https://medicalxpress.com/ en-us provides the latest news from Max Planck Society At more than one million degrees, the sun's atmosphere—the corona—is incredibly hot; but not everywhere. Time and again, huge structures of significantly cooler solar plasma—about 10,000 degrees—appear within the corona. These structures are known as prominences. They span up to several thousand kilometers and often resemble flickering flames that can take on a wide variety of shapes. Despite their delicate appearance, they are massive "chunks of matter": their density exceeds that of the surrounding corona by more than a hundred. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-sun-simulations-reveal-cool-prominences.html Wed, 22 Apr 2026 05:00:07 EDT news696010501 With the launch of Space Warps, a new citizen science project on the Zooniverse platform, you can now join in the search to find rare and elusive strong gravitational lenses in never-before-seen images captured by the European Space Agency's Euclid space telescope. The project aims at shining a light on dark matter in galaxies and providing clues about mysterious dark energy. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-euclid-space-warps-citizen-science.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 11:00:08 EDT news695986434 Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics scientists have been able to disentangle the X-ray glow originating in our solar system from similar emission reaching us from deep space, using data from the SRG/eROSITA space telescope. Four sky maps obtained between 2019 and 2021 from a vantage point approximately 1.5 million km from Earth—approximately four times the moon's distance—enabled the extraction of solar-wind charge exchange (SWCX) emission. The research is published in the journal Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-erosita-disentangles-solar-ray-deep.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 16:50:01 EDT news695574002 Research on graphene has made great strides in recent years. However, to fully harness its potential in applications such as desalination membranes, sensors, and energy storage and conversion, a deeper understanding of the interaction between graphene and water is required. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-graphene-mirror-droplets-dont.html Tue, 14 Apr 2026 18:40:01 EDT news695396701 It has long been known that environmental conditions can shape how traits are inherited, a phenomenon known as transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. However, the molecular signals responsible for encoding this biological "memory" have remained largely unknown. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-vitamin-b12-inherited-behavioral-generations.html Mon, 13 Apr 2026 16:50:02 EDT news695315761 We associate nests with shelter, warmth, and a safe retreat—and usually picture a bird's nest made out of twigs, grass and feathers. Yet many other animals take advantage of such refuges, with nests being built by a diversity of species ranging from termites to great apes, which impress with their hugely varied forms and the wide array of materials used to construct them. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-underwater-architects-cichlids-reveals-hardwired.html Fri, 10 Apr 2026 19:00:01 EDT news695048071 In the clonal raider ant (Ooceraea biroi), workers in a colony alternate between caring for larvae and laying eggs in a coordinated cycle. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena have discovered a brood pheromone released by larvae of clonal raider ants that temporarily suppresses egg-laying in adult ants. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ant-larvae-parental-odor.html Thu, 09 Apr 2026 12:40:04 EDT news694953121 Supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies are one of the most active fields of research in astronomy. In order to accumulate their enormous masses, they must merge with each other. A research team led by Silke Britzen from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR) in Bonn has found direct evidence of two supermassive black holes in the galaxy Markarian 501, which orbit each other very closely. This could be the first time that a pair has been detected that is about to merge. This provides a unique opportunity to better understand a central process in galaxy evolution. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-pair-supermassive-black-holes.html Tue, 07 Apr 2026 11:40:05 EDT news694773121 Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder affecting about 1% of the population worldwide, and is notoriously difficult to treat. Current treatments successfully target the disorder's positive symptoms, such as hallucinations and delusions. However, they are unable to treat negative symptoms, such as lacking motivation and social withdrawal, or cognitive symptoms, such as problems with attention or memory, which determine the long-term functional outcome of patients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-shortage-synapses-severity-cognitive-impairment.html Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:00:05 EDT news694273021 Many insects have lived in close symbiosis with bacteria for millions of years, during which time the bacteria have provided them with vital nutrients, making the mutualistic relationship so close that neither partner can survive without the other. However, the mechanisms and reasons behind the occasional exchange of symbionts during evolution have remained unclear until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-millions-years-insect-symbioses-fragile.html Wed, 01 Apr 2026 14:50:01 EDT news694271941 Pulsars are ultra-dense, rapidly spinning, and highly magnetized remnants of dead stars. They act like cosmic lighthouses, sending out regular pulses of radio waves and sometimes gamma rays in beams that sweep across the sky. A special class called millisecond pulsars spins hundreds of times per second and is among the most precise clocks in the universe. For decades, astronomers believed that a pulsar's radio signals are only produced close to the star's surface, near its magnetic poles. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-radio-edge-extreme-stars-surfaces.html Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:40:11 EDT news693650041 Self-driving laboratories (SDLs) powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly accelerating materials discovery, but can they also explain their results? Researchers from the Theory Department of the Fritz Haber Institute, in collaboration with BASF, and BasCat—UniCat BASF JointLab, show that they can. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-gray-ai-reveals-catalysts-discovery.html Tue, 24 Mar 2026 15:40:06 EDT news693574501 Scientists have found a new type of iron-storing protein in a mixture of microbes containing methane-degraders. This discovery underscores the importance of characterizing proteins from microbes that cannot be isolated, thereby enabling the discovery of new enzymes for future applications. The paper is published in the journal Communications Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-methane-degrading-bioreactor-protein-rubies.html Mon, 23 Mar 2026 12:20:02 EDT news693480376 Nudibranchs are often referred to as the butterflies of the sea. Nudibranchs live worldwide, primarily in warm, shallow marine regions, and stand out for their flamboyant colors and diverse shapes. A team from the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam and the University of Cambridge has now discovered how they create their colorful patterns. According to their findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the color is produced by nanostructures, each of which creates a specific color impression. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-impressionist-sea-slugs-patterns-photonic.html Fri, 20 Mar 2026 16:40:03 EDT news693228601 For over 350 years, quinine and other extracts from the cinchona tree (Cinchona spp.) were the only effective medicines against malaria, a tropical fever caused by single-celled parasites of the genus Plasmodium and transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. The name "cinchona tree" actually originates from South America and comes from the Quechua term quina-quina, meaning "bark of barks." https://phys.org/news/2026-03-mystery-quinine-biosynthesis-newly-enzymes.html Wed, 18 Mar 2026 12:00:08 EDT news692979491 An interdisciplinary team of authors from Canada, Austria, the U.S. and Germany has outlined how immuno-epidemiology and individual decision-making on non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) can be understood jointly in the future—and which data are still missing—in a perspective article published in the journal Trends in Microbiology. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-longitudinal-adherence-pharmaceutical-interventions.html Tue, 17 Mar 2026 18:50:02 EDT news692956404 Scientists have long observed that embryos of different species within a phylum look quite distinct at early and late developmental stages but resemble one another more during mid-embryogenesis, a phenomenon known as developmental hourglass. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-cell-reveal-cellular-developmental-hourglass.html Mon, 16 Mar 2026 16:30:02 EDT news692895422 When a wolf pack runs down its prey, the first on the scene is often the raven. Even before the predators have had time to dig in, the ravens are already in line, waiting to take advantage of the odd scrap of meat that becomes available. The speed with which the scavengers arrive at wolf kills is uncanny, and people had an explanation for how: ravens must be following wolves. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-wolves-ravens.html Thu, 12 Mar 2026 14:00:11 EDT news692523299 Conversations with friends have an ease that is hard to replicate with someone you have just met—often replies come more naturally and timing just seems to click. A strikingly similar pattern plays out in zebra finches, very sociable songbirds whose back-and-forth chatter with familiar individuals can take a noticeably different rhythm to exchanges with strangers. Now, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence have uncovered how this communication pattern is reflected in the brain, showing that social context influences the activity of neurons involved in vocal communication. The study has been published in PLOS Computational Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-familiar-voice-zebra-finches.html Thu, 12 Mar 2026 13:20:04 EDT news692528870 Plants are constantly on guard. Their roots are equipped with molecular alarm systems that detect invading microbes and trigger immune responses. Yet beneficial soil fungi routinely enter living root cells and establish close partnerships essential for plant nutrition. Scientists have now discovered that these fungi send small RNAs into the plant that may quietly switch off selected defense systems from within. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-friendly-fungi-hijack-symbiosis.html Wed, 11 Mar 2026 15:40:04 EDT news692448537 Can artificial intelligence offer meaningful relationship advice, or do human therapists still provide something machines cannot replicate? Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics recently explored this question during a public experiment at the InScience Film Festival in the city of Nijmegen. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-robots-therapists-ai-ability-relationship.html Wed, 11 Mar 2026 15:20:04 EDT news692459461 Think about the last time you told a story to a friend. You probably adjusted it halfway through. You saw their eyebrows lift. You noticed them lean in, or glance away. You clarified a detail. You sped up the ending. That constant fine-tuning is not a bonus feature of communication: it is communication. And you can read all about this real-time coordination process in a new review by Judith Holler and Anna K. Kuhlen (Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics), published in Nature Reviews Psychology. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-conversation-exchange-words.html Wed, 04 Mar 2026 19:00:05 EST news691862761 The cold season is in full swing, throats are scratchy and noses are running. We feel ill and hope it is not the flu. The influenza virus continues to pose a threat to our health. It triggers seasonal epidemics and, from time to time, potentially serious global pandemics. Existing antiviral drugs are often less effective than hoped because the influenza virus mutates rapidly to escape their effect. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-influenza-molecular-theft-caught-action.html Wed, 04 Mar 2026 17:20:03 EST news691860241 In most plants and animals, including humans, mitochondria are inherited exclusively, or nearly exclusively, from the mother. By contrast, paternal transmission is observed only occasionally, and the mechanisms behind this phenomenon have remained largely unknown. In a study published in Nature Plants, researchers established a genetic screening system in tobacco plants that allowed them to detect paternal mitochondrial inheritance. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-paternal-mitochondria-defective-maternal-dna.html Tue, 03 Mar 2026 18:30:16 EST news691780922 Researchers from the MPI of Biochemistry and the Technical University of Munich have discovered new diagnostic markers for multiple sclerosis (MS), a disease that affects 3 million people worldwide. Using mass spectrometry, about 1,500 proteins were analyzed simultaneously per sample in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 5,000 patients. The study, published in Cell, uncovered a set of marker proteins that improve differentiation of MS from other inflammatory brain diseases where classical MS markers are negative. The study identified changes in the CSF proteome that may potentially predict disease progression. This approach could also open up new avenues for the diagnosis of other diseases. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-diagnostic-markers-multiple-sclerosis-cerebrospinal.html Mon, 02 Mar 2026 17:40:01 EST news691688846 A new interdisciplinary study published in Nature Communications provides the first detailed insights, from a biomolecular and archaeological perspective, into the lives of people living in Central Europe during the Late Bronze Age (ca. 1300–800 BCE), the so-called Urnfield period, which was marked by cultural changes such as the widespread adoption of cremation. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ancient-dna-reveals-life-death.html Mon, 02 Mar 2026 13:40:01 EST news691679705 Cyanobacteria are among the most significant life forms in the history of our planet. As one of the first organisms to produce oxygen through photosynthesis, they shaped early Earth and created the atmosphere in which complex life could develop. A new study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that filamentous cyanobacteria also developed a navigation mechanism to control their movement when gliding across surfaces. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-filamentous-cyanobacteria-unique-strategy-due.html Fri, 27 Feb 2026 15:20:02 EST news691414682 From a bird's eye view, the Amazon rainforest appears as a lush green mosaic of treetops stretching as far as the eye can see. It is home to countless animal and plant species, many of which are endemic, and the forest plays an important role in the global climate as a carbon sink. However, deforestation threatens to destroy this unique ecosystem and its important functions. One-fifth of the area has already been cleared, and there is no end in sight to this intensive use. This has serious consequences for biodiversity and the global and regional climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-deforestation-extreme-weather-events-amazon.html Fri, 27 Feb 2026 10:50:04 EST news691411229 Whether in our bodies or in fuel cells, phosphoric acid plays an important role in many chemical processes because it is exceptionally good at transporting charges. Researchers from the Department of Molecular Physics at the Fritz Haber Institute gained new molecular insights into this remarkable property of the small molecule. Their results are published in The Journal of Physical Chemistry A. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-phosphoric-acid-dimers-reveal-nature.html Mon, 23 Feb 2026 16:00:01 EST news691072667 Why do some people feel chills when listening to music, reading poetry, or viewing a powerful work of art, while others do not? New research by Giacomo Bignardi and his colleagues from Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics (MPI) published in PLOS Genetics reveals that part of the answer lies in our genes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-02-genetics-telltale-tingle-music-art.html Mon, 23 Feb 2026 12:20:02 EST news691070101