English
Arabic
Chinese (Simplified)
Dutch
Esperanto
French
German
Greek
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Portuguese
Russian
Spanish
UrduOne day, medical compounds could be introduced into cells with the help of bacterial toxins
Month: December 2019
Plant-eating insects disrupt ecosystems and contribute to climate change
A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that plant-eating insects affect forest ecosystems considerably more than previously thought. Among other things, the insects are a factor in the leaching of nutrients from soil and increased emissions of carbon…
Blood lipid profile predicts risk of type 2 diabetes better than obesity
Using lipidomics, a technique that measures the composition of blood lipids at a molecular level, and machine learning, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have identified a blood lipid profile that improves the possibility to assess, several years in advance,…
Legionella Conference 2020 moves to Chicago with a health care focus
NSF Health Sciences and National Environmental Health Association partner for public health conference
A new playbook for interference
NIST scientists correlate photon pairs of different colors generated in separate buildings
Millions with swallowing problems could be helped through new wearable device
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A wearable monitoring device to make treatments easier and more affordable for the millions of people with swallowing disorders is about to be released into the market. Georgia A. Malandraki, an associate professor of speech, language,…
Large carnivores and zoos — essential for biodiversity conservation marketing
Large carnivores (e.g. bears, big cats, wolves and elephant seals) and zoos should be utilised as powerful catalysts for public engagement with nature and pro-environmental behaviour, suggests a paper published in the scholarly open-access journal Nature Conservation by an international…
Social determinants of health are linked to gun homicide rates
Gun homicide rates in the US are associated with several social determinants of health, including income inequality, government welfare spending, trust in institutions, and social mobility, according to a new study published December 17 in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine…
Red-winged blackbird nestlings go silent when predators are near
If you’re a predator that eats baby birds — say, an American Crow — eavesdropping on the begging calls of nestlings can be an easy way to find your next meal. But do baby birds change their begging behavior when…
Suboptimal diet and cardiometabolic disease healthcare costs in the US
Approximately $50 billion dollars of the annual healthcare cost of cardiometabolic disease in the US population could be associated with poor diet, according to a research article published this week in the open access journal PLOS Medicine . The results…
Applying physics principle yields grim prediction on hurricane destruction in an era
BROOKLYN, New York, Tuesday, December 17, 2019 – Global warming could lead to hurricanes even more powerful than meteorologists currently forecast. That warning came from a physicist researching the behavior of tropical cyclones who noticed that one of the principles…
NASA’s SDO sees new kind of magnetic explosion on sun
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory has observed a magnetic explosion the likes of which have never been seen before. In the scorching upper reaches of the Sun’s atmosphere, a prominence — a large loop of material launched by an eruption on…
Solving the challenges of long duration space flight with 3D printing
Astronauts on future missions to the Moon and Mars need to be able to make their own spare parts, tools and materials essentially on demand
Clinical trial results in critical care medicine to be unveiled at leading UK conference
Results of three major critical care trials, and a fourth major international epidemiological sepsis study, to be unveiled at an international conference in Northern Ireland
Possible strategy for cancer treatment found in nuclear transport proteins
Although less often the focus of cancer research, recent studies have hinted at the possible importance of a type of protein known as nuclear transport receptors. Now researchers at Kanazawa University and collaborating institutions in Japan and the US have…
DOE awards $40M for SBIR & SBTT
U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette has issued the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) second Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020. The Phase I…
Scientists discover how proteins form crystals that tile a microbe’s shell
A new understanding of the nucleation process could shed light on how the shells help microbes interact with their environments, and help people design self-assembling nanostructures for various tasks.
Argonne-led team wins technology challenge at SC19
An extensive collaboration led by Argonne recently won the Inaugural SCinet Technology Challenge at the Supercomputing 19 conference by demonstrating real-time analysis of light source data from Argonne’s APS to the ALCF. Accelerator-based light sources — large-scale instruments used to investigate the fundamental properties of…
In breakthrough method of creating solar material, NREL scientists prove the impossible really isn’t
Scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) achieved a technological breakthrough for solar cells previously thought impossible. The scientists successfully integrated an aluminum source into their hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) reactor, then demonstrated the growth of the semiconductors…
NREL, Co-Optima research yields potential bioblendstock for diesel fuel
A novel oxygenate molecule that can be produced from biomass shows promise for use as a blend for diesel fuel, according to researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
Fatty meal interrupts gut’s communication with the body, but why?
If that second helping of prime rib stuns your gut into silence, is that good or bad?
Taking an X-ray of an atomic bond
Understanding the behavior of materials at their interfaces – where they connect to and interact with other materials – is central to engineering a variety of devices used to process, store and transfer information. Devices such as transistors, magnetic memory…
In ancient Scottish tree rings, a cautionary tale on climate, politics and survival
A 1600s famine with echoes in the age of Brexit
Novel genetic signature that can predict some kinds of breast cancer is identified
The research, published in the journal PLOS Genetics, combined a study of the genes involved in retinopathy, as a model of angiogenesis, with analysis of transcriptomic gene expression profiles from public breast cancer databases.
Changes in opioid-related drug overdose deaths in US
Bottom Line: Researchers analyzed changes in the proportion of drug overdose deaths involving opioids that were certified as suicide, unintentional or of undetermined intent in this observational study. Using 2000-2017 mortality data, researchers report 47,506 total opioid deaths (excluding homicides)…
Changes in the immune system explain why belly fat is bad for thinking
Iowa State researchers have found for the first time that less muscle and more body fat may affect how flexible our thinking gets as we become older, and changes in parts of the immune system could be responsible. These findings…
Gastric cancer susceptibility marker discovered
Gastric cancer, the third most common cause of cancer-related deaths, is often associated with a poor prognosis because it tends to be diagnosed at an advanced stage and is therefore difficult to treat. To reduce the death rate, it is…
Multiple sclerosis: New standards required for planning clinical trials
The patient perspective needs more consideration
100,000s of people select names for exoplanet systems
On 17 December 2019 the names of 112 sets of exoplanets and host stars named in the IAU100 NameExoWorlds campaigns were announced at a press conference in Paris (France). Within the framework of the International Astronomical Union’s 100th anniversary commemorations…
Moffitt researchers develop more efficient approach to create mouse models
Chimera mouse models and chimera-derived melanoma cell lines provide a faster approach to study skin cancer
Researchers create functional mini-liver by 3D bioprinting
Technique developed at Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, funded by FAPESP and hosted by the University of São Paulo, produced hepatic tissue in the laboratory in only 90 days and could become an alternative to organ transplantation in future
Suicide plays smaller role in opioid deaths than thought
Columbia researchers, analyzing national data on opioid overdose deaths, have found that only 4% of opioid-related overdose deaths are due to suicide–far below recent estimates of 20-30%. The findings were published today in JAMA . “Our findings suggest that the…
BCMA-Targeted Immunotherapy Can Lead to Durable Responses in Multiple Myeloma
An experimental, off-the-shelf immunotherapy that combines a targeted antibody and chemotherapy can lead to potentially durable responses in multiple myeloma patients whose disease has relapsed or is resistant to other standard therapies
Spinning Inequality
Analysis of more than 6 million clinical and life science papers shows articles with male lead authors are up to 21 percent more likely to use language that frames their research positively
Papers that use positive framing, including words like “promising,” “novel” and “unique,” in headlines and abstracts are more likely to be cited by other authors than papers without positive framing
Differences in the way men and women describe, discuss and convey their research could contribute to persistent gender gaps in pay and career advancement in life sciences and medicine
This is the first large-scale study to quantify gender differences in linguistic framing in biomedical research
A new gene therapy strategy, courtesy of Mother Nature
Scientists have developed a new gene-therapy technique by transforming human cells into mass producers of tiny nano-sized particles full of genetic material that has the potential to reverse disease processes.
Teen Overdoses From Anxiety Drug Rising
The number of teens taking and overdosing from benzodiazepines, commonly prescribed anxiety medications, has risen dramatically over the past decade, according to a national study coauthored by Rutgers researchers.
Robot-powered outfit is being fashioned to help seniors walk
A new line of wearable robotics developed by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) and The City University of New York, City College (CCNY) could keep seniors on their feet longer.
Crist Introduces Regional Ocean Partnership Bill, Addresses Gulf of Mexico and Coastal Concerns
U.S. Representative Charlie Crist (D-FL), along with Representatives Steven Palazzo (R-MS), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), and Chris Smith (R-NJ), introduced the Regional Ocean Partnership Act (H.R. 5390). The bill would authorize Regional Ocean Partnerships as partners with the federal government to address ocean and coastal concerns. It will provide with more consistent funding to help perform the critical mission of supporting ocean and coastal health, sustainability, and resiliency.
Math Equation Predicts and Detects Liver Cancer
University of California San Diego School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center researchers developed a math equation to predict and detect liver cancer and identified when healthy cells become cancerous.
NSF grant aims to improve research into factors impacting geographic education
Michael Solem, professor in the Department of Geography at Texas State University, has received a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to identify factors that may impact K-12 geography education
MacNeal Hospital Named One of the Nation’s Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospitals for the Second Year
MacNeal Hospital has been named one of the nation’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals by IBM Watson Health®. The study spotlights the top-performing cardiovascular hospitals in the U.S. based on a balanced scorecard of publicly available clinical, operational and patient satisfaction metrics and data. This is the second consecutive year that MacNeal Hospital has been recognized with this honor.
New Fitness Trends to Help You Achieve 2020 Health Goals
American College of Sports Medicine’s annual fitness trend forecast offers tips to meet 2020 fitness goals…and potentially spark ideas for last-minute holiday gifts.
Resident orcas’ appetite likely reason for decline of big Chinook salmon
Large, old Chinook salmon have mostly disappeared from the West Coast. A new University of Washington and NOAA study points to the recent rise of resident killer whales, and their insatiable appetite for large Chinook salmon, as the main driver behind the decline of the big fish.
Flashing lights may provide vital first test of MS drug success
Measuring changes in the speed of electrical signals along nerves connecting the eyes to the brain may accurately reflect recovery from myelin loss in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and could be used to evaluate new treatments for the disease.
Hard as a rock? Maybe not, say bacteria that help form soil
Research published this week by University of Wisconsin–Madison scientists shows how bacteria can degrade solid bedrock, jump-starting a long process of alteration that creates the mineral portion of soil.
Case Western Reserve University researchers discover critical link to controlling inflammation in Crohn’s disease
Investigators at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine discovered that blocking interleukin-1α (IL1α), a protein that controls inflammation in the gut, markedly decreases the severity of intestinal inflammation in a mouse model of Crohn’s disease (CD).
What a Year for California State University! Looking Back at 2019
Once again, another year has flown by. One day you’re committing to New Year’s resolutions and in the blink of an eye, you’re wrapping holiday gifts. In the midst of bustling end-of-year festivities, we’re taking a little time to reflect on all that transpired in 2019. Join us as we travel down memory lane to revisit some of the CSU’s most memorable achievements and milestones.
Wayne State receives NSF grant to enhance cybersecurity of chemical process control systems
With the help of a three-year, $500,000 grant from the National Science Foundation, a research team from Wayne State University will comprehensively evaluate the characteristics of cyberattacks for processes involving chemical processes of different types, and will develop fundamental advances in control theory and algorithms for enhancing cybersecurity of control systems for these processes through control designs integrated with other frameworks such as detection algorithms.
New Program to Address Impaired Driving from Alcohol, Cannabis and Prescription Drugs
Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine will expand a statewide program to prevent driving under the influence of alcohol, cannabis and prescription drugs.
Collaboration yields insights into mosquito reproduction
As carriers for diseases like dengue and Zika, mosquitoes kill more than 1 million people each year and sicken hundreds of millions more. But a better understanding of mosquito reproduction can help humans combat outbreaks of these diseases, which are worsening as the climate warms.