Peer Reviewed

Study highlights the uniqueness of individual brain functional connectomes as a promising approach to identify biomarkers for major depressive disorder.

Rising day and night temperatures are threatening rice, wheat, and maize production by disrupting plant growth, grain filling, and grain quality, putting global food security at risk. Precision breeding and genome editing offer ways to reprogram plant clocks, optimize flowering and panicle architecture, and protect grain quality under heat stress.

Critical to hydrogen’s widespread adoption as a clean energy source is its storage. Solid-state storage, where hydrogen is absorbed into metals, offers an alternative to high-pressure tanks. Yet hydrogen storage alloys face a trade-off between storage capacity and material stability. Tohoku University researchers discovered that magnetism governs this trade-off, and that by controlling the magnetic properties of alloys, it is possible to workaround this trade-off.

CityUHK economist together with Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences are jointly leading the early childhood research programme China REACH. The study aims to provide a practical, evidence-based framework for reducing educational disparities among rural children. To date, more than 80,000 rural children across diverse regions of China have benefited from the initiative.

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo have used 3D-printing technology to improve the viral titer of microneedle array patches, resulting in effective immunogenicity and protection against infection in mice

A comprehensive analysis of supersulfide production in fermented soybeans

Researchers in Taiwan demonstrate that installing solar panels above clam ponds can simultaneously support aquaculture and renewable energy under increasing climate stress. Using real-world farm data, the study shows that moderate shading lowers pond temperatures, reduces water demand, and generates clean electricity. This reveals novel, practical synergies across the Water–Energy–Food–Climate–Land nexus.

Using a new method to track groundwater levels and greenhouse gas emissions, researchers uncover the climate impact of Southeast Asia’s peatlands.

Researchers at Tohoku University have developed a much more efficient way to produce ethylamine - a crucial component for dyes, pharmaceuticals, and more. It all starts with a catalyst.

A new meta-analysis shows that when people eat may be as important as how long they eat. Eating earlier in the day appears to support better metabolic health than eating late, even within time-restricted eating patterns.

We may be closer to unravelling the mystery of how the dry, arid Mars used to be covered in water from new research that focuses on an unexpected event (a powerful dust storm) at an unexpected time (Northern Hemisphere summer).

Nearly 40% of new cancer cases worldwide in 2022 may be associated with modifiable risk factors, according to an analysis of 36 cancer types from 185 countries, published in Nature Medicine. The findings suggest that reducing exposures such as tobacco smoking, certain infections, and alcohol use remains essential for cancer prevention.

When cultivated tobacco is crossed with a wild relative it erases lethal genes, allowing normally fatal hybrids to survive.

Take a dive into the streamlined workflow of DIVE (Descriptive Interpretation of Visual Expression)! DIVE combines multiple AI agents to extract images from about 4,000 scientific publications to propose new materials – all within minutes.

A potential breakthrough for jet lag and shift work-related sleep disorders. A Japanese research team has discovered a new compound that can advance the body’s internal clock—offering hope for faster recovery from jet lag and better adaptation to night-shift work. The compound, called Mic-628, specifically activates the transcription of a clock gene named Period1 (Per1). When given orally to mice, it advanced their body clocks and activity rhythms, regardless of dosing time. The findings suggest a new approach to controlling circadian rhythms through drug action rather than light exposure.

Early marine algae adapted their light-harvesting systems for weak blue-green light, suggesting how photosynthesis evolved.

ISGlobal, supported by Rockefeller Foundation, analyzed impact of severe global aid cuts in 93 countries, with 21 in Asia. New study published in The Lancet finds slashing global aid, particularly by US and European countries, will reverse decades of progress in fighting diseases.

Researchers from The University of Osaka compared psychological ratings of various words from humans and large language models (LLMs) along different dimensions in order to compare the ways in which they conceptualize words. Human and LLM ratings aligned closely for some attributes (such as concreteness) but diverged significantly for others (such as iconicity). This work reveals which linguistic features may be reliably estimated using LLMs.

Hiroshima University researchers developed a three-factor, 12-item, questionnaire-based scale to systematically assess nursing practices that support fertility preservation decision-making in women with cancer. They show that such decision-making can be clearly defined, measured, and improved.

Researchers have found duality can reveal hidden non-invertible symmetry protected topological phases, unlocking new quantum phases.

A new tool offers researchers a better way of exploring and understanding catalyst data.

Researchers at Tohoku University developed a wastewater treatment method to help clear pollution caused by toxic, non-biodegradable dyes. The method uses a 3D, sponge-like covalent organic network to purify wastewater in a sustainable manner.

Old trees are learning new tricks with the advent of composite materials. Made of biodegradable polymers and the waste bark of the Yakushima Jisugi tree, the green composite was developed by a research team at Tohoku University. When assessing the material, they found that simply testing its mechanical strength — in this case, its tensile strength or ability to resist pulling —could reliably predict the biodegradation process. Traditionally, in processes that are costly in time and money, scientists chemically test how much of a material remains after time has passed. Shifting assessment focus to how a material continues to safely function during the biodegradation process, the team said, could help better inform practical use of such products.

A new nanocomposite material made of carbon fiber-reinforced polymers and piezoelectric materials can use vibrations to self-detect tiny cracks. This material could be used in the aerospace, automative, and construction industries to monitor structural health without the need of an external power source.

Iternational researchers have improved an ultrasonic phased array system, making it possible to see hidden defects in aging concrete infrastructure and potentially strengthening the efficiency of infrastructural maintenance.

Two-dimensional topological materials are widely studied because they can be efficient and cost-effective catalysts. Their unique electronic properties give rise to robust topological surface states. However, this assumption is often made under the premise that their surfaces remain clean and unchanged during reactions, which is rarely the case. Using quantum computing, a research team has recreated a 2D material’s true working surface under reaction conditions.

The University of Osaka study shows that declining clinical tests lead to an underestimation of COVID-19 cases. By analyzing wastewater, researchers found viral loads remained high even as reported cases dropped. This highlights wastewater surveillance as a crucial, objective tool for accurately monitoring community-wide infection levels. The findings advocate for a multi-layered public health approach that is not solely reliant on testing data, ensuring a more realistic assessment of infection risks.

Researchers from The University of Osaka report the development of two fluorescent indicators, Gachapin and Gachapin-C, that can be used to monitor cell–cell contacts and contacts between different processes of the same neuronal cell. Unlike split GFP indicators, the reversible and instant fluorescence from the Gachapin/Gachapin-C chromophore upon contact enables real-time imaging of dynamic contact events.

A collaborative team from National Taiwan University and National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University identified an alternative strategy to regulate an immune enzyme linked to cancer and inflammation.

Researchers have developed a method to reduce uncertainties in observational measurements of cosmic birefringence, which might help explain the Universe’s symmetry.