Tick populations are expanding across the U.S., driving an increase in tick-borne diseases. Among them is Powassan virus, a rare but increasingly reported infection that can cause severe brain inflammation and lasting neurological complications.

Although reported cases are growing, scientists still know relatively little about the virus and how it causes serious illness. In three newly published studies, Georgia State University researchers are filling that gap, from developing new laboratory models to identifying how the body’s immune system fights the infection and uncovering changes in the brain that could help point to future treatments.

Now, a team of researchers from the University of Macau's Department of Electromechanical Engineering and Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics has published (DOI: 10.1016/j.esci.2026.100549) a comprehensive perspective on this very question. In the journal eScience (Volume 6, Issue 4, July 2026), the team lays out a roadmap for achieving embodied intelligence in insect‑scale robots—charting a course from laboratory prototypes to practical, intelligent systems.

New comprehensive survey catalogues 21 ant species across seven South China Sea islands, revealing human activity as primary driver for exotic ant establishment amid climate-vulnerable coral island ecosystems.