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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for March 10, 2017:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
Astronomy & Space news
 | Why the discovery of a bevy of quasars will boost efforts to understand galaxies' originsLate last year, an international team including researchers from the Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics (KIAA) at Peking University announced the discovery of more than 60 extremely distant quasars, nearly doubling the number known to science - and thus providing dozens of new opportunities to look deep into our universe's history. |
 | NASA Mars orbiter tracks back-to-back regional stormsA regional dust storm currently swelling on Mars follows unusually closely on one that blossomed less than two weeks earlier and is now dissipating, as seen in daily global weather monitoring by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. |
 | High performance of single stage sounding hybrid rockets using design informaticsSingle-stage sounding rockets are used to transport scientific equipment into, or just beyond, Earth's atmosphere to measure phenomena such as aurora. Recently, scientists have begun designing rockets with hybrid engines, which work by alternating between different phases of solid fuel and liquid or gas oxidizers. Hybrid rockets are cheaper, safer and cleaner than those with conventional solid fuel engines. |
 | Sentinel-2B satellite declared fit and ready for commissioningFollowing three days of intensive work, mission control today declared the newly launched Sentinel-2B satellite fit and ready for commissioning. |
 | NASA's Orion spacecraft parachutes tested at U.S. Army Yuma proving groundEngineers successfully tested the parachutes for NASA's Orion spacecraft at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona Wednesday, March 8. This was the second test in a series of eight that will certify Orion's parachutes for human spaceflight. |
 | Life on Earth is used to gravity – so what happens to our cells and tissues in space?There's one force whose effects are so deeply entrenched in our everyday lives that we probably don't think much about it at all: gravity. Gravity is the force that causes attraction between masses. It's why when you drop a pen, it falls to the ground. But because gravitational force is proportional to the mass of the object, only large objects like planets create tangible attractions. This is why the study of gravity traditionally focused on massive objects like planets. |
 | Image: Cassini reveals strange shape of Saturn's moon PanThese raw, unprocessed images of Saturn's tiny moon, Pan, were taken on March 7, 2017, by NASA's Cassini spacecraft. The flyby had a close-approach distance of 24,572 kilometers (15,268 miles). |
 | The future of space colonization – terraforming or space habitats?The idea of terraforming Mars – aka "Earth's Twin" – is a fascinating idea. Between melting the polar ice caps, slowly creating an atmosphere, and then engineering the environment to have foliage, rivers, and standing bodies of water, there's enough there to inspire just about anyone! But just how long would such an endeavor take, what would it cost us, and is it really an effective use of our time and energy? |
 | Superluminous supernovaeSupernovae, the explosive deaths of massive stars, are among the most momentous events in the cosmos because they disburse into space all of the chemical elements that were produced inside their progenitor stars, including the elements essential for making planets and life. Their bright emission also enables them to be used as probes of the very distant universe. Not least, supernovae are astrophysical laboratories for the study of very energetic phenomena. One class of supernovae consists of single stars whose mass is at least eight solar masses as they finish their lives. |
 | NASA mission named 'Europa Clipper'NASA's upcoming mission to investigate the habitability of Jupiter's icy moon Europa now has a formal name: Europa Clipper. |
 | Image: Hubble hones in on a hypergiant's homeThis beautiful Hubble image reveals a young super star cluster known as Westerlund 1, only 15,000 light-years away in our Milky Way neighborhood, yet home to one of the largest stars ever discovered. |
Technology news
 | Drone approach to survive collision: Be flexible, be rigid, be insectTaking on a bioinspired strategy in the field of robotics is nothing new. Especially in the case of insects, researchers far and wide look to them for inspiration. Tracey Lien in Los Angeles Times said many robots have been built just to better understand insects themselves. |
 | The prototype of a chemical computer detects a sphereResearchers in Warsaw have developed a system that uses chemistry to make computations. After an appropriate teaching procedure, even a relatively simple chemical system can perform non-trivial operations. In their most recent computer simulations, the researchers have shown that correctly programmed chemical matrices of oscillating droplets can recognize the shape of a sphere with great accuracy. |
 | System provides readers with detailed summaries of online discussionsFrom Reddit to Quora, discussion forums can be equal parts informative and daunting. We've all fallen down rabbit holes of lengthy threads that are impossible to sift through. Comments can be redundant, off-topic or even inaccurate, but all that content is ultimately still there for us to try and untangle. |
 | Your brain is unique – here's how it could be used as the ultimate security passwordBiometrics – technology that can recognise individuals based on physical and behavioural traits such as their faces, voices or fingerprints – are becoming increasingly important to combat financial fraud and security threats. This is because traditional approaches, such as those based on PIN numbers or passwords, are proving too easily compromised. For example, Barclays has introduced TouchID, whereby customers can log onto internet banking using fingerprint scanners on mobile phones. |
 | California to give the green light to truly driverless carsCars with no steering wheel, no pedals and nobody at all inside could be driving themselves on California roads by the end of the year, under proposed new state rules that would give a powerful boost to the fast-developing technology. |
 | New law will force some (but not all) organisations to reveal data breachesWe live in an era of big data stored digitally, and some of that data is about you. For example, the government keeps your social security and tax data, banks keep your financial data and your phone provider stores your metadata. |
 | Why we should not know our own passwordsSince 2009, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents have been allowed to search electronic devices carried by citizens or noncitizens as they cross the border into the United States from other countries. More recently, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly suggested this digital vetting should also include harvesting social media passwords. Kelly's proposal prompted legal and technology experts to respond with an open letter expressing deep concern about any policy that demands that individuals violate the "first rule of online security": Do not share your passwords. |
 | How can we share solutions to complex systems problems across domains and application areas?What do power networks, transportation hubs, weather patterns, commercial organisations and swarming robots have in common? |
 | World's first test site for autonomous vehicles opensNorway's Trondheim Fjord will be the world's first technological playground for pilotless vehicles that move below, on and above the water's surface. |
 | Could Bill Gates' plan to tax robots really lead to a brighter future for all?Bill Gates has stated in an interview that robots who take human jobs should pay taxes. This has some obvious attractions. Not only, as Gates says, will we be able to spend the money to finance jobs for which humans are particularly suited, such as caring for children or the elderly, but robots are also unlikely to complain about tax levels, they don't use services financed by tax revenue such as education or the health services and they are most unlikely to salt away income and assets in a tax haven. What's not to like? |
.africa joins the internetIn the beginning was .com, followed by a host of other .somethings, but on Friday, 32 years after the world's first domain name was registered, the African Union has launched .africa for the continent. | |
 | Norwegian prosecutors demand bitcoins for drug salesThree men charged in Norway with selling drugs online have to pay back 120 bitcoins ($144,300) on top of millions in Norwegian kroner—the first time the Scandinavian country has demanded to be paid in the electronic currency, a prosecutor said Friday. |
 | WikiLeaks aid on CIA software holes could be mixed blessingWikiLeaks has offered to help the likes of Google and Apple identify the software holes used by purported CIA hacking tools—and that puts the tech industry in something of a bind. |
 | Facebook scores deal to stream MLS matchesFacebook has struck a deal to stream matches from US-based Major League Soccer, in the latest social network tie-up for live sports. |
 | What the CIA WikiLeaks dump tells us: Encryption worksIf the tech industry is drawing one lesson from the latest WikiLeaks disclosures, it's that data-scrambling encryption works, and the industry should use more of it. |
Google's self-driving car company escalates battle with UberA self-driving car company founded by Google is presenting new evidence to support allegations that a former manager stole technology sold to Uber to help the ride-hailing service build its own robot-powered vehicles. | |
 | 'Global startup' vows autonomous car by 2020 in USA "global startup" which makes electric racing vehicles unveiled plans Friday to sell a fully autonomous electric car in the US market by 2020. |
The transition from carbon energy sources to the bioeconomyThe transition from fossil-based raw materials to renewables has already begun, and tomorrow's bioeconomy is being created today. As part of its Bioeconomy Transformation spearhead programme, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed technologies suitable for application in new kinds of value chains; in these, the value created by Finland's agro and forest biomass is efficiently exploited as food, fibre products, chemicals and fuels. | |
 | BT Group agrees to separate broadband unitBritish telecoms giant BT Group has agreed to legally separate its broadband unit Openreach to remedy concerns over competition in the sector, the company announced Friday. |
 | Free trips to New Zealand offered to 100 tech workersIt sounds almost too good to be true: A free trip to New Zealand to interview for a job in the tech sector. |
 | Volkswagen pleads guilty in US diesel emissions scandalVolkswagen pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy and obstruction of justice in a brazen scheme to get around U.S. pollution rules on nearly 600,000 diesel vehicles by using software to suppress emissions of nitrogen oxide during tests. |
Medicine & Health news
 | 'Recycling protein' shown to affect learning and memory in miceLearning and memory depend on cells' ability to strengthen and weaken circuits in the brain. Now, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine report that a protein involved in recycling other cell proteins plays an important role in this process. |
 | Alcoholism may be caused by dynamical dopamine imbalanceAn international research collaborative has identified potential alcoholism mechanisms associated with altered dopaminergic neuron response to complex dynamics of prefrontal cortex neurones affecting dopamine release. |
 | A sweet vaccine against pneumoniaIt may not take much to vaccinate against a particularly dangerous pathogen that causes pneumonia. A molecule consisting of three adjoined sugars is sufficient to protect against infections with highly virulent and antibiotic-resistant streptococci. The trimer stimulates the immune system to form antibodies against the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae of serotype 8, short ST8, as researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam demonstrated by in vivo tests. They illustrate how a new generation of tailor-made vaccines of can be developed. |
 | Study suggests risky aspects of teen brains can be tamed by circumstancesAn international team of researchers has found that despite having brains that make them more risk-prone, recklessness by teens is not an inevitable part of adolescence. In their paper published in the journal Developmental Science, the group describes how they surveyed teenagers from around the world to learn more about adolescent behavior and their results compared with recent findings regarding the teenage brain. |
 | Doctors find patient brain activity continued for 10 minutes after deathA team of doctors affiliated with the University of Western Ontario in Canada has documented a case in which a terminal patient removed from life support continued to experience brain wave activity for approximately 10 minutes after they had been pronounced clinically dead. In their paper published in The Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, the team describes the circumstances of the unusual event and acknowledge that they have no explanation for what they observed. |
 | Study gives clues to causes of Motor Neurone Disease and Parkinson's DiseaseScientists at the University of Bath have made further progress to understanding the role of one of the proteins that causes the neurodegenerative disorder Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson's Disease (PD). |
 | Link found between types of lipid metabolism and species lifespanAn international team of researchers has found a link between types of lipid metabolism in different species and differing lifespans. In their paper published in the journal Scientific Reports, the team describes their study of multiple species and the differences they found regarding lifespan and the distinctiveness of lipid metabolism. |
 | A breath of fresh air for severe asthma researchTen to 15 percent of people with asthma have severe asthma, a form of the disease that is not controlled by current medications. Many of these patients are prescribed increased dosages of corticosteroids, but continue to experience daily symptoms and recurrent infections, showing little improvement. The cause of severe asthma and why corticosteroids are ineffective for patients with severe asthma has been a mystery, until now. New research led by a team of investigators at Brigham and Women's Hospital points to immunological differences in responses to steroids in patients with severe asthma, suggesting why corticosteroids may paradoxically perpetuate inflammation in severe asthma. Their findings appear online this week in Science Immunology. |
 | Why do we develop high blood pressure?Abnormally high blood pressure, or hypertension, may be related to changes in brain activity and blood flow early in life. That's according to a study conducted on a rat model of high blood pressure, published in Experimental Physiology. |
New safety investigator must become fully independent bodyThe new NHS safety investigator for England, which starts work in April 2017, must become a fully independent body through primary legislation, according to healthcare safety experts writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. As an interim measure the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) has been formed as a functionally independent body under the auspices of regulator NHS Improvement. | |
Chinese oldest-old population is growing but individuals have poorer physical and cognitive functionThe number of people living beyond 80 years old - from octogenarians to centenarians - in China is growing but they have poorer physical and cognitive function compared with their counterparts from 10 years ago, according to the largest study of its kind, published in The Lancet. | |
 | Patients more likely to get flu shots when doctors make appointmentsYou're much more likely to get a flu shot if your doctor makes the appointment for you, Rutgers researchers have discovered. |
 | Citric acid has the potential to produce respiratory sensitisers in e-cigarette vaporThe use of citric acid in e-liquids needs to be investigated to further understand its potential to form potentially harmful anhydrides in the vapour. |
 | China's elderly live longer, but are less fitThe number and proportion of people in China over 80 are growing, but their mental and physical fitness appear to be declining, scientists reported Friday. |
Smoking paradise Japan tries to kick the habitJapan is moving to pass its strictest-ever smoking laws, but the country's powerful tobacco lobby wants to stub out measures that were adopted years ago by other developed nations. | |
Researcher tuning into media representations of disabilityPrior to the Paralympic Games in Rio last summer, Laura Misener found herself cringing after watching a broadcast interview with a Canadian athlete who uses a wheelchair. The female athlete, who has children, was asked by a befuddled reporter, 'You have two children? How did that happen?' | |
Mutations in CWC27 result in a spectrum of developmental conditionsAn international team of researchers has discovered that mutations in the human gene CWC27 result in a spectrum of clinical conditions that include retinal degeneration and problems with craniofacial and skeletal development. The results appear in the American Journal of Human Genetics. | |
Children's daily life highly regulated, according to studyChildren in Sweden and the US experience their daily life as highly structured and regulated. But while US children state that homework and long schooldays are what makes everyday life difficult, Swedish children point to the continuous nagging and stress that occur in relation to daily routines. These are some key findings of a new study from the University of Gothenburg. | |
 | How a child made scientists think of cytokines as knobs instead of switchesAn unusual case of a rare anemia is opening scientists up to a new way of thinking about how to adapt and employ cytokines, messenger molecules of the blood and immune system, as tools for treatment—tools that are more analog than digital—and to illustrate the promise of precision medicine. |
 | My doctor says there's a guideline for my treatment – but is it right for me?Health care guidelines are produced in ever-increasing numbers. The National Guideline Clearinghouse, a U.S.-based public website compiling summaries of "clinical practice" (health care) guidelines, has over 1,000 entries and is updated weekly. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in the U.K. has over 180 clinical guidelines. |
 | Kind words can prime the body's response to pain, professor saysUnless he's the doctor, there isn't much a man can do in a birthing room. He can fetch ice chips or prop pillows behind the mother's back. He can suggest some Lamaze breathing—"Hee hee hooooo"—when the contractions intensify. He can stop when she's had enough of that. |
 | Should parents give their children alcohol?Children and teens who are given alcohol by their parents are twice as likely to be drinking full serves of alcohol by age 15 or 16, but are much less likely to binge drink, a UNSW study shows. |
 | Surgical options providing lasting, positive change in PeruOne surgery can change the life of a person living with epilepsy. It can mean the difference between daily seizures and none at all. In Canada, approximately 200 epilepsy surgeries are performed every year, but before 2011, it wasn't an option at all in Peru, a country whose epilepsy rates are three times higher than Canada's. |
 | Five myths about cervical screening that refuse to dieThe online petition against changes to Australia's cervical cancer screening program has revealed more than 70,000 people (most of whom we could assume are women) are deeply concerned about what the upcoming changes mean. |
Brain study identifies bipolar markerPeople with the highest risk of developing bipolar disorder exhibit weak connections in the emotional areas of the brain, a world-first Australian study shows. | |
Mite-proof bedcovers may reduce asthma flare-ups in childrenBedcovers which form a barrier to house dust mites appear to reduce asthma flare-ups in children, according to new research conducted in Manchester. | |
 | One in 10 women with a chronic condition turns to acupunctureThe ancient remedies of Chinese medicine and acupuncture are important elements of the health care choices made by women of varying ages, new research has shown. |
 | Research team helps father discover source of son's disabilityThe severe learning disabilities of a teenager in the Netherlands were caused by a genetic mutation that affects the function of ribosomes, the cellular protein-making factories crucial to all life. The new finding by an international collaboration of scientists adds to list of newly identified diseases called ribosomopathies. |
 | It's not what sport kids play but how they play it that mattersSport is massive and it's everywhere: on TV, in videogames, and on the streets. As a consequence, myths about the inherent greatness of sport have grown. One such myth is the belief that sport itself is ideally suited to help disadvantaged young people develop "socially" and "psychologically". And that sport is capable of teaching "teamwork" or "leadership". |
Impotence medicine associated with reduced long-term risk of death after heart attackCommon impotence drugs such as Viagra may have a life-prolonging effect on patients who have suffered a myocardial infarction, a paper published by researchers at Karolinska Institutet suggests. The finding, which is published in the scientific journal Heart, calls for the need of prospective studies of impotence drugs in heart attack patients others than only those who suffer from impotence – including women. | |
 | Discovery of a new metabolic pathway of a known lipid has implications in cancer, obesityA collaborative Stony Brook University research team has discovered a novel metabolic pathway of the lipid ceramide, which is involved in cell death. The finding illustrates that ceramide is stored in lipid droplets, a step that may help to uncover processes necessary for cell death and lipid metabolism, and therefore has implications in the development of cancer or obesity. The paper is published in Cell Metabolism. |
 | How immune surveillance cells are educated to tolerate foreign bacteriaThe fundamental task of the immune system is discrimination—discrimination between the tissues of its host ('self') and invasive pathogens ('non-self'). In order to turn its destructive powers on the proper targets, it must be capable of distinguishing friend from foe. This poses a particular challenge for the immune cells that are associated with the epithelial lining of the gut. They are exposed to the natural microbiota of the gut, which themselves play an important physiological role. Hence the immune system must in some way be actively prevented from attacking these bacteria although they do not fall into the 'self' category. A German-Italian research collaboration has now uncovered one mechanism that helps to maintain this equilibrium in the gut. The project was led by Professor Thomas Brocker, Director of the Institute for Immunology at LMU, and the researchers report their findings in Nature Communications, an open-access member of the Nature family of science journals. |
 | Boosting a baby's health during the 'golden window'Moms and dads caught in the frenzy of raising little ones probably don't realize it, but the first 1,000 days of their children's lives truly are "golden"—precious, that is, in their implications for future growth and development. |
 | Malaria treatment soon to be simpler, more flexible, and more efficient?Malaria infections may soon be treated much more efficiently than they are at present. Researchers at the Universities of Bayreuth and Jerusalem have developed a novel drug release procedure for this purpose. The procedure enables the active ingredient Artemisone to be administered reliably at quantities and time intervals that are tailored exactly to the patients' individual needs. The scientists have published their findings in the journal Global Challenges. This research was part of a project which received a total of around 1.5 million euros in funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) over a period of five years. |
 | Researchers find a gene that causes Opitz C syndromeOpitz C syndrome is a genetic disease that causes severe disabilities in patients and has been diagnosed in three people in the Iberian Peninsula, and 60 people in the world. A team led by the professors Daniel Grinberg and Susana Balcells, from the University of Barcelona and the Biomedical Research Networking Center of Rare Diseases (CIBERER) has now identified a gene that causes Opitz C syndrome in the only patient in Catalonia diagnosed with this severe congenital disease. This new scientific advance is a first step to discovering the genetic bases of this syndrome which, so far, has no treatment, prenatal diagnosis or genetic counseling. |
Physical exercise helps during treatment for gastrointestinal cancerWalking or jogging helps patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer to cope better with the side effects of chemotherapy. This has now been shown by a study conducted by Katrin Stücher in the framework of her doctorate at the Department of Sports Medicine of Goethe University Frankfurt. | |
 | Can training your working memory make you smarter?We would all like to boost our cognitive ability beyond the limits set by Mother Nature. So it's no wonder that brain-training programmes – which typically focus on training our working memory – are a multibillion-dollar industry. But can this kind of training really make us smarter? |
 | Patients with depression symptoms due to chronic sinus disease are less productiveDepressed patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) are more likely to miss days of work or school than those without depression symptoms, according to the results of a new study led by the Sinus Center at Massachusetts Eye and Ear. The findings, published online today in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, identify depression symptoms as the primary driver of lost days of productivity in patients with CRS, paving the way for more individualized therapy to improve overall quality of life in these patients. |
 | New research shows promise in disabling cancer's defencesRecent study out of the University of Ottawa opens door for new disease therapies in cancer, ALS, Fragile X Syndrome and others. |
 | Scientists develop 3-D tissue culture models to mmic human gut infectionsVaccines and antimicrobials have done more to transform medicine and extend the average human lifespan than any other scientific breakthrough. Yet infectious diseases remain the world's no. 1 leading cause of death of children and young adults. |
 | Scientists review the basic and translational studies of hedgehog signalingHedgehog (HH) signaling plays an important role in certain types of adult stem cells and cancer stem cells. Its aberrant activity is linked to degenerative diseases and a multitude of cancers. |
 | Computational biologists predict antibiotic resistances using biotechJust a few days ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a list of twelve antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, which are considered to be the "greatest threats to human health". Andreas Keller, professor for Clinical Bioinformatics at Saarland University, is also studying these bacterial resistances. "If a patient receives faster access to the treatment best suited to fight the disease in question, it is not only to the benefit of the patient. It also helps dispensing currently available antibiotics in a more targeted manner, so that the development of resistances can be slowed down," Keller explains. |
 | The secret to a good sex life is …(HealthDay)—Couples who regularly have sex tend to be happier, and now a new study suggests one reason why: affection. |
 | Nonclinical factors drive antibiotic choice in pediatric CAP(HealthDay)—For children with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), patient and nonclinical characteristics are associated with receipt of macrolides and broad-spectrum antibiotics versus amoxicillin, according to a study published online March 7 in Pediatrics. |
 | EWG report: strawberries have most pesticides(HealthDay)—Strawberries have the highest level of pesticide contamination in produce, while sweet corn and avocados have the lowest levels, according to an annual report from the Environmental Working Group. |
 | Cardiometabolic risk factors not always seen with obesity(HealthDay)—Almost 10 percent of obese people have no cardiometabolic risk factors (CRFs), according to research published March 9 in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Preventing Chronic Disease. |
 | Rookie docs can work longer, 24-hour shifts under new rulesRookie doctors can work up to 24 hours straight under new work limits taking effect this summer—a move supporters say will enhance training and foes maintain will do just the opposite. |
Rapid blood pressure drops in middle age linked to dementia in old ageMiddle-aged people who experience temporary blood pressure drops that often cause dizziness upon standing up may be at an increased risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia 20 years later, new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research suggests. | |
University of Washington creating next-gen mannequins with warm skin, wet mouths to train battlefield medicsThe "soldier" lying in a dark corner of a University of Washington lab screams and writhes after being wounded by a roadside bomb. His right leg is blown off below the knee. Shrapnel has punctured his femoral artery and chest. | |
Women more likely to take part in clinical trials they discover through peersWomen are often underrepresented in HIV clinical trials, making it difficult to decipher the relevance of findings and whether they are applicable to all. | |
 | Woman resigned to being plump learns she had 140-pound tumorMary Clancey said she was resigned to being a plump old lady. Over 15 years she kept getting bigger despite dieting. But with her health deteriorating, her son persuaded her to go to the hospital. |
 | A closer look at brain organoid developmentHow close to reality are brain organoids, and which molecular mechanisms underlie the remarkable self-organizing capacities of tissues? Researchers already have succeeded in growing so-called "cerebral organoids" in a dish - clusters of cells that self-organize into small brain-like structures. Juergen Knoblich and colleagues have now further characterized these organoids and publish their results today in The EMBO Journal. They demonstrate that, like in the human brain, so-called forebrain organizing centers orchestrate developmental processes in the organoid, and that organoids recapitulate the timing of neuronal differentiation events found in human brains. |
 | Childhood bullying may lead to increased chronic disease risk in adulthoodBeing bullied during childhood might have lifelong health effects related to chronic stress exposure—including an increased risk for heart disease and diabetes in adulthood, according to a research review in the March/April issue of the Harvard Review of Psychiatry. |
 | Investigational vaccine protects cattle from respiratory syncytial virusA novel vaccine developed by scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, protected cattle from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, according to research published online in npj Vaccines on March 8. The research was conducted by a team of experts at NIAID, the Pirbright Institute based in the United Kingdom, and the Institute for Research in Biomedicine in Switzerland. The version of RSV that naturally infects cattle is closely related to human RSV, so the results suggest that a similar human RSV vaccine construct may provide protection in humans, according to the study authors. |
Researchers suggest that brain networks at rest are in readiness for actionJust as a sprinter's body and muscles are ready for action as they wait for the starting gun to fire, brain networks at rest appear to be waiting in a state of potentiation to execute even the simplest of behaviors. | |
 | Breast cancer study provides critical information on tumor sequencing and chemotherTumor sequencing is increasingly used to select treatment for patients with cancer, but its role in women with newly diagnosed breast cancer is unknown. Mayo Clinic researchers reported today in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute the results of a prospective tumor sequencing study in women receiving chemotherapy prior to breast surgery. The goal was to determine whether tumor genomic alterations could differentiate patients with chemotherapy sensitive and chemotherapy resistant disease and to generate patient-derived xenografts (mouse avatars) to validate their findings. |
Severe hypoglycemia linked to increased risk of death in people with diabetesA single instance of blood sugar falling so low as to require an emergency department visit was associated with nearly double the risk of cardiovascular disease or death, finds a new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study of older adults with type 2 diabetes. | |
Updated appropriate use criteria address coronary revascularization for patients with SIHDThe American College of Cardiology, along with several partnering organizations, today released updated appropriate use criteria for performing coronary revascularization in patients with stable ischemic heart disease. | |
 | Castration-resistant prostate cancer cell growth impeded by endostatinFailure of hormone deprivation therapy, which is used to slow prostate cancer in patients, leads to castration-resistant prostate cancer, a lethal form of advanced disease with limited treatment options. |
 | Drug use drops after ER visits used as 'teachable moments'An emergency room visit for an illness or injury may seem like a strange time to try to motivate someone to cut back on using drugs. |
Funders need to take more responsibility for the efficiency of the research they fundIt has been estimated that up to 85% of medical research is wasted because it asks the wrong question, is badly designed, not published or poorly reported. Health research around the world depends heavily on funding from agencies which distribute public funds. But a new study has found that these agencies are not as open as they could be about what they are doing to prevent this waste and that governments responsible for the public money they distribute are not holding them to account. | |
US House panels OK Obamacare replacement after marathon debateTwo US congressional panels on Thursday approved Republican plans to replace Obamacare, after marathon debate on the controversial health legislation that is backed by President Donald Trump but opposed by some in his party. | |
 | Researchers provide insight into the true dangers of progressive brain diseases in repeated head sport injuriesResearchers and scientists have provided a clearer picture into the true dangers of progressive brain diseases in repeated head sport injuries that must now be tackled head-on. |
Cholera reaches South Sudan's second-largest city, UN saysSouth Sudan's cholera outbreak has reached the country's second-largest city, the United Nations said Friday, while the number of cases nationwide has risen beyond 5,500. | |
Biology news
 | Researchers discovered fungus gnat paradise in Peruvian AmazoniaFinnish and Estonian researchers have discovered and identified 16 new fungus gnat species in the Amazonia. The diverse gnat species maintain exceptionally rich parasitoid wasp species, which shows the importance of interdependence between rain forest species. |
 | This small molecule could have a big future in global food securityResearchers at the University of Arizona have found a promising way to prevent the loss of millions of tons of crops to a fungus each year, offering the potential to dramatically improve food security, especially in developing countries. The team's approach uses transgenic corn plants that produce small RNA molecules that prevent fungi from producing aflatoxin, highly toxic substances that can render an entire harvest unsafe for human consumption even in small amounts. |
 | Breeding crops today for an uncertain tomorrowVariable weather is creating extreme challenges for crop breeding in California. How do you develop crops that will thrive under certain conditions when you can no longer predict what those conditions will be? |
 | Study reveals new insights into the dining habits of toucansWhile Toucans' diets consist primarily of fruit, new research co-authored by a Virginia Commonwealth University biology major suggests the bird species' dining habits are actually more opportunistic than previously believed and include the eggs of ground-nesting birds. |
 | Crape myrtle bark scale study reveals tree treatments to fight pestThe second year of survey data tracking crape myrtle bark scale has provided researchers information they believe will help mitigate the pest's effect on trees, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert. |
 | Research team captures images of pathogens' tiny 'syringes'Salmonella and many other bacterial pathogens use a nano syringe-like device to deliver toxic proteins into target human cells. Now scientists at Yale and University of Texas Medical School-Houston have used cryo-electron tomography to reveal the molecular structure of this device, which is about 1/1000th the width of a human hair. |
 | Maths—why many great discoveries would be impossible without itDespite the fact that mathematics is often described as the underpinning science, it is often not given enough credit when scientific discoveries are presented. But the contribution of mathematics and statistics is essential and has transformed entire areas of research – many discoveries would not have been possible without it. In fact, as a mathematician, I have contributed to scientific discoveries and provided solutions to problems that biology was yet to solve. |
 | Stressed seabird parents think only of themselvesStress is a factor not only in the best human families; it also appears among animals. To see how bird family members interact with each other in stressful situations, researchers from Vetmeduni Vienna and the University of Gdansk, Poland, studied parent-offspring interactions in a long-lived seabird, the little auk (Alle alle). The scientists gave parent and offspring birds a hormone pellet to increase their "stress levels", with the result that stressed offspring not only intensified their begging but also received more food than "relaxed" chicks. Nevertheless, increased begging was not the determining factor of the parent-offspring interaction. When parent birds were stressed, they automatically reduced offspring feeding and spent more time searching for food for themselves. The parent-offspring interaction among little auks therefore clearly depended on the state of the adult bird, even though little auks usually raise only a single chick. The results have been published in the Journal of Ornithology. |
 | Behavioral biology: Ripeness is allIn contrast to other members of the Drosophila family, the spotted-wing fly D. suzukii deposits its eggs in ripe fruits. Biologists from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have now elucidated the sensory basis of their ability to exploit a novel ecological niche. |
 | Truckloads of baby fish hauled to river in restoration planThese speckled, rose-tinted fish haven't been spotted in this bubbling river in remote northeastern Oregon for more than 30 years—until now. |
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