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Regardless of how one says 'tomato,' they all contain tomatine, a toxin in the plant's green fruit, leaves, and roots. Tomatoes produce the bitter-tasting compound -- a major plant-specialized metabolite secreted from the roots -- to defend against pathogens and foragers.

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The food contamination that followed the Fukushima nuclear plant incident in 2011 caused widespread fear, both within Japan and internationally.

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A movement is raising awareness of native gromwell plant's importance in preserving Japanese culture. For example, revival projects currently underway throughout Japan are investigating the seed's origins and educating the public on the importance of protecting the plant's homogeneity. Purple gromwell contains shikonin derivatives in the plant's root surfaces, which are red naphthoquinones. This natural pigment and medicinal properties are linked to ancient East Asian traditions.

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An international project led by Kyoto University tested and confirmed the high wood durability of space wood at the International Space Station -- the ISS. The experiment results showed minimal deterioration and good stability of the samples selected for the wooden artificial satellite LignoSat.

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Spider mites avoid chemicals extracted from caterpillar traces; the repellent effect lasts for days. Butterfly and moth caterpillars then indiscriminately consume spider mite-infested and intact leaves along with dormant individuals or their eggs.

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The distribution of galaxies more than tens of millions of light years away are affected by dark matter in the universe through gravity. The findings are based on the positions and orientation of galaxies using archived data from 1.2 million galaxy observations. An international team used a three-dimensional map of the universe and applied the data to measure the extent to which the orientations of distant galaxies are aligned with each other.

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The computational power of ecosystems -- or ecological reservoir computing -- is providing a new direction for rapidly developing AI technologies. Simulations have confirmed that ecological networks, such as prey-predator interactions, can efficiently process information and be utilized as a computational resource.

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A new CALM mutation causes lethal arrhythmia in humans. Using cardiomyocytes -- or heart muscle cells -- from human iPS cell and recombinant calmodulin proteins, the group studied catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia -- or CPVT, a rare and life-threatening genetic condition. The team was able to reproduce severe arrhythmia in patient-derived iPS cell models of exercise-induced CPVT with calmodulin mutations.

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Life for all animals, including humans, would be simpler if diseases had a sign saying "beware!" with flashing lights and blaring alarms. Instead, we humans have developed an emotional reaction called disgust. Do other animals share similar protective mechanisms?

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Morphological analysis of the discovered specimen's tooth shapes helped to determine that the specimen was one of the earliest nimravids dating back 37 to 40 million years. Sabertoothed nimravids were early members of Carnivoramorpha, but dogs and cats did not evolve from them. Changes in ecosystems may have driven the evolution and rise of nimravids.

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Two endemic species of the same flowering plant -- O nakaiana and O hexandra -- have distinctly different origins. Their study is based on molecular analysis of chloroplast samples of this genus taken from surrounding areas. The study demonstrates the complexity of floral speciation and distribution.

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Deep-water wave groups are known to be unstable and become rogue. Such unstable wave groups propagate independently regardless of interference. Results seem to support the concept of an unperturbed nonlinear water wave group focusing in the presence of counter-propagating waves, suggesting wave states are directional.

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A method for detecting intraspecies genomic diversity of uncultivated bacterial DNA has been developed. This enhanced MAG method's ability to detect previously overlooked variations focuses on the DNA sequence and structural traits of the genome. The spectrum of microdiversity in environmental bacterial genomes has been found to be broader than expected.

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Mice lacking Regnase-1 in myeloid cells spontaneously developed severe pulmonary arterial hypertension, mirroring the same pathology in humans. The decay of mRNA by Regnase-1 leads to PAH inhibition, suggesting its possible as a disease biomarker.

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Non-Bravais lattices were created by introducing a second non-equivalent lattice point. Near-infrared light is confined within a nanodisk periodic structure with controlled bound states in the continuum (BICs).

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Camera trap surveys in the rainforests of southeast Cameroon have been conducted to predict the total biomass of large rodents and duikers, the local African forest ungulates. Based on the data from a statistical model estimating species' spatial variation, two indicators were identified, showing positive linear correlations with total bushmeat biomass.

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Oxytocin’s role in group relations may be shared with both of our closest evolutionary relatives, bonobos and chimpanzees. The team tested their hypothesis by using eye tracking technology that compared a subject's attention to side-by-side images of out-group and in-group counterparts. The findings revealed that oxytocin promoted out-group attention across the two species.

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The evolution of the human larynx contributed to the stable voices we use to communicate. The morphological changes do not include the addition of structures but rather the loss of specific vocal folds or cords in the larynx, providing a stable voice quality and controllable voice pitch used when singing or speaking.

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A cancer therapy model in which existing medication can be used to degrade for only a required period of time and reduce the protein responsible for programmed cell death has been developed. The team utilizes the small-molecule-assisted shutoff -- or SMASh -- degron system in both cultured cells and mice in vivo. Cancer cell growth was suppressed in wild-type mice.

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Partial-observation mazes in virtual reality have been used to find that they can decode from brain activity the subjects' abilities to predict their positions and scenes within the maze, as well as the degree of confidence in their predictions. Brain activity is measured via functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, while subjects are engaged in a VR maze game. Despite having no knowledge of the final destination, subjects appear to be able to use their predictions and map memory to help estimate their positions in the maze and choose the right way to proceed.

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Temperature-detecting nanodiamonds have been developed with silicon-vacancy color centers that gauge luminescence inside cells. As the smallest nanodiamond with a mean size of 20 nm, this particle enables smoother entry into organelles as well as high-precision temperature sensing.

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A solution is proposed for evaluating tax efficiency, a formula expressing the marginal cost of public funds as a ratio of a net loss in social surplus to a net increase in tax revenue. This formula is derived from only a few indices, common across specific market demand conditions and cost factors. The indices clearly tell us how the degree of tax-driven social burden relates to imperfect competition.

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A mathematical model that successfully reproduces cellular patterns observed in sensory body tissue has been developed based on intensities of adhesion molecules as input parameters. A new numerical method for obtaining the solution of the model that can correctly handle complex cellular rearrangements preserves individual cell volumes and cell connectivity.

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The holographic principle is used to describe the expanding universe in de Sitter space. It provides a solution to Einstein's general relativity equation with a positive cosmological constant. The proposed model uses a negative cosmological constant to account for gravity on anti-de Sitter space.

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Helical nucleocapsids in infected cells are composed of Marburg viral genomic RNA and nucleoproteins, or NPs, that are structurally similar to those of the Ebola virus. Future drug development may be possible based on the targeting of nucleocapsid formation, which may inhibit the Marburg virus' ability to replicate.

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Social ties may demonstrate both a strengthening of interpersonal relationships and also a manifestation of empathic distress and stigma-related anxiety. The pandemic has provided substantial anecdotal data concerning anxiety, conflicts, and cognitive flexibility.

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A novel AI-based approach to detect earthquakes early uses prompt elasto-gravity signals, or PEGS, gravitational changes generated by large-mass motion in megaquakes. PEGS carry information about an ongoing earthquake at the speed of light, arriving much faster than even the fastest seismic waves.

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Researchers have discovered epidermal immunity from nighttime bacterial invasion in mice when the expression of the CXCL14 signaling protein was higher than during the daytime. The circadian-dependent role of CXCL14 is crucial as it transports important DNA into immune cells.

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KyotoU researchers have now discovered a new formula for swimming based on their study of odd elasticity, or non-reciprocating behavior by microswimmers.

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Universidade de Quioto adaptou o sistema humano de codificação de acção facial, ou FACS, como uma ferramenta para comparações sistemáticas de músculos faciais entre espécies. As contrações musculares faciais movem porções da pele, produzindo um conjunto de mudanças de aparência que são visíveis no rosto. O FACS analisa e classifica os movimentos visíveis feitos pelos músculos faciais através das chamadas unidades de acção.

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KyotoU researchers have discovered a physical phenomenon that previously was only observed in human males.

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Three intercellular pathways in crickets signal the formation of dorsal wings.

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A new study reports that immune cell responses to bacteria affect the intrinsic excitability of rat neuronal subtypes differently.

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One way in which scientists are studying how the human body grows and ages is by creating artificial organs in the laboratory.

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Materials scientists may soon be able to control material properties with light.