ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• New Horizons captures two of Pluto's smaller moons
• NASA's New Horizons finds second mountain range in Pluto's 'heart'
• New drug combination treats hepatitis C patients also infected with HIV
• New treatment avenue to prevent serious retinal detachment
• Simulations lead to design of near-frictionless material
• Why we live on Earth and not Venus
• Choosing Wisely in newborn medicine: Improving health outcomes, reducing costs
• Scientists track monster waves below the ocean surface
• Targeting bacteria causing ulcers may prevent stomach cancer
• Selfishness lasts a lifetime, according to mongoose study
• Stress 'sweet spot' differs for mellow vs. hyper dogs
• In pursuit of precision medicine for PTSD
• Going green: Microalgae as a feedstuff for grower steers
• Drawing a line between quantum, classical world
• Cellphones seen as change agents for health among young, poor, urban women in need of care
• Specific protein as missing link for earliest known change in Alzheimer's pathology
• Soybean meal positively affects pigs with PRRSV
• Manipulating molecule in the brain improves stress response, new target for depression treatment
• Diabetes drug may protect against Parkinson's disease
• Nursing, medical students learn teamwork with virtual teammates
• Detecting disease in beef cattle using ear tag units
• Early antiretroviral therapy prevents non-AIDS outcomes in HIV-infected people, study concludes
• Genome analysis pins down arrival and spread of first Americans
• Questionnaire beats blood test in identifying at-risk drinking among ER patients
• Location-based ads need more than closeness to overcome creepiness
• Applying New Jersey population traits to Louisiana reverses colorectal cancer trends
• Evolution, not just mutation, drives development of cancer
• Glimmer of hope: Fertile corals discovered in deeper waters off US Virgin Islands
• Words jump-start vision, psychologist's study shows
• Genetic studies link indigenous peoples in the Amazon and Australasia
• New treatment for severe depression with far fewer side effects
• Acupuncture impacts same biologic pathways in rats that pain drugs target in humans
• Tracing the evolution of a drug-resistant pathogen
• Sound waves gently cull circulating tumor cells from blood samples
• Economic slump, not natural gas boom, responsible for drop in CO2 emissions
• Seeing triple: New 3-D model could solve supernova mystery
• Comprehensive global prevention can end HIV/AIDS pandemic, experts say
• Thriving in the tropics of Borneo: Two new Hoya species on the third largest island
• Blood vessels can actually get better with age
• Bat disease: Yeast byproduct inhibits white-nose syndrome fungus in lab experiments
• Bust up big kidney stones with tamsulosin
• Shallow fracking raises questions for drinking water
• Poor diabetes control found in older Americans
• Buyer beware: dental implants prone to fracture
• Antibiotic use and decrease in INR levels among patients taking vitamin K antagonists
• Adjuvants improve immune response to H7N9 flu vaccine
• Examination of use of diabetes drug pioglitazone and risk of bladder cancer
• The earlier the better: bystanders save lives with CPR for cardiac arrest
• Degrading BPA with visible light and a new hybrid photocatalyst
• Controlled burns increase invasive grass in hardwood forests
• An easy, scalable and direct method for synthesizing graphene in silicon microelectronics
• Chaos is an inherent part of city traffic
• Medical odyssey of an undiagnosed child
• First synthesis of molecules that cause rapid cell death in cancer
• Summer heatwaves: Patterns blocking low pressure areas explored
• Neighborhood revitalization motivated exercise
• iPSCs show promise for kidney treatment
• New mussel-inspired surgical protein glue: Close wounds, open medical possibilities
• Satellites peer into rock 50 miles beneath Tibetan Plateau
• Yeast cells optimize their genomes in response to the environment

New Horizons captures two of Pluto's smaller moons Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:47 PM PDT Pluto's moon Nix, imaged by the New Horizons Ralph instrument, has a reddish spot that has attracted the interest of mission scientists. Pluto's small, irregularly shaped moon Hydra is revealed in another image. Features as small as 0.7 miles (1.2 kilometers) are visible on Hydra, which measures 34 miles (55 kilometers) in length.

NASA's New Horizons finds second mountain range in Pluto's 'heart' Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:43 PM PDT A newly discovered mountain range lies near the southwestern margin of Pluto's Tombaugh Regio (Tombaugh Region), situated between bright, icy plains and dark, heavily-cratered terrain.

New drug combination treats hepatitis C patients also infected with HIV Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:42 PM PDT A new combination of drugs that effectively treats hepatitis C (HCV) patients co-infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV) has been discovered by researchers who report that the novel treatment has a 97 percent success rate in co-infected patients .

New treatment avenue to prevent serious retinal detachment Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:40 PM PDT Wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe vision loss in older individuals. AMD and other serious chronic eye problems that affect younger individuals result when fluid accumulates abnormally under or within the retina. A new study shows for the first time that the release of substances from mast cells may be a causal factor in this type of eye pathology, and inhibitors of this release may offer new ways to treat serous retinal detachment.

Simulations lead to design of near-frictionless material Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:40 PM PDT Scientists used the Mira supercomputer to identify and improve a new mechanism for eliminating friction, which fed into the development of a hybrid material that exhibited superlubricity at the macroscale for the first time. Researchers helped enable the groundbreaking simulations by overcoming a performance bottleneck that doubled the speed of the team's code.

Why we live on Earth and not Venus Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:39 PM PDT Compared to its celestial neighbors Venus and Mars, Earth is a pretty habitable place. So how did we get so lucky? A new study sheds light on the improbable evolutionary path that enabled Earth to sustain life.

Choosing Wisely in newborn medicine: Improving health outcomes, reducing costs Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:39 PM PDT Advances in technology have spurred better outcomes for infants treated in neonatal intensive care units, but parents and physicians need to work together to avoid unnecessary and potentially harmful tests and treatments, according to new Choosing Wisely recommendation.

Scientists track monster waves below the ocean surface Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:39 PM PDT A scientific research team spent seven years tracking the movements of skyscraper-high waves in the South China Sea. Scientists are trying to understand how these waves, which rarely break the ocean surface, develop, move and dissipate underwater.

Targeting bacteria causing ulcers may prevent stomach cancer Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:38 PM PDT Eliminating Helicobacter pylori bacterium -- the main cause of stomach ulcers - with a short course of therapy of two commonly used medicines may help to reduce the risk of gastric cancer, researchers suggest.

Selfishness lasts a lifetime, according to mongoose study Posted: 21 Jul 2015 04:38 PM PDT Researchers who conducted a 15-year study on wild banded mongooses in Uganda have discovered that these small mammals have either cooperative or selfish personalities which last for their entire lifetime.

Stress 'sweet spot' differs for mellow vs. hyper dogs Posted: 21 Jul 2015 01:25 PM PDT People aren't the only ones who perform better on tests or athletic events when they are just a little bit nervous -- dogs do too. But in dogs as in people, the right amount of stress depends on disposition. A new study finds that a little extra stress and stimulation makes hyper dogs crack under pressure but gives mellow dogs an edge.

In pursuit of precision medicine for PTSD Posted: 21 Jul 2015 01:25 PM PDT Brain scans of war veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder have led researchers to an area of the prefrontal cortex that appears to be a good predictor of response to treatment with SSRIs -- the first-line drug treatment for PTSD.

Going green: Microalgae as a feedstuff for grower steers Posted: 21 Jul 2015 01:24 PM PDT Engineers across the country have developed biofuels, food additives and skincare products using the adaptive power of microalgae. Livestock scientists see its potential as a sustainable, high-energy feedstuff as well as a protein supplement.

Drawing a line between quantum, classical world Posted: 21 Jul 2015 01:24 PM PDT A classical beam of light that would be expected to obey Bell's Inequality can fail this test in the lab, if the beam is properly prepared to have a particular feature: entanglement.

Cellphones seen as change agents for health among young, poor, urban women in need of care Posted: 21 Jul 2015 12:08 PM PDT In a survey of a diverse group of almost 250 young, low-income, inner-city pregnant and postpartum women, researchers have learned that more than 90 percent use smartphones or regular cellphones to give and get information.

Specific protein as missing link for earliest known change in Alzheimer's pathology Posted: 21 Jul 2015 12:02 PM PDT A recent study implicates a new culprit in Alzheimer's disease development. The research reveals that a precursor of an amyloid beta peptide acts at the earliest stage of Alzheimer's to initiate a range of abnormalities leading to the loss of groups of neurons critical for memory formation.

Soybean meal positively affects pigs with PRRSV Posted: 21 Jul 2015 12:02 PM PDT Increased soybean meal concentrations in the diet may help alleviate the effects of PRRSV in infected weanling pigs. PRRSV infected pigs fed high soybean meal concentrations had a more efficient virus elimination compared to PRRSV infected pigs fed the low soybean meal diet.

Manipulating molecule in the brain improves stress response, new target for depression treatment Posted: 21 Jul 2015 12:02 PM PDT Increasing the levels of a signaling molecule found in the brain can positively alter response to stress, revealing a potential new therapeutic target for treatment of depression, researchers report.

Diabetes drug may protect against Parkinson's disease Posted: 21 Jul 2015 12:02 PM PDT Diabetes patients taking glitazone antidiabetes drugs had a 28 percent lower incidence of Parkinson's disease than people taking other antidiabetic treatments, according to new research led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Nursing, medical students learn teamwork with virtual teammates Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:49 AM PDT A virtual interprofessional education curriculum has been developed in which students were paired with a virtual team member to learn with, from, and about each other to improve collaboration and the delivery of care.

Detecting disease in beef cattle using ear tag units Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:49 AM PDT Researchers have studied beef cattle with in-ear accelerometers. These units may be able pick up signs that relate to early stages of disease in cattle.

Early antiretroviral therapy prevents non-AIDS outcomes in HIV-infected people, study concludes Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:49 AM PDT Starting antiretroviral therapy early not only prevents serious AIDS-related diseases, but also prevents the onset of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other non-AIDS-related diseases in HIV-infected people, according to a new analysis of data. This is the first large-scale randomized clinical trial to establish that earlier antiretroviral treatment benefits all HIV-infected individuals. Rates of both serious AIDS-related events and serious non-AIDS-related events were significantly reduced with early therapy.

Genome analysis pins down arrival and spread of first Americans Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:49 AM PDT An international team of researchers compared the genomes of 31 living Native Americans, Siberians and people from Oceania with 23 ancient Native American genomes to establish a timeline for the arrival and spread of Amerindian populations. They concluded that the first Americans arrived after about 23,000 years ago and diverged around 13,000 years ago into two populations. They found no admixture of Polynesian or European genes, but did find some East Asian gene flow.

Questionnaire beats blood test in identifying at-risk drinking among ER patients Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:49 AM PDT Emergency room physicians treating patients with alcohol-related trauma can better identify those at risk of future drinking-related trauma with a 10-point questionnaire rather than the standard blood alcohol content test, according to a study.

Location-based ads need more than closeness to overcome creepiness Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT Location-based advertisements may pinpoint customers geographically, but often miss the target because customers may find the ads creepy and intrusive, according to an international team of researchers. To overcome this negativity, the researchers suggest advertisers invite their customers to help tailor ads they might receive.

Applying New Jersey population traits to Louisiana reverses colorectal cancer trends Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT If Louisiana had the same risk factors, screening uptake, and survival rates as New Jersey, incidence and mortality from the disease would drop to levels below that of New Jersey.

Evolution, not just mutation, drives development of cancer Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT A new article argues against the commonly held 'accumulation of mutations' model of oncogenesis in favor of a model that depends on evolutionary pressures acting on populations of cells.

Glimmer of hope: Fertile corals discovered in deeper waters off US Virgin Islands Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT Researchers discovered a threatened coral species that lives in deeper waters off the US Virgin Islands is more fertile than its shallow-water counterparts. The new study showed that mountainous star corals (Orbicella faveolata) located at nearly 140 feet deep may produce one trillion more eggs per square kilometer than those on shallow reefs.

Words jump-start vision, psychologist's study shows Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT A new study shows that words have a profound effect even on the first electrical twitches of perception.

Genetic studies link indigenous peoples in the Amazon and Australasia Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT Native Americans living in the Amazon bear an unexpected genetic connection to indigenous people in Australasia, suggesting a previously unknown wave of migration to the Americas thousands of years ago, a new study has found.

New treatment for severe depression with far fewer side effects Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT Electroconvulsive therapy remains one of the most effective treatments for severe depression, but new research shows ultra-brief pulse stimulation is almost as effective as standard ECT, with far fewer cognitive side effects.

Acupuncture impacts same biologic pathways in rats that pain drugs target in humans Posted: 21 Jul 2015 10:48 AM PDT In animal models, acupuncture appears to impact the same biologic pathways ramped up by pain and stress, analogous to what drugs do in humans. The researchers say their animal study provides the strongest evidence to date on the mechanism of this ancient Chinese therapy in chronic stress.

Tracing the evolution of a drug-resistant pathogen Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:50 AM PDT Researchers are studying a antibiotic-resistant pathogen to learn how to better fight it. They have identified several mechanisms bacteria use to share genes and expand their antibiotic resistance.

Sound waves gently cull circulating tumor cells from blood samples Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:50 AM PDT The capture and analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is a valuable tool for cancer treatment decisions and therapy monitoring. Researchers are using sound waves to isolate CTCs without physical contact or damage to the cells, assuring that their original characteristics are maintained. The contact-free nature of the method offers the potential for more precise cancer treatment and monitoring.

Economic slump, not natural gas boom, responsible for drop in CO2 emissions Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:47 AM PDT The 11 percent decrease in climate change-causing carbon dioxide emissions in the US between 2007 and 2013 was caused by the global financial recession -- not the reduced use of coal, research shows.

Seeing triple: New 3-D model could solve supernova mystery Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:46 AM PDT Scientists have developed a 3-D model of a giant star's last moments, work that could shed light on how these stars explode.

Comprehensive global prevention can end HIV/AIDS pandemic, experts say Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:46 AM PDT Although much progress has been made in combating the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, to halt new infections and end the pandemic, a combination of non-vaccine and vaccine prevention modalities will be needed.

Thriving in the tropics of Borneo: Two new Hoya species on the third largest island Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:46 AM PDT Two new tropical plants species from the large and complex genus Hoya were found in Borneo. H. ruthiae is characterized by its lack of colored milk-like fluid and H. bakoensis -- with its strict preference for rooting inside ant nests. Its seedlings sprout from the openings of small ant nests localized inside hollow tree trunks.

Blood vessels can actually get better with age Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:46 AM PDT Oxidative stress has been linked to cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases including diabetes, hypertension and age-related cancers. However, researchers recently found that aging actually offered significant protection against oxidative stress. These findings suggest that aging may trigger an adaptive response to counteract the effects of oxidative stress on blood vessels.

Bat disease: Yeast byproduct inhibits white-nose syndrome fungus in lab experiments Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:46 AM PDT A microbe found in caves produces a compound that inhibits Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome in bats, researchers report. The finding could lead to treatments that kill the fungus while minimizing disruption to cave ecosystems, the researchers say.

Bust up big kidney stones with tamsulosin Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:44 AM PDT Tamsulosin works no better than placebo on small kidney stones, but does improve passage of more large kidney stones than placebo does, a new study concludes. 83.3 percent of patients treated with tamsulosin whose kidney stones measured between 5 and 10 millimeters in length passed their stones, compared to only 61 percent of those who were treated with placebo.

Shallow fracking raises questions for drinking water Posted: 21 Jul 2015 09:44 AM PDT Scientist's investigations show that drinking water sources may be threatened by thousands of shallow oil and gas wells mined with the controversial process of hydraulic fracturing. A new study suggests safeguards.

Poor diabetes control found in older Americans Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:24 AM PDT Only one in three older Americans has their diabetes under control as measured by guidelines set by the American Diabetes Association, new research suggests. Some argue that ADA guidelines may be too stringent for some older adults. But even using less stringent measures, the researchers found, there are still many older Americans whose diabetes is not well managed, a condition that can lead to multiple long-term health problems ranging from kidney disease to blindness.

Buyer beware: dental implants prone to fracture Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:24 AM PDT An examination of 100 discarded dental implants under a scanning electron microscope found that more than 60 percent of them had cracks and other flaws that made them prone to fracturing. More than 3 million people in the U.S. alone have dental implants.

Antibiotic use and decrease in INR levels among patients taking vitamin K antagonists Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:14 AM PDT Researchers have found an association between treatment with the antibiotic dicloxacillin and a decrease in international normalized ratio (INR; a measure of blood coagulation) levels among patients taking the vitamin K antagonists warfarin or phenprocoumon, according to a new study.

Adjuvants improve immune response to H7N9 flu vaccine Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:14 AM PDT In a phase 2 trial that included nearly 1,000 adults, the AS03 and MF59 adjuvants (a component that improves immune response of inactivated influenza vaccines) increased the immune responses to two doses of an inactivated H7N9 influenza vaccine, with AS03-adjuvanted formulations inducing the highest amount of antibody response, according to a new study.

Examination of use of diabetes drug pioglitazone and risk of bladder cancer Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:14 AM PDT Although some previous studies have suggested an increased risk of bladder cancer with use of the diabetes drug pioglitazone, analyses that included nearly 200,000 patients found no statistically significant increased risk, however a small increased risk could not be excluded, according to a new study.

The earlier the better: bystanders save lives with CPR for cardiac arrest Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:14 AM PDT Sudden cardiac arrest kills an estimated 200,000 people a year in the United States, but many of those lives could be saved if ordinary bystanders simply performed CPR, a new study shows. The early application of cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by an average person nearby, combined with defibrillation by firefighters or police before the arrival of emergency medical services (EMS), was the one intervention that substantially increased survival from cardiac arrest, according to new findings.

Degrading BPA with visible light and a new hybrid photocatalyst Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:14 AM PDT BPA's popularity soared after the 1950s, but evidence suggests that even low doses might be harmful to human and environmental health. Many manufacturers are now phasing out BPA, but it doesn't break down easily, making safe disposal difficult. Now, researchers have developed a hybrid photocatalyst that can break down BPA using visible light. Their findings could eventually be used to treat water supplies and to more safely dispose of BPA and materials like it.

Controlled burns increase invasive grass in hardwood forests Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:13 AM PDT Controlled burning is widely used to maintain biodiversity and enhance regeneration of important deciduous tree species such as oak and hickory, but a recent study found that this practice also increases the growth of an aggressive species of invasive grass.

An easy, scalable and direct method for synthesizing graphene in silicon microelectronics Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT In the last decade, graphene has been intensively studied for its unique optical, mechanical, electrical and structural properties. The one-atom-thick carbon sheets could revolutionize the way electronic devices are manufactured and lead to faster transistors, cheaper solar cells, new types of sensors and more efficient bioelectric sensory devices. As a potential contact electrode and interconnection material, wafer-scale graphene could be an essential component in microelectronic circuits, but most graphene fabrication methods are not compatible with silicon microelectronics, thus blocking graphene's leap from potential wonder material to actual profit-maker.

Chaos is an inherent part of city traffic Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT It's not unusual for two drivers to depart from the same location, head out to the same destination, drive more or less the same speed and nevertheless arrive at dramatically different times, with one driver taking significantly longer to arrive. While this can simply be bad luck, sometimes the reason isn't an obvious external event.

Medical odyssey of an undiagnosed child Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT For parents of children with ADNP-related autism syndrome, the mystery surrounding their infants' suffering can be even more agonizing than the syndrome itself, which has no known cure. Recent research is easing some of that agony.

First synthesis of molecules that cause rapid cell death in cancer Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT The first total syntheses of certain compounds involved in excessive cell death in leukemia has been carried out by researchers. The researchers completed the total syntheses of several members of the family of dimeric nuphar alkaloids, which are compounds previously isolated from the yellow pond lily.

Summer heatwaves: Patterns blocking low pressure areas explored Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT Stable high-pressure systems can lead to summer heatwaves -- such as the one Europe is currently experiencing. The phenomenon is caused by the blocking of low pressure areas. Meteorologists are now shedding new light on the formation of blocking patterns.

Neighborhood revitalization motivated exercise Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT A community revitalization effort in a struggling neighborhood of Birmingham, Ala., succeeded in promoting healthy physical activity. A new study also documents the basis of that change in the hopes and concerns of the neighborhood's residents.

iPSCs show promise for kidney treatment Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT Renal progenitor cells derived from human iPS cells were shown to have therapeutic effects when transplanted into acute kidney injury model mice. The transplants resulted in a significant reduction of fibrosis, suggesting that they may have preventative measures against chronic kidney disease. The positive effects were attributed to the secretion of renoprotective factors. Using this iPS cell model to identify these factors could lead to new drug candidates.

New mussel-inspired surgical protein glue: Close wounds, open medical possibilities Posted: 21 Jul 2015 08:12 AM PDT Inspired by nature's wonders, scientists have developed new light-activated adhesive hydrogel that is mussel protein-based. The innovative surgical protein glue, called LAMBA, not only closes an open wound on a wet bleeding site within less than 60 seconds but also effectively facilitates the healing process without inflammation or a scar.

Satellites peer into rock 50 miles beneath Tibetan Plateau Posted: 21 Jul 2015 07:29 AM PDT Gravity data captured by satellite has allowed researchers to take a closer look at the geology deep beneath the Tibetan Plateau.

Yeast cells optimize their genomes in response to the environment Posted: 21 Jul 2015 07:29 AM PDT Researchers have shown that yeast can modify their genomes to take advantage of an excess of calories in the environment and attain optimal growth.

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