Today's Science Pulse
Hidden Star Clusters Discovered Deep Inside Nearby Galaxies
A UK‑led study using VLA and ALMA data uncovered previously hidden giant star clusters deep within nearby galaxies, describing them as “ring factories.” The findings highlight how young stellar activity shapes galactic evolution across the universe.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Foundation Alloy raises $22M Series A
Tune Therapeutics Presents Positive Phase 1b/2a Proof of Concept Data on TUNE-401: A First-in-Class Epigenetic Silencer for Patients with Hepatitis...
Tune Therapeutics reported Phase 1b/2a data for TUNE‑401, an IV‑delivered LNP‑RNA epigenetic silencer, at the EASL 2026 Congress. The study showed dose‑dependent, durable repression of all key HBV biomarkers, including direct loss of cccDNA‑derived pgRNA and HBeAg in a subset of patients. Safety was favorable, with only mild infusion reactions and transient liver enzyme spikes. The company will expand into a larger Phase 2 trial later in 2026, aiming to deliver the first finite cure for chronic hepatitis B.
Melanoma's Progress, Persistent Gaps, and the Toxicity Criteria That Needed to Change: Igor Puzanov, MD
Immunotherapy has cut U.S. melanoma deaths roughly in half, dropping from about 15,000 to 7,700 annually, according to Roswell Park’s Igor Puzanov. He warns that a subset of tumors undergo epithelial‑mesenchymal transition (EMT), shedding immune‑visible markers and escaping checkpoint inhibitors. To...
Regimen May Become ‘a Standard’ for Aggressive Lymphomas
A phase‑3 frontMIND trial showed that adding tafasitamab and lenalidomide to standard R‑CHOP cuts the risk of progression or death by 25% in newly diagnosed high‑risk diffuse large B‑cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and high‑grade B‑cell lymphoma. The experimental arm achieved 71%...
CTA 1 Pulsar Wind Nebula Shows Bent Jet, Perpendicular Torus
Chandra observations of CTA 1 resolve a compact pulsar wind nebula: a southern jet bends toward the southwest, a faint counter-jet extends north, and a torus sits nearly perpendicular to the jet axis. The bend hints at an external influence....
Pulsar Wind Nebula Inside Supernova Remnant Explored with Chandra
Astronomers using NASA's Chandra X‑ray Observatory studied the pulsar wind nebula (PWN) inside the supernova remnant CTA 1. Deep imaging uncovered a compact morphology featuring a ~20‑arcsecond jet that bends south‑west, a faint counter‑jet, and a torus perpendicular to the jet...
RMIT Turns Eucalyptus Bark Waste Into Carbon-Capture Material
Researchers at RMIT University have converted eucalyptus bark waste into a highly porous carbon using a one-step activation process, offering a low‑cost material for carbon‑dioxide capture and pollutant removal from air and water. The technique bypasses multi‑stage industrial methods, turning...
STAT+: Revolution Medicines Starts Shipping Experimental Pancreatic Cancer Drug
Revolution Medicines has begun shipping its experimental pancreatic cancer therapy, daraxonrasib, to physicians through an FDA‑authorized early‑access program. The rollout follows Phase 3 data released in mid‑April showing patients lived nearly twice as long as those on standard chemotherapy—the longest survival...
Psilocybin Gives Mice Month-Long Pain Relief, Boosts Gabapentin Efficacy
Researchers at the University of Reading reported that a single dose of psilocybin eliminated chronic nerve pain in mice for up to a month and made subsequent gabapentin treatment more effective. The findings, published in Communications Biology, could reshape non‑opioid...
Flatiron Institute Uses Consumer PC to Crack Quantum Spin‑Glass Puzzle
A team at the Flatiron Institute has shown that a specially tuned personal computer can simulate a quantum spin‑glass system previously thought to require a quantum processor. By marrying tensor‑network compression with belief‑propagation algorithms, the researchers achieved results comparable to...
Genetic Study Links HMGCR Mutations to Postpartum Psychosis, Estimating 55% Heritability
Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai identified rare damaging mutations in the HMGCR gene that raise the risk of postpartum psychosis, a severe psychiatric emergency affecting roughly one in 1,000 new mothers. The study estimates that...
Israeli Researchers Use SIRT6 Activation to Reverse Liver Ageing in Mice
Bar‑Ilan University scientists led by Prof. Haim Cohen have demonstrated that boosting the SIRT6 protein in the livers of 24‑month‑old mice reverses age‑related DNA disorganization and restores youthful metabolic function. The month‑long treatment produced lasting benefits for at least three...
Aging Happens in Two Biological Bursts at 44 and 60
According to a Stanford study, your biology may undergo two major accelerations of aging: - Around age 44 - Around age 60 Dr. Michael Snyder's team analyzed 135,000+ biological markers and found that aging appears to happen in bursts—not a steady decline. Here's what...
AI System Qumus Autonomously Creates Graphene Flake and First AI‑Built Graphene FET
Researchers from Princeton, Michigan, California State University and Japan's NIMS unveiled Qumus, an embodied AI that independently isolated a 245 µm² graphene flake and assembled a graphene field‑effect transistor without human intervention. The breakthrough compresses weeks of manual work into 1.5 hours...
Replimune Shares Jump 82% After FDA Aligns on RP1 Melanoma Filing
Replimune Group, Inc. saw its shares climb 82.34% to $8.54 after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration signaled an urgent, prioritized review of the company’s RP1 (vusolimogene oderparepvec) melanoma therapy combined with nivolumab. The alignment clears the way for a...
Fruit Fly Study Links Dopamine to Stress-Induced Sexual Dysfunction
Scientists at Tokyo Metropolitan University used Drosophila fruit flies to map how stress alters sexual behavior. They found that confinement stress of 30 minutes or longer suppresses male courtship, and that dopamine specifically governs how long this suppression persists. The...
New Protein-Folding AI Vastly Expands on Alphafold's Efforts
Researchers at the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub have released the ESM Atlas, an open‑source collection of 1.1 billion predicted protein structures and 6.8 billion sequences. The underlying model, ESMFold2, claims to surpass DeepMind’s AlphaFold 3, especially in predicting protein complexes such as antibodies. The...
New Device Could Make Processors Run 1,000 Times Faster without Additional Waste Heat — Scientists Say It Could Reduce Data...
Japanese researchers have unveiled a non‑volatile switching element that can toggle a bit in 40 picoseconds—roughly 1,000 times faster than conventional processors—without producing significant extra heat. The device uses ultrathin layers of tantalum and antiferromagnetic Mn₃Sn, driven by 60‑picosecond light...
Evidence of Cosmic-Ray Acceleration From a Nearby Supernova Remnant
Researchers from the Large High‑Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) have measured high‑energy gamma rays from the supernova remnant IC 443, located about 5,000 light‑years away. The gamma‑ray spectrum exhibits a distinctive bump that aligns with neutral‑pion decay, confirming that protons are being...
Approaching Gold‐Standard Sensitivity in a Portable and Versatile Gold Nanoprisms Thermoplasmonic Platform for Lateral Flow Detection of Biomolecules
The study introduces a thermoplasmonic lateral flow assay that leverages gold nanoprisms activated by near‑infrared laser to deliver ultrasensitive detection of biomarkers and viral RNA. ThermoLFIA achieved clinically relevant detection of gastrointestinal cancer markers, surpassing traditional ELISA performance. ThermoOLFA detected...
LMU Researchers Pinpoint Thalamic Oscillation as Biological Signature of Consciousness
A team led by Professor Tobias Staudigl and PD Dr. Elisabeth Kaufmann at Ludwig Maximilian University identified a rapid 20‑45 Hz thalamic oscillation that occurs exclusively during waking and REM sleep, disappearing in non‑REM sleep. Published in Nature Human Behaviour, the...
SiO2/SiC Composite Aerogels: Controlled Fabrication, Structure–Property Relationships, and Multifunctional Applications
A new review details the rapid progress of SiO2/SiC composite aerogels, highlighting sol‑gel, carbothermal reduction, freeze‑casting, CVD and electrospinning as primary synthesis routes. By integrating the low‑density, high‑porosity nature of SiO2 aerogels with the mechanical robustness and high‑temperature stability of...
NSF Halts New Grants to Harvard and Other Top Universities Amid Funding Limits
The National Science Foundation announced a pause on new research grants to Harvard University and several other elite institutions, citing recent funding restrictions. The decision, reported by Nature, signals a tightening of federal research dollars for the nation’s top universities.
Exosomes in Glioma: Integrating Molecular Mechanisms with Diagnostic and Therapeutic Potential
Glioma‑derived exosomes act as molecular couriers that remodel the tumor microenvironment, driving angiogenesis, immune evasion, and neuronal dysfunction. The review details how proteins such as VEGF and ADAMTS1, as well as non‑coding RNAs, reprogram endothelial cells, astrocytes, and neurons to...
Science News This Week: Exploding Rocket Overshadows NASA's Next Steps to the Moon, 'Doomsday Glacier' Faces Big Loss, Quantum Computer...
NASA outlined a permanent lunar base and three private payload‑delivery missions slated for later this year, aiming for a crewed return by 2028. The rollout was clouded by Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploding during a static‑fire test, raising doubts about...
GammaTile Improves Metastatic Brain Tumor Outcomes Without Added Toxicity: Jeffrey Weinberg, MD
The phase 3 ROADS trial showed that intraoperative GammaTile cesium‑131 brachytherapy markedly improves local control, surgical‑bed recurrence‑free survival, and overall survival for patients with newly diagnosed metastatic brain tumors, while matching the safety profile of post‑operative stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT). In the...
Functional Chain Engineering in MOFs: Balancing Pore Size and Affinity for Noble Gas Separation
Researchers introduced a mixed‑ligand series of metal‑organic frameworks (ML‑xC8) by substituting IRMOF‑1’s terephthalic acid with bulky C8 alkoxy linkers. Increasing the C8BDC fraction systematically reduced pore size, with the 80 % C8BDC composition (ML‑80C8) delivering the optimal environment for xenon capture....
Zn‐Electrochromic Device with Hierarchical Aerogel and Phase‐Change Material Enables Dynamic Infrared Camouflage at Extreme Temperatures
Researchers have created a solid‑state Zn‑based electrochromic device that integrates a polyimide aerogel and a phase‑change composite, delivering dynamic infrared camouflage at temperatures up to 250 °C. The architecture provides record‑high emissivity contrast of 0.63 in the 3‑5 µm band and 0.71...
DNA Framework Nucleator‐Enabled Intelligent Hydrogel Interfaces on Living Cells
Researchers introduced a DNA framework nucleator (DFN) that creates ordered hydrogel interfaces on living cell membranes. The rigid tetrahedral DNA scaffold directs localized branched hybridization chain reactions, delivering an ATP‑responsive hydrogel with ~90.7% efficiency—2.9‑fold higher than flexible dsDNA nucleators. The...
Interface‐Defect‐Rich In‐Mo Codoped Pd Metallene for Enhanced C1 Selectivity During Electrocatalytic Ethanol Oxidation
Researchers have created an indium‑molybdenum co‑doped palladium metallene with abundant interface defects using a simple wet‑chemical route. The catalyst delivers a record 73.68% C1‑selectivity for ethanol oxidation, translating to a mass activity of 4,274 mA mg⁻¹—about 12 times higher than commercial Pd/C....
FDA Clears Eli Lilly's Foundayo Pill, First Oral GLP‑1 Weight‑Loss Drug Since Novo Nordisk
The U.S. FDA has approved Eli Lilly’s once‑daily oral weight‑loss pill, Foundayo, marking the second oral GLP‑1 therapy on the market. Priced between $149 and $349 per month, the drug offers a pill‑based regimen with comparable 12% average weight loss over...
Verve Therapeutics’ One‑Dose Gene Edit Cuts LDL 62% for Six Months
Verve Therapeutics announced that a single intravenous infusion of its base‑editing drug reduced LDL cholesterol by an average 62% in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, with the effect persisting for at least six months. The result, from a small phase...
Johnson & Johnson Reports 71% Progression‑Free Benefit for TECVAYLI in Early‑Line Multiple Myeloma
Johnson & Johnson announced that its CAR‑T therapy TECVAYLI cut the risk of disease progression or death by 71% and reduced overall mortality by 40% versus standard treatments in the Phase 3 MajesTEC‑9 trial. Nearly two‑thirds of patients achieved a...
Exercise and NAD+ Boost Safety and Function in Friedreich’s Ataxia
Safety and efficacy of individualised exercise and NAD+ precursor supplementation in patients with Friedreich's ataxia in the USA: a single-centre, 2 × 2 factorial, randomised controlled trial https://t.co/1Pll9b0d4q
May Full Moon: A Rare Blue ‘Micromoon’ Will Appear in the Sky Tonight. Here’s the Best Time to See It
A rare blue micromoon will be visible early Sunday morning, May 31, 2026, reaching peak illumination at 4:45 a.m. ET. This is the second full moon in May, meeting the calendar definition of a blue moon, and it occurs near apogee,...
Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes in Ground Test, Threatening Artemis Timeline
Blue Origin’s unmanned New Glenn rocket blew up during a scheduled hot‑fire static test at Launch Complex 36, Kennedy Space Center, on May 29, 2026. The blast, visible over 100 miles away, has halted the company’s near‑term launch schedule and could push NASA’s Artemis...
Researchers Stabilize Elusive Crystal Phase Using Silver Nanoparticles
Scientists from Brown University and the University of Michigan have experimentally stabilized a fleeting intermediate crystal phase by arranging silver nanoparticles into a novel superlattice. The breakthrough, reported in Science, demonstrates a bottom‑up route to engineer materials with quantum‑relevant optical...
Global Warming Melts Glaciers, Thaws Permafrost Worldwide
Climate change is leading to the melting of glaciers and the thawing of permafrost worldwide. https://t.co/TPXcO6sAx7
The Surprising Way Magnesium May Help Protect Against Colon Cancer
A recent trial published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that magnesium supplementation increases two strains of gut bacteria that synthesize vitamin D, a pathway that may lower colon‑cancer risk. The benefit was most pronounced in participants carrying a...
NASA’s Hubble Captures Gorgeous New Photo of a Spiral Galaxy as It Wanders Through the Virgo Cluster
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has released a striking new image of spiral galaxy Messier 88, located about 60 million light‑years away in the Virgo Cluster. The picture highlights the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole—about 100 million times the Sun’s mass—and vivid star‑forming regions....
Millions of Bees Have Thrived Under a New York Cemetery for More Than a Century
Cornell researchers have documented an estimated 5.5 million subterranean Andrena regularis bees nesting beneath East Lawn Cemetery in Ithaca, New York, covering roughly 1.25 acres. The colony size rivals more than 200 conventional honey‑bee hives, making it one of the world’s largest recorded...
Depression May Not Affect Every Brain In The Same Way
A new neuroimaging study of 46 major‑depression patients shows that episodes lasting longer than two years exhibit opposite patterns of brain‑network activity compared with shorter‑term cases. In short‑term depression, greater symptom severity links to weaker communication between the Central Executive...
Does Caffeine Work Differently For Women? What New Research Shows
A new systematic review and meta‑analysis examined caffeine’s ergogenic impact on women competing in intermittent sports and explored whether menstrual cycle phases modify the effect. Across nine studies involving 118 female athletes, caffeine doses of 3–6 mg per kilogram taken about...
Your Cycle Has Been Telling You Something For Years — Researchers Explain
Researchers unveiled WAVES, an open‑source algorithm that mines basal body temperature to generate 32 menstrual‑cycle metrics. Analyzing 5,674 cycles from 753 women, the study found clear age‑related shifts—higher average temperatures, shorter follicular phases, and increased variability. Crucially, many metrics form...
Researchers Convert HDPE Plastic Waste Into High-Quality Graphene via Flash Joule Heating for Supercapacitor Applications
Researchers at India’s Homi Bhabha National Institute and BARC have shown that flash Joule heating can transform high‑density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic waste into high‑quality turbostratic graphene in milliseconds. The solvent‑free, furnace‑less process reaches temperatures above 2,500 °C, carbonizing the polymer in...
Hidden ‘Bubble Cave’ May Help World’s Rarest Seal Steer Clear of Humans: Study
Researchers on Greece’s Formicula islet identified an underwater "bubble cave" with an air pocket that Mediterranean monk seals frequent far more than adjacent main caves. Over a 141‑day study, seals entered the bubble cave on 119 days, using it for...
Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns of Bacterial Isolates From Urine Samples in Selected Tertiary Hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
A retrospective study of 586 urine cultures from three tertiary hospitals in Addis Ababa found that 32.3% yielded bacterial growth, dominated by Escherichia coli (35.4%) and Klebsiella spp. (20.1%). Resistance was alarmingly high to amoxicillin (83.5%), tetracycline (70.4%), ceftriaxone (72.1%)...
Determinants of Farmer Satisfaction with the First Open Pollinated Tomato Varieties Developed in Ghana
The Korea Partnership for Innovation of Agriculture (KOPIA) and Ghana’s CSIR‑Crops Research Institute released the country’s first locally bred open‑pollinated tomato varieties. A cross‑sectional survey of 120 smallholder farmers identified four perception dimensions and linked them to satisfaction via ordered...
Caffeine Reversed Memory Problems Caused by Sleep Deprivation
Researchers at the National University of Singapore discovered that caffeine can reverse social memory deficits caused by sleep deprivation by restoring synaptic plasticity in the hippocampal CA2 region. In the animal study, five hours of sleep loss impaired social recognition,...
Opposing Carbon Dioxide Removals and Emissions Reductions Confuses Mitigation Policies
Researchers argue that separating carbon dioxide removals (CDR) from emissions reductions (ER) hampers climate mitigation. They identify three flaws: economic criteria for CDR are under‑defined, carbon‑market methodologies are inconsistent, and the focus on distant net‑zero goals neglects immediate ER potential....
Neurofilament Light Chain and Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein as Biomarkers in Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma: Differential Expression in Aqueous Humor and...
Researchers measured neurofilament light chain (NfL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the aqueous humor and plasma of 38 primary open‑angle glaucoma (POAG) patients versus 62 cataract controls using ultra‑sensitive SIMOA assays. NfL concentrations were significantly higher in both...