University College London

Water is crucial to life as we know it, so it’s one of the key things astronomers look out for on exoplanets. And now, water vapor has been detected in the atmosphere of a potentially habitable exoplanet for the first time.

A new study from UCL may have brought us a step closer to understanding how life arose. The team may have solved a long-standing chicken-and-egg riddle related to how different types of peptides and proteins interact to give rise to life.

Many of us will know what bubbling lakes of lava within volcanoes look like. After all, we've seen them our entire lives in movies and on TV. But that doesn't mean they're common. In fact, only seven lava lakes have been found so far, until now.

It’s not known exactly when humans and Neanderthals split off from their last common ancestor, but the estimated window is very wide, between 300,000 and 800,000 years ago. Now a new study has found evidence that this split took place towards the earlier end of that range, or even longer ago still.

Alzheimer's disease is typically first noticed in the form of memory problems, although the condition is typically quite advanced by that stage. In order to catch it earlier, scientists have developed a video game that assesses players' spatial navigation skills.

A woman in Scotland has been found to have a previously-unknown genetic mutation that makes her almost completely immune to pain. Her wounds heal faster and she seems to have less anxiety and fear. Geneticists are now studying the genes responsible to uncover new potential treatments for pain relief

Researchers measuring the brainwaves of newborn babies have discovered that a baby’s kicks are likely a way for the infant to map and begin to understand its body. The study could help doctors develop better techniques for looking after premature babies.

Although glaucoma causes blindness by destroying retinal cells, research has shown that orally-ingested curcumin – a chemical derived from the spice turmeric – can help keep that from happening. Now, scientists are stating that newly-developed curcumin eye drops could be even more effective.

Archaeologists have discovered the oldest direct evidence of bread ever found, dating back over 14,000 years. It predates farming, leading researchers to suggest that the realization that cereals can be cultivated might have helped humans transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture.

​​Groundbreaking DNA research has shone new light on the early origins of Britain's early settlers, reconstructing in unprecedented detail the face of Cheddar Man, the nation's oldest near-complete skeleton, revealing that he had much darker features than was previously assumed.

For people suffering from chronic pain conditions, conventional painkillers often aren’t effective. Now, a new hope for relief might have been found in the strange case of an Italian family, who all have a genetic mutation that makes them feel almost no pain at all.

​How much does one living cell weigh, and how does that weight vary in real time? A newly-developed scale will let you know. Developed by researchers from ETH Zurich, the University of Basel and University College London, it's reportedly the first-ever device to be capable of such measurements.