news 2025

Left: Life reconstruction of the giant Jurassic ichthyosaur Temnodontosaurus, highlighting the winglike flipper and the unusual structures observed in the fin. Artwork by Joschua Knüppe. Right: Photograph of Drs Lomax and Lindgren, together with fellow researcher Sven Sachs, examining one part of the flipper at Lund University, Sweden.

Children living near nuclear power stations in the UK are not at increased risk of childhood cancers, according to a new analysis. The research , led by scientists at Imperial College London and University of Bristol and commissioned by the UK Committee on the Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE), found no evidence of increased risk of childhood cancers among children living near 28 nuclear installations between 1995 and 2016.

Gravitational-wave event hints at exotic black hole origins and pushes the boundaries of current theories. In a landmark discovery, the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) Collaboration has detected the merger of the most massive black holes ever observed through gravitational waves. The event, dubbed GW231123, occurred on November 23, 2023, during the fourth observing run (O4) of the LVK network.

A new study has revealed promising progress in developing a non-invasive sampling method to detect early signs of Parkinson's disease - up to seven years before motor symptoms appear - by analysing the chemical makeup of skin. The research, published today in the journal, npj Parkinson's Disease , demonstrates that compounds or 'volatiles' found in sebum - the oily substance produced by our skin -hold key biomarkers for identifying Parkinson's in its earliest stages.

New advances in 3D printed 'smart' plastics with unusual deformation properties could lead to a new generation of materials designed to monitor their own condition in real time. An international team led by engineers from the University of Glasgow are behind the development, which could lead to applications in everything from medical implants to impact-resistant vehicle structures.

Astronomers have detected a giant exoplanet - between three and ten times the size of Jupiter - hiding in the swirling disc of gas and dust surrounding a young star. Earlier observations of this star, called MP Mus, suggested that it was all'alone without any planets in orbit around it, surrounded by a featureless cloud of gas and dust.

An extra ultrasound scan for pregnant women who think their baby's movements have reduced results in fewer complications in labour, according to an international study by experts in the Netherlands and Manchester. The findings - based on the scans of 1,684 women - could make the difficult task of determining whether labour should be induced in the final stages of pregnancy easier, resulting in fewer complications, say the researchers.

More than half of people who have given birth are not using contraception two months later despite the risk that back-to-back pregnancies can pose, a new UCL study shows. The research, published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, also found that those who were satisfied with professional contraception advice were more likely to use contraception sooner after giving birth.

How major organs work together to manage extreme physiological stresses such as lack of oxygen and sleep has been mapped for the first time by researchers from UCL and the University of Portsmouth. The study, published in the Journal of Physiology , aimed to find out what happens inside the body when people are tired, out of breath, or oxygen-deprived, by mapping how different parts of the body communicate during stress, potentially paving the way for earlier illness diagnosis.

Scientists have produced the first detailed characterisation of the changes that weight loss causes in human fat tissue By analysing hundreds of thousands of cells, the team found a range of positive effects, including clearing out of damaged, ageing cells, and increased metabolism of harmful fats. The researchers say the findings help to better understand how weight loss leads to health improvements at a molecular level, which in the future could help to inform the development of therapies for diseases such as type 2 diabetes.

Researchers have mapped the spread of infectious diseases in humans across millennia, to reveal how human-animal interactions permanently transformed our health today. We've long suspected that the transition to farming and animal husbandry opened the door to a new era of disease - now DNA shows us that it happened at least 6,500 years ago Eske Willerslev A new study suggests that our ancestors' close cohabitation with domesticated animals and large-scale migrations played a key role in the spread of infectious diseases.

The key to sticking to and reaping the rewards of exercise over the long term may be as simple as doing something you enjoy, say the authors of a new study from UCL. Previous research has shown that the personalities of people who engage in different types of organised sport tend to vary. But what is less clear is how personality affects the types of exercise people actually enjoy doing.

Older people with diabetes who do not keep blood sugar levels low are three times more likely to develop eye disease compared to counterparts who have reduced blood sugar levels, suggests a new study by a UCL team. The study, published in the journal BMJ Open , looked at survey data for 5,600 people aged 52 and over in England across 14 years.

"Space ice" contains tiny crystals and is not, as previously assumed, a completely disordered material like liquid water, according to a new study by scientists at UCL and the University of Cambridge. Ice in space is different to the crystalline (highly ordered) form of ice on Earth. For decades, scientists have assumed it is amorphous (without a structure), with colder temperatures meaning it does not have enough energy to form crystals when it freezes.

Scientists have discovered hundreds of giant sand bodies beneath the North Sea that appear to defy fundamental geological principles and could have important implications for energy and carbon storage. Using high-resolution 3D seismic (sound wave) imaging, combined with data and rock samples from hundreds of wells, researchers The University of Manchester in collaboration with industry, identified vast mounds of sand - some several kilometres wide - that appear to have sunk downward, displacing older, lighter and softer materials from beneath them.

Researchers have been able to see what happens in the inflamed joints of children with arthritis, giving insight into why treatments affect children differently. A new groundbreaking study by researchers from University of Birmingham, UCL, Great Ormond Street Hospital and Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital has revealed important clues into what is driving disease in children with arthritis.

Technologies such as biomedical imaging and spectroscopy could be enhanced by a discovery in research that involved several institutions including the University of Glasgow. Scientists have found that two-photon processes, which have applications in the study of Alzheimer's Disease and other nervous system disorders, can be strengthened by quantum light at far higher levels than previously thought possible.

Two new studies have provided further insights into the complex links between head injury in elite rugby and potential dementia risks. In a study of 200 former professional rugby players (aged 30-61 years old), researchers from Imperial College London, University College London (affiliated with the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health ) and the UK Dementia Research Institute found no cases of early-onset dementia.

Scientists have discovered that certain species of microbe found in the human gut can absorb PFAS - the toxic and long-lasting 'forever chemicals.' They say boosting these species in our gut microbiome could help protect us from the harmful effects of PFAS.

A drug used for Parkinson's disease has been shown to be effective in reducing the symptoms of difficult to treat depression, in a study led by the University of Oxford. In the largest clinical trial to date, pramipexole was found to be substantially more effective than a placebo at reducing the symptoms of treatment resistant depression (TRD) over the course of nearly a year, when added to ongoing antidepressant medication.