Researchers including those at the University of Tokyo have made a surprising discovery hiding in people’s mouths: Inocles, giant DNA elements that had previously escaped detection. These appear to play a central role in helping bacteria adapt to the constantly changing environment of the mouth. The findings provide fresh insight into how oral bacteria colonize and persist in humans, with potential implications for health, disease and microbiome research.

A NIMS research team has developed a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) featuring a tunnel barrier made of a high-entropy oxide composed of multiple metallic elements. This MTJ simultaneously demonstrated stronger perpendicular magnetization, a higher tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) ratio (i.e., the relative change in electrical resistance when the magnetization directions of the two ferromagnetic layers switch between parallel and antiparallel alignments) and lower electrical resistance. These properties may contribute to the development of smaller, higher-capacity and higher-performance hard disk drives (HDDs) and magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM). This research was published in Materials Today, an international scientific journal, on July 6, 2025.

Understanding causal relationships between neuronal spike trains is challenging due to their irregular, bursty nature, and the limitations of traditional causality detection methods. Now, researchers from Japan have developed a new approach based on convergent cross mapping that works with irregularly sampled data. Their technique can accurately determine causality between spike trains in small, simulated groups of neurons, even with noise, paving the way for a more comprehensive understanding of brain networks.

A self-powered analytical device that detects toxic amines in water using electrochemiluminescence has been developed by researchers from Japan, enabling pollutant detection without an external power source. The device operates using voltage generated by liquid flow and produces light signals to indicate contamination. This breakthrough makes water quality testing more accessible, enabling real-time, portable monitoring in situations where traditional methods are impractical.

This promising new catalyst can speed up the oxygen evolution reaction to create clean energy.

Hafnium oxide (HfO₂) is a promising material for advanced semiconductors, but it is also known for its challenging etching properties. A group of researchers from Japan and Taiwan has successfully etched HfO₂ films with atomic-level precision. This process was performed without the use of halogen gases, which are often highly toxic and may act as greenhouse gases.

From Japan to the world—scientific innovation and collaboration aimed at solving global challenges will take center stage at the Science Summit, held alongside the 80th United Nations General Assembly from September 9 to 26, 2025. In response to a call from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), eight Japanese institutions will present six official programs at the summit. These sessions will feature a diverse range of speakers—from PhD students and university presidents to medical professionals, scientists, and engineers—addressing topics such as food and water security, rare and common diseases, inclusive education, and research ethics.

Kyoto, Japan -- As extreme weather events become more frequent and the impacts of climate change become stronger, countries around the world are strengthening their decarbonization efforts. The 2016 Paris Agreement in particular represents a global effort to address climate change by limiting the rise in global average temperature to well below 2˚C.

However, concerns have been rising about the economic costs of these transitions. Previous studies suggest that stringent greenhouse gas emissions mitigation may cause an increase in food and energy prices, exacerbating poverty and inequality. How to address these social impacts in the context of society-wide decarbonization remains unclear.

In response, an international research team led by Shiya Zhao from Kyoto University and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis -- IIASA -- in Austria created a comprehensive study to assess the ramifications of decarbonization. Their goal is to steer policy formulation toward a sustainable and equitable trajectory for climate change mitigation.

Unpaired electrons located at linear band dispersion (LBD) are exceptional and called Dirac electrons (DE). They are paid attention to because of the unique electronic properties such as temperature (T)-independent resistivity, as if they belong to neither metallic nor non-metallic substances. In this study, we have developed a series of new organic Dirac electron systems and discovered universal features of magnetic behavior originating from LBD.

Combining classic comparative approaches, including collecting species from the wild, and cutting-edge light-induced gene manipulation technology, researchers from Japan and Germany have discovered how developing fly embryos solve the fundamental problem of “tissue tectonic collision” when the rapidly expanding head and torso tissues crash into each other.