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Scientists create an artificial cell capable of navigating its environment using chemistry alone

Researchers at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) have created the world’s simplest artificial cell capable of chemical navigation, migrating toward specific substances like living cells do.

This breakthrough, published in Science Advances, demonstrates how microscopic bubbles can be programmed to follow chemical trails. The study describes the development of a “minimal cell” in the form of a lipid encapsulating enzymes that can propel itself through chemotaxis.

Cellular transport is a vital aspect of many biological processes and a key milestone in evolution. Among all types of movement, chemotaxis is an essential strategy used by many living systems to move towards beneficial signals, such as nutrients, or away from harmful ones.

Navigating protein landscapes with a machine-learned transferable coarse-grained model

Designing simplified models for protein simulation has been a significant challenge for several decades. Using a diverse set of test proteins, and a deep-learning architecture, we have now developed a simple and chemically transferable force field for efficient simulation of protein sequences.

AI helps Latin scholars decipher ancient Roman texts

Around 1,500 Latin inscriptions are discovered every year, offering an invaluable view into the daily life of ancient Romans—and posing a daunting challenge for the historians tasked with interpreting them.

But a new artificial intelligence tool, partly developed by Google researchers, can now help Latin scholars piece together these puzzles from the past, according to a study published on Wednesday.

Inscriptions in Latin were commonplace across the Roman world, from laying out the decrees of emperors to graffiti on the city streets. One mosaic outside a home in the ancient city of Pompeii even warns: “Beware of the dog”

Plant virus triggers immune response that targets and destroys cancer cells

A virus that typically infects black-eyed peas is showing great promise as a low-cost, potent cancer immunotherapy—and researchers are uncovering why.

In a study published in Cell Biomaterials, a team led by chemical and nano engineers at the University of California San Diego took a closer look at how the (CPMV), unlike other plant viruses, is uniquely effective at activating the body’s immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.

The study is titled “Comparative analyses for plant virus-based cancer immunotherapy drug development.”

Injured once, triggered forever? How the brain rewrites stress responses

A wound can leave a lasting imprint—even after it has healed. A new study in Current Biology finds that past injuries can quietly prime the body to overreact and be more sensitive to stress, pain and fear long after the damage is gone.

These findings may help explain how early injuries or trauma can set the stage for , where the remains hypersensitive long after the initial damage has healed. can set the stage for conditions, where the nervous system remains hypersensitive long after the initial damage has healed.

Researchers at the University of Toronto Mississauga discovered that mice with a history of responded more intensely to the scent of a predator, an extremely stressful event for mice. These mice showed exaggerated and developed long-lasting pain in both hind paws, including the uninjured side. Strikingly, the symptoms lasted more than six months, long after the original injury had physically healed.

Early developmental origins of cortical disorders modeled in human neural stem cells

The implications of early telencephalic development in cortical disorders remain elusive. Here, the authors define risk gene dynamics and perturbation effects in neural stem cells, revealing vulnerability phases during early human corticogenesis.