Biotech

Natural muscle fibers are made up of spring-like proteins that can contract and stretch without losing their original form, dissipate mechanical energy as heat and maintain incredible tensile strength for all sorts of physical functions. […]

Sometimes, transporting electrons from one cell to another is a team effort. In electroactive bacteria, that team is a group of proteins that shepherds electrons forward, passing them along like a relay baton, so they […]

A researcher’s keen eye and spirit of curiosity led to the discovery of a new method for cell engineering—a finding that opens doors to more sustainable sources for everything from fuel to vitamin supplements.This article […]

Imagine trying to design a key for a lock that is constantly changing its shape. That is the exact challenge we face in modern drug discovery when dealing with intrinsically disordered proteins.This article was originally […]

In 2013, farmers in the highlands of Ethiopia began to notice something unsettling: a familiar variety of wheat was failing in an unfamiliar way. Stems weakened, plants collapsed, and fields that had once held firm […]

Plants have an immune system, like people, and when it is triggered by threats like disease or pests, a plant’s defenses are activated. But there’s a downside to this protective mechanism: the plant’s growth is […]

Kombu (Saccharina japonica) is a brown seaweed extensively cultivated and consumed in Japan, Korea and China. Despite its nutritional value, its strong fishy and grassy odor can deter some consumers. Additionally, many of kombu’s nutrients […]

The Baltic Sea is one of the world’s most oxygen-depleted major bodies of water. The reason is excessive concentrations of phosphorus, an element essential for life—and an important ingredient in fertilizer. New research shows a […]

The laser you see in the photo above may one day enhance images taken by the most powerful microscopes in biology. This advancement, detailed in a paper published in eLife from scientists at Columbia’s Zuckerman […]

When you step outside on a winter morning or pop a mint into your mouth, a tiny molecular sensor in your body springs into action, alerting your brain to the sensation of cold. Scientists have […]