A new study reveals that exposing dwarf spiders to a brief period of warm temperatures can disrupt a phenomenon where internal bacteria normally force genetic males to develop as females. Surprisingly, this reproductive disruption skips the directly heated spiders and hits their children and grandchildren instead, leading to a sudden comeback of male offspring. The temporary heat scrambles the spiders' internal microscopic ecosystem, allowing a rival bacterium to surge ahead and block the feminizing bacteria from taking over.

BUFFALO, NY — July 7, 2026 — A new review was published in Volume 13 of Oncoscience on May 22, 2026, titled “Adaptor proteins regulating tumor-associated macrophage polarization during cancer progression.”

New research finds that birds can use lactate, often thought of as a metabolic waste product, as a cellular fuel that aids in rapid recovery from a harmful state that impairs oxygen delivery. Haemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen to our tissues, naturally converts to methaemoglobin, which limits the blood’s oxygen-carrying capacity. This research shows how bird red blood cells (RBCs) can use lactate to rapidly resurrect blood function, and they can do this better than mammals because they contain mitochondria — the “powerhouses of the cell” — something that mature mammalian RBCs do not possess.

A new study generated one of the most comprehensive spatially resolved transcriptomic maps of cellular communication between bone and skeletal muscle in a young mouse. Using spatial transcriptomics, computational deconvolution, and ligand-receptor network analysis, researchers identified signaling pathways that coordinate tissue maintenance, remodeling, and vascular support. Key interactions involving collagen, thrombospondin, tenascin, and VEGF pathways were validated experimentally and across independent datasets. The findings provide a foundation for studying musculoskeletal disorders and aging.

Sperm carry far more than DNA. As they develop in the testis and mature in the epididymis, they also carry a shifting set of chemical marks on RNA — a molecular layer that may help shape fertility and influence how paternal experiences are passed to the next generation.

Now, researchers have produced a detailed map of this changing “sperm RNA modification code.” In a study published in Science China Life Sciences, the team profiled 27 types of RNA modifications across mouse testis development, purified spermatogenic cells, sperm collected from different regions of the epididymis and a typeⅡdiabetes mellitus mouse model. The work reveals that sperm RNA modifications are not static labels, but a dynamic program that is written, erased and reorganized as sperm move toward maturity.

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are important therapeutic targets for numerous diseases. However, developing highly selective drugs for GPCRs remains a challenge. Researchers have now developed a new platform termed extracellular vesicle (EV)-Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment, which uses EVs to efficiently isolate potent DNA aptamers. Using this method, they identified an analgesic aptamer that targets µ-opioid receptor to mimic morphine-like activity, demonstrating the platform’s potential in accelerating drug discovery for GPCR-related conditions

Some memories remain with us for years, shaping how we learn from experience and adapt to the world around us. Others disappear quickly, even when they once seemed important. Although scientists have long studied how memories are formed in the brain, far less is known about what allows certain memories to persist over time.

A research team led by Dr. KOH Wuhyun at the Center for Memory and Glioscience within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), together with researchers at the Korea Brain Research Institute (KBRI), has now discovered that astrocytes play a critical role in this process. Astrocytes are star-shaped cells in the brain that have traditionally been considered support cells for neurons. The study shows that these cells actively help determine whether memories can be maintained over long periods of time, revealing a previously unknown mechanism that supports long-term memory persistence.

In mammals, hair follicles emerge during embryonic development, forming geometric patterns that vary from one species to another. But how is the position of each hair determined? A team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has shown that a simple mechanism based on the movement of cells in response to chemical signals can reproduce the formation of hair follicles in two mammalian species. Published in PNAS, the study sheds new light on the self-organizing principles that give rise to complex biological structures.