Visible light can be used to create electrodes from conductive plastics completely without hazardous chemicals. This is shown in a new study carried out by researchers at Linköping and Lund universities, Sweden. The electrodes can be created on different types of surfaces, which opens up for a new type of electronics and medical sensors.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers enhanced Saccharomyces cerevisiae to increase its tolerance for high 2,3-butanediol concentrations. This was achieved by introducing mutations into the genomic DNA and successfully obtaining a mutant strain that proliferates 122 times more than the parent strain.

Cold stress severely restricts crop productivity, yet the molecular mechanisms that coordinate transcriptional and oxidative responses remain poorly understood. This study uncovers a key regulatory module in which the E3 ubiquitin ligase VaMIEL1 controls the stability of the cold-responsive transcription factor VaMYB4a. Under normal conditions, VaMIEL1 promotes VaMYB4a degradation, restricting activation of the CBF–COR cold-response pathway. Cold exposure suppresses VaMIEL1, allowing VaMYB4a to accumulate and enhance both cold-responsive gene expression and antioxidant activity. Functional assays in Arabidopsis and grapevine calli demonstrate that VaMIEL1 overexpression weakens cold tolerance, while its silencing improves stress resistance. The discovery reveals an integrated transcriptional–redox mechanism critical for developing cold-resilient grape cultivars.

A revolutionary quantum sensing project that could transform cancer treatment by tracking how immune cells interact with tumours has been awarded a prestigious £2 million Future Leaders Fellowship.

The four-year fellowship, funded by UK Research and Innovation, focuses on a critical problem: immune cells often fail when they encounter cancer tissue because the tumour environment disrupts their metabolism. The pathbreaking project could enable the development of improved patient-tailored cancer therapies and provide tools for earlier diagnosis and evaluation of anti-cancer drugs.