| Appropriate duration of dual antiplatelet therapy still unclear Posted: 25 May 2015 02:56 PM PDT A systematic review of published evidence does little to clarify the appropriate duration of dual antiplatelet therapy following drug eluting stent placement. The evidence suggests that longer duration therapy decreases the risk for myocardial infarction, but increases the risk for major bleeding events, and may provide a slight increase in mortality.  |
| Ovarian cancer-specific markers set the stage for early diagnosis, personalized treatments Posted: 25 May 2015 12:11 PM PDT Six mRNA isoforms (bits of genetic material) produced by ovarian cancer cells but not normal cells have been identified by scientists, opening up the possibility that they could be used to diagnose early-stage ovarian cancer. What's more, several of the mRNA isoforms code for unique proteins that could be targeted with new therapeutics.  |
| New way of preventing diabetes-associated blindness Posted: 25 May 2015 12:11 PM PDT Reporting on their study with lab-grown human cells, researchers say that blocking a second blood vessel growth protein, along with one that is already well-known, could offer a new way to treat and prevent a blinding eye disease caused by diabetes.  |
| Patterns of brain activity reorganize visual perception during eye movements Posted: 25 May 2015 10:23 AM PDT Oscillations of activity observed in the brain could have a role in resetting the sensitivity of neurons after eye movements. Further results suggest these waves could also have a role in supporting the brain's representation of space.  |
| Frailer older patients at higher risk of readmission or death after discharge from hospital Posted: 25 May 2015 10:23 AM PDT Frailer older patients are at higher risk of readmission to hospital or death within 30 days after discharge from a general internal medicine ward, but health care professionals can assess who is at risk using the Clinical Frailty Scale, according to a study.  |
| Location matters in the lowland Amazon Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT You know the old saying: Location, location, location? It turns out that it applies to the Amazon rainforest, too. New work illustrates a hidden tapestry of chemical variation across the lowland Peruvian Amazon, with plants in different areas producing an array of chemicals that changes across the region's topography.  |
| Special fats proven essential for brain growth Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT Certain special fats found in blood are essential for human brain growth and function, new research suggests. New published studies show that mutations in the protein Mfsd2a causes impaired brain development in humans. Mfsd2a is the transporter in the brain for a special type of fat called lysophosphatidylcholines (LPCs) -- composed of essential fatty acids like omega-3.  |
| Climate engineering may save coral reefs, study shows Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT Mass coral bleaching, which can lead to coral mortality, is predicted to occur far more frequently over the coming decades, due to the stress exerted by higher seawater temperatures. Geoengineering of the climate may be the only way to save coral reefs from mass bleaching, according to new research.  |
| 'Pain sensing' gene discovery could help in development of new methods of pain relief Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT A gene essential to the production of pain-sensing neurons in humans has been identified by an international team of researchers. The discovery could have implications for the development of new methods of pain relief.  |
| De novo assembly of a haplotype-resolved diploid genome revealed Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT The most complete haploid-resolved diploid genome sequence has been revealed by scientists based on de novo assembly with NGS technology. The pipeline developed lays the foundation for de novo assembly of genomes with high levels of heterozygosity, the researchers say.  |
| Complex signaling between blood, stem cells controls regeneration in fly gut Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT Having a healthy gut may well depend on maintaining a complex signaling dance between immune cells and the stem cells that line the intestine. Scientists report significant new insight into how these interactions control intestinal regeneration after an infection. It's a dance that ensures repair after a challenge, but that also goes awry in aging fruit flies. The work offers important new clues into possible causes of age-related human maladies, including IBS and colorectal cancer.  |
| Team pinpoints genes that make plant stem cells, revealing origin of beefsteak tomatoes Posted: 25 May 2015 09:04 AM PDT A team of scientists has identified a set of genes that control stem cell production in the tomato. Mutations in these genes explain the origin of mammoth beefsteak tomatoes. More importantly, the research suggests how breeders can optimize fruit size in potentially any fruit-bearing crop.  |
| Fine-tuned molecular orientation is key to more efficient solar cells Posted: 25 May 2015 09:03 AM PDT Polymer solar cells are a hot area of research due to both their strong future potential and the significant challenges they pose. It is believed that thanks to lower production costs, they could become a viable alternative to conventional solar cells with silicon substrates when they achieve a power conversion efficiency--a measure that indicates how much electricity they can generate from a given amount of sunlight--of between 10 and 15 percent. Now, using carefully designed materials and an "inverted" architecture, a team of scientists has achieved efficiency of 10 percent, bringing these cells close to the threshold of commercial viability.  |
| Researchers find the 'key' to quantum network solution Posted: 25 May 2015 09:03 AM PDT Scientists have made an important step in establishing scalable and secure high rate quantum networks. They have developed a protocol to achieve key-rates at metropolitan distances at three orders-of-magnitude higher than previously.  |
| Researchers unveil new gene subgroup in prostate cancer Posted: 25 May 2015 08:59 AM PDT Prostate cancer researchers have drawn a molecular portrait that provides the first complete picture of localized, multi-focal disease within the prostate and also unveils a new gene subgroup driving it.  |
| Removing mutant p53 significantly regresses tumors, improves cancer survival Posted: 25 May 2015 08:59 AM PDT For two decades cancer researchers have looked unsuccessfully for ways to develop compounds to restore the function of mutant p53 proteins. Now a team of researchers has discovered that eliminating the abnormally stabilized mutant p53 protein in cancer in vivo has positive therapeutic effects, showing that tumors regress significantly and survival increases.  |
| One step closer to a single-molecule device Posted: 25 May 2015 08:59 AM PDT A new technique to create a single-molecule diode has been developed by scientists, and, in doing so, they have developed molecular diodes that perform 50 times better than all prior designs. This research group is the first to develop a single-molecule diode that may have real-world technological applications for nanoscale devices.  |
| DNA double helix does double duty in assembling arrays of nanoparticles Posted: 25 May 2015 08:59 AM PDT In a new twist on the use of DNA in nanoscale construction, scientists put synthetic strands of the biological material to work in two ways: They used ropelike configurations of the DNA double helix to form a rigid geometrical framework, and added dangling pieces of single-stranded DNA to glue nanoparticles in place.  |
| Nano-capsules designed for diagnosing malignant tumors Posted: 25 May 2015 07:21 AM PDT Researchers have developed adaptable nano-capsules that can help in the diagnosis of glioblastoma cells -- a highly invasive form of brain tumor.  |
| Hubble revisits tangled NGC 6240 Posted: 25 May 2015 07:08 AM PDT NGC 6240 lies 400 million light-years away in the constellation of Ophiuchus (The Serpent Holder). This galaxy has an elongated shape with branching wisps, loops and tails. This mess of gas, dust and stars bears more than a passing resemblance to a butterfly and a lobster. New research is untangling the reasons for its odd shape.  |
| Plant extracts offer hope against diabetes, cancer Posted: 25 May 2015 06:54 AM PDT Diabetes is the fastest growing metabolic disease in the world. A new study has shown that traditional Aboriginal and Indian plant extracts could be used to manage the disease and may also have potential use in cancer treatment.  |
| Laser technique for low-cost self-assembly of nanostructures Posted: 25 May 2015 06:53 AM PDT A low-cost technique that holds promise for a range of scientific and technological applications has been developed by scientists. They have combined laser printing and capillary force to build complex, self-assembling microstructures using a technique called laser printing capillary-assisted self-assembly (LPCS).  |
| Table-top extreme UV laser system heralds imaging at the nanoscale Posted: 25 May 2015 06:51 AM PDT A new way to generate bright beams of coherent extreme UV radiation using a table-top setup has been developed by scientists. This could be used to produce high resolution images of tiny structures at the nanoscale.  |
| Radio telescope: Source of mystery signals at the dish Posted: 25 May 2015 06:49 AM PDT Everyone likes solving a mystery, and the hunt for the source of strange signals detected by Australia's Parkes radio telescope is a classic. Although how "aliens" became involved in the story is more of a media mystery than a scientific one. But first to those strange signals: fast radio bursts (FRBs). The source of these powerful, millisecond bursts is unknown but we're getting closer to understanding them.  |
| Customizable female footware based on smart materials could prevent some of the most common foot problems Posted: 25 May 2015 06:27 AM PDT A new adjustable female shoe based on a new memory shape composite of leather and Nitinol material, is now available. The new material allows fitting the shoe to the foot shape, after obtaining anthropometric measurements through the Shopintantshoe portable scanner and modifying it with the "Shoptool", a machine that completes the process directly in the shop.  |
| Scientists mix matter and anti-matter to resolve decade-old proton puzzle Posted: 25 May 2015 06:26 AM PDT Nuclear physicists have used two different methods to measure the proton's electric form factor. But the deeper that they probe inside the proton, the more the results from these two different methods disagree. Eventually, the measurements provided by one method amount to about five times the quantity yielded by the other. This huge discrepancy is much larger than the experimental uncertainty in the measurements. A new result has allowed researchers to determine the reason behind a large discrepancy in the data between two different methods used to measure the proton's electric form factor.  |
| Can you see what I hear? Blind human echolocators use visual areas of the brain Posted: 25 May 2015 05:11 AM PDT Certain blind individuals have the ability to use echoes from tongue or finger clicks to recognize objects in the distance, and use echolocation as a replacement for vision. Research shows echolocation in blind individuals is a full form of sensory substitution, and that blind echolocation experts recruit regions of the brain normally associated with visual perception when making echo-based assessments of objects.  |
| Earthquakes prove to be an unexpected help in interpreting brain activity of very premature babies Posted: 25 May 2015 05:11 AM PDT Researchers have created a "brainstorm barometer" that allows computers to calculate the brain functions of very premature babies during their first hours of life. The new research method is based on the hypothesis that the brainstorms generated by the billions of neurons inside a baby's head are governed by the same rules as other massive natural phenomena, such as earthquakes, forest fires or snow avalanches.  |
| Biodiversity: Eleven new species come to light in Madagascar Posted: 25 May 2015 05:11 AM PDT Madagascar is home to extraordinary biodiversity, but in the past few decades, the island's forests and associated biodiversity have been under greater attack than ever. Rapid deforestation is affecting the biotopes of hundreds of species, including the panther chameleon, a species with spectacular intra-specific colour variation. A new study reveals that this charismatic reptilian species, which is only found in Madagascar, is actually composed of eleven different species.  |
| Revolutionary therapeutic dental adhesives with the aptitude to remineralize the resin-dentine bonding interface through biomimetic processes Posted: 25 May 2015 05:11 AM PDT Dental health researchers report that clinical minimally invasive treatments require the elimination of dental caries-infected tissues in order to stop the progression of bacteria to the pulpal chamber and maximize the reparative potential of the remaining partially demineralized tissues.  |
| Rates of re-hospitalization for patients with traumatic brain injury higher than previously reported Posted: 25 May 2015 05:08 AM PDT A new, study shows that rates of hospital readmission following a traumatic brain injury (TBI) are greater than other chronic diseases and injuries and are higher than previously reported.  |
| Depression associated with 5-fold increased mortality risk in heart failure patients Posted: 23 May 2015 05:19 AM PDT Moderate to severe depression is associated with a 5-fold increased risk of all cause mortality in patients with heart failure, according to research. The results show that risk was independent of comorbidities and severity of heart failure. Patients who were not depressed had an 80% lower mortality risk.  |
