Japan

Foundational steps made towards artificial cell production for blood bank reserves

An accelerator of the highest-energy protons in our galaxy has been identified; it could help scientists better understand the nature of these fast-moving particles that fill the space between stars.

A conventional robotic hand is equipped with multiple motors or peripheral devices for grasping a wide variety of objects. This study presents a robotic hand equipped with multiple grippers that are driven by a single motor with the transmission of motor power switched via a mechanism using gravity (Magnetic and Gravity-based Driving mechanism). Thus, it provides design guidelines for a new robotic hand capable of accommodating diverse grasping actions while maintaining a relatively simple structure.

You are what you eat! Researchers discovered that a small change to the diet of silkworms improves the quality of silk they produce.

Researchers from the University of Osaka found that localization of the CLK1 kinase to nuclear stress bodies during thermal stress and recovery is regulated by PP1-mediated dephosphorylation and RIOK2-mediated rephosphorylation. This mechanism, which controls pre-mRNA splicing under stress conditions, could provide new insight into stress-related diseases.

Disrupting a single enzyme gene in red perilla reshaped its metabolism, producing green plants enriched in health-promoting molecules.

Two papers by researchers and policy practitioners provide evidence-based suggestions so that Japan’s health system can continue to flourish, even as its population rapidly ages.

Scientists have found a way to spot early signs of skin aging, discovering that collagen's hidden internal structure begins to unravel before the fibers themselves break apart.

Using a simple physical model, researchers at the University of Osaka, The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), RIKEN, and the Institute of Science Tokyo revealed how superionic conduction emerges when mobile ions undergo sublattice melting while the surrounding crystal framework remains intact. Near this transition, ions move cooperatively in spatially heterogeneous, string-like patterns, aided by anharmonic lattice motion. The findings identify general physical principles connecting lattice softness and collective transport, potentially guiding more efficient development of solid electrolytes for batteries and energy-conversion technologies.

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo have developed ultrathin wearable sensors that blend seamlessly into skin, reducing discomfort and distraction

Not every allergy antibody poses the same risk. A Hiroshima University-led research team has developed a more sensitive version of an allergy blood test designed to better detect functional allergen-specific IgE antibodies—the antibodies capable of triggering the immune processes behind allergic reactions.

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo reveal how crystal symmetry determines whether hydrogen follows the rules of quantum or classical physics

Sperm velocity found to drop in Japanese rice fish that spawn consecutively

Researchers at Kanazawa University report the blood-based gene expression tests may enable early pancreatic cancer screening and improve long-term survival.

Researchers at The University of Osaka have developed an improved technique called “tapping-mode scanning probe electrospray ionization” (t-SPESI), allowing the analysis of regions within individual cells with greater sensitivity and stability. Through device miniaturization and molecular modification of the probe surface, the team achieved higher sensitivity and long-term stability, successfully visualizing lipid distributions in mouse brain tissue at a pixel size of 5 µm.

Researchers at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) at Kanazawa University, Institute for Molecular Science and SOKENDAI have uncovered the hidden mechanism behind a molecular switch—a molecule that can change between different structural states in response to a chemical signal. Their study, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, reveals how molecules can gradually switch between alternative states, a process that could help scientists design future molecular machines, smart materials, and molecular information technologies. To make the discovery, Shigehisa Akine and colleagues created a specially designed molecular cage that changes shape unusually slowly. This allowed them to observe, for the first time, the sequence of molecular events that occurs after the molecule receives a chemical input. The study provides one of the clearest views yet of how molecular recognition triggers structural change and demonstrates that the response speed of a molecular system can itself be engineered through molecular design.

Researchers break a fundamental rule to create a new concept: heat that can be directed and “programmed”. In most materials, heat absorption and heat emission are linked, meaning a surface that absorbs thermal radiation well from a particular direction will also emit it in the same way. A team from OMU in Japan has designed a reconfigurable device that breaks this symmetry, enabling heat to be absorbed and emitted differently depending on the direction of absorption. This technology could eventually lead to smarter thermal-management systems and infrared sensors.

Hiroshima University researchers have demonstrated a proof of concept for the mass-production of genome-edited T cells that can be used to treat malignant tumors, using a genetic engineering technique called Platinum TALEN.

Researchers from the University of Osaka found that the human brain represents social relationships learned through drama viewing, especially antagonistic ties. Participants watched six episodes of SUITS and underwent fMRI scans before and after viewing. Brain activity patterns after viewing reflected rivalries and conflicts among characters, particularly in regions involved in social cognition. The findings suggest that negative relationships help structure the brain’s internal social maps.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have used machine learning to develop a systematic framework for structural descriptors in supercooled water. A neural network model was used to quantitatively assess the performance of 16 structural descriptors in differentiating between two states of water, a high-density liquid and a low-density liquid. The framework could be used to further our understanding of the anomalous behavior of water.

How did a large crab end up trapped inside a plastic bottle with an opening smaller than its body? Hiroshima University researchers investigated this unusual marine mystery, revealing a lesser-known impact of marine plastic pollution on crustaceans.

Oxidative addition is often carried out using transition metals and is challenging to perform at centers of more abundant main-group elements, particularly group 13 elements. Researchers at The University of Osaka, led by Takuya Kodama, achieved oxidative addition of an aryl iodide to a group 13 (gallium) center. The reaction is initiated by visible light. The reaction proceeds via a novel mechanism, photoinduced disproportionation, whereby photoexcited gallium exchanges electrons with ground-state gallium.

Researchers at the University of Osaka developed the CLiB assay, a high-throughput platform to engineer protein-based lipid-binding probes. By screening a library of protein variants, they created a highly sensitive probe for the signaling lipid PI(3,5)P2. This tool allowed the team to visualize how cells remodel their membranes to engulf damaged materials, providing a framework for developing next-generation biosensors and unlocking new insights into the dynamic landscape of biological membranes.

The end of colored plastic downgrading could be near with new approach

Base-mediated degradation of carbon−Carbon main chain polymers bearing alkoxycarbonylmethylene repeating units

Multifunctional facility associated with more frequent stays among residents

Study across five periods of the COVID-19 pandemic reveals changing long COVID patterns and the need for continued support

Black-box optimization, particularly Bayesian optimization, is a practical approach for weather-intervention design, achieving meaningful rainfall reduction even under a very limited budget of expensive weather simulations, finding effective actions with only a small number of trials.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have synergistically combined three strategies for energy dissipation to enhance the toughness of elastomers. Rotaxane molecules with sacrificial bonds are incorporated into an elastomer. Under increasing external force, three mechanisms become sequentially activated: sliding of the rotaxane molecules, force-induced bond scission in the rings to form linear chains, and entanglement of the resulting chains. A polyurethane elastomer synthesized using this strategy was five times tougher than a conventional polyurethane.

Variability, transport, and fate of riverine perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in a heavily PFOA-impacted coastal sea