A paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution finds that the relatively high rate of autism-spectrum disorders in humans is likely due to how humans evolved in the past. The paper is titled “A general principle of neuronal evolution reveals a human accelerated neuron type potentially underlying the high prevalence of autism in humans.”
Category: biological – Page 57
Desert soils can emit greenhouse gases in minutes—even without microbes
A study from researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev reveals that desert soils can emit powerful greenhouse gases within minutes of being wetted—even in the absence of microbial life.
Self-assembling magnetic microparticles mimic biological error correction
Everybody makes mistakes. Biology is no different. However, living organisms have certain error-correction mechanisms that enable their biomolecules to assemble and function despite the defective slough that is a natural byproduct of the process.
A Cornell-led collaboration has developed microscale magnetic particles that can mimic the ability of biological materials such as proteins and nucleic acids to self-assemble into complex structures, while also selectively reducing the parasitic waste that would otherwise clog up production.
This magnetic assembly platform could one day usher in a new class of self-building biomimetic devices and microscale machines.
T7-ORACLE Foretells Functional Proteins by Accelerating Evolution
The synthetic biology platform accelerates protein evolution thousands of times faster than nature for broad therapy applications.
Robots demonstrate principles of collective intelligence
Lessons from developmental biology can be used to guide the behaviour of robot swarms.
Scientists Say They May Have Just Figured Out the Origin of Life
New research demonstrates how the first proteins could’ve formed without the help of biological processes.
Artificial neuron merges DRAM with MoS₂ circuits to better emulate brain-like adaptability
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning systems has increased the demand for new hardware components that could speed up data analysis while consuming less power. As machine learning algorithms draw inspiration from biological neural networks, some engineers have been working on hardware that also mimics the architecture and functioning of the human brain.
Minimal 3D model reveals fundamental mechanisms behind toughening of soft–hard composites
Engineers have long grappled with a fundamental challenge: creating materials that are both strong and tough enough to resist deformation and prevent fractures. These two properties typically exist in opposition, as materials that excel in one area often fail in the other.
Nature, however, has elegantly solved this trade-off in biological materials like bone, teeth, and nacre, which strategically combine soft and hard components in multi-layered architectures. These blueprints have inspired scientists to develop artificial soft–hard composites—from advanced dual-phase steels to specialized gels and reinforced rubbers—that demonstrate performance exceeding that of their individual components.
While artificial soft–hard composites have shown impressive performance in laboratory tests and real-world applications, the fundamental mechanisms behind their enhanced properties remain largely unclear. The inherent complexity of these materials, encompassing nonlinear behaviors, intricate internal structures, and multi-scale interactions, has made it difficult to isolate the essential design principles.
Bacterial memory could be the missing key to beating life threatening pathogens
Bacteria aren’t just mindless microbes. New research from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem reveals that single bacterial cells can carry a “memory” of their past environments—passing it down through generations—before eventually forgetting.
Scientists Have Created a Protein Qubit Inside a Living Cell
An incredible breakthrough brings quantum-scale precision sensing to living biological systems.