Natural Sciences

Diamondback moth (This work, "Plutella.xylostella.7383," by of Olaf Leillinger is used and provided under CC BY SA 2.5 courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Crop-eating moths will flourish as climate warms

Climate change in this century will allow one of the world's costliest agricultural pests, the diamondback moth, to both thrive year-round and rapidly evolve resistance to pesticides in large parts of the United States, Europe and China where it previously died each winter, according to a study by U.S. and Chinese researchers.

Using computational models and atomic force microscope experiments, researchers at the University of Houston and Rice University have identified a possible “Achilles’ heel” in the frustration of amyloid beta peptides as they dock to the fibrils that form plaques in patients with Alzheimer’s. The frustrated steps could open a window for drugs able to cap the fibril ends, preventing further aggregation. (Credit: Illustration by Yuechuan Xu/Peter Vekilov/University of Houston)

Docking peptides, slow to lock, open possible path to treat Alzheimer’s

Researchers have identified a possible “Achilles’ heel” in the frustration of amyloid beta peptides as they dock to the fibrils that form plaques in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

An illustration shows how optical trapping could be used to investigate collective, force-generating properties in a complex of motor molecules. A National Science Foundation grant to Rice University to acquire an optical tweezer will advance researchers’ investigation of biological and inorganic molecules. (Credit: Diehl Lab/Rice University)

Tweezer grant pleases Rice researchers

Rice researchers have won an NSF grant to acquire a sophisticated optical tweezer microscope to manipulate, measure and monitor micron-scale particles.

The North Atlantic network of sites that preserve records of hurricanes stretches along the coast from Canada to Central America, but with significant gaps. A new study led by scientists at Rice University shows filling those gaps with data from the mid-Atlantic states will help improve the historical record of storms over the past several thousand years and could aid in predictions of future storms in a time of climate change. Illustration by Elizabeth Wallace

Nature’s archive reveals Atlantic tempests through time

Rice scientists uncover how natural archives can record Atlantic hurricane frequency over the past 1,000 years. SUMMARY: Rice University scientists uncover how natural archives can record Atlantic hurricane frequency over the past 1,000 years. More data is needed to help model how climate change will affect storms in the future.

Rice University graduate student Lebing Chen used a high-temperature furnace to make chromium triiodide crystals

Rice physicists find 'magnon' origins in 2D magnet

Rice physicists have confirmed the topological origins of magnons, magnetic features they discovered three years ago in a 2D material that could prove useful for spintronics.

Simulations by scientists at the Rice University-based Center for Theoretical Biological Physics suggest how the SARS-CoV-2 spike infects cells. The illustration shows how the spike reconfigures itself in microseconds as it goes from pre- to post-fusion with target cells. The researchers suggest their work to reveal the mechanism by which the virus spreads could lead to new strategies to defeat COVID-19.

Sim shows how COVID virus infects cells

A simulation shows the complicated mechanism by which the SARS-CoV-2 virus may infect cells, leading to COVID-19.

A study of stress on bacteriophage T7 will help Rice structural biologist Yang Gao and his team to reveal the atomic-scale mechanisms of DNA replication. Illustration courtesy of the Yang Gao Lab

Rice lab dives deep for DNA’s secrets

Structural biologist Yang Gao receives a five-year National Institutes of Health grant to detail how complex protein chains replicate DNA and fix errors on the fly. What they find could help treat genomic disease, including cancer.

Electrical conduction on the surface of the topological insulator bismuth iodide (pink and green arrows) transitions from the 2D sides (left) to the 1D edges of those sides (right) when the material is cooled to a critical temperature around 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Image courtesy of Jianwei Huang/Rice University

Physicists find room-temperature, 2D-to-1D topological transition

Physicists have discovered a room-temperature transition between 1D and 2D electrical conduction states in the topological insulator bismuth iodide.

Rice University has been awarded a $4 million grant by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas to establish the Genetic Design and Engineering Center. (Credit: Illustration by Olivia Flynn/Bashor Lab)

CPRIT grant establishes Genetic Design and Engineering Center

Rice faculty members led by bioengineer Gang Bao have been awarded a $4 million CPRIT grant to establish the Genetic Design and Engineering Center.

Carbon nanotubes woven into thread-like fibers and sewn into fabrics become a thermoelectric generator that can turn heat from the sun or other sources into energy in a project developed at Rice University. (Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

Woven nanotube fibers turn heat into power

Carbon nanotubes woven into thread-like fibers and sewn into fabrics become a thermoelectric generator that can turn heat from the sun or other sources into energy.

PPP

People, papers and presentations for Aug. 16, 2021

The Baker Institute for Public Policy’s Kelsey Norman, fellow for the Middle East and director of the Women’s Rights, Human Rights and Refugees Program, has been awarded the 2021 Emerging Scholars Policy Prize

Artist's visualization of stellar magnetic activity

'Cool' kids in the cosmos may not be so unique

Rice University scientists show that "cool" stars like the sun share dynamic surface behaviors that influence their energetic and magnetic environments. Stellar magnetic activity is key to whether a given star can host planets that support life.

Illustration to highlight the launch of the Center for Adapting Flaws into Features.

NSF grant kicks off Center for Adapting Flaws into Features

Rice University has won a Phase I National Science Foundation grant to establish the NSF Center for Adapting Flaws into Features to investigate nanoscale chemical phenomena and optimize the structures and electronic properties of materials.

Rice University researchers introduced noncanonical amino acid building blocks into proteins in living cells, pioneering a powerful tool for investigating and manipulating the structure and function of proteins. The resulting unnatural organism, a strain of Escherichia coli bacteria, is able to monitor low levels of oxidative stress. (Credit: Xiao Lab/Rice University)

Programmed bacteria have something extra

Rice chemists expand genetic code of E. coli to produce 21st amino acid, giving it new abilities.

Biochar’s benefits for the long-term sequestration of carbon and nitrogen on American farms are clear, but new research from Rice University shows it can help farmers save money on irrigation as well. The study showed that sandy soil, in particular, gains ability to retain more water when amended with biochar. (Credit: Masiello Lab/Rice University)

Biochar helps hold water, saves money

Biochar’s benefits for long-term storage of carbon and nitrogen on American farms are clear, but new research from Rice University shows it can help farmers save money on irrigation as well.