Four New York University faculty have been awarded fellowships from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation: Danique Jeurissen, an assistant professor of neural science, and Marvin Parasram, an assistant professor of chemistry, as well as Florian Schäfer and Joseph Tassarotti, assistant professors in NYU’s Courant Institute School of Mathematics, Computing, and Data Science.

Brain imaging identifies the social and emotional features of wildlife photos that drive engagement on social media. Tara Srirangarajan and colleagues scanned the brains of 34 adults while the participants viewed 56 wildlife images from National Geographic’s Instagram feed and made decisions in a matter of seconds about whether to “like” posts and/or donate to depicted species. 

Podocytes are specialized cells in the kidneys that do not renew with age. Researchers from Juntendo University used electron microscopy to show that podocytes in older rats are much larger and have significant structural differences from those in young rats. These findings highlight age-related structural changes and could increase the accuracy of staging the progression of glomerular disorders in kidneys.

A new CNIC-led study shows that a genetic tool derived from baker’s yeast enables human cells to manufacture the building blocks of DNA even when their mitochondria fail.

Triceratops and similar horned dinosaurs had unusually large nasal cavities compared to most animals. Researchers including those from the University of Tokyo used CT scans of fossilized Triceratops skulls and compared their structures with modern animals like birds and crocodiles. Through direct observation and inference, researchers reconstructed how nerves, blood vessels and structures for airflow fit together in the skulls. They concluded horned dinosaurs probably used their noses not just for smelling but also to help control temperature and moisture. 

Researchers at the University of Würzburg have shown that dung beetles suffer in canopy openings that have been deliberately created to promote biodiversity. Rising temperatures are significantly exacerbating the problem.

A 40-year study using field data from Projeto Lontra reveals that Neotropical otters act as "living sensors" of ecosystem degradation, with 66% testing positive for land-based pathogens like Toxoplasma gondii carried by runoff. This research, published in Estuarine Management and Technologies, led to the creation of the Otter Health Index (OHI), a low-cost toolkit designed for muncipalities and NGOs to better monitor estuarine health through simple metrics.

Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for plants and managing its availability is critical for growing crops to maintain the global food supply. In an effort to move toward a more sustainable bioeconomy, researchers from the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology and collaborators have developed a new method to recycle phosphorus from the biorefinery waste stream.