Tech & Engineering
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 17-Jan-2026 21:11 ET (18-Jan-2026 02:11 GMT/UTC)
New genetic insight extends pakchoi shelf life via brassinosteroid regulation
Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of ScienceFresh leafy vegetables such as pakchoi rapidly lose quality after harvest due to leaf yellowing and senescence. This study uncovers the molecular mechanism through which the plant hormone 2,4-epibrassinolide (EBR), a brassinosteroid analog, delays leaf senescence in pakchoi. Researchers identified BrWRKY8, a nucleus-localized transcription factor that promotes leaf aging by activating chlorophyll degradation (BrSGR2) and brassinosteroid degradation (BrCHI2) genes. EBR treatment suppresses BrWRKY8 expression, thereby maintaining chlorophyll and hormone balance, leading to extended postharvest freshness. These findings reveal a critical regulatory pathway linking EBR and BrWRKY8 in delaying leaf senescence.
- Journal
- Horticulture Research
New virus-based CRISPR system accelerates heritable genome editing in tomato
Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of ScienceTomato improvement through genome editing has long been hindered by the difficulty of generating transgenic plants. Researchers have now developed a virus-induced genome editing (VIGE) platform that enables heritable mutations in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) without the need for tissue culture. By engineering a tobacco rattle virus (TRV) system carrying mobile guide RNAs derived from the tomato Flowering Locus T (SlFT) gene, and pairing it with a SlUBI10-driven Cas9 expression line, they successfully produced knockout tomato seeds with up to 100% heritability. This innovative system dramatically reduces time and labor costs for tomato gene editing, opening the door to rapid functional studies and breeding applications.
- Journal
- Horticulture Research
The world’s highest honor in computational physics awarded to Stefano Baroni
Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi AvanzatiGrant and Award Announcement
The American Physical Society (APS) – the world’s largest organization of physicists – has awarded the 2026 Aneesur Rahman Prize for Computational Physics to Stefano Baroni, Professor of Condensed Matter Physics at the Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA) and research associate at the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche – Istituto Officina dei Materiali (CNR–IOM). The prize is regarded as the most prestigious international recognition in the field, awarded for outstanding achievements in computational physics.
The official citation recognizes his “seminal contributions to the development of first-principles methods for studying the electronic and thermal properties of condensed systems, and for the development and dissemination of open-source software for electronic-structure calculations, now widely adopted.”
AI can speed antibody design to thwart novel viruses: study
Vanderbilt University Medical CenterPeer-Reviewed Publication
- Journal
- Cell
Self-driving lab learns to grow materials on its own
University of ChicagoPeer-Reviewed Publication
- Journal
- npj Computational Materials
How Mayo Clinic experts are using AI to better detect sleep apnea, especially in women
Mayo ClinicPeer-Reviewed Publication
- Journal
- JACC Advances