ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Study finds significant decrease in hospitalization of older nursing home residents with high dose influenza vaccine
• Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after heart attack
• Genetic variant shown to influence women's body shape and diabetes risk
• Hard-to-detect chromosomal anomalies explain neurodevelopmental birth defects
• New study provides key insights into aspirin's disease-fighting abilities
• New tool expands tracking of personal data on the Web
• Blood clotting protein triggers immune attack on brain
• Geneticists reconstruct population history of New York City
• Researchers study costs of integrating genetic sequencing into clinical care
• Researchers use gut bacteria composition to genetically classify colorectal tumors
• A new way to fight against antibiotic resistance
• Wearable sensing fabrics: Knit it, braid it, turn it on and use it
• Field widens for environments, microbes that produce toxic form of mercury
• Paleoclimate researchers find connection between carbon cycles, climate trends
• Pressure to 'publish or perish' may discourage innovative research
• Scientists produce shortest electron bunches ever by surfing plasma waves
• Researchers develop deep-learning method for computers to predict daily activities
• A better way to read the genome
• Threat posed by 'pollen thief' bees uncovered
• Pain is in the brain
• Antiviral compound provides full protection from Ebola virus in nonhuman primates
• Novel theoretical approach to reduce antibiotic resistance
• Scientists paint quantum electronics with beams of light
• 3D image of cancer protein aids quest for new treatments
• Tripped up by a bug: Infection may cause falls, especially in older people, study suggests
• Antibiotic stewardship reduces C. diff in hospitalized children
• Vaccines: Don't leave home without them
• Horn of Africa drying ever faster as climate warms
• Is the eco-tourism boom putting wildlife in a new kind of danger?
• Teens value results of genetic tests to inform future life decisions
• Soft probing with optical tweezers
• Using optical fiber to generate a two-micron laser
• HIV discovery: Biomarkers predict virus return when treatment is stopped

Study finds significant decrease in hospitalization of older nursing home residents with high dose influenza vaccine Posted: 10 Oct 2015 07:54 PM PDT Researchers found that flu immunizations with four times the strength of standard flu shots significantly reduced the risk of being hospitalized during the influenza season. The group that received the high dose vaccine had a 19.7 percent hospital admission rate versus 20.9 percent in admission for those who received the standard dose vaccine.

Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after heart attack Posted: 10 Oct 2015 07:52 PM PDT Exercise and stop smoking to improve depression after a heart attack, experts urge.

Genetic variant shown to influence women's body shape and diabetes risk Posted: 10 Oct 2015 07:52 PM PDT A genetic variant near the KLF14 gene regulates hundreds of genes that govern how and where women's bodies store fat, which affects their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to new research. Specifically, different alleles, or versions, of the variant cause fat-storing cells to function differently.

Hard-to-detect chromosomal anomalies explain neurodevelopmental birth defects Posted: 10 Oct 2015 07:52 PM PDT Balanced chromosomal abnormalities (BCAs), a category of structural changes to the human genome, may account for a large portion of birth defects related to brain development and function, according to new research. BCAs are changes to the structure of an individual's chromosomes, in which one or more fragments of DNA breaks apart from the regions around it and is reattached elsewhere in the genome.

New study provides key insights into aspirin's disease-fighting abilities Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT A new explanation has been found for how aspirin works in the body to reduce the risk of heart disease and certain cancers. Aspirin's active form, salicylic acid, blocks a protein called HMGB1, which triggers inflammation in damaged tissues. The new findings may explain the disease-preventing effects of a low-dose aspirin regimen and offer hope that more effective aspirin-like drugs may be developed for a wide variety of diseases.

New tool expands tracking of personal data on the Web Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT Researchers have developed a second-generation tool called 'Sunlight' that matches user-tailored ads and recommendations to tidbits of information supplied by users at a greater scale and level of accuracy than its predecessor, XRay.

Blood clotting protein triggers immune attack on brain Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT A single drop of blood in the brain is sufficient to activate an autoimmune response akin to multiple sclerosis, new research shows. This is the first demonstration that introduction of blood in the healthy brain is sufficient to cause peripheral immune cells to enter the brain, which then go on to cause brain damage.

Geneticists reconstruct population history of New York City Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT By combining genetic data, ancestry information, and electronic health records, scientists are able to identify neighborhood-level patterns of migration in the New York City area, according to new research. In addition to supplementing historical and census data, these sorts of findings can inform biomedical and public health efforts in New York and other locations, the study authors said.

Researchers study costs of integrating genetic sequencing into clinical care Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT Integrating whole genome sequencing into primary care and heart disease care is unlikely to substantially increase the costs of health care utilization and follow-up tests, according to new research. On average, patients whose genomes were sequenced incurred a cost of $719 in follow-up tests and care over the following year, including out-of-pocket expenses, while standard treatment and follow-up averaged $430 per patient.

Researchers use gut bacteria composition to genetically classify colorectal tumors Posted: 09 Oct 2015 03:54 PM PDT By analyzing the types of gut bacteria present around colorectal tumors, researchers have found a way to predict key genetic mutations in the tumors themselves, a method that could eventually inform the development of colorectal cancer diagnostics and therapeutics.

A new way to fight against antibiotic resistance Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:56 PM PDT The aim of Uppsala Health Summit, this summer's international summit about antibiotic resistance, was to make real progress in combatting this threat to public health. The conclusions have now been presented in a report which provides policy makers and medical professionals with a number of concrete recommendations.

Wearable sensing fabrics: Knit it, braid it, turn it on and use it Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:56 PM PDT Researchers are using traditional kitting and braiding fabrication techniques to produce electrically conducting, wearable fabrics capable of sensing a wide range of human movement.

Field widens for environments, microbes that produce toxic form of mercury Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:55 PM PDT Thawing permafrost and contaminated sediment in marine coastal areas pose some of the greatest risks for the production of highly toxic methylmercury.

Paleoclimate researchers find connection between carbon cycles, climate trends Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:55 PM PDT Making predictions about climate variability often means looking to the past to find trends. Now paleoclimate researchers have found clues in exposed bedrock alongside an Alabama highway that could help forecast climate variability. In their study, the researchers verified evidence suggesting carbon dioxide decreased significantly at the end of the Ordovician Period, 450 million years ago, preceding an ice age and eventual mass extinction. These results will help climatologists better predict future environmental changes.

Pressure to 'publish or perish' may discourage innovative research Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:55 PM PDT The traditional pressure in academia for faculty to 'publish or perish' advances knowledge in established areas. But it also might discourage scientists from asking the innovative questions that are most likely to lead to the biggest breakthroughs, according to a new study spearheaded by a UCLA professor.

Scientists produce shortest electron bunches ever by surfing plasma waves Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:55 PM PDT The shortest electron bunches ever produced have emerged in new research. The bunches were produced by focusing a high-power laser pulse into a supersonic helium gas jet. These 'bullets' of charged particles have a length that is one 300th of the breadth of a hair and travel at a speed close to that of light. They are also 10 times shorter than those produced from conventional accelerators.

Researchers develop deep-learning method for computers to predict daily activities Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Researchers have developed a new method that teaches computers to 'see' and understand what humans do in a typical day using 40,000 images taken from an ego-centric camera.

A better way to read the genome Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Genomicists have sequenced the RNA of the most complicated gene known in nature, using a hand-held sequencer no bigger than a cell phone. The researchers show that a new nanopore sequencer can sequence genes faster, better, and at a much lower cost than the standard technology.

Threat posed by 'pollen thief' bees uncovered Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT A new study has uncovered the secrets of 'pollen thief' bees -- which take pollen from flowers but fail to act as effective pollinators -- and the threat they pose to certain plant species.

Pain is in the brain Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT A new study might finally provide a new direction for research seeking to help patients suffering from neuropathic pain.

Antiviral compound provides full protection from Ebola virus in nonhuman primates Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Rhesus monkeys were completely protected from the deadly Ebola virus when treated three days after infection with a compound that blocks the virus's ability to replicate. These encouraging preclinical results suggest the compound, known as GS-5734, should be further developed as a potential treatment, according to new research findings.

Novel theoretical approach to reduce antibiotic resistance Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Researchers have developed a novel mathematical method inspired by Darwinian evolution to use current antibiotics to eliminate or reduce the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Scientists paint quantum electronics with beams of light Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Scientists have accidentally discovered a new way of using light to draw and erase quantum-mechanical circuits in a unique class of materials called topological insulators.

3D image of cancer protein aids quest for new treatments Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:53 PM PDT The first three-dimensional image of a key protein known to be involved in the development of blood and other cancers has been created by scientists. This discovery showed the protein, called Trib1, plays a vital role in controlling how and when other proteins are degraded, which is essential for managing protein levels in the cell. The finding could be used to develop new drugs to treat cancers such as leukaemia, caused by malfunctioning of the Trib1 protein.

Tripped up by a bug: Infection may cause falls, especially in older people, study suggests Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT People who end up in the emergency room because of a fall often are tripped up by an infection, rather than a loose throw rug or poor eyesight, suggests a new study.

Antibiotic stewardship reduces C. diff in hospitalized children Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT Hospitalized children were three times less likely to become sick with Clostridium difficile (C. diff), a serious bacterial infection that can occur after prolonged antibiotic use, following implementation of an antibiotic stewardship program, a new study found. These programs reduce the misuse of antibiotics and therefore C. diff, and also result in antibiotic cost savings, according to new research.

Vaccines: Don't leave home without them Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT While Americans should be fully vaccinated before travelling internationally to avoid infection with highly contagious diseases such as measles and hepatitis A, many are not, suggest two new studies. The findings suggest the lack of pretravel vaccination was a factor in illness outbreaks.

Horn of Africa drying ever faster as climate warms Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT The Horn of Africa has become increasingly arid in sync with the global and regional warming of the last century and at a rate unprecedented in the last 2,000 years, according to new research. The scientists suggest that as global and regional warming continues, the eastern Horn of Africa -- which includes Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia -- will receive progressively less rain during the crucial 'long rains' season of March, April and May.

Is the eco-tourism boom putting wildlife in a new kind of danger? Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT Many tourists today are drawn to the idea of vacationing in far-flung places around the globe where their dollars can make a positive impact on local people and local wildlife. But researchers writing in Trends in Ecology & Evolution on Oct. 9 say that all of those interactions between wild animals and friendly ecotourists eager to snap their pictures may inadvertently put animals at greater risk of being eaten.

Teens value results of genetic tests to inform future life decisions Posted: 09 Oct 2015 12:52 PM PDT Most teens in grades 7-12 would prefer to know the results of unanticipated findings found in whole exome sequencing genetic testing, even if the findings are not medically actionable until adulthood, according to survey data. The survey addressed secondary findings gleaned from sequencing the protein-coding regions of a person's genome.

Soft probing with optical tweezers Posted: 09 Oct 2015 07:21 AM PDT Researchers have developed a method for measuring soft, structured surfaces using optical forces. Surfaces separate outside from inside, control chemical reactions, and regulate the exchange of light, heat, and moisture. They thus play a special role in nature and technology. Researchers have presented an ultra-soft surface scanning method based on an optical trap and optical forces. Microscopy methods like these make it possible to measure particularly sensitive and minuscule structures without destroying them.

Using optical fiber to generate a two-micron laser Posted: 09 Oct 2015 05:30 AM PDT Lasers with a wavelength of two microns could move the boundaries of surgery and molecule detection. Researchers have managed to generate such lasers using a simple and inexpensive method.

HIV discovery: Biomarkers predict virus return when treatment is stopped Posted: 09 Oct 2015 05:30 AM PDT Scientists are now better able to predict how quickly the HIV virus will return after individuals stop treatment, thanks to new research.

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