Some people appear to be considerably younger or older than their chronological age. Genetic signatures that may help explain this have been discovered by scientists at the Salk Institute. The age-associated genetic patterns were found by analyzing skin cells from people of various ages, according to a study by Salk Institute scientists.

Researchers then applied the results to detect genetic signs of accelerated aging in people with progeria, a disease that causes patients to appear far older than their chronological age...

Three and a half years after giving humanity its first close-up view of Pluto, and almost 13 years after launching from Earth, the New Horizons spacecraft will explore another new frontier: a reddish hunk of rock and ice known as Ultima Thule.

The object—or, perhaps, pair of objects (it’s so far away astronomers aren’t sure) – is thought to be a pristine remnant of the early solar system, untouched for billions of years. Its nickname conveys its significance, meaning “beyond the known world.”

Ultima Thule is 4 billion miles from Earth. New Horizons will reach it as the new year arrives on Jan. 1, with a mission to collect as many images and as much data as possible while speeding past at 32,000 miles per hour...

Progress in the development of highly reliable and sensitive diamond MEMS sensors. A NIMS-led research group succeeded in developing a high-quality diamond cantilever with among the highest quality (Q) factor values at room temperature ever achieved. The group also succeeded for the first time in the world in developing a single crystal diamond microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensor chip that can be actuated and sensed by electrical signals. These achievements may popularize research on diamond MEMS with significantly higher sensitivity and greater reliability than existing silicon MEMS.

MEMS sensors – in which microscopic cantilevers (projecting beams fixed at only one end) and electronic circuits are int...

Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the stem cell institute HI-STEM* in Heidelberg have succeeded for the first time in directly reprogramming human blood cells into a previously unknown type of neural stem cell. These induced stem cells are similar to those that occur during the early embryonic development of the central nervous system. They can be modified and multiplied indefinitely in the culture dish and can represent an important basis for the development of regenerative therapies.

Stem cells are considered to be the all-rounders of our tiss...