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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for June 6, 2017:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
Astronomy & Space news
 | The puffiest 'super-Neptune' has a cloud-free atmosphere, new study finds(Phys.org)—Astronomers have recently conducted spectroscopic observations of the exoplanet WASP-127b – the puffiest "super-Neptune" known to date. The new study, presented in a paper published May 25 on arXiv.org, reveals that this alien world has an atmosphere, which is either completely or partially cloud-free. |
 | Celestial boondocks: Study supports the idea we live in a voidCosmologically speaking, the Milky Way and its immediate neighborhood are in the boondocks. |
 | Image: Mimas over Saturn's north poleFrom high above Saturn's northern hemisphere, NASA's Cassini spacecraft gazes over the planet's north pole, with its intriguing hexagon and bullseye-like central vortex. |
 | Czech scientists see growing risk of asteroid hitting EarthThe risk is growing that Earth will be hit by an asteroid from a meteor stream known as the Taurids, Czech astronomers said on Tuesday. |
 | Mini-flares potentially jeopardize habitability of planets circling red dwarf starsCool dwarf stars are hot targets for exoplanet hunting right now. The discoveries of planets in the habitable zones of the TRAPPIST-1 and LHS 1140 systems, for example, suggest that Earth-sized worlds might circle billions of red dwarf stars, the most common type of star in our galaxy. But, like our own sun, many of these stars erupt with intense flares. Are red dwarfs really as friendly to life as they appear, or do these flares make the surfaces of any orbiting planets inhospitable? |
 | R Aquarii: Watching a volatile stellar relationshipIn biology, "symbiosis" refers to two organisms that live close to and interact with one another. Astronomers have long studied a class of stars—called symbiotic stars—that co-exist in a similar way. Using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes, astronomers are gaining a better understanding of how volatile this close stellar relationship can be. |
 | Researchers explain mystery of 'banging' galaxy clustersTwo galaxy clusters in the process of merging created a layer of surprisingly hot gas between them that University of Colorado Boulder astronomers believe is from turbulence caused by banging into each other at supersonic speeds. |
 | Cosmic magnifying-glass effect captures universe's brightest galaxiesBoosted by natural magnifying lenses in space, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has captured unique close-up views of the universe's brightest infrared galaxies, which are as much as 10,000 times more luminous than our Milky Way. |
Technology news
 | Using machine vision for 3-D printingResearchers from Carnegie Mellon University's College of Engineering have developed machine vision technology that can autonomously identify and sort metal 3-D printing powder types with an accuracy of more than 95 percent—more precisely than current manual methods, which also require much more effort and time. This cutting-edge system will enable 3-D printing machine users to accurately test and qualify printed metal parts for any number of applications, including aerospace and medical devices. The CMU research team expects that this technology will be integrated into the 3-D printing field within the next five years. |
 | A board, some marbles and kids get feel of how computers work(Tech Xplore)—Turing Tumble is a Kickstarter project that has taken off with much success. And the game has a mission. Paul Boswell designed it to teach kids about building mechanical computers. That is, it's a type of game where—forget electronics gear— kids go over to a board powered by marbles to solve logic puzzles. |
After modernizing the doorbell, Ring inventor Jamie Siminoff went to war against crimeIf booming sales, expanding offices and a parade of TV commercials hadn't put Jamie Siminoff on the radar of the home security industry, an early March incident certainly did. | |
 | Could your car predict a cardiac event? Team explores heart monitoring in vehiclesA driver experiencing an unexpected cardiac event on the road isn't the only one at risk. |
 | US contractor arrested after leak of Russia hacking report (Update)A federal contractor has been arrested following the leak of a classified intelligence report that suggests Russian hackers attacked at least one U.S. voting software supplier days before last year's presidential election. |
 | Nuclear-wary Japan restarts another atomic reactorA Japanese utility switched on another nuclear reactor Tuesday in a small victory for the government's pro-atomic push, despite strong public opposition after the 2011 Fukushima meltdown. |
 | Apple's big wow moments: a voice speaker and augmented realityApple fans, don't fear. The iPhone maker has finally jumped into two of the hottest tech trends of the last two years—augmented reality and voice-activated speakers, with a promise to dominate these markets pioneered by its rivals. |
After London attacks, Facebook, Twitter pledge to continue anti-terror helpFacebook and Twitter vowed to continue policing their networks for terrorist elements after U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May's call for tougher Internet regulation in the wake of recent terror attacks in London. | |
 | Google to teach school kids about online safety, etiquetteGoogle is spearheading an educational campaign to teach pre-teen children how to protect themselves from scams, predators and other trouble. |
 | Amazon offers Prime discount to those on government benefitsAmazon is making a play for low-income shoppers. |
 | NASA selects three aeronautics teams to explore 'ambitious' ideasThree teams of NASA researchers who have dreamed up potential solutions for pieces of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) puzzle have received the nod to officially begin formal feasibility studies of their concepts. |
 | Increased drone use creating safety concerns in Canadian airspaceCanadian airspace is adapting to the rise of uninhabited aerial vehicles (UAVs) or, drones, which now outnumber piloted aircraft in our skies, and a new study from the University of Calgary shows this has led to a growing number of incidents and safety concerns. |
 | Can algorithms properly inform criminal sentencing?In 2013, a man named Eric L. Loomis was sentenced for eluding police and driving a car without the owner's consent. |
 | Plastic 12-bit RFID tag and read-out system with screen-printed antennaQuad Industries, Agfa, imec and TNO announced today that they have demonstrated a plastic 12-bit RFID tag and read-out system with screen-printed circuitry. The system integrates, for the first time, a screen-printed antenna and printed touch-based user interface, allowing implementation of the reader on curved surfaces. The demonstrator has been designed for badge security applications, but holds promises for many other applications, including smart packages, wearables and interactive games. |
 | How soil bacteria can protect against corrosion in steelA Swansea University researcher, Alex Harold, has beaten over 5000 applicants to win an international award for her work using proteins derived from soil bacteria to develop a new anti-corrosion coating for steel. |
 | Lyft to bring autonomous rides to Boston with partnershipUber rival Lyft said Tuesday it would begin testing autonomous ridesharing in Boston under a partnership with the technology startup nuTonomy. |
 | Students launch green phone-charging firmAn eco-friendly phone charging network is being launched by three engineering students from the University of Exeter. The ambitious trio - Hugo Tilmouth, Hakeem Buge and Chris Aoun - have set up a business which will hire out battery packs to charge phones. |
 | Ohio Supercomputer Center runs largest scale calculation everThe Ohio Supercomputer Center recently displayed the power of its new Owens Cluster by running the single-largest scale calculation in the Center's history. |
 | Novel innovation could allow bullets to disintegrate after designated distance, help prevent collateral damageStray-bullet shootings are an often-overlooked consequence of gunfire that can cause severe injury or death to bystanders, or collateral damage victims in the military. A novel technology being developed at Purdue University could help prevent these incidents. |
 | Variable speed limits could reduce crashes, ease congestion in highway work zonesAs the summer months approach, most people turn to thoughts of sunshine, outdoor barbecues and destination trips. Yet travelers often are greeted by detours, lane closures and delays for road repairs that generally are reserved for warmer weather. Researchers at the University of Missouri have studied systems to alleviate inevitable backups and delays. Researchers found that using variable speed limits in construction zones may ease congestion, reduce crashes and make work zones safer for both workers and travelers nationally. |
 | Uber probe of cut-throat workplace triggers firingsUber said Tuesday that an internal investigation into workplace misdeeds has resulted in 20 people being fired. |
System for assessing psychoemotional states via eye movement analysisExisting psychological theories connect the movements of human eyes with their reactions to external changes—what people see, hear, and feel. Analysing the eye direction allows researchers to compare observable human behaviors and internal states. | |
 | Ethiopia mobile internet still off after a weekEthiopians were still unable to surf the web via mobile networks on Tuesday, despite government claims the nationwide internet shutdown, which began a week ago, had been lifted. |
 | Texas governor signs texting-while-driving ban into lawTexting while driving will soon be illegal in Texas. |
Medicine & Health news
 | Building a better blood-brain barrier modelDelivering drugs to the brain is no easy task. The blood-brain barrier -a protective sheath of tissue that shields the brain from harmful chemicals and invaders - cannot be penetrated by most therapeutics that are injected into a person's blood stream. But for treating diseases of the central nervous system and cancers such as glioblastoma, it's essential to get drugs across this barrier and deliver them to where they are needed most. Current research models that are used to study or imitate the blood-brain barrier have a number of limitations. Investigators at Brigham and Women's Hospital have developed an innovative but easily implemented approach that uses "spheroids" to mimic the blood-brain barrier more accurately, and appears to overcome several challenges for discovering and advancing new drugs for treating brain conditions. They report their results June 6 in Nature Communications. |
 | Energetic expenditure not the only factor when judging physical effort of movementsScientists from the German Primate Center, led by Dr. Pierre Morel, have determined which characteristics of an arm movement influence the subjective effort associated with this movement. In a study publishing on June 6 in the open access journal PLOS Biology they found that duration, biomechanics and force had an influence on the effort, while movement amplitudes had no effect. Moreover, their results shed light on a postulated link between two important functions of the brain: optimizing action selection in decision-making and in movement execution. |
 | Is white or whole wheat bread 'healthier?' Depends on the personDespite many studies looking at which bread is the healthiest, it is still not clear what effect bread and differences among bread types have on clinically relevant parameters and on the microbiome. In the journal Cell Metabolism on June 6, Weizmann Institute researchers report the results of a comprehensive, randomized trial in 20 healthy subjects comparing differences in how processed white bread and artisanal whole wheat sourdough affect the body. |
 | Study could help explain link between seizures and psychiatric disordersIn a new study published in Cell Reports, scientists at the Gladstone Institutes identified different types of neurons in a brain region called the reticular thalamus. A better understanding of these cells could eventually help explain how both seizures and certain psychiatric disorders can occur at the same time. |
 | 3-D skin made of stem cells treats backbone birth defect in rodentsMyelomeningocele is a severe congenital defect in which the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth, putting those affected at risk of lifelong neurological problems. In a preclinical study published June 6th in Stem Cell Reports, researchers developed a stem cell-based therapy for generating skin grafts to cover myelomeningocele defects before birth. They first generated artificial skin from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and then successfully transplanted the skin grafts into rat fetuses with myelomeningocele. |
 | Tourette-like tics vanish in mice treated with histamineYale scientists produced increased grooming behavior in mice that may model tics in Tourette syndrome and discovered these behaviors vanish when histamine—a neurotransmitter most commonly associated with allergies—is introduced into their brains. |
 | New insights into how the human brain processes scentTheta oscillations, a type of rhythmic electrical activity that waxes and wanes four to eight times per second, may play a fundamental role in processing scent in the human brain, according to a new study recently published in Neuron. |
 | How neurons use crowdsourcing to make decisionsHow do we make decisions? Or rather, how do our neurons make decisions for us? Do individual neurons have a strong say or is the voice in the neural collective? |
 | Finnish study shows increase in economically valuable personality traits(Medical Xpress)—A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in Finland has found that personality traits that convey economic advantages rose over a 15-year study period. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes their study of data on a large portion of males born in Finland over the years 1962 to 1978 and what they found. |
 | Restoring cardiac function with a matrix moleculeHeart disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide, yet the few available treatments are still mostly unsuccessful once the heart tissue has suffered damage. Mammalian hearts are actually able to regenerate and repair damage - but only up to around the time of birth. Afterward, that ability disappears, seemingly forever. Research at the Weizmann Institute of Science has uncovered a molecule in newborn hearts that appears to control the renewal process. When injected into adult mouse hearts injured by heart attacks, this molecule, called Agrin, seems to "unlock" that renewal process and enable heart muscle repair. These findings, published today in Nature, are already pointing to new directions for research on restoring the function of damaged hearts. |
 | A star is born: Lesser-known brain cell takes center stageNeurons have long enjoyed the spotlight in neuroscience—and for good reason: they are incredibly important cellular actors. But, increasingly, star-shaped support cells called astrocytes are being seen as more than bit players in the brain's rich pageant. |
 | Research study gives new insight into how cancer spreadsA research study led by University of Minnesota engineers gives new insight into how cancer cells move based on their ability to sense their environment. The discovery could have a major impact on therapies to prevent the spread of cancer. |
 | A 12-hour biological clock coordinates essential bodily functionsSome bodily activities, sleeping, for instance, mostly occur once every 24 hours; they follow a circadian rhythm. Other bodily functions, such as body temperature, cognitive performance and blood pressure, present an additional 12-hour cycle, but little is known about the biological basis of their rhythm. A team of scientists from various institutions, including Baylor College of Medicine, has revealed that, in addition to 24-hour clocks, mammals and other organisms have 12-hour clocks that are autonomous, work independently from 24-hour clocks and can be modified by external factors. Studying 12-hour clocks is important because altered 12-hour cycles have been linked to human disease. The study appears in Cell Metabolism. |
 | Cancer cells send signals boosting survival and drug resistance in other cancer cellsResearchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that cancer cells appear to communicate to other cancer cells, activating an internal mechanism that boosts resistance to common chemotherapies and promotes tumor survival. |
 | Older adults under-referred for mental health therapiesA large research study from the Universities of Plymouth and Exeter has revealed that older people are not being referred for mental health support nearly as frequently as their younger counterparts despite achieving better outcomes when they are referred. |
Sleep disturbances predict substance use among college athletesPreliminary results of a new study show that sleep disturbance is strongly related to the use of alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs among student athletes in college. | |
Effect of treatment trials on survival of patients with cancer in US populationJoseph M. Unger, Ph.D., M.S., of the SWOG Statistical Center and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Wash., and coauthors examined how the National Cancer Institute-sponsored network of cooperative cancer research groups has benefited patients with cancer in the general population. | |
 | SWOG clinical trials added more than 3 million years of life for cancer patientsFor an investment of $125 for each year of life gained since the 1950s, the National Cancer Institute-funded SWOG clinical trials program has added 3.34 million years of life for cancer patients in the United States because of successful therapies that were proved through its trials. |
 | New app helps Mali skin doctors reach out to distant patientsIn Mali, where skin conditions are widespread and skin doctors are scarce, physicians have turned to technology to treat patients remotely. |
Austria's fantastical factory of 'raw art'Nestled in the hills of Austria sits Gugging, an artists' colony with a difference where the worlds of psychiatry and art collide—with spectacular success. | |
 | Non-shivering thermogenesis can activate metabolic pathways(HealthDay)—Non-shivering thermogenesis can transform storage adipose tissues into metabolically active tissue, according to research published online May 25 in Obesity Reviews. |
 | Marking can improve accuracy of eyelid chalazia curettage(HealthDay)—A new marking method can improve the accuracy of incision and curettage of eyelid chalazia, according to a letter to the editor published online May 26 in Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology. |
 | New possible target for cancer treatmentScientists at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden report that cancer cells and normal cells use different 'gene switches' in order to regulate the expression of genes that control growth. In mice, the removal of a large regulatory region linked to different types of cancer caused a dramatic resistance to tumour formation, but did not affect normal cell growth. The findings, published in the scientific journal eLife, highlight the possibility of developing highly specific cancer drugs with fewer side effects. |
 | Gut bacteria could protect cancer patients and pregnant women from Listeria, study suggestsResearchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York have discovered that bacteria living in the gut provide a first line of defense against severe Listeria infections. The study, which will be published June 6 in The Journal of Experimental Medicine, suggests that providing these bacteria in the form of probiotics could protect individuals who are particularly susceptible to Listeria, including pregnant women and cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. |
Community-based testing and treatment program linked with improved viral suppression among HIV-positiveAmong individuals with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in rural Kenya and Uganda, implementation of community-based testing and treatment was associated with an increased proportion of HIV-positive adults who achieved viral suppression, along with increased HIV diagnosis and initiation of antiretroviral therapy, according to a study published by JAMA. | |
 | Weight gain greater, less than recommended during pregnancy linked with increased risk of adverse outcomesIn an analysis that included more than 1.3 million pregnancies, weight gain during pregnancy that was greater or less than guideline recommendations was associated with a higher risk of adverse outcomes for mothers and infants, compared with weight gain within recommended levels, according to a study published by JAMA. |
 | Food policies could lower US cardiovascular disease ratesNew research conducted by the University of Liverpool and partners shows that food policies, such as fruit and vegetable subsidies, taxes on sugar sweetened drinks, and mass media campaigns to change dietary habits, could avert hundreds of thousands of deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the United States. |
Test for HDL cholesterol function could transform the way healthcare providers predict risk for heart diseaseA groundbreaking study published today in AACC's Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine shows that a new test could improve diagnosis and treatment of heart disease by measuring how effectively a patient's high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) cleans up arterial cholesterol. | |
 | Microgreen study shows health benefits"Microgreens" are tender young plants grown from the seed of certain herb, vegetable, and grain crops that can be clipped at the stem and eaten fresh within 2 weeks of germinating. |
 | Workplace survey of quad bike use highlights rollover risksA ground-breaking UNSW study of quad bike safety on farms and other workplaces has found that one in two riders has crashed and about two-thirds of the crashes involved rollovers, putting riders at risk of serious chest injury and asphyxiation. |
 | Obesity and diabetes rising across Africa, according to studyObesity and diabetes are rising in Africa, led by higher income countries in the north and south. |
 | Study identifies potential health care 'double jeopardy' for minority patientsA new study sheds light on the depth of health care disparities faced by minority populations in the United States. The findings suggest a possible "double jeopardy" for black and Hispanic patients: Not only has it been shown that members of minority groups receive less high-quality, effective care than their peers, they may also be at risk of receiving more low-value, ineffective care. |
 | Bed sharing, maternal smoking raise risk of sudden unexpected death in infancyThe combination of bed sharing and maternal smoking is extremely hazardous for infants, giving rise to a 32-fold increase in the risk of sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI), new research has found. |
 | Study compares cancer drug cost, benefitQueen's University researcher Christopher Booth reveals the price of new cancer therapies is not associated with treatment effectiveness. |
 | Illusions influence our predictions about how well we'll remember in the futureEvery day we make decisions based on how we think our memory works. A student decides how long to study for an exam. A shopper decides whether or not to make a grocery list. An FBI director decides whether to write the contents of a concerning conversation in a memo or to trust he would never forget such critical details. |
 | The psychological benefits – and traps – of nostalgiaIn his song "Time Was," counterculture singer Phil Ochs reminisces about a past "when a man could build a home, have a family of his own. The peaceful years would flow; he could watch his children grow. But it was a long time ago." |
 | What is traumatic brain injury?Adam was fortunate to survive a major car accident three years ago. He was in hospital for several months but had no ongoing physical injuries. He looked like he made a full recovery. But he was argumentative, childish, vulgar and his family said he "was not the same person". Adam had a severe traumatic brain injury. |
 | Unreliable food supplies may lead to obesityObesity could result from not always having enough food rather than always having too much, our latest research shows. And understanding the evolutionary logic governing our guts helps explain global patterns of obesity and offers clues for tackling it. |
 | Research collaboration identifies biomarker panel linked to melanoma patient survivalAn international research collaboration led by University College Dublin (UCD), involving the UCD spin-out company OncoMark and Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute in Barcelona, has identified a set of biomarkers strongly linked with survival in patients with melanoma that may help clinicians with treatment decisions. |
Powerful new opioids, overdose deaths worry EU drug agencyPotent new synthetic opioids that mimic the effects of heroin and morphine are a growing health threat in the European Union, the bloc's drug agency said Tuesday. | |
 | Mother's personality can affect child's mental healthScientists have looked at over 8,000 parents and children in Children of the 90s and found that the children of women with personality traits associated with emotional and relationship difficulties were at greater risk of depression, anxiety and self-harm in their late teens than their peers. |
Heart healing therapy shows promiseA potential therapy to help patients recover from a heart attack has been identified by researchers. | |
 | How hard is it to recognise that you are experiencing a delusion?When people experience delusions or hallucinations there is usually some loss of contact with reality whereby normal processes of thought and perception are disturbed. As humans, we are all susceptible to experiencing anomalous mental states such as this. In everyday life, for example, mentally healthy people distort reality to enhance their self-esteem and maintain beliefs about their self-agency. |
 | Anxious people worry about risk, not lossLife is a series of choices. Every time you make a decision, there is a possibility that things won't go as expected (risk) or that something bad will happen (loss). Aversion to risk and loss have powerful influences on how we make decisions. In a new paper in Biological Psychiatry, co-senior authors Dr. Jonathan Roiser and Dr. Oliver Robinson, both of the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, and colleagues studied the influence of risk and loss aversion in people with anxiety, a disorder characterized by debilitating avoidance behavior and difficulties making daily-life decisions. |
 | Dogs help in breast carcinoma researchCancer of the mammary glands in dogs is very similar to human breast carcinoma. For this reason, treatment methods from human medicine are often used for dogs. Conversely, scientific knowledge gained from canine mammary tumors may also be important to human medicine. Researchers from the University of Zurich were able to show how similar these tumors are in both dogs and humans. |
A new approach to combatting anxiety states, pain and inflammationEndogenous cannabinoids (endocannabinoids) play an important role in the brain and immune system. Bern researchers from the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) "TransCure" have now found a new way to influence the endocannabinoid system. Anti-inflammatory, analgesic as well as anxiolytic effects could be achieved in an animal model. | |
 | Stem cells may be the key to staying strong in old ageUniversity of Rochester Medical Center researchers have discovered that loss of muscle stem cells is the main driving force behind muscle decline in old age in mice. Their finding challenges the current prevailing theory that age-related muscle decline is primarily caused by loss of motor neurons. Study authors hope to develop a drug or therapy that can slow muscle stem cell loss and muscle decline in the future. |
 | A novel approach to seeing dengue infection in the bodyCommonly used to detect solid tumours, positron emission tomography (PET) paired with the glucose metabolism probe, fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG), is considered 'old' technology in the field of cancer. A team from Duke-NUS Medical School (Duke-NUS) and Singapore General Hospital (SGH) has now found a new use for this 'old' technology in another field: infectious diseases research. Using FDG-PET as an imaging tool for dengue infection in mouse models, the team has potentially uncovered a novel and non-invasive way to track the infection in real-time and more accurately assess the effectiveness of new treatments for dengue. |
 | Memory loss and other cognitive decline linked to blood vessel disease in the brainMemory loss, language problems and other symptoms of cognitive decline are strongly associated with diseases of the small blood vessels in the brain, a study has found. |
 | Brain damage can make sideways faces more memorable, and give us 'emotion blindness'People with damage to a crucial part of the brain fail to recognise facial emotions, but they unexpectedly find faces looking sideways more memorable researchers have found. |
New surgical techniques help save patients from life-threatening heart conditionCardiac surgeons are successfully performing more extensive surgical repairs of type A aortic dissection—one of the highest risk operations in cardiothoracic surgery. These new surgical techniques, along with improved postoperative care, are resulting in better long-term outcomes and lower rates of complications, according to an article published online today in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery. | |
Promising new treatment option for chronic plaque psoriasisAffecting more than 6 million Americans, chronic plaque psoriasis manifests as patches of red, scaly skin most frequently on the scalp, elbows and knees. Chronic plaque psoriasis most often appears in adolescence or mid-life and can require lifelong medication. Until the 1990s, physicians had few options to offer their patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis. Up to a quarter of patients with psoriasis suffer from these more aggressive cases that can affect anywhere from 10 to a 100 percent of the surface of the skin. | |
 | Flu shot less effective for obese adultsAlthough influenza vaccines are currently the best forms of protection to safeguard people against getting the flu, they are not effective in all cases. A study from Melinda Beck's research team at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the US found that obese people - despite getting their shots - were still twice as likely to develop influenza or flu-like illnesses than others of healthy weight. The findings are published in Springer Nature's International Journal of Obesity. |
 | Newly discovered disease mechanism for type 2 diabetesA newly discovered mechanism behind reduced insulin production in type 2 diabetes is now being presented. In an article in Nature Communications, researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy describe how insulin-producing cells regress in their development, become immature, and do not work properly. A finding that opens the doors to new clinical treatments. |
 | Starving prostate cancer with what you eat for dinnerWhen you dine on curry and baked apples, enjoy the fact that you are eating something that could play a role starving—or even preventing—cancer. |
 | Take a coffee or tea break to protect your liverChronic liver diseases rank as the 12th cause of death worldwide and many of these disorders are associated with unhealthy lifestyles. Conversely, a healthier lifestyle can help prevent or reverse liver disease. Liver-related mortality is closely related to the development of cirrhosis, the final consequence of progressive fibrosis, i.e. scarring of the liver resulting from chronic inflammation. According to a new study published in the Journal of Hepatology, researchers found that drinking coffee and herbal tea may protect against liver fibrosis, estimated as the degree of liver stiffness, which is high in extensive scarring of the liver. Because these beverages are popular, widely available, and inexpensive, they could have the potential to become important in the prevention of advanced liver disease. |
 | Computer-aided imaging technique could reduce risk of second breast cancer surgeryAccording to a recent study, one in four women with breast cancer who opt for a breast-saving lumpectomy will need a second surgery - increasing both costs and the risk of complications. |
Trauma centers with American College of Surgeons verification have fewer complicationsMajor complications from injury—and consequently a longer hospital stay—are more likely for pediatric and elderly patients nationwide when treatment occurs at a trauma center not verified by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT), compared with an ACS-COT-verified center, according to new study findings. The study, which is published online as an "article in press" on the Journal of the American College of Surgeons website in advance of print publication, also finds an association between the lack of ACS-COT verification and an increased complication rate for patients of any age who sustain major injuries. | |
 | Add fiber without extra calories(HealthDay)—Are you getting enough fiber in your diet? According to the National Fiber Council, if you're like most Americans, the answer is no. |
 | Major research initiative explores how our bones and muscles age, new ways to block their declineWith age, the form and function of our bones and muscles drop off, putting us as increased risk for frailty and falls. |
 | New research provides practical cooking tips for your red wine sauceCan you get intoxicated by pouring beer or wine into your sauce or stew? This question is important if you are pregnant, have to drive a car or want to track calories. New research from the University of Copenhagen and the Carlsberg Research Center creates a model for how alcohol disappears from a sauce or another liquid dish cooked in a saucepan. This model can thus be used to control the alcohol content. |
 | Anti-heroin vaccine found effective in non-human primatesA vaccine developed at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) to block the "high" of heroin has proven effective in non-human primates. This is the first vaccine against an opioid to pass this stage of preclinical testing. |
Copaiba: Silver bullet or snake oil?Sales of the essential oil copaiba [koh-pey-buh] are increasing, at least in part, because more than 54 million Americans suffer from some form of arthritis and 23.7 million are limited in their usual activity primarily due to pain. The conventional way to treat arthritis is using nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as well as cyclo-oxygenase-2 inhibitors (COXIBs), which are not without adverse events like gastrointestinal bleeding, heart attacks and stroke. For arthritis sufferers, copaiba may turn out to be a silver bullet or, perhaps, snake oil. | |
Standard dosage for one lung cancer treatment may be too highA new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute indicates that the customary pembrolizumab dose for treatment of metastatic non-small cell lung cancer may be higher than is needed for effective treatment. | |
 | Drinking diet beverages during pregnancy linked to child obesity, study suggestsChildren born to women who had gestational diabetes and drank at least one artificially sweetened beverage per day during pregnancy were more likely to be overweight or obese at age 7, compared to children born to women who had gestational diabetes and drank water instead of artificially sweetened beverages, according to a study led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Childhood obesity is known to increase the risk for certain health problems later in life, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke and some cancers. The study appears online in the International Journal of Epidemiology. |
 | Study identifies an enzyme inhibitor to treat Gulf War illness symptomsAt least 100,000 military veterans who served in the 1990-1991 Gulf War were exposed to chemical weapons, released into the air after the United States bombed an ammunition depot in Khamisiyah, Iraq. Today, many are still suffering from Gulf War Illness, a mysterious, multi-symptom disease that experts believe is linked to organophosphate nerve agents sarin and cyclosarin. |
Study examines caregiving by family members, other unpaid individualsIt's estimated that nearly 30 percent of the 38.2 million people aged 65 or older in this country receive some form of caregiving, either for health reasons or to help manage daily activities. More than 65 percent of these older individuals rely on family members, friends, and even neighbors for assistance with things like preparing meals, bathing, taking medications, and getting transportation. | |
Should your primary care physician be a generalist or specialist? New study exploresYour primary care provider (PCP) is usually your first medical contact when you're ill. Beyond taking care of you when you're sick, PCPs help coordinate your health care and make sure you're up-to-date with your check-ups, tests, and immunizations. | |
 | Sequential options prompt future thinking, boost patienceWhen faced with a tempting choice, it can be hard to stop and think through the potential consequences, but new research suggests that framing the choice as a sequence of events can help us exercise patience by prompting us to imagine the future. The findings are published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. |
Precision therapy enasidenib effective in treating deadly form of leukemiaSome patients with relapsed or treatment-resistant acute myeloid leukemia, a form of blood cancer for which there are few treatments, may achieve remission with an experimental targeted therapy, according to early trial data published online today in Blood, a Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH). | |
Older married couples and advance directivesAdvance directives (ADs) are legal documents you can use to state in advance what medical treatments you do or do not wish to have under certain circumstances. You also can use an AD to name one or more people to act on your behalf if you are ever unable or uncomfortable making your own healthcare decisions. | |
 | Anti-nausea drug could help treat sleep apneaAn old pharmaceutical product may be a new treatment for obstructive sleep apnea, according to new research presented today by University of Illinois at Chicago and Northwestern University scientists at the SLEEP 2017 annual meeting in Boston. |
 | Enrollment in early intervention services may be influenced by administering agencyChildren under age 3 who have or are at risk of a developmental disability are eligible for services to improve cognitive, behavioral and physical skills under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA). |
Difficulties diagnosing delirium in older adults after surgeryDelirium is a medical term for "sudden confusion." It is an abrupt, rapid change in mental function and can cause a wide variety of shifts in behavior ranging from aggression or agitation to feeling sleepy and inactive (or even a combination of several behaviors). When delirium occurs after an older person has had surgery, it's called "post-operative delirium." | |
Neurodegenerative disease mechanism and potential drug identifiedTwo new studies of progressive, neurodegenerative diseases linked to defects in cells' mitochondria offer hope for developing a new biomarker for research and diagnostics, and a drug for treating such diseases, report researchers at the University of California, Davis. | |
 | US drug overdose deaths soar in 2016: reportUS drug overdose deaths surged 19 percent to at least 59,000 last year as deadly manufactured drugs like fentanyl intensified a national opioid addiction crisis, New York Times data showed Tuesday. |
New target found to attack an incurable brain tumor in childrenA study published in Molecular Cancer Research reveals that a tumor suppressor gene p16 is turned off by a histone mutation (H3.3K27M), which is found in up to 70 percent of childhood brain tumors called diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). This insight suggests that restoring p16 is a promising therapeutic strategy. The authors have demonstrated that this can be accomplished in vitro using a drug that is approved for treatment of adult leukemia and other cancers. | |
Clinical benefit of clot retrieval now proven up to 24 hours after major ischemic strokeResults of an international, randomized controlled research study show that mechanical thrombectomy, which is an endovascular treatment to remove a stroke-causing blood clot in the brain, is effective in some patients even when performed within 6 to 24 hours after a stroke. | |
 | Why teen mental ability surges while brain shrinks(HealthDay)—Scientists say they have an answer to a persistent and quirky puzzle about brain development. |
 | Just 10 cigarettes during pregnancy can harm kids(HealthDay)—Babies born to women who smoked as few as 10 cigarettes are more apt to have thinking and learning problems later, a new study suggests. |
 | Lower HbA1c linked to better diabetes-specific HRQoL in youth(HealthDay)—For children, teens, and young adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) is associated with better diabetes-specific health-related quality of life (D-HRQoL), according to a study published online May 25 in Diabetes Care. |
 | Prevalence of advanced HIV at ART initiation decreasing(HealthDay)—From 2004 to 2015 there were decreases in the prevalence of advanced disease at initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 10 high-burden countries, 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. |
 | Venlafaxine use linked to bone turnover markers in older adults(HealthDay)—Depression treatment with venlafaxine is associated with increased levels of the bone resorption marker C-terminal cross-linking telopeptide of type 1 collagen (CTX), as well as decreased levels of the bone formation marker procollagen type 1 N-propeptide (P1NP), according to a study published online May 26 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. |
 | Small unruptured intracranial aneurysms grow slowly(HealthDay)—Small unruptured intracranial aneurysms (UIAs) have low growth and rupture rates, according to a review published online June 6 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. |
Digital games improve mental health and educational outcomes of Syrian refugee childrenDigital games can effectively teach refugee children much-needed skills - including a new language, cognitive skills, and coding—while also improving their mental health, finds research by New York University, the City University of New York, and Turkey's Bahcesehir University. | |
 | Living long and living well: Is it possible to do both?Exactly when does old age begin? Which health markers best predict who will live a long and healthy life versus a life spent in poor health? |
 | New chemotherapy approach offers breast cancer patients a better quality of lifeThe chemotherapy drug capecitabine gives patients a better quality of life and is as effective at preventing breast cancer from returning as the alternative regimen called CMF, when given following epirubicin. These are the results of a clinical trial part-funded by Cancer Research UK and published in The Lancet Oncology today (Tuesday). |
 | Legionnaires' hiding in hospital, nursing home plumbing systems: CDC(HealthDay)—Deadly Legionnaires' disease is lurking in the water systems of hospitals, nursing homes and long-term care facilities, putting the most vulnerable patients at risk, U.S. health officials said Tuesday. |
 | 4 in 10 job-based health plans in U.S. are now 'high-deductible'(HealthDay)—High-deductible health plans are gaining ground among U.S. adults with employer-sponsored health insurance coverage. But too often, enrollees say high out-of-pocket costs are causing them to skip or delay needed medical care, a new government report finds. |
 | New pediatric protocol reduces missed sepsis diagnoses by 76 percentAn electronic sepsis alert using a combination of vital signs, risk factors and physician judgment to identify children in a pediatric emergency department with severe sepsis reduced missed diagnoses by 76 percent. The results of the study, along with an accompanying editorial, were published online Friday in Annals of Emergency Medicine. |
 | Officers on afternoon shift report being more fatiguedPolice officers on the afternoon shift are twice as likely to report being tired, according to a University at Buffalo-led study. |
 | Age is just a number for Hong Kong's harbour swimmersHong Kong's Victoria Harbour is one of the world's busiest ports, but every morning daring elderly swimmers dive in to its choppy waters against a teeming backdrop of ferries, cargo ships and fishing boats. |
Chikungunya vaccine trial underwayThe National Institutes of Health-funded Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit at Baylor College of Medicine will be one of the sites for a clinical trial testing the safety and immune responses to a vaccine against chikungunya virus. | |
The lack of black men in medicineIn the dozen years it has been on television, the fictional medical drama "Grey's Anatomy" has garnered numerous awards. But the show's biggest accomplishment may be the diversity of the actors, cast as doctors using a color-blind technique. | |
 | Listening to the signalsIf something tickles our nose, we sneeze. Behind this simple biological output lies a cascade of cell communication. In an interview with uni:view, Manuela Baccarini, molecular biologist at Max F. Perutz Laboratories, explains why cell signaling resembles a WhatsApp group and how we can prevent cell damage. |
 | Safety of gene transfer to treat heart failure supports further clinical developmentBased on the encouraging safety data that has emerged from multiple clinical trials that used different gene transfer approaches to improve heart function in patients suffering from heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, researchers conclude that this therapeutic strategy can be advanced with acceptable risk. They review the results of completed clinical studies and identify the current challenges in an article published in Human Gene Therapy. |
 | Gorilla gives birth with help from doctors who treat peopleA gorilla at the Philadelphia Zoo has given birth to a healthy baby after a difficult labor that required medical techniques typically used for delivering humans. |
Biology news
 | Researchers identify a key controller of biological machinery in cell's 'antenna'St. Jude Children's Research Hospital molecular biologists have identified an enzyme that activates and "supercharges" cellular machinery that controls how cells become specialized cells in the body. |
 | Apple genome sequence helpful to breeding of new varieties publishedA high quality genome sequence of apple is published in this week's Nature Genetics by an international team of scientists, among which researchers of Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands. The publication of the sequence facilitates faster and more targeted breeding of new apple varieties with increased disease resistance, improved production traits, and better fruit quality. With this the results support a more sustainable production of apple fruit, both from an environmental and a financial perspective. |
 | How viruses hijack a host's energy supplyViruses occupy a strange no-man's-land between the living and the nonliving. In order to reproduce, they must infect a living host and hijack its resources. But while it is understood that this parasitic relationship can lead to disease and death, few quantitative studies have examined the energetic cost of viral infections relative to the host's energy economy. |
 | Genetic study shakes up the elephant family treeNew research reveals that a species of giant elephant that lived 1.5 million to 100,000 years ago - ranging across Eurasia before it went extinct - is more closely related to today's African forest elephant than the forest elephant is to its nearest living relative, the African savanna elephant. |
 | Astonishingly speedy brain mechanism helps bats get louder when necessaryWhen trying to be heard over noise, humans and animals raise their voices. It's a split-second feat, from ear to brain to vocalization, and Johns Hopkins University researchers are the first to measure just how fast it happens in bats: 30 milliseconds. That's just a tenth of the time it takes to blink an eye, and a record for audio-vocal response. |
 | Hiding in plain sight: New species of flying squirrel discoveredFor hundreds of years, a species of flying squirrel was hiding right under (actually, above) our noses. |
 | Understanding why cellulose resists degradation could lead to cost-effective biofuelsA major bottleneck hindering cost-effective production of biofuels and many valuable chemicals is the difficulty of breaking down cellulose—an important structural component of plant cell walls. A recent study addressed this problem by characterizing molecular features that make cellulose resistant to degradation. |
 | From brook trout to walleyes, warming waters to play havoc with fisheriesA few degrees, on average, can make a huge difference in lakes and streams as aquatic species struggle to compete and in some cases survive, and that's why a warming climate is of concern to fisheries managers. |
 | Can ocean science bring Cuba and the United States together?Cuba is the ecological crown jewel of the Caribbean. It harbors thousands of the region's endemic species and about half of its coastal ecosystems. It is rare to find comparable ecosystems or such rich biodiversity anywhere in the Caribbean, and perhaps in the Western Hemisphere. |
 | Australia will finally ban cosmetic testing on animalsLast week, a bill was put before the House of Representatives that would ban animal testing of industrial chemicals intended solely for use in cosmetics. |
 | Invasive alien plant control assessed for the Kruger National Park in South AfricaAlong with urban and agricultural encroachment and pollution mitigation, managing invasive alien species is a key intervention needed to protect biodiversity. Unfortunately, on a global scale there are not enough funds to meet the requirements for effective conservation everywhere, which means that scarce funds need to be allocated where they can be used most efficiently. |
 | Why do Antarctic krill stocks fluctuate?It is only six centimetres long, but it plays a major role in the Antarctic ecosystem: the small crustacean Euphausia superba (Antarctic krill). It's one of the world's most abundant species and the central diet of a number of animals in the Southern Ocean. For a long time, scientists have been puzzled why the size of krill stocks fluctuates so widely. |
 | New way to detect Palmer amaranth in contaminated seedlotsLast summer, farmers in the Midwest got an unwelcome surprise after planting native seed on Conservation Reserve Program acres. Palmer amaranth, the aggressive and hard-to-kill weed, had established in droves. As a possible solution, some states declared Palmer a noxious weed, which prohibits its sale and transport. |
 | Meals on the go: The physics of whales' eating habitsIn a recent paper published in PLOS One, Saint Louis University professor of physics Jean Potvin, Ph.D., and biologist Alexander Werth, Ph.D. at Hampden-Sydney College, detail for the first time how baleen whales use crossflow filtration to separate prey from water without ever coming into contact with the baleen. Baleen are comb-like keratin plates that have replaced the teeth of the whale's ancestors about 30 million years ago and play the role of a filtration surface in their mouths. The researchers looked at how this type of feeding affects a whale's drag as it moves through the water and how this form of filtration is enhanced by a large body size. |
 | Does the sex of a cell matter in research?Over the last decade, many drugs that have been pulled from the market due to toxicity were withdrawn because they affected women more than men. It turns out, the studies that brought the drugs to market were designed using only male cells and animal models, a common flaw a Tulane endocrinologist is working to help correct. |
New study identifies energy metabolism adaptations linked to soft shell turtle evolutionAround 250 million years ago, terrestrial-bound turtles began to explore the aquatic environments, and with it, a profound, new ability first developed. | |
 | Newly discovered enzyme complexes in herbivore digestive tracts show promise for sustainable fuels and medicinesHerbivore gut fungi hold a lot of promise. Just ask Michelle O'Malley. |
Rat attack: Thousands of rodents swarm Myanmar villagesThousands of rats have descended on villages on an island in southern Myanmar, a local official said on Tuesday, in what some have taken to be an ill omen of impending disaster. | |
 | Seed conservation in the remote South AtlanticIslands have long held a fascination for scientists studying evolution and patterns of biodiversity, from Charles Darwin and Alfred Russell Wallace in the 19th century, to Robert MacArthur and E.O. Wilson in the 20th century, and continuing in the 21st century. Islands are often home to, for their size, a disproportionately large number of species with very narrow distributions, including single island endemics. They are also particularly vulnerable to the changes affecting the environment globally: habitat loss, climate change, and invasive species. Several island species are known to have been driven to extinction by human activity, with more perilously close to following them. At Kew, a key area of our work concerns the plant diversity of islands (UK, Madagascar, and the UK Overseas Territories in particular), the threats they face, and how best to conserve this unique life. |
 | Keeping captive-bred fish has gotten easierRemember when keeping a saltwater aquarium was just for experts? Now, the technology has advanced to the point where just about anyone can do it and expect to keep the fish alive and healthy. |
Pittsburgh zoo says premature elephant born at nature centerPittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium has unveiled an elephant calf born about a month prematurely. | |
First farmer lawsuit begins against Syngenta over China tradeThe first of tens of thousands of U.S. lawsuits over Swiss agribusiness giant Syngenta's introduction of a genetically engineered corn seed variety is underway in a Kansas federal courtroom. | |
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