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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 12:23pm

AI is distorting online research, from polls to public policy
AI systems can now convincingly simulate human responses in online surveys and polls, undermining the reliability of survey-based research and public policy data. Traditional safeguards like CAPTCHAs and attention checks are increasingly ineffective. New strategies, including behavioural analysis and tasks exploiting human error patterns, are needed to maintain data integrity as AI advances.

Folco Panizza et al, How to deal with the survey-taking AI agents that threaten to upend social science, Nature (2026). DOI: 10.1038/d41586-026-00386-2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:58am

Traffic noise linked to higher cholesterol and lipid levels in blood
Long-term exposure to nighttime road traffic noise above 50–55 dB is associated with higher blood levels of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and other lipid-related metabolites, which are established risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases. These metabolic changes show a clear exposure-response pattern, suggesting that reducing nighttime noise could benefit public health.

Yiyan He et al, Metabolic profiles of nighttime road traffic noise exposure: A multi-cohort study in the European LongITools project, Environmental Research (2026). DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2026.123887

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:53am

Scientists discover new gatekeeper cell in the brain
A previously unidentified population of base barrier cells has been found at the base of the choroid plexus, forming a tight junction-based barrier that compartmentalizes the brain, choroid plexus, and cerebrospinal fluid. This barrier restricts molecular movement under healthy conditions but becomes vulnerable during systemic inflammation, potentially allowing harmful substances into the brain. These cells are present in both mice and humans.

Daan Verhaege et al, Base barrier cells provide compartmentalization of choroid plexus, brain and CSF, Nature Neuroscience (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-025-02188-7

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:51am

Cholesterol crystals may trigger some liver disease
Cholesterol crystals in the liver can increase tissue stiffness early in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), preceding fibrosis. This process may contribute to disease progression and could help identify individuals at higher risk for severe liver damage. Non-invasive detection methods and cholesterol-lowering treatments may offer new avenues for early intervention.

David Li et al, Cholesterol-containing lipid crystals can directly stiffen the rat steatotic liver before fibrosis, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2026). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2518060123

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:47am

Plants retain a 'genetic memory' of past population crashes, study shows

Plant populations that have experienced past crashes due to human activity retain reduced genetic diversity and increased inbreeding, even after apparent recovery. These genetic effects persist for many generations and are not reflected by current population size alone, highlighting the importance of considering genetic history in conservation planning to ensure long-term resilience.

Researchers have found that plants living in areas where human activity has caused population crashes carry long-lasting genetic traces of that history, such as reduced genetic diversity. Because genetic diversity helps species adapt to climate change, disease, and other stresses, the study suggests it is vital to consider a population's history-influenced genetics alongside its size and habitat in conservation planning.

Two populations may look equally healthy on the surface, yet one may be far more vulnerable to future environmental change because it lacks genetic diversity and consists of individuals with poorly mixed genetic material. This can impede evolutionary responses to changing conditions.

Daniel J. Schoen et al, Population genomic signatures of founding events in autonomously self‐fertilizing plants: a test with Impatiens capensis, New Phytologist (2026). DOI: 10.1111/nph.70880

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:28am

Light-based sensor detects early molecular signs of cancer in the blood

Researchers have developed a highly sensitive light-based sensor that can detect extremely low concentrations of cancer biomarkers in the blood. The new technology could one day make it possible to spot early signs of cancer and other conditions using a simple blood test.

Biomarkers such as proteins, DNA or other molecules can be used to reveal the presence, progression or risk of cancer and other diseases. However, one of the main challenges in early disease diagnosis is the extremely low concentration of biomarkers present at the onset.

The new sensor developed now combines nanostructures made of DNA with quantum dots and CRISPR gene editing technology to detect faint biomarker signals using a light-based approach known as second harmonic generation (SHG).

This approach could help make disease treatments simpler, potentially improve survival rates and lower overall health care costs.

Wenbo Du et al, Sub-Attomolar-Level Biosensing of Cancer Biomarkers Using SHG Modulation in DNA-Programmable Quantum Dots/MoS2 Disordered Metasurfaces, Optica (2026). DOI: 10.1364/optica.577416

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:18am

Why visceral fat triggers diabetes: Study points to loss of protective macrophages

Scientists discovered a surprising new way the body can fight insulin resistance and diabetes—by boosting a special type of "good" immune cell in fat tissue.

Reported in Nature Communications, the preclinical findings pave the path to developing a medication to treat and prevent type 2 diabetes, potentially replacing or supplementing GLP-1 weight maintenance drugs that lose effectiveness over time.

One-third of our population is obese or overweight—over the next decade or so, obesity will drive increasing rates of many chronic diseases, including diabetes.

Inflammation driven by immune signals given off by excess fat surrounding abdominal organs has long been known to trigger the insulin resistance that leads to type 2 diabetes.

The researchers found is that there is a subset of immune cells in our fat tissue that are actually helpful. Although they're immune cells, they're not inflammatory—rather, they actually suppress the inflammation that causes insulin resistance.

This subset of immune cells—called resident macrophages—clean up dead cells, fight infections and keep tissues healthy. SerpinB2 is a protein that helps resident macrophages survive. When too much visceral fat accumulates—which occurs when someone is overweight or obese—inflammation increases and SerpinB2 levels plummet.

This causes resident macrophages to die out, which allows fat tissue to grow larger and become more inflamed. Ultimately, the body can't respond as well to insulin, which controls blood sugar, and the person develops diabetes.

When overweight mice with insulin-resistance were given antioxidant supplements, their levels of resident macrophages increased and their insulin sensitivity improved.

Tissue-resident macrophage survival depends on mitochondrial function regulated by SerpinB2 in chronic inflammation, Nature Communications (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-69196-4

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:12am

The observations and analysis of M31-2014-DS1 enabled the team to reinterpret observations of a similar star, NGC 6946-BH1. This led to an important breakthrough in understanding what had happened to the outer layers that had enveloped the star after it failed to go supernova and collapsed into a black hole. The overlooked element? Convection.

Convection is a byproduct of the vast temperature differences inside the star. Material near the star's center is extremely hot, while the outer regions are much cooler. This differential causes gases within the star to move from hotter to cooler regions.

When the star's core collapses, the gas in its outer layers is still moving rapidly due to this convection. Theoretical models developed by astronomers at the Flatiron Institute have shown that this prevents most of the outer layers from falling directly in; instead, the innermost layers orbit outside of the black hole and drive the ejection of the outermost layers of the convective region.

The ejected material cools as it moves farther from the hot material around the black hole. This cool material readily forms dust as atoms and molecules combine. The dust obscures the hot gas orbiting the black hole, warming the dust and producing an observable brightening in infrared wavelengths. This lingering red glow is visible for decades after the star itself disappears.

Kishalay De, Disappearance of a massive star in the Andromeda Galaxy due to formation of a black hole, Science (2026). DOI: 10.1126/science.adt4853. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adt4853

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 11:11am

Failed supernova provides clearest view yet of a star collapsing into a black hole

Astronomers have watched a dying star fail to explode as a supernova, instead collapsing into a black hole. The remarkable sighting is the most complete observational record ever made of a star's transformation into a black hole, allowing astronomers to construct a comprehensive physical picture of the process.

Combining recent observations of the star with over a decade of archival data, the astronomers confirmed and refined theoretical models of how such massive stars turn into black holes. The team found that the star failed to explode as a supernova at the end of its life; instead, the star's core collapsed into a black hole, slowly expelling its turbulent outer layers in the process.

The discovery will help explain why some massive stars turn into black holes when they die, while others don't.

The now-deceased star, called M31-2014-DS1, is located around 2.5 million light-years away from Earth in the neighbouring Andromeda galaxy. 

They found that M31-2014-DS1's infrared light began brightening in 2014. Then in 2016, the star swiftly dimmed far below its original luminosity in barely a year.

Observations in 2022 and 2023 showed that the star essentially vanished in visible and near-infrared light, becoming one ten-thousandth as bright in these wavelengths. Its remnant is now only detectable in mid-infrared light, where it shines at a mere one-tenth as bright as before.

Comparing these observations with theoretical predictions, the researchers concluded that the star's dramatic fading to such a small fraction of its original total brightness provides strong evidence that its core collapsed and became a black hole.

Stars fuse hydrogen into helium in their cores, and that process generates outward pressure to balance the incessant inward pull of gravity. When a massive star roughly 10 or more times heavier than our sun begins to run out of fuel, the balance between inward and outward forces is disrupted. Gravity begins to collapse the star, and its core succumbs first to form a dense neutron star at the center.

Often, the emission of neutrinos in this process generates a powerful shock wave that is explosive enough to rip apart most of the core and outer layers in a supernova. However, if the neutrino-powered shock wave fails to push the stellar material out, theory has long suggested that most of the stellar material would instead fall back into the neutron star, forming a black hole.

Kishalay De, Disappearance of a massive star in the Andromeda Galaxy due to formation of a black hole, Science (2026). DOI: 10.1126/science.adt4853. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adt4853

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 13, 2026 at 10:07am

Elephant whiskers exhibit material intelligence for touch sensing

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