EurekAlert! News by Subject: Biology - News by Subject: Biology

Biology

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 10-Dec-2025 17:11 ET (10-Dec-2025 22:11 GMT/UTC)

New study shows species-specific ‘shedding’ could distort efficacy of cancer drugs targeting TIGIT

University of California - Davis Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Anti-TIGIT immunotherapy drugs behave differently in macaques and humans. The findings may explain why immunotherapy anti-TIGIT antibodies have failed in Phase III trials.

Journal: Journal of Biological Chemistry
Funder: NIH/National Cancer Institute, Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Greater Cincinnati

From shiloh shepherds to chihuahuas, study finds that the majority of modern dogs have detectable wolf ancestry

American Museum of Natural History
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New research led by scientists at the American Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History reveals that the majority of dogs living today have low but detectable levels of post-domestication wolf ancestry that has likely shaped characteristics including body size, sense of smell, and personality traits.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Kelp farming is expensive, but a new resource points to lower costs

University of Maine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from Kelson Marine in Portland, Maine and the University of Maine developed a new tool that provides detailed economic analyses for kelp farmers and reveals strategies for reducing the cost of farmed seaweed. The tool incorporates many different factors from a farming scenario, including site specific-ocean and meteorological conditions, species-specific crop characteristics and growth, workboat types and sizes, labor structures, operational technology, local shore-side infrastructure, maintenance schedules and more. By resolving the comprehensive impact on the bottom line and the multitude of tradeoffs associated with specific operational and farm design decisions, the tool provides unique insight into the implications of cost-saving alternatives.

Journal: Algal Research
Funder: U.S. Small Business Administration

Predicting how bones heal

Lehigh University
Grant and Award Announcement

Lehigh University researcher Hannah Dailey is leading a new international collaboration to improve predictions of how bone fractures heal. Supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the Swiss National Science Foundation, the four-year project partners with the AO Research Institute Davos (ARI) to develop computational models that combine mechanical factors—such as implant stiffness and loading patterns—with biological processes that vary from patient to patient. Using ARI’s extensive imaging library documenting fracture healing in sheep, the team will build probabilistic models capable of forecasting how recovery will progress. The models will ultimately be integrated into ARI’s online training platform to help surgeons understand how implant choices and rehabilitation strategies influence healing. Long term, the goal is to enable patient-specific simulations that help clinicians identify complications earlier and make more informed treatment decisions.

Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation

Building breath, layer by layer: 3D printing with living lung cells in extreme environments

Texas A&M University

Researchers at Texas A&M University model extreme conditions using 3D bioprinting, revealing insights that could make flight and space travel protocols safer while driving new breakthroughs in respiratory disease research and drug discoveries.

Journal: Biomimetics

Widely used pesticides may lower sperm count

George Mason University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Research by George Mason University researchers highlights compelling evidence that neonicotinoid pesticides, insect killers commonly used in farming, may reduce sperm quality.

Journal: Environmental Research

Anti-angiogenic therapy as a beacon of hope in the battle against pulmonary NUT midline carcinoma

Higher Education Press

Primary pulmonary nuclear protein of the testis (NUT) midline carcinoma (NMC) is an extremely rare, highly aggressive thoracic malignancy that presents significant diagnostic and therapeutic challenges, characterized by heterogeneous clinical manifestations, frequent misdiagnosis, and a poor prognosis. This case report details two patients with advanced primary pulmonary NMC treated with a multimodal strategy combining anti-angiogenic agents, platinum-based chemotherapy, and radiotherapy—achieving overall survival (OS) of 32 and 13 months, respectively, which far exceeds the currently reported median OS of approximately 6.7 months for advanced NMC. A systematic literature review of 86 published cases (2011–2024) was also conducted, summarizing current diagnostic methods (such as immunohistochemistry for nuclear NUT expression and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) for NUTM1 rearrangement) and treatment modalities for NMC. Findings indicate that multimodal therapy incorporating anti-angiogenic agents yields superior clinical outcomes compared to conventional monotherapy, especially for patients ineligible for surgery. The report also highlights diagnostic pitfalls, such as overlapping histopathological features with squamous cell carcinoma, and underscores how integrating anti-angiogenic therapy addresses the aggressive biology of NMC, offering a new therapeutic direction for this refractory malignancy.

Journal: Frontiers of Medicine

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