Thousands of new findings contribute to a global virus map
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 24-Oct-2026 22:16 ET (25-Oct-2026 02:16 GMT/UTC)
An extensive study has mapped RNA viruses in a large number of cities around the world. The researchers identified nearly 55,000 different types of virus, the vast majority of which had never been observed before. The virus atlas could be useful in both biological risk assessment and crime scene investigations.
Researchers have developed biodegradable particles with microscopic needles that painlessly puncture the skin to help it absorb drugs delivered through patches or creams. The work is described in Advanced Healthcare Materials.
A research team comprising Associate Professor FUNAKOSHI Yohei, Associate Professor YAKUSHIJIN Kimikazu, Professor MINAMI Hironobu, and Associate Professor OHJI Goh of Kobe University, together with graduate student MASUDA Genki, then-graduate student IIZUMI Shunsuke, Associate Professor OHUE Masahito, and colleagues at the Institute of Science Tokyo, has developed a new analysis method, LM-QASAS. This method combines antibody language models with B-cell receptor (BCR) repertoires(*1) collected before and after vaccination to identify and track candidate BCR sequences that are likely to have responded to an immune stimulus, without using a database of known antigen-specific antibodies. LM-QASAS extends QASAS(*2; Quantification of Antigen-Specific Antibody Sequence), a method for quantitatively evaluating immune responses to a specific antigen through antigen-receptor repertoire analysis
A team led by the University of Osaka researchers discovered that cells producing IgG1 antibodies multiply more, are less prone to cell death in the spleen, and migrate more efficiently to the bone marrow, where long-lived antibody-producing cells can become established. Understanding how these cells gain these advantages could help researchers design vaccines that provide longer-lasting protection against infection.