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Biology

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 2-Jun-2026 18:15 ET (2-Jun-2026 22:15 GMT/UTC)

Multiscale brain mapping reveals common roots and distinct features of autism, ADHD, and schizophrenia

Research
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Differences in brain connectivity are linked to several neurodevelopmental disorders, yet scientists still struggle to determine what changes are shared or unique to each condition. A new study analyzing brain scans from more than 2,100 individuals reveals a common pattern of disrupted neural connectivity across autism, ADHD, and schizophrenia. The research also identifies distinct molecular and cellular signatures for each disorder, offering insight into how complex psychiatric conditions arise from overlapping yet different biological mechanisms.

Journal: Research
Funder: National Key Research and Development Program of China, Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation Outstanding Youth Project, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Key Research and Development Program of Guangdong, Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation, Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou

UCLA researchers develop new method to customize artificial tiny organs inside cells

University of California - Los Angeles
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A team of UCLA researchers has developed a new method to build programmable artificial organelles inside living cells using RNA as both the material and the blueprint. The approach enables researchers to design droplet-like cellular compartments that assemble in predictable ways and can be controlled in how and where they form, as well as what molecules they recruit.

Journal: Nature Nanotechnology
Funder: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Tiny flexible lasers enable force sensing inside living cells

Optica
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Tiny flexible lasers can be used to measure forces inside living cells, which could help illuminate various biological processes, including those involved in early development and tumor progression.

Journal: Optical Materials Express

Environmental DNA in NYC’s East River reveals clues about nearby human and animal residents

PLOS
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Sequencing environmental DNA – or eDNA – from the East River in New York City can effectively monitor human diets and local wildlife, as well as the river’s fish populations, report Mark Stoeckle and Jesse Ausubel of The Rockefeller University, U.S., in study publishing April 29, 2026 in the open-access journal PLOS One.

Journal: PLOS One

Placental contractions may occur in 6 in 10 healthy pregnancies

PLOS
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The placenta contracts independently of the rest of the uterine wall, as seen in around 60% of 36 MRI-scanned healthy pregnancies, according to a new study published April 29, 2026 in the open-access journal PLOS One by Louise Dewick of the University of Nottingham, U.K., and colleagues.

Journal: PLOS One

Online game reveals secrets of animal camouflage

University of Exeter
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists have used an online game to discover the secrets of animal camouflage – such as why tigers have stripes.

Journal: PLOS One
Funder: Natural Environment Research Council

Stage-specific gene expression changes reveal early triggers of cellular aging

Impact Journals LLC
Peer-Reviewed Publication

BUFFALO, NY — April 29, 2026 — A new research paper was published in Volume 18 of Aging-US on April 10, 2026, titled “Stage-dependent transcriptomic changes in human dermal fibroblast senescence model.”

Journal: Aging-US

AI species evolving like organisms may soon emerge – and create risks

Eötvös Loránd University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Hungarian and Belgian researchers are drawing attention to the risks of the future of AI, and evolutionary biology may help us understand the processes involved.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Funder: European Research Council, National Research, Development and Innovation Office in Hungary, European Innovation Council and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Executive Agency, Parmenides Foundation (Pöcking)

West African coast emerges as key source of microlitter in the South Atlantic Ocean

Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Most of the microlitter present in the South Atlantic Ocean originates from the West African coast and is particularly concentrated in areas near the equator and off the coast of Brazil. This is demonstrated by a study conducted by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB), Spain, which has successfully identified in detail the main geographical sources of these microparticles, their large-scale distribution, and the processes that drive their accumulation in the ocean.

Journal: Environmental Pollution

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