Category: 7. Science

  • Synthesis and photophysical studies of new fluorescent naphthalene chalcone

    Synthesis and photophysical studies of new fluorescent naphthalene chalcone

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  • Ahmad, A. et al. Synthesis, photophysical properties and DFT studies of Chalcones and their 2-methoxy-3-cyanopyridine derivatives. J. Photochem. Photobiol Chem. 437, 114494. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphotochem.2022.114494 (2023).

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  • Hegde, H., Sinha, R. K., Kulkarni, S. D. & Shetty, N. S. Synthesis, photophysical and DFT studies of Naphthyl chalcone and nicotinonitrile derivatives. J. Photochem. Photobiol Chem. 389, 112222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphotochem.2019.112222 (2020).

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  • Bentrad, N. & Hamida-Ferhat, A. Analytical approaches used in profiling natural products with a therapeutic target: a global perspective on nutrition and health. Stud. Nat. Prod. Chem. 72, 57–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-823944-5.00017-X (2022).

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  • Sekar, P., Kumar, S. & Raju, S. K. Chemistry and synthetic methodologies of Chalcones and their derivatives: a review. Int. J. Biol. Pharm. Sci. Archive. 5, 51–72. https://doi.org/10.53771/ijbpsa.2023.5.1.0020 (2023).

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  • Prabu, S., Nagalakshmi, R. & Srinivasan, P. Investigations on the physicochemical properties of 4-bromochalcone single crystals for nonlinear optical applications. Spectrochim. Acta Part A Mol. Biomol. Spectrosc. 103, 45–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.saa.2012.10.073 (2013).

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  • Kumari, R. & Milton, M. D. Non-doped, solid-state red-emitting phenothiazine–pyrene chalcones: synthesis, aggregation-induced emission enhancement and mechanofluorochromism. J. Photochem. Photobiol Chem. 462, 116222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphotochem.2024.116222 (2025).

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  • Chaithanya, B., Chary, D. P. & Anna, V. R. Synthesis and biological evaluation of chalconeincorporated thiazoleisoxazole derivatives as anticancer agents. Chem. Data Collections. 55, 101177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cdc.2024.101177 (2025).

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  • Zheng, M. et al. Synthesis, biological evaluation, and mechanism study of a novel indolepyridine chalcone derivative as an antiproliferative agent against tumor cells through dual targeting tubulin and HK2. Eur. J. Med. Chem. 282, 117058. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejmech.2024.117058 (2025).

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  • Jadhav, S. R., Gurav, S. S., Yasin, H., Nagpal, P. & Mali, S. N. Imidazo[1,2a] pyridineappended chalcone and schiff base conjugates: synthetic, spectrophotometric, biological, and computational aspects. Chem. Phys. Impact. 9, 100694. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chphi.2024.100694 (2024).

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  • Saha, A., Karar, M. & Choudhury, S. Red edge effect of chalcone derivatives and their application in biosensing. RSC Adv. 15, 13505–13512. https://doi.org/10.1039/d4ra06978a (2025).

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  • Frisch, M. J. et al. J. V. Ortiz, J. Cioslowski, and D. J. Fox, Gaussian 09, Revision D.01, Gaussian, Inc., Wallingford CT, 2013.

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  • UCL Study Recreates Early RNA–Amino Acid Link

    UCL Study Recreates Early RNA–Amino Acid Link

    Chemists at UCL have shown how two of biology’s most fundamental ingredients, RNA (ribonucleic acid) and amino acids, could have spontaneously joined together at the origin of life four billion years ago.

    Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, the “workhorses” of life essential to nearly every living process. But proteins cannot replicate or produce themselves – they require instructions. These instructions are provided by RNA, a close chemical cousin of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid).

    In a new study, published in Nature, researchers chemically linked life’s amino acids to RNA in conditions that could have occurred on the early Earth – an achievement that has eluded scientists since the early 1970s.

    Senior author Professor Matthew Powner, based at UCL’s Department of Chemistry, said: “Life relies on the ability to synthesise proteins – they are life’s key functional molecules. Understanding the origin of protein synthesis is fundamental to understanding where life came from.

    “Our study is a big step towards this goal, showing how RNA might have first come to control protein synthesis.

    “Life today uses an immensely complex molecular machine, the ribosome, to synthesise proteins. This machine requires chemical instructions written in messenger RNA, which carries a gene’s sequence from a cell’s DNA to the ribosome. The ribosome then, like a factory assembly line, reads this RNA and links together amino acids, one by one, to create a protein.

    “We have achieved the first part of that complex process, using very simple chemistry in water at neutral pH to link amino acids to RNA. The chemistry is spontaneous, selective and could have occurred on the early Earth.”

    Previous attempts to attach amino acids to RNA used highly reactive molecules, but these broke down in water and caused the amino acids to react with each other, rather than become linked to RNA.

    For the new study, the researchers took inspiration from biology, using a gentler method to convert life’s amino acids into a reactive form. This activation involved a thioester, a high-energy chemical compound important in many of life’s biochemical processes and that has already been theorised to play a role at the start of life*.

    Professor Powner said: “Our study unites two prominent origin of life theories – the ‘RNA world’, where self-replicating RNA is proposed to be fundamental, and the ‘thioester world’, in which thioesters are seen as the energy source for the earliest forms of life.”

    In order to form these thioesters, the amino acids react with a sulphur-bearing compound called pantetheine. Last year, the same team published a paper demonstrating pantetheine can be synthesised under early Earth-like conditions, suggesting it was likely to play a role in starting life.

    The next step, the researchers said, was to establish how RNA sequences could bind preferentially to specific amino acids, so that RNA could begin to code instructions for protein synthesis – the origin of the genetic code.

    “There are numerous problems to overcome before we can fully elucidate the origin of life, but the most challenging and exciting remains the origins of protein synthesis,” said Professor Powner.

    Lead author Dr Jyoti Singh, from UCL Chemistry, said: “Imagine the day that chemists might take simple, small molecules, consisting of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, and sulphur atoms, and from these LEGO pieces form molecules capable of self-replication. This would be a monumental step towards solving the question of life’s origin.

    “Our study brings us closer to that goal by demonstrating how two primordial chemical LEGO pieces (activated amino acids and RNA) could have built peptides**, short chains of amino acids that are essential to life.

    “What is particularly groundbreaking is that the activated amino acid used in this study is a thioester, a type of molecule made from Coenzyme A, a chemical found in all living cells. This discovery could potentially link metabolism, the genetic code and protein building.”

    While the paper focuses solely on the chemistry, the research team said that the reactions they demonstrated could plausibly have taken place in pools or lakes of water on the early Earth (but not likely in the oceans as the concentrations of the chemicals would likely be too diluted).

    The reactions are too small to see with a visible-light microscope and were tracked using a range of techniques that are used to probe the structure of molecules, including several types of magnetic resonance imaging (which shows how the atoms are arranged) and mass spectrometry (which shows the size of molecules).

    Reference: Singh J, Thoma B, Whitaker D, Satterly Webley M, Yao Y, Powner MW. Thioester-mediated RNA aminoacylation and peptidyl-RNA synthesis in water. Nature. 2025;644(8078):933-944. doi: 10.1038/s41586-025-09388-y

    This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source. Our press release publishing policy can be accessed here.

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  • SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Starlink satellites on record-breaking 30th flight

    SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Starlink satellites on record-breaking 30th flight

    SpaceX has broken its rocket reuse record again, notching a nice round number in the process.

    A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday (Aug. 28) at 4:12 a.m. EDT (0812 GMT), carrying 28 of SpaceX’s Starlink internet satellites toward low Earth orbit (LEO).

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  • Characterization and therapeutic evaluation of the lytic bacteriophage ENP2309 against vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis infections in a mice model | Virology Journal

    Characterization and therapeutic evaluation of the lytic bacteriophage ENP2309 against vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis infections in a mice model | Virology Journal

    Phage isolation and purification

    This study utilized 19 strains of Enterococcus from the Key Laboratory of Animal Disease Pathogen Diagnosis and Green Prevention and Control Technology in Qinghai Province as host bacteria. Wastewater samples were collected from various yak farms in Xining city for phage isolation. The phage isolation methods used were previously described by Liu et al. [13], and the phage isolation and purification process was as follows:

    First, wastewater samples were sterilized by filtration through a 0.22 μm membrane filter (Millipore). The filtrate was then mixed with the host bacteria at a 1:1 ratio (v/v). The mixture was then plated using the double-layer agar method (the bottom layer was 1.5% agar-solidified Todd-Hewitt broth, and the top layer was THB medium containing 0.5% agar). After incubation at 37 ℃ overnight, the formation and morphology of phage plaques were observed. A single phage plaque was subsequently aseptically picked and suspended in sterile PBS at room temperature for 4 h to allow phage dissociation. This suspension was then mixed again with the host bacteria and replated using the double-layer agar method. After overnight incubation at 37 °C, single plaques were isolated. This purification process was repeated three times to ultimately obtain purified phage isolates.

    Host range

    Suspensions of distinct Enterococcus strains were spread onto double-layer agar plates and preincubated at 37 °C for 2 h to form bacterial lawns. Subsequently, 5 µL aliquots of phage solution were spotted onto the solidified agar surface. Following overnight incubation at 37 °C, lytic activity was evaluated by counting the infection classes (+ 4, + 3, +2, + 1, and 0) within the bacterial lawns (Table 1). The methods described by Fayez et al. [14] were subsequently followed, Enterococcus faecalis GZ25 was used as the indicator bacterium, the efficiency of plating (EOP) was calculated. The EOP is defined as the ratio of the lysis titre of the phage against different test strains to that against the indicator bacterium.

    Table 1 Scoring criteria for plaque Lysis activity

    Morphological observation

    The phage particles were sequentially concentrated using PEG 8000 (Sigma‒Aldrich) precipitation followed by CsCl density gradient centrifugation according to established protocols [15]. The purified phage suspension was adsorbed onto 400-mesh carbon-coated copper grids (Ted Pella, USA) and stained with 1% (w/v) phosphotungstic acid (SolarBio, Beijing, China) for 10 min at room temperature. The grids were air-dried and subsequently imaged using an HT7700 transmission electron microscope (Hitachi, Japan) at 80 kV.

    Temperature stability

    Phage ENP2309 suspensions were subjected to thermal stability testing through 1-hour incubation at incremental temperatures ranging from 10 °C to 80 °C (10 °C intervals). Following thermal treatment, residual phage viability was quantified via the double-layer agar method. All experimental conditions were evaluated through triplicate independent biological replicates.

    pH stability

    The pH of the SM buffer was adjusted to values ranging from 2 to 13 using concentrated hydrochloric acid or sodium hydroxide solution. A total of 100 µL of phage mixture was added to 900 µL of SM buffer at various pH values and allowed to stand at 37 °C for 1 h. The phage titres were determined using the double-layer method. All experimental conditions were evaluated through triplicate independent biological replicates.

    Optimal multiplicity of infection

    Serial dilutions of phage ENP2309 were combined with host bacterial cultures (OD600 = 0.6) under conditions of varying multiplicity of infection (MOI = 10− 5, 10− 4, 10− 3, 10− 2, 10− 1, 1, 10, 102, 103, 104, and 105). After 10 min adsorption at 37 °C, the unbound phages were removed by centrifugation (8,000 r/min, 10 min, 4°C). The bacterial pellets were resuspended in 10 mL of fresh THB broth and incubated at 37 °C, and 200 r/min for 4 h. Phage progeny production was quantified through the double-layer agar method, The experiment was performed in triplicate.

    One step growth

    In accordance with on the methods of Zurabov et al. [16], with adjustments made for this study, the following protocol was used: host bacterial cultures (OD600 = 0.6) were infected with phage ENP2309 at an MOI of 0.001. A mixture of 100 µL of phage suspension and 100 µL of host bacterial culture was incubated at 37 °C for 10 min. The mixture was then centrifuged (8,000 r/min, 5 min, 4 °C). The resulting pellet was collected and resuspended in 50 mL of THB broth. The mixture was incubated in a shaking incubator (37 °C, 200 rpm/min). Every 20 min, a 2 mL aliquot of the suspension was collected, and the phage suspension was obtained by filtration through a 0.22 μm filter. Phage titres were determined using the double-layer agar plate method, and monitored continuously for 6 h. The latent period was defined as the time required for phage adsorption to the host cell and subsequent release of progeny phages. The burst size of the phage was expressed as the ratio of the final count of phage particles released during the outburst to the number of infected bacterial cells. Burst size = (Peak phage titer) / (Total number of infected bacteria in the system). The experiment was performed in triplicate.

    Phage genome extraction and sequencing

    The phage genome was extracted using a bacteriophage DNA isolation kit (Norgen Biotek, Canada) following the manufacturer’s protocol. The purified DNA was quantified using a Nano Drop One (Thermo Fisher Scientific) and assessed for quality by agarose gel electrophoresis (1% w/v). Sequencing libraries were prepared using the Illumina TruSeq Nano DNA LT Library Prep Kit (Illumina, San Diego, CA) according to the manufacturer’s instructions (Illumina TruSeq DNA Sample Preparation Guide, Rev. E) at Shanghai Paisenno Bio-Tech Co., Ltd. Raw sequencing reads were quality-filtered using Trimmomatic (v0.39) and assembled de novo using SPAdes (v3.12.0) with default parameters. Contigs were screened on the basis of sequencing depth (> 50× coverage), and high-depth sequences were subjected to BLASTn analysis against the NCBI NT database [17] for phage genome identification. The final complete genome sequence was validated through manual curation and comparison with reference phage genomes in the NCBI database.

    Phage genome analysis

    The online BLASTp server was used to identify open reading frames (ORFs). The online tools ResFinder (http://genepi.food.dtu.dk/resfinder) and VirulenceFinder (https://cge.cbs.dtu.dk/services/) were used to screen for antibiotic resistance genes and virulence genes in the phage genome. tRNAs were predicted using tRNA scan SE (http://lowelab.ucsc.edu/tRNAscan-SE/index.html). A phage genome map was generated using SnapGene 6.0.2. To analyse the phylogenetic relationships of the phage, the genome sequence was used for a BLASTn search of the NCBI database. A phylogenetic tree based on the large terminase subunits of related phages was constructed by the neighbour‒joining method in MEGA 7.0 [18]. Phage genomes were compared using VIRIDIC [19] to determine their genetic relatedness (≥ 70% nucleotide sequence identity implies a genus-level relationship, whereas ≥ 95% identity suggests a species-level relationship).

    Evaluation of phage therapeutic effects

    Female BALB/C mice (16–18 g, purchased from the Lanzhou Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine) were randomly allocated into four experimental groups (n = 10 per group): (a) Challenge group: Mice were intraperitoneally challenged with E. faecalis GZ16185 at the minimum lethal dose (3.0 × 10¹¹ CFU/mL). (b) Treatment group: 200 µL of phage ENP2309 (2.0 × 10⁸ PFU/mL) was administered via intraperitoneal injection 15 min post-infection. (c) Phage group: This group received 200 µL of phage ENP2309 alone (2.0 × 10⁸ PFU/mL) intraperitoneally. (d) PBS group: Injected intraperitoneally with 200 µL of PBS buffer.

    The experimental cycle spanned 14 days. Throughout the study, daily body weight, survival rates, and general health status were recorded for all groups.

    In addition to the mice in the challenge group (Day 3), the mice in the other groups were assessed at the endpoint (Day 14). The mice were euthanized, and the organs (e.g., liver, and spleen) were harvested for histopathological evaluation. Tissue sections were prepared and stained with haematoxylin-eosin (HE) to assess pathological changes. The bacterial loads in the spleen and liver were quantified using the plate counting method.

    Blood samples were collected via retro-orbital bleeding on Days1, 3, 5, and 7 posttreatment. Serum cytokine levels (e.g., TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-10) were quantified using commercial ELISA kits according to the manufacturers’ protocols.

    Statistical analysis

    All data were processed for statistical analysis (means and standard deviations) using SPSS 22.0, and graphical representations were generated using OriginPro 2021. Group differences were evaluated by one-way ANOVA, followed by Bonferroni correction. P values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Significance is indicated in the figures by asterisks (*, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01; ***, P < 0.001).

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  • Spiders turn fireflies into glowing traps

    Spiders turn fireflies into glowing traps

    Ecologists have observed a species of nocturnal spider attracting prey to its web using the bioluminescent beacons of already trapped fireflies. This rare example of a predator exploiting its prey’s mating signal for its own gain is documented in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Animal Ecology.

    Researchers at Tunghai University, Taiwan have observed sheet web spiders Psechrus clavis capturing fireflies in their webs and leaving them there while they emitted bioluminescent light for up to an hour. The researchers even observed the spiders going to check on the captured fireflies from time to time.

    Intrigued by this unusual behavior the researchers set up an experiment to test whether this was a strategy used by the spiders to increase their hunting success. In the experiment, they placed LEDs that resembled fireflies, in real sheet spider webs and left other webs clear as controls.

    They found three times the amount of prey was attracted to webs with the LEDs compared to the control webs. This increased to ten times more prey when they only looked at fireflies being captured.

    The findings confirm that captured fireflies left as bait increase the hunting success rate of the spiders. The researchers also noticed that the majority of captured fireflies were male, who were likely mistaking the glow for potential mates.

    Dr I-Min Tso, the lead author of the study said: “Our findings highlight a previously undocumented interaction where firefly signals, intended for sexual communication, are also beneficial to spiders.

    “This study sheds new light on the ways that nocturnal sit-and-wait predators can rise to the challenges of attracting prey and provides a unique perspective on the complexity of predator-prey interactions.”

    The researchers suggest that this behavior could have developed in sheet web spiders to avoid costly investment in their own bioluminescence like other sit-and-wait predators, such as anglerfish. Instead, the spiders are able to outsource prey attraction to their prey’s own signals.

    The sheet web spider Psechrus clavis is a nocturnal sit and wait predator found in subtropical forests of East Asia. It’s main source of prey, the winter firefly Diaphanes lampyroides, uses continuous, non-flashing bioluminescence to attract mates.

    Video footage captured by the researchers (see link below) in their experiment shows sheet web spiders employing different strategies when interacting with different prey species. Spiders would immediately consume any moths captured in their webs but would not immediately consume fireflies they captured.

    “Handling prey in different ways suggests that the spider can use some kind of cue to distinguish between the prey species they capture and determine an appropriate response.” explained Dr I-Min Tso. “We speculate that it is probably the bioluminescent signals of the fireflies that are used to identify fireflies enabling spiders to adjust their prey handling behavior accordingly.”

    The researchers conducted their field experiment in the conifer plantation forest at National Taiwan University’s Xitou Nature Educational Area.

    Because they used LEDs to mimic the light signal emitted by fireflies, the researchers warn that although the wavelength and intensity of the LED set up was a close match to fireflies, it would be best if real fireflies were used in the field experiment. But they admit that this would be extremely difficult in practice.

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  • Extremely stripped star reveals heavy elements as it explodes – Physics World

    Extremely stripped star reveals heavy elements as it explodes – Physics World






    Extremely stripped star reveals heavy elements as it explodes – Physics World


















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  • Spider in Taiwan Seen Using Fireflies As Glowing Bait

    Spider in Taiwan Seen Using Fireflies As Glowing Bait


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    Ecologists have observed a species of nocturnal spider attracting prey to its web using the bioluminescent beacons of already trapped fireflies. This rare example of a predator exploiting its prey’s mating signal for its own gain is documented in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Animal Ecology.

    Researchers at Tunghai University, Taiwan have observed sheet web spiders Psechrus clavis capturing fireflies in their webs and leaving them there while they emitted bioluminescent light for up to an hour. The researchers even observed the spiders going to check on the captured fireflies from time to time.

    Intrigued by this unusual behavior the researchers set up an experiment to test whether this was a strategy used by the spiders to increase their hunting success. In the experiment, they placed LEDs that resembled fireflies, in real sheet spider webs and left other webs clear as controls.

    They found three times the amount of prey was attracted to webs with the LEDs compared to the control webs. This increased to ten times more prey when they only looked at fireflies being captured.

    The findings confirm that captured fireflies left as bait increase the hunting success rate of the spiders. The researchers also noticed that the majority of captured fireflies were male, who were likely mistaking the glow for potential mates.

    Dr I-Min Tso, the lead author of the study said: “Our findings highlight a previously undocumented interaction where firefly signals, intended for sexual communication, are also beneficial to spiders.

    “This study sheds new light on the ways that nocturnal sit-and-wait predators can rise to the challenges of attracting prey and provides a unique perspective on the complexity of predator-prey interactions.”

    The researchers suggest that this behavior could have developed in sheet web spiders to avoid costly investment in their own bioluminescence like other sit-and-wait predators, such as anglerfish. Instead, the spiders are able to outsource prey attraction to their prey’s own signals.

    The sheet web spider Psechrus clavis is a nocturnal sit and wait predator found in subtropical forests of East Asia. It’s main source of prey, the winter firefly Diaphanes lampyroides, uses continuous, non-flashing bioluminescence to attract mates.

    Video footage captured by the researchers in their experiment shows sheet web spiders employing different strategies when interacting with different prey species. Spiders would immediately consume any moths captured in their webs but would not immediately consume fireflies they captured.

    This study sheds new light on the ways that nocturnal sit-and-wait predators can rise to the challenges of attracting prey

    “Handling prey in different ways suggests that the spider can use some kind of cue to distinguish between the prey species they capture and determine an appropriate response.” explained Dr I-Min Tso. “We speculate that it is probably the bioluminescent signals of the fireflies that are used to identify fireflies enabling spiders to adjust their prey handling behavior accordingly.”

    The researchers conducted their field experiment in the conifer plantation forest at National Taiwan University’s Xitou Nature Educational Area.

    Because they used LEDs to mimic the light signal emitted by fireflies, the researchers warn that although the wavelength and intensity of the LED set up was a close match to fireflies, it would be best if real fireflies were used in the field experiment. But they admit that this would be extremely difficult in practice.

     

    Reference: Yip HY, Blamires SJ, Liao CP, Tso IM. Prey bioluminescence-mediated visual luring in a sit and wait predator. J Anim Ecol. 2025. doi: 10.1111/1365-2656.70102


    This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source. Our press release publishing policy can be accessed here.

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  • The Seas Are Warming. 'Cyborg' Jellyfish May Reveal True State of Ocean Deep – Haaretz

    The Seas Are Warming. 'Cyborg' Jellyfish May Reveal True State of Ocean Deep – Haaretz

    1. The Seas Are Warming. ‘Cyborg’ Jellyfish May Reveal True State of Ocean Deep  Haaretz
    2. ‘Cyborg jellyfish’ could aid in deep-sea research, inspire next-gen underwater vehicles  University of Colorado Boulder
    3. Scientists Turn Moon Jellyfish Into Living “Cyborgs” To Explore The Deep Ocean  Indian Defence Review
    4. Are Cyborg Jellyfish the Next Step of Deep Ocean Exploration?  ZME Science
    5. Microchipped cyborg jellyfish may reveal secrets of Earth’s darkest ocean frontiers  Interesting Engineering

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  • The oldest known ‘black hole’ identified by the James Webb Space Telescope: A glimpse into the early universe |

    The oldest known ‘black hole’ identified by the James Webb Space Telescope: A glimpse into the early universe |

    Astronomers have discovered the oldest and most distant black hole ever observed, transforming our understanding of the early universe. Detailed in a study published in Astrophysical Journal Letters, the finding was made using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The black hole, located in galaxy CAPERS-LRD-z9, dates back 13.3 billion years, just 500 million years after the Big Bang. Estimated to be up to 300 million times the mass of our Sun, it challenges current theories of black hole growth. This breakthrough offers new insights into galaxy formation and the rapid evolution of supermassive black holes in the infant cosmos.

    James Webb Space Telescope discovers a black hole formed 500 million years after the Big Bang

    The confirmed black hole resides in a galaxy called CAPERS-LRD-z9 and is estimated to have formed 13.3 billion years ago, making it the most ancient black hole discovered to date.According to the study, this supermassive black hole likely appeared when the universe was in its earliest stage, about 500 million years after the Big Bang. Researchers estimate it could be between 38 million and 300 million times the mass of our Sun, an extraordinary size for such an early era.

    The study behind the discovery

    The research was carried out under the CANDELS-Area Prism Epoch of Reionization Survey (CAPERS) project, part of JWST’s mission to explore the farthest reaches of the universe. The team, led by scientists from the University of Texas at Austin’s Cosmic Frontier Center, used JWST’s spectroscopic analysis to examine the light emitted by CAPERS-LRD-z9.The findings provided strong evidence that this galaxy hosts the earliest confirmed supermassive black hole ever observed.

    How was the black hole detected

    JWST’s infrared instruments allow astronomers to observe light that has been travelling across space for over 13 billion years. When scientists focused on mysterious objects known as Little Red Dots (LRDs), tiny red spots appearing in distant galaxy images, they discovered something unusual.By studying the light signature from CAPERS-LRD-z9, the researchers detected gas swirling at thousands of kilometres per second, a hallmark of material feeding a black hole through an accretion disk. This was the “smoking gun” evidence the team needed to confirm the black hole’s presence.

    Why is it called a Little Red Dot

    The term Little Red Dot refers to the appearance of these ancient galaxies in telescope images: small, bright red points of light. Two main factors cause this colour:Cosmic Redshift: As the universe expands, light from distant objects stretches into longer, redder wavelengths.Gas and Dust Clouds: The black hole is likely shrouded in dense gas, blocking blue light and giving the galaxy its vivid red hue.Computer models confirm that such gas clouds can explain the distinctive light pattern observed by JWST.

    How big is the black hole

    This early black hole is supermassive in every sense. The research suggests:Initial estimates: Around 38 million times the mass of the Sun.Newer models: Possibly up to 300 million times the Sun’s mass, making it one of the most massive black holes discovered in the early universe.Such rapid growth challenges long-standing theories about how black holes form and evolve.

    The significance of the discovery

    This finding raises fundamental questions about the early universe. Scientists now consider two possibilities:Rapid Growth Hypothesis: Black holes in the early universe grew much faster than previously thought.Massive Seed Theory: These black holes may have formed from unusually large initial masses, contradicting existing models.The research team plans to conduct more high-resolution observations with JWST to study other Little Red Dots. These efforts could reveal more ancient black holes, further unlocking the mysteries of the early cosmos.As study co-author Steven Finkelstein, director of the Cosmic Frontier Center, explains, “The discovery of Little Red Dots was a major surprise from early JWST data. Now we’re figuring out what they’re like and how they came to be.”Also read | NASA’s James Webb Telescope discovers a new moon around Uranus


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  • New Method Unveils Secrets of Wood and Leaf Decay

    New Method Unveils Secrets of Wood and Leaf Decay

    When a tree dies, it forms the foundation for new life: In a slow, invisible process, leaves, wood and roots are gradually decomposed – not by wind or weather but by millions and millions of tiny organisms. Fungi thread their way through the dead wood and degrade cell walls. Tiny animals such as insect larvae and mites gnaw through the tissue. And something very important happens in the process: The carbon stored in the plant is released, ultimately placing it at the disposal of plants again for the purpose of photosynthesis. But what exactly is responsible for performing this task in the global carbon cycle? And which molecular tools do the organisms use for it? To answer these questions, the researchers have developed a new bioinformatics-based method, which they have now presented in Molecular Biology and Evolution.

    18,000 species in the spotlight

    This method, called fDOG (Feature architecture-aware directed ortholog search), makes it possible to search in the genetic material of various organisms for genes that have evolved from the same precursor gene. It is assumed that these genes, known as “orthologs”, encode proteins with similar functions. For the current study, the scientists searched for the genes of plant cell wall-degrading enzymes (PCDs). Unlike previous methods, fDOG not only searches through masses of genomic information but also analyzes the architecture of the proteins found – i.e. their structural composition, which reveals a lot about an enzyme’s function.

    “We start with a gene from one species, referred to as the seed, and then trawl through tens of thousands of species in the search for orthologous genes,” explains Ingo Ebersberger, Professor for Applied Bioinformatics at Goethe University Frankfurt. “In the process, we constantly monitor whether the genes we find perhaps differ from the seed in terms of function and structure – for example, through the loss or gain of individual areas relevant for function.”

    The research team used this method to search for more than 200 potential PCD candidates in over 18,000 species from all three domains of life – bacteria, archaea and eukaryotes (plants, animals, fungi). The result is a detailed global map – with unprecedented accuracy – of enzymes capable of degrading plant cell walls.

    Surprising discoveries among fungi and animals

    The researchers devised special visualization methods to analyze the vast amounts of data and detect patterns. This revealed characteristic changes in the enzyme repertoire of the fungi under study, indicating a change in lifestyle of certain fungal species: From a decomposing lifestyle – i.e. the degradation of dead plants – to a parasitic lifestyle in which they infest living animals. Such evolutionary transitions are mirrored in characteristic patterns of enzyme loss.

    A special surprise in the animal kingdom was the discovery that some arthropods possess an unexpectedly wide range of plant cell wall-degrading enzymes. These enzymes presumably originated from fungi and bacteria and entered the genome of invertebrates via direct gene transfer between different organisms – i.e. horizontal gene transfer. This suggests that they might be able to degrade plant material independently and are not reliant on the bacteria in their intestines, as was previously assumed. In another case, however, it emerged that the potential PCD genes in the analyzed sequence could be ascribed to microbial contamination – an important sign that such data need to be checked very carefully.

    New insights into the global carbon cycle

    The study shows how fDOG can be used to systematically map biological capabilities across the entire tree of life – from broad-scale overviews to detailed investigations of individual species. With this method, it is possible both to track evolutionary trajectories and to identify players previously overlooked in the global carbon cycle. Since soils contain large amounts of dead plant material and therefore constitute the largest terrestrial carbon sink, the decomposition of plant material is an important driver of the global carbon cycle. “Our method gives us a fresh view of how metabolic capacities are distributed across the tree of life,” says Ebersberger. “We can now conduct multi-scale analyses and in the process detect both recent evolutionary changes and large patterns.”

    Publication: Vinh Tran, Felix Langschied, Hannah Muelbaier, Julian Dosch, Freya Arthen, Miklos Balint, Ingo Ebersberger: Feature architecture-aware ortholog search with fDOG reveals the distribution of plant cell wall-degrading enzymes across life. Molecular Biology and Evolution (2025) https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaf120

    Picture download:

    http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/177406412

    Caption: A recent bioinformatics-based study conducted by Goethe University Frankfurt has investigated which organisms possess the enzymatic tools necessary for degrading cellulose in dead wood and leaves. (Photo: Markus Bernards)

    Further Information:

    Professor Ingo Ebersberger

    Head of Working Group for Applied Bioinformatics

    Institute of Cell Biology and Neuroscience

    Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany

    Tel. +49 (0)69 798-42112

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