Scientists Discover 5,000-Year Climate Pulse Hidden in Earth’s Ancient Greenhouse World

By China U. of Geosciences, March 14, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-discover-5000-year-climate-pulse-hidden-in-earths-ancient-greenhouse-world/

Earth’s climate has undergone abrupt shifts in the past, but scientists have long struggled to explain how rapid climate variability could occur during warm periods without large ice sheets. New research based on Late Cretaceous sediment cores suggests that subtle changes in Earth’s orbital wobble may have played a key role. 

Credit: Shutterstock

New geological evidence suggests that the slow wobble of Earth’s axis may have triggered rapid climate swings during the Late Cretaceous greenhouse world.

When audiences watched The Day After Tomorrow, they saw a dramatic Hollywood depiction of sudden climate chaos. The film greatly compresses the timeline, but the underlying idea that Earth’s climate can change abruptly is supported by scientific evidence. During the last Ice Age, for instance, temperatures in Greenland rose by as much as 16°C (about 29°F) within just a few decades. At the same time, enormous surges of icebergs repeatedly disrupted the North Atlantic Ocean. Scientists refer to these episodes as Dansgaard–Oeschger and Heinrich events. These rapid changes, known as millennial-scale climate events, show that the climate system can reorganize much faster than would be expected from slow orbital cycles alone.

Scientists have often connected these dramatic swings to the behavior of massive ice sheets. That link has created an important question. If large ice sheets played a central role, how could similar millennial-scale climate variability occur during warm greenhouse periods of Earth’s history when such ice sheets did not exist? Researchers have struggled with this puzzle for many years.

A new study now offers an explanation. An international team led by Professor Chengshan Wang at the China University of Geosciences (Beijing) has found evidence that Earth’s precession cycles, which describe the slow wobble of the planet’s rotational axis, can generate abrupt millennial-scale climate fluctuations even when the planet is largely ice-free. The project included collaborators from Belgium, Austria, and China. Their results were published in Nature Communications.

A Window Into the Late Cretaceous

The research is based on sediment cores recovered from the Songliao Basin in northeastern China. These sediments were deposited about 83 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. This period represents a classic greenhouse phase in Earth’s history, characterized by high atmospheric CO₂ concentrations and a lack of large ice sheets. Scientists obtained the cores through the Cretaceous Continental Scientific Drilling Project, an international program launched in 2006 by Prof. Wang.

From an astronomical perspective, Earth’s axis slowly wobbles in a motion similar to a spinning top. This movement is called axial precession, and one full cycle takes roughly 26,000 years. When this wobble interacts with the gradual shift in the orientation of Earth’s elliptical orbit, it produces two main climatic precession cycles lasting about 19,000 and 23,000 years. These cycles influence how sunlight is distributed across the planet through the seasons and play a major role in shaping long-term climate patterns.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aD9wgeu2_BY&t=1s

A new study from China University explores how millennial-scale climate variability, traditionally linked to ice-sheet dynamics, occurred during warm greenhouse house periods when ice sheets were absent.

 Credit: Professor Chengshan Wang, from the China University of Geosciences, China

Earth’s axial tilt relative to its orbital plane (Earth’s obliquity) also affects how solar radiation is distributed across different latitudes. Regions outside the tropics receive one annual peak in solar radiation near the summer solstice in each hemisphere. Tropical regions behave differently. Because of the geometry of Earth’s tilt and orbit, solar radiation there reaches two peaks each year near the equinoxes and two minima near the solstices.

This pattern produces a distinctive structure in tropical sunlight exposure. The two annual peaks in solar radiation create four periods of maximum contrast in seasonal solar energy within a single year. Over the course of a full precession cycle, this structure leads to four separate climatic responses to changes in solar forcing driven by precession. As a result, the climate system can develop a repeating quarter-precession signal with a period of roughly 5,000 years.

Evidence From Ancient Sediments

The geological record from the Songliao Basin supports this theoretical idea. By analyzing geochemical data, mineral compositions, and simulations of bioturbation, the researchers reconstructed environmental conditions during the Late Cretaceous. Their results reveal repeated shifts between humid and arid conditions that occurred with clear periodicities of about 4,000–5,000 years.

The strength of these cycles also changed over longer time intervals. Specifically, their intensity varied with ~100,000-year cycles that correspond to changes in Earth’s orbital eccentricity.

The Late Cretaceous sediment record closely matches the predicted pattern of solar radiation changes in equatorial regions. This agreement suggests that tropical insolation can strongly influence the global climate system and may naturally trigger millennial-scale climate oscillations. Additional spectral analyses show that the ~5,000-year solar forcing cycles can lead to even faster climate shifts lasting 1,800–4,000 years. These shorter variations likely arise from nonlinear interactions within the climate system.

Together, the geological reconstructions and theoretical calculations indicate that even during warm, ice-free greenhouse climates, Earth’s climate was not stable. Instead, it repeatedly shifted between wetter and drier conditions, largely driven by solar forcing linked to orbital precession.

“During the Late Cretaceous, atmospheric CO₂ levels reached about 1,000 parts per million—comparable to projections for the end of this century,” says Prof. Michael Wagreich, a paleoclimatologist at the University of Vienna. “This makes the Cretaceous greenhouse climate a meaningful analogue for understanding Earth’s future.”

“Because Earth’s orbital configuration will remain stable for billions of years, the unveiled close link we identified between astronomical precession and millennial-scale climate cycles implies that high-frequency climate oscillations, like those seen in the Cretaceous, could also emerge in a warmer future—potentially in ways that are more predictable than previously thought,” concludes the study’s first author, Zhifeng Zhang.

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Scientists Discover Ice Age Forests in the North Sea’s Sunken “Lost World”

By U of Warwick, March 14, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-discover-ice-age-forests-in-the-north-seas-sunken-lost-world/

Long before the North Sea covered Doggerland, the now-lost landscape may have supported forests, wildlife, and possibly human communities earlier than scientists once believed. Using sedimentary ancient DNA, researchers uncovered evidence that temperate trees thrived there thousands of years earlier than indicated by previous records.

 Credit: Shutterstock

Ancient DNA preserved in seabed sediments suggests Doggerland hosted temperate forests far earlier than expected.

Forests covered parts of Doggerland, the now-submerged landmass beneath the North Sea, thousands of years earlier than scientists once thought. The conclusion comes from a large study of sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) led by researchers at the University of Warwick.

The results indicate that Doggerland may have served as a favorable refuge for plants, animals, and possibly humans long before forests became common across Britain and northern Europe.

The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), found evidence that temperate tree species such as oak, elm, and hazel were present more than 16,000 years ago. Researchers also identified DNA from a tree genus believed to have disappeared from the region about 400,000 years ago. The data further suggest that parts of Doggerland remained above water during major flooding events, including the Storegga tsunami about 8,150 years ago. Some areas appear to have persisted until roughly 7,000 years ago.

Professor Robin Allaby at the University of Warwick and lead author of this study says, “By analyzing sedaDNA from Southern Doggerland at a scale not seen before, we have reconstructed the environment of this lost land from the end of the last Ice Age until the North Sea arrived. We unexpectedly found trees thousands of years earlier than anyone expected — and evidence that the North Sea fully formed later than previously thought.

“From a human perspective, this is the best evidence that Doggerland’s wooded environment could have supported early Mesolithic communities prior to flooding and may help explain why relatively little early Mesolithic evidence survives on mainland Britain today.”

Doggerland landscape 18,000, 10,000 and 8,000 years ago. 

Credit: University of Bradford Submerged Landscape Research Centre & Nigel Dodds

The lost trees of Doggerland

Before rising sea levels flooded the region, Doggerland formed a land connection between Britain and mainland Europe. Over time the advancing sea submerged this landscape and created what is now the North Sea. While scientists already knew that forests eventually grew there, the timing of when trees first appeared and how favorable the region was for early human populations has remained uncertain.

To explore these questions, researchers analyzed sedimentary ancient DNA from 252 samples taken from 41 marine sediment cores along the prehistoric Southern River (chosen for its well-preserved sediments and potential to reveal past habitats). These samples allowed the team to reconstruct the ecological history of Doggerland from around 16,000 years ago until the region was finally submerged.

The analysis shows that temperate woodland species, including oak, elm, and hazel, appeared thousands of years earlier than suggested by pollen records from Britain. Lime (Tilia), a tree that prefers warmer conditions, also shows up roughly 2,000 years earlier than previously documented in mainland Britain. This pattern suggests that parts of Doggerland may have served as a northern refuge for certain tree species during the last Ice Age.

Researchers also discovered DNA belonging to Pterocarya, a relative of the walnut tree that scientists believed disappeared from northwestern Europe about 400,000 years ago. Its presence indicates that the species survived in this region far longer than previously recognized.

Rethinking Ice Age Europe

The study supports growing evidence that small-scale “microrefugia” allowed temperate plant species to survive northern Europe’s Ice Age conditions, helping explain Reid’s Paradox — how trees recolonised the region so rapidly after the last

Ice Age retreated.

The presence of woodland habitats in southern Doggerland 16,000 years ago suggests the area may have offered rich ecological resources for humans, including forest animals such as boars, long before the emergence of early peoples such as the well-documented Maglemosian culture around 10,300 years ago.

Co-author, Professor Vincent Gaffney at the University of Bradford says, “For many years, Doggerland was often described as a land bridge, only significant as a route for prehistoric settlement of the British Isles. Today, we understand that Doggerland was not only a heartland of early human settlement, but also that the presence of the land mass may have provided a refuge for plants and animals and acted as a fulcrum for how prehistoric communities settled and resettled northern Europe over millennia.”

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Mothers And Kids Sync Brain Activity, Even in Non-Native Languages

15 March 2026, By I. Farkas

https://www.sciencealert.com/mothers-and-kids-sync-brain-activity-even-in-non-native-languages

(OR Images/DigitalVision/Getty Images)

A new study shows that mothers and their children display synchronized neural activity when playing together, even when speaking in their non-native language, demonstrating that this brain-bonding effect does not get lost in translation.

This so-called interbrain synchrony is described as the "simultaneous activity of neural networks across the brains of people who are socially interacting," and it isn't limited to mothers and their children.

Synchrony occurs when people work, learn, talk, play, or sing together, potentially explaining humanity's love affair with karaoke. And while it's known that synchrony improves social bonding and facilitates successful interactions, it hasn't been studied in the context of bilingualism.

Bilingual children are especially underrepresented in developmental neuroscience research, even though bilingualism boosts brain health and supports the development of language skills, social cues, and cultural norms – skills strengthened through synchrony.

So a research team led by neurologists at the University of Nottingham in the UK designed an experiment to explore the effects of language on interbrain synchrony in mother-child pairs for whom English is not their first language, as described in a recent paper in the journal Frontiers in Cognition.

The researchers observed 15 bilingual mother-child pairs in a lab setting as they played under three different conditions: playing together while speaking in their native language; playing together while speaking exclusively in English; and playing independently in silence while separated by a screen.

The mothers and children each wore fNIRS (functional near-infrared spectroscopy) caps, which measured neural activity in the prefrontal cortex and the temporoparietal junction, two brain regions that regulate social behaviors.

The play conditions (A and B), and the fNIRScap (C). 

(Papoutselou et al., Front. Cognit., 2026.)



The fNIRS scans revealed that brain synchrony increased significantly when mothers and children played together – regardless of which language they used to communicate – compared with independent play.

Synchrony was especially strong in the prefrontal cortex, the brain region responsible for executive functions such as decision-making and expression of personality. Synchrony was weaker in the temporoparietal junction, which is associated with social cognition, language, and the sense of self.

These findings also suggest that parent-child differences in language acquisition do not significantly affect brain synchrony. As is often the case, bilingual children learn two languages in parallel at a young age. In contrast, bilingual parents often acquire their second language later in life, sometimes causing a purported emotional rift.

"[Second-language] speakers often report a sense of emotional distancing when using their non-native language, which may influence how they express affection, discipline, or empathy in parent-child interactions," the authors explain.

Fortunately, this sense of linguistic distance did not seem to prevent brain synchrony, which is vital for relationship quality and behavioral alignment between parents and children.

"Bilingualism is sometimes seen as a challenge, but can give real advantages in life. Our research shows that growing up with more than one language can also support healthy communication and learning," says Douglas Hartley, a professor of otology at the University of Nottingham and the study's senior author.

The researchers propose that future experiments should broaden their scope to include families with parents who are less fluent in their non-native language and children who learned their second language later in life.

Additionally, since familiar relationships tend to elicit greater brain synchrony than more distant ones, future studies should examine the strength of this effect between children and their teachers or between children and strangers.

And since this study was not limited to verbal interactions, it may be worthwhile to disentangle the effects of nonverbal cues, such as eye contact and gestures, from those conveyed through language.

Most importantly, since a person's non-native tongue appears to pose no barrier to brain synchrony, these findings suggest that every language can be a love language – except maybe Klingon.

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Moon Rocks Challenge Long-Held Theory About the Origin of Earth’s Water

By U. of New Mexico, March 13, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/moon-rocks-challenge-long-held-theory-about-the-origin-of-earths-water/

A new study analyzing oxygen isotopes in lunar soil suggests that meteorite impacts occurring over the past four billion years likely delivered only a small fraction of Earth’s water. 

Credit: Shutterstock

Oxygen isotope analysis of lunar soil shows meteorites delivered only a limited amount of water to the Earth–Moon system after about 4 billion years ago.

For many years, scientists have proposed that water-rich meteorites striking Earth late in its history may have delivered a significant share of the planet’s oceans. However, new research indicates that evidence preserved on the Moon places strict limits on that idea.

According to the study, even under generous assumptions, meteorites impacting the Earth–Moon system since roughly 4 billion years ago could account for only a minor fraction of Earth’s water.

The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was led by Tony Gargano, Ph.D., of the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the University of New Mexico. The team examined a wide collection of Apollo lunar regolith samples and measured their triple oxygen isotope signatures with high precision.

Earth itself holds little physical evidence of the intense bombardment that occurred early in its history. Plate tectonics and ongoing recycling of the crust have erased much of that record. The Moon, in contrast, preserves a detailed history in its regolith, a surface layer of loose debris that has been created and repeatedly reworked by impacts over billions of years.

UNM’s Institute of Meteoritics Meteorite Museum. 

Credit: University of New Mexico



Since the Apollo missions returned samples, scientists have tried to decode this record by examining elements that are common in impacting bodies. These include siderophile elements, often described as metal-loving elements, which are abundant in meteorites but relatively scarce in the Moon’s silicate crust. Interpreting the regolith is difficult, however, because impacts repeatedly melt, vaporize, and remix materials. Geological processes after impacts can also separate metal from silicate, making it harder to determine exactly how much meteorite material was added and what kinds of objects delivered it.

Lunar Regolith: A Long-Term Archive of Impacts

“The lunar regolith, which is a collection of loose ‘soil’ and broken rock at the surface, acts like a long-term mixing layer,” said Gargano. “It captures impact debris, stirs it in, and preserves those additions for immense spans of time. That is why it is such a powerful archive. It lets us study a time-averaged record of what was hitting the Earth–Moon system.”

Instead of focusing on metal-loving elements, the researchers used a different method. They analyzed oxygen, the most abundant element in rocks, and examined its triple-isotope signature. This isotopic “fingerprint” helps distinguish two signals that often overlap in lunar regolith: (1) the addition of meteorite material and (2) isotopic changes caused by vaporization during impacts.

Image from Apollo 17 mission.

 Credit: NASA



By studying subtle shifts in the oxygen isotope composition of lunar soil, the researchers determined that at least ~1% of the regolith by mass consists of material originating from impactors. The data suggest these materials most likely came from carbon-rich meteorites that were partly vaporized when they struck the Moon.

“Triple oxygen isotopes give us a more direct and quantitative way to approach the problem. Oxygen is the dominant element in most rocks, and the triple-isotope framework helps us distinguish true mixing between different reservoirs from the isotopic effects of impact-driven vaporization,” said Gargano. “In practice, that lets us isolate an impactor fingerprint from a regolith that has a complicated history, with fewer assumptions and a clearer chain from measurement to interpretation.”

Oxygen Isotopes Reveal Meteorite Contributions

Using these measurements, the researchers estimated how much water those impactors could have delivered to both the Moon and Earth. The results were expressed in Earth-ocean equivalents to provide a familiar comparison. For the Moon, the total water delivered since ~4 billion years ago is extremely small when measured against the size of Earth’s oceans. Yet that does not mean the contribution is unimportant for the Moon.

Water on the Moon exists mainly in small reservoirs trapped in permanently shadowed regions. Even limited amounts could be valuable for future exploration. Water resources could support life support systems, provide radiation shielding, and serve as a source of fuel for sustained human activity on the lunar surface. As a result, the steady but small addition of water from impactors could still play a meaningful role in the Moon’s overall water inventory.

The team then applied the same calculations to Earth. Scientists generally estimate that Earth receives much more impactor material than the Moon, often by a factor of about 20×. Even using that scaling and assuming the extreme case of a thick megaregolith layer, the total water delivered through these late impacts would amount to only a few percent of one Earth ocean at most. Considering that Earth is believed to contain several ocean masses of water overall, this amount is far too small for late-arriving meteorites to explain the majority of Earth’s oceans.

Implications for the Origin of Earth’s Oceans

“The lunar regolith is one of the rare places we can still interpret a time-integrated record of what was hitting Earth’s neighborhood for billions of years,” said Gargano. “The oxygen-isotope fingerprint lets us pull an impactor signal out of a mixture that’s been melted, vaporized, and reworked countless times. The main takeaway from our study is that Earth’s water budget is hard, if not impossible, to explain if we only consider a single, late delivery pathway from water-rich impactors from the outer solar system. Even though some meteorite types carry a lot of water, their broader chemical and isotopic fingerprints are quite exotic relative to Earth. Habitability models have to satisfy such empirical constraints, and our study adds a constraint that future theories will need to reproduce.”

Tony Gargano, Ph.D., in the University of New Mexico’s Center for Stable Isotopes. 

Credit: University of New Mexico



“Our results don’t say meteorites delivered no water,” added Simon. “They say the Moon’s long-term record makes it very hard for late meteorite delivery to be the dominant source of Earth’s oceans.”

Gargano also emphasized that the research builds on decades of work that began with the Apollo program. “I’m part of the next generation of Apollo scientists – people who didn’t fly the missions but who were trained on the samples and the questions Apollo made possible,” Gargano said. “The value of the Moon is that it gives us ground truth: real material we can measure in the lab and use to anchor what we infer from meteorites and telescopes.

“Apollo samples are the reference point for comparing the Moon to the broader Solar System,” Gargano added. “When we put lunar soils and meteorites on the same oxygen-isotope scale, we’re testing ideas about what kinds of bodies were supplying water to the inner Solar System. That’s ultimately a question about why Earth became habitable and how the ingredients for life were assembled here in the first place.”

Apollo Samples and the Record of Solar System Impacts

Apollo samples remain valuable because the Moon preserves a long history of impacts that Earth no longer retains. The lunar surface records the environment of the inner solar system across billions of years, providing clues about the conditions under which Earth became habitable. Rocks collected decades ago from another world continue to reshape scientific thinking about how Earth obtained its water and how the ingredients for life were assembled.

“What modern techniques add to this amazing legacy of scientific exploration is precision and interpretive power. We can now resolve subtle isotopic signals that allow quantitative tests of formation and habitability models,” said Gargano. “That is why Apollo science keeps evolving. The samples are the same, but our ability to interrogate them and the questions we can ask of them are fundamentally better.”

Training the Next Generation of Planetary Scientists

Alongside the research itself, Gargano highlighted the importance of education and outreach. Efforts to train students help connect distant scientific discoveries with real-world experience and opportunity.

“At UNM, I have been training Albuquerque high schoolers in planetary science and geochemistry, including senior Brooklyn Bird and junior Violet Delu from the Bosque School,” said Gargano. “These students are getting hands-on training in geochemistry using UNM’s unique collection of astromaterials, and they are learning the physical craft of laboratory science: how to prepare and handle samples, how to make high-quality measurements, and how to think clearly about uncertainty and reproducibility.

“But the deeper lesson is the transformation that happens when a student realizes they can hold a piece of another world, make a measurement, and pull meaning out of it. They learn how a chemical signal becomes a geologic story and how that story scales up into an explanation for how a planetary body evolved to become the way it is. Experiences like that change what students think is possible for themselves. They build confidence, technical ability, and a sense of belonging in a field that can otherwise feel out of reach.”

The Life of Earth

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Scientists Solve a Mystery Behind Your Sense of Touch

By Scripps Research, March 13, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-solve-a-mystery-behind-your-sense-of-touch/

Researchers have uncovered how a specialized mechanosensitive protein distinguishes gentle touch from broader cellular forces. The discovery reveals how subtle physical connections inside cells shape our ability to perceive the world through touch. 

Credit: Stock

A new study from Scripps Research reveals how a key touch-sensing protein detects mechanical forces with remarkable precision.

Each time something lightly presses against your skin, specialized sensory neurons translate that mechanical force into electrical signals that the brain interprets as touch. Researchers have long known that a protein called PIEZO2 plays a central role in detecting touch. What remained unclear, however, was why PIEZO2 responds best to small, localized forces experienced by sensory neurons, while its closely related counterpart, PIEZO1, reacts to broader mechanical stress such as the stretching of cells in blood vessels.

A new study from Scripps Research now provides answers. The research, published in Nature, explains how PIEZO2 recognizes specific mechanical forces and why it may have evolved as the body’s primary detector of gentle touch. The findings could also help scientists better understand sensory disorders linked to mutations in the PIEZO2 gene.

“Touch is one of our most fundamental senses, yet we didn’t fully understand how it’s processed at the molecular level,” says co-senior author Professor Ardem Patapoutian, the Presidential Endowed Chair in Neurobiology at Scripps Research and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. “We wanted to see how the structure of PIEZO2 shapes what a cell can actually feel.”

A structural model of the force-sensing ion channel PIEZO2 (top), which is essential for the senses of touch and body position. Using a high-resolution imaging method called MINFLUX microscopy, scientists found that PIEZO2 is tethered to the cell’s internal scaffolding—the actin cytoskeleton—through a protein called filamin-B, helping fine-tune how the channel responds to force (bottom). 

Credit: Scripps Research

A Nobel Prize–Winning Discovery

Patapoutian shared the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering PIEZO1 and PIEZO2. These proteins function as ion channels, which are microscopic gateways embedded in the membranes of cells. They open when mechanical force is applied.

Once these channels open, charged particles move into the cell. This movement generates electrical signals that allow the nervous system to perceive sensations such as touch, body position, and certain forms of pain.

Although molecular models show PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 as nearly identical in structure, their behavior in living cells is very different. PIEZO2 is particularly important in the somatosensory nervous system, the network of neurons responsible for detecting touch. These neurons are extremely sensitive to tiny indentations, such as a gentle tap on the skin.

PIEZO1, in contrast, responds more strongly when a cell membrane is stretched. This type of force can occur when a cell swells or is pulled, rather than when it is pressed at a single point.

Imaging Proteins Moving Inside Living Cells

To understand why these two channels respond differently, the researchers turned to minimal fluorescence photon flux (MINFLUX) super-resolution microscopy. Imaging support came from Professor Scott Henderson, who directs the Scripps Research Core Microscopy Facility, along with Senior Staff Scientist Kathryn Spencer.

Other methods, including cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), can produce detailed structural images of frozen PIEZO proteins that reveal their overall shape. However, these images represent static snapshots. MINFLUX allows researchers to monitor the location and movement of proteins inside living cells with nanometer-scale precision. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter (about 3.9 × 10⁻⁸ inches), roughly 100,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair.

“Cryo-EM gives us beautiful structural snapshots, but it can’t show us how a protein moves in its native cellular environment,” notes first and co-senior author Eric Mulhall, a postdoctoral fellow in Patapoutian’s lab.

PIEZO2 (cyan), filamin-B (magenta), and the neuronal marker neurofilament heavy chain (green) in touch-sensing nerve endings around a hair follicle. Credit: Scripps Research



“What I love about this work, led by Eric Mulhall, is that it connects discoveries across an unusually wide range of scales,” adds Patapoutian. “It’s one of the few studies I’ve seen that spans from nanometer-scale super-resolution microscopy all the way to ex vivo and in vivo experiments, linking single-molecule insights to physiological function.”

A Physical Link to the Cell’s Internal Scaffold

Using MINFLUX along with electrical recordings that measure ion flow, the team observed how PIEZO2 changed shape when force was applied. Those electrical recordings, carried out by second author and Staff Scientist Oleg Yarishkin, allowed a direct connection between PIEZO2’s structural changes and channel activity. The team found that PIEZO2 was intrinsically stiffer than PIEZO1 and physically connected (or “tethered”) to the cell’s internal scaffolding, known as the actin cytoskeleton. The cytoskeleton is a network of protein fibers called actin filaments that helps maintain cell shape and transmit forces.

Tethering occurs through a protein called filamin-B, which connects membrane proteins to actin filaments. When a cell was poked, this internal link helped convey force to PIEZO2, making the channel more likely to open. However, simple membrane stretching didn’t activate PIEZO2 when the tether was intact.

The team identified the specific region where PIEZO2 connected to filamin-B and showed that disrupting this connection changed how the channel sensed force. In mouse sensory neurons—the nerve cells responsible for detecting touch—removing the tether reduced PIEZO2’s sensitivity to indentation and unexpectedly allowed the channel to respond to membrane stretch, a type of force it would normally ignore.

“We were surprised by how differently the two channels responded to the same type of force,” recalls Mulhall. “Membrane stretch expands and activates PIEZO1, though we observed the opposite response in PIEZO2. This was a strong indication that these channels operate through distinct mechanisms.”

Implications for Sensory Disorders

The findings suggest that cells can fine-tune their sensitivity to touch not only by choosing which ion channel to use, but also by controlling how that channel is physically integrated within a cell. Because filamin-B is widely expressed across tissues, tethering may help tailor PIEZO2 for registering gentle, everyday touch. Understanding this mechanism could also shed light on what happens when it’s impaired.

Mutations in PIEZO2 can cause sensory disorders affecting touch and body awareness, while mutations in filamin-B are associated with skeletal and developmental conditions. By clarifying how these proteins interact, the study provides a clearer framework for interpreting such genetic findings and guiding future research into sensory function.

“Our results shift the perspective on how touch begins at the molecular level,” explains Patapoutian. “A protein’s physical connections inside a cell determine what kinds of forces it can sense. That’s a new way of thinking about how we feel the world around us.”

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Is Berberine Really a “Natural Ozempic”? Scientists Reveal What This Popular Supplement Really Does

By Wroclaw Medical U. March 12, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/is-berberine-really-a-natural-ozempic-scientists-reveal-what-this-popular-supplement-really-does/

Berberine is a bioactive alkaloid compound naturally found in several plants, including Berberis species such as barberry, goldenseal, and Oregon grape. It has long been used in traditional medicine and has attracted scientific interest for its potential effects on metabolism, inflammation, and gut health.

 Credit: Stock

Often labeled a “natural Ozempic,” berberine is widely discussed as a metabolic aid. Yet research suggests its influence may lie deeper.

In recent years, berberine has gained significant attention as a supposed “natural way” to support metabolism. Discussions on social media frequently compare the compound with incretin drugs, and it is sometimes labeled “plant-based Ozempic.” These comparisons suggest that berberine works through a clear and predictable biological pathway.

However, a new scientific review indicates that this popular portrayal is overly simplistic. According to the authors, the available research does not support the idea that berberine acts through a straightforward mechanism or produces uniform metabolic effects.

Researchers from Wroclaw Medical University explain that berberine is an alkaloid that does not function like a hormone based medication and does not target a single receptor. Instead, its influence on metabolism appears indirect and broadly distributed, with outcomes that depend heavily on conditions inside the intestine.
Metabolism begins in the intestine

Experimental evidence most strongly supports berberine’s role in the gut, particularly in relation to intestinal microbes, inflammation, and the stability of the intestinal barrier. These processes appear to be where the compound has its most measurable biological effects.

“The best understood is the microbiotic level and its impact on the intestinal barrier and inflammatory processes,” says Anna Duda-Madej, MD, PhD. “Therefore, the gut-brain axis remains the most promising, but its clinical significance still requires a lot of research,” she adds.

In practical terms, this suggests that berberine does not directly regulate metabolism. Instead, it influences the biological environment in which metabolic processes take place.

Why are the effects so different?

One major conclusion of the review is that responses to berberine differ widely among individuals. The compound interacts closely with gut microbiota, and its effects depend heavily on the composition and activity of these microbial communities.

“Berberine does not act in a microbiological vacuum. Its effects are largely microbiota-dependent,” the researcher notes.

Because gut microbiota vary from person to person, the dominant effects of berberine can also differ. In some individuals, anti-inflammatory actions may be more prominent. In others, the compound may primarily support the intestinal barrier or influence metabolic pathways.

People who recently completed antibiotic treatment or who have disrupted gut microbiota may experience weaker or slower responses. This variability helps explain why berberine does not produce consistent results across all individuals.

Bioavailability as an element of biological logic

The review also addresses a commonly cited limitation of berberine: its low systemic bioavailability. When taken orally, only a small amount reaches the bloodstream.

However, the researchers suggest that this characteristic may actually support its biological activity in the intestine.

“Low bioavailability after oral administration means that berberine has an intense local effect in the intestine, where it is metabolized with the participation of the microbiota,” explains Dr. Duda-Madej.

During this local metabolism, microbes in the gut may transform berberine into biologically active compounds. These products can alter the intestinal environment, which may indirectly contribute to the metabolic effects observed in some studies.

Why the “universal supplement” is a myth

The review’s author strongly rejects the simplified way berberine is sometimes portrayed in media coverage.

“The term ‘universal metabolic supplement’ is completely inaccurate,” she emphasizes. “A more appropriate term would be: modulator of the gut-microbiota-immune system axis,” notes Dr. Duda-Madej.

She also highlights safety concerns that are often ignored in online discussions.

“According to information provided by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, the use of berberine is primarily associated with adverse effects on the gastrointestinal tract, such as nausea, abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea. Importantly, berberine interacts with many drugs by inhibiting enzymes involved in their metabolism, including cyclosporine, metformin, antidiabetic drugs, anticoagulants, and sedatives. In addition, it can be dangerous during pregnancy and breastfeeding, as it can affect the fetus or infant, leading to bilirubin accumulation and the risk of brain damage. For this reason, berberine should be used with great caution and only under medical supervision,” the author emphasizes.

From a scientific perspective, berberine should not be viewed as a replacement for prescription medications or as a universal natural remedy. Instead, researchers see it as a useful tool for studying how closely human metabolism is tied to the gut and how strongly metabolic processes depend on interactions with the microbiota.

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Scientists Discover Hidden Topological Universe Inside Entangled Light

By U. of the Witwatersrand, March 12, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-discover-hidden-topological-universe-inside-entangled-light/

A common quantum optics process may secretly contain an immense topological structure. By revealing this hidden complexity, researchers show how ordinary entangled photons could enable powerful new ways to encode and stabilize quantum information. 

Credit: Shutterstock

A team of physicists has uncovered a hidden topological structure within one of the most widely used sources of quantum entanglement.

Researchers from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, working together with scientists from Huzhou University, have identified an unexpected property in a widely used quantum optics technique. Experiments that routinely generate entangled photons in laboratories appear to contain hidden topological structures.

The team reports the highest level of topology observed in any physical system so far: structures spanning 48 dimensions and more than 17,000 distinct topological signatures. This vast set of patterns could function as a powerful new framework for encoding quantum information in ways that remain stable even in the presence of noise.

Examples of quantum topologies, shown as vectorial textures on a sphere.

 Credit: Wits University



Hidden topology inside quantum light

In most quantum optics laboratories, entangled photons are produced using a process called spontaneous parametric downconversion (SPDC). This method naturally generates entanglement in the spatial properties of light. By examining these spatial degrees of freedom, the researchers discovered that the structure of entangled light contains previously unnoticed high-dimensional topologies.

These structures offer a new way to represent and protect information in quantum systems, potentially helping quantum signals resist noise and interference. The team demonstrated these features using the orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light, which can exist in two-dimensional states as well as in far higher-dimensional configurations.

The study, published in Nature Communications, shows that measuring the orbital angular momentum of two entangled photons reveals a topological structure embedded within the entanglement itself. Because OAM can assume an unlimited range of values, the possible topological configurations are also effectively limitless. “We report a major advance in this work: we only need one property of light (OAM) to make a topology, whereas previously it was assumed that at least two properties would be needed – usually OAM and polarization,” says Professor Andrew Forbes, from the Wits School of Physics.

Examples of quantum topologies, shown as vectorial textures on a sphere.

 Credit: Wits University



“The consequence is that since OAM is high-dimensional, so too is the topology, and this let us report the highest topologies ever observed.” The researchers also found that once the topology extends beyond two dimensions, it can no longer be described with a single number. Instead, a range of topological numbers is required, reflecting the greater complexity that appears in higher-dimensional systems.

A universal resource in quantum optics

One of the most practical aspects of the discovery is that the necessary ingredients are already present in many existing laboratories. The experimental setup relies on resources that are standard in quantum optics research, meaning that scientists do not need specialized engineering systems to explore these effects. Pedro Ornelas explains, “You get the topology for free, from the entanglement in space. It was always there, it just had to be found.”

Prof. Robert de Mello Koch, lead author from Huzhou University explains further, “In high dimensions, it is not so obvious where to look for the topology. We used abstract notions from quantum field theory to predict where to look and what to look for – and found it in the experiment!”

Orbital angular momentum entanglement has long been investigated in many quantum experiments. However, its practical use has been limited because the quantum states can be fragile and sensitive to disturbance. The researchers now suggest that studying OAM entanglement through the lens of topology could provide a way to overcome that limitation. By focusing on these deeper structural features, scientists may open new paths toward stable quantum technologies capable of operating reliably outside laboratory conditions.

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Desert Dust Is Freezing Clouds Across the Northern Hemisphere

By ETH Zurich, March 12, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/desert-dust-is-freezing-clouds-across-the-northern-hemisphere/

Satellite observations spanning 35 years reveal that desert dust plays a surprising role in cloud freezing across the Northern Hemisphere. 

Credit: SciTechDaily.com

New research based on decades of satellite observations reveals an unexpected atmospheric connection: mineral dust from distant deserts can trigger the freezing of clouds in the Northern Hemisphere.

A new study has found that tiny dust particles traveling from distant deserts can help trigger the freezing of clouds in the Northern Hemisphere. This subtle atmospheric process influences how much sunlight clouds reflect back into space and how they produce rain and snow. Because of these effects, the mechanism could play an important role in improving climate projections.

Using 35 years of satellite data, an international team led by ETH Zurich investigated how mineral dust affects cloud formation. These particles are lifted from desert surfaces by strong winds and transported high into the atmosphere. Once there, they can act as seeds that cause droplets inside clouds to freeze. The effect is particularly important in northern regions, where clouds frequently form at temperatures slightly below freezing.

“We found that where there’s more dust, clouds are much more likely to freeze at the top,” explains Diego Villanueva, a Post-doctoral researcher for Atmospheric Physics at ETH Zurich and lead author of the study. “This has a direct impact on how much sunlight is reflected back into space and how much precipitation is generated.”

Dust turns clouds to ice

The scientists concentrated on mixed phase clouds, which contain both supercooled liquid droplets and ice crystals. These clouds form in temperatures between −39 °C and 0 °C (−38 °F to 32 °F). They are widespread across mid and high latitude regions, particularly over the North Atlantic, Siberia, and Canada.

Mixed-phase clouds are extremely sensitive to environmental conditions. One key factor is the presence of ice nucleating particles, which often originate from desert dust aerosols that have traveled long distances through the atmosphere.

The wind carries dust particles from the Sahara Desert great distances enabling ice cloud formation. 

Credit: Diego Villenueva Ortiz / ETH Zurich



To investigate the relationship, the researchers compared satellite observations of dust concentrations with how often clouds developed ice at their tops. A clear pattern emerged. When dust levels were higher and temperatures were lower, ice-topped clouds appeared more frequently.

According to the team, this large-scale pattern closely matched predictions from laboratory studies that examine how mineral dust causes water droplets to freeze.

“This is one of the first studies to show that satellite measurements of cloud composition match what we’ve known from lab work,” says Ulrike Lohmann, senior co-author and Professor of Atmospheric Physics at ETH Zurich.
A new benchmark for climate models

The freezing of clouds plays a key role in the climate system. It affects the amount of sunlight clouds reflect into space and determines how efficiently they release precipitation. Climate models rely on accurate descriptions of these processes, yet researchers have long lacked global observations that clearly connect airborne dust with cloud freezing.

The new results establish a measurable relationship between atmospheric dust and the occurrence of ice at cloud tops. This provides an important reference point that could help scientists refine climate simulations.

“It helps identify one of the most uncertain pieces of the climate puzzle,” says Villanueva.

A complex picture – with a clear signal

Scientists have studied the freezing of individual water droplets for decades, often focusing on microscopic processes. The new research shows that cloud glaciation follows the same basic behavior seen in those small-scale experiments, but across far larger atmospheric systems.

This connection links extremely small structures on the surfaces of dust particles, measured in nanometers (1 nanometer equals about 0.00000004 inches), with cloud systems that extend for kilometers (1 kilometer equals about 0.62 miles) and can be observed from satellites in orbit.

However, the influence of dust on cloud freezing is not uniform worldwide. In desert regions such as the Sahara, clouds are relatively rare, and rising warm air may limit freezing. In the Southern Hemisphere, sea salt and other marine aerosols may play a larger role than desert dust.

The researchers say additional studies are needed to determine how other factors, including updraft strength and atmospheric humidity, shape the freezing process. Even so, the study highlights an important conclusion. Tiny grains of dust from distant deserts help influence the clouds overhead, and those clouds play a role in shaping Earth’s future climate.

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Ravens Don't Just Follow Wolves – They Memorize Kill Sites Across Vast Distances

13 March 2026, By M Donaldson, AFP

https://www.sciencealert.com/ravens-dont-just-follow-wolves-they-memorize-kill-sites-across-vast-distances

Two ravens soar above a wolf pack in Yellowstone. This type of short-distance following is common, but prolonged following is extremely rare. 

(© Daniel Stahler/YNP)

The partnership between ravens and wolves goes back to Norse mythology – Odin's birds scouted ahead and led prey to the god's canines, a relationship that provided food for all.

The myth has some roots in reality: when wolves have a successful hunt, ravens are often observed first on the scene – and new research published Thursday in the journal Science put the legend to the test.

The study's findings suggest the birds are doing more than just tracking the hunters: they're using navigation and spatial memory techniques to scavenge with sophistication.

While "ravens are already well-known for their intelligence," lead author Matthias-Claudio Loretto told AFP, seeing these cognitive abilities "play out at a much larger scale in the wild" produced startling results.

Ravens weren't just following wolves – they were clocking kill patterns, creating mental maps to support future food quests.

The international research team attached tiny GPS trackers to 69 ravens – an impressive number considering the painstaking work in trapping the particularly observant birds.

The team fitted ravens with GPS backpacks, seen here with an antenna protruding.

 (© Matthias Loretto)



"Even small changes in their environment can make them suspicious," said Loretto, who is at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, and began the research at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior.

The team had movement data from 20 collared wolves in the famed Yellowstone National Park, a vast protected area in the western United States where wolves were reintroduced in the mid-1990s after 70 years of absence.

The park was uniquely suited to the study.

"This work would not have been possible anywhere other than Yellowstone," said co-author and wildlife scientist John Marzluff of the University of Washington.

Because the environment is open rather than densely wooded, both the birds and wolves are relatively easy to observe at long distances, he told AFP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpqZBDgK1q8

'Sophisticated' animal cognition

Over two-and-a-half years of monitoring, researchers were puzzled to find just one instance of a raven following a wolf for more than an hour – even as the birds were still able to quickly arrive at a kill.

Deeper analysis showed ravens were in fact revisiting spots where wolves commonly took down prey – animals like deer, elk, or bison – suggesting the birds were creating and memorizing a "resource landscape."

Some birds would fly nearly 100 miles (up to 155 kilometers) in a single day, seeking out places they seemed to expect might feature wolf kills.

It was "a much larger area than I ever imagined," said Marzluff.

Short-range cues still matter: ravens might be following signals like wolf howls to find fresh kills at shorter distances.

But broadly speaking, the researchers said ravens were counting on their memory to lead the search.

Wolf kills aren't distributed at random, Loretto said, occurring more often on flatter terrain or in open valleys where chases are more likely.

Ravens might remember past feeds or notice indirect signs like bones as they establish their mental maps.

"Animal cognition in the wild may sometimes be more sophisticated than we tend to assume," Loretto said.

Raw deal

The wolf-raven relationship is sometimes described in popular culture as harmonious, but Marzluff said it's ultimately pretty lopsided.

Wolves have been observed swatting the birds away, even appearing to designate a pack member to stand guard.

The birds noisily fight over their stolen feast, a potential tip-off to other scavengers.

And a single raven can carry off half a pound (220 grams) of meat. When the birds arrive in the dozens, that can make even a downed bison disappear quickly, Marzluff said.

"Ravens get a lot more out of this deal than wolves do," he added.

An adult common raven advertises its territory in Yellowstone National Park. 

(Matthias-Claudio Loretto/University of Washington)



The scientist said he hopes future research could focus on how young birds develop their knowledge.

"Ravens have fascinated people forever," Marzluff said, noting the birds have been considered everything from "creators and tricksters" to "opportunistic pests."

But "never did we anticipate or expect them, I think, to be able to hold in their brains, which aren't much bigger than your thumb, information over thousands of square miles," he said.

"We've underestimated them."

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Scientists Find a Way To Control Heat Flow With Electricity

By Oak Ridge National Lab., March 9, 2026

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-find-a-way-to-control-heat-flow-with-electricity/

Yellow waves show propagating atomic vibrations observed at ORNL’s Spallation Neutron Source. In a smart, switchable ceramic, an electric field aligns charges so vibrations along white field lines travel farther with fewer disruptions — boosting heat flow nearly threefold. 

Credit: Phoenix Pleasant/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Scientists have discovered that applying an electric field to certain ceramics can dramatically redirect how heat moves through them.

New research from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, carried out with collaborators at The Ohio State University and Amphenol Corporation, is challenging long-held ideas about how heat can be directed through solid materials.

The findings, reported in PRX Energy, show that an electric field can significantly change how phonons (tiny vibrations that carry heat) move inside a ceramic. When atoms vibrate in the same direction as the applied electric field (poling direction), the phonons remain active longer than vibrations that move across the field.

Because of this difference, heat travels through the material nearly three times more efficiently along the direction of the electric field than it does in other directions. The researchers say this strategy could open the door to new solid-state technologies that guide heat in practical devices.

“Being able to control both how fast and in what manner heat flows could lead to devices that manage thermal energy far more efficiently,” said Puspa Upreti, an ORNL postdoctoral research associate.
Why Controlling Heat Matters

Managing the movement of heat is essential for many advanced technologies. Examples include electronic cooling systems that operate without moving parts, devices that convert heat into electricity, chip-based circuits used in modern electronics, and cogeneration systems that capture industrial heat and reuse it.

Maintaining the correct flow of heat allows these systems to operate at their highest efficiency and performance.

The relationship between heat flow and efficiency is illustrated by the Carnot cycle, a theoretical model of a heat engine that defines the maximum efficiency possible when heat moves between hot and cold reservoirs in a controlled way. In this research, the electric field reduces obstacles that normally disrupt phonon motion.

With fewer interruptions, the vibrations can travel farther through the material, similar to how traffic moves more freely when congestion is reduced. This improved movement of phonons enhances heat conduction in the direction of the electric field and increases efficiency.

Neutron Experiments Reveal Atomic Motion

The experiments were carried out at the Spallation Neutron Source, a DOE Office of Science user facility located at ORNL.

Scientists used advanced inelastic neutron scattering techniques to observe both the arrangement of atoms in the material (structure) and their motion (dynamics). Neutrons allow researchers to determine where atoms are positioned and how they move within a crystal. This method builds on the Nobel Prize-winning work of Clifford Shull and Bertram Brockhouse.

The data collected at the facility provided detailed insight into how the electric field affects phonons. The results show that the field not only increases the speed of these vibrations but also lengthens their lifetimes. Both effects are important for improving the transport of heat.

The team focused on a specialized ceramic known as relaxor-based ferroelectrics. When exposed to an electric field, small electric charges inside these materials become aligned. This alignment reduces scattering that normally disrupts heat carrying vibrations, allowing energy to move through the crystal more efficiently.

The crystals examined in the study were carefully grown and later exposed to an electric field, a process called “poling,” by Raffi Sahul at Amphenol Corporation. The resulting materials made it possible to precisely control the movement of energy through the solid.

ORNL senior researcher Michael Manley designed and led the inelastic neutron scattering experiments with ORNL senior R&D staff member Raphaël Hermann.

“Earlier work on bulk ferroelectric materials achieved modest improvements in thermal conductivity of 5 percent to 10 percent, while the new measurements reveal an enhancement close to 300 percent — mainly because the phonons are able to travel much longer before they stop,” Manley said.

Connecting Heat Flow to Atomic Vibrations

By combining thermal conductivity measurements with neutron scattering results, the researchers were able to directly link changes in heat transport to the behavior of atomic vibrations inside the crystal.

The late Professor Joseph Heremans of Ohio State developed the thermal conductivity experiments and mentored doctoral candidate Delaram Rashadfar during the analysis of the results.

“While earlier work led us to expect only a modest effect, observing a threefold difference turned out to be a significant result,” said Rashadfar. “Professor Heremans always stressed the importance of trusting the data first and letting the theory follow.”

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