DNA damage just got more complicated: A long-missed weak spot emerges when light and oxygen strike

Apr, Thu, 2026
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In everyday life, our genetic material is constantly under attack from many factors. Environmental influences such as light, along with internal processes like inflammation, can generate oxidative stress that damages DNA and its downstream partner, RNA, which can lead to faster aging and diseases such as cancer.

DNA damage just got more complicated: A long-missed weak spot emerges when light and oxygen strike
In everyday life, our genetic material is constantly under attack from many factors. Environmental influences such as light, along with internal processes like inflammation, can generate oxidative stress that damages DNA and its downstream partner, RNA, which can lead to faster aging and diseases such as cancer.
Atomic-level snapshots reveal how a key copper enzyme powers nature's chemistry
Researchers from the University of Liverpool, Japan, and Argentina have captured atomic-resolution images of an important copper-containing enzyme using advanced X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) technology at SACLA in Japan. XFEL technology generates ultra-bright, ultra-short X-ray pulses, enabling atomic-scale imaging and real-time observation of chemical, biological, and physical processes.
Apple byproducts could power vehicles and feed livestock
A new study published in Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining highlights an innovative approach to transforming apple pomace—an often-discarded by-product of apple processing—into valuable bioethanol and animal feed ingredients. Apple pomace, which represents 25%–30% of processed apples, is typically treated as waste despite its rich carbohydrate content and strong potential for bioconversion.
This flower's toxic traits hold clues for safer drugs
The molecules of a highly toxic plant, known for its bell-shaped purple and pink flowers and found in some home gardens, have long been used to regulate human heart muscles.
Millions of atoms, shifting bonds—new software brings living chemistry into view
Chemical reactions drive life. They ensure that cells obtain energy, proteins perform their functions, and DNA changes under certain conditions. However, many of these processes occur on extremely small scales—so small and so fast that they are difficult to observe directly through experiments.