Neuroform Atlas Stent (NAS) is used in treating localized dilation of blood vessels in the brain. The stent is designed for placement in vessels of 2.0─4.5 mm diameter. However, studies that assess whether NAS is equally effective in smaller blood vessels are limited. Researchers from China addressed this critical clinical question, and report that even in smaller vessels of diameter less than 2.5 mm, NAS-assisted coiling led to fewer complications and favorable short-term outcomes.

Like all complex organisms, every human originates from a single cell that multiplies through countless cell divisions. Thousands of cells coordinate, move and exert mechanical forces on each other as an embryo takes shape. Researchers at the Göttingen Campus Institute for Dynamics of Biological Networks (CIDBN), the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organisation, and the University of Marburg have now discovered a new way that embryonic cells coordinate their behaviour. This involves molecular mechanisms previously known only from the process of hearing. The researchers attribute the fact that such different cells use the same proteins for two such different functions to their evolutionary origin. The results were published in Current Biology.

Can animals share the same space peacefully high above the ground in the treetops? A research team at the University of Göttingen has found that forests combining both deciduous and conifer trees make it easier for red squirrels and dormice to coexist. Using cameras placed high in the canopy, scientists discovered that red squirrels tend to prefer coniferous forests, while dormice are more commonly found in beech forests. However, in mixed forests that include both tree types, both species were observed living side by side. This suggests that mixed forests could play an important role in supporting biodiversity. The findings were published in the European Journal of Wildlife Research.

In an unprecedented international study, researchers at the LKS Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), in collaboration with the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, have discovered a previously unknown type of neural stem cell located outside the experimental mouse central nervous system. It challenges the long-standing belief that ‘neural stem cells are confined to the brain and spinal cord’, opening up transformative possibilities in regenerative medicine for treating neurological diseases and injuries. The findings were published in Nature Cell Biology, and included into ‘A year of stem cell and developmental biology’ collection in this past year by Nature.

The ability to analyze gene expression at the single-cell level — known as single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) — has transformed life sciences, driving discoveries across immunology, oncology, and developmental biology. Over 40,000 studies have leveraged this technique to map the complex diversity of cells within tissues and organisms.

Yet beneath this explosive growth lies a persistent problem: clustering instability. When researchers attempt to group cells by expression patterns to identify cell types or disease states, they often face inconsistent results — even when analyzing the same dataset repeatedly.

Inaccurate clustering can lead to misclassifying normal cells as cancerous or missing rare but critical cell types — jeopardizing interpretation and therapeutic decisions. This “reliability crisis” forces scientists to rerun analyses or rely on computationally expensive pipelines to extract trustworthy insights.

Now, a research team led by Professor KIM Jae Kyoung of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) has developed a solution: a mathematical framework named scICE (single-cell Inconsistency Clustering Estimator).

The intricate, hidden processes that sustain coral life are being revealed through a new microscope developed by scientists at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

The diver-operated microscope — called the Benthic Underwater Microscope imaging PAM, or BUMP — incorporates pulse amplitude modulated (PAM) light techniques to offer an unprecedented look at coral photosynthesis on micro-scales. Funded by the National Science Foundation, the new microscope will help scientists uncover precisely why corals bleach, and inform remediation efforts. While the bleaching process is known, it’s not fully understood, and it hasn’t been possible to study in depth in the field — until now.