Genes aren’t the sole driver instructing cells to build multicellular structures, tissues, and organs. In a new paper published in Nature Communications, USC Stem Cell scientist Leonardo Morsut and Caltech computational biologist Matt Thomson characterize the influence of another important developmental driver: cell density, or how loosely or tightly cells are packed into a given space. In both computational models and laboratory experiments, the team of scientists used cell density as an effective tool for controlling how mouse cells pattern themselves into complex structures. The research represents progress towards the big picture goal of engineering synthetic tissues. Synthetic tissues could have endless medical applications, ranging from testing potential drugs or therapies to providing grafts or transplants for patients.

Southwest Research Institute has won a $60 million contract to build three coronagraphs for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). SwRI’s novel Space Weather Solar Coronagraph (SwSCOR) is NOAA’s next-generation instrument to provide early detection and characterization of Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs). 

Black holes expel powerful jets of charged particles that lead to luminous bursts of gamma rays, all made possible by each black hole’s intense surrounding magnetic field. Where this magnetic field comes from has remained a mystery, however — until now. Using calculations of black hole formation, scientists at the Flatiron Institute and their collaborators have found that the black hole’s magnetic field is inherited from their parents — highly magnetized remnants of the collapsing cores of exploded stars.