The secrets of the Pillars of Creation

The Pillars of Creation, lying deep in the Eagle Nebula, are a set of three gigantic columns of cosmic dust and gas, like a golden hand reaching out into the cosmic abyss. But beyond their striking appearance, these clouds are of intense interest to astronomers. In a study published in Nature, scientists have used data from the JWST to locate 264 candidate young stellar objects – far more than previous studies suggested. It indicates that star formation in the pillars over the past million years has been far more active than originally thought. With these new observations, researchers hope to better understand how and why new stars form in the pillars, as well as the influence of nearby massive stars on the star formation process.

Is antibody there? Thymus regeneration in mice

The thymus is an organ located in the upper chest that governs our immune system by producing T-cells, our natural defenders against disease. However, it is one of the fastest-aging organs in the body, shrinking soon after puberty. This makes it a vital target for regenerative medicine, particularly after chemotherapy or stem cell transplants.

Last week, scientists published a groundbreaking strategy for thymus repair. By giving mice a specific type of thymic cell soon after a stem cell transplant, they were able to restore immune function. It pins a previously unrecognised population of cells, marked by a protein called periostin (Postn+), as the key to this effect.

“The discovery could lead to cell-based therapies aimed at rejuvenating the human immune system”

The Postn+ cells were previously known to release a chemical signal called Ccl19, which seems to be critical to the mechanism of regeneration. The new work shows that these cells act as beacons, attracting T-cell precursors (effectively baby T-cells) from the bone marrow to the thymus. So, when the researchers reintroduced these Postn+ cells into mice with a damaged thymus, it was remarkable to observe that the cells successfully integrated with the organ and restarted T-cell production. They also noted that the mice had improved vaccine response after the treatment, which is a great sign for future therapies.

The research has opened up the poignant question: what is Ccl19’s role in thymus repair? If researchers can find the mechanism behind that, the discovery could lead to cell-based therapies aimed at rejuvenating the human immune system — one of the most important challenges for regenerative medicine in the 21st century.

New germanium superconductor discovered

Scientists in Queensland, Australia, have developed a method to produce germanium superconducting films. The result is a stable, readily available material that can be used in quantum computing chips.

“They were effectively changing the mice’s ability to recall memories”

With a superconducting temperature of -270°C, meaning it only displays the correct properties under this temperature, the material is ruled out for general commercial use (the lowest temperature possible is -273ºC, or 0K). However, it could be the perfect material for quantum computers which operate at this temperature.

The group did it by flooding the germanium with another element, in this case gallium, to encourage the formation of the superconducting thin film. The group then sandwiched this material with germanium and silicon semiconducting layers to form a device, which offers the advantage of utilising both superconducting and semiconducting effects. This technique is known as ‘molecular-beam epitaxy’.

The major breakthrough here is the method, as it could be the key to making other materials like superconducting silicon or diamond, bringing researchers closer to practical, scalable quantum technologies.

What do you remember, Mickey?

Our memories are some of our closest held possessions but how and where do we store them safely? For the first time, scientists have found that by altering the activity of a single gene located in neurons, mice’s ability to recall a memory was directly affected. Since the alteration was performed epigenetically, meaning chemicals temporarily muted the expression of the gene, it means this effect was reversible.

The group used a CRISPR-based epigenetic technique (a gene modification method) to alter the expression of a gene known as Arc, which regulates the activity of neuron connections (synapses). The researchers targeted this gene specifically within engram cells. This strengthens the evidence that these cells control memory and learning processes in the brain. The Munich-based group turned the promoter up or down, effectively changing the mice’s ability to recall memories.

The results clearly show that gene expression helps regulate our memories’ formation and maintenance, and it begs the question of what more we can find out about engram cells.