Science News
Latest science news and updates
Total: 61
Chinese Scientists Pack Healthy Mitochondria into Vesicles, Paving a New Route for Organelle Therapy
A Chinese research team has devised a vesicle-based "capsule" to encapsulate healthy mitochondria and deliver them efficiently to cells and tissues, showing preclinical benefit for models of Parkinson’s disease and mitochondrial DNA deletion syndromes. Published in Cell, the work advances an organelle-therapy concept with broad therapeutic promise, but substantial technical, safety and regulatory challenges remain before human use.
First In‑Cell Glimpse of Lithium Dendrites Growing and Snapping Points a Way to Safer Batteries
Researchers have, for the first time, observed lithium dendrites growing and fracturing inside an operating battery cell, revealing mechanical behaviors that explain intermittent shorting and capacity loss. Published in Science and led by teams including Rice University and Nanyang Technological University, the work improves understanding of a key safety risk and points to targeted engineering and materials solutions.
NASA Probe Plunges Back to Earth Sooner Than Expected as Sun’s Fury Raises Drag
A retired NASA Van Allen probe re-entered Earth’s atmosphere years earlier than predicted after an unexpectedly active solar cycle increased atmospheric drag. NASA says the risk to people on the ground is low, but the event spotlights the limits of current disposal practices and the growing need for improved space-traffic and debris management.
From Restoring Sight to 'Consciousness Machines': Neuralink Co‑founder Says BCI Is Entering a Takeoff Era — and Predicts Humans May Live to 1,000
A retinal implant developed by Max Hodak’s company Science has reportedly restored coherent visual percepts in more than 40 blind patients and published results in the New England Journal of Medicine. Hodak frames this clinical success as the start of a BCI "takeoff era," outlining ambitious plans for biohybrid implants, deep AI–neuroscience convergence, and even radical longevity claims that the first 1,000‑year humans may already be alive.
NASA Inspector-General Warns Starship Lander Is Years Late, Putting 2028 Moon Return at Risk
NASA’s Inspector General reports that SpaceX’s Starship lunar lander is approximately two years behind its original schedule and faces further delays, while Blue Origin’s lander work is also late. These setbacks threaten NASA’s goal of a crewed lunar return in 2028 and increase pressure on programme management, budgets and international partnerships.
Portuguese Team Recreates Anti‑Cancer Immune Cells in the Lab, Opening New Path for Cell Therapies
A research team involving the University of Coimbra reports that they have recreated immune cells with anti‑tumour activity in the lab using cellular reprogramming. The result is a preclinical milestone that could broaden the toolbox for cancer cell therapies but requires peer review, animal studies and clinical trials before clinical application.
Chinese teams unmask a metabolic immune‑escape — and a path toward lab‑made anti‑tumour T cells
Chinese research teams identified extracellular CD44 lactylation as a mechanism by which tumour‑generated lactate blunts CD8+ T cell function, revealing a direct metabolic route to immune escape. The discovery suggests new therapeutic strategies — including drugs or engineered T cells resistant to lactylation — but remains at the preclinical stage.
China Signals Hong Kong and Macau Residents May Join Tiangong Crew This Year
China says trainees from Hong Kong and Macau are preparing for possible missions to the Tiangong space station as early as this year, while foreign astronaut selection and training continues on schedule. The declaration is both a technical signal of readiness and a political gesture intended to showcase inclusion and expand China’s role in post‑ISS low‑Earth‑orbit activity.
China Signals Push for Long‑Duration Off‑Earth Habitats as Astronauts Plan a Ground Research Facility
Chinese astronaut Wang Yaping told a CPPCC panel that the China Astronaut Research and Training Center is applying to build a ground‑based research facility to study long‑term survival off Earth. The move signals Beijing’s transition from near‑Earth operations toward preparations for sustained human presence on the Moon or beyond, with implications for technology, competition and potential international cooperation.
China Signals Push Toward Off‑Earth Habitats as Astronaut Wang Yaping Flags New Research Facility
China says it is preparing a ground‑based research facility to study long‑term human survival beyond Earth, a move disclosed by astronaut and CPPCC member Wang Yaping. The project would underpin ambitions for sustained lunar and deep‑space missions by developing life‑support, radiation protection and in‑situ resource use technologies.
Plastic Films Turn into Tiny Power Plants: Chinese Researchers Set New Record in Flexible Thermoelectrics
Chinese researchers at the Institute of Chemistry, CAS, have developed a flexible polymer thermoelectric film with a reported zT of 1.64, using a polymer phase‑separation process compatible with spray‑coating. The advance could make lightweight, conformable heat‑to‑electricity devices feasible, though real‑world power output, durability and integration remain to be proven.
Atomic‑Thin Magnet Shows Two Rare Phase Transitions, Confirming a 1970s Theory
A University of Texas at Austin team has observed two sequential magnetic states in an ultrathin two‑dimensional magnet as temperature falls, providing the first complete experimental verification of the six‑state clock model from the 1970s. The result clarifies how discrete symmetry and topological defects shape 2D magnetic order and points to avenues for engineering nanoscale spintronic devices, though practical applications will require raising operating temperatures and improving robustness.