Category: Science News

Biosciences Area researchers who measured mitochondrial metabolism in living brain tissues of a mouse model of Huntington disease found that regional differences in neuronal susceptibility to the disease can be attributed to reprogramming strategies adopted by astrocytes in response to low glucose. https://biosciences.lbl.gov/2019/04/17/astrocyte-insight-explains-brain-region-specific-vulnerability-in-huntington-disease/

A team of researchers led by Berkeley Lab has observed chirality for the first time in polar skyrmions in a material with reversible electrical properties — a combination that could lead to more powerful data storage devices that continue to hold information, even after they’ve been turned off. https://newscenter.lbl.gov/2019/04/18/electric-skyrmions-charge-ahead-for-next-generation-data-storage/

Water-purifying technology developed at Berkeley Lab was named among only five in the world that meet current international standards in a recent study from United Nations University examining systems for small communities. https://energyanalysis.lbl.gov/news/article/lab-water-technology-among-best-world

Biosciences Area and Michigan State University researchers are the first to characterize a protein that helps protect cyanobacteria from getting too much light. They collected X-ray diffraction data in the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology at the Advanced Light Source. https://biosciences.lbl.gov/2019/04/10/first-look-at-new-light-absorbing-protein/

In this video, Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) project participants share their insights and excitement about the project and its potential for new and unexpected discoveries. https://newscenter.lbl.gov/2019/04/12/video-the-making-of-the-largest-3d-map-of-the-universe/

Researchers used a variety of approaches to learn more about the regulation of photosynthesis and metabolism in the green alga Chromochloris zofingiensis, with the addition of glucose while in the light. Findings from this work could lead to beneficial bioproducts for energy, food, and human health. https://biosciences.lbl.gov/2019/04/10/regulation-of-algal-photosynthesis-and-metabolism/

CO2 is a promising solution to clean, low-cost, renewable energy, but more efficient photocathodes are needed to convert CO2 into fuels. Berkeley Lab researchers and NERSC supercomputing resources helped sift through 70,000 candidate materials to ID some new ones. https://cs.lbl.gov/news-media/news/2019/searching-for-photocathodes-that-convert-co2-into-fuels/