Science X Newsletter Wednesday, Sep 23

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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for September 23, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Researchers fail to replicate STAP study; computational analysis reveals genomic inconsistency
- The hidden evolutionary relationship between pigs and primates revealed by genome-wide study of transposable elements
- How the universe's brightest galaxies were born
- Study links two human brains for question-and-answer experiment
- Twisting neutrons: Orbital angular momentum of neutron waves can be controlled
- Enamel evolved in the skin and colonized the teeth much later
- Metastatic breast cancer cells turn on stem cell genes
- Team finds role for soft palate in adaptation of transmissible influenza viruses
- Millions more government fingerprints deemed stolen (Update)
- Like a foreman, brain region keeps us on task
- Study shows oceanic phytoplankton declines in northern hemisphere
- Physiologists uncover a new code at the heart of biology
- The world's nitrogen fixation, explained
- Quantum entanglement: New study predicts a quantum Goldilocks effect
- Nearly half of US seafood supply is wasted

Astronomy & Space news

	How the universe's brightest galaxies were born The brightest galaxies in our universe are fuelled by what their gravity sucks in, not through explosive mergers of star systems as scientists previously argued, researchers said Wednesday.
	A cosmic rose with many names This new image of the rose-colored star forming region Messier 17 was captured by the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at ESO's La Silla Observatory in Chile. It is one of the sharpest images showing the entire nebula and not only reveals its full size but also retains fine detail throughout the cosmic landscape of gas clouds, dust and newborn stars.
	Hot, dense material surrounds O-type star with largest magnetic field known Observations using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory revealed that the unusually large magnetosphere around an O-type star called NGC 1624-2 contains a raging storm of extreme stellar winds and dense plasma that gobbles up X-rays before they can escape into space.
	Milky Way's black hole shows signs of increased chatter Three orbiting X-ray space telescopes have detected an increased rate of X-ray flares from the usually quiet giant black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy after new long-term monitoring. Scientists are trying to learn whether this is normal behavior that was unnoticed due to limited monitoring, or these flares are triggered by the recent close passage of a mysterious, dusty object.
	Fish reveal details of bone density loss during space missions Studies of medaka fish raised on the International Space Station shed light on how bone responds to sustained exposure to microgravity.
	Moons in hiding Prometheus and Pandora are almost hidden in Saturn's rings in this image.
	Stunning new Pluto aerial tour I'm Stuart Robbins, a research scientist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado. NASA's New Horizons spacecraft made hundreds of individual observations during its flyby of the Pluto system in mid-July. The spacecraft is now sending back lots of image and composition data; over the past two weeks, New Horizons has returned to Earth dozens of images at up to 400 meters per pixel (m/px) of the flyby hemisphere, and this has given scientists and the public an unprecedented view of this mysterious world.
	Can you grow potatoes on Mars? This is not as odd a question as it sounds, and by next week I reckon a good lot of you will be pondering it. Why? Well the 30th September sees the opening of The Martian in Australia, director Ridley Scott's latest offering. It's a survivor tale, telling the plight of a lone astronaut trapped on Mars.
	Supermoon plus eclipse equals rare sky show Sunday night (Update) Get ready for a rare double feature this weekend, starring our very own moon.
	See a glowing 'honey moon' and unique star trails in new night sky timelapse The "stars" of a new 3-minute timelapse are some very unique star trails and a glowing fireball that is actually a giant 'honey moon'—the full Moon in June. Gavin Heffernan from Sunchaser Pictures and Harun Mehmedinovic from Bloodhoney.com teamed up for this video, filming in gorgeous mountain locations in the Southwestern US, showcasing gathering storm clouds and stunning night sky scenes.
	Remembering the Vela incident Thirty-six years ago today, a strange event was detected over the Southern Indian Ocean that remains controversial. On September 22nd, 1979, an American Vela Hotel satellite detected an atmospheric explosion over the southern Indian Ocean near the Prince Edward Islands. The event occurred at 00:53 Universal Time on the pre-dawn nighttime side of the Earth. Vela's gamma-ray and x-ray detectors rang out in surprise, along with its two radiometers (known as Bhangmeters) which also captured the event.

Technology news

	3-D printing: WASP praises Maker Economy model of home fabrication Question: Can the construction energy expect big changes on the way? We have seen the headlines about drones building bridges fit enough for a human to cross and now there is news of a massive 3-D printer with its designers' aspirations to create low-cost houses using sustainable materials.
	Robot revolution sweeps China's factory floors In China's factories, the robots are rising.
	With iPhone launch, Apple eyes better customer connection It's not just another iPhone launch. This time, Apple is pushing not only a new device, but what it says is a new relationship with its customers.
	Sodium-ion batteries are potential power technology of future The high cost and scarcity of lithium are driving research to develop alternatives to lithium-ion batteries, especially to meet future needs in energy storage, say researchers from Purdue University in an article about a potential replacement.
	Regular dusting bolsters solar panel performance Perth residents who are the proud custodians of solar panels could boost the amount of power that the arrays produce over an extended period of time by simply removing dust particles from the panels.
	Soldiers crossing with Soft Exosuit tech to lighten fatigue The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is testing exoskeletons on real soldiers. Deep in the woods in Maryland, reports IEEE Spectrum, the U.S Army Research Laboratory (ARL) at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland has been testing their performance.
	Millions more government fingerprints deemed stolen (Update) The number of people applying for or receiving security clearances whose fingerprint images were stolen in one of the worst government data breaches is now believed to be 5.6 million, not 1.1 million as first thought, the Office of Personnel Management announced Wednesday.
	Instagram tops 400 million users Instagram has rocketed past the 400-million-user mark, with more than 80 million pictures shared daily at the Facebook-owned service.
	Starbucks, Nike join 100% renewable energy pledge Major US companies including Walmart, Starbucks and Nike vowed Wednesday to move completely to renewable energy in the long term as part of a global effort against climate change.
	Europe-US data sharing deal 'invalid' A major data-sharing deal between the EU and US is 'invalid' given the spying revelations in the Edward Snowden scandal, the top EU court's main legal advisor said Wednesday in a case brought against Facebook.
	NASA-developed technology aims to save commercial airlines fuel, time Two passenger airlines soon will test NASA-developed software designed to help air carriers save time and reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions.
	Cooling tower could revolutionise energy generation in drought areas New technology from the University of Queensland could transform electricity generation, making it cheaper and more reliable for drought-affected areas.
	High-tech pipelines aim to cut freight traffic When it comes to moving freight around Europe, road transport remains a driving force. But trucks get stuck in traffic and pollute the environment. Now innovators are looking below the surface at a greener, more efficient alternative
	Highly flexible and wearable tactile sensor for robotics, electronics and healthcare applications A team of scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) Faculty of Engineering has developed a wearable liquid-based microfluidic tactile sensor that is small, thin, highly flexible and durable. Simple and cost-effective to produce, this novel device is very suitable for applications such as soft robotics, wearable consumer electronics, smart medical prosthetic devices, as well as real-time healthcare monitoring.
	New sports technology provides a GPS alternative When it comes to recording accurate performance data for elite athletes, GPS technology can't keep up, a Griffith researcher claims.
	ORNL integrated energy demo connects 3-D printed building, vehicle A research demonstration unveiled today at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory combines clean energy technologies into a 3D-printed building and vehicle to showcase a new approach to energy use, storage and consumption.
	Uber launches new commute sharing, starting in China Ride-sharing giant Uber has unveiled a new car-sharing service for commuters, which will be launched first in Chengdu, China.
Child's play shifts to mobile gadgets Children are going mobile with their video game play, shifting away from computers and consoles, according to a report released on Wednesday by NPD Group.
	Facebook adds 360-degree video to News Feed Facebook on Wednesday began rolling out 360-degree viewing at the leading social network, letting people change their perspectives in specially created videos.
Page-turner: After sizzling growth, e-book sales cool Sales of electronic books have turned lower in 2015 in a stark reversal following several years of spectacular growth, an industry group said Wednesday.
	Investment treaty between China and US key business goal When Chinese President Xi Jinping addresses a meeting of some of the top names in Chinese and American business Wednesday, they may be most interested what he says about progress toward a treaty between the nations that would provide a framework for broader investment in each other's economy.
Report: China inks deal to buy 300 Boeing jets Chinese companies have agreed with Boeing to buy 300 jets and build an aircraft assembly plant in China in deals signed during President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States, the official Xinhua news agency said Wednesday.
	Ad blockers rise as ads annoy, bog down websites When you visit a website, you often find yourself waiting and waiting for advertisements to load. Video starts playing automatically, and animated ads jump in front of what you were there to see. The seconds tick by.
Couple ordered to pay $10 million for stealing trade secrets A judge has ordered a former employee of a mid-Missouri tech firm and his wife to pay $10 million for stealing trade secrets and partnering with a Chinese firm to sell knockoff products to unsuspecting buyers, including the U.S. Navy.
Ireland loses lucrative tech conference to Portugal The Web Summit, one of Europe's leading tech conferences will move to Lisbon from Dublin next year, organisers said Wednesday, in a multi-million-euro blow to the Irish economy.

Medicine & Health news

	Study links two human brains for question-and-answer experiment Imagine a question-and-answer game played by two people who are not in the same place and not talking to each other. Round after round, one player asks a series of questions and accurately guesses the object the other is thinking about. Sci-fi? Mind-reading superpowers? Not quite.
	No link between coffee consumption and common type of irregular heartbeat There is no association between coffee consumption and an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, according to research published in the open access journal BMC Medicine. The research includes a meta-analysis of four other studies, making it the largest study its kind, involving nearly 250,000 individuals over the course of 12 years.
Researchers isolate human muscle stem cells UC San Francisco researchers have successfully isolated human muscle stem cells and shown that the cells could robustly replicate and repair damaged muscles when grafted onto an injured site. The laboratory finding paves the way for potential treatments for patients with severe muscle injury, paralysis or genetic diseases such as muscular dystrophy.
	Researchers conduct high-res analyses on lesions in tissue A precise understanding of how ion beams affect biological tissue is of great importance for both radiotherapy applications and the assessment of radioprotection risks, e.g. to astronauts on long term missions in space.
	Workshop on the use of biospecimens calls for broad initial consent with oversight (Medical Xpress)—In the recent edition of the American Journal of Bioethics, the target article, authored by a consortium of participants of a workshop hosted by the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center's Department of Bioethics, discussed broad consent with oversight as an ethically appropriate response to the changing nature of research with biospecimens.
	How the brain encodes time and place When you remember a particular experience, that memory has three critical elements—what, when, and where. MIT neuroscientists have now identified a brain circuit that processes the "when" and "where" components of memory.
	Like a foreman, brain region keeps us on task If you sometimes feel like you have a little foreman in your head who keeps you on track while you work step-by-step through a sequence of tasks, you aren't far off. In new research, Brown University scientists report evidence that a particular part of the brain is responsible for exactly that function.
	Metastatic breast cancer cells turn on stem cell genes It only takes seconds: one cancerous cell breaks off from a tumor, slips into the bloodstream and quickly lodges elsewhere in the body. These colonizers may bloom into deadly metastatic cancer right away or lie dormant for years, only to trigger a recurrence decades after the primary tumor is removed.
	Team finds role for soft palate in adaptation of transmissible influenza viruses National Institutes of Health scientists and their colleagues identified a previously unappreciated role for the soft palate during research to better understand how influenza (flu) viruses acquire the ability to move efficiently between people. In studies using ferrets, the team collected evidence that this patch of mucous-coated soft tissue separating the mouth from the nasal cavity is a key site for the emergence of flu viruses with a heightened ability to spread through the air. The finding could aid efforts to define the properties governing flu virus transmissibility and predict which viruses are most likely to spark pandemics.
	Babies time their smiles to make their moms smile in return Why do babies smile when they interact with their parents? Could their smiles have a purpose? In the Sept. 23 issue of PLOS ONE, a team of computer scientists, roboticists and developmental psychologists confirm what most parents already suspect: when babies smile, they do so with a purpose—to make the person they interact with smile in return.
	Drug disarms deadly C. difficile bacteria without destroying healthy gut flora Stanford University School of Medicine scientists successfully defeated a dangerous intestinal pathogen, Clostridium difficile, with a drug targeting its toxins rather than its life.
	New research suggests not all trans fatty acids are bad for you New evidence suggests that low levels of trans fatty acids (TFAs) may not be as harmful to human health as previously thought, even if industrially produced, and may even be beneficial if they occur naturally in foods such as dairy and meat products, according to a study published today (Wednesday) in the European Heart Journal [1].
	New technique negotiates neuron jungle to target source of Parkinson's disease Researchers from Imperial College London and Newcastle University believe they have found a potential new way to target cells of the brain affected by Parkinson's disease.
If you're sitting down, don't sit still, new research suggests New research suggests that the movements involved in fidgeting may counteract the adverse health impacts of sitting for long periods.
Taming hot flashes without hormones: What works, what doesn't Some three-quarters of North American women have menopausal hot flashes, but many cannot use hormones for medical reasons or choose not to. Numerous products and techniques are promoted for hot flashes, but do they work, and are they safe? To answer these questions, a North American Menopause Society (NAMS) panel of experts weighed the evidence and made recommendations in a position statement, "Nonhormonal management of menopause-associated vasomotor symptoms," published online today in the Society's journal, Menopause.
	Do women experience negative emotions differently than men? Women react differently to negative images compared to men, which may be explained by subtle differences in brain function. This neurobiological explanation for women's apparent greater sensitivity has been demonstrated by researchers at the CIUSSS de l'Est-de-l'Île-de-Montréal (Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal) and the University of Montreal, whose findings were published today in Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Study shows restricting access at known 'suicide hotspots' reduces the number of suicides by more than 90 percent Blocking the means of suicide (eg, installing barriers and safety nets) at suicide hotspots like high bridges and cliffs can reduce the number of deaths at these sites by more than 90%, new research published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal has found.
Company says will cut price of drug after accused gouging The company that sparked an angry backlash after it raised the price of a drug for treating a deadly parasitic infection by more than 5,000 percent says it will roll back some of the increase.
Smoking, drink, obesity may shorten European lives: WHO (Update) "Alarming" rates of smoking, alcohol consumption and obesity in Europe could mean the next generation live shorter lives, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Wednesday.
Lonsurf approved for advanced colon cancer (HealthDay)—The combination pill Lonsurf (trifluridine and tipiracil) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat advanced colon cancer for people who aren't responding to other treatments, the agency said Tuesday in a news release.
	Medical schools teaching students about costs of care (HealthDay)—Many medical schools are integrating discussions of cost, value, and effectiveness into their curricula, according to Kaiser Health News.
Can vitamin B supercharge your dreams? A University of Adelaide researcher is calling for participants to assist in a new national study investigating whether vitamin B can enhance dreaming.
	Unique reaction underpins why breastfeeding is best Dangerous bacteria in babies can be held at bay by a unique chemical reaction that occurs between breastmilk and baby saliva, a University of Queensland breakthrough study has shown.
Researchers discover method to measure stiffness of arteries in the brain UCLA researchers have discovered a non-invasive method to measure vascular compliance, or how stiff an artery is, in the human brain, a finding that may have ramifications for preventing stroke and the early diagnoses of Alzheimer's disease.
	Chocolate and caffeine may boost cognitive, motor skills A chocolate bar might help you negotiate your next business deal, say Clarkson University researchers who are teaming up for a series of studies on the effects of caffeine, cocoa and dark chocolate on cognitive function and fatigue.
	Researchers propose 'breastsleeping' as a new word and concept As far as titles in academic journals go, it's quite the attention-getter. "There is no such thing as infant sleep, there is no such thing as breastfeeding, there is only breastsleeping," reads the title of a new peer-reviewed commentary piece by University of Notre Dame anthropologists James McKenna and Lee Gettler that appears in the prestigious European journal Acta Paediatrica.
	Scientists establish model of Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome Scientists from A*STAR's Institute of Medical Biology (IMB) have successfully established a comprehensive model of rare accelerated ageing syndrome Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS), thereby opening up the possibility of curing HGPS, with far-reaching implications on ageing and human health. The ground-breaking study was published in eLife in September 2015.
	Building human breast tissue, cell by cell The next frontier in developing therapies for cancer and other diseases could come through studying organ development or tumor growth in living humans. Problem is, there's no ethical way of doing that using current technology.
	Biomedical students develop therapeutic toy for auditory disabilities Hearing loss is one of the most common birth defects, with more than 12,000 children in the United States affected each year. Three students in Wichita State University's biomedical engineering program recognized this issue and designed their senior project to create a therapeutic toy to provide early intervention therapy for children with auditory disabilities.
	Old vaccine trains immune system Not only the acquired immune system but also the innate immune system has a memory. And the BCG vaccine against tuberculosis can stimulate this memory. After a BCG vaccination the innate immune system responds better to a wide range of other infections. Mihai Netea and colleagues from Radboud university medical center discovered and described how that works. They think that the old vaccine could be useful for specific target groups, such as the elderly.
	Getting a 'hint' about social inequalities in cancer information seeking Have you ever searched for information about cancer? Chances are, if you have, it was a Google search that led to a website like WebMD, the Mayo Clinic, or a charity such as the American Cancer Society or Cancer Research UK. Research on cancer information seeking behaviour of the public tells us that most people first turn to the Internet, with more in-depth searching possibly extending to talks with friends, family, and health professionals. But who searches for cancer information? We already know that people in America who actively seek out information about cancer are most often well educated, have a high income, are under age 65, are white, and have a usual source of health care.
	Why do people feel 'a rose by any other name' wouldn't fit as well? Words are symbols that help humans communicate. The link between words and what they refer to is, with very few exceptions, arbitrary. Many of the words that we currently use ("table," "dog," "mug," etc) could easily have been otherwise – a wide variety of words would have done just as well to symbolize tables, dogs or mugs.
	Dangerous swelling in babies linked to mutated gene Scientists have discovered a new gene mutation that causes potentially fatal swelling in unborn and newborn babies. Identifying the gene is the first step toward a future diagnostic test and targeted treatment for this condition.
	Controlling anxiety Researchers at Andreas Lüthi's laboratory have identified a cell type in the brain, which controls anxiety - a complex behavioral state - and have elucidated the underlying mechanisms. These findings thus improve our understanding of the brain processes which are triggered in states of anxiety and which are dysfunctional in anxiety disorders.
	Molecular 'feedback loop' may explain tamoxifen resistance in patients with breast cancer For reasons unknown, many patients with breast cancer treated with the estrogen receptor-blocking drug tamoxifen eventually become resistant to the treatment despite the fact that their cancer cells still have the estrogen receptor proteins that the drug normally targets. Now, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists and their colleagues have traced out an intricate molecular pathway in those cells they say may explain, at least in part, how tamoxifen resistance develops.
Early testing can predict the stroke patients who will develop upper limb spasticity Many stroke patients suffer from spasticity of the arm that cause pain and impaired sensorimotor function. But there are ways of identifying such patients ahead of time so that they can obtain the earliest possible treatment. Researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy have completed a study of stroke patients in the Gothenburg area.
Almost one-third of families of children with cancer have unmet basic needs during treatment Almost one-third of families whose children were being treated for cancer faced food, housing or energy insecurity and one-quarter lost more than 40 percent of household income, according to a new study from Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center. The study follows emerging research in pediatric oncology finding that low-income status predicts poor adherence to oral chemotherapy and decreased overall survival.
Study shows potential benefit of telehealth visits for postoperative care Most veterans undergoing general surgical operations of low complexity preferred telehealth (video or telephone) follow-up than visiting a clinic, and data suggested that telehealth visits may help identify veterans requiring in-person assessment or further care, according to a study published online by JAMA Surgery.
	Exergaming improves physical and mental fitness in children with autism spectrum disorders A study conducted by The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston says games used for exercising can improve physical and mental fitness in children with autism spectrum disorders.
	New cancer genes identified, opening door to targeted treatments In a discovery that could lead to more targeted and effective treatments for certain lung and prostate cancers, researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have identified two new cancer-causing gene mutations - mutations that may be particularly susceptible to cancer-fighting drugs already approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration. One of the gene mutations also may play a key role in early menopause.
Researchers find potential source of insulin-producing cells in adult human pancreas Cells that express neurogenin 3 (NGN3) may one day be harnessed to create a plentiful supply of insulin-producing beta cells for the treatment of diabetes, a study led by researchers at the University of South Florida suggests.
	Ringing in the ears and chronic pain enter by the same gate Tinnitus and chronic pain have more in common than their ability to afflict millions with the very real experience of "phantom" sensations. Scientists noted similarities between the two disorders more than thirty years ago. Now advances in brain imaging and associated techniques have enabled researchers to begin homing in on their structural and functional bases, revealing what appears to be a central gatekeeping system implicated in both chronic pain and tinnitus. Collaborators at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Georgetown University Medical Center integrate the latest findings into a disease model of both disorders in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences.
Nestle teams up with Swiss pharma firm to develop Alzheimer's test Nestle Institute of Health Sciences (NIHS) and Swiss biopharmaceutical company AC Immune announced on Wednesday a new partnership to develop an early Alzheimer's diagnostic test.
Adolescent brain may be especially sensitive to new memories, social stress, and drug use Adolescence, like infancy, has been said to include distinct sensitive periods during which brain plasticity is heightened; but in a review of the neuroscience literature published on September 23 in Trends in Cognitive Sciences, University College London (UCL) researchers saw little evidence for this claim. However, a small number of studies do support that memory formation, social stress, and drug use are processed differently in the adolescent brain compared to other periods of life.
Many patients prefer online postoperative care to in-person care The majority of patients who undergo routine, uncomplicated operations prefer online postoperative consultations to in-person visits, according to results from a new study published online as an "article in press" on the Journal of the American College of Surgeons website. The study will appear in the print publication of the Journal later this year.
Some forms of dizziness after getting up may signal bigger problems People who get dizzy several minutes after standing up may be at risk of more serious conditions and even an increased risk of death, according to new research published in the September 23, 2015, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Feeling dizzy, faint or light-headed after standing due to a sudden drop in blood pressure can be a minor problem due to medication use or dehydration. But when it happens often, it can be a sign of a more serious condition called orthostatic hypotension, which is defined as a drop in blood pressure within three minutes of sitting or standing.
Standard treatment better than proposed alternative for unexplained infertility Treatment with clomiphene, a standard therapy for couples with unexplained infertility, results in more live births than treatment with a potential alternative, letrozole, according to a study of more than 900 couples conducted by a National Institutes of Health research network.
	Early miscarriage guidelines should be improved, researchers say Researchers are calling for improvements to the way early miscarriage is diagnosed following a new study published today in the BMJ.
Kids are clumsy runners because they are small To the untrained eye, kids just look like scaled-down adults. But take a closer look at the way that they move and a toddler's stiff-legged waddle is completely different from an adult's fluid run. Perceived wisdom held that small children were simply immature versions of their parents: 'Some scientists see a young child appearing to walk and run uneconomically and then attribute it to being under developed', explains Jim Usherwood from the Royal Veterinary College, UK. But when he took a closer look at the way children move, Usherwood questioned this dogma and suspected that he would need to take a completely new approach to try to understand the factors that account for kids' clumsy movements. Wondering whether the children's diminutive stature was responsible for their lack of grace, Usherwood developed a new theory about the way that children run and he publishes his discovery that children's short legs struggle to find enough! time to do the work to push them into the air while running in Journal of Experimental Biology.
	ERs often 'safety net' care for people with schizophrenia: CDC (HealthDay)—A new report finds that, too often, under-medicated Americans suffering from schizophrenia end up seeking care in the nation's hospital emergency rooms.
	ACOG: Encourage consideration of contraceptive implants/IUDs (HealthDay)—All women at risk of unwanted pregnancy should be counseled on all contraceptive options, including long-acting reversible contraception (LARC), according to a Committee Opinion published in the October issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
	Intralesional IL-2 promising for cutaneous melanoma metastases (HealthDay)—Patients with cutaneous melanoma metastases have excellent response to intralesional interleukin 2 (IL-2) administered concomitantly with topical imiquimod and a retinoid cream, according to a case series published in the October issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
	Shorter antibiotic prophylaxis doesn't raise infection rates (HealthDay)—Compliance with American Urological Association (AUA) guidelines for shorter antibiotic prophylaxis does not result in higher rates of infection among patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy, according to a study published in the October issue of The Journal of Urology.
	Calorie consumption: Do numbers or graphics encourage diners to eat less? To encourage consumers to lower their caloric intake, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration now requires most chain restaurants to state the number of calories that each menu item contains. But is a number the only effective way of helping diners make low-calorie choices? No, says a new study in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing. According to the study, another popular way of indicating calorie information, an image of a green, yellow, or red traffic light, can be just as effective.
	Titanium and gold based compound fights kidney cancer cells Researchers developed a promising metal-based compound that destroys kidney cancer cells, while leaving normal cells unharmed. The findings may provide a new way of treating kidney cancer, opening the potential for more potent and less toxic therapies that would give cancer patients a better quality of life.
Team develops strategy to determine how non-coding variants contribute to disease risk A paper receiving advance online release in Nature Medicine describes a strategy for meeting one of today's most significant challenges in genomic medicine - determining whether a specific DNA variant in the non-protein-coding genome is the actual disease-causing variant of an associated disease risk. The report from a multi-institutional team study led by investigators at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California describes a procedure called CAUSEL (Characterization of Alleles Using Editing of Loci) that uses epigenome- and genome-editing tools to determine functional causality of disease-associated variants in the non-coding genome and to study the mechanisms by which those variants contribute to disease.
New study questions clinical trial data for kidney cancer drugs When prescribing newly approved drugs, physicians rely on data from clinical trials to understand the benefits and risks of those drugs for patients. But a study published in the Journal of Oncology Practice showed that for certain cancer drugs, participants in clinical trials are often not representative of the patients that ultimately take the drugs, raising questions about the direct applicability of trial data.
	Does America have the cure for high drug costs? Soaring prices for everything from cancer treatments to hepatitis C pills that cost more than $100,000 have sparked outcry in the United States in recent years, but calls for change have gone largely unheeded.
Clinton takes on Big Pharma, lays out drug plan (Update) Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton unveiled a plan Tuesday to limit prescription medicine costs, challenging the US pharmaceutical industry after the price for one drug skyrocketed by 5,000 percent.
	'ShoutYourAbortion' campaign explodes on social media A social media campaign launched by three US activists to denounce the stigma surrounding abortion has gone viral as women have shared their experiences, though pro-life campaigners have hit back.
Philadelphia hospitals prep for overseas visitors, diseases As people from around the world head to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families and the papal visit, doctors are preparing to treat illnesses that they may not recognize or that normally would be treated at other facilities.
Kids' pain researcher launches social media campaign to connect with parents In an effort to get up-to-date research findings about children's pain directly into the hands of parents, Dr. Christine Chambers and her team at the Halifax-based Centre for Pediatric Pain Research, have partnered with YummyMummyClub.ca (YMC) on a year-long social media campaign called It Doesn't Have to Hurt. The work is funded by a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Integrated variants from 13,000 complete genomes available to public in Kaviar database The Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) and the Inova Translational Medicine Institute (ITMI) announced today a new release of Kaviar, the most comprehensive collection of human genomic variants currently available to the public. This release expands on the January 2015 release most notably by the addition of 3842 whole genome sequences provided by ITMI. Inova, a not-for-profit healthcare system based in Northern Virginia, founded ITMI to transform healthcare from a reactive to a predictive model.
UN Ebola response now planned to continue into 2016 The United Nations is now planning for its Ebola response to last into mid-2016, suggesting the battle against the virus that has killed more than 11,000 people won't be over by year-end, according to a report Wednesday.
Spain Supreme Court rejects compensation for thalidomide victims Spain's Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court ruling that the German maker of pregnancy drug thalidomide does not have to compensate Spaniards who suffered birth defects from it.
In terminally ill patients, some types of delirium are a sign of 'imminent death' In cancer patients nearing the end of life, certain subtypes of delirium—specifically, hypoactive and "mixed" delirium—are a strong indicator that death will come soon, reports a study in Psychosomatic Medicine: Journal of Biobehavioral Medicine, the official journal of the American Psychosomatic Society.
Surgeon helps pioneer new approach to breast cancer treatment A surgeon with the Breast Health Center at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, a Care New England hospital, is among the first in New England to adopt an innovative new device that improves the treatment of breast cancer by more precisely targeting radiation treatment and providing for better follow-up exams.

Biology news

	The hidden evolutionary relationship between pigs and primates revealed by genome-wide study of transposable elements (Phys.org)—In the past, geneticists focused primarily on the evolution of genes in order to trace the relationships between species. More recently, genetic elements called SINEs (short interspersed elements) have emerged as a much better way to trace mammalian phylogeny, at least in the time since its massive radiation some 60 million years ago. That's because the prolific SINE family evolved differently in every lineage to become widespread throughout the entire genome of each. But SINEs are more than just highly mobile markers, they have specific functions—functions which researchers are now decoding to understand not just how, but why they move about like they do.
Researchers fail to replicate STAP study; computational analysis reveals genomic inconsistency Tremendous controversy erupted in early 2014 when two papers published in Nature described how a technique called "stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency," or STAP, could quickly and efficiently turn ordinary cells into pluripotent stem cells, that is, stem cells capable of developing into all the tissues in the body.
	A gene that makes male mosquitoes more fertile could also increase malaria transmission Malaria is a deadly disease transmitted by the bite of an infected mosquito. Curiously, only female mosquitoes bite – male mosquitoes only feed on sugar, not on blood. That is because male mosquitoes do not need an extra dose of nutrients to produce eggs, which is a job for the females. But even if male mosquitoes do not feed on you, and thus, cannot transmit malaria, it does not mean they don't matter. In fact, researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Infection Biology in Berlin and the CNRS in Strasbourg have discovered that male mosquitoes are probably more important than previously thought.
	Mantis shrimp found to spar safely with deadly weapons (Phys.org)—A pair of biology researchers at Duke University has found that the mantis shrimp engages in an unusual form of sparring during territorial disputes—hammering each other on their tailplates. In their paper published in Royal Society Biology Letters, Patrick Green and Sheila Patek describe their initial expectations regarding behavior of the crustaceans and then what they actually observed.
	Physiologists uncover a new code at the heart of biology UT Southwestern physiologists trying to understand the genetic code have found a previously unknown code that helps explain which protein should be created to form a particular type of cell.
	Highly endangered Sumatran rhino pregnant with 2nd calf A Sumatran rhinoceros is pregnant with her second calf at an Indonesian sanctuary in the original habitat of the highly endangered species, a government conservation official said Wednesday.
	Breeding study could save endangered long–beaked echidna An echidna-breeding partnership between The University of Queensland and the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary has proved so successful that researchers hope their model could help save endangered echidna species.
	Million-dollar mite eradicated via selective spray dates As tiny as a pinhead, red-legged earth mites (Halotydeus destructor) might be small, but they are costing Australian farmers up to $200 million in lost production every year.
	Horse owners can manage flies with wasps instead of pesticides Horses need help when it comes to insect pests like flies. But, unfortunately, horse owners are in the dark about how best to manage flies because research just hasn't been done, according to a new overview of equine fly management in the latest issue of the Journal of Integrated Pest Management, an open-access journal that is written for farmers, ranchers, and extension professionals.
	Giraffes 'hum' - but only at night Lions roar, wolves howl and elephants trumpet. But what do giraffes do to communicate? They "hum", new research suggested on Wednesday - and only at night.
Viruses join fight against harmful bacteria In the hunt for new ways to kill harmful bacteria, scientists have turned to a natural predator: viruses that infect bacteria. By tweaking the genomes of these viruses, known as bacteriophages, researchers hope to customize them to target any type of pathogenic bacteria.
	Largest genetic rice database now available free online The world's biggest genetic rice database is now available free online, a move scientists hope will contribute to a "green revolution", a leading rice research group said Wednesday.
	Cold rush: Bird diversity higher in winter than summer in Central Valley During the warmer months, the air surrounding California's rivers and streams is alive with the flapping of wings and chirping of birds. But once the buzz and breeding of spring and summer are over, these riparian areas grow quiet. Sometimes it seems as though there are hardly any birds there at all.
	Sage grouse plan aims for balance between industry, wildlife A cooperative effort to save a ground-dwelling bird has diverted it from possible extinction, federal officials declared Tuesday, as they sought to safeguard the habitat of a declining species while maintaining key pieces of the American West's economy—oil and gas drilling and ranching.
	Formula to get rid of black spots in papaya developed Papaya, banana and mango planters often face the problem of post-harvest diseases – ringspot or Anthracnose – where black spots on the fruits will grow bigger, causing the fruits to turn bad.
	Watch for venomous snakes when afield With dove season in full-swing and bow season for deer just around the corner, hunters should be aware of their surroundings, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service wildlife specialist.
	Hungry brown bears terrorising Siberian villagers: official Famished brown bears are terrorising villagers in Siberia as drought and wildfires force the animals to search for food closer to built-up areas, an official told AFP Wednesday.
	Whales return to Long Island Sound after long hiatus It has been the year of the whale on Long Island Sound, where fishermen and other boaters have reveled in the return of the marine mammals after a long hiatus.

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