New Atlas

Medical Audio available

Funnel-web spider venom found to contain potent killer of skin cancer cells

Nick Lavars October 7, 2018

Scorpions, rattlesnakes and funnel-web spiders have all provided scientists with promising building blocks for next-generation medicines, and a dangerous Australian arachnid has again reared its head with a compound in its venom found to be a potent killer of melanoma cells.

A compound found in the venom of the Australian funnel-web spider was found to kill off ...

Medical

Even antidepressants could be contributing to antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Michael Irving September 10, 2018

The looming threat of drug-resistant bacteria is usually chalked up to overuse of antibiotics. But now, researchers have found that pharmaceutical compounds that aren’t antibiotic themselves can also contribute to the rise of superbugs, including antidepressants like Prozac.

Researchers have found that even non-antibiotic drugs, including antidepressants, can contribute to the development of antibiotic ...

Environment

Dead coral recruited to help keep the Great Barrier Reef alive

Michael Irving July 24, 2018

The ultimate fate of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is looking pretty dire. Now, researchers from the University of Queensland have outlined a plan to recycle dead coral into structures that can help protect the remaining reef and promote new growth.

In an effort to help protect the Great Barrier Reef, Australian researchers have proposed recycling dead ...

Drones

Drone safety system stops props before they cut fingers

Ben Coxworth May 27, 2018

If there's one thing that's scary about quadcopter drones – besides their ability to invade peoples' privacy or fall on their heads – it's those fast-spinning rotor blades. An experimental new system, however, is designed to stop the rotors before they can do any cutting.

Science

A faster, cheaper method of detecting Zika in mosquitoes

Ben Coxworth May 24, 2018

We've already seen devices that quickly detect the Zika virus in human biological samples, providing health officials with an early warning of outbreaks. Now, however, an even earlier warning is possible, thanks to a system that quickly and cost-effectively detects the virus in mosquitoes.

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes being tested for Zika, using the new system

Marine

Marine animals inspire more accurate underwater navigation system

Nick Lavars April 6, 2018

In a way, our options are pretty limited when it comes to finding our way around the ocean. But scientists are claiming a new breakthrough in the world of underwater navigation, taking inspiration from marine animals that use polarizing light in some clever ways.

The mantis shrimp is one of the marine animals that provided inspiration for a new underwater ...

Biology

Rattlesnake venom extract helps strike back against superbugs

Michael Irving March 15, 2018

With bacteria becoming ever more resistant to our best antibiotics, scientists are searching high and low for new ones in nature. Now a team from Australia and Spain have discovered a promising peptide in the venom of the South American Rattlesnake.

A peptide extracted from rattlesnake venom has been found to be a promising candidate to make ...

Medical

New type of stem cell produces two tissues for the price of one

Michael Irving February 27, 2018

If you wind back the clock on the different cells in our bodies, they’d all start life as one of just a few types of stem cells. Now, researchers have wound back the clock even further, and discovered a new type of dual stem cell that can produce certain tissues with built-in blood vessels.

Researchers have discovered a new type of stem cell, known as meso-endothelial stem cells, which can ...

Medical

Overlooked antibiotic re-enlisted in fight against drug-resistant superbugs

Michael Irving January 28, 2018

To prevent a future plagued with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, Australian scientists have looked to the past, digging up a long forgotten antibiotic candidate and finding that it’s effective against some of the most dangerous “superbugs.”

Australian researchers have enlisted a long-overlooked antibiotic in the fight against drug-resistant "superbugs"

Science

NASA-inspired "speed breeding" boosts wheat production threefold

Nick Lavars January 1, 2018

Our planet is expected to host an extra two billion people by 2050, making food security a real issue. Researchers are now reporting an advance in a field known as speed breeding, which relies on intense lighting regimes to raise crops several times faster.

The speed breeding technique was developed by scientists at the University of Sydney, the University of ...