Science X Newsletter Tuesday, Apr 21

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Dear Reader ,

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

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Why do measurements of the gravitational constant vary so much?
- New tabletop detector 'sees' single electrons
- Energetics of the adsorption of ethanol on calcite nanoparticles
- Researchers find the genome of the cultivated sweet potato has bacterial DNA
- Bridging nanotube gaps enhances performance of electronic devices
- New electronic paper could make inexpensive electronic displays
- Team first to model atomic structures of three bacterial nanomachines
- Social networks may be exaggerating risk of news events
- Printing silicon on paper, with lasers
- Electron trapping harnessed to make light sensors
- Research reveals new possibilities for islet and stem cell transplantation
- Shoe grows five sizes, fits needs of children for years
- Iron-rich rocks could could hold signs of life
- Study links swarm of quakes in Texas to natural gas drilling (Update)
- About time: New record for atomic clock accuracy

Astronomy & Space news

	Hubble, the telescope that revolutionized our view of space Hubble, the first telescope to revolutionize modern astronomy and change our view of the universe by offering glimpses of distant galaxies, marks its 25th year in space this week.
	Ceres' bright spots come back into view The two brightest spots on dwarf planet Ceres, which have fascinated scientists for months, are back in view in the newest images from NASA's Dawn spacecraft. Dawn took these images on April 14 and 15 from a vantage point 14,000 miles (22,000 kilometers) above Ceres' north pole.
	Vesta—Ceres' little sister Only around 60 million kilometres closer to the Sun than Ceres, another large rock is orbiting in the remote asteroid belt: Vesta. Although its diameter of approximately 530 kilometres makes it a bit too small to be counted as a dwarf planet, it is nevertheless big enough to be the second heaviest and third largest body in this region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Ceres' little sister has already gone through what is in store for the asteroid in the coming months: As the first destination of the US Dawn mission, the spacecraft's three onboard measuring instruments subjected Vesta to more than a year of permanent monitoring from July 2011 to September 2012. As it turned out: Vesta was originally well on its way to developing into a planet.
	Iron-rich rocks could could hold signs of life A robotic mission's search for life on Mars may seem worlds away from human scientists wandering around hot springs in Yellowstone National Park. But a study of the Yellowstone hot springs has revealed new clues about how organic materials might get preserved in similar environments on the Red Planet, bettering our chances of finding possible signs of life.
	Japan mulls 2018 moon landing, seeks to keep up with rivals Japan's space agency is considering an unmanned mission to the moon by 2018 or early 2019, part of an effort to beef up aerospace technology and keep pace with China and other emerging powers.
	Astronomers find new details about star formation in ancient galaxy protoclusters Ongoing studies of distant galaxy protoclusters using the Multi-Object Infrared Camera and Spectrograph (MOIRCS) instrument on the Subaru Telescope is giving astronomers a closer look at the characteristics of star-forming regions in galaxies in the early universe.
	Radio astronomy backed by big data projects As the leading edge of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) radio telescope is at the forefront of the big data challenges facing radio astronomy, presenting and solving issues that will help research and industry across the world for years to come.
	NASA's ATLAS thermal testing: You're hot, then you're cold Once in orbit, the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 will go from basking in the heat of the sun to freezing in Earth's shadow every 90 minutes. And every second in that orbit, it will need to take thousands of precise measurements of the height of the surface below.
	Virtual telescope expands to see black holes Astronomers building an Earth-size virtual telescope capable of photographing the event horizon of the black hole at the center of our Milky Way have extended their instrument to the bottom of the Earth—the South Pole—thanks to recent efforts by a team led by Dan Marrone of the University of Arizona.
	Image: Claude Nicollier repairing Hubble This week marks the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble space telescope. Hubble was designed to be maintained and repaired by astronauts and since its launch in 1990 five Space Shuttle missions made visits.

Technology news

	603 km/h: Japan's maglev train breaks new world speed record (Update 2) Japan's state-of-the-art maglev train clocked a new world speed record Tuesday in a test run near Mount Fuji, smashing through the 600 kilometre (373 miles) per hour mark, as Tokyo races to sell the technology abroad.
	Google big Android Wear update adds functions, fun Android Wear's Monday announcement of new features is drawing many compliments from those watching out for what's next in making a smartwatch purchase. The new attractions include the lightness of wearing a smart watch without having to pocket a smartphone; the fun of sending messages with custom emojis; and the ease that comes with using wrist gestures to see what you want to see.
	Solar plane lands in east China ahead of most ambitious leg Solar Impulse 2 landed late Tuesday in the Chinese city of Nanjing, finishing the sixth stage of its landmark 12-leg quest to circumnavigate the globe powered only by the sun.
	Shoe grows five sizes, fits needs of children for years A special kind of shoe has been created; you can call it Clever Engineering. The drivers behind the shoe describe the effort as Practical Compassion. "There are over 300 million children who do not have shoes. And countless more with shoes that do not fit. Sometimes they receive donations of shoes, but these are kids. Their feet grow. And they outgrow donated shoes within a year. Right back where they started," said The Shoe That Grows.org.
	Solar plane starts next round-the-world leg in China A pioneering plane attempting to circumnavigate the globe powered only by the sun took off in China early Tuesday for the next stage of its journey, organisers said.
	Twitter moves to stem violent threats, abuse Twitter on Tuesday began implementing a new policy aimed at curbing use of the social network to incite violence, and to crack down on abuse and harassment on the service.
	Data deluge: MLB rolls out Statcast analytics on Tuesday Which outfielder sprints the fastest and runs the longest to snag line drives into the gap? Which shortstop is best at throwing from the grass to nip the runner at first? Which catcher gets the ball to second base the quickest?
	Microsoft to launch first flagship store outside US in Sydney Microsoft on Tuesday said it will open its first flagship store outside the United States in Sydney, as the technology giant expands its physical footprint to take on global rivals Apple and Samsung.
	Energy-tracking app encourages sustainable behaviors For a generation motivated by technology and fast-moving information, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has created an energy-tracking app to make reducing day-to-day energy usage more accessible.
	Lack of attention, self-control predict dangerous texting behaviors Texting while driving or walking can be dangerous, but people still engage in the behavior without thinking.
	How to alert drivers to fatigue Frank Black is a professional truck driver, having clocked up nearly three decades travelling the breadth of Australia. But every time he gets into his cab, Black thinks about driver fatigue; over the years he has lost several mates in fatal, avoidable crashes.
	Protecting our rights to privacy and digital dignity How many of us read the terms and conditions when signing up to a social media account or downloading a new app? And does agreeing to these rules offer us any real protection from big business looking to mine our data for profit?
	Cost-efficiency of plug-in hybrids calculated a thousand times faster Plug-in hybrids have low fuel consumption, but require more costly parts than cars with a regular combustion engine. During development, the optimal cost balance must be calculated, which has been extremely time consuming to date. Now researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have developed a new method that dramatically reduces the time needed for these calculations.
Online discussion forums good for well-being, study shows A new study has found that internet discussion forums have positive links to well-being and are even associated with increased community engagement offline, contrary to a common perception of them being outdated and prone to trolling.
	Sweden opens world's first remote air control tower Sweden on Tuesday inaugurated the world's first remote air control tower at the northern Ornskoldsvik airport, air traffic authorities said.
Certain interactive tools click with web users Before web developers add the newest bells and the latest whistles to their website designs, a team of researchers suggests they zoom in on the tools that click with the right users and for the right tasks.
	Hackers gaining upper hand, security conference told Hackers and cyber-thieves are outmaneuvering the cybersecurity industry, which is stuck in a "Dark Ages" mindset, a major security conference was told Tuesday.
	Let's be neighbors, US security head tells tech sector Even though Silicon Valley has had an often-contentious relationship with the US government's national security organizations, it's now time to be neighbors, one top official said Tuesday.
Amazon starts travel service Amazon Destinations The site that sells everything from toilet paper to toys can now send you on a romantic getaway.
Verizon defends new cable deals as media companies complain Verizon is defending its new, cheaper cable packages that let customers choose groups of channels as media companies protest.
	Yahoo's 1Q shows company remains mired in revenue rut Yahoo is still struggling to boost revenue nearly three years into CEO Marissa Mayer's tenure, magnifying concerns that the Internet company holds little value beyond its lucrative Asian investments.
	Google to help search for Scotland's Loch Ness monster Those keen to search for Scotland's mythical Loch Ness monster can do so from anywhere in the world after Google launched a cache of underwater and surface images of the lake.
	Facebook shifts News Feed, gives priority to friends Facebook said Tuesday it was reconfiguring its News Feed, in a move aimed at giving people more information about what is happening to "the friends you care about."
	World's first 5G radio channel model While the next mobile network generation – 5G – is yet to be fully realised, the EU has committed itself to ensuring that European businesses and services are able to take full advantage when this new wave of technology arrives. Industry predicts that the speed and capacity of 5G will open the door to new applications in Cloud Computing, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications, to name but a few.
How the first smart shopping mall in Europe works Researchers from Zendos Tecnología and the IMDEA Networks Institute have developed an innovative tool to analyze the behavior of customers and visitors to shopping malls. The result is a technological platform called Ubicua Xperience which allows researchers to apply business intelligence in order to encourage direct interaction between a shopping mall and its customers, providing customers with benefits such as personalized information, individualized special offers or increased child safety, all in real time.
	TV5 Monde take-down reveals key weakness of broadcasters in digital age In what was one of the most severe outages of its kind, French national television broadcaster TV5 Monde was recently the target of a well-planned and staged cyberattack that took down its 11 television channels, website, and social media streams.
NATO to hold major cyber defense drill in Estonia About 400 computer experts will participate in a major cybersecurity drill in Estonia this week as part of NATO's efforts to upgrade its capability to counter potentially debilitating hacker attacks.
White House releases energy plan to fight climate change The White House on Tuesday released a four-year energy plan designed to fight climate change, modernize power plants and find other ways to ensure the nation a steady supply of safe energy.
NREL releases report describing guidelines for PV manufacturer quality assurance The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has released an updated proposal that will establish an international quality standard for photovoltaic (PV) module manufacturing. The document is intended for immediate use by PV manufacturers when producing modules on an industrial scale so they can increase investor, utility, and consumer confidence in PV system performance.

Medicine & Health news

	Listen to your heart: Why your brain may give away how well you know yourself In research published today in the journal Cerebral Cortex, a team of scientists led by the University of Cambridge and the Medical Research Council (MRC) Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, studied not only whether volunteers could be trained to follow their heartbeat, but whether it was possible to identify from brain activity how good they were at estimating their performance.
	Babies feel pain 'like adults' The brains of babies 'light up' in a very similar way to adults when exposed to the same painful stimulus, a pioneering Oxford University brain scanning study has discovered. It suggests that babies experience pain much like adults.
	Another study finds no link between vaccine, autism Yet another scientific study has found no link between autism and the vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), according to US research published on Tuesday.
	Scientists identify brain circuitry responsible for anxiety in smoking cessation In a promising breakthrough for smokers who are trying to quit, neuroscientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and The Scripps Research Institute have identified circuitry in the brain responsible for the increased anxiety commonly experienced during withdrawal from nicotine addiction.
	Large headed women found to have pelvis shape to allow for delivery of large headed babies (MedicalXpress)—A pair of researchers, one with the University of Oslo, in Norway, the other with the University of Vienna in Austria, has found that women with large heads tend to have birth canals that are shaped differently on average to accommodate what will likely be babies being born with larger heads. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Barbara Fischer and Philipp Mitteroecker describe how they analyzed multiple human skeletons and noticed a trend—women with large heads had slightly differently shaped birth canals.
	New super-fast MRI technique demonstrated with song 'If I Only Had a Brain' (w/ Video) In order to sing or speak, around one hundred different muscles in our chest, neck, jaw, tongue, and lips must work together to produce sound. Beckman researchers investigate how all these mechanisms effortlessly work together—and how they change over time.
	Breathless: How blood-oxygen levels regulate air intake Researchers have unraveled the elusive process by which small, highly vascular clusters of sensory cells in the carotid arteries "taste the blood," as a 1926 essay put it—the initial step in regulating blood-oxygen levels.
No long-term survival difference found between types of mitral valve replacements In a comparison of mechanical prosthetic vs bioprosthetic mitral valves among patients 50 to 69 years of age undergoing mitral valve replacement, there was no significant difference in survival at 15 years, although there were differences in risk of reoperation, bleeding and stroke, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.
Patients grapple with high cost of arthritis medications The first national investigation of Medicare coverage of biologic disease modifying drugs (DMARDs) found that in starting a single biologic DMARD, patients face more than $2,700 in copayments each year before receiving relief from catastrophic coverage. Results published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), show that during the initial phase of coverage, most people are expected to pay a striking 29.6% of total biologic drugs costs (just under one-third) out-of-pocket, creating an enormous financial burden for patients with chronic, rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
	Immune system protein regulates sensitivity to bitter taste New research from the Monell Center reveals that tumor necrosis factor (TNF), an immune system regulatory protein that promotes inflammation, also helps regulate sensitivity to bitter taste. The finding may provide a mechanism to explain the taste system abnormalities and decreased food intake that can be associated with infections, autoimmune disorders, and chronic inflammatory diseases.
	Mindfulness-based therapy could offer an alternative to antidepressants for preventing depression relapse Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) could provide an alternative non-drug treatment for people who do not wish to continue long-term antidepressant treatment, suggests new research published in The Lancet.
	Guidance offered for managing conflict with patients (HealthDay)—Good communication is key to managing conflict with patients, according to an article published April 1 in Medical Economics.
Labels on the front of food packaging can enable healthier choices, research finds In a new study published today in the British Journal of Nutrition, a team of researchers led by the University of Surrey, has found that front of package nutrition labels can enable consumers to make healthier food choices.
Review of whole slide imaging for pediatric specimens advances validation process Whole slide imaging is an emerging technology that is poised to impact the practice of medicine by extending the virtual reach of pathologists. Classified as a medical device by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, whole slide imaging must be validated and approved before use in primary diagnosis. The College of American Pathologists has published guidelines for this validation, and a new study applies those guidelines specifically to specimens in the pediatric population.
	Technique could speed biologic drugs Antibodies are specific molecules that can lock onto a particular cellular structure to start, stop or otherwise temper a biological process. Because they are so specific, antibodies are at the forefront of drug discovery. So drug companies want a faster route to step one: identifying which of the millions of possible antibodies will work against molecules that cause disease.
Real-world targeted treatment based on whole genome sequencing difficult in pancreatic cancer Although advances in whole genome sequencing have made it possible to identify unique druggable alterations in individual tumors, real-world application of this technology in diseases such as pancreatic cancer remains a challenge, according to research from the Individualized Molecular Pancreatic Cancer Therapy (IMPaCT) trial presented here at the AACR Annual Meeting 2015, April 18-22.
Phase II trial of ipilimumab-nivolumab combo shows promise in advanced melanoma Giving the two immunotherapies ipilimumab and nivolumab simultaneously yielded better treatment responses than ipilimumab alone in patients with advanced melanoma who received no prior treatment, according to phase II clinical trial data presented here at the AACR Annual Meeting 2015, April 18-22. This study is being simultaneously published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Investigational ER degrader safe, with early signs of antitumor activity against advanced ER-positive breast cancer The new investigational estrogen receptor (ER) degrader GDC-0810 was safe and tolerable in postmenopausal women with advanced ER-positive breast cancer, and a subset of the women, all of whom were previously treated with standard endocrine therapy, gained clinical benefit from the drug, according to data from a first-in-human phase I/IIa clinical trial presented here at the AACR Annual Meeting 2015, April 18-22.
Teens most influenced by alcohol marketing more likely to report dangerous drinking behaviors Underage youth who cite alcohol marketing and the influence of adults, movies or other media as the main reasons for choosing to consume a specific brand of alcohol are more likely to drink more and report adverse consequences from their drinking than youth who report other reasons for selecting a specific brand, new research suggests.
	Omega-3 hope for cancer patients The chemistry involved in designing drugs with the potential to treat cancer is complex and finicky. The placement of a single atom can be the difference between a cancer killer and a useless bystander. And that's just at the test tube stage.
	Cytometry by time-of-flight to explore mysteries of the immune system Why do some individuals infected with the West Nile virus develop life-threatening infections while others never know they had more than a mosquito bite? That medical mystery is just one of the questions that Ruth Montgomery, associate professor of medicine at Yale School of Medicine, seeks to explore with the use of a transformational tool for translational research.
	Odor receptors do much more than pick up scents Smell is the only sensory system with a back up, which throughout most of adult life forms new sensory neurons that express specific odor receptors. Now Yale researchers led by Charles Greer and Diego Rodriguez-Gil have discovered a way to track every step of the process over time.
	Finding points to a cause of chronic lung disease Scientists have long suspected that respiratory viruses—the sort that cause common colds or bronchitis—play a critical role in the long-term development of chronic lung diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
	Early child care experiences play role in kids' future Children who use centre-based child care and multiple care arrangements across their early years are better prepared for school, a new QUT study has found.
	Cancer diagnoses will rise as population ages Cancer is a leading cause of death in Virginia and researchers at the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service project that the rate of growth in new cancer cases will far outpace the growth of the population in the next 25 years, due to the overall aging of the population.
	Genetic variance explains poor response to common asthma medications Researchers have identified a biological basis for asthmatic children who do not respond well to corticosteroid treatment - currently the most effective treatment for chronic asthma and acute asthma attack.
	Pre-clinical model reveals pathology behind mitochondrial disease A lack of a particular mitochondrial protein in genetically manipulated mice has shown to trigger events in the body that causes mild heart hypertrophy (enlargement) and severe fatty liver disease.
National fitness database should help Americans battle cardiovascular disease Ball State University is collecting health-related data to create a national fitness database as part of the nation's fight against cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 killer of Americans.
Cutting meth availability does not reduce sexually transmitted infections, says study Health officials often cite the ability to control illegal methamphetamine sales as a tool to reduce HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), but limiting the drug actually may increase such diseases among certain populations, says a new study from Ball State University.
Risk of hepatitis D higher among HIV infected and injection drug users Researchers from Taiwan determined that individuals with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection or those who inject illicit drugs have a higher risk of becoming infected with the hepatitis D virus (HDV) in that country. The study, published in Hepatology, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, suggests that effective strategies are need to contain a potential HDV epidemic in these high-risk populations.
Is relative poverty or lack of healthcare funding responsible for excess deaths of British children? New research from Bournemouth University has found that the UK has the fourth highest child mortality rate, third worst relative poverty and lowest funded health care in the Western world.
	Regular consumption of yogurt does not improve health, new study shows Dietary recommendations support the consumption of dairy products as part of a healthy diet. However, a Spanish study, which involved more than 4,000 people, analyzed the relationship between the regular intake of yogurt and health-related quality of life, concluded that there was no link with the improvement of the physical and mental parameters analysed.
	Findings confirm that coffee protects against breast cancer recurrence A number of research studies have shown that coffee helps to protect against breast cancer. A new study led by Lund University, has confirmed that coffee inhibits the growth of tumours and reduces the risk of recurrence in women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and treated with the drug tamoxifen.
Trial shows benefit of 'BRCA-targeting' drug in prostate cancer Men with prostate cancer benefit from treatment with the pioneering drug olaparib - the first cancer drug to target inherited mutations - according to the results of a major trial presented today (Tuesday).
	UT Austin researchers inform development of Ebola vaccine trials As the current Ebola outbreak wanes, scientists have to make the most of every opportunity to prepare for future outbreaks. One such opportunity involves the identification of a safe and effective Ebola vaccine. Texas supercomputers have aided researchers in modelling which types of clinical trials will provide the best information. That's according to University of Texas at Austin researchers Steve Bellan and Lauren Meyers, who are studying Ebola vaccine trials with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
	Why some neurons 'outsource' their cell body Nerve cells come in very different shapes. Researchers at the Bernstein Center Berlin now reveal why, in insects, the cell body is usually located at the end of a separate extension. Using mathematical models, they show that this increases the strength of electrical signal transmission at no additional energetic cost.
	Type 2 diabetes: Understanding regulation of sugar levels for better treatment Individuals with type 2 diabetes, who are resistant to insulin, have an excess blood glucose level, which they are now trying to reduce using a new class of diabetes drugs known as the gliflozins. These new drugs lower the sugar level but also produce a paradoxical effect, leading to the secretion of glucagon, a supplementary source of glucose. Joint research units 1190, "Translational Research for Diabetes," (University of Lille, Inserm and Lille Regional University Hospital), directed by François Pattou, and 1011 "Nuclear Receptors, Cardiovascular Diseases and Diabetes," directed by Bart Staels, describe a new mechanism that controls glucagon secretion in humans, making it possible to elucidate this phenomenon and suggesting a modification of this new type of treatment.
Maternal stress increases development of fetal neuroblastoma in animal model While genetics play a substantial role in development of neuroblastoma, scientists say that something else is in play that elevates the risk: stress.
	One in three young adults with autism disconnected from work and school Autism does not end when children reach adulthood—yet most public awareness, public policy and research about autism focus on the needs of children. Families, service providers, community leaders and policymakers still know too little about the experiences and outcomes of young people on the autism spectrum as they enter their adult lives. What are their experiences with transition planning, living arrangements, social participation, employment, postsecondary education, health and mental health, safety and other domains?
	Cannabis consumers show greater susceptibility to false memories A new study published in the American journal with the highest impact factor in worldwide, Molecular Psychiatry, reveals that consumers of cannabis are more prone to experiencing false memories. The study was conducted by researchers from the Human Neuropsychopharmacology group at the Biomedical Research Institute of Hospital de Sant Pau and from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, in collaboration with the Brain Cognition and Plasticity group of the Bellvitge Institute for Biomedical Research (IDIBELL - University of Barcelona). One of the known consequences of consuming this drug is the memory problems it can cause. Chronic consumers show more difficulties than the general population in retaining new information and recovering memories. The new study also reveals that the chronic use of cannabis causes distortions in memory, making it easier for imaginary or false memories to appear.
	What happens when multiple sclerosis patients stop taking their medication? New research led by NYU Langone Medical Center examines what happens when a patient with multiple sclerosis (MS) who is clinically stable stops taking their medication.
	Caring for blindness: A new protein in sight? Vasoproliferative ocular diseases are responsible for sight loss in millions of people in the industrialised countries. Many patients do not currently respond to the treatment offered, which targets a specific factor, VEGF. A team of Inserm researchers at the Vision Institute (Inserm/CNRS/Pierre and Marie Curie University), in association with a team from the Yale Cardiovascular Research Center, have demonstrated in an animal model that blocking another protein, Slit2, prevents the pathological blood vessel development that causes these diseases. This work is published in Nature Medicine.
	New clues to treat juvenile diabetes UC Davis Assistant Professor Mark Huising is a recipient of The Hartwell Foundation 2014 Individual Biomedical Research Award to support his early-stage research toward a cure for juvenile diabetes. Diabetes affects 10 percent of the entire United States population, including approximately a million children. Remarkably, 40 children every day receive the diagnosis of diabetes.
	Children at risk for type 1 diabetes show immune response when given oral insulin Children at risk for type 1 diabetes, who were given daily doses of oral insulin, developed a protective immune response to the disease that researchers with the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus say could possibly lay the groundwork for a vaccine against the chronic illness.
	Sex matters ... even for liver cells Female liver cells, and in particular those in menopaused women, are more susceptible to adverse effects of drugs than their male counterparts, according to new research carried out by the JRC. It is well known that women are more vulnerable when it comes to drug-induced liver effects, but it's the first time it has been shown that there are differences at cellular level. The findings are striking and clinically relevant, and emphasise the importance of considering sex-based differences in human health risk assessment.
Study shows feasibility of using gene therapy to treat rare immunodeficiency syndrome In a small study that included seven children and teens with Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, a rare immunodeficiency disorder, use of gene therapy resulted in clinical improvement in infectious complications, severe eczema, and symptoms of autoimmunity, according to a study in the April 21 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on child health.
Type 1 diabetes: First hurdle taken on the way to an insulin vaccine Scientists from the DFG Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, TU Dresden and the Institut für Diabetesforschung, Helmholtz Zentrum München, together with researchers from Vienna, Bristol and Denver (USA) have successfully completed the first step in development of an insulin vaccine to prevent type 1 diabetes.
Parent training significantly reduces disruptive behavior in children with autism It's estimated that six out of 1,000 children worldwide are affected by autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and 50 percent demonstrate serious and disruptive behavior, including tantrums, aggression, self-injury and noncompliance.
	Immune cells support good gut bacteria in fight against harmful bacteria An immune cell protein, ID2, is critical for the maintenance of healthy gut microbiota and helps these good bacteria fight off harmful bacteria, report scientists from the University of Chicago. The study, published in Immunity on April 21, suggests that novel therapeutics or microbiota transplantation could be used to promote the development of good gut microbiota to indirectly kill harmful bacteria for patients with recurrent gut infection.
Incidence of serious diabetes complication may be increasing among youth in US The incidence of a potentially life-threatening complication of diabetes, diabetic ketoacidosis, in youth in Colorado at the time of diagnosis of type 1 diabetes increased by 55 percent between 1998 and 2012, suggesting a growing number of youth may experience delays in diagnosis and treatment, according to a study in the April 21 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on child health.
Surprising contributor to Rett syndrome identified The immune system is designed to protect us from disease. But what if it was malfunctioning? Would it make a disease worse? That appears to be the case with Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder, and possibly in other neurological disorders as well, new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine has found.
Finding liver cancer early and reversing its course Liver cancer is often lethal in humans because it is diagnosed in late stages, but new work in animal models has identified a potential diagnostic biomarker of the disease and a potential way to reverse the damage done. The study will be presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2015 in Philadelphia.
	FDA: Safety problems prompted review of homeopathic remedies A top federal drug regulator says increased safety problems with homeopathic remedies contributed to the government's decision to revisit its oversight of the products this week.
Failing to provide for kids leads to aggression and delinquency A new study by two researchers in the University at Buffalo School of Social Work has shown that parents who chronically neglect their children contribute to the likelihood that they will develop aggressive and delinquent tendencies later in adolescence, and the one factor that links neglect with those behaviors appears to be poor social skills.
	Researchers identify methylated DNA markers—noninvasive cancer screen A team of Mayo Clinic researchers has succeeded in identifying the source of cancer in patients' gastrointestinal tracts by analyzing DNA markers from tumors. The results open the possibility that doctors could one day be able to screen for cancer anywhere in the body with a noninvasive blood test or stool sample. Such tests, if they prove practical and feasible, could mean greater convenience for patients and saved lives through earlier diagnosis of cancer, especially rare and often lethal diseases such as pancreatic cancer or lung cancer.
	Study supports HPV vaccination guidelines (HealthDay)—New research finds that young women who get the HPV vaccine gain significant protection against infection in three parts of the body if they haven't already been exposed to the human papillomavirus.
	Link between serotonin and depression is a myth, says top psychiatrist The widely held belief that depression is due to low levels of serotonin in the brain - and that effective treatments raise these levels - is a myth, argues a leading psychiatrist in The BMJ this week.
	Depression raises risk of poor outcomes for blacks with heart failure Among black heart failure patients, moderate depression may increase the risk of heart failure patients being hospitalized or dying, according to research in the American Heart Association journal Circulation: Heart Failure.
	Parkinson's patient experiences symptom relief with new medication To date, a cure for Parkinson's disease remains elusive for the more than 50,000 Americans diagnosed yearly, despite decades of intensive study. But a newly approved treatment that might help ease the symptoms of Parkinson's has shown remarkable promise.
Protein identified that serves as a 'brake' on inflammation Researchers have identified a protein that offers a new focus for developing targeted therapies to tame the severe inflammation associated with multiple sclerosis (MS), colitis and other autoimmune disorders. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists led the study which appears today in the scientific journal Immunity.
Bird flu takes big toll yet as virus hits US chicken farms Poultry producers and scientists have been hoping warmer weather would knock down a virulent strain of bird flu that has hammered the U.S. Midwest, but the virus recently took its biggest toll yet, hitting a farm in Iowa that held nearly 10 percent of the state's egg-laying chickens. Here are some questions and answers about the outbreak:
	Blue Bell Creameries issues recall of all products Texas-based Blue Bell Creameries issued a voluntary recall Monday night for all of its products on the market after two samples of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream tested positive for listeria, a potentially deadly bacteria.
New research points to elderly as growing contributor to tuberculosis in China A major contributor to the number of tuberculosis infections and cases in China will likely be the elderly over the next few decades, requiring a refocus in efforts to control a disease affecting millions of people in the country, according to preliminary new research presented today at the Fourth Global Forum on TB Vaccines in Shanghai. The researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine found that developing a "post-infection" vaccine could reduce overall TB rates in China by almost a third by 2050.
New antibody-drug conjugate shows early promise for patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer An investigational antibody-drug conjugate called MM-302 was safe, tolerable, and showed signs of clinical activity in heavily pretreated patients with metastatic, HER2-positive breast cancer, according to data from a phase I clinical trial presented here at the AACR Annual Meeting 2015, April 18-22.
Caterpillar fungus could hold the key to relieving the pain of arthritis A drug from a parasitic mushroom that lives on caterpillars could become an effective new painkiller for people with osteoarthritis within the next six years, according to UK researchers.
	Nit-picking parents 'putting kids off sport' Flinders University research has found that many parents are unwittingly driving their children to quit sport because of intense, post-match grillings.
	Real-time feedback a boon in rehab Laser-cut acrylic tiles with a 3D printed core and the capacity to be wired up to "interact" with patients offer a new tool for people recovering from stroke and other brain injury.
	Artificial intelligence system provides therapy for cerebral stroke sufferers Artificial intelligence, virtual worlds and interaction with video games comprise the elements of a new therapy designed by several Mexican institutions to help stroke patients and children with cerebral palsy to recover mobility of their upper extremities quickly.
Helpful app for people with dementia Bangor University is providing expertise to support the development and effectiveness of 'Book of You', an 'app' being welcomed as having the potential to revolutionise reminiscence therapy for people with dementia.
Access to green space reduces rich-poor divide in mental wellbeing Having access to green spaces significantly reduces the gap in wellbeing between richer and poorer people a European study has found.
	Video of mini hearts and livers for "Body on a Chip" project update As part of a "Body on a Chip" project funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, scientists at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, a part of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, in collaboration with partners from around the country, are developing miniature hearts, livers, blood vessels and lungs that will be used to predict the effects of chemical and biologic agents and used to test the effectiveness of potential treatments.
	Proton cancer therapy among areas threatened by skills shortage Improving proton therapy for cancer treatment is one of the many advances in accelerator science that have been fast-tracked by a unique approach to academia-industry training, led by the Cockcroft Institute. The two programmes, which have produced 42 highly valued research fellows, are drawing to a conclusion and industry partners are warning of a skills chasm in the very near future unless further training is prioritised.
Reflections on current state of situation awareness topic of JCEDM special issue Over the past 25 years, the construct of situation awareness (SA), or the perception and interpretation of what is happening around you, has been a catalyst for new advances in the human factors/ergonomics field, particularly in the areas of information display, automation, and training.
	Teva offers to buy Mylan in $40.1B cash-and-stock deal Generic drug giant Teva formally offered to buy fellow drugmaker Mylan for about $40.1 billion in cash and stock on Tuesday, despite Mylan's cold shoulder and the certainty the proposed acquisition will bring intense scrutiny by antitrust regulators.
BMC develops protocol for preserving forensic evidence after a terrorist attack Boston Medical Center (BMC) pathologists have developed a set of protocols for processing and preserving forensic evidence, such as shrapnel, bullets and other projectiles, in surgical specimens (i.e. amputated limbs, injured organs, etc.) after a terrorist attack based on lessons learned from the Boston Marathon bombing. Their findings are published online in advance of print in the Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.
	Electronic cigarettes are not a 'safe alternative' for young people Although heavily promoted as a safer cigarette and an aid to quit smoking, electronic cigarettes and the nicotine they deliver pose particular risks to the developing brains and organs of children. Use of electronic cigarettes by school-age children has surpassed traditional cigarette smoking, and it is critical to recognize and understand the risks related to nicotine exposure, addiction, and the poor regulation of these products, as described in the comprehensive Review article "Electronic Cigarettes: Vulnerability of Youth," published in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology.
	When genes are expressed in reverse Genes usually always be expressed as in Western writing: from left to right on the white canvas of our DNA. So when we speak of the activity of our genome, in fact we are referring to the expression of genes in this sense of the double-stranded DNA.
Childhood cancer survivors more likely to claim social security support as adults Children with cancer have a good chance of surviving the disease—today more than 80 percent survive because of advances in treatment and care. However, recent studies have shown that some of these more than 420,000 U.S. childhood cancer survivors face future health-related challenges as they become adults such as a second cancer diagnosis, cardiac failure, or other severe medical complications.
	CDC: 10 listeria illnesses now linked to Blue Bell foods Federal regulators say they're now aware of 10 listeria illnesses linked to ice cream and other products made by Texas-based Blue Bell Creameries over the last five years.
	Q&A: What is listeria? Bacteria found in Blue Bell ice cream Blue Bell Creameries is pulling all of its products off the shelves after samples of its ice cream tested positive for a potentially deadly bacteria—listeria.
More than 85 percent of surgeons disregard USPSTF breast screening recommendation The vast majority of surgeons continue to recommend that women 40 years old or older with an average risk for breast cancer be screened annually for the disease, despite a 2009
	New Orleans going smoke-free in bars, other public places Smoking in bars and casinos is coming to an end even in this notoriously freewheeling and fun-loving city where drinking on the street and watching a bawdy burlesque are the norm.
Perrigo takes 3Q loss, says it won't take Mylan's $29B bid Irish drug and over-the-counter ingredients maker Perrigo Co. said Tuesday it took a loss in its fiscal third quarter as it prepared to buy a Belgian competitor.
First case of rabies in over a decade: Lessons for healthcare personnel A team of French clinicians has diagnosed the first case of rabies in that country since 2003. Only 20 cases of human rabies had been diagnosed in France between 1970 and 2003. Moreover, the patient was unaware of having been bitten. So it is not surprising that that diagnosis was not suggested until day 12 post admission to the intensive care unit. The case report appeared April 8 in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, a publication of the American Society for Microbiology.
	Blue Bell says it's still trying to pinpoint listeria cause A massive recall has brought more attention and put more pressure on a century-old Texas ice cream company that has been searching to discover how its products became linked to a deadly string of listeria cases.

Biology news

	Researchers find the genome of the cultivated sweet potato has bacterial DNA (Phys.org)—A team of researchers with members from Belgium, China, Peru and the U.S. has found evidence of bacterial DNA in the genome of the cultivated sweet potato. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team describes their findings as an example of a naturally occurring transgenic food crop.
	Viral proteins may regulate human embryonic development A fertilized human egg may seem like the ultimate blank slate. But within days of fertilization, the growing mass of cells activates not only human genes but also viral DNA lingering in the human genome from ancient infections.
Evolutionary history is a predictor of diversity of parasites in a species The evolutionary history, body size and geographic range of an animal species are predictors for the diversity of parasites—or disease—that species carries, according to University of Georgia researchers.
	There was a decline of male diversity when humans took to agriculture When people abandoned a hunter-gatherer lifestyle and became agriculturalists, initially some 10,000 years ago, they gave up a lot of things.
	Warm bodied fishes found able to swim farther and faster than cold bodied fish (Phys.org)—A team of researchers with members from Japan, the U.S. and the U.K. has found that some warm bodied sharks and tunas are able to swim more than twice as fast non-warm bodied fish and they are also able to swim farther. In their paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team describes how they used existing data along with new data they obtained by attaching sensors to several sharks in different locations around the world, to better understand endothermy in fishes and what their studies revealed.
	Engineered softwood could transform pulp, paper and biofuel industries Scientists today demonstrated the potential for softwoods to process more easily into pulp and paper if engineered to incorporate a key feature of hardwoods. The finding, published in this week's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could improve the economics of the pulp, paper and biofuels industries and reduce those industries' environmental impact.
	Research reveals new possibilities for islet and stem cell transplantation (Edmonton) James Shapiro, one of the world's leading experts in emerging treatments of diabetes, can't help but be excited about his latest research. The results he says, could soon mark a new standard for treatment—not only in diabetes, but in several other diseases as well.
Stanford team makes biotechnology interactive with games and remote-control labs In the 1950s computers were giant machines that filled buildings and served a variety of arcane functions. Today they fit into our pockets or backpacks, and help us work, communicate and play.
Killer bees test a double win for Australian honeybees A genetic test that can prevent the entry of 'killer' bees into Australia and worldwide spread has been created by researchers at the University of Sydney and their collaborators at York University in Canada.
	A century of spectacular wheat yield improvements in China Almost 100 years of data on China's wheat yield improvements have been unearthed for the first time by researchers from Northwest Agricultural and Forestry University in China and The University of Western Australia.
	Researchers explain skin fusion at a molecular level Scientists from the Goethe University (GU) Frankfurt, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Heidelberg and the University of Zurich explain skin fusion at a molecular level and pinpoint the specific molecules that do the job in their latest publication in the journal Nature Cell Biology.
	Rafts on the cell membrane Tiny structures made of lipid molecules and proteins have been believed to wander within the membrane of a cell, much like rafts on the water. This "raft hypothesis" has been widely accepted, but now scientists at TU Wien (Vienna) have shown that in living cells these lipid rafts do not exist. This result has now been published in the journal Nature Communications.
	Agency: Humpback whales' recovery is national success story The humpback whale became the unofficial symbol for the conservation movement in the last century.
Agency will hunt invasive caribou on remote Alaska island Hunters from a federal agency will travel to a remote island in the Aleutians to kill caribou, an invasive species that threatens wilderness vegetation.
	New perspectives on how ecological communities are assembled What do you get when you combine a professor who literally wrote the book on community ecology and another who has more than 40 years experience as a leader in the field of evolutionary biology?
	Ebola retreat brings cheer to Sierra Leone chimps In the rising afternoon humidity 30-year-old Tom sits in the shade, picking fleas off his neighbour, unaware of how close he came to losing his home to Ebola.
	Intact for nine decades, Virunga National Park more threatened than ever Africa's first national park, Virunga, is 90 year old today. While we celebrate this milestone with great joy, we are deeply concerned about its future. For while Virunga – including the people and species who live in and depend on it – has survived decades of besiegement to remain intact with unparalleled biodiversity, the threat of oil looms large over this unique wilderness.
No US protection for sage grouse population A bird found only in California and Nevada no longer faces the threat of extinction and doesn't require federal protection, officials said just months before a more-sweeping decision is due on whether to declare other sage grouse threatened or endangered in 11 Western states.

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