Scientists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) have completed a spaceflight biology investigation aboard the International Space Station (ISS) that reveals how microgravity fundamentally alters microbial metabolism, limiting the efficiency of biological manufacturing processes critical to future long-duration space missions. The findings were recently published in the journal npj Microgravity.

 

 

Scientists at MDI Biological Laboratory use the fast-aging African turquoise killifish to uncover how a widely prescribed class of drugs helps protect the aging kidney. The study published by Kidney International establishes the fish as a powerful model for kidney aging and shows that SGLT2 inhibitors preserve capillaries, maintain cellular energy balance, and reduce inflammatory changes during aging—offering a mechanistic basis for the vascular-protective effects of SGLT2 inhibition during renal aging.

Skeletal muscle stem cells in hibernating Syrian hamsters preserve their ability to function by suppressing their activation during the hibernation period, a research team led by Hiroshima University has shown. This insight may lead to a broader understanding of the maintenance of muscle tissue under prolonged low temperature conditions and may eventually lead to therapeutic applications.

Researchers built a living biosensor made of bacteria that lights up when it detects acetic acid, the main chemical signal that wine is starting to spoil. It works in real time, even in high-alcohol conditions, so wineries can catch problems early, before flavor and quality are damaged. The approach could offer a simpler, lower-cost alternative to lab testing and strengthen quality control across fermentation-based industries.

Even some 200 years after his death, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s scientific curiosity continues to yield new insights. This has now been demonstrated by biologists at Friedrich Schiller University Jena while closely examining the amber collection of the Weimar poet and polymath. In one of the pieces, they discovered a fossilized ant approximately 40 million years old which, thanks to its excellent state of preservation and extensive analyses, provides valuable information about the insect species. The Jena researchers report their findings together with experts from the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung and the Klassik Stiftung Weimar in the scientific journal »Scientific Reports«.

A research team from Munich has identified a previously unknown communication mechanism in harvestmen. Five closely related species show species-specific, strongly fluorescent structures on their backs that become especially visible under ultraviolet light. The results suggest that these patterns serve for species recognition—particularly at dusk and in moonlight. The study has been published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Researchers at UCL and Great Ormond Street Hospital have developed the first-ever lab-grown mini-stomach that contains the key components of the full-sized human organ.¹

A comprehensive review led by researchers from Southern Medical University and Fudan University uncovers how the body’s circadian clock regulates tumor biology, immune function, and the effectiveness of immune checkpoint inhibitors. The study integrates molecular, cellular, and clinical findings to propose “chronotherapy” as a new strategy to optimize cancer immunotherapy outcomes through time-of-day–based dosing and tumor microenvironment modulation.