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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for June 5, 2017:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
Astronomy & Space news
 | Extreme exoplanet: Astronomers discover alien world hotter than most starsImagine a planet like Jupiter zipping around its host star every day and a half, superheated to temperatures hotter than most stars and sporting a giant, glowing gas tail like a comet. |
 | Exoplanet HD 131399 Ab turns out to be a background star, new study finds(Phys.org)—A new study conducted by an international team of astronomers suggests that a recently discovered alien world, designated HD 131399 Ab, may not be a planet at all, but rather a background star. The researchers presented evidence supporting their hypothesis in a paper published online May 19 on the arXiv pre-print repository. |
 | India shows off space prowess with launch of mega-rocket (Update)India Monday successfully launched its most powerful home-produced rocket, another milestone for its indigenous space programme which one day hopes to put a human into orbit. |
 | Study estimates amount of water needed to carve Martian valleysA new study led by Northern Illinois University geography professor Wei Luo calculates the amount of water needed to carve the ancient network of valleys on Mars and concludes the Red Planet's surface was once much more watery than previously thought. |
 | Understanding star-forming galaxiesThe more stars a typical spiral galaxy contains, the faster it makes new ones. Astronomers call this relatively tight correlation the "galaxy main sequence." The main sequence might be due simply to the fact that galaxies with more stars have more of everything, including material for making new stars. Alternatively, the mechanisms making new stars could be more efficient in some galaxies, or it could be some combination of these and other possibilities. |
 | SpaceX's first recycled Dragon arrives at space stationSpaceX's first-ever recycled spaceship arrived Monday at the International Space Station, two days after the unmanned Dragon cargo capsule launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Study suggests dying stars give newborn black holes a swift kickNew information gleaned from gravitational wave observations is helping scientists understand what happens when massive stars die and transform into black holes. | |
 | ALMA returns to boomerang nebula: Companion star provides chilling power of 'coldest object in the universe'An ancient, red giant star in the throes of a frigid death has produced the coldest known object in the cosmos—the Boomerang Nebula. How this star was able to create an environment strikingly colder than the natural background temperature of deep space has been a compelling mystery for more than two decades. |
 | Study: Collateral damage from cosmic rays increases cancer risks for Mars astronautsThe cancer risk for a human mission to Mars has effectively doubled following a UNLV study predicting a dramatic increase in the disease for astronauts traveling to the red planet or on long-term missions outside the protection of Earth's magnetic field. |
 | Hubble's tale of two exoplanets: Nature vs. nurtureIs it a case of nature versus nurture when it comes to two "cousin" exoplanets? In a unique experiment, scientists used NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to study two "hot Jupiter" exoplanets. Because these planets are virtually the same size and temperature, and orbit around nearly identical stars at the same distance, the team hypothesized that their atmospheres should be alike. What they found surprised them. |
 | NASA's asteroid-hunting spacecraft a discovery machineNASA's Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission has released its third year of survey data, with the spacecraft discovering 97 previously unknown celestial objects in the last year. Of those, 28 were near-Earth objects, 64 were main belt asteroids and five were comets. |
 | Image: Mysterious South Pole formation on MarsThis observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show it is late summer in the Southern hemisphere, so the Sun is low in the sky and subtle topography is accentuated in orbital images. |
Video: Eclipse ballooning projectFor the first time in 99 years, a total solar eclipse will crossthe entire nation on Monday, August 21, 2017. Over the course of 100 minutes, 14 states across the United States will experience over two minutes of darkness in the middle of the day. Additionally, a partial eclipse will be viewable across the continent. | |
Technology news
 | Giving robots a sense of touchEight years ago, Ted Adelson's research group at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) unveiled a new sensor technology, called GelSight, that uses physical contact with an object to provide a remarkably detailed 3-D map of its surface. |
 | New smart speaker expected as Apple kicks off conferenceApple appears poised to unveil a voice-activated, internet-connected speaker that would create a new digital pipeline into people's homes. |
 | The first low-cost system for splitting carbon dioxideUsing Earth-abundant materials, EPFL scientists have built the first low-cost system for splitting CO2 into CO, a reaction necessary for turning renewable energy into fuel. |
 | Combining MRI and optical microscopy promising for brain researchFunctional magnetic resonance imaging reveals changes in blood-oxygen levels in different parts of the brain, but the data show nothing about what is actually happening in and between brain cells, information needed to better understand brain circuitry and function. |
 | Cyber researchers discover how any network router can covertly leak dataResearchers at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) Cyber Security Research Center (CSRC) have demonstrated for the first time that it is possible to covertly siphon sensitive files, passwords or other critical data from any common router. |
 | App uses smartphone compass to stop voice hackingWhile convenient, Siri, WeChat and other voice-based smartphone apps can expose you to a growing security threat: voice hacking. |
 | Apple unveils 'HomePod' speaker, first new product in yearsApple nodded to several up-and-coming technology trends, unveiling a new "smart" home speaker and device features touching on virtual reality, online privacy and a form of artificial intelligence called machine learning. |
 | Researchers debut battery-less pacemakerA wireless, battery-less pacemaker that can be implanted directly into a patient's heart is being introduced by researchers from Rice University and their colleagues at the Texas Heart Institute (THI) at the IEEE's International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in Honolulu June 4-9. |
 | Isolation by the West fuels a tech startup boom in IranMostafa Meisami has given up on the farming life, trading his old job raising cattle for a better-paying gig ferrying commuters through the notoriously traffic-clogged streets of the Iranian capital Tehran. |
 | New millimeter-wave technology could make future vehicles much saferHiroshima University and Mie Fujitsu Semiconductor Limited (MIFS) today announced the development of a low-power millimeter-wave amplifier that feeds on 0.5 V power supply and covers the frequency range from 80 GHz to 106 GHz. It was fabricated using MIFS's Deeply Depleted Channel (DDC) technology. This is the first W-band (75−110 GHz) amplifier that can operate even with such a low power-supply voltage. Details of the technology will be presented at the IEEE Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits Symposium (RFIC) 2017, running from June 4th to 6th in Honolulu, Hawaii. |
 | Economists find improved electricity storage leads to innovation, efficiencyResearch recently published in the European Economic Review shows that improved electrical storage technology spurs innovation in both renewables and fossil fuels electricity production. |
 | Polish taxi drivers protest against UberTwo thousand Polish taxi drivers on Monday snarled traffic in the capital Warsaw by driving at a snail's pace to protest against competitors including the controversial ride-sharing app Uber. |
 | A self-sufficient home with solar panels installed only on its facadeEPFL, in association with the School of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg, the Geneva School of Art and Design and the University of Fribourg, is taking part in the 2017 international Solar Decathlon competition. Students have designed a house called NeighborHub that gets all its energy from solar panels installed only on the building's facade. NeighborHub will open its doors to the public next Saturday. |
 | We can't recycle our way to 'zero waste'In the wake of the final episode of the ABC's War on Waste, in which a dismayed Craig Reucassel canvasses Australia's rubbish-related sins, the idea of "zero waste" is pretty hot right now. |
 | Wasted green power tests China's energy leadershipChina's scramble to curb pollution has made it the world leader in renewable energy development, yet increasing amounts of that green power have gone unused as the country struggles to integrate wind and solar farms into an outdated and balkanized electricity network dominated by coal. |
Justices will review police use of cellphone tower data (Update)In a new case about digital age technology and privacy, the Supreme Court will consider whether police need warrants to review cellphone towers records that help them track the location of criminal suspects. | |
 | Researchers use AI to dramatically increase image clarity under severe conditionsIn recent years, technological advancements and cost reductions for specialized devices that photograph non-visible images, such as thermal cameras, which capture heat, and X-ray cameras, have enabled them to be used for an expanding range of purposes, including nighttime monitoring under severe weather conditions, such as dense fog. However, these cameras tend to provide images of poor resolution and quality in comparison to images taken of visible subjects. |
 | Amazon, now Alphabet with shares at $1,000Alphabet's stock is surpassing the $1,000 mark for the first time, less than a week after Amazon reached the same milestone. |
 | Apple's developer's conference may highlight artificial intelligenceWith iPhone sales slowing and the last new Apple product released two years ago, expectations are building for what the company will reveal next week at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference. |
 | Waze unveils carpool appUber and Lyft talk a big game about transforming the roads, increasing carpooling and reducing traffic. And while both companies have succeeded in getting people used to the idea of hiring an on-demand chauffeur and sharing that ride with strangers, neither have cracked the code for traditional carpooling. |
Microsoft's weapon in high-stakes cloud-computing battle with Amazon? FreebiesDefinedCrowd, a Seattle software startup, had a choice to make when it was developing its first product last year: build on the cloud-computing foundation offered by the dominant Amazon, or Microsoft's upstart competitor? | |
20-somethings managing millions: How venture capital is changingAt first glance, Clancey Stahr looks like any other 23-year-old eager to make his mark on Silicon Valley. | |
 | The Latest: Apple's HomePod speaker coming this yearThe Latest on Apple's annual conference in California (all times local): |
 | The pros and cons of privatizing air traffic controlThe U.S. air traffic control system, the world's largest and most complex, is in the midst of an era of unsurpassed safety. There has not been a fatal crash of a domestic airliner in the U.S. in eight years. |
 | First farmer lawsuit on deck against Syngenta over China tradeThe first of tens of thousands of U.S. lawsuits will go to trial on Monday in Kansas against Swiss agribusiness giant Syngenta over its decision to introduce a genetically engineered corn seed variety to the U.S. market before China approved it for imports. |
 | Configuration and manipulation of soft robotics for on-orbit servicingTraditional rigid-bodied robots are stiff, with few degrees of freedom, placing limits on many applications. Recently, more engineers are learning from the soft flexibility properties of living beings to advance bionic soft robotics. The main characteristics of soft robots are flexibility, deformability and energy-absorbtion. |
Getting hitched? Amazon introduces Wedding ShopAmazon, the online purveyor of technology, household goods and diapers, is venturing into weddings. | |
Medicine & Health news
 | Cell phone use and distracted driving begins in the mindWe all know that talking on a cell phone impedes your driving ability. But new research from the University of Iowa is helping us understand how even a simple conversation can affect your brain's ability to focus on the roadway. |
 | Injectable solution may provide weeks of glucose controlBiomedical engineers at Duke University have created a technology that might provide weeks of glucose control for diabetes with a single injection, which would be a dramatic improvement over current therapies. In primates, the treatment has been shown to last for weeks, rather than days. |
 | Children of separated parents not on speaking terms more likely to develop colds as adultsPrevious research has indicated that adults whose parents separated during childhood have an increased risk for poorer health. However, exactly what contributes to this has been less clear, until now. |
 | Flu-fighting cells in noses could lead to one-shot flu vaccineA sneeze is often the first sign of a cold or flu. But a sneeze, or more accurately our noses, could be the secret to stopping the influenza virus in its tracks through what scientists are calling a "nasal border patrol". |
 | New transplant technology could benefit patients with type 1 diabetesCombining a new hydrogel material with a protein that boosts blood vessel growth could improve the success rate for transplanting insulin-producing islet cells into persons with type 1 diabetes. In an animal model, the technique enhanced the survival rate of transplanted insulin-producing cells, restoring insulin production in response to blood glucose levels and curing these diabetic animals. |
 | Group set to try controversial technique to bring back people declared clinically dead(Medical Xpress)—Officials with a Philadelphia-based company called Bioquark have announced that they are close to commencing clinical trials of a controversial procedure to be performed on people who have been declared clinically dead. The trials will be conducted to ascertain whether a series of therapies administered to a technically dead person can bring them back to life. |
 | Drugs score big wins against lung, prostate, breast cancersDrugs are scoring big wins against common cancers, setting new standards for how to treat many prostate, breast and lung tumors. There's even a "uni-drug" that may fight many forms of the disease. |
 | CRISPR tech leads to new screening tool for Parkinson's diseaseA team of researchers at the University of Central Florida is using breakthrough gene-editing technology to develop a new screening tool for Parkinson's disease, a debilitating degenerative disorder of the nervous system. The technology allows scientists in the lab to "light up" and then monitor a brain protein called alpha-synuclein that has been associated with Parkinson's. |
 | Research reveals new insights into why the heart does not repair itselfHeart muscle is one of the least renewable tissues in the body, which is one of the reasons that heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Inspired by the idea of helping the heart repair itself, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the Texas Heart Institute have studied pathways known to be involved in heart cell functions and discovered a previously unknown connection between processes that keep the heart from repairing itself. This finding, published in the journal Nature, opens the possibility of developing strategies that will promote heart cell renewal in the future. |
 | Cells change type to help or hinder immunityIn news that may bring hope to asthma sufferers, scientists discover a mechanism that provides a possible new target for allergy treatments. |
 | A first: All respond to gene therapy in a blood cancer studyDoctors are reporting unprecedented success from a new cell and gene therapy for multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that's on the rise. Although it's early and the study is small—35 people—every patient responded and all but two were in some level of remission within two months. |
 | Researchers find micro-gene that protects the brain from developing epilepsyOn December 16, 1997, hundreds of Japanese children were brought to hospital suffering from epilepsy-like seizures. They all had one thing in common: they had been watching an episode of the Pokemon TV show when their symptoms began. Doctors determined that their symptoms were triggered by five seconds of intensely bright flashing lights on the popular TV program. But why did the lights affect a few hundred children while thousands of other viewers were unharmed? |
Midpelvic forceps, vacuum deliveries: Higher rates of trauma for mothers and babiesCompared with cesarean deliveries, midpelvic forceps and midpelvic vacuum deliveries lead to higher rates of maternal and infant trauma, according to a new study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). | |
 | Mild-to-moderate obstructive sleep apnea is associated with hypertension, diabetesPreliminary data from two studies suggest that mild-to-moderate obstructive sleep apnea is associated with an increased risk of developing hypertension and diabetes. |
Natural Caesarean section is safe, popular and feasible and is not encouraging maternal requests for C-section birthsAn expert speaking at this year's Euroanaesthesia congress in Geneva (3-5 June) will say that "Natural Caesarean Section" - in which women enjoy enhanced contact and bonding with their baby just as they would in a vaginal birth—is safe, popular and feasible, and is not encouraging mothers to request C-section birth when it is not medically necessary. | |
 | Emergency medicine in space: Normal rules don't applyExperts at this year's Euroanaesthesia congress in Geneva (3-5 June) will discuss the unusual and challenging problem of how to perform emergency medical procedures during space missions. |
Nothing to fear for 'good Samaritan' doctors who assist medical emergenciesExperts at this year's Euroanaesthesia congress in Geneva (3-5 June) will look at what can happen when doctors are called on to help with a medical emergency (for example on board an aircraft, a so called 'good Samaritan' act) and says that and says that as long as they do their best, they can be confident it is very unlikely that legal action will be taken against them. | |
Sleep extension improves response time, reduces fatigue in professional baseball playersPreliminary results from a new study suggest that short-term sleep extension improves response time and daytime functioning of professional baseball players. | |
 | Sleep duration impacts treatment response for depressed patients with insomniaPreliminary results from a new study show that depressed patients with insomnia who sleep seven or more hours per night are more likely to benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) and achieve depression remission. |
 | Cardiac arrest on plane journeys: New guidelines proposedNew guidelines to deal with the in-flight emergency of cardiac arrest in a passenger or crew member are being proposed at this year's Euroanaesthesia meeting in Geneva (3-5 June). The task force that has created the guidelines is led by Professor Jochen Hinkelbein, University of Cologne, Germany and President of the German Society for Aerospace Medicine (DGLRM). |
Study links late-night tweeting by NBA players to worse game performancePreliminary data from a new study suggests that NBA players had worse personal statistics in games that followed a late-night tweet between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. | |
Sleep regularity is important for the happiness and well-being of college studentsPreliminary results from the "SNAPSHOT study", an NIH-funded collaborative research project between the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and MIT Media Lab Affective Computing Group, suggest that keeping a regular sleep pattern contributes to the happiness and well-being of college students. | |
 | Social jet lag is associated with worse mood, poorer health and heart diseasePreliminary results of a new study show that social jet lag has emerged as an important circadian marker for health outcomes. |
 | Treating depression with softwareA treatment for depression using Emotional Faces Memory Task (EFMT), a technology originally developed by two Mount Sinai researchers, resulted in a significantly greater reduction of major depressive disorder (MDD) symptoms compared to a control group, according to initial clinical results presented at the Society of Biological Psychiatry Annual Scientific Convention on May 19, 2017, in San Diego. EFMT is a cognitive-emotional treatment that is delivered via an app on the Click Neurobehavioral Intervention (CNI) platform , a clinically-validated patient engagement platform developed by Click Therapeutics. |
 | Is cirrhosis associated with increased risk of stroke?Cirrhosis was associated with increased risk of stroke, especially hemorrhagic, in a study that included a representative sample of more than 1.6 million Medicare beneficiaries, according to an article published by JAMA Neurology. |
Did amount of sodium households acquire in packaged food, beverages decrease?Excessive dietary sodium is a modifiable risk factor for hypertension and cardiovascular disease, and the Institute of Medicine has said it is essential to reduce sodium in packaged foods. Yet, not much is known about whether sodium in packaged foods has changed over the past 15 years. A new article published by JAMA Internal Medicine tries to answer that question. | |
 | Two interventions help improve weight management in children with overweight or obesityTwo interventions that link clinical care with community resources helped improve key health measures in children with overweight or obesity at the outset of the study. As reported in JAMA Pediatrics, both programs - developed by investigators at MassGeneral Hospital for Children (MGHfC) and Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, a practice of Atrius Health - not only improved body mass index (BMI) in participants but also increased parents' sense that they had the information and resources to address their child's weight problem. |
Team studies ambulance diversion by race, health care for released prisonersBlack heart attack patients suffered higher mortality rates than white patients when ambulances are diverted because hospital emergency rooms are too busy to receive new patients, according to a new study led by UC San Francisco. | |
New allocation system reduces racial/ethnic disparities in kidney transplantA new kidney allocation system implemented in 2014 by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) led to a narrowing of the disparities in national kidney transplant rates among whites, blacks and Hispanics on the transplant waitlist, according to a new analysis. The new system led to a substantial increase in the kidney transplant rate for blacks and Hispanics in the months following implementation and a decrease in the rate of kidney transplantation for whites. | |
Four-year follow-up confirms that participation in competitive sports may be okay for many athletes with ICDA four-year study of athletes with implantable defibrillators confirms an earlier short-term study's findings that competitive sports may be considered for many of these athletes, according to new research in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation. | |
Smaller dose combos of blood pressure meds may be effective with fewer side effectsQuarter-dose combinations of blood pressure lowering medications appear to be effective in treating hypertension and result in fewer side effects for patients than a single dose of one drug, according to new research in the American Heart Association's journal Hypertension. | |
Next-generation metagenomics sequencing may sleuth out hard-to-find viruses in the bloodNext-generation metagenomics sequencing (NGMS) may have broad potential for discovering new viral infections in the blood, such as human hepegivirus-1 (HHpgV-1), that currently cannot be found by conventional methods. Whether or not HHpgV-1 causes human disease remains to be seen. The findings are published in Annals of Internal Medicine. | |
 | Antibiotic overuse in children could be reduced with improved communicationTo help reduce unnecessary use of antibiotics for common childhood illnesses, parents would benefit from fuller communication from their health care providers, suggests new research published in the National Communication Association's Journal of Applied Communication Research. |
 | Newborn baby girls' outcomes better than boys' due to genetic advantageNewborn infant girls have better outcomes than their male counterparts due to an innate genetic advantage in responding to acute infections, according to new research from RCSI (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland). The research is published in the current edition of Pediatric Research. |
 | Scientists find off-switch for the mTor complexAs the cell's molecular control center, the mTor kinase regulates cellular metabolism, growth and division. However, in cells affected by pathological change, the regulation goes array. Therefore, it would be helpful if the central control could be simply turned off to suppress insulin resistance or cancerous growth for example. Scientists at the Leibniz–Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) in Berlin (Germany) succeeded in locating a crucial off-switch for the central cell control. Paradoxically, this 'off-switch' is a lipid kinase producing a product previously known for its role in the activation of mTor. The results just appeared in the high-ranking journal Science. They bolster the hopes of patients waiting for new effective therapies against diabetes, obesity, cancer and a rare congenital muscular disease. |
 | Binge and high-intensity drinking is increasing for U.S. young adults in their late 20sMonitoring changes in drinking patterns and amounts helps researchers, prevention professionals, and treatment providers plan for and respond effectively to personal and public harms associated with alcohol consumption. This information is particularly important for young adults, who tend to drink large amounts of alcohol and are thus at higher risk for negative consequences such accidents. This study examined historical changes in binge (5+ drinks per occasion) and high-intensity (10+, 15+ drinks per occasion) drinking among U.S. 12th graders and young adults from 2005 to 2015. |
 | Diabetes specialists seek to push WIC program away from juiceThe twin epidemics of diabetes and obesity sweeping the country have forced a re-evaluation of the American diet, including the notion that fruit juice is a healthy alternative to soda. |
 | Is the developed world we've created giving us cancer?I had assumed that the small lump in my breast was a blocked milk duct from nursing my seven-month-old son. The news that I had stage 2 breast cancer stunned. |
 | Survey puts disabling chemotherapy side effect in focusThousands of Australian cancer survivors experience chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), but little is known about its impact on a national level. |
 | Children with bedroom TVs at significantly higher risk of being overweightA UCL-led study of over 12,000 young children in the UK has revealed that 11-year-olds who had TVs in their bedroom at age 7 had a significantly higher body mass (BMI) and fat mass (FMI) and were more likely to be overweight compared to children who did not have a bedroom TV. |
 | Combined immunotherapy could help control melanoma that has spread to the brainA combination of two immunotherapy drugs is safe to give to patients with melanoma, a type of skin cancer, that has spread to the brain, and could help control the disease. |
 | An initial step toward blood tests for early detection of cancerIn a study of 124 patients with advanced breast, lung, and prostate cancers, a new, high-intensity genomic sequencing approach detected circulating tumor DNA at a high rate. In 89 percent of patients, at least one genetic change detected in the tumor was also detected in the blood. Overall, 627 (73 percent) genetic changes found in tumor samples were also found in blood samples with this approach. |
Routine genomic testing is feasible, but only a subset of patients benefitGenomic testing of tumor samples can enable personalized treatment selection, where targeted treatments are matched to genetic changes in the tumor. Although a growing number of patients with advanced cancers receive some genomic testing, comprehensive genomic testing is not yet routine care. | |
 | Low testosterone after testicular cancer is common, linked to chronic health problemsIn a large study, 38 percent of 491 testicular cancer survivors had low testosterone levels, known as hypogonadism. Compared to survivors with normal testosterone levels, survivors with low testosterone were more likely to have a range of chronic health problems, including high blood pressure, diabetes, erectile dysfunction, and anxiety or depression. |
 | Working memory: How you keep things 'in mind' over the short termWhen you need to remember a phone number, a shopping list or a set of instructions, you rely on what psychologists and neuroscientists refer to as working memory. It's the ability to hold and manipulate information in mind, over brief intervals. It's for things that are important to you in the present moment, but not 20 years from now. |
 | Improving sleep in children with ADHD has some lessons for all parentsEvery evening around the world, parents put their children to bed, hoping they'll go to sleep easily. For most parents that's exactly what happens. But for some kids, sleep does not come easily and evenings are a battle. |
 | New app to improve environments for people living with dementiaThe University of Stirling's Dementia Services Development Centre (DSDC) has announced the development of a ground-breaking new app to help improve workplaces, public buildings and homes for people living with dementia. |
Novel sequencing approach seeks to detect cancer's genomic alterationsFindings from an early study evaluating a sophisticated new genomic-sequencing approach that analyzes cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood of people with advanced cancer will help inform development of a future assay that could potentially detect cancer in its earliest stages, according to research presented today by a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) investigator at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago. | |
 | Cannabinoids used in sequence with chemotherapy are a more effective treatment for cancerNew research has confirmed that cannabinoids - the active chemicals in cannabis - are effective in killing leukaemia cells, particularly when used in combination with chemotherapy treatments. |
Olaparib slows growth of BRCA-related metastatic breast cancerFindings from a phase III clinical trial of about 300 women may introduce PARP inhibitors as a new type of treatment for breast cancer. Compared to standard chemotherapy, the oral targeted medicine olaparib (Lynparza) reduced the chance of progression of advanced, BRCA-related breast cancer by 42%, delaying progression by about 3 months. | |
Two combination therapies shrink melanoma brain metastases in more than half of patientsHigh response rates to a pair of combination therapies point to potentially new options for a group of metastatic melanoma patients who have been largely left out of recent treatment progress - those whose disease has spread to the brain. | |
 | New mechanism behind Parkinson's disease revealedParkinson's disease is a debilitating neurological illness that affects approximately 10 million people worldwide. It is marked by a progressive decline in physical function, the most iconic being uncontrollable tremors, and involves the malfunction and eventual death of nerve cells located in the brain. There is no cure for this disease, and researchers have struggled for years to fully understand its cause. In the 1990s, the field of Parkinson's research took a great leap forward when an overabundance of the protein alpha-synuclein was linked to disease development. This protein, a mysterious inhabitant of the brain, is found mainly at the end of neurons in what is called the nerve terminal. Attempts to precisely identify its role in Parkinson's since the link was discovered have been unsuccessful, until now. |
 | Increasing susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus in the USFindings from a study that looked at susceptibility trends of Staphylococcus aureus in U.S. hospital patients showed that key antibiotics used to treat the bacteria became more active over the course of the study, a rare occurrence. Researchers at JMI Laboratories evaluated susceptibility trends of antibiotics from 2009 to 2015 by testing clinical isolates from medical centers across the U.S. The research is presented on June 4th at the ASM Microbe conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. |
 | Herbs, spices on vegetables may increase their appeal to men, young adultsAdults who don't routinely eat vegetables for lunch may be more likely to consume them if the vegetables are seasoned, a new study suggests. |
Vaginal bacteria alter sexual transmission of Zika and herpes simplex virus-2Bacteria in the vagina can inhibit sexually transmitted Zika virus and herpes simplex virus-2 in women, according to a new study from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. The findings were discussed at the ASM Microbe 2017 meeting on June 2, 2017, in New Orleans. | |
Abiraterone delays metastatic prostate cancer growth by 18 months, extends survivalAdding abiraterone acetate (Zytiga) plus prednisone to standard hormonal therapy for men newly diagnosed with high-risk, metastatic prostate cancer lowers the chance of death by 38%. In a phase III clinical trial of 1,200 men, abiraterone also more than doubled the median time until the cancer worsened, from 14.8 months to 33 months. The study will be featured in a press briefing today and presented at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. | |
New drug shows durable efficacy across diverse pediatric and adult cancersScientists may have developed the first targeted, oral, tumor-type agnostic therapy - a cancer medicine that works comparably well across many kinds of cancer, regardless of patient age. In clinical trials of adults and children with 17 different types of advanced cancer, larotrectinib treatment resulted in responses in 76% of patients. Response to larotrectinib has been durable, with 79% of responses ongoing 12 months after starting treatment. | |
Steady decrease in severe health problems for childhood cancer survivorsTreatments for childhood cancer are often intense and carry the risk of lifelong health problems for survivors. An analysis of 23,600 childhood cancer survivors in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS), funded by the National Institutes of Health, found that the rate of severe health problems occurring five or more years after diagnosis has declined over time. | |
 | Development of a novel vaccine for ZikaResearch presented by Farshad Guirakhoo, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, GeoVax, Inc., at the ASM Microbe 2017 meeting showed a new Zika virus vaccine that gives 100% protection in mice. The vaccine is the first to be based on the Zika virus NS1 protein, and the first to show single-dose protection against Zika in an immunocompetent lethal mouse challenge model. Results of the study were presented on June 4 at the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Microbe conference in New Orleans. |
 | Researchers pilot 'Home-but-not Alone' app to help new parentsA research team led by Assistant Professor Shefaly Shorey from the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies at the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine has developed a novel mobile application to deliver postnatal educational programmes and to provide the much needed postnatal supportive care on the go. Findings from a pilot test showed that new parents who use the app experienced significantly better parenting outcomes. |
Simple step to protect people with type 1 diabetes against heart diseaseOne additional injection of insulin three hours after eating has been shown to protect people with type 1 diabetes from cardiovascular disease - the leading cause of death among people with the condition. | |
 | Can sharing your bedroom with baby come with risks?(HealthDay)—It's healthiest to evict infants from their parents' bedroom at 6 months of age, suggests new research that runs counter to national guidelines. |
 | Diet journaling made easier(HealthDay)—It's the dieter's Catch-22: Research shows that dieters who keep a food journal lose the most weight and keep it off the longest. |
Handshake-free zone: Keep those hands (and germs) to yourself in the hospitalDr. Mark Sklansky, a self-described germaphobe, can't stop thinking about how quickly those little microbes can spread. | |
 | Pictorial warning labels on tobacco products could help improve communication of risks to smokersIn recent years, smoking rates among adults in America have steadily declined; yet tobacco use remains the largest preventable cause of death and disease in the United States. Cigarette packages in most countries include a health warning label that describes the risks of using the product, but the position, size and design of the warnings may vary. In the US, health warnings with pictures have been contested through the courts by the tobacco industry. In a new study published recently in Tobacco Control, Penn researchers found that health warning labels that include images or Pictorial Warning Labels (PWLs) are more effective in gaining and holding the attention of smokers when the image and the text convey similar risks. |
Trends in reoperation after initial lumpectomy for breast cancerMonica Morrow, M.D., of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, and coauthors investigated the impact of a 2014 consensus statement endorsing a minimal negative margin for invasive breast cancer on postlumpectomy surgery and final surgical treatment. | |
Study addresses misconceptions about electroconvulsive therapyElectroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has long had a stigma of being a painful and barbaric method of treatment, but a new study found that patients undergoing ECT for a variety of psychiatric disorders view the therapy in a positive light. | |
CAR T-Cell therapy sends multiple myeloma into lasting remissionIn an early clinical trial, 33 out of 35 (94%) patients had clinical remission of multiple myeloma upon receiving a new type of immunotherapy ? chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting B-cell maturation protein or BCMA. Most patients had only mild side effects. | |
 | Brain development and agingThe brain is a complex organ—a network of nerve cells, or neurons, producing thought, memory, action, and feeling. How does this complex system change from childhood to adulthood to late life in order to maintain optimal behavioral responses? |
 | PET/MR shows arterial CO2 as potent vasodilator for cardiac stress testingMore than 5 million cardiac stress tests performed annually in the U.S. employ injectable forms of pharmacological stress agents—such as adenosine or one of its analogues—to dilate blood vessels in the heart. However, these drugs can have severe side effects. Using PET/MR imaging, a new international study featured in the June issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine demonstrates that increases in partial pressure of arterial carbon dioxide (PaCO2) can safely and efficiently widen blood vessels of the heart during stress tests to help determine heart function. |
 | Chronic pain linked to increased risk of dementia in study of older adultsResearchers at UC San Francisco have found that older people with persistent pain show quicker declines in memory as they age and are more likely to have dementia years later, an indication that chronic pain could somehow be related to changes in the brain that contribute to dementia. |
 | Study evaluates overall geriatric health during androgen deprivation therapyAndrogen drives many prostate cancers. But the body uses androgen for muscle growth and maintenance, among other functions. An ongoing study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology along with the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2017 evaluates the effects of androgen deprivation therapy not just on patients' physical function but on global geriatric health, including skills of daily living. Because the study is longitudinal, following individual patients from before treatment through the course of their care, findings can help to define not only the characteristics of men who will need supportive care, but when in treatment this care should begin. |
 | One in five surgical weight-loss patients take prescription opioids seven years after surgeryWhile the proportion of adults with severe obesity using prescription opioids initially declines in the months after bariatric surgery, it increases within a matter of years, eventually surpassing pre-surgery rates of patients using the potentially addictive pain medications, according to new research from a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded multicenter study led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. |
 | Generous health insurance plans encourage overtreatment, but may not improve healthOffering comprehensive health insurance plans with low deductibles and co-pay in exchange for higher annual premiums seems like a good value for the risk averse, and a profitable product for insurance companies. But according to a forthcoming study in a leading scholarly marketing journal, the INFORMS journal Marketing Science, such plans can encourage individuals with chronic conditions to turn to needlessly expensive treatments that have little impact on their health outcomes. This in turn raises costs for the insurer and future prices for the insured. |
 | Sudden unexpected infant deaths may be underestimated: study(HealthDay)—U.S. medical examiners and coroners may not accurately classify some sudden unexpected infant deaths (SUIDs) because they don't all follow the same procedures when investigating and classifying such deaths, according to new research. |
 | Hypothalamic Lin28a shows role in glucose homeostasis(HealthDay)—An experimental study supports a TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK-1)-dependent role for Lin28a in the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus in glucose homeostasis. The study was published online May 26 in Diabetes. |
 | AAFP policy addresses issues related to prior authorizations(HealthDay)—A new policy addresses some of the problematic issues associated with prior authorizations, according to a report published by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). |
 | Mutations in SULT2B1 tied to ichthyosis in humans(HealthDay)—Scientists have discovered another gene mutation behind certain cases of autosomal-recessive congenital ichthyosis (ARCI), according to a report published in the June 1 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics. |
 | Conception options available for HIV-discordant couples(HealthDay)—Various methods are available for reducing the risk of HIV transmission in HIV-discordant couples who would like to attempt conception, according to research published in the June 2 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. |
Attacking metastatic tumors in the brainRakesh Jain, PhD, Director of the Edwin L. Steele Laboratory for Tumor Biology at the Massachusetts General Hospital and supported by the National Foundation for Cancer Research, has discovered a novel mechanism behind the resistance to HER2- or PI3K-targeted therapies, and a treatment strategy that may overcome treatment resistance. This significant finding was reported in the latest issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine. | |
 | Black, white men view impacts of prostate cancer treatment differently, study findsWhen it comes to making decisions about which prostate cancer treatment to choose, black and white men prioritize certain treatment-related factors differently, according to a University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center study. |
 | Diabetes drug prevents stiffening of heart muscle in obese mouse modelOverconsumption of a Western diet high in fats and refined sugars has contributed to a global increase in obesity and Type 2 diabetes. Obese and diabetic premenopausal women are more at risk of developing heart disease—even more than men of similar age and with similar health issues. A study by researchers at the University of Missouri School of Medicine found that the diabetes medication linagliptin can protect against stiffening of the left ventricle of the heart in overweight female mice. The finding may have implications for management of cardiovascular diseases in humans. |
 | Adding vemurafenib doubles progression-free survival in BRAF metastatic colorectal cancerClinical trial results presented in an oral abstract session 3:00pm Monday, June 5 at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2017 shows promising results for the addition of vemurafenib (anti-BRAF) to treatment with cetuximab and irinotecan (anti-EGFR) in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer that have a BRAF V600E mutation. In the randomized trial, 49 patients who received vemurafenib in combination with cetuximab and irinotecan showed median 4.3 months progression-free survival (PFS), compared with 2.0 months median PFS for 50 patients given cetuximab and irinotecan alone. Disease control rate was 67 percent for the combination including vemurafenib versus 22 percent for the two-drug combination. Overall survival was median 5.9 months for the two-drug combination and 9.6 months with the addition of vemurafenib. The study implies that inhibiting BRAF along with EGFR in this population may be more potent than inhibiting either of these targets alone. |
 | HUD housing assistance linked to improved health care accessA new study examining the impact that access to affordable housing has on health showed that people receiving subsidized housing assistance were more likely to have medical insurance and less likely to have unmet medical need than other low income people who were on a US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) wait list for the housing assistance benefit. Approximately 31 percent of the recipients of housing assistance were uninsured, as compared to about 37 percent of the future recipients. |
 | Aspirin does little or nothing for hard arteries, researchers findFor decades, aspirin has been widely used to reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems. Now, a team led by a University of Florida Health researcher has found that aspirin may provide little or no benefit for certain patients who have plaque buildup in their arteries. |
 | Are many a-fib patients getting the wrong dose?(HealthDay)—Nearly one in six Americans who takes newer blood thinners for the heart rhythm problem atrial fibrillation may not receive the proper dose, a new study suggests. |
 | Amenable death in Europe: Health care expenditure decreases mortality ratesThe June issue of Health Affairs includes an analysis of amenable mortality rates—rates of deaths that are potentially preventable with available health care treatment options—in seventeen European countries, which found that higher health care expenditure was associated with lower amenable mortality and with smaller absolute inequalities in amenable mortality. |
Light-responsive ligands activate retinal neurons to repair vision loss in blind miceRetinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, and other retinal diseases lead to the deterioration of photoreceptors, the light-sensing cells in the eye. Eventually, this deterioration progresses to vision loss. Although there are several therapies in development to reverse retinal disease-related blindness, each is associated with safety concerns related to long-term stability. In mouse models of retinal disease, light-sensitive molecules known as photoswitches have been shown to restore light responses to damaged retinas. The ability to control the duration and application frequency of photoswitches, which are applied as a pharmacological therapy, makes them an attractive alternative approach to treating vision loss. | |
A single radiation treatment sufficiently relieves spinal cord compression symptoms"Spinal cord compression is a debilitating condition that many patients with advanced cancer experience. Until now, patients often had to spend multiple days traveling back and forth to undergo radiation treatments. This study means that without compromising care, we can help patients have more time to focus on the things they enjoy instead of on the cancer," said Joshua A. Jones, MD, MA, ASCO Expert. | |
 | CONNECT registry shows only 9 percent compliance with genetic testing guidelines for AMLGuidelines by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) recommend testing for seven known genetic changes in patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). A study presented today at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2017 shows that only 67 percent of 259 evaluated patients received any genetic testing. Of the 173 patients that received any genetic testing, only 9 percent received all seven of the NCCN-recommended genetic tests. |
Dasatinib excels in worldwide phase II trial against pediatric CMLIn 2002, the FDA approved the drug imatinib as a first-line therapy for adults with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) caused by the fusion gene BCR-ABL, known as the Philadelphia chromosome. The approval dramatically extended the lives of patients with the condition and, in many ways, ushered in the era of molecularly-targeted treatments against cancer. Now worldwide phase II clinical trial results presented at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2017 show the promise of the second-generation drug dasatinib, also aimed at BCR-ABL fusion in CML, in a new population, namely pediatric patients. | |
Chronic health conditions among childhood cancer survivors decreaseChanges in treatment of pediatric cancer over recent decades have translated to a reduced risk of serious long-term late health effects of cancer therapy, according to the latest analysis from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, a National Cancer Institute funded resource for late-effects research, led by researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. | |
Psychological intervention relieves distress in patients with advanced cancerAdvanced cancer triggers enormous distress and brings challenges that can seem overwhelming. Yet, most cancer centers lack systematic approaches to help patients and families manage the practical and emotional toll of advanced cancer. | |
Pregnancy after breast cancer does not increase chance of recurrenceFindings from a retrospective study of 1,200 women provide reassurance to breast cancer survivors who are contemplating pregnancy. In the study, women who became pregnant after an early breast cancer diagnosis, including those with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive tumors, did not have a higher chance of cancer recurrence and death than those who did not become pregnant. | |
Psychological intervention lowers survivors' fear of cancer recurrenceAbout 50% of all cancer survivors and 70% of young breast cancer survivors report moderate to high fear of recurrence. The fear can be so distressing that it negatively affects medical follow-up behavior, mood, relationships, work, goal setting, and quality of life. Yet, interventions to alleviate this fear are lacking. | |
Remote therapy program improves quality of life, lowers distress after cancer diagnosisMost patients experience significant distress after they are diagnosed with cancer. This distress not only erodes quality of life, but can also negatively affect the course of the disease and the patient's ability to tolerate treatment. | |
 | Cancer patients who systematically reported their symptoms lived longerCancer patients who reported their symptoms to their cancer care providers using a web-based survey lived longer than those patients who did not, according to a study led by a University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researcher. |
 | Technology leads to better treatment for Staphylococcus aureus sepsisA new testing and treatment approach led to shorter hospital stays for patients with Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections. Study results were presented at the ASM Microbe 2017 conference in New Orleans, LA, on June 3, 2017. |
Abiraterone slows advanced prostate cancer, helps patients live longerA clinical trial of nearly 2,000 men shows that adding abiraterone acetate (Zytiga) to a standard initial treatment regimen for high-risk, advanced prostate cancer lowers the relative risk of death by 37%. The 3-year survival rate was 76% with standard therapy alone, but 83% with standard therapy plus abiraterone. This is the largest study of abiraterone as first-line therapy for advanced prostate cancer. | |
Global study sets new risk-based standard to personalize chemotherapy for colon cancerAfter surgery for lymph-node positive colon cancer (stage III), some patients may only need half of the long-standing standard course of chemotherapy. In an analysis of six clinical trials with over 12,800 patients, 3 months of chemotherapy was nearly as effective as 6 months in patients with relatively lower recurrence risk and caused fewer side effects, particularly nerve damage. | |
 | Zika virus successfully diagnosed from semenResearch presented at ASM Microbe 2017 by experts at the Fertility and Cryogenics Lab shows a reliable clinical assay that can detect the Zika virus from semen samples. |
First ever single guidance published for investigating and managing nut allergyNew comprehensive guidance for the diagnosis and management of peanut and tree nut allergy has been developed, which for the first time brings together the latest research and expert views into a single robustly written document. Patients will benefit from receiving the latest evidence based advice, including better understanding of risk assessment in order to reduce accidental reactions and manage reactions more effectively. | |
 | Maternal-fetal transmission of Zika virus and therapeutic approaches to prevent itThe devastating effects of Zika virus on the brain of the developing fetus during infection in pregnancy have led to intensive research to understand the routes of Zika virus transmission and how the virus travels to and infects the fetus. What researchers have learned about how Zika virus impacts pregnancy and neonatal outcomes and the promise of new therapeutic interventions are presented in a comprehensive review article published in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research. |
Research suggests possible new treatment for EGFR-positive lung cancerFindings from a phase III clinical trial point to a potential new treatment for patients newly diagnosed with advanced, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Compared to the EGFR inhibitor gefitinib (Iressa), one of the standard targeted medicines for this disease, second-generation EGFR inhibitor dacomitinib delayed cancer growth by a median of 5.5 months more. | |
Alectinib halts lung cancer growth more than a year longer than crizotinibFindings from a phase III clinical trial point to a more effective initial treatment for patients with ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Compared to the current standard of care crizotinib (Xalkori), the newer ALK inhibitor alectinib (Alecensa) halted cancer growth for a median of 15 months longer and caused fewer severe side effects. | |
Adding a second HER2 blocker may lower chance of invasive breast cancer for some womenA phase III clinical trial of 4,805 women with HER2-positive breast cancer suggests adding a second HER2 targeted medicine, pertuzumab (Perjeta), to standard of care trastuzumab (Herceptin) after surgery may help, although the benefit is modest. | |
Early research suggests first immunotherapy for mesothelioma on the horizonMalignant pleural mesothelioma or MPM is a rare cancer, but its incidence has been rising. This cancer is usually associated with asbestos exposure, and patients have a median life expectancy of only 13-15 months. All patients relapse despite initial chemotherapy, more than 50% of them within six months after stopping treatment. There are currently no effective therapeutic options for patients with MPM. | |
 | ASCO: single radiation Tx enough for spinal pain in cancer mets(HealthDay)—Just one dose of radiation works as well as a full week of treatment for metastatic spinal canal compression, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, held from June 2 to 6 in Chicago. |
 | Anticipation helps pathological gamblers hold out for larger-but-later rewardsTriggering pathological gamblers to envision a future personal experience reduces their preference for an immediate reward over a larger, delayed award, according to a study published in eNeuro. |
White noise after loud noise prevents hearing deficits in miceMild hearing loss from exposure to less than one hour of loud noise leads to a reorganization of circuits in a key midbrain structure of the auditory system in mice, finds new research published in The Journal of Neuroscience. However, exposure to moderate white noise for seven days immediately following loud noise prevented the reorganization of these circuits and related hearing deficits in some mice. | |
Targeted therapies show initial effectiveness in subset of papillary thyroid cancerTwo immunotherapy drugs currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of melanoma also show promise for treating a rare but aggressive form of papillary thyroid cancer. | |
AACR pubs first set of screening recs from childhood cancer predisposition workshopThe American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) has published its first set of consensus screening recommendations for children with common cancer predisposition syndromes in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the AACR. These recommendations emerged from the Childhood Cancer Predisposition Workshop held by the AACR Pediatric Cancer Working Group in October 2016. | |
Time to initiating cancer therapy is increasing, associated with worsening survivalAfter reviewing nearly 3.7 million patient records, Cleveland Clinic researchers have shown that newly diagnosed cancer patients are having to wait longer to begin treatment, a delay that is associated with a substantially increased risk of death. | |
 | NIAID-sponsored trial of experimental Chikungunya vaccine beginsA clinical trial of an experimental vaccine to prevent infection with chikungunya virus is now enrolling healthy adult volunteers at sites in the United States. The Phase 1/2 trial, which is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is being conducted at several NIAID-funded Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units. The candidate vaccine, MV-CHIKV, was developed by Themis Bioscience of Vienna, Austria. |
Biology news
 | RNA lifespan determination during transcriptionControl of RNA lifespan is vital for the proper functioning of our cells. Marc Bühler's group at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) has discovered a novel mechanism determining the fate of RNA in mammalian cells: two proteins involved in RNA interference - Dgcr8 and Drosha - together with a methyltransferase, Mettl3, mark nascent RNAs for degradation as they are transcribed. This mechanism allows RNA transcripts to "remember" the conditions under which they were synthesized. |
 | 'Hail Mary' mechanism can rescue cells with severely damaged chromosomesThe DNA vital to the life of a cell is packaged in chromosomes, and a variety of checkpoints, repair mechanisms, and other cellular safeguards exist to maintain the integrity of the chromosomes during cell growth and division. Those safeguards can fail, however, and a cell may find itself trying to divide into two daughter cells with a loose chromosomal fragment drifting away from a broken chromosome. |
 | Research in bloodless worms reveals how organs communicate status of life-giving hemeScientists at the University of Maryland and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have identified for the first time a signaling system by which organs within an animal can communicate their need for heme, an iron-containing ring required for oxygen transport and many other essential biological processes. |
 | With specialized lips, these fish dine on razor-sharp, stinging coralsOf all the things an animal could eat, corals are arguably one of the toughest, thanks to their thin, mucus-covered flesh packed with venomous stinging cells spread over a razor-sharp skeleton. Perhaps that explains why of the more than 6,000 fish species that live on the reef, only 128 are known to feed on corals. Now, researchers reporting in Current Biology on June 5 have discovered how at least one species of coral-feeding fish does it. They "kiss" the flesh and mucus off the coral skeleton using protective, self-lubricating lips. |
 | Newly identified gene helps time spring flowering in vital grass cropsWinter is no time to flower, which is why so many plants have evolved the ability to wait for the snow to melt before investing precious resources in blooms. |
 | Marine reserves help mitigate against climate change, say scientistsAn international team of scientists has concluded that "highly protected" marine reserves can help mitigate the effects of climate change and suggests that these areas be expanded and better managed throughout the world. |
 | Genetic cross-talk key to cell balanceCompeting regulatory genes "talk" to each other to maintain balance of cell state, according to new research from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research. |
 | Scientists discover plant 'brain' controlling seed developmentA new study by scientists at the University of Birmingham has revealed a group of cells that function as a 'brain' for plant embryos, capable of assessing environmental conditions and dictating when seeds will germinate. |
 | Newly discovered DNA sequences can protect chromosomes in rotifersRotifers are tough, microscopic organisms highly resistant to radiation and repeated cycles of dehydration and rehydration. Now Irina Arkhipova, Irina Yushenova, and Fernando Rodriguez of the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) have discovered another protective mechanism of this hardy organism: the Terminons. Their findings, which can have implications for research on aging and genome evolution, are published this week in Molecular Biology and Evolution. |
 | Two-part system turns stem cells into whatever you wantWhether using embryonic or adult stem cells, coercing these master cells to convert to the desired target cell and reproduce flawlessly is difficult. Now an international team of researchers has a two-part system that can convert the cells to the targets and then remove the remnants of that conversion, leaving only the desired DNA behind to duplicate. |
Fully sequenced deer genome made publicly availableResearchers at Baylor College of Medicine have played a leading role in sequencing the whole genome of the common white-tailed deer, which has recently been made public by the National Center for Biotechnology Information. | |
 | Rediscovered mosses document changing Wisconsin landscapeThe Wisconsin State Herbarium at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has discovered a collection of more than 2,000 mosses from the turn of the 20th century, lost to time in a cabinet inside Birge Hall, where the herbarium is housed. |
 | Researcher looks into declining Texas mussel populationsJennifer Morton hovers methodically over a row of clear, water-filled containers on a tight-spaced industrial shelving system. She plucks a mollusk from one of the containers, observing the specimen as part of a study on freshwater mussel tolerances. |
 | Hidden feather patterns tell the story of birdsShearwaters are migratory marine birds that travel in a figure-of-eight pattern between the coasts of Siberia and Japan to Tasmania. |
 | Census shows which mammals survive in forests surrounded by sugarcane plantationsResearchers at São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil have published a census of medium and large mammals found in 22 forest remnants surrounded by sugarcane plantations in the state. The findings are "surprisingly positive", according to Mauro Galetti, a professor in the Ecology Department of the university's Rio Claro Bioscience Institute (IBRC-UNESP). |
Lactobacillus from yogurt inhibits multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogensA Lactobacillus isolate from commercial yogurt, identified as Lactobacillus parafarraginis, inhibited the growth of several multidrug-resistant/extended spectrum β-lactamase bacteria from patients at a hospital in Washington, D.C.. The research was presented at ASM Microbe 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana. | |
 | Bio-based p-xylene oxidation into terephthalic acid by engineered E. coliKAIST researchers have established an efficient biocatalytic system to produce terephthalic acid (TPA) from p-xylene (pX). It will allow this industrially important bulk chemical to be made available in a more environmentally-friendly manner. |
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria in ready-to-eat foodsResearch presented at the ASM Microbe 2017 meeting by Bryan Sanchez of California State University-Northridge in Northridge, Calif., show that antibiotic-resistant bacteria are present in many ready-to-eat foods such as fresh produce and dairy products and may serve as a source of human exposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. About 2 million people become infected with antibiotic resistant-bacteria annually in the United States, resulting in over $35 billion in additional health care costs. Examining potential ways that humans can be exposed to antibiotic-resistant bacteria can help in understanding how to counter the threat. | |
Citizen scientists help infectious bacteria researchersA team of UK based researchers, known as the ENIGMA Project, has developed a novel method for assessing human/virus interactions in the natural environment, using citizen scientists wearing boot socks over their shoes during walks in the countryside. | |
 | Breeding pairs of birds cooperate to resist climate changeMost bird chicks need parental care to survive. In biparental species the chicks have greater chances of success if both parents participate in this task, especially under hostile situations. An international team of scientists has revealed that when temperatures rise, males and females in pairs of plovers shift incubation more frequently. |
 | Skin cure fad driving Myanmar elephant poaching surge: WWFMyanmar's wild elephants are being poached in record numbers with at least 20 killed this year due to surging demand for their hide, WWF said Monday, warning the species is facing a "crisis". |
Scientist: Baby lobster count drops off US coast, Canada (Update)The number of young lobsters is declining in the Gulf of Maine despite years of record-breaking harvests, a University of Maine marine scientist has warned. | |
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