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Researchers identify new jellyfish species in fossils near Quebec City

admin — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 13:37:27 +0000

Researchers studying 450-million-year-old fossils discovered about 50 kilometres northeast of Quebec City have identified a new species of basal medusozoan: Paleocanna tentaculum, a soft-bodied, tube-shaped polyp with a ring of tentacles. Closely related to modern jellyfish, it is a rare discovery. Only a few other species in its subphylum have ever been described in the fossil record.

�鶹�� inaugurates new facilities at Macdonald Campus to advance teaching and research on climate‑resilient agriculture

admin — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 10:32:51 +0000

�鶹�� today inaugurated state‑of‑the‑art teaching greenhouse and plant phenotyping research facilities at its Macdonald Campus in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue. These represent major investments in teaching and research focused on food security, crop resilience and sustainable agriculture.

Discovery of fat-burning ‘switch’ could lead to advances in bone disease treatments

admin — Tue, 12 May 2026 13:38:51 +0000

Scientists’ discovery of a molecular “switch” that activates an energy‑burning pathway in mice has the potential to lead to new treatments for bone disease.

The study, published in Nature, sheds new light on brown fat. Unlike white fat, which stores energy, brown fat cells burn calories, producing heat as a byproduct. For years, it was believed this process relied on a single pathway. More recently, researchers discovered a parallel pathway, but how it became activated remained a mystery.

�鶹�� researchers engineer faster, more effective blood clots

admin — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 14:32:13 +0000

Researchers at �鶹�� have developed a rapid way to engineer blood clots that stop severe bleeding and support tissue healing more effectively. Their technique, called “click clotting,” links red blood cell surface proteins through a chemical reaction, resulting in a biocompatible clot that is 13 times more resistant to fracturing and four times more adhesive than natural blood clots. The team said the method could be used to develop life-saving biomaterials to help control severe bleeding, as well as benefit people with clotting disorders.

Historic plant collections offer a window into genetic change

admin — Thu, 21 May 2026 14:10:22 +0000

Pressed plant specimens collected centuries ago and stored in herbaria around the world could play a key role in facilitating the tracking of genetic change and extinction risk in plants, a �鶹��-led study indicates.

�鶹�� researchers help secure Canadian access to the world’s largest telescope

admin — Thu, 14 May 2026 18:19:47 +0000

A team led by the Université de Montréal, the Observatoire du Mont‑Mégantic (OMM) and the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets (IREx), in partnership with the University of British Columbia and �鶹��, has been awarded nearly $11.3 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to support Canada’s contribution to ANDES, a flagship scientific instrument for the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) under construction in Chile.

Non-producing oil and gas wells emit microbial methane at rates 1,000 times higher than previously estimated

admin — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:52:18 +0000

Microbial methane leaking from non-producing oil and gas wells is being emitted at rates about 1,000 times higher than previously estimated, according to a new study led by �鶹�� researchers.

Icing injuries may slow recovery and prolong pain, study finds

admin — Wed, 13 May 2026 13:42:56 +0000

Icing a sprained ankle or sore muscle, long used to reduce pain and swelling, may in the longer run delay recovery and prolong pain, new research suggests.

In a preclinical study published in Anesthesiology, �鶹�� researchers found that even though cryotherapy (icing) eased pain in the short term, recovery time was more than doubled in some cases.

Moderate UV light is best when it comes to boosting the vitamin D content of edible mushrooms, �鶹�� study finds

admin — Mon, 04 May 2026 14:00:59 +0000

Researchers at �鶹�� have discovered that moderate ultraviolet (UV) light exposure is best when the technique is used to enhance vitamin D₂ in edible mushrooms. Excessive exposure leads to nutrient degradation or a plateau effect, they found. The paper also provides quantitative guidance.

The researchers’ work supports efforts to address vitamin D deficiency, which affects between 30 and 50 per cent of the world’s population, as well as enhance the nutritional value of mushrooms more broadly.

Research findings challenge long-held assumptions about how we learn or regain speech

admin — Mon, 25 May 2026 16:06:17 +0000

Learning to speak a new language, or regaining speech, depends more on areas of the brain that process sound and physical sensation than on the parts of the brain that govern motor control, according to new research findings.

The study, by researchers at �鶹�� and the Yale School of Medicine, has implications for speech-learning theory and for the development of speech processing and recognition technologies.

Study finds treating peanuts with cold plasma could make them less allergenic

admin — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:16:33 +0000

Researchers at �鶹�� have found that briefly treating peanuts with cold plasma, an ionically charged gas that triggers chemical changes, reduces their potential to cause allergic reactions. The researchers say this is probably because the process causes changes to the protein structure, the part of the peanut that can trigger an immune response. The technology was also shown to improve functional properties important for food manufacturing.

‘Jumping gene’ helps explain elevated pancreatic cancer risk in French-Canadians

admin — Tue, 19 May 2026 14:13:42 +0000

Researchers at �鶹�� have discovered a centuries-old genetic mutation that helps to explain why some French‑Canadians in Quebec are at an elevated risk of pancreatic cancer. Until quite recently, standard genetic tests have not been able to identify this “jumping gene” cause.

The findings, published in the Journal of Medical Genetics, suggest better-targeted genetic testing could help identify people at higher cancer risk who were previously missed.

Internalization of homophobia and transphobia may undermine mental health benefits of religiosity or spirituality for LGBTQIA+ people, study finds

admin — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 13:47:58 +0000

Non-affirming religious doctrine may engender internalized homophobia or transphobia among LGBTQIA+ people of faith, undermining the positive mental health outcomes otherwise associated with religiosity and spirituality, a �鶹�� study has found.

Public education will be critical as provinces roll out new cervical cancer screening method, researchers say

admin — Thu, 07 May 2026 13:37:38 +0000

As Canada moves to modernize cervical cancer screening, a new study suggests most women do not yet understand or trust the shift from the Pap test to human papillomavirus (HPV) based screening.

The national survey, published in Current Oncology, examined women’s preferences for cervical screening – including how they want to be screened and how they want information communicated – as Canada transitions from Pap tests to HPV testing.

Only some kinds of job losses cause voters to elect strong leaders, study finds

admin — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 14:57:47 +0000

Americans are more likely to turn to authoritarian leaders when jobs are being lost due to offshoring than they are when job losses result from automation, an international research team has found. This is despite the fact that automation tends to lead to greater job losses.