Science X Newsletter Wednesday, Jan 21

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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for January 21, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- DARPA to Atlas contest hopefuls: Time to cut the cord
- Researchers find levels of nitrogen in meteorites similar to levels in Earth's atmosphere
- Biological safety lock for genetically modified organisms
- Two lakes beneath the ice in Greenland, gone within weeks
- A hard drive from space: Hidden magnetic messages uncovered
- New analysis shows a way to self-propel subatomic particles
- Self-assembled nanotextures create antireflective surface on silicon solar cells
- Analysis yields better optimization algorithms for engineering problems
- Microsoft debuts hologram goggles (Update)
- Twitter can predict rates of coronary heart disease, research says
- Blood vessels in older brains break down, possibly leading to Alzheimer's
- New method to generate arbitrary optical pulses
- New drug compounds show promise against endometriosis
- Researchers reveal how the mundane can be meaningful—and remembered
- Huge asteroid to whip past Earth on Monday

Astronomy & Space news

	A hard drive from space: Hidden magnetic messages uncovered The dying moments of an asteroid's magnetic field have been successfully captured by researchers, in a study that offers a tantalising glimpse of what may happen to the Earth's magnetic core billions of years from now.
	Magnetic fields help in formation of massive stars Magnetic fields in massive dark clouds are strong enough to support the regions against collapse due to their own gravity. A study lead by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn has now shown for the first time that high magnetization sets the stage for the formation of stars much more massive than the sun. This was demonstrated in observations of polarized dust emission from two of the most massive clouds in our Milky Way, the "Brick" and "Snake."
	Huge asteroid to whip past Earth on Monday An asteroid up to 1,800 feet (550 meters) across is headed Earth's way. But don't worry: It will miss us by 745,000 miles, about three times the distance between Earth and the moon.
	Students to send life to Mars onboard Mars One lander in 2018 The first step to establish a permanent colony on Mars could be taken in 2018 when a group of European students will send its project to the Red Planet. The team composed of students from Portugal, Spain and Netherlands has won the Mars One University Competition which offers a one way ticket to Mars for a scientific payload. The winning project which aims to germinate the first seed on the Red Planet, will fly to the surface of Mars onboard the Mars One unmanned lander scheduled to be launched in 2018. "We wanted to perform a useful experiment in order to establish a permanent human colony on the Red Planet before 2030, where any kind of vital support is required," Miguel Valbuena of the Biological Research Centre in Madrid (Spain) and the 'Seed' project team member told astrowatch.net. "Plants could supply oxygen and food, but according to several researches on the International Space Station, plants have trouble to grow in an environment outside Earth. We would like to check in situ the real difficulties for plant development, monitoring the growth of some seeds that in the future could serve as vital support for the first humans on Mars."
	Busy year of 13 launches by ULA in 2015 begins with blastoffs for the navy and NASA A busy year of 13 space launches by rocket provider United Launch Alliance (ULA) in 2015 begins with a pair of blastoffs for the US Navy and NASA tonight and next week, emanating from both the US East and West Coasts.
	Opportunity's breathtaking view from atop Cape Tribulation Imagine if you were standing on Mars, beside the Opportunity rover, high on the summit of Cape Tribulation. You don't have to leave too much to the imagination, thanks to imaging enthusiast Stu Atkinson. He's put together a magnificent colorized version of Oppy's recent panoramic view, atop the highest elevation that the rover will ever reach, perched on the west rim of Endeavour crater.
	Space Station worms' research potential is anything but flat For years, it was assumed the world was flat. Now, we have a laboratory that orbits our big, blue marble. So, it's funny to think of returning to flatness aboard the International Space Station, but this outpost currently houses flatworms for research. The study of these creatures has the potential to be rather robust in implications for regenerative medicine, an area of treatment for repairing or replacing human cells, tissues or organs on Earth to restore normal function. A new study launched aboard SpaceX's fifth commercial resupply services (CRS) mission to the space station examines the reparative processes of flatworms in microgravity.
	Stepping stones to NASA's human missions beyond "That's one small step for (a) man; one giant leap for mankind." When Neil Armstrong took his first steps on the moon, many strides came before to achieve that moment in history. The same is true for a human mission to Mars. One step towards that journey begins in March 2015, when NASA astronaut Scott Kelly will make history as the first American to spend a year in space.
Air Force launches rocket carrying a Navy satellite aloft A Navy communications satellite is bound for orbit.

Technology news

	DARPA to Atlas contest hopefuls: Time to cut the cord Super Bowls. World Cups. Marathons. Wimbledon. Months and days are marked off by fans and supporters for big events and, for robotics watchers, June cannot come fast enough. The DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals will take place June 5 to 6, 2015 at Fairplex in Pomona, California and DARPA news for the Atlas robots has emerged on what fans can expect to see. Seven of the robots in the competition are of the Atlas type, i.e., seven teams are using an updated Atlas. As much as 75 percent of the Atlas is new, from the knees all the way up. Only 25 percent of the robot is from the old Atlas.
	Analysis yields better optimization algorithms for engineering problems Optimization algorithms, which try to find the minimum values of mathematical functions, are everywhere in engineering. Among other things, they're used to evaluate design tradeoffs, to assess control systems, and to find patterns in data.
	Software teaches computers to translate words to math If Johnny has five apples and seven oranges, and he wants to share them with three of his friends, can a computer understand the text to figure out how many pieces of fruit each person gets?
	Microsoft debuts hologram goggles (Update) Microsoft unveiled headgear on Wednesday that overlays holograms on the real world, in what it touted as the next generation of computing.
	Windows 10 aims to be core of connected devices (Update) Microsoft pulled back the curtain Wednesday on the upcoming Windows 10 operating system focused on bringing harmony to the diverse array of Internet gadgets in people's lives.
	Low gas prices, incentives change math for electric cars Drivers trying to calculate whether it's practical to own an electric car are facing a new math.
	Microsoft to offer up peek behind curtain of new Windows Microsoft will use an event Wednesday to offer a wider glimpse of the next version of Windows.
	Toyota remains top in global vehicle sales, beats VW, GM Toyota Motor Corp. stayed at the top in global vehicle sales in 2014, taking that auto industry crown for the third year straight, but was less upbeat about this year.
	Review: Open e-book format comes with headaches In the world of e-books, you largely have a choice between Amazon's Kindle and everyone else.
Dutch hi-tech group ASML profits leap 18 percent Dutch company ASML, which makes computer chip-making systems and is seen as a global hi-tech bellwether, on Wednesday announced a 2014 profit leap of 18 percent to 1.2 billion euros, driven by sales in the memory sector.
	Addressing fast community detection and other related data problems Notably, in science, the problems you start with may not be the only ones you solve.
	Bring on driverless cars Imagine no more gridlock, road rage and drunk driving—and 90 percent fewer car accidents. You could well be able to sit back and enjoy the ride sooner than you think, according to the engineers who are designing our cars of the future.
	Mathematical analysis maximizes mobile network access Data-intense multimedia applications are stretching cellular network capacities to their limits, but A*STAR researchers have developed a strategy to ease this burden using 'data offloading'. By using high-level computational algorithms to investigate data transfer between cellular base stations and 'complementary' setups such as home Wi-Fi systems, the team identified optimal ways to satisfy user demands across multiple, heterogeneous networks.
	Many antennas, multiple benefits A concept that balances large-scale installations of low-cost and low-power antennas to boost cellular coverage in difficult environments will also provide better connectivity to more users. Developed by A*STAR, this new architecture for wireless communications can help service providers meet growing demands for increased network capacity and improved energy efficiency.
	Tech barons paint rosy future at Davos despite security fears Technological advances are to explode 10 times faster than even the Internet boom in the 1990s, top tech tycoons told the global Davos elite Wednesday, but also warned that security threats would be worse this year than ever.
	Municipal broadband offers hope for lagging US internet No one disputes the importance of affordable access to high-speed internet for economic growth in the 21st century.
	Decorative and flexible solar panels become part of interior design and the appearance of objects VTT Technical Centre of Finland has developed and utilized a mass production method based on printing technologies allowing the manufacturing of decorative, organic solar panels. Design freedom improves the range of applications of the panels on the surfaces of interior and exterior building spaces. VTT is also studying the feasibility of printing technology in the mass production of solar panels made from inorganic perovskite materials.
Can technology stop scourge of bicycle thefts? Urban cyclists have more in common than an aptitude for pedaling through city streets - they share the ever-present dread of one day discovering their bicycle missing from the bike rack, or finding only the skeletal remains of its wheel-less frame.
Amazon plans wind farm to power its datacenters Long criticized by some environmentalists for indifference to clean energy, Amazon.com took a big step toward using renewable energy Tuesday, announcing plans to support the construction and operation of a wind farm in western Indiana.
Wireless charging system on cusp of commercialization Imagine a world where you don't have to plug in your smartphone, tablet or laptop, or even lay it on one of the Duracell charging mats that Starbucks is rolling out nationwide. Instead, your refrigerator sends them power from across the room via a WiFi-like radio signal.
4chan founder to retire from site he started at age 15 The founder of the popular, if at times notorious, online message board 4chan is retiring as the site's administrator.
	eBay to slash 2,400 jobs in bid to 'compete and win' (Update) Online retail giant eBay will slash 2,400 jobs—seven percent of its workforce—in the current quarter as it restructures and prepares to spin off its PayPal finance unit, it said Wednesday.
	WhatsApp adds messaging from Web The popular mobile messaging application WhatsApp, acquired by Facebook last year for nearly $22 billion, unveiled a new service Wednesday for sending messages from a Web browser.
Uber raises $1.6 billion in financing from Goldman Sachs Popular ride-hailing app Uber has raised $1.6 billion in a deal with Goldman Sachs wealth management clients.
With $15 billion valuation, Palantir looks to raise more money Palantir Technologies, the big data company founded by entrepreneur and billionaire investor Peter Thiel, is looking to raise yet another round of capital, after landing $500 million from investors last year, according to a report from Bloomberg News.
Feds say third guilty plea entered in computer hacking case Federal prosecutors have obtained a third guilty plea involving an international hacking ring that gained access to a U.S. Army computer network while targeting computer giant Microsoft and several video game developers.
	Syrian group hacks French newspaper's Twitter account A group of pro-Syrian regime hackers briefly took over the Twitter account of France's Le Monde newspaper early Wednesday, tweeting several messages including one reading "Je ne suis pas Charlie".
Four years in prison for bitcoin exchanger who helped Silk Road A Florida bitcoin exchanger who admitted he enabled the digital currency to be funneled to the black market website Silk Road for drug sales was sentenced on Tuesday to four years in prison.
How to make train rails as straight as they should be Scientists have combined three different methods to better understand and predict the behaviour of materials in rails.
HiSIM-SOTB, compact transistor model, selected as international industry standard A new compact transistor model was developed and the framework for realizing a faster design support process and product development for integrated circuits in the ultra-low voltage category was established. The new compact model, HiSIM-SOTB (Hiroshima University STARC IGFET Model Silicon-on-Thin BOX), was developed by Hiroshima University's HiSIM Research Center in collaboration with its partners in the industry and government institutions, including the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) of Japan. On June 20, 2014, after a two-year-long effort by the industry/government/academia research team, this new model was selected as an international industry standard during a meeting in Washington D.C., which was held by the Compact Modeling Coalition (CMC) of the Silicon Integration Initiative (Si2).
	Israel arrests man for stealing, selling Madonna songs Israeli police arrested a man Wednesday suspected of hacking into computers and stealing songs of international pop stars, including Madonna, before leaking them online, police said.
Ghana opens probe after government websites hacked Ghana launched a probe Wednesday after most of the west African government's websites fell victim to hackers.

Medicine & Health news

Mutated ATRX gene linked to brain tumors potential biomarker for rare adrenal tumors too A somatic mutation in the ATRX gene has recently been shown as a potential molecular marker for aggressive brain tumors, such as gliomas, neuroblastomas and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. Now, for the first time, researchers at Penn's Abramson Cancer Center have found that the same mutated gene may serve as a much-needed biomarker for the pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PCC/PGL) that become malignant. These rare neuroendocrine tumors are typically benign, but when they go rogue, they become very aggressive.
	Study suggests some women feel more physical pain when their romantic partner is present (Medical Xpress)—A team of researchers affiliated with several medical institutions in the U.K. has found that some women who avoid closeness in relationships tended to feel more pain during an experiment, than did women who did not avoid such closeness. In their paper published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, the team describes their experiments with female volunteers and what it might mean for women experiencing childbirth.
	Researchers find where visual memories are made In findings that may lead to new treatments for cognitive disorders, researchers at MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory zero in on how the brain forms memories of what has been seen.
	Friends know how long you'll live, study finds Young lovers walking down the aisle may dream of long and healthy lives together, but close friends in the wedding party may have a better sense of whether those wishes will come true, suggests new research on personality and longevity from Washington University in St. Louis.
	Seeing is not remembering People may have to "turn on" their memories in order to remember even the simplest details of an experience, according to Penn State psychologists. This finding, which has been named "attribute amnesia," indicates that memory is far more selective than previously thought.
	Blood vessels in older brains break down, possibly leading to Alzheimer's University of Southern California (USC) neuroscientists may have unlocked another puzzle to preventing risks that can lead to Alzheimer's disease. Researchers at Keck Medicine of USC used high-resolution imaging of the living human brain to show for the first time that the brain's protective blood barrier becomes leaky with age, starting at the hippocampus, a critical learning and memory center that is damaged by Alzheimer's disease.
	Researchers reveal how the mundane can be meaningful—and remembered It's not surprising that our memories of highly emotional events, such as 9/11 or the birth of a child, are quite strong. But can these events change our memories of the past? In a study published in the journal Nature, NYU researchers report that emotional learning can lead to the strengthening of older memories.
	Fatty acids in fish may shield brain from mercury damage New findings from research in the Seychelles provide further evidence that the benefits of fish consumption on prenatal development may offset the risks associated with mercury exposure. In fact, the new study, which appears today in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggests that the nutrients found in fish have properties that protect the brain from the potential toxic effects of the chemical.
	Twitter can predict rates of coronary heart disease, research says Twitter has broken news stories, launched and ended careers, started social movements and toppled governments, all by being an easy, direct and immediate way for people to share what's on their minds. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have now shown that the social media platform has another use: Twitter can serve as a dashboard indicator of a community's psychological well being and can predict rates of heart disease.
	Neuroscientists cracking brain's genetic code In the largest collaborative study of the brain to date, researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) led a global consortium of 190 institutions to identify eight common genetic mutations that appear to age the brain an average of three years. The discovery could lead to targeted therapies and interventions for Alzheimer's disease, autism and other neurological conditions.
	New drug compounds show promise against endometriosis Two new drug compounds - one of which has already proven useful in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis - appear to be effective in treating endometriosis, a disorder that, like MS, is driven by estrogen and inflammation, scientists report in Science Translational Medicine.
	Study of babies born after IVF shows significant improvements in health over 20 years The last two decades has seen a steady improvement in the health outcomes of children born after assisted reproduction (ART), with fewer babies being born preterm, with low birth weight, stillborn or dying within the first year of life.
Sounding the alarm about caffeine powder In a world craving stimulation to stay awake, function at peak levels or just feel a bit brighter, caffeine is the ready ingredient in an expanding array of foods, beverages and medications.
	Lifestyle modifications that that may reduce risk of cancer Cancer can be seen as striking haphazardly, but research over the past 40 years shows that lifestyle factors play a huge role in cancer incidence and mortality. Dr. Graham Colditz, an internationally recognized disease-prevention expert at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, has put together a list of behaviors that greatly reduce overall cancer risk. And they're not as complicated as you might think. For a healthy 2015, Colditz suggests starting with one or two from the list. Once you've got those down, move on to the others.
Scientists invent system to improve effectiveness of cancer surgery With the goal of making it easier for surgeons to detect malignant tissue during surgery and hopefully reduce the rate of cancer recurrence, scientists have invented a new imaging system that causes tumors to "light up" when a hand-held laser is directed at them.
Link found between pain during or after sexual intercourse and mode of delivery Operative birth is associated with persisting pain during or after sexual intercourse, known as dyspareunia, suggests a new study published today (21 January) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (BJOG).
Obama urges more funds for 'new era of medicine' US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called for the United States to lead the way toward a "new era of medicine" by boosting funds for modern medical research.
New type of antibiotic resistance living in hiding Aggressive infections constitute an increasing health problem all over the world. The development of bacterial resistance development is immense, and in the USA, resistant staphylococci cause more deaths than AIDS on an annual basis. Traditionally, antibiotic resistance is associated with genetic mutations in the bacteria, but researchers at the University of Copenhagen can now show that this is not necessarily the case:
	Myths and facts about chocolate from a nutrition professor With Valentine's Day just around the corner, does chocolate appeal to you for its flavor, symbolic meaning of love or potential health benefits? Dr. Judith Rodriguez, a nutrition professor and chair of the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of North Florida, discusses myths and facts about chocolate. To help you include chocolate in your diet, a recpie has been provided.
	Scientists find new benefit to Lou Gehrig's drug in treating melanoma A drug used to treat Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS) makes radiation more effective when treating melanoma that has metastasized to the brain, according to new research on laboratory models at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers.
	Teen girls report less sexual victimization after virtual reality assertiveness training Teen girls were less likely to report being sexually victimized after learning to assertively resist unwanted sexual overtures and practicing resistance in a realistic virtual environment, finds a new study.
Study shows increasing number of people were facing high medical cost burdens before ACA implementation New coverage options offered by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance marketplaces provided potential benefits for the increasing number of Americans who were shouldering high medical cost burdens prior to the ACA, according to a Virginia Commonwealth University-led study.
Bioethicists call for return to asylums for long-term psychiatric care As the United States population has doubled since 1955, the number of inpatient psychiatric beds in the United States has been cut by nearly 95 percent to just 45,000, a wholly inadequate equation when considering that there are currently 10 million U.S. residents with serious mental illness. A new viewpoint in JAMA,written by Dominic Sisti, PhD, Andrea Segal, MS, and Ezekiel Emanuel, MD, PhD, of the department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, looks at the evolution away from inpatient psychiatric beds, evaluates the current system for housing and treating the mentally ill, and then suggests a modern approach to institutionalized mental health care as a solution.
	Stress increases motivation, amount spent for alcohol, research finds The effects of stress can change the way heavy drinkers seek alcohol-and how much they're willing to spend to get it, a new University of Georgia study has found.
	A signaling network inside blood-forming cells could lead to refinements in immunosuppressive therapy People who have had an organ transplant or have autoimmune diseases are more likely to become ill. Research into a key cellular signaling system suggests this may be partly due to previously unknown effects of treatment drugs, and it also reveals broader insights into how immunity is controlled.
	Protein induces self-destruction in cancer cells The role of a phosphatase protein in promoting the self-destruction of healthy cells and the progression of ovarian cancer has been identified by A*STAR researchers. Known to be overexpressed in cancer cells, the protein, which is called PTP4A3, could be useful as a biomarker for disease prognosis.
	A scalable platform for growing heart muscle cells may lead to repair of damaged heart cells The ability to grow human heart muscle cells in bulk could help routine replacement of heart cells damaged during a heart attack and may also improve testing of pharmaceutical drugs on heart cells, shows A*STAR research1.
	Bisphenol A 'poses no health risk' says EU The EU food safety watchdog said Wednesday that bisphenol A, a chemical used in food can linings and other products, poses no health risk to consumers.
	Classic psychedelic use found to be protective with regard to psychological distress and suicidality, study finds Classic psychedelics, such as LSD, psilocybin mushrooms and mescaline, previously have been shown to occasion lasting improvements in mental health. But researchers led by University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health investigators wanted to advance the existing research and determine whether classic psychedelics might be protective with regard to suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
	Why are some generic drugs getting so expensive? More than eight out of every 10 prescriptions dispensed in the US is generic. This growth is due to a large number of top-selling drugs going off patent over the past decade, as well as innovations in the retail sector, such as Walmart's US$4 generic program. Over this period, generic drug prices declined or held steady, saving American consumers tens of billions of dollars annually.
	Prostate cancer drug slows memory loss in women with Alzheimer's disease Women with Alzheimer's disease showed stable cognition for a year when a drug that is more commonly used to treat advanced prostate cancer was added to their drug regimen, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Drug targets identified through cell line to potentially treat rare pediatric cancer A team of investigators at the Cumming School of Medicine have made key new findings about an extremely rare childhood cancer called neurocutaneous melanocytosis (NCM). This malignant cancer is characterized by an excessive growth of melanin-producing cells in both the skin and the brain. The study's authors found potential drug targets for the disease by using a molecular analysis of patient tumour cells grown in animal models.
	Study shows how Ebola becomes lethal as it spreads Scientists investigated why Ebola virus is so deadly when it spreads from animals to humans and then from human-to-human contact. The research team looked at the Zaire Ebola strain in an animal system to understand how it gains strength. This virus is responsible for the current outbreak in West Africa.
	Efforts to curtail tobacco use stalled in 2014, report says (HealthDay)—Little to no progress is being made in curtailing tobacco use in the United States, a new report from the American Lung Association contends.
	Ablation effectiveness quotient predicts clinical success (HealthDay)—For patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) who undergo AF ablation (AFA), a high ablation effectiveness quotient (AEQ) correlates with freedom from atrial tachyarrhythmia (AT), according to a study published online Jan. 15 in the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology.
	Therapy dogs may help patients persevere with cancer treatment (HealthDay)—People undergoing chemotherapy and radiation for cancer may get an emotional lift from man's best friend, a new study suggests. The findings have been published in the January issue of the Journal of Community and Supportive Oncology.
	Fewer vegetable-based proteins tied to metabolic syndrome (HealthDay)—Decreased vegetable protein intake and increased dietary acid load are associated with higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a study published online Jan. 6 in the Journal of Diabetes Investigation.
Surgeon uses 3D technology to make model heart for 4-year-old patient Adaenelie Gonzalez had two open heart surgeries by the time she was 4.
Medical charity warns India over patent rules Doctors without Borders on Wednesday warned the Indian government not to bow to US pressure to amend patent regulations that allow millions access to affordable medicines, ahead of a visit by President Barack Obama.
	Nigeria reports H5N1 bird flu in five states Nigeria on Wednesday confirmed that five states have been hit with the H5N1 strain of bird flu, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of poultry but no human cases.
	Toward a cocaine vaccine to help addicts kick the habit In their decades-long search for vaccines against drugs of abuse, scientists have hit upon a new approach to annul cocaine's addictive buzz. They report in the ACS journal Molecular Pharmaceutics that their strategy, which they tested on mice, harnesses a bacterial protein to trigger an immune system attack on the drug if it enters the body. This response could dull cocaine's psychotropic effects and potentially help users of the drug kick the habit.
Immune system may play key role in viral therapy's effectiveness against tumors Viral therapy for childhood cancer could possibly improve if treatments such as chemotherapy do not first suppress patients' immune systems, according to findings published today in the journal Molecular Therapy—Oncolytics. Research on mouse tumors resembling rhabdomyosarcoma, the most common soft tissue sarcoma in children, revealed that the immune system's T cells may be just as critical to fighting tumor cells as the viral therapy injections themselves.
Study examines NSAID use, risk of anastomotic failure following surgery Use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) was associated with an increased risk of anastomotic leak at the surgical junction in patients undergoing nonelective colorectal procedures, according to a report published online by JAMA Surgery.
Only about half of teenage girls receive HPV vaccine at the CDC's recommended age It's a virus that is responsible for almost all cases of cervical cancer but a new study by University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers indicates that only about half of the girls receive the vaccine at the recommended age to best protect themselves.
Team identifies toxic Ebola protein fragment William Gallaher, PhD, Emeritus Professor of Microbiology, Immunology & Parasitology at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, has discovered a fragment of an Ebola virus protein that is toxic to cells and may contribute to infection and illness. The findings were published online January 20, 2015, in the open access journal, Viruses.
Close monitoring of renal tumors may provide alternative to surgery In patients likely to have surgery, close, active monitoring of small renal tumors confined to the kidneys is associated with low rates of tumor growth or death, according to a study by a researcher at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai published in the September issue of The Journal of Urology.
	Sleeping on stomach may increase risk of sudden death in epilepsy New research shows that stomach sleepers with epilepsy may be at higher risk of sudden unexpected death, drawing parallels to sudden infant death syndrome in babies. The study is published in the January 21, 2015, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
	Deaths of extremely premature infants decrease, fewer dying of breathing complications In a large, national study of extremely premature infants, researchers found that death rates decreased from 2000 to 2011. An analysis of specific causes found that deaths attributed to immaturity or pulmonary causes and complicated by infection or central nervous system injury all decreased; however, deaths attributed to necrotizing enterocolitis increased. Necrotizing enterocolitis is an intestinal complication resulting from prematurity.
Medicaid 'fee bump' to primary care doctors associated with better access to appointments The increase in Medicaid reimbursement for primary care providers, a key provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was associated with a 7.7 percentage points increase in new patient appointment availability without longer wait times, according to results of a new 10-state study—co-authored by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the Urban Institute, and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation—published online-first by the New England Journal of Medicine. The study provides the first research-based evaluation of the association between the ACA's two-year Medicaid fee bump—for which federal funding expired on December 31, 2014—and appointment availability for Medicaid patients seeking new patient primary care appointments at physician offices that participate in Medicaid.
	Study maps travel of H7 influenza genes Influenza has a long history of being one of the most deadly diseases to afflict humanity, but what exactly makes it so dangerous?
	New research suggests walnuts may improve memory Eating walnuts may improve performance on cognitive function tests, including those for memory, concentration and information processing speed according to new research from the David Geffen School of Medicine at The University of California, Los Angeles, led by Dr. Lenore Arab. Cognitive function was consistently greater in adult participants that consumed walnuts, regardless of age, gender or ethnicity.
Scientists identify proteins likely to trigger psoriasis Case Western Reserve scientists have taken a huge leap toward identifying root causes of psoriasis, an inflammatory skin condition affecting 125 million people around the world. Of the roughly 50,000 proteins in the human body, researchers have zeroed in on four that appear most likely to contribute this chronic disease. The findings, published this month in Molecular & Cellular Proteomics, dramatically advance efforts to understand how psoriasis develops - and, in turn, how to stop it.
	Long-term use of ventricular assist devices induces heart muscle regeneration, study finds Prolonged use of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) by patients with heart failure may induce regeneration of heart muscle by preventing oxidative damage to a cell-regulator mechanism, UT Southwestern Medical Center investigators have found.
	Standards aim to cut down on salmonella in poultry The government is pushing the poultry industry to make their chicken and turkey a little safer with new standards aimed at reducing the number of cases of foodborne illness by 50,000 a year.
	Docs should negotiate health care payer contracts (HealthDay)—The terms in health care payer contracts are not immutable, and contracts should be negotiated, according to an article published Jan. 9 in Medical Economics.
	California measles outbreak shows how quickly disease can resurface in US (HealthDay)—Fifteen years after measles was declared eliminated in the United States, the recent outbreak traced to two Disney parks in California illustrates how quickly a resurgence can occur.
	Roux-en-Y surgery can reverse insulin treatment in T2DM (HealthDay)—Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery (RYGB) strongly predicts insulin cessation after surgery in insulin-treated type 2 diabetes (I-T2D) patients, independent of weight loss, according to a study published online Jan. 8 in Diabetes Care.
	More stressors for radiation therapists than oncology nurses (HealthDay)—For occupational groups in cancer care, radiation therapists (RTs) have higher mean scores for stressors and coping strategies than oncology nurses (ONs), according to a study published in the December issue of the Journal of Medical Radiation Sciences.
	Acupuncture viable for pain relief after joint replacement (HealthDay)—Acupuncture is a feasible adjunct therapy for short-term postsurgical pain management in total joint replacement, according to a study published online Jan. 13 in Pain Medicine.
	Routine oral anticoagulants may not benefit all with A-fib (HealthDay)—Benefit from routine anticoagulation therapy to reduce risk of ischemic stroke may be unlikely in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and a CHA2DS2-VASc score of 1, according to a study published in the Jan. 27 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
	Incidence of PE hospitalizations rises from 2001 to 2010 (HealthDay)—The incidence of hospitalizations for pulmonary embolism (PE) increased from 2001 to 2010, and a pattern of seasonal variation can be seen in PE hospitalizations, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis.
	Tonsillectomy may benefit tonsillitis-associated psoriasis (HealthDay)—For patients with recalcitrant psoriasis associated with episodes of tonsillitis, tonsillectomy may be an option that can result in improvement in psoriasis, according to a review published in the February issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
The 5 strategies scholars use in writing medical review articles Review articles in medical journals inform and enlighten physicians and other readers by summarizing the research on a given topic and setting the stage for further studies.
Study finds new way to combat resistant cancers A team of researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital has developed a new platform that can rapidly identify effective drug combinations for lung cancer patients whose tumors have stopped responding to targeted therapy. The research, which was supported in part by the National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR), is a critical milestone on the road to personalized medicine.
Scientists move closer to a personalized treatment solution for intellectual disability Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have produced an approach that protects animal models against a type of genetic disruption that causes intellectual disability, including serious memory impairments and altered anxiety levels.
Alternative DNA repair mechanism could provide better treatment for neuroblastoma in kids Researchers at the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital have identified a promising new target for developing new therapies for kids with high-risk neuroblastoma, according to a new study published in Molecular Cancer Research.
	Lab tests imply formaldehyde risk in some e-cigarette vapor Using certain electronic cigarettes at high temperature settings could potentially release more formaldehyde, a cancer-causing chemical, than smoking traditional cigarettes does, new lab tests suggest.
Measles outbreak includes five Disney theme park employees A recent measles outbreak traced to Disney theme parks in California includes five park employees who were infected, officials said Tuesday.
AIDS crisis brewing in Crimea and east Ukraine says UN A lethal health crisis is brewing in Russian-annexed Crimea and war-torn eastern Ukraine, where injecting drug users have lost access to therapy to wean them off heroin, the UN's AIDS envoy said Wednesday.
No new polio cases in Syria reported for a year: WHO Syria has gone a year without a reported polio case, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, after a massive immunisation campaign triggered by the disease's appearance in the war-torn country.
CWRU Doctor of Nursing Practice publishes first dermatology textbook for advance practice clinicians Most health-care workers learn about diagnosing and treating skin disorders through on-the-job training, because there's no standardized curriculum and few continuing education programs.
Researchers link task length with cognitive fatigue in MS Kessler Foundation researchers have authored a new article that provides insight into the factors that contribute to cognitive fatigue in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS).
A call for a new model to evaluate medical schools Over the past 100 years, licensing and accrediting bodies have raised the quality of medical education and efforts have been made to ensure that medical schools meet a minimum standard for the curricula and clinical training they offer to students. However, comparing institutions and identifying which ones produce the physicians who provide the best patient care and conduct the best biomedical research remains challenging for prospective students. A popular method for comparing medical schools, the analysis performed by U.S. News and World Report (USN&WR), has become the unofficial default tool for these types of comparisons. In a new study, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) present a new model to evaluate medical schools' production of academic physicians with biomedical research careers. This model is based on relevant and accessible objective criteria that researchers propose should replace the subjective crit! eria used in the current USN&WR rankings system. These findings are published online in Academic Medicine on January 21, 2015.
The BMJ calls for action over illegal payments to India's private medical colleges Known as "capitation fees" these effectively compulsory one-off donations may exceed 10,000,000 rupees.
	Norway detects "probable" case of mad cow disease Norway said Wednesday it had detected a "probable" case of mad cow disease but urged consumers not to panic as it may not be the same variant as the British 1990s epidemic.
	Transmission of Ebola appears tied to increasing population density in forested regions Researchers at SUNY Downstate Medical Center have found an apparent link between human population density and vegetation cover in Africa and the spread of the Ebola virus from animal hosts to humans.
Government closer to goal of 9.1M enrolled under health law The Obama administration is moving closer to its goal of 9.1 million people signed up for private coverage under the president's health care law.

Biology news

	Biological safety lock for genetically modified organisms The creation of genetically modified and entirely synthetic organisms continues to generate excitement as well as worry.
	New computation method helps identify functional DNA Striving to unravel and comprehend DNA's biological significance, Cornell scientists have created a new computational method that can identify positions in the human genome that play a role in the proper functioning of cells, according to a report published Jan. 19 in the journal Nature Genetics.
	Study shows cold climate animals may suffer as global temperatures rise (Phys.org)—A study conducted by a quartet of researchers from the University of Sydney, Université de Lausanne and the University of Glasgow has led to findings that suggest cold climate animals are more likely to suffer adverse impacts due to global warming than are animals that naturally live in warmer parts of the world. In their paper published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, the team describes how exposing mosquitofish to various temperature changes showed its ability to acclimate to changes in its environment and why the team believes such findings likely apply to other species as well.
	Slow-growing underwater creatures have a better chance of avoiding death Slow and steady doesn't just win the race between a tortoise and a hare, with new Deakin University research showing sluggish, shy and slow-growing underwater creatures have a better chance of avoiding death by fishing hook than their bigger and bolder counterparts.
Synthetic amino acid enables safe, new biotechnology solutions to global problems Scientists from Yale have devised a way to ensure genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be safely confined in the environment, overcoming a major obstacle to widespread use of GMOs in agriculture, energy production, waste management, and medicine.
	Endangered chimpanzees may experience drastic habitat loss within five years In central Cameroon, two different subspecies of chimpanzees live on opposite banks of the Sanaga River, the only instance of two different chimp subspecies living in the wild in a single country. The area is roughly at the geographic center of the range for all four known subspecies of these great apes.
	Researchers use new methods to survey native vs. non-native plants A new study, the first comprehensive assessment of native vs. non-native plant distribution in the continental United States, finds non-native plant species are much more widespread than natives, a finding that lead author Bethany Bradley at the University of Massachusetts Amherst called "very surprising."
	Screening plants for potential natural products Humans have been making use of plants for as long as there have been humans and plants. The actual cultivation of plants for food and other products began with the Neolithic Revolution some 12,000 years ago and has been evolving ever since. Products derived from plants today span a wide range of applications, encompassing foods, materials, medicines, fuels and so on. Despite all of our technological advances, however, screening plants for potential products is still primarily done the old fashioned way – growing intact plants in nature, botanical gardens or greenhouses then subjecting them to tests. Conventional wisdom has held this to be the only way it can be done as in vitro cultures lack the ability to accumulate specific compounds that can be found in intact plants. As often proves to be the case, conventional wisdom appears to be wrong.
	A helping hand for pygmy hippos Nobody knows how many pygmy hippos remain in wild habitats in West Africa, but there are only about 350 in captivity world-wide and a researcher at The University of Western Australia is in a race against time to ensure the species' survival.
	Ebola virus has wiped out a third of the population of chimps and gorillas There is a side to the Ebola crisis that, perhaps understandably, has received little media attention: the threat it poses to our nearest cousins, the great apes of Africa. At this moment in time Ebola is the single greatest threat to the survival of gorillas and chimpanzees.
	Gene sequencing bacterial strains that degrade a prolific toxic compound in water and soils Researchers have successfully isolated three strains of Dehalococcoides—bacteria capable of degrading polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)—as well as characterizing the three strains to pinpoint the exact genes responsible for breaking down PCBs.
	Enhancing microbial pathways for biofuel production Researchers from the DOE JGI and the Joint Bioenergy Institute identified genes in an E. coli microbial metabolism pathway that could improve the production of terpenes.
	Climate change threatens 30 years of sea turtle conservation success A new University of Central Florida study is sounding the alarm about climate change and its potential impact on more than 30 years of conservation efforts to keep sea turtles around for the next generation.
Next-generation sequencing offers insight into how species adapt to climate change Environmental scientists have a new tool for studying the responses of species to climate change. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has made it possible to analyze enormous numbers of short pieces of DNA very quickly, and this technology is already revolutionizing the biomedical sciences. The hope is that NGS may prove similarly useful in ecological studies by providing researchers fresh insight into the way populations are adapting to a changing world.
	The Facebook of plant science By building PhotosynQ - a handheld device with sensors and an online data-sharing and analysis platform - a team of Michigan State University researchers is creating the plant-science equivalent of Facebook.
Goshawk hunt and prey-evasion strategies revealed Stealth is the goshawk's greatest asset. Plummeting out of the air, the raptors fix their gaze on the oblivious victim below. Intrigued by the birds' attack tactics, Suzanne Amador Kane from Haverford College, USA, decided to find out more about the factors that guide a goshawk during its approach and in the final instants before a strike. However Kane knew that she could only begin to understand the hunters' strategy from a bird's-eye perspective, and to do that she would have to team up with an experienced falconer. She publishes her discovery that goshawks hold victims at one point in their gaze during the first stage of an attack, switching to a parallel pursuit during the final approach, and that victims have to break their attacker's visual fix to escape by turning abruptly in The Journal of Experimental Biology.
	Red-cockaded woodpeckers continue to surpass expectations The Center for Conservation Biology has just completed the year-round monitoring of the state's only population of the woodpecker at the Nature Conservancy's Piney Grove Preserve. Surveys resulted in new milestones for number of breeding pairs and overall bird numbers.
	Western Australian sandplains in World Heritage bid WA plant biologists are spearheading a campaign to have sandplains from Shark Bay to Esperance awarded UNSECO World Heritage status.

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