277 articles from WEDNESDAY 20.5.2020

Untangling a key step in photosynthetic oxygen production

Photosystem II is a protein complex in plants, algae and cyanobacteria that is responsible for splitting water and producing the oxygen we breathe. Over the past few years, an international collaboration between scientists at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and several other institutions have been able to observe various steps...

Nasa space treaty to allow establishment of lunar 'safety zones'

US accused by Russia of trying to circumvent 1967 treaty banning ownership of areas of the moonCountries joining Nasa’s exploration of the moon will be asked to sign up to a series of guiding principles known as the Artemis accords. Announced on 15 May, the accords are a set of broad themes that the agency hopes will form the basis of agreements to be negotiated with each country involved in the...

Epigenetic mechanisms of blood cell differentiation

In the bone marrow, blood stem cells via precursor cells give rise to a variety of blood cell types with various functions: white blood cells, red blood cells, or blood platelets. In which cell type a cell develops depends on various factors. The correct dosage of the enzyme MOF at the right time triggers developmental programs in blood stem cells and precursor cells, and the cells differentiate...

Next generation of soft robots inspired by a children's toy

Buckling, the sudden loss of structural stability, is usually the stuff of engineering nightmares. But, as anyone who has ever played with a toy popper knows, buckling also releases a lot of energy. When the structure of a popper buckles, the energy released by the instability sends the toy flying through the air. Researchers have harnessed that energy and used buckling to their advantage to build...

The Scientist Behind Some of the World’s Best Coronavirus Images

From her laboratory in the far western reaches of Montana, Elizabeth Fischer is trying to help people see what they’re up against in COVID-19. Over the past three decades, Fischer, 58, and her team at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories, part of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, have captured and created some of the more...

Healthcare staff to get coronavirus antibody tests from next week

Exclusive: experts warn of risk of positive results producing false sense of security Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageNHS and social care staff will be given antibody tests revealing whether they have had coronavirus from next week, ministers are to announce on Thursday.In a move designed to reduce frontline workers’ anxiety and provide data on how many people have...