Πέμπτη 17 Σεπτεμβρίου 2026
5 άρθρα
Prime assembly inserts DNA without severing chromosomes
A new genome-editing method connects large, externally supplied DNA cargo to precise chromosomal targets while avoiding deliberate double-strand breaks. Demonstrated in non-dividing and primary human cells, it could eventually support exon replacement and other ambitious edits, but no patients have been treated and its off-target effects, product precision and long-term risks remain unquantified.
Spain’s lobby vote puts €260m at risk
Parliament’s 179–155 rejection leaves Madrid short of a reform promised in exchange for EU recovery money. The government plans a revised bill by October, but the programme’s August completion deadline has passed, and Brussels has not confirmed whether the reported €260 million will be suspended, recovered after corrective action or permanently withheld.
Delphy maps 100,000 viral sequences in a day
A new browser-based tool could bring uncertainty-aware outbreak reconstruction to health agencies without supercomputers. Its developers report processing 100,000 sequences within a day, and researchers have already used it during the 2026 Bundibugyo outbreak. Independent replication, broader modelling options and evidence of faster public-health decisions are still missing.
CERN’s 92 antiprotons survive the road
A portable trap carried antimatter 7.5 kilometres around CERN without losing a single detectable particle, according to a Nature paper published on 16 September. The result clears a crucial engineering test for moving antiprotons to a quieter laboratory, but an eight-to-12-hour journey to Düsseldorf—and proof that relocation improves measurement precision—still lies ahead.
EU parcel fee has no price
Parliament has made online marketplaces responsible for customs on direct-to-consumer imports, with collection due from 1 November. But the Commission has yet to set the handling fee or design its collection, and the widely reported €2, €7 and €10 figures are not law. The eventual charge will sit on top of the existing €3 duty.