A cross section of a mouse spinal cord, stained two different ways, showing increased expression of KCC2 in inhibitory neurons. This increased expression correlated with improved motor function, including ankle movement and stepping. Credit: Zhigang He Lab, Boston Children’s Hospital

Small-molecule drug reactivates dormant nerve pathways; could complement regenerative strategies. Most people with spinal cord injury are paralyzed from the injury site down, even when the cord isn’t completely severed. Why don’t the spared portions of the spinal cord keep working? Researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital now provide insight into why these nerve pathways remain quiet...

Sodium-potassium alloy is a room-temperature liquid metal that could unlock a high-voltage flow battery. (Image credit: Antonio Baclig)

A new type of flow battery that involves a liquid metal more than doubled the maximum voltage of conventional flow batteries and could lead to affordable storage of renewable power. A new combination of materials developed by Stanford researchers may aid in developing a rechargeable battery able to store the large amounts of renewable power created through wind or solar sources. With further development, the new technology could deliver energy to the electric grid quickly, cost effectively and at normal ambient temperatures.

The technology – a type of battery known as a flow battery – has long been considered as a likely candidate for storing intermittent ...

Image from the PAN-STARRS Telescope at Hawaii from early 2011 with the foreground star Ross 322 (blue square) and the background star (at the centre of the green circle) which will be traversed by Ross 322 in the next few weeks. By summer 2015, Ross 322 had moved to the position of the blue triangle (measured by Gaia). Since then, it has been moving along the blue-red line and is currently close to the position of the background star.

Astronomers have published the predictions of the passages of foreground stars in front of background stars. A team of astronomers, using ultra-precise measurements from the Gaia satellite, have accurately forecast two passages in the next months...

The mouse in the center photo shows aging-associated skin wrinkles and hair loss after two months of mitochondrial DNA depletion. That same mouse, right, shows reversal of wrinkles and hair loss one month later, after mitochondrial DNA replication was resumed. The mouse on the left is a normal control, for comparison. Credit: UAB

A gene mutation causes wrinkled skin and hair loss; turning off that mutation restores the mouse to normal appearance. Researchers have reversed wrinkled skin and hair loss, hallmarks of aging, in a mouse model. When a mutation leading to mitochondrial dysfunction is induced, the mouse develops wrinkled skin and extensive, visible hair loss in a matter of weeks...