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In the new method, cells package and export their RNA, enabling researchers to sequence and analyze the RNA without killing the cells.
The five-day festival will explore the future of science, technology, art and design from Wednesday, Sept. 30 to Sunday, Oct. 4
Duke researchers developed an injectable scaffold that helped stroke-damaged brains grow new blood vessels, support nerve regrowth, and recover movement in mice. The treatment appears to work partly by recruiting the body’s own immune cells, including neutrophils that may switch from damaging to helpful under the right conditions.
Scientists have discovered a strange black “devil flower” in Thailand that lives mostly underground, steals nutrients from fungi, and looks strikingly unlike a typical plant. The newly named Thismia daemona is known from fewer than 50 individuals and may already be critically endangered.
Morning glories may be getting caught in an evolutionary tug-of-war between surviving climate change and attracting increasingly scarce pollinators. Over just nine years, researchers found that the plants’ rate of adaptation plunged by 96%, even though they still had plenty of genetic diversity to evolve.
An invite-only event in Austin, Texas, kept online fans in the dark for hours.
Deep beneath Mars, scientists have found evidence of enormous magmatic systems once thought to require Earth-like plate tectonics. Seismic measurements suggest molten rock repeatedly evolved and recycled itself through the Martian crust, potentially across hundreds or thousands of kilometers. The discovery challenges long-held ideas about how complex planetary crusts form.
More than 200 people in roles such as engineering, finance, and communications will now be represented by the Communications Workers of America.
Never miss a delivery. These WIRED-tested picks will help you keep tabs on your front door from anywhere.
A pig kidney transplant worked for a record nine months. This enabled the recipient to stay off dialysis for longer while waiting for a suitable human donor's kidney to become available
Gene-edited pig kidneys could offer a lifeline to patients stuck waiting for a human donor.
A psychedelic best known for its effects on the brain may also protect peripheral nerves from chemotherapy damage, early research suggests.
The Hubble Space Telescope spied a large atmospheric phenomenon on Saturn: a decagon surrounding the south pole.
The range of faculty disciplines showcases the breadth of research and scholarship across the school.
The ancient bath complex was tucked in a tower in the corner of the royal palace and reveals unique architecture.
Physicists have proven a 100-year-old prediction of relativity by showing that Einstein's equivalence principle holds at quantum scales.
A new study finds that digital twins don’t yet replicate the views of the individuals they are modeled after.
Duane Boning, MIT’s vice provost for international activities, discusses the Institute’s approach to global engagement.
Cancer cells release antioxidants to prevent immune cells from destroying them Craig Brierley Thu, 09/03/2026 - 19:00 Now, scientists have discovered that certain immune cells depend on these very molecules to activate and destroy cancer cells, and that tumours exploit this dependency by releasing natural antioxidants to shut down the immune attack.The findings, published today in Science, could help improve the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapies. Our immune system keeps us healthy by hunting down and destroying harmful material, including invading bacteria and viruses, but also cancer cells. It does so by deploying a number of different types of immune cells, including specialised cells known as T cells. These T cells hunt down and destroy tumour cells, but T cells need small amounts of reactive oxygen species to activate and switch on their killing ability.A team at the University of Cambridge, UK, and Oregon Health & Science University, USA, analysed the fluid surrounding cells within tumours grown in mice and found that cancers chemically ‘smother’ T cells, stopping their activation and preventing them from destroying cancer cells. Tumours do this by releasing large amounts of a protein that is a natural antioxidant, Peroxiredoxin 1 (PRDX1), which mops up reactive oxygen species and deprives T cells of the activating signals they need to perform cancer killing. Next, the team used CRISPR gene-editing technology to create mouse cancer cells that could no longer make the antioxidant protein. They found that removing the capacity for the cancer cells to produce the antioxidant promoted immune-cell activity and limited tumour growth.Finally, the team looked for the same mechanism in people. They analysed published data on the proteins released by human cancer cell lines, examined gene activity across thousands of human tumours, and isolated the fluid surrounding tumours removed from patients. All three approaches pointed the same way: human cancers also release PRDX1 into their surroundings, where it can strip away the reactive oxygen species that T cells depend on.Dr Xan Wesolowski from the Department of Pathology at the University of Cambridge, one of the lead authors, said: “We tend to think of reactive oxygen species purely as damaging byproducts of metabolism. But we are increasingly understanding they have important functions within cells, and T cells need them to activate. Our study develops this picture, revealing that tumours can exploit this very dependency to evade elimination.”The treatment of cancer is increasingly moving towards leveraging the immune system to eradicate the disease. However, while immunotherapies can be incredibly effective, they are only effective in some patients. Removing the ability of cancer cells to produce PRDX1 enhanced the cancer’s response to immunotherapy.Professor Rahul Roychoudhuri, also from Cambridge’s Department of Pathology, said: “We’ve found a new way by which cancers shut down the immune system. When we block this process, tumours that don’t respond to some immunotherapies start responding to treatment. That tells us this is a pathway worth targeting therapeutically, and there are several ways we might be able to achieve this.”Dr Robert Eil from the School of Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University said: “Our study suggests a possible way to boost T cell immunotherapies. Rather than using antioxidants, it could be that prooxidants can kickstart the T cells into action against tumour cells.”The findings also carry broader implications. Several large randomised clinical trials have found that antioxidant supplements fail to reduce cancer risk, and in some cases worsen outcomes. The discovery that T cells depend on reactive oxygen species to fight tumours may help to explain why: antioxidants could inadvertently blunt the immune system's ability to attack cancer. However, the team stresses that as its findings are in preclinical laboratory models, and people living with cancer should not change their treatment or diet without medical advice.The research was largely funded by the Medical Research Council, European Research Council, Wellcome and the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute.ReferenceWesolowski, AJ, et al. Tumor-derived antioxidants suppress immunity by depriving T cells of reactive oxygen species. Science; 3 Sept 2026; DOI: 10.1126/science.adz8203 We’ve found a new way by which cancers shut down the immune system. When we block this process, tumours that don’t respond to some immunotherapies start responding to treatment Rahul Roychoudhuri National Institutes of Health Killer T cells surrounding a cancer cell Yes Licence type Public Domain
Many people who have chemotherapy develop numbness, tingling and pain in their hands and feet, which can disrupt their treatment. But research suggests that psilocybin, the psychedelic in magic mushrooms, could prevent this side effect
The findings, which were made in mice, may offer a new way to prevent a common chemotherapy side effect that can last well beyond treatment
Watching wildlife? Here's how to view marine animals safely A Hawaiian monk seal laying on a beach. The sign in the foreground instructs people to walk a safe distance around the seal. (Image credit: istock) Download Image September 3, 2026 Fisheries marine mammals 0 Off
NASA will provide live coverage of the launch and docking of a Roscosmos cargo spacecraft carrying about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the crew aboard the International Space Station. The unpiloted Progress 96 resupply spacecraft is scheduled to launch at 12:15 p.m. EDT (9:15 p.m. Baikonur time), Wednesday, Sept. 9, on a […]
Colleagues remember Rose as an enthusiastic and gracious friend who had recently started a promising research track at MIT.