News Inventory

Like tuning a violin to produce strong, elegant notes, researchers at The Wistar Institute have found multiple receptors on the outside of the body's killer immune system cells which they believe can be selectively targeted to keep the cells in superb infection- and disease-fighting condition. In a study published online November 30 in Nature Immunology, the researchers describe their discovery of seven different receptors on T cells that can tamp down immune responses during a prolonged battle with an infectious pathogen or against ... Read More

Scientists who are seeking new sources of clean energy are trying to mimic the way plants and trees do it, by converting sunlight into fuel. Unlike standard solar panels on rooftops or arrays of solar collectors in the desert, this is a form of "artificial photosynthesis." It tries to imitate the elaborate system that microbes, algae and green plants developed over 3 billion of years of evolution. If it works, artificial photosynthesis could help reduce the world's dependence on fossil fuels without generating climate-warming ... Read More

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from ... Read More

When given to mice the protein increases the production of brown fat cells – which burn calories. The discovery could lead to the development of new therapies for tackling obesity Scientists have found a protein that can promote the burning of body fat – a discovery that could lead to new ways to tackle obesity. Mice injected with a protein called BMP7 increased their production of "good" brown fat cells, while keeping their levels of the normal white fat cells constant. Fat is a crucial ... Read More

Turning conventional neuroscience on its head, new research suggests the human visual system processes sound and helps us see. Here's the basics of what was Neuroscience 101: The auditory system records sound, while the visual system focuses, well, on the visuals, and never do they meet. Instead, a "higher cognitive" producer, like the brain's superior colliculus, uses these separate inputs to create our cinematic experiences. The textbook rewrite: The brain can, if it must, directly use sound to see and light to hear. The study ... Read More