The central portion of Osuga Valles, which has a total length of 164 km. In some places, it is 20 km wide and plunges to a depth of 900 m. Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO

The valley networks of Mars bear a strong resemblance to those found in arid landscapes on Earth. Researchers have been able to demonstrate this using the branching angles of river valley confluences. Based on these observations, they infer that Mars once had a primeval climate in which sporadic heavy precipitation eroded valleys. The surface of Mars bears imprints of structures that resemble fluvial steam networks on Earth.

Scientists therefore assume that there must have been once enough water on the red planet to feed water streams that incised their path into the soil...

The artist’s concept depicts Kepler-186f. Image credit: NASA Ames/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle

Researchers suggest that two Earth-like exoplanets (Kepler-3186f and 62f) have very stable axial tilts, much like the Earth, making it likely that each has regular seasons and a stable climate. A new study from the Georgia Institute of Technology provides new clues indicating that an exoplanet 500 light-years away is much like Earth.

Kepler-186f is the first identified Earth-sized planet outside the solar system orbiting a star in the habitable zone. This means it’s the proper distance from its host star for liquid water to pool on the surface. The Georgia Tech study used simulations to analyze and identify the exoplanet’s spin axis dynamics...

Leakage of the vascular tracer (red) from dermal blood vessels (green) in systemic inflammation.
Credit: Laura Hakanpaa / Saharinen Lab.

Increased capillary permeability and subsequent leakage from the capillaries is associated with numerous difficult-to-cure diseases, including acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), severe Dengue fever and malaria, and sepsis. Currently, there is no effective therapy to inhibit capillary leakage and to maintain vessel stability in these diseases. The latest research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences indicates that a monoclonal antibody targeted against β1-integrin inhibits vascular leakage in a mouse model of sepsis.

Integrins are heterodimeric cell surface receptors that mediate interactions between cells and the surro...

UCLA scientists developed artificial T cells that, like natural T cells, can deform to squeeze between tiny gaps in the body, as shown in this schematic.
Credit: Fatemeh Majedi

Discovery could be a step toward developing treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases. UCLA researchers have developed synthetic T lymphocytes, or T cells, that are near-perfect facsimiles of human T cells. The ability to create the artificial cells could be a key step toward more effective drugs to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases and could lead to a better understanding of human immune cells’ behavior. Such cells also could eventually be used to boost the immune system of people with cancer or immune deficiencies.

The research team comprised scientists from the UCLA School of Dentistry, the UCLA Samueli Sch...