Comment

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 10:29am

A completely new type of microscopy based on quantum sensors

Researchers  have invented an entirely new field of microscopy called nuclear spin microscopy. The team can visualize magnetic signals of nuclear magnetic resonance with a microscope. Quantum sensors convert the signals into light, enabling extremely high-resolution optical imaging.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners are known for their ability to look deep into the human body and create images of organs and tissues. The new method, published in the journal Nature Communications, extends this technique to the realm of microscopic detail.

The quantum sensors used make it possible to convert magnetic resonance signals into optical signals. These signals are captured by a camera and displayed as images.

The resolution of the new MRI microscope reaches ten-millionths of a meter—that is so fine that even the structures of individual cells can be made visible in the future. At the heart of the new microscope is a tiny diamond chip.

This diamond, specially prepared at the atomic level, serves as a highly sensitive quantum sensor for MRI magnetic fields. When irradiated with laser light, it generates a fluorescent signal containing the MRI signal's information. This signal is recorded with a high-speed camera and enables images with a significantly higher resolution down to the microscopic level.

The potential applications of magnetic resonance microscopy are up-and-coming: In cancer research, individual cells could be examined in detail to gain new insights into tumor growth and spread. In pharmaceutical research, the technology could be used to efficiently test and optimize active ingredients at a molecular level. It also offers excellent potential in materials science, such as analyzing the chemical composition of thin-film materials or catalysts.

 Karl D. Briegel et al, Optical widefield nuclear magnetic resonance microscopy, Nature Communications (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-55003-5

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 10:01am

The scientists identified long, twisting fossil filaments within the Algerian gypsum, which have previously been interpreted as benthic algae or cyanobacteria, and are now thought to be sulfur-oxidizing bacteria like Beggiatoa. These were embedded in gypsum, and surrounded by dolomite, clay minerals, and pyrite.

The presence of these minerals signals the presence of organic life, because prokaryotes—cells without a nucleus—supply elements which clay needs to form. They also facilitate dolomite formation in an acidic environment like Mars by increasing the alkalinity around them and concentrating ions in their cell envelopes.

For dolomite to form within gypsum without the presence of organic life, high temperatures and pressures would be needed that would have dehydrated the gypsum, and which aren't consistent with our knowledge of the Martian environment.

If mass spectrometers identify the presence of clay and dolomite in Martian gypsum in addition to other biosignatures, this could be a key signal of fossilized life, which could be reinforced by analyzing other chemical minerals present and by looking for similar organically formed filaments.
While these findings strongly support the biogenicity of the fossil filament in gypsum, distinguishing true biosignatures from abiotic mineral formations remains a challenge.
An additional independent detection method would improve the confidence in life detection. Additionally, Mars has unique environmental conditions which could affect biosignature preservation over geological periods. Further studies are needed.

The search for ancient life on Mars using morphological and mass spectrometric analysis: an analog study in detecting microfossils in Messinian gypsum, Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences (2025). DOI: 10.3389/fspas.2025.1503042

Part 2

**

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 9:59am

Laser-powered device tested on Earth could help detect microbial fossils on Mars

The first life on Earth formed four billion years ago, as microbes living in pools and seas: what if the same thing happened on Mars? If it did, how would we prove it? Scientists hoping to identify fossil evidence of ancient Martian microbial life have now found a way to test their hypothesis, proving they can detect the fossils of microbes in gypsum samples that are a close analogy to sulfate rocks on Mars.

The findings provide a methodological framework for detecting biosignatures in Martian sulfate minerals, potentially guiding future Mars exploration missions.

The new  laser ablation ionization mass spectrometer, a spaceflight-prototype instrument, can effectively detect biosignatures in sulfate minerals. This technology could be integrated into future Mars rovers or landers for in-situ analysis.

Billions of years ago, the water on Mars dried up. Gypsum and other sulfates formed when pools evaporated, leaving behind minerals that precipitated out of the water and potentially fossilizing any organic life left behind. This means that if microbes such as bacteria lived there, traces of their presence could be preserved as fossils.

Gypsum has been widely detected on the Martian surface and is known for its exceptional fossilization potential. It forms rapidly, trapping microorganisms before decomposition occurs, and preserves biological structures and chemical biosignatures.

But to identify these microbial fossils we first need to prove we can identify similar fossils in places where we know such microbes existed—such as Mediterranean gypsum formations that developed during the Messinian Salinity Crisis.

The Messinian Salinity Crisis occurred when the Mediterranean Sea was cut off from the Atlantic Ocean. This led to rapid evaporation, causing the sea to become hypersaline and depositing thick layers of evaporites, including gypsum. These deposits provide an excellent terrestrial analog for Martian sulfate deposits.

The scientists selected an instrument that could be used on a spaceflight: a miniature laser-powered mass spectrometer, which can analyze the chemical composition of a sample in detail as fine as a micrometer.

They sampled gypsum from Sidi Boutbal quarry, Algeria, and analyzed it using the mass spectrometer and an optical microscope, guided by criteria which can help distinguish between potential microbial fossils and natural rock formations. These include morphology which is irregular, sinuous, and potentially hollow, as well as the presence of chemical elements necessary for life, carbonaceous material, and minerals like clay or dolomite which can be influenced by the presence of bacteria.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 9:53am

Before treatment, all children exhibited visual acuity limited to light perception. By the final follow-up, treated eyes showed a mean visual acuity improvement to 0.9 logMAR (range 0.8–1.0) from a baseline equivalent of 2.7 logMAR.

Untreated eyes of the children showed no improvement in visual acuity and either deteriorated to unmeasurable levels or lost light perception by the final follow-up.

Objective testing in two older children using the PopCSF touchscreen assay and steady-state visually evoked potentials (ssVEPs) confirmed significant enhancements in visual function and cortical response specific to treated eyes. Retinal imaging revealed better-preserved thickness and lamination in three treated eyes compared to untreated counterparts.
Gene therapy with rAAV8.hRKp.AIPL1 resulted in sustained visual improvements without serious adverse effects, supporting early intervention for AIPL1-associated retinal dystrophy.

 Michel Michaelides et al, Gene therapy in children with AIPL1-associated severe retinal dystrophy: an open-label, first-in-human interventional study, The Lancet (2025). DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)02812-5

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 9:52am

Gene therapy can improve vision in young children with AIPL1-associated retinal dystrophy

Researchers  have found that gene therapy improved visual acuity and preserved retinal structure in young children with AIPL1-associated severe retinal dystrophy. This is the first human trial of gene supplementation therapy targeting this condition.

Retinal dystrophy caused by biallelic variants in the AIPL1 gene leads to severe visual impairment from birth, with progressive degeneration and limited treatment options. Previous studies of early-onset rod-cone dystrophies, including AIPL1-related forms, highlighted a critical window for intervention during early childhood, when some photoreceptor structure remains intact. Prior research using Aipl1-deficient mouse models and human retinal organoids demonstrated partial restoration of photoreceptor function through gene therapy.

In the study, "Gene therapy in children with AIPL1-associated severe retinal dystrophy: an open-label, first-in-human interventional study," published in The Lancet, researchers administered a single subretinal injection of a recombinant adeno-associated viral vector (rAAV8.hRKp.AIPL1) carrying the AIPL1 gene to one eye of each child to assess the safety and efficacy of gene supplementation therapy in improving visual function and preserving retinal structure.
Four children aged 1.0 to 2.8 years with confirmed AIPL1 mutations received a subretinal injection of rAAV8.hRKp.AIPL1 in one eye. The gene therapy vector, produced under UK regulatory approval, delivered the AIPL1 coding sequence using a human rhodopsin kinase promoter. Oral prednisolone was administered perioperatively to mitigate inflammation. Visual acuity, functional vision, retinal structure, and cortical responses were evaluated over a mean follow-up of 3.5 years.
Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 26, 2025 at 9:43am

Galloping Bubbles

Bubbles that break rules: A fluid discovery that defies logic

Researchers  have made an extraordinary discovery that is reshaping our understanding of bubbles and their movement. Picture tiny air bubbles inside a container filled with liquid. When the container is shaken up and down, these bubbles engage in an unexpected, rhythmic "galloping" motion—bouncing like playful horses and moving horizontally, even though the shaking occurs vertically.

This counterintuitive phenomenon, revealed in a new study published in Nature, has significant implications for technology from cleaning surfaces to improving heat transfer in microchips and even advancing space applications.  

These galloping bubbles are already garnering significant attention: their impact in the field of fluid dynamics has been recognized with an award for their video entry at the most recent Gallery of Fluid Motion, organized by the American Physical Society.

The newly discovered self-propulsion mechanism allows bubbles to travel distances and gives them an unprecedented capacity to navigate intricate fluid networks. This could offer solutions to long-standing challenges in heat transfer, surface cleaning, and even inspire new soft robotic systems.

Jian H. Guan et al, Galloping Bubbles, Nature Communications (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-56611-5

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 25, 2025 at 11:15am

How AI is revealing the language of the birds

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 25, 2025 at 10:51am

An unknown illness kills over 50 people in part of Congo with hours between symptoms and death

An unknown illness has killed over 50 people in northwestern Congo, according to doctors on the ground and the World Health Organization this week.

The interval between the onset of symptoms and death has been 48 hours in the majority of cases, and that's what's really worrying.

The outbreak began on Jan. 21, and 419 cases have been recorded including 53 deaths.
According to the WHO's Africa office, the first outbreak in the town of Boloko began after three children ate a bat and died within 48 hours following hemorrhagic fever symptoms.

There have long been concerns about diseases jumping from animals to humans in places where wild animals are popularly eaten. The number of such outbreaks in Africa has surged by more than 60% in the last decade, the WHO said in 2022.

After the second outbreak of the current mystery disease began in the town of Bomate on Feb. 9, samples from 13 cases have been sent to the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Congo's capital, Kinshasa, for testing, the WHO said.

All samples have been negative for Ebola or other common hemorrhagic fever diseases like Marburg. Some tested positive for malaria.
Source: News agencies

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 25, 2025 at 10:06am

In raw milk, the phages did not reduce counts of Listeria or E. coli. In fact, phage counts decreased.

This is because the heat used in pasteurization changes the shape of the proteins that would otherwise interfere with the phage's activity. In raw milk, these proteins bind to the phages and prevent them from reaching their bacterial targets.

Salmonella, however, was a different story. The phages successfully reduced that pathogen's count in both pasteurized and raw milk.

In pasteurized milk, the phages reduced pathogen counts by a factor of 200–1,500. In raw milk, the reductions were more modest but still significant at 13 to nearly 200 times. These findings were also published in Food Microbiology.

However, they did not observe significant reductions in either gouda (a semihard, aged cheese) or queso fresco (a soft, fresh cheese).

Cheese is the act of turning a liquid to a solid. Those phages are now trapped in a spot, and the bacteria are trapped in a spot, and their ability to find each other is greatly reduced.

However, there were modest reductions in pathogen counts compared to the control in the cheese samples treated with the phages.

The major limitation for using bacteriophages to combat dairy pathogens remains the cost. The researchers had to add 1,000,000 times as many phages as pathogen to see these results in milk. Given that the phage products are relatively expensive, this is a significant barrier to their widespread application, especially for smaller producers.

 Emily Everhart et al, Commercial bacteriophage preparations for the control of Listeria monocytogenes and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli in raw and pasteurized milk, Food Microbiology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2024.104652

Emily Everhart et al, Control of Salmonella enterica spp. enterica in milk and raw milk cheese using commercial bacteriophage preparations, Food Microbiology (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2025.104725

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on February 25, 2025 at 10:02am

Phages prove effective at killing pathogens in milk

Researchers have demonstrated that bacteriophages can effectively reduce the amount of common foodborne pathogens in milk.

Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria. Some phages follow a lytic life cycle where they inject their DNA into the host cell and hijack its mechanisms to reproduce. When the number of phages grows too large, the cell will burst, killing the bacteria. The released phages will continue to self-propagate, seeking out more and more of their target bacteria to infect and kill. Then, once they have used up all the bacteria, they will simply die off.

Each bacteriophage is highly specific and will only target one genus or one species, and in some cases, only one strain of a bacteria.

If you have a target like a foodborne pathogen—like E. coli—there are phages that will really only infect E. coli. So, any good bacteria in your gut and in your food will be unaffected, and your human cells will be completely unaffected.

Bacteriophages are an organic anti-bacterial option that has no impact on the color, flavor, or texture of the food.

Researchers looked at a series of commercially available bacteriophages that target the most common dairy-borne pathogens: Listeria, Salmonella, and E. coli to see how effective they were in destroying these bacteria in milk and cheese.

Each of the products they evaluated were a mixture of phages that target certain pathogenic species or strains.

They  saw significant reductions in pathogen counts in pasteurized milk. These effects were observable within a few hours and held steady for a week.

Listeria counts decreased by a factor of 10,000 compared to the control. For E. coli it was a bit more complicated, as some strains decreased by only a factor of five, while others decreased by 100 times.

These findings were published in Food Microbiology.

Part 1

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• …
• 85
• 86
• 87
• 88
• 89
• …
• 1110
• Next ›
• Page