Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for May 21, 2012:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Dopant gives graphene solar cells highest efficiency yet- Cloak of invisibility: Engineers use plasmonics to create an invisible photodetector
- Study finds modern dog breeds genetically disconnected from ancient ancestors
- Today's environment influences behavior generations later: research
- First light: Scientists regenerate the optic nerve, restore some components of vision
- Squid ink from Jurassic period identical to modern squid ink, study shows
- Reversible doping: Hydrogen flips switch on vanadium oxide
- Totally rad: Scientists create rewritable digital data storage in DNA
- Delphi gasoline-injection engine technique rivals hybrid's edge
- Modifying scar tissue can potentially improve outcome in chronic stroke
- Richer parasite diversity leads to healthier frogs: study
- Study identifies target for diabetes drug
- Social status promotes faster wound healing in wild baboons
- Study: Heart damage after chemo linked to stress in cardiac cells
- Pandemic 2009 H1N1 vaccination produces antibodies against multiple flu strains
Space & Earth news
Friction stir welding unites reliability, affordability
(Phys.org) -- NASA's next heavy-lift launch vehicle, the Space Launch System, is moving further in development faster thanks to proven advanced technologies like friction stir welding.
Elgin platform gas leak plugged safely, says Total
French energy giant Total said Monday it had successfully plugged a gas leak at a North Sea platform that cost the firm hundreds of millions of dollars and threatened to trigger a major explosion.
Sea Launch vessels depart on Intelsat mission
(AP) -- Sea Launch AG says its oceangoing rocket pad and command ship have departed their Long Beach, Calif., home port for the equator to launch a communications satellite for Intelsat.
Webcasts push solar eclipse to the masses
(AP) -- It was one of the best places in the western United States to watch the annular solar eclipse, and people drove for days just to get to this dusty stretch west of Albuquerque.
Dead ahead: Less rainfall for drought-sensitive southern hemisphere regions?
(Phys.org) -- Warming climate may mean less rainfall for drought-sensitive regions of the Southern Hemisphere, according to results just published by an international research team.
Stunning Lyrid meteor over earth at night
(Phys.org) -- On the night of April 21, the 2012 Lyrid meteor shower peaked in the skies over Earth. While NASA allsky cameras were looking up at the night skies, astronaut Don Pettit aboard the International Space Station trained his camera on Earth. Video footage from that night is now revealing breathtaking images of Earth with meteors ablating -- or burning up -- in the atmosphere.
Study ups plant CO2 intake estimates
Plants may be able to limit the impact of our CO2 emissions even more than we previously thought, an innovative new experiment suggests.
On the hunt for high-altitude microorganisms
The United States Rocket Academy has announced an open call for entries in its High Altitude Astrobiology Challenge, a citizen science project that will attempt to collect samples of microbes that may be lurking in Earth’s atmosphere at the edge of space.
From waste to water: Study examines solution to red mud problem
Scientists at the University of Glasgow are working to turn a toxic industrial waste product into a material which can be used to treat contaminated water.
Earth's water cycle intensifying with atmospheric warming
A clear change in salinity has been detected in the world's oceans, signalling shifts and an acceleration in the global rainfall and evaporation cycle.
Latest Southern Ocean research shows continuing deep ocean change
New research by teams of Australian and US scientists has found there has been a massive reduction in the amount of Antarctic Bottom Water found off the coast of Antarctica. Comparing detailed measurements taken during the Australian Antarctic program's 2012 Southern Ocean marine science voyage to historical data dating back to 1970, scientists estimate there has been as much as a 60 per cent reduction in the volume of Antarctic Bottom Water, the cold dense water that drives global ocean currents.
SpaceX readies new attempt of rocket launch to space lab (Update)
SpaceX on Monday readied a fresh bid to become the first private company to launch its own craft to the International Space Station after fixing an engine problem that grounded its earlier attempt.
Scientists track your carbon footprint, step by step
If you're driving your SUV to the farmers market to buy local asparagus and thinking you're making a difference for the planet, - not so fast. You're focused on a detail and ignoring the gas-hogging elephant in the room.
Potomac tops conservation group's list of endangered rivers
The Potomac River is much healthier today than it was 40 years ago, when its chemical-laced, sewage-laden waters helped inspire the 1972 Clean Water Act. But the Washington waterway still has a long way to go, as suggested by its No. 1 ranking in a new list of America's most endangered rivers.
New study provides baseline measurements of carbon in Arctic Ocean
Scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have conducted a new study to measure levels of carbon at various depths in the Arctic Ocean. The study, recently published in the journal Biogeosciences, provides data that will help researchers better understand the Arctic Ocean's carbon cycle—the pathway through which carbon enters and is used by the marine ecosystem. It will also offer an important point of reference for determining how those levels of carbon change over time, and how the ecosystem responds to rising global temperatures.
Europe's largest solar telescope opens in Canary Islands
A powerful solar telescope billed as the largest in Europe opened Monday on Spain's Canary Islands which scientists say will allow them to study the sun in unprecedented detail.
Two NASA satellites spy Alberto, the Atlantic Ocean season's first tropical storm
The first tropical storm of the Atlantic Ocean hurricane season formed off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 5 p.m. EDT, and NASA satellites were immediately keeping track of it. NASA's TRMM and Aqua satellites have provided a visible look at the compact storm and its rainfall rates.
NASA Goddard delivers magnetometers for next mission to Mars
Magnetometers built by scientists and engineers at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. for NASA's Mars Atmosphere And Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission have been delivered to the University of California at Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory for integration into the Particles and Field Package.
NASA sees Tropical Depression 03W's 'hot tower' on approach to Guam
NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite has caught two tropical cyclones with "hot towers" this week, and that's a hallmark that they'll intensify. Tropical Depression 03W is approaching Guam and is expected to strengthen.
NASA sees a 'hot tower' in newborn eastern Pacific Tropical Depression 2E
"Hot Tower" rain clouds within a tropical cyclone indicate that the storm is going to intensify, and that's what NASA's TRMM satellite spotted in newborn Tropical Depression 2E (TD2E) in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Eclipse crosses Asia, US: Millions look skyward
From a park near Albuquerque, to the top of Japan's Mount Fuji, to the California coast the effect was dramatic: The moon nearly blotting out the sun creating a blazing "ring of fire."
Hubble spies edge-on beauty
(Phys.org) -- Visible in the constellation of Andromeda, NGC 891 is located approximately 30 million light-years away from Earth. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope turned its powerful wide field Advanced Camera for Surveys towards this spiral galaxy and took this close-up of its northern half. The galaxy's central bulge is just out of the image on the bottom left.
Toxic mercury, accumulating in the Arctic, springs from a hidden source
(Phys.org) -- Environmental scientists at Harvard have discovered that the Arctic accumulation of mercury, a toxic element, is caused by both atmospheric forces and the flow of circumpolar rivers that carry the element north into the Arctic Ocean.
Environmental group measures methane seeps in the Arctic
(Phys.org) -- A team of researchers, led by Katey Walter Anthony, of the University of Alaska, has been studying and mapping so-called seeps, holes in lake ice near the edges of glaciers where methane is bubbling up from below into the atmosphere, and suggest that a feedback loop may be in the works. As the team writes in their paper describing their observations, which has been published in the journal Nature Geoscience, seeping methane that results from Arctic warming, might itself also be contributing to warming; a feedback loop that could accelerate global warming.
Desert dust intensifies summer rainfall in U.S. southwest
(Phys.org) -- Dust is more than something to be brushed off the furniture. Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory found that dust kicked up from the desert floor acts like a heat pump in the atmosphere, fueling the annual climate system called the North American Monsoon. The dust increases precipitation by up to 40 percent during the summer rainy season in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Their study, the first on the U.S. Southwest summer monsoon, found that the heat pump effect is consistent with how dust acts on West African and Asian monsoon regions.
Research team claims to have found evidence Lake Cheko is impact crater for Tunguska Event
(Phys.org) -- Early on the morning of June 30th, 1908, a huge explosion occurred in a remote part of Siberia near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River. So great was the blast that trees were knocked down in neat rows for nearly a thousand square miles and the sky lit up from parts of Asia to Great Britain. What caused that explosion has never been firmly settled. Most researchers agree that it was the result of either a comet or meteoroid, with most leaning towards the former due to the lack of both an impact crater and meteoroid fragments. Now however, a research team from Italy says that they have found proof that it was in fact a meteorite that struck the Earth and that a nearby lake is the impact crater. They have published the results of their findings in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems.
Galaxies in the young cosmos
(Phys.org) -- The universe was born about 13.7 billion years ago in the big bang. The Sun and its system of planets formed about five billion years ago. What happened, then, during that long, intervening stretch of nearly nine billion years? This is one of the key questions in modern science. Astronomers think that the very first stars and galaxies appeared only a few hundreds of millions of years after the big bang, and have been evolving ever since. They must have been quite different from the stars and galaxies of today, however, in part because the young universe lacked most of the chemical elements present today - those elements were made gradually in the nuclear furnaces of those stars.
Technology news
Reports: Nasdaq 'embarrassed' at Facebook delay
(AP) -- The CEO of the Nasdaq stock exchange says it is "humbly embarrassed" by its bungling of Facebook's hugely anticipated debut as a public company on Friday.
Digital media brings erotic books out of the closet
It seems like yesterday that women's erotica was something to be read in private under the sheets. But no more.
The real cost of coal is quickly adding up
"Cheap coal" is a myth. And like all myths, we accept its wisdom without thinking.
Chinese company to buy US movie theater chain AMC
(AP) -- A Chinese conglomerate announced Monday it will buy a major U.S. cinema chain, AMC Entertainment Holdings, for $2.6 billion in China's biggest takeover of an American company to date.
UC students design a better pill bottle for the blind and visually impaired
It’s easy to see that University of Cincinnati design students Alex Broerman and Ashley Ma are on to something with their new design and prototype for a prescription-medicine pill bottle that better serves the needs of the blind and visually impaired by means of a simple and inexpensive innovation.
Court won't reduce student's music download fine
(AP) -- The Supreme Court has refused to take up a Boston University student's constitutional challenge to a $675,000 penalty for illegally downloading 30 songs and sharing them on the Internet.
Google provides temporary Cornell science campus
Google on Monday agreed to provide a temporary home to a high-tech science college run by Cornell University in New York City.
Yahoo to sell half of its Alibaba stake for $7.1B (Update)
(AP) -- Struggling Internet company Yahoo Inc. has secured a lifeline after agreeing to sell half of its prized stake in Chinese e-commerce group Alibaba for about $7.1 billion, with most of the cash going to shareholders.
Jack Ma: English teacher turned Internet billionaire
After being knocked back by American venture capitalists in 1999, Jack Ma -- a cash-strapped entrepreneur -- convinced friends to give him $60,000 to start Chinese online retailer Alibaba.com.
Where are Facebook's friends? Stock down after IPO (Update)
(AP) -- Facebook's stock is tumbling well below its $38 IPO price in the social network's second day of trading as a public company on Monday.
Smart highways to avoid traffic jams
(Phys.org) -- Traffic lights on highway access ramps can help prevent traffic jams. Swiss engineers are testing this approach to increase the capacity of Swiss highways.
LEDs on silicon can reduce production costs
A new manufacturing technology is expected to greatly reduce the cost of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in the future. For the first time ever, researchers at the Siemens subsidiary Osram Opto Semiconductors were able to successfully produce gallium nitride LED chips on a silicon substrate instead of the much more expensive sapphire backing. Silicon is a standard material in the semiconductor industry and is therefore an inexpensive and easily obtainable alternative. This development goes a long way toward making it possible for Osram to produce LED components at a much lower cost while maintaining the same level of quality and performance.
Apple says data center will be all green
Apple says its $1 billion data center in Maiden, N.C., will include a second large solar farm to help power the site entirely by renewable energy by the end of this year.
Cable cos to share access on 50,000 Wi-Fi hotspots
(AP) -- Cable TV companies are trying to give their customers another reason not to cancel their service: better access to Wi-Fi hotspots.
Google aiming to close Motorola deal by Wednesday
(AP) -- Google is planning to complete its $12.5 billion acquisition of cell phone maker Motorola Mobility Holdings before Wednesday.
Judge directs truce talks in Apple-Samsung patent fight
The chiefs of iPhone-maker Apple and smartphone giant Samsung were to be in patent war truce talks on Monday at the direction of a judge who asked them sidestep a court battle.
At seventh birthday, YouTube marks new milestones
YouTube celebrated its seventh birthday by saying it has hit fresh milestones in terms of its offerings and the amount of time spent on the video-sharing website.
Apple's Cook top-paid US CEO in 2011: report
Apple chief executive Tim Cook topped the list of the best-paid CEOs in the US in 2011 thanks to stock options that put him more than $300 million above his next rival, a Wall Street Journal survey showed Monday.
Judge scolds attorneys in Oracle vs. Google patent trial
The judge presiding over a patent trial pitting Oracle against Google scolded rival attorneys on Monday as deliberating jurors grappled with subtleties of references in computer software code.
EU gives Google 'weeks' to satisfy competition concerns (Update)
European Union anti-trust chiefs asked Google Monday to quickly offer "remedies" to satisfy Brussels' concerns the Internet search king has abused its dominant market position -- or else face heavy penalties.
Researchers improve fast-moving mobile networks
Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) allow people in multiple, rapidly-moving vehicles to communicate with each other – such as in military or emergency-response situations. Researchers from North Carolina State University have devised a method to improve the quality and efficiency of data transmission in these networks.
Cell network security holes revealed, with an app to test your carrier
Popular firewall technology designed to boost security on cellular networks can backfire, unwittingly revealing data that could help a hacker break into Facebook and Twitter accounts, a new study from the University of Michigan shows.
Origami-inspired design method merges engineering, art
Researchers have shown how to create morphing robotic mechanisms and shape-shifting sculptures from a single sheet of paper in a method reminiscent of origami, the Japanese art of paper folding.
Yahoo's $7.1B deal with Alibaba offers ray of hope
After years of mortifying missteps, Yahoo Inc. finally has something to boast about: a multibillion-dollar windfall from a savvy investment in China.
Delphi gasoline-injection engine technique rivals hybrid's edge
(Phys.org) -- Running a diesel like engine on gasoline is something Delphi is doing in notable fashion. They claim they are on to a promising way to enjoy an engine that gives the vehicle owner high efficiency and low emissions. Delphi, a major Michigan-based auto-parts supplier, is developing this technology which has shown impressive results in tests. Delphi tried out its combustion concept, which reaps the best of two worlds of low-emission gas and efficient diesel engines. Delphi claims its technology is an improvement upon the fuel economy of gas-powered cars, and can bring forth benefits of the hybrid at less the cost of a large battery and electric motor.
Medicine & Health news
Obstructive sleep apnea can be managed successfully in the primary care setting
Patients with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can be successfully managed in a primary care setting by appropriately trained primary care physicians (PCPs) and community-based nurses, according to Australian researchers.
Report using private health claims data shows prices are driving health spending growth
Rising prices for care were the chief driver of health care costs for privately insured Americans in 2010, according to the first report from the newly formed Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI). The per capita spending on inpatient and outpatient facilities, professional procedures, and prescriptions drugs rose 3.3 percent in 2010 for beneficiaries under age 65 with private, employer-sponsored group insurance. HCCI data show that this 3.3 percent increase follows spending increases in 2008 (6.0%) and 2009 (5.8%).
Soldiers who desecrate the dead see themselves as hunters
Modern day soldiers who mutilate enemy corpses or take body-parts as trophies are usually thought to be suffering from the extreme stresses of battle. But, research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) shows that this sort of misconduct has most often been carried out by fighters who viewed the enemy as racially different from themselves and used images of the hunt to describe their actions.
Obese adolescents have heart damage
Obese adolescents with no symptoms of heart disease already have heart damage, according to new research.
Hitting parasites where they hurt: New research shows promise in the fight against Toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasmosis, a disease caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, is one of the most common parasitic infections in the world. In the U.S. it is estimated that more than 22 percent of the population 12 years and older have been infected with toxoplasma, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Woman with flesh-eating disease takes own breaths
(AP) -- The father of a young Georgia woman fighting a flesh-eating bacteria says his daughter is now breathing on her own.
To prevent skin cancer: Vigilant watch - plus sunscreen
(Medical Xpress) -- Kelly Bathgate’s mother was vigilant. She had three daughters, all fair-haired and fair-skinned, and the family spent several years living in Hawaii and the Philippines. “My mom was always putting sunscreen on us,” Bathgate said. “She did everything she could. We were always outside.”
Nighttime intensivist staffing and mortality in the ICU
Nighttime intensivist physician staffing in intensive care units (ICUs) with a low-intensity daytime staffing model is associated with reduced mortality, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference in San Francisco. The same study showed that nighttime intensivists were not associated with reduced mortality among ICUs that used a high-intensity daytime staffing model.
Troublesome dyspnea during sexual activity is common in COPD patients
Troublesome dyspnea that limits sexual activity is common among older patients with COPD, according to a new study from Denmark.
Tropical fruit's role as skin cancer weapon
An exciting breakthrough on the potential anti-skin cancer properties of the tropical fruit mangosteen has earned its researcher, Flinders University PhD candidate Jing Jing Wang (pictured), a seat in the finals of a prestigious medical prize.
Combination antibiotic treatment does not result in less organ failure in adults with severe sepsis
Frank M. Brunkhorst, M.D., of Friedrich-Schiller University, Jena, Germany, and colleagues conducted a study to compare the effect of the antibiotics moxifloxacin and meropenem with the effect of meropenem monotherapy on sepsis-related organ dysfunction. Early appropriate antimicrobial therapy leads to lower mortality rates associated with severe sepsis. The authors hypothesized that maximizing the potential benefit and appropriateness of initial antibiotics by using 2 antibiotics would improve clinical outcomes compared with monotherapy.
Use of in-hospital mortality to assess ICU performance may bias quality measurement
In-hospital mortality for ICU patients is often used as a quality measure, but discharge practices may bias results in a way that disadvantages large academic hospitals, according to a recently conducted study.
Biomarker predicts response to cancer treatment
VIB researcher Diether Lambrechts, associated with KU Leuven, has discovered a biomarker that might potentially predict which patients will benefit more from treatment with bevacizumab (Avastin). If validated, this discovery could be an important step towards personalized medicine and patient-tailored use of this important cancer drug.
Heparin-like compounds inhibit breast cancer metastasis to bone
Researchers from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have in collaboration with the University of Turku, Indiana University and two Finnish companies, Biotie Therapies Corp. and Pharmatest Services Ltd, discovered a novel mechanism regulating the development of breast cancer bone metastases and showed that heparin-like compounds can potentially be used to inhibit breast cancer metastasis to bone.
Chemotherapy and radiation given together could help elderly patients with lung cancer live longer
Despite more than two-thirds of lung cancer cases being diagnosed in people 65 years or older, there have been few trials of treatments in this age group, and it is not known if the standard treatment for patients with inoperable non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC)—combined chemoradiotherapy—is suitable for elderly patients. However, new research published Online First in The Lancet Oncology shows that giving a daily low-dose of the chemotherapy drug carboplatin at the same time as radiotherapy significantly prolongs survival in elderly patients compared with radiotherapy alone.
Poor-quality antimalarial drugs threaten to jeopardize progress made in malaria control over past decade
Poor-quality and fake antimalarial drugs are leading to drug resistance and inadequate treatment that is endangering global efforts made to control and eliminate malaria over the past 10 years, according to a review of the evidence published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. In particular, the emergence of resistance to artemisinin drugs, currently the most effective treatment against malaria, on the Thailand-Cambodia border should be a wake up call, warn the authors.
A systems approach to preventing obesity in early life
Currently more than 10% of preschoolers in the U.S. are obese and effective strategies that target pregnancy, infancy, and toddlers are urgently needed to stop the progression of the childhood obesity epidemic, as proposed in an article in Childhood Obesity, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.
HIT essential to disaster support, recovery
A new article titled, "An HIT Solution for Clinical Care and Disaster Planning: How One Health Center in Joplin, MO, Survived a Tornado and Avoided a Health Information Disaster," by the Geiger Gibson /RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, was released today in the Online Journal of Public Health Informatics (OJPJI). It examines the experience of a community health center in the aftermath of the major tornado that swept through the American Midwest in the spring of 2011, and provides insight into key information technology planning issues, especially those related to patient records and health center data, essential to disaster survival and recovery.
Timing can affect whether women and minorities face discrimination
Timing can affect whether females and minorities experience discrimination — says a study published today in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Pulmonary rehabilitation and improvement in exercise capacity improve survival in COPD
Pulmonary rehabilitation and improvement in exercise capacity significantly improve survival in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a new study from the UK.
Comorbidities are common in patients with COPD
The majority of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) referred for pulmonary rehabilitation have multiple extra-pulmonary comorbidities, according to a new study from the Netherlands.
Inflammation a possible cause of higher mortality rates in older asthma patients
Higher mortality rates among older adult asthma patients compared to their younger counterparts may be due, at least in part, to an increase in airway inflammation, according to a study conducted by researchers in Canada, who note that their results imply that elderly patients are either less likely to follow asthma medication dosing instructions, or that the underlying airway inflammation in elderly patients is relatively resistant to current anti-inflammatory therapies.
Instrumented spinal fusion method impacts infection rate
(HealthDay) -- For patients who undergo instrumented spinal fusion, the rates of infection are higher among those who receive posterior lumbar interbody fusion compared with those who receive posterior or posterolateral fusion, according to a study published online May 10 in the Journal of Spinal Disorders & Techniques.
Researchers discover antibiotic residues, some more than FDA limits, in samples from 'World news with diane sawyer'
After testing farm-raised shrimp samples of international origin for ABC’s “World News with Diane Sawyer,” researchers at Texas Tech University found evidence of antibiotics – one a suspected human carcinogen – in seafood imported into the United States and purchased from grocery store shelves.
Pancreatic cancer may be detected with simple intestinal probe
By simply shining a tiny light within the small intestine, close to that organ's junction with the pancreas, physicians at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida have been able to detect pancreatic cancer 100 percent of the time in a small study. The light, attached to a probe, measures changes in cells and blood vessels in the small intestine produced by a growing cancer in the adjoining pancreas.
Study finds stressed men more social, refutes common belief that stress always causes aggressive behavior
A team of researchers led by the psychologists and neuroscientists Prof. Markus Heinrichs and Dr. Bernadette von Dawans at the University of Freiburg, Germany, examined in a study how men react in stressful situations - and have refuted a nearly 100-year-old doctrine with their results. According to this doctrine, humans and most animal species show the "fight-or-flight" response to stress. Only since the late 1990s have some scientists begun to argue that women show an alternate "tend-and-befriend" response to stress - in other words, a protective ("tend") and friendship-offering ("befriend") reaction. Men, in contrast, were still assumed to become aggressive under stress. Von Dawans refuted this assumption, saying: "Apparently men also show social approach behavior as a direct consequence of stress."
CDC: Half of overweight teens have heart risk
(AP) -- Half the nation's overweight teens have unhealthy blood pressure, cholesterol or blood sugar levels that put them at risk for future heart attacks and other cardiac problems, new federal research says.
Blocking DNA: HDAC inhibitor targets triple negative breast cancer
The histone de-acetylase (HDAC) inhibitor panobinostat is able to target and destroy triple negative breast cancer, reveals a new study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Breast Cancer Research. Researchers from Tulane University Health Sciences Center have shown that panobinostat was able to destroy breast cancer cells and reduce tumor growth in mice.
Nordic walking improves health of heart failure patients
Nordic walking enables heart failure patients to exercise more intensely than walking without poles.
Folic acid may reduce some childhood cancers
Folic acid fortification of foods may reduce the incidence of the most common type of kidney cancer and a type of brain tumors in children, finds a new study by Kimberly J. Johnson, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, and Amy Linabery, PhD, postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota.
Epidemiology of rosacea described in United Kingdom
(HealthDay) -- The incidence of rosacea in the United Kingdom is 1.65 per 1,000 person-years, with alcohol consumption linked to a modest increase in risk and current smoking linked to an decreased risk, according to a study published online May 5 in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Study ties secondhand smoke to bladder irritation in kids
(HealthDay) -- Parents who smoke may put their children at greater risk for bladder irritation, according to a small new study.
Increase in physical activity in men optimizes peak bone mass
(HealthDay) -- For young men, increasing physical activity over a five-year period is associated with improvements in bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD), according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.
Inadequate pain meds in ER for patients with long-bone fractures
(HealthDay) -- The majority of patients with long-bone fractures receive inadequate pain medication in the emergency department, and disparities in management exist, according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing.
Research holds out hope for stroke patients
(Medical Xpress) -- People with a curious condition that causes them to apply make-up on only one side of their face, or ignore food on half of their plate, are playing a new role in understanding stroke recovery.
Building a drug delivery platform to regenerate heart tissue
(Medical Xpress) -- While current heart-attack treatments mainly try to preserve healthy heart tissue, scientists have been finding compounds that can stimulate growth of new tissue – either by getting heart muscle cells (cardiomyocytes) to replicate, or by stimulating other nearby cells to become cardiomyocytes. The challenge lies in getting these regenerative factors into the damaged heart tissue. Now, researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital report success getting a sponge-like gel, soaked with one of these factors, to slowly release the medication into the space surrounding the heart, and from there into the damaged tissue.
Internet porn bad for adolescent health
Emerging evidence indicates that internet pornography is strongly associated with risky sexual behavior among adolescents, according a review from UNSW's Kirby Institute.
Probing Question: What is mindfulness?
Ancient wisdom tells us to "stop and smell the roses" and to "live for the moment." Given our busy lives, it's no surprise that this advice is often easier said than done. Many of us multitask not only our physical chores, but our mental ones as well.
Study debunks idea that foreign health aid rife with waste
(Medical Xpress) -- When a 2010 study concluded that about half the money given to international governments for providing health-care services isn’t used as intended, skeptics who argued that foreign aid is largely wasted were handed a powerful piece of data to bolster their claims.
Creatine may protect liver from fatty diet
(Medical Xpress) -- A collaborative study involving researchers at the University of Alberta, the University of São Paulo in Brazil, and the Memorial University of Newfoundland has shown that creatine, a naturally occurring amino acid in the human body, may contain properties that help fight the onset of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease caused by a high-fat diet.
Is the U.S. ready for home HIV tests?
At the pharmacy, you can buy anything from tea kettles to Tylenol. But what if you could buy a rapid HIV test over the counter and test yourself in the privacy of your own home?
Tuberculosis increases the risk of lung cancer mortality in the elderly
Tuberculosis independently predicts death from lung cancer in the elderly, according to a new study from researchers in Hong Kong.
New drug shrinks brain tumours in melanoma patients
(Medical Xpress) -- Australian researchers have reported promising results with a new drug that shrinks brain tumours in melanoma patients. Their findings are published in The Lancet medical journal today.
Oxytocin improves brain function in children with autism
(Medical Xpress) -- Preliminary results from an ongoing, large-scale study by Yale School of Medicine researchers shows that oxytocin — a naturally occurring substance produced in the brain and throughout the body— increased brain function in regions that are known to process social information in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
New portable tool detects dengue infected mosquitoes in the field
(Medical Xpress) -- A new portable tool to detect dengue virus-infected mosquitoes will help reduce the likelihood of human infections around the world.
Novel discovery paves the way for more effective treatment of cancers
A team of scientists from the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Department of Biological Sciences and Mechanobiology Institute have discovered how a drug-led compound – a compound that is undergoing preclinical trials as a potential drug – can deprive cancer cells of energy and stop them from growing into a tumour. This drug-led compound is named BPTES.
International panel updates definition of acute respiratory distress syndrome
Gordon D. Rubenfeld, M.D., of the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center, Toronto, Canada, and colleagues with the ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) Definition Task Force, developed a new definition of ARDS (the Berlin Definition) that focused on feasibility, reliability, validity and objective evaluation of its performance.
Cholesterol-lowering drugs may slow prostate growth
Statins drugs prescribed to treat high cholesterol may also work to slow prostate growth in men who have elevated PSA levels, according to an analysis led by researchers at Duke University Medical Center.
Research examines effect of prednisolone in patients with Bell palsy
Treatment for Bell palsy (a condition involving the facial nerve and characterized by facial paralysis) with the corticosteroid prednisolone within 72 hours appeared to significantly reduce the number of patients with mild to moderate palsy severity at 12 months, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery.
Sudden cardiac death higher in men with slower electrical impulses through heart
Men whose electrical impulses take a few milliseconds longer to travel through the lower chambers of the heart have an increased risk for sudden cardiac death (SCD), according to research reported in Circulation, an American Heart Association journal.
Vigorous physical activity associated with reduced risk of psoriasis
A study of U.S. women suggests that vigorous physical activity may be associated with a reduced risk of psoriasis, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Dermatology.
Treatment with bisphosphonates associated with increased risk of atypical femoral fractures
Treatment with bisphosphonate therapy appears to be associated with an increased risk of atypical fractures of the femur, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine.
Study finds surgical residents often fatigued
A study involving 27 orthopedic surgery residents suggests that surgical residents are often fatigued during their awake time, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.
Study finds moderate weight loss reduces levels of sex hormones linked to breast cancer risk
Even a moderate amount of weight loss can significantly reduce levels of circulating estrogens that are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, according to a study by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center – the first randomized, controlled clinical trial to test the effects of weight loss on sex hormones in overweight and obese postmenopausal women, a group at elevated risk for breast cancer.
Hunter-gatherers and horticulturalist lifestyle linked to lower blood pressure increases
Hunter-gatherers and forager-horticulturalists who live off the land and grow what they need to survive have lower age-related increases in blood pressure and less risks of atherosclerosis, according to two new studies in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension.
Taking cholesterol drugs in hospital may improve stroke outcomes
A new study suggests that using cholesterol-lowering medications known as statins after having a stroke may increase the likelihood of returning home and lessen the chance of dying in the hospital. The research is published in the May 22, 2012, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
The heart rules the head when we make financial decisions
Our 'gut feelings' influence our decisions, overriding 'rational' thought, when we are faced with financial offers that we deem to be unfair, according to a new study. Even when we are set to benefit, our physical response can make us more likely to reject a financial proposition we consider to be unjust.
Research shows some people predisposed for recurrent C. difficile infection
University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers have found that some patients appear to be more predisposed for recurrent infection from the bacterium Clostridium difficile, or C. diff, and that it may advance to a more serious inflammatory condition in those individuals.
T cell imbalance increases risk for gastrointestinal infection recurrence
University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers have found that an imbalance in the regulation of certain T cells—the cells in the body that fight off infection or attack the system in certain autoimmune diseases—may put certain people at a higher risk of having recurrent cases of Clostridium difficile, or C. Diff, infection.
Study finds sigmoidoscopy reduces colorectal cancer rates
Flexible sigmoidoscopy, a screening test for colorectal cancer that is less invasive and has fewer side effects than colonoscopy, is effective in reducing the rates of new cases and deaths due to colorectal cancer, according to research sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. In a study that spanned almost 20 years, researchers found that overall colorectal cancer mortality (deaths) was reduced by 26 percent and incidence (new cases) was reduced by 21 percent as a result of screening with sigmoidoscopy. These results appeared online, ahead of print, on May 21, 2012, in the New England Journal of Medicine, and were presented at Digestive Disease Week, a scientific conference.
Marketing is more effective when targeted to personality profiles
Advertisers spend enormous amounts of time and money attempting to tailor their advertising campaigns to the needs of different demographic groups. After all, the concerns of first-year college students are going to be different from those of retired professionals.
Should oxygen be used for patients with chronic heart failure?
Researchers at the University of Hull, in the UK, have just launched a major new trial investigating the effects of home oxygen therapy in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).
Some pollens are much more aggressive than others
Scientists from across Europe investigated the allergic potential of pollens from the three main triggers of hay fever in Europe: Birch, grass and olive. As the Hialine study researchers have found, the allergenicity of the pollens varies. Depending on the time of year and region, the pollens produce different quantities of protein compounds, these being ultimately responsible for the allergic immune reaction.
Discovery suggests new combination therapy strategy for basal-like breast cancers
Multiple research projects – including a 2006 study conducted at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill – have used DNA microarray analysis to identify several breast cancer subtypes, including luminal A, luminal B, basal-like and HER2-enriched. Simple tests are being developed to help doctors identify these subtypes and to treat their patients in a more biologically-based way. In turn, these tests have made several studies possible that indicate that basal-like, or triple negative breast cancer, is more prevalent in African Americans than their Caucasian counterparts.
Breast-fed babies' gut microbes contribute to healthy immune systems
A new multi-university study reports that differences in bacterial colonization of the infant gut in formula-fed and breast-fed babies lead to changes in the expression of genes involved in the infant's immune system.
Study: Simple scope exam cuts colon cancer deaths
A simple, cheaper exam of just the lower part of the bowel can cut the risk of developing colon cancer or dying of the disease, a large federal study finds.
Doctors who dictate their notes have worse quality of care than those who use other documentation methods: study
Could the quality of care you receive be affected by how your doctor takes notes? According to a new study by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), doctors who dictated their patient notes appeared to have worse quality of care than those who used structured documentation.
WHO's Chan raises funding squeeze concern
Funding pressures and the rise of chronic illnesses such as heart disease are the top "danger zones" for global health in 2012, the head of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan, said on Monday.
Final word: Task force recommends against PSA-based screening for prostate cancer
Following a period for public comment, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released its final recommendation for prostate cancer screening. The Task Force now recommends against PSA-based screening for all men, regardless of age. The final recommendations are being published early online in the May 22 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, the flagship journal of the American College of Physicians (ACP).
Study supports value of sigmoidoscopy, an alternative to colonoscopy
(HealthDay) -- New research confirms that sigmoidoscopies -- less-invasive alternatives to colonoscopies that don't require sedation -- are effective in lowering the risk of colon cancer.
White matter of abstinent alcoholics recovers over time
(HealthDay) -- Based on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), the microstructural changes seen in the genu and body of the corpus callosum in recently detoxified alcohol-dependent patients are found to improve after one year of abstinence, according to research published online May 2 in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Cardiac disease risk factors prevalent among U.S. teens
(HealthDay) -- From 1999 to 2008 the prevalence of several cardiovascular disease risk factors remained stable among U.S. adolescents, but the burden of risk factors is still considerable, according to a study published online May 21 in Pediatrics.
Phylogenomic analysis reveals origin, spread of MRSA clone
(HealthDay) -- Phylogenomic analysis has revealed details about the emergence and transmission of a major methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clone, EMRSA-16, according to research published online May 14 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Study reports increasing incidence of Clostridium difficile infection
A study presented by Mayo Clinic researchers during Digestive Disease Week 2012 provides clear evidence that the number of people contracting the hard-to-control and treat bacterial infection Clostridium difficile (C. difficile or C. diff) is increasing, and that the infection is commonly contracted outside of the hospital.
Vitamin D + TB vaccine: Allies in fight against bladder cancer?
The tuberculosis vaccine is often used as a treatment for bladder cancer, and adding vitamin D might improve the vaccine's effectiveness, according to new research from the University of Rochester Medical Center presented today at the American Urological Association annual meeting.
World's smallest artificial heart implanted in Italian baby
Italian doctors in March implanted the smallest ever artificial heart into a 16-month-old baby before the infant received a permanent organ donation, said the hospital that performed the operation.
Violent video games turning gamers into deadly shooters
Playing violent shooting video games can improve firing accuracy and influence players to aim for the head when using a real gun finds a new study in Communication Research.
Donor aortic graft improves reconstruction after partial laryngectomy
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) surgeons have developed a new technique for reconstructing the larynx after surgery for advanced cancer. In the May Annals of Otology, Rhinology and Laryngology, they describe how this approach – which uses cryopreserved aortas from deceased donors to replace removed larynx tissue – allowed patients to avoid a permanent tracheotomy and maintain voice and swallowing function with no need for immunosuppressive medications. The pioneering surgery was a collaborative effort between Steven Zeitels, MD, director of the MGH Center for Laryngeal Surgery, and John Wain, MD, surgical director of the MGH Lung Transplantation Service.
Behavioral support from peers, staff lowers patients' blood pressure
Behavioral support from peers and primary care office staff can help patients improve their blood pressure control by as much as starting a new drug, a new study found. Barbara J. Turner, M.D., M.S.Ed., M.A., M.A.C.P., of UT Medicine San Antonio, is the senior author.
Severe gum disease, impotence may be linked
(HealthDay) -- Men with severe gum disease, known as periodontitis, are at greater risk for impotence, according to a new study that finds young men and the elderly at particular risk.
Birth control pills, HRT tied to digestive ills
(HealthDay) -- The use of oral contraceptives by younger women or hormone therapy by older women may be linked with inflammatory bowel disease, new research indicates.
Moveable magnets used to forge gastric bypass in pigs
(HealthDay) -- In a scenario reminiscent of the film Fantastic Voyage, researchers have found a way to perform nearly surgery-free gastric bypass procedures in pigs using only a local anesthetic.
Could compound in artificial sweeteners worsen Crohn's disease?
(HealthDay) -- The food additive maltodextrin, commonly used in some artificial sweeteners, may worsen Crohn's disease by encouraging the growth of E. coli bacteria in the small intestine, a new study suggests.
Study suggests obese patients have more advanced, aggressive papillary thyroid cancer
A review of medical records of patients treated at an academic tertiary care center suggests that obese patients present to their physicians with more advanced stage and more aggressive forms of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), according to a report published Online First by Archives of Surgery.
Standard heart disease risk tools underrate danger in rheumatoid arthritis
Heart disease risk assessment tools commonly used by physicians often underestimate the cardiovascular disease danger faced by rheumatoid arthritis patients, a Mayo Clinic study has found. Inflammation plays a key role in putting those with rheumatoid arthritis in greater jeopardy for heart disease, yet many cardiovascular disease risk assessment methods do not factor it in, the researchers note. More work is needed to figure out what drives heart disease in rheumatoid arthritis patients, and more accurate tools to assess that risk should be developed, the authors say. The study is published online in the American Journal of Cardiology.
New musical pacifier helps premature babies get healthy
Many premature babies enter the world with a mountain of challenges in front of them. Even after they overcome any life-threatening issues, they face ongoing, and typically unpleasant, medical procedures, long hospital stays and increased chances of chronic health issues throughout their lives.
Marker in premies' saliva predicts readiness to feed by mouth
Tufts Medical Center researchers have shown that presence of a gene strongly linked to appetite regulation is highly predictive of a premature infant's readiness to feed orally. An analysis of just a drop of an infant's saliva could be the key to preventing many feeding problems and the expensive medical complications that can occur when infants are fed by mouth too early.
Type of viral infection of eye associated with disease causing blindness in the elderly
A team of researchers, including a scientist from the Viral Immunology Center at Georgia State University, have found that a type of herpesvirus infection of the eye is associated with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a disease that causes blindness in the elderly.
Final advice: Panel against routine prostate test
Healthy men shouldn't get routine prostate cancer screenings, says updated advice from a government panel that found the PSA blood tests do more harm than good.
Pomegranate juice claims deceptive, US rules
Pomegranate juice has not been proven to be an effective treatment for cancer, heart disease or erectile dysfunction, US regulators said Monday, calling a company's ad claims deceptive.
Growth factor in stem cells may spur recovery from multiple sclerosis
A substance in human mesenchymal stem cells that promotes growth appears to spur restoration of nerves and their function in rodent models of multiple sclerosis (MS), researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have found.
Stopping cell migration may help block fibrosis and the spread of cancer
(Medical Xpress) -- Discoveries by a Yale-led team of scientists could lead the way for development of new therapies for treating fibrosis and tumor metastasis. The researchers have both uncovered a signaling pathway that promotes cell migration in certain forms of pulmonary fibrosis, a deadly lung disease, and developed a drug treatment that may block the cancer cell migration. The study appears in the Advance Online Publication of Nature Cell Biology.
Modifying scar tissue can potentially improve outcome in chronic stroke
New research from the Buck Institute for Research on Aging shows that modifying the scar tissue that develops following a stroke is a promising avenue for future treatments. The need for therapeutics for chronic stroke is compelling. There are 750,000 new strokes per year in the U.S., a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Aside from physical and occupational therapy, treatments for the six million patients in the U.S. who suffer from chronic stroke are lacking; the vast majority of patients remain in an ongoing state of disability with little hope of return to normal function.
People with spider phobia handle tarantulas, have lasting changes in brain after short therapy
A single brief therapy session for adults with a lifelong debilitating spider phobia resulted in lasting changes to the brain's response to fear.
Study identifies target for diabetes drug
New research from the University of Cincinnati (UC) points to the naturally produced protein apolipoprotein A-IV (apoA-IV) as a potential target for a new diabetes therapeutic.
'Orphan' sleep drug may be potent cancer-fighting agent
An inexpensive "orphan drug" used to treat sleep disorders appears to be a potent inhibitor of cancer cells, according to a new study led by scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Their novel approach, using groundbreaking technology that allows rapid analysis of the genome, has broad implications for the development of safer, more-effective cancer therapies. The findings are published in the May 21 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Pandemic 2009 H1N1 vaccination produces antibodies against multiple flu strains
The pandemic 2009 H1N1 vaccine can generate antibodies in vaccinated individuals not only against the H1N1 virus, but also against other influenza virus strains including H5N1 and H3N2. This discovery adds an important new dimension to the finding last year that people infected with pandemic 2009 H1N1 virus produced high levels of antibodies that were broadly cross-reactive against a variety of flu strains.
Study: Heart damage after chemo linked to stress in cardiac cells
Blocking a protein in the heart that is produced under stressful conditions could be a strategy to prevent cardiac damage that results from chemotherapy, a new study suggests.
Surgical removal of abdominal fat reduces skin cancer in mice, study shows
Is it possible that liposuction or other fat removal procedures are beneficial for treating obesity and reducing the risk of cancer?
Rare neurons discovered in monkey brains
Max Planck scientists discover brain cells in monkeys that may be linked to self-awareness and empathy in humans.
Severe malaria: Research findings could lead to new interventions
Researchers from Seattle Biomedical Research Institute (Seattle BioMed), the University of Copenhagen and the University of Edinburgh have uncovered new knowledge related to host-parasite interaction in severe malaria, concerning how malaria parasites are able to bind to cells in the brain and cause cerebral malaria – the most lethal form of the disease. Three related papers will be published in the May 21 online edition of PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) highlighting this research.
Weight struggles? Blame new neurons in your hypothalamus
New nerve cells formed in a select part of the brain could hold considerable sway over how much you eat and consequently weigh, new animal research by Johns Hopkins scientists suggests in a study published in the May issue of Nature Neuroscience.
First light: Scientists regenerate the optic nerve, restore some components of vision
(Medical Xpress) -- Researchers have long tried to get the optic nerve to regenerate when injured, with some success, but no one has been able to demonstrate recovery of vision. A team at Boston Children’s Hospital reports a three-pronged intervention that not only got optic nerve fibers to grow the full length of the visual pathway (from retina to the visual areas of the brain), but also restored some basic elements of vision in live mice.
Biology news
Tonkin snub-nosed monkey sighting in Vietnam
As one of the most endangered primate species in the world, sightings of the elusive Tonkin snub-nosed monkey are rare. It’s no wonder a recent sighting of a group in Vietnam has proved cause for celebration.
Saola still a mystery 20 years after its spectacular debut
Two decades after the sensational discovery of a new ungulate species called the saola, this rare animal remains as mysterious and elusive as ever. WWF, the Saola Working Group (SWG) of the IUCN Species Survival Commission and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) warn the species is sliding towards extinction because of intensive hunting pressure and poor reserve management.
Research discovers impact of ocean acidification on marine life
A Plymouth University academic researching the impact of ocean acidification on marine life is finding out exactly what we can expect as our seas soak up more and more carbon dioxide.
Supercharged safflower
This scientific achievement has produced safflower seed oil that contains more than 90 per cent of this valuable fatty acid, the highest level of purity of an individual fatty acid currently available in any plant oil.
How plants chill out
Plants elongate their stems when grown at high temperature to facilitate the cooling of their leaves, according to new research from the University of Bristol published today in Current Biology. Understanding why plants alter their architecture in response to heat is important as increasing global temperatures pose a threat to future food production.
Mercury in dolphins: Study compares toxin levels in captive and wild sea mammals
Amid growing concerns about the spread of harmful mercury in plants and animals, a new study by researchers from The Johns Hopkins University and The National Aquarium has compared levels of the chemical in captive dolphins with dolphins found in the wild. The captive animals were fed a controlled diet, while the wild mammals dined on marine life that may carry more of the toxic metal.
Researchers aim to assemble the tree of life for all 2 million named species
A new initiative aims to build a grand tree of life that brings together everything scientists know about how all living things are related, from the tiniest bacteria to the tallest tree.
Genes culled from desert soils suggest potential medical resource
Despite their ecologic similarity, soils from three geographically distinct areas of the American southwest harbor vastly different collections of small, biosynthetic genes, a finding that suggests the existence of a far greater diversity of potentially useful products than was previously supposed. The research is published in the May issue of Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
Blossom end rot plummets in transgenic tomato
The brown tissue that signals blossom end rot in tomatoes is a major problem for large producers and home gardeners, but a Purdue University researcher has unknowingly had the answer to significantly lowering occurrences of the disease sitting on a shelf for 20 years.
A crowning success for crayfish
Nature sometimes copies its own particularly successful developments. A team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam and the Ben-Gurion University at Beer-Sheva in Israel has now found that the teeth of the Australian freshwater crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus are covered with an enamel amazingly similar to that of vertebrates. Both materials consist of calcium phosphate and are also very alike in terms of their microstructure. This extremely hard substance has apparently developed in freshwater crayfish independently from vertebrates, as it makes the teeth particularly strong.
New details about gene regulation explained
(Phys.org) -- When genetic information is read from the genetic blueprint DNA, RNA polymerase II translates it into RNA molecules. The C-terminal domain, abbreviated as CTD, is an important area of the polymerase molecule. It conveys information to the polymerase about how the genetic code should be copied and processed. To do this, the enzyme P-TEFb attaches molecular messages in the form of phosphate residues to certain positions within the CTD. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund have described the pattern, on the basis of which P-TEFb completes this process. Their findings are not only important in terms of providing a better understanding of gene regulation in healthy organisms, they are also of medical interest: for example, HIV exploits this enzyme for its own purposes to accelerate the production of new virus proteins.
Social status promotes faster wound healing in wild baboons
Turns out it's not bad being top dog, or in this case, top baboon.
Richer parasite diversity leads to healthier frogs: study
Increases in the diversity of parasites that attack amphibians cause a decrease in the infection success rate of virulent parasites, including one that causes malformed limbs and premature death, says a new University of Colorado Boulder study.
Mechanical properties of stem cells can foretell what they will become
To become better healers, tissue engineering need a timely and reliable way to obtain enough raw materials: cells that either already are or can become the tissue they need to build. In a new study, Brown University biomedical engineers show that the stiffness, viscosity, and other mechanical properties of adult stem cells derived from fat, such as liposuction waste, can predict whether they will turn into bone, cartilage, or fat.
Bats: What sounds good doesn't always taste good
Bats use a combination of cues in their hunting sequence - capture, handling and consumption - to decide which prey to attack, catch and consume and which ones they are better off leaving alone or dropping mid-way through the hunt. Eavesdropping bats first listen to their prey, then they assess its size, and finally they taste it. The work by Dr. Rachel Page and her team from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama is published online in Springer's journal Naturwissenschaften - The Science of Nature.
Zooming in on bacterial weapons in 3-D
The plague, bacterial dysentery, and cholera have one thing in common: These dangerous diseases are caused by bacteria which infect their host using a sophisticated injection apparatus. Through needle-like structures, they release molecular agents into their host cell, thereby evading the immune response. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen in cooperation with colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin and the University of Washington in Seattle (USA) have now elucidated the structure of such a needle at atomic resolution. Their findings might contribute to drug tailoring and the development of strategies which specifically prevent the infection process.
Seeing color traced back to genetic mutations
From the inside of our heads, it feels as if colors are intrinsic aspects of the outside world and our eyes are beautifully designed to see them. But we humans are merely sampling the possible ways of sensing the spectrum of light. Most of us see more colors than dogs, but miss millions of colors that make up the world for birds, reptiles, and insects.
Study finds modern dog breeds genetically disconnected from ancient ancestors
Cross-breeding of dogs over thousands of years has made it extremely difficult to trace the ancient genetic roots of today's pets, according to a new study led by Durham University.
Today's environment influences behavior generations later: research
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin and Washington State University have seen an increased reaction to stress in animals whose ancestors were exposed to an environmental compound generations earlier. The findings, published in the latest Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, put a new twist on the notions of nature and nurture, with broad implications for how certain behavioral tendencies might be inherited.
Totally rad: Scientists create rewritable digital data storage in DNA
Scientists from Stanford's Department of Bioengineering have devised a method for repeatedly encoding, storing and erasing digital data within the DNA of living cells.
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