While scientists have successfully printed small patches of human tissue, scaling those tissues into full-sized organs has remained elusive. In natural organisms, every cell must be within roughly 100 to 200 micrometers—about the thickness of two human hairs—of a blood vessel to receive oxygen …
The heart is a pump that wears out over time—that, at least, was the prevailing view. New research has shown that the heart’s aging results from changes in intercellular communications, which tell heart cells, sometimes even healthy ones, to stiffen and break down. By decoding these complex …
To invade healthy tissues and continue growing, aggressive cancers mimic and circumvent the body’s native piping system of veins and arteries. Through this process, known as vasculogenic mimicry (VM), tumor cells form fluid-conducting channels that transport blood, oxygen, and nutrients directly …
Heart disease is the leading cause of death among people with obesity, a condition affecting one in eight people worldwide. Studies show that fat around the heart can fuel inflammation, damage heart muscle cells, disrupt heart rhythm and increase the risk of heart failure, but the precise …
To think, feel, talk and move, neurons send messages through electrical signals in the brain and spinal cord. This intricate communication network is built of billions of neurons connected by synapses and managed and modified by glial cells. When neurons die, this communication network is …
Cave entrances often appear black and forbidding. Light enters, but little escapes, absorbed as it “bounces around” the interior. To trap light in much the same way, engineers at the University of Notre Dame have devised a superblack material from a matrix of microscopic, …
Airborne hazardous chemicals can be dilute, mobile, and hard to trap. Yet accurately measuring these chemicals is critical in protecting human health and the environment. Now, a new, small, low-cost device, nicknamed ABLE, could make the collection and detection of airborne hazards much …
The University of Notre Dame has announced the awardees of its 2025 Strategic Framework Grant (SFG) Program. Launched in 2024, the program is an internal funding opportunity that stimulates engagement with the priorities outlined in Notre Dame 2033: A Strategic Framework. The program, sponsored …
Recent artificial intelligence advances have largely focused on text, but AI increasingly shows promise in other contexts, including manufacturing and the service industry. In these sectors, targeted AI improvements can improve product quality and worker safety, according to a new study …
Notre Dame Research and Athletics have awarded three research teams the first-ever Human Performance & Wellness Research Grants. The grants will provide funding to support exceptional research projects that contribute meaningfully to fields related to the health, well-being, and performance of …