| Novel canonical transformation provides insights into many-particle physics Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST The concepts of rotation and angular momentum play a crucial role in many areas of physics, ranging from nuclear spectroscopy to molecular collisions and precision measurements. In a new paper, researchers introduce a technique to understand and calculate angular momentum in settings where many particles interact with each other, so-called many-particle systems. |
| Oral bacteria linked to risk of stroke Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST In a study of patients entering the hospital for acute stroke, researchers have increased their understanding of an association between certain types of stroke and the presence of the oral bacteria (cnm-positive Streptococcus mutans). |
| Cytokine plays dual role in regulating inflammatory bowel disease, study finds Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST Small proteins that affect communication between cells play an important role in regulating inflammation that occurs during inflammatory bowel disease, according to researchers. |
| 'Beiging' white fat cells to fight diabetes Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST Researchers are getting closer to learning how to turn white fat cells into brown fat cells, in a process called 'beiging,' to bring down blood sugar levels and fight diabetes. The work suggests that activation of the mTOR pathway plays a critical role in this process. Induction of beige fat cells is considered a promising strategy to combat obesity because of this cell type's ability to metabolize glucose and lipids, dissipating the resulting energy as heat. |
| Mutual mistrust may have added a few X-files to the UFO era Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST Uncloaking the flying saucer movement in the United States could offer historians a snapshot of Cold War attitudes at work in society, as well as insights into how science communication may be tied to current denialism and conspiracy theory movements, according to a historian. |
| Breaking the strongest link triggered Big Baja Earthquake Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:17 PM PST An earthquake involving a system of small faults can be more damaging than a single event. |
| A new method to dramatically improve the sequencing of metagenomes Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:14 PM PST An international team of computer scientists developed a method that greatly improves researchers' ability to sequence the DNA of organisms that can't be cultured in the lab, such as microbes living in the human gut or bacteria living in the depths of the ocean. |
| New RNA letter regulates gene expression Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:14 PM PST A new study finds that RNA, considered the DNA template for protein translation, often appears with an extra letter -- and this letter is the regulatory key for control of gene expression. The discovery offers insight into different RNA functions in cellular processes and contributions to the development of disease. |
| Compound in green tea found to block rheumatoid arthritis Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:14 PM PST Researchers have identified a potential new approach to combating the joint pain, inflammation and tissue damage caused by rheumatoid arthritis. |
| Simplifying supersonic nozzle pressure monitoring Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:04 PM PST A bit of serendipity while carrying out a routine calibration led a researcher to discover a new method to measure the pressure of supersonic nozzles. This is a significant breakthrough — with wide-ranging applications that include miniature satellites, lab-on-a-chip devices and laser plasma accelerators. Monitoring fast jet pressure changes within microscopic nozzles is extremely challenging. But researchers now report that they have created a device that greatly simplifies the process. |
| Impact of climate change on parasite infections depends on host immunity Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:02 PM PST New research demonstrates how climate change and an individual's immune reaction can affect the dynamics of parasite infections. The study's results could lead to new strategies for the treatment and prevention of infections from soil-transmitted parasites in humans, livestock, and wildlife. |
| Necessity, the mother of participation Posted: 16 Feb 2016 03:02 PM PST A mother's positive attitude to involvement in everyday activities and a sense of competency in the performance of parental tasks accounts for a significant proportion the successful participation of autistic children in day-to-day activities, new research concludes. |
| Overcrowding linked to violence and falls on psychiatric wards Posted: 16 Feb 2016 12:20 PM PST Overcrowding is a common problem in Israeli inpatient psychiatric wards, and appears to contribute to higher rates of problem incidents -- including falls and aggressive behavior, reports a new study. |
| 'Ecologically diverse' breast cancers more likely to be deadly Posted: 16 Feb 2016 12:20 PM PST Breast cancers that are particularly complex and diverse, as judged by a test used in ecology to analyze species of animals and plants, are particularly likely to progress and lead to death, a new study shows. The test could be used in the clinic to assess how likely women's breast cancers are to be aggressive, and to help tailor treatment accordingly. |
| Fossil analysis pushes back human split from other primates by two million years Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:39 AM PST A common ancestor of apes and humans, Chororapithecus abyssinicus, evolved in Africa, not Eurasia, two million years earlier than previously thought, a new paper suggests. |
| When job hunt excitement fades, the ticking clock does the trick Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:39 AM PST Although a college senior's job hunt may start as a fun challenge, it is external pressure and consequences that drive the search over the finish line, according to a new study. |
| Trouble sleeping associated with behavioral problems in children with autism Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:39 AM PST Associations between trouble sleeping and behavioral problems in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have been noted by researchers. Children who weren't sleeping well had greater problems with aggression, irritability and paying attention during the day, the researchers say. |
| Watch your step: Forensics close in on footwear analysis Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:36 AM PST First it was your fingerprint that gave the game away and then DNA analysis transformed forensic science. But 'watch your step,' because an expert has developed a new technique which could lead to a 'step change' in forensic footwear imaging. |
| Tiny red crystals dramatically increase biogas production Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:35 AM PST Researchers have discovered a way to produce a tenfold increase in the amount of methane gas emitted by naturally occurring microbes living in coal seams and on food waste. The innovation could benefit the environment by extending the lifespan of coal seam gas wells, as well as improving the economics of using woody crops and left-over food as commercial sources of biogas. |
| Slight change to antibacterial drug may improve TB treatments Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:34 AM PST One small chemical change to an existing antibacterial drug results in a compound that is more effective against its target enzyme in tuberculosis, researchers report. |
| Engineers use network science to predict how ligaments fail Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:34 AM PST Researchers are using network science to gain new insights into 'subfailure' ligament injuries, which can lead to pain and dysfunction despite the lack of obvious physical evidence. |
| Scientists discover genetic changes linked to a major risk factor for blinding trachoma Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:31 AM PST Another clue to the workings of trachoma - the world's leading infectious cause of blindness -- has been revealed in a new study. Researchers identified markers of genetic regulation present in the early stages of infection that could predispose children to developing the condition in its long-term, severe form. |
| Cyber thieves making millions in profits Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:31 AM PST Cyber thieves who steal credit and debit card numbers are making millions of dollars in profits, fueling a global criminal enterprise marked by the high-profile data breaches of major companies such as Target and Home Depot. |
| Care, disease management and sociobehavioral interventions in China and Australia Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:31 AM PST Australia and China share a number of similar health policy challenges. Both countries are working to reduce gaps in health services accessibility and in health outcomes between rich and poor, urban and rural and indigenous and nonindigenous people, say researchers. |
| Beavers bring environmental benefits Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:30 AM PST A study into the ecology and habitat engineering of beavers reintroduced to Scotland has found the creatures bring numerous benefits to the environment. Results revealed the interconnected pools created by beaver dams increased the retention of organic matter by up to seven times and the level of aquatic plant life 20 fold. Levels of agricultural pollutants were also reduced in areas occupied by beavers, with concentrations of phosphorus halved and nitrate levels lowered by more than 40 per cent. |
| Are we losing the fight against antibiotic resistance? Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:30 AM PST There is new evidence that antibiotic resistance breaks through environmental and clinical boundaries. The authors of a new study say the data highlights the importance of reducing antibiotic use across all sectors if we are to reduce global antibiotic resistance. |
| Brain structural effects of psychopharmacological treatment in bipolar disorder Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST Bipolar disorder is associated with subtle neuroanatomical deficits. This review considers evidence that lithium, mood stabilizers, antipsychotic medication and antidepressant medications are associated with neuroanatomical variation. |
| Researchers highlight brain region as 'ground zero' of Alzheimer's disease Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST A critical but vulnerable region in the brain appears to be the first place affected by late onset Alzheimer's disease and may be more important for maintaining cognitive function in later life than previously appreciated, according to a new review of the scientific literature. |
| Scientists show how cancerous cells evade a potent targeted therapy Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST Researchers have discovered how STAT3 behaves in immature myeloid cells known as myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and they believe they have found the basis for a much more effective method of using STAT3 inhibitors to stop cancer progression in its tracks. |
| Adderall misuse rising among young adults Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST While the number of prescriptions for the stimulant Adderall has remained unchanged among young adults, misuse and emergency room visits related to the drug have risen dramatically in this group, new research suggests. |
| Improve winter road safety in Canada to decrease number of deaths Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST The annual deaths that occur each winter in Canada due to poor road conditions can be reduced with a multipronged strategy, argues a new article. |
| Running helps mice slow cancer growth Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:28 AM PST Here's one more benefit of exercise: mice who spent their free time on a running wheel were better able to shrink tumors (a 50 percent reduction in tumor size) compared to their less active counterparts. Researchers found that the surge of adrenaline that comes with a high-intensity workout helped to move cancer-killing immune (NK) cells toward lung, liver, or skin tumors implanted into the mice. |
| Functional biomarker for age-related macular degeneration found Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:04 AM PST Adults whose eyes are slow to adjust to the dark have a greater risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, researchers report. |
| A penny for our thoughts? Copper influx key to brain cell development Posted: 16 Feb 2016 11:03 AM PST A precision sensor has been used in a chicken embryo to find dramatic differences in the use of copper between developing and fully mature neurons. The investigators say their findings reveal how brain cells quickly adjust copper allocation from a predominant use in energy production and defense against free radicals to a use in activating enzymes that make neurons neurons. |
| Newly identified genes impact how transplanted stem cells give rise to blood cells Posted: 16 Feb 2016 10:56 AM PST Scientists have identified crucial genes needed for successful transplantation of blood-forming stem cells. The new research offers opportunities to study further the development of therapeutic interventions. |
| Aerobic fitness may protect liver against chronic alcohol use Posted: 16 Feb 2016 09:34 AM PST Excessive alcohol use is responsible for more than 80,000 deaths in the United States each year. Over time, excessive drinking can lead to several chronic conditions, such as fatty liver disease and cirrhosis. Now, a study shows that aerobic exercise may protect the liver against alcohol-related inflammation and injury. |
| Enhanced levels of carbon dioxide are likely cause of global dryland greening, study says Posted: 16 Feb 2016 09:34 AM PST Enhanced levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide are a likely key driver of global dryland greening, according to a new paper. After analyzing 45 studies from eight countries, researchers concluded the greening likely stems from the impact of rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide on plant water savings and consequent increases in available soil water. |
| Ocean oases: How islands support more sea-life Posted: 16 Feb 2016 09:34 AM PST A 60 year-old theory explaining why seas surrounding islands and atolls are particularly productive has just been proven. The authors describe the extent to which the Island Mass Effect happens and identify key drivers in this 'positive feed-back effect,' which acts as a life-supporting mechanism. The baseline data can be used in assessing how productivity may become altered under climate change scenarios such as altered ocean circulation patterns and what the knock-on effects may be. |
| Disease, warming oceans, rock lobster and sea star populations Posted: 16 Feb 2016 08:14 AM PST Two new studies show how diverse marine organisms are susceptible to diseases made worse by warming oceans. The first study warns that warm sea temperatures in 2015 may increase the levels of epizootic shell disease in American lobster in the northern Gulf of Maine in 2016. The second provides the first evidence linking warmer ocean temperatures with a West Coast epidemic of sea star wasting disease that has infected more than 20 species and devastated populations since 2013. |
| Observing brain diseases in real time Posted: 16 Feb 2016 08:14 AM PST An innovative tool allows researchers to observe protein aggregation throughout the life of a worm. The development of these aggregates, which play a role in the onset of a number of neurodegenerative diseases, can now be monitored automatically and in real time. This breakthrough was made possible by isolating worms in tiny microfluidic chambers. |
| Scientists: Think more broadly to predict wildlife climate change survival Posted: 16 Feb 2016 08:14 AM PST Scientists are largely ignoring the species characteristics that could tell them the most when it comes to calculating the probability of how well species will be able to survive environmental change, say experts in a new article. |
| Chewing sugar free gum could save millions a year Posted: 16 Feb 2016 08:14 AM PST The NHS in England could save £8.2 million a year on dental treatments -- the equivalent to 364,000 dental check-ups -- if all 12-year-olds across the UK chewed sugar free gum after eating or drinking, thanks to the role it plays in helping to prevent tooth decay. |
| Gene could help identify psychosis risk in cannabis users Posted: 16 Feb 2016 08:13 AM PST A gene that can be used to predict how susceptible a young person is to the mind-altering effects of smoking cannabis has been identified by a group of researchers. The finding could help identify otherwise healthy users who are most at risk of developing psychosis. |
| In a U.S. first, team measures lightning-produced ozone with lidar Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:49 AM PST Scientists have used Rocket-city Ozone (O3) Quality Evaluation in the Troposphere (RO3QET) Lidar to measure ozone produced by lightning in the United States. The research could be important to air quality prediction and assessment once it is developed further. |
| Good survival of 'blue babies,' children with congenital heart defects Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:48 AM PST Over 90 percent of those operated on for congenital heart defects as children, for example, due to blue baby syndrome, are alive 20 years post-surgery. A new doctoral thesis has explored the issue. |
| First detection of gases at super-Earth show a light-weight, dry atmosphere - with a hint of carbon too? Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:48 AM PST The first successful detection of gases in the atmosphere of a super-Earth reveals the presence of hydrogen and helium, but no water vapor. The exotic exoplanet, 55 Cancri e, is over eight times the mass of Earth and has previously been dubbed the 'diamond planet' because models based on its mass and radius have led some astronomers to speculate that its interior is carbon-rich. Now researchers have been able to examine the atmosphere of 55 Cancri e, also known as 'Janssen', in unprecedented detail. |
| Kill the rabbit Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:47 AM PST Snowshoe hares arrived on tiny Hay Island, at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy, in 1959, traveling by boat from Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick, Canada, with Wesley Ingalls and his nephew, Junior. The two fishermen had the idea that trapping hares would make an entertaining winter activity, when they were not fishing, and bring in a little extra money. With no competitors and few predators, Ingalls' original dozen hares quickly became several hundred. |
| Making cancer-fighting cells in the lab Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:45 AM PST Scientists have reprogrammed human invariant natural killer T cells to induced pluripotent stem cells, which were then differentiated back to iNKT cells that showed stronger activity than the original iNKT cells. This study shows iPS cell technology can be used to recover immune cells that have weakened immune activity. |
| New technique for turning sunlight into hydrogen Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:45 AM PST A new photoelectrode boosts the ability of solar water-splitting to produce hydrogen. |
| Animals revived after being in a frozen state for over 30 years Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:45 AM PST Tardigrades (water bears) were successfully revived and reproduced after having been frozen for over 30 years. A moss sample collected in Antarctica in Nov. 1983, stored at -20°C, was thawed in May 2014. Two individuals and a separate egg retrieved from the thawed sample were revived, thereby providing the longest record of survival for tardigrades as animals or eggs. Subsequently, one of the revived tardigrades and the hatchling repeatedly reproduced after recovering from their long-term cryptobiosis. |
| Arachnophobes overestimate spider sizes, say researchers Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:45 AM PST Although individuals with both high and low arachnophobia rated spiders as highly unpleasant, only the highly fearful participants overestimated the spider size, say authors of a new report. |
| Plant breeders, growers should pay attention to flush in fight against citrus greening disease Posted: 16 Feb 2016 07:45 AM PST New research shows that citrus trees are most likely to become infected with citrus greening disease during 'flush,' a stage in growth from the emergence of leaves until they expand to full size, but before they become thick and leathery. |
| Ice sheet modeling of Greenland, Antarctica helps predict sea-level rise Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:11 AM PST Predicting the expected loss of ice sheet mass is difficult due to the complexity of modeling ice sheet behavior. To better understand this loss, a team of researchers has been improving the reliability and efficiency of computational models that describe ice sheet behavior and dynamics. |
| New anti-biofilm compounds show promise against drug-resistant bacteria linked to hospital infections Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:11 AM PST A new class of anti-biofilm compounds derived from marine microorganisms has been discovered by researchers who report that these show promise against a drug-resistant bacterium commonly associated with hospital-acquired infections. |
| There are always bacteria lurking in dental equipment, suggests research Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:08 AM PST No disinfectants tested completely remove bacterial biofilms from water lines. |
| Male cancer survivors less likely to reproduce Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:08 AM PST Young male cancer survivors are three times as likely to turn to assisted fertilization to have children as males without a cancer diagnosis. This knowledge makes it possible to develop concrete treatment protocols, which affect fertility to a lesser degree, say authors of a new report. |
| Forever young: How stem cells resist change Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:03 AM PST A new research finding could have implications for cancer treatment and regenerative medicine, as well as more fundamental research, say researchers, who found that a microRNA suppresses a gene that can turn cells into tumor cells, and blocks two chain reactions that have also been linked to cancer. |
| New protocol to detect three species of Legionella in just eight hours Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:03 AM PST An innovative protocol for the detection of the three most prevalent Legionella species has been developed, enabling the source of the infection to be located in just eight hours. The breakthrough lies in the combined use of a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (Multiplex PCR) and pre-treatment with propidium monoazide (PMA). |
| What happens to unused metals extracted from Earth's crust? Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:03 AM PST We continue to extract metals from the earth's crust, with the associated risks to people and the environment, although only half of some of the metals we have already extracted are actually used. So, where are these unused metals? In many cases the world of the Urks. |
| Early family system types predict children’s emotional attention Posted: 16 Feb 2016 06:03 AM PST The type of family system during pregnancy and the baby's first year predicts the way the child processes emotional information. The results of a ten-year longitudinal study highlight the importance of the whole family system in children's emotional development in addition to the early mother-child relationship. |
