Technology Networks

Food fraud is one of the most persistent and costly threats facing the global food and beverage sector, undermining authenticity, eroding consumer trust and exposing weaknesses across increasingly complex supply chains. In this Ask the Expert, Dr. Selvarani Elahi examines how sophisticated and fast-evolving fraud risks are testing the industry's ability to verify what is really in our food, and what science can do to stay ahead.

Scientists at The Wistar Institute have shown that a single injection of a small, circular piece of genetic instructions can produce weight loss and blood glucose control in murine models that lasts up to 10 times as long as incretin-mimicking drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. If shown to be successful in clinical trials, this new method of delivery could eliminate the need for repeated dosing, which currently limits patient access and adherence to these therapies.

PET plastic bottles could be transformed into battery-grade carbon under a new process. Read time: 2 minutes A plastic bottle tossed into a recycling bin could one day help power an electric vehicle, smartphone or renewable energy storage system, according to a team of Penn State researchers. In a new study, researchers converted waste polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, into highly ordered synthetic graphite, a crystalline form of carbon.

The Pine Island Glacier, which drains a large part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet into the Amundsen Sea, is one of the single biggest contributors to global sea level rise. This landmark research, led by scientists at King’s College London and the British Antarctic Survey and published in The Cryosphere, is the first study to directly attribute the changes of a major Antarctic outlet glacier to the activities of humans.

We often feel that we are “on the same wavelength” with one another, but can science identify and engineer this phenomenon? Studies by a team of neuroscience researchers suggest that it’s possible - a connectivity that is both beneficial and that can be enhanced for therapeutic and other purposes.

Researchers developed a sperm analysis method that could improve male infertility diagnosis. Read time: 3 minutes Researchers from the EHU-University of the Basque Country have developed a robust protocol to detect the molecules involved in the metabolic reactions of sperm.

Researchers at University of California San Diego have developed a large-scale screening approach that identifies proteins controlling a fundamental step in gene expression known as alternative polyadenylation (APA). APA determines where an RNA molecule is cut and finished before it is translated into protein, influencing the stability, localization and function of thousands of genes.

Scientists have discovered that two common human pathogens can work together by managing copper in their shared environment - a finding that could open new ways to break down stubborn mixed biofilms. The fungus Candida albicans and the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus are both major causes of human infection. They are also found together in complex infections, including wounds, bloodstream infections and infections linked to medical devices.

Researchers at the University of Arizona R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy have developed a new strategy that helps the immune system recognize and attack lung cancer tumors more effectively. By packaging a chemotherapy drug and an RNA molecule in a tiny lipid carrier, the team boosted an immune response that slowed tumor growth and enhanced the effects of immunotherapy.

A team of scientists from the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University, and institutions across the United States have published a landmark paper on the role of TGFBR1*6A, a naturally occurring genetic mutation in the TGFBR1 gene found in approximately 14 percent of the general population.