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Biology

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 31-Oct-2026 05:15 ET (31-Oct-2026 09:15 GMT/UTC)

Fat hack protects against cell death

German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ)
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In response to stress or damage, cells undergo senescence and stop dividing. However, if senescent cells accumulate in tissues over the long term, chronic inflammation occurs and the risk of cancer increases. Researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have now discovered a previously unknown mechanism by which senescent cells protect themselves from oxidative stress and a specific form of cell death known as ferroptosis. In the long term, these findings could provide new avenues for cancer therapies and the treatment of age-related diseases.

Journal: Cell Death and Differentiation

Social contact gives young fish larger brains

Stockholm University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Young guppies who were able to see and interact with live fish developed larger brains than guppies who only saw other fish on a screen. This is shown in a new study from Stockholm University, published in Biology Letters. The findings suggest that live social interaction in real time may be important for brain development.

Journal: Biology Letters
Funder: Vetenskapsrådet

A user-friendly software suite for DNA structure generation and analysis

Universiteit van Amsterdam
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Computational chemists at the University of Amsterdam’s Van ’t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences have developed a comprehensive software suite to create accurate models of DNA in biomolecular assemblies. Called MDNA, the user-friendly molecular modelling toolkit helps biochemists, molecular biologists, bioinformaticians, and biophysicists to visualise and analyse DNA structures and perform accurate simulations.

Journal: Nucleic Acids Research

Extreme adaptation helps Dead Sea single-celled organisms to swim

Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) Graduate University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a new Nature Communications study, researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) and the Institute of Protein Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences have described in detail a structural adaptation supporting the survival of one of the Dead Sea’s few hardy inhabitants — a single-celled archaea called Haloarcula marismortui (H. marismortui). Using single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), the researchers characterized the proteins that form the archaeal filament (also known as archaellum), a long tail-like structure essential for movement.

Journal: Nature Communications
Funder: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development

Leafy Lovers: Male katydids use their leaflike camouflage to amplify attractiveness

University of St. Andrews
Peer-Reviewed Publication

This is the first demonstration of how impressive leaf mimicry can also be used to enhance the attractiveness of a sexual signal. Katydids create songs by rubbing specialised structures on their wings together but in many tropical species, the leaf-mimicking portion makes up the majority of the wing surface. The researchers found that males are able to use the acoustic properties of these structures to their reproductive advantage.

Journal: Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences

City birds dazzle females with ‘borrowed’ human items

University of Exeter
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Bowerbirds in an Australian city use a range of human items – from glass and plastic to banknotes and even a pair of handcuffs – to impress females, new research shows.

Journal: Royal Society Open Science
Funder: Natural Environment Research Council

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation names three new Quantitative Biology Fellows

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
Grant and Award Announcement

Damon Runyon has awarded Quantitative Biology Fellowships to three outstanding young scientists applying computational approaches to persistent biological questions. Their projects will use machine learning, spatialomics, advanced network modeling, and other technologies to better understand breast cancer risk, improve response to immunotherapies, and identify new chromosomal drivers of cancer. Each postdoctoral scientist will receive independent funding ($240,000 total) to train under the joint mentorship of an established computational scientist and a cancer biologist.

Sharks thrive in hot spots of prey

Florida International University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from FIU have discovered that bigger species of shark, such as the Caribbean reef shark, prefer to hunt in small reef areas that are densely populated with prey.

Journal: Animal Conservation
Funder: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Robot fish could help explain how our ancient ancestors first learned to walk

University of Cambridge
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers have developed a fish-like robot that shows how some species of modern fish are able to walk on land, and could help unravel how early vertebrates evolved similar abilities hundreds of millions of years ago.

Journal: Nature Communications