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Detailed images reveal ribosome assembly inside human cells for the first time

For decades, ribosomes have been under the lens of many scientists. Ribosomes are highly sophisticated and complex molecular machines that allow cells to synthesize proteins. However, putting ribosomes together requires intricate assembly processes. While many underlying mechanisms for building ribosomes have been discovered ex situ (outside their native cellular context), our understanding of how ribosomes are assembled in situ has so far remained limited.

Through a collaboration between the research groups of Christoph Müller, Sara Cuylen-Häring and Julia Mahamid at EMBL Heidelberg, researchers have now pushed these limits. By combining cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) with correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM), they were able to image the nucleolus—the site of ribosome assembly inside cells—at sufficiently high resolution to visualize the ribosome assembly pathway inside intact human cells for the first time.

The results—a collection of molecular snapshots—yielded subnanometer-resolution in-cell structures of tens of intermediates along the ribosome assembly pathways, complementing and expanding previous insights into ribosome assembly obtained from ex situ structures. The new results have now been published in the journal Science.

Terahertz light distinguishes two groups of particles trapped inside superconducting vortices

Scientists at Rutgers and in Estonia have used invisible light to look into tiny magnetic whirlpools, called vortices, inside a superconductor, revealing details that could help researchers develop better materials for carrying electricity.

Their study, published in Physical Review Letters, distinguishes two groups of particles trapped within those vortices and measures properties that conventional techniques couldn’t readily separate.

“To improve superconductors, scientists need to understand what vortices contain and how they behave,” said Girsh Blumberg, a distinguished professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences and a co-author of the study. “This study provides a new way to look inside them.”

Record-setting 2.75 gigahertz LED designed for fast, energy-efficient data centers

A collaboration between the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Grainger College of Engineering and the University of Notre Dame has broken the world record for optical switching speed in quantum well LEDs. The gallium nitride micro-LED device has an optical modulation bandwidth of 2.75 gigahertz while consuming just 25 milliwatts of power. Its design was optimized to bring newfound speed and efficiency to communication links in data centers.

As the team of researchers reports in IEEE Electron Device Letters, this achievement is the result of an extensive program of theoretical modeling and empirical testing, providing a roadmap to scaling down LED devices for optical communications.

For the record-breaking device, the design was optimized to a size of 5 micrometers. The team hopes that their design will prove to be a vast improvement in speed and efficiency over conventional wire interconnects and even laser-based optical links for short-range communication.

Machine learning helps track semiconductor defects under more realistic temperature conditions

All materials contain inherent defects. These are not always harmful, since they can be used to engineer and introduce certain properties into a material. However, it is crucial to understand how they function and how they affect the material’s properties.

To understand and model defects in different materials, researchers’ standard calculations are usually based on zero Kelvin, minus 273 degrees Celsius, the theoretically lowest possible temperature at which all atoms and molecules are completely stationary. But for materials intended for use in real-world products and everyday applications, it is essential to know how they behave at ordinary temperatures.

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have now demonstrated a significantly more effective framework for calculating the properties of defects while accounting for different temperature effects, enabling results that are much closer to reality. The findings are presented in an article published in npj Computational Materials.

Electrical signals reveal hidden magnetic information in altermagnets for first time

Researchers have experimentally demonstrated, for the first time, that it is possible to obtain from an altermagnet a spin current that can transport magnetic information. This result is supported by the theoretical model of electron transport developed by the CFM group. Altermagnets are a new class of materials that, despite not exhibiting the net magnetization characteristic of conventional magnets, can generate this type of current.

The result experimentally confirms a prediction made a few years ago by research groups in the Czech Republic and Germany, and represents an advance in the study of altermagnets and their potential for the development of new information storage and processing technologies.

The results of this study have been published in the journal Nature. The team includes CIC nanoGUNE’s Nanodevices Group, in collaboration with the Mesoscopic Physics Group of the Materials Physics Center (CFM) and research groups in the Czech Republic, Germany and France.

New Microscope Technology Captures the Hidden World Inside Living Cells Like Never Before

A new imaging technique allows scientists to capture fleeting cellular processes that conventional microscopes struggle to resolve.

Living cells are constantly in motion, but capturing their smallest structures in sharp detail has long been a challenge. Traditional super-resolution microscopy often requires hundreds or thousands of images to reveal features too small for conventional light microscopes. When structures move during that process, the resulting images can become blurred. Now, researchers have developed a technique that captures these microscopic details in a single camera exposure.

The new method, called Spatial Polarization-Induced Fluorescence Fluctuation Imaging (SPIFFI), was developed by a team led by Aleksandra Radenovic at the Laboratory of Nanoscale Biology (LBEN) in EPFL’s School of Engineering. Published in Nature Methods, the research demonstrates up to a twofold improvement in image resolution, allowing scientists to distinguish structures as small as 160 to 170 nanometers while observing living cells.

A Hidden Molecular Pathway Could Change How a Deadly Disease Is Treated

Researchers have found that acidic conditions may trigger an overlooked molecular process, offering new clues about how certain disease-causing protein mutations behave.

Scientists have discovered that a protein responsible for a potentially fatal disease can unravel through a previously unknown molecular pathway. The finding, reported by researchers at Scripps Research, could help explain why certain rare inherited forms of transthyretin amyloid disease (ATTR) behave differently and raises questions about how well existing treatments address them.

ATTR develops when the protein transthyretin (TTR) loses its normal structure, misfolds, and accumulates in organs, particularly the heart and nervous system. TTR ordinarily transports vitamin A and the thyroid hormone thyroxine through the blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and eye. Its structure consists of four protein units that can separate into pairs and eventually individual units capable of forming harmful aggregates.

The Brain Is More Capable of Healing Itself Than Scientists Thought

Researchers have uncovered a surprising cellular process that could reshape our understanding of brain regeneration and offer new possibilities for recovery from neurological damage.

Scientists have discovered an unexpected way the adult brain may replace certain cells lost to injury or disease. In living mice, researchers observed specialized brain cells repairing damaged regions by transporting newly formed cell nuclei over long distances, revealing a regenerative process that was previously unknown.

The discovery challenges the long-held belief that the adult brain cannot fully replace lost astrocytes. These star-shaped glial cells support neurons by supplying nutrients, helping regulate blood flow, and maintaining healthy brain tissue. Astrocytes can be destroyed by brain injuries and autoimmune conditions, including the rare disorder neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder, in which the body’s antibodies attack these essential cells.

Scientists Discover Never-Before-Seen Molecules With Cancer-Fighting Potential

Scientists have uncovered a previously unknown class of natural compounds hidden within soil-dwelling bacteria.

Scientists have discovered a previously unknown group of molecules in soil bacteria that bind to a human protein associated with several types of cancer. The compounds, known as myxoglucamides, have an unusual chemical structure and could provide a starting point for developing new drugs, although researchers have not demonstrated a strong effect on cancer cell growth.

The discovery emerged from two studies examining how bacteria produce these molecules and how they interact with human cells. Myxoglucamides combine molecular components derived from sugars, lipids, and amino acids in an arrangement unlike previously known natural products. Accessing them required researchers to activate bacterial genes that normally remain silent.

The Future of Electromagnetic Shields Could Be Lighter, Stronger, and Greener

Researchers are exploring a new generation of electromagnetic shielding materials that combine exceptional conductivity with improved strength and flexibility.

Electromagnetic shielding materials must block unwanted signals without adding excessive weight or sacrificing durability. Conventional options, including metals, conductive polymers, and carbon-based materials, can be heavy, inflexible, or expensive. Researchers are now exploring composites that combine exceptional electrical conductivity with the strength and flexibility needed for practical applications.

One promising approach pairs two-dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides (MXenes) with nanocellulose, a lightweight material derived from natural biomass. MXenes offer excellent conductivity and chemical stability, but films made from them alone tend to be brittle. Adding nanocellulose can improve mechanical strength while preserving the electrical properties needed to shield electronics from electromagnetic interference.