An experimental and controversial stem cell transplant, which aims to treat traumatic spinal cord injury, has shown promising new results in a phase I clinical trial.

Not only was the single-dose spinal injection safe and well-tolerated by all 10 patients with paralysis, it also resulted in some improved movement and sensation for 7 volunteers.

While that's seriously hopeful, the type and degree of injury seems to matter. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in the US admit that in all likelihood, only about five percent of patients with a complete injury to their thoracic spine would regain any feeling or movement with this therapy, based on their results.

Nevertheless, neurosurgeon Mohamad Bydon says: "In spinal cord injury, even a mild improvement can make a significant difference in that patient's quality of life."

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Japan’s Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) Masahito Moriyama have signed an agreement to advance sustainable human exploration of the Moon.

Japan will design, develop, and operate a pressurized rover for crewed and uncrewed exploration on the Moon. NASA will provide the launch and delivery of the rover to the Moon as well as two opportunities for Japanese astronauts to travel to the lunar surface.

There is currently no treatment to slow or halt Parkinson's disease. Available drugs don't slow disease progression and can treat only certain symptoms. Medications that work early in the disease, however, such as Levodopa, generally become ineffective over the years, necessitating increased doses that can lead to disabling side effects.

Without understanding the fundamental molecular cause of Parkinson's, it's improbable that researchers will be able to develop a medication to stop the disease from steadily worsening in patients.

Many factors may contribute to the development of Parkinson's, both environmental and genetic. Until recently, underlying genetic causes of the disease were unknown. Most cases of Parkinson's aren't inherited but sporadic, and early studies suggested a genetic basis was improbable.

Nevertheless, everything in biology has a genetic foundation. As a geneticist and molecular neuroscientist, I have devoted my career to predicting and preventing Parkinson's disease.

In our newly published research, my team and I discovered a new genetic variant linked to Parkinson's that sheds light on the evolutionary origin of multiple forms of familial parkinsonism, opening doors to better understand and treat the disease.

While cellular networks and Wi-Fi systems are more advanced than ever, they are also quickly reaching their bandwidth limits. Scientists know that in the near future they'll need to transition to much higher communication frequencies than what current systems rely on, but before that can happen there are a number of—quite literal—obstacles standing in the way.

Researchers from Brown University and Rice University say they've advanced one step closer to getting around these solid obstacles, like walls, furniture and even people—and they do it by curving light.

In a new study published in Communications Engineering, the researchers describe how they are helping address one of the biggest logjams emerging in wireless communication.

The first technique capable of measuring the pull of gravity on a particle just microns in diameter could aid the quest for a quantum theory of gravity – a longstanding goal in physics. The new experiment uses a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) to detect the force on the particle at ultralow temperatures and suppresses vibrations that might interfere with motion due to gravity.

Gravity differs from the other fundamental forces because it describes a curvature in space-time rather than straightforward interactions between objects. This difference explains, in part, why theoretical physicists have long struggled to reconcile gravity (as described by Einstein’s general theory of relativity) with quantum mechanics. One of the main sticking points is that while the latter assumes space-time is fixed, the former states that it changes in the presence of massive objects. Since experiments to determine which denoscription is correct are extremely difficult to perform, a theory of quantum gravity remains out of reach despite much theoretical effort in areas such as string theory and loop quantum gravity.

Sailing through space might sound like something out of science fiction, but the concept is no longer limited to books or the big screen. In April, a next-generation solar sail technology – known as the Advanced Composite Solar Sail System – will launch aboard Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket from the company’s Launch Complex 1 in Māhia, New Zealand. The technology could advance future space travel and expand our understanding of our Sun and solar system.

Solar sails use the pressure of sunlight for propulsion, angling toward or away from the Sun so that photons bounce off the reflective sail to push a spacecraft. This eliminates heavy propulsion systems and could enable longer duration and lower-cost missions. Although mass is reduced, solar sails have been limited by the material and structure of the booms, which act much like a sailboat’s mast. But NASA is about to change the sailing game for the future.

Europe's climate monitor said Tuesday that March was the hottest on record and the tenth straight month of historic heat, with sea surface temperatures also hitting a "shocking" new high.