct comparison of algae-hosting cells in O. patagonica and other coral species reveals how this flexibility works at the genetic and cellular level. The study is a window into how marine species are adapting to climate change, and also explains why the stony coral has expanded eastwards since it was first discovered in 1966.

Journal: Nature

Tagging ‘fake targets’ for antigen-independent immunotherapy

Pohang University of Science & Technology (POSTECH)
Peer-Reviewed Publication

POSTECH-UCLA Collaborative Team Develops Novel ‘Univody’ Platform for Antigen-Independent Cancer Immunotherapy.

Journal: ACS Nano

Graz University of Technology and the University of Regensburg carry out research on the link between leaky blood-brain barrier and depression

Graz University of Technology
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The researchers are investigating the interaction of different cell types at the border between blood vessels and the brain. A particular focus here is on sex-specific differences.

Journal: Nature Reviews Bioengineering
Funder: Austrian Science Fund

’Footprint of Death’ gives new clues to cell life, spread of disease

La Trobe University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists at La Trobe University have discovered a previously unknown way viruses could spread around the body, potentially paving the way for more effective drug development.

Journal: Nature Communications

Elucidating aging mechanisms and identifying a biomarker for aging and overall health status

University of Tsukuba
Peer-Reviewed Publication

CtBP2 is a sensor molecule that responds to metabolism. It is known to be associated with obesity. Researchers at University of Tsukuba have discovered that CtBP2 is secreted extracellularly and its activation improves systemic metabolism (promoting health and exerting anti-aging effects). Furthermore, they have demonstrated that blood concentrations of CtBP2 can serve as an indicator with which to estimate general health and the degree of aging.

Journal: Nature Aging

A better way to monitor drug therapy at home

University of Montreal
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Inspired by living cells, researchers have designed DNA molecules that allow drug concentrations in blood to be measured digitally using an inexpensive reader.

Journal: Journal of the American Chemical Society

Sniffer dogs tested in real-world scenarios reveal need for wider access to explosives, study finds

Frontiers
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In 2009, the US National Research Council called on law enforcement personnel to standardize the collection and analysis of forensic evidence. Here, scientists tested whether the latest training standard for canine detection of explosives is predictive of real-world performance. They tested 56 teams over 19 trials, including both standardized assessments and real-world scenarios. Performance in both types of trials was correlated, validating the new standard. However, the trials proved difficult: none of the teams currently met the officially required benchmarks. The authors recommend that canine teams should have access to a wider range of explosives for training to improve compliance.

Journal: Frontiers in Veterinary Science
Funder: National Institute of Standards and Technology

34
35
36
37
38