Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases, affecting around 66 million adults in Europe – a figure projected to rise to more than 72 million by 2050. For people with type 1 diabetes, keeping glucose levels within a safe range requires continuous monitoring and careful insulin management. Yet even with experience and careful treatment, unexpected fluctuations can occur, potentially leading to hypoglycaemia or hyperglycaemia.

The first Australian study of PFAS – so called “forever chemicals” – in rainwater has found safe concentrations of the chemicals according to the NHMRC Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

Researchers from RMIT University and EPA Victoria detected eight PFAS compounds in rainwater samples collected in Melbourne between 2024 and 2025.

The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the IEEE Computer Society (IEEE CS) announced today that Jie Ren of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Amit Samanta of University of Utah, and Xuan Wu of Oregon State University are the recipients of the 2026 ACM/IEEE CS George Michael Memorial High-Performance Computing Fellowship.  

The Joint Research Unit in Advanced Therapies in Oncology, established by Universitat Jaume I in Castelló, the Príncipe Felipe Research Centre (CIPF) in Valencia and the General University Hospital of Castelló, will collaborate on the MORPHEUS project, funded through a 2025 European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant awarded to researcher María Jesús Vicent, Head of the Therapeutic Polymers Laboratory at CIPF and Distinguished Researcher at Universitat Jaume I (UJI). The unit will also participate in the MITONano project, funded by the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC). The European MORPHEUS project (Mechano-metabOlic Responsive nanoPlatform for HeterogEnous tumor Suppression) aims to develop a new generation of intelligent nanomedicines capable of "reading" the physical and metabolic characteristics of individual tumours and delivering treatment in a precise, sequential manner. The project focuses on solid tumours that are resistant to current therapies, beginning with cholangiocarcinoma, an aggressive and difficult-to-treat bile duct cancer. Its long-term goal is to establish a therapeutic strategy that can be applied to other cancers characterised by dense, rigid tumour environments, such as pancreatic cancer. MITONano proposes an innovative nanomedicine-based approach that specifically targets mitochondria, the energy-producing structures within tumour cells. By disrupting this energy supply, the treatment aims to inhibit tumour growth and survival while sparing healthy cells. These nanomedicines incorporate active compounds that act directly on mitochondria, making it possible to treat even the most chemotherapy-resistant forms of ovarian cancer. The project will also evaluate tools to identify which patients are most likely to benefit from this personalised therapy.

Hard carbon (HC) anodes are promising for sodium-ion batteries, yet achieving high initial Coulombic efficiency (ICE), large plateau contribution, and fast charge-transfer kinetics remains challenging due to insufficient control of micro–nanostructure and interphase chemistry. Here, we present a precursor-level molecular engineering strategy that simultaneously regulates sodium desolvation and interphase chemistry in HC. An iodine-mediated oxidative cross-linking process converts starch into spherical HC with uniformly distributed ultramicropores and carbonyl-rich surfaces. These nanoconfined pores are proposed to act as molecular sieves, preferentially excluding bulky solvent molecules while allowing PF₆⁻-coordinated Na⁺ access, thereby favoring anion-enriched electrolyte structures under confinement. Surface carbonyls exhibit strong PF₆⁻ affinity, which may promote fluorine-rich inorganic interphases on pore surfaces. The synergistic effects of anion-selective adsorption and confined desolvation are suggested to favor thin and robust NaF-rich interphases at external surfaces and within nanoconfined pore regions, contributing to reversible interfacial reactions and rapid Na⁺ storage kinetics. Consequently, the HC delivers an ICE of 88.4%, a reversible capacity of 352.9 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1C, excellent rate capability (288.9 mAh g⁻¹ at 5C), and 95.6% capacity retention over 200 cycles. This work offers a molecular-level design paradigm integrating efficiency, capacity, and kinetics in HC anodes.

Electrochemical CO₂ reduction offers a promising route to convert CO₂ into valuable fuels and chemicals using renewable electricity. However, most current systems rely on high-purity CO₂ feeds, whereas practical carbon sources such as industrial flue gas and air contain much lower CO₂ concentrations together with impurities including O₂, SO_x and NO_x. A team of scientists has reviewed recent advances in electrochemical capture and conversion of dilute CO₂. The review highlights two major strategies, integrated CO₂ capture and conversion and direct electrolysis of dilute CO₂, and discusses how catalyst design and electrolyzer engineering can work together to move the technology toward practical applications. Their work is published in the journal Industrial Chemistry & Materials on July 15, 2026.

Invasive fungal infections induced by Candida species are becoming an urgent threat to global health. While a series of antifungal vaccines have been developed, their efficiency is frequently compromised by the failure of immune stimulation. In this study, a novel antifungal vaccine was constructed by assembling β-glucan with the Candida albicans antigen candidalysin on the surface of the genetically engineered Escherichia coli strain EcS. This co-assembly was mediated by the cell surface-exposed artificial glucan-binding protein CipC-mCherry-CipC, leading to the formation of the surface glucan nanofilm with a thickness of ~ 80 nm. Upon coincubation with macrophages, the vaccine efficiently escapes from the lysosomes, leading to enhanced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and macrophage maturation. After mouse immunization, the vaccine persists longer in lymph nodes than free candidalysin or the glucan-free complex, and induces higher levels of CD4⁺, CD8⁺, TNFα⁺/CD4⁺ and IFNγ⁺/CD4⁺ T cells in the spleen. In a murine model of invasive fungal infection,immunization with this vaccine remarkably increases the survival rate, reduces the kidney fungal burdens and attenuates inflammatory responses. This bioengineering strategy offers a potentially viable approach for developing co-assembled whole-cell vaccines and can be extended to leverage bacterial carriers for surface antigen display. The vaccine acts not only as antigens but also as adjuvants, thereby eliciting strong and specific protective immunity against invasive fungal infections.

When Norway's attention turns to Oslo for the King's funeral on Wednesday 9 September 2026, it creates a vulnerable moment in the digital sphere that hostile actors may seek to exploit. Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) professor Basel Katt advises users to be alert.