Plants require phosphorus to grow and survive. In environments with low levels of soil phosphorus, some plants have adapted by forming cluster roots to extract the small amount of phosphorus available in the soil. Researchers recently performed an RNA-Seq experiment on cluster roots of Hakea laurina to identify important genes involved in the survival of the Proteaceae plant family in low-phosphorus soil. The team discovered a new secretion pathway in H. laurina cluster roots and that the absence of a suberized exodermis further enhances this trait. This knowledge may be applied to engineering crops that can thrive in phosphorus-poor soil.

A group of fossils of elasmosaurs – some of the most famous in North America – have just been formally identified as belonging to a “very odd” new genus of the sea monster, unlike any previously known.

Dr Vladimir Dinets, a research assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, is a zoologist who studies animal behavior, ecology, and conservation. As of 2025, he also teaches mathematics at Rudgers University. He is the author of a recently published Frontiers in Ethology article that documents the impressive adaptation of an avian newcomer to the city. A Cooper’s hawk, a medium-sized raptor native to North America, appears to have learned how to adapt its hunting strategy and strike at a flock of birds precisely when cars at an intersection lined up after traffic lights switched to red, having been alerted by a sound signal that the red phase would last longer than usual. In the following guest editorial, he describes his observations.

Researchers from the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and the University of Iowa united insights from cellular biology, quantum computing, old-fashioned semiconductors and high-definition TVs to both create a revolutionary new quantum biosensor. In doing so, they shed light on a longstanding mystery in quantum materials.

What if the human body contained a natural bioreactor capable of regenerating vital organs? A collaborative team from ​Wenzhou Medical University, Nanjing University, and University of Macau has redefined the spleen’s potential, transforming it into a ​self-sustaining hub for organ regeneration, as published in Science Translational Medicine (May 21). This breakthrough could revolutionize treatments for type 1 diabetes and beyond.

Scientists have analyzed ancient DNA and compared more than 400 fossils from 17 natural history museums to figure out how and why extinct sloths got so big.