Science X Newsletter Tuesday, Oct 17

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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for October 17, 2017:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

Spider-web 'labyrinths' may help reduce noise pollution

Astronomers discover a post-asymptotic giant branch star with unusual evolutionary scenario

A new way to harness wasted methane

Wolves found to be more cooperative with their own kind than dogs with theirs

Optical frequency comb offers a convenient way to generate elusive terahertz frequencies

Flexible 'skin' can help robots, prosthetics perform everyday tasks by sensing shear force

Before assigning responsibility, our minds simulate alternative outcomes, study shows

Liquid metal brings soft robotics a step closer

Team uses magnetic beads to model microscopic proteins, polymers

Researchers develop mathematical techniques for designing shape-shifting shells

Researchers find novel mechanism of resistance to anti-cancer drugs

Study suggests oysters offer hot spot for reducing nutrient pollution

Saving hearts after heart attacks: Overexpression of a gene enhances repair of dead muscle

'Hiding in plain sight'—Discovery raises questions over scale of overlooked biodiversity

Self-driving cars could ease traffic, but increase sprawl

Astronomy & Space news

	Astronomers discover a post-asymptotic giant branch star with unusual evolutionary scenario (Phys.org)—Astronomers have detected a new metal-poor, luminous post-asymptotic giant branch star in the Small Magellanic Cloud. The newly found object, designated J005252.87-722842.9, appears to have undergone an unusual evolution process. The finding was presented October 12 in a paper published on the arXiv pre-print server.
	Microbes leave 'fingerprints' on Martian rocks Scientists around Tetyana Milojevic from the Faculty of Chemistry at the University of Vienna are in search of unique biosignatures, which are left on synthetic extraterrestrial minerals by microbial activity. The biochemist and astrobiologist investigates these signatures at her own miniaturized "Mars farm" where she can observe interactions between the archaeon Metallosphaera sedula and Mars-like rocks. These microbes are capable of oxidizing and integrating metals into their metabolism. The original research was currently published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology.
	Webcam on Mars Express surveys high-altitude clouds An unprecedented catalogue of more than 21 000 images taken by a webcam on ESA's Mars Express is proving its worth as a science instrument, providing a global survey of unusual high-altitude cloud features on the Red Planet.
	Study shows how water could have flowed on 'cold and icy' ancient Mars For scientists trying to understand what ancient Mars might have been like, the red planet sends some mixed signals. Water-carved valleys and lakebeds leave little doubt that water once flowed on the surface. But climate models for early Mars suggest average temperatures around the globe stayed well below freezing.
	To keep Saturn's A ring contained, its moons stand united For three decades, astronomers thought that only Saturn's moon Janus confined the planet's A ring - the largest and farthest of the visible rings. But after poring over NASA's Cassini mission data, Cornell astronomers now conclude that the teamwork of seven moons keeps this ring corralled.
	In search of the ninth planet A University of Michigan doctoral student has logged two pieces of evidence that may support the existence of a planet that could be part of our solar system, beyond Neptune.
	Earth's new traveling buddy is definitely an asteroid, not space junk At the 49th Annual Division for Planetary Sciences Meeting in Provo, Utah, astronomers led by Vishnu Reddy at the University of Arizona confirm true nature of one of Earth's companions on its journey around the sun.
	Parts of unmanned Russian spaceship burn up over Dubai (Update) Parts of an unmanned Russian cargo spaceship burned across the night sky of the Arabian Peninsula, drawing gasps from Dubai to Riyadh before breaking up in the Earth's atmosphere and scattering in the Indian Ocean.
	Fresh findings from Cassini NASA's Cassini spacecraft ended its journey on Sept. 15 with an intentional plunge into the atmosphere of Saturn, but analysis continues on the mountain of data the spacecraft sent during its long life. Some of the Cassini team's freshest insights were presented during a news conference today at the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Science meeting in Provo, Utah.
	Europe's first all-electric telecom satellite Europe's first all-electric telecom satellite has reached its final working orbit above the Pacific Ocean. Eutelsat-172B, built for Eutelsat by Airbus, carries new technologies developed through ESA-led projects, including fully articulated thruster arms.
	Sentinel-5P satellite reported in excellent health Launched last week, Europe's Sentinel-5P satellite – the first Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring the air we breathe – is in excellent health.
	Distant exoplanets revealed by light from wobbling stars Ask most folks what they would need to find planets orbiting distant stars, and very few will list a bottle of iodine.
	Method to weigh galaxy clusters could help astronomers understand mysterious 'dark matter' structures The furthest galaxy ever observed is so far away that the starlight we now detect was emitted less than 500m years after the Big Bang. It has taken about 13 billion years to reach us. But there's a lot of things about a galaxy that we can't see. For example, we think galaxies are immersed within gigantic "halos" of an invisible substance dubbed dark matter. Scientists don't actually know what dark matter is, but they know it exists because it has a gravitational pull on surrounding matter.
	Icarus lifts off After the launch of a Soyuz 2 rocket scheduled for October 12 was postponed by two days, the carrier rocket yesterday docked with the ISS. On board: the Icarus board computer, the future brain of the German-Russian animal observation system.
	Researchers and supercomputers help interpret the latest LIGO findings Astrophysicist Chris Fryer was enjoying an evening with friends on August 25, 2017, when he got the news of a gravitational-wave detection by LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory. The event appeared to be a merger of two neutron stars—a specialty for the Los Alamos National Laboratory team of astrophysicists that Fryer leads. As the distant cosmic cataclysm unfolded, fresh observational data was pouring in from the observation—only the fifth published since the observatory began operating almost two years ago.

Technology news

	Flexible 'skin' can help robots, prosthetics perform everyday tasks by sensing shear force If a robot is sent to disable a roadside bomb—or delicately handle an egg while cooking you an omelet—it needs to be able to sense when objects are slipping out of its grasp.
	Self-driving cars could ease traffic, but increase sprawl A new study inspired by Boston's early experiments with self-driving cars finds that the technology could ease congestion, but might also lead to more cars on the road and further encourage urban sprawl.
	UK grid power balance to get support from 10MW battery (Tech Xplore)—A battery installation at a UK biomass power plant is making news this month. Supporters call it an important recognition of the "enormous potential for battery solutions" in the UK. The company is E.ON. The challenge, as they attempt to meet it, is doing their bit to balance the grid.
	'Floating food' invention could start new culinary craze Floating food could be the next culinary craze thanks to a new invention that levitates, transports and delivers food and drink directly onto your tongue.
	New techniques boost performance of non-volatile memory systems Computer engineering researchers at North Carolina State University have developed new software and hardware designs that should limit programming errors and improve system performance in devices that use non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies.
	Google's Pixel 2: A phone built for artificial intelligence What's most fascinating about Google's new Pixel 2 phone is what's to come.
	Scientists create most powerful micro-scale bio-solar cell yet Researchers at Binghamton University, State University of New York have created a micro-scale biological solar cell that generates a higher power density for longer than any existing cell of its kind.
	Dutch open 'world's first 3D-printed bridge' Dutch officials toasted on Tuesday the opening of what is being called the world's first 3D-printed concrete bridge, which is primarily meant to be used by cyclists.
	ESnet's science DMZ design could help transfer, protect medical research data Like other sciences, medical research is generating increasingly large datasets as doctors track health trends, the spread of diseases, genetic causes of illness and the like. Effectively using this data for efforts ranging from stopping the spread of deadly viruses to creating precision medicine treatments for individuals will be greatly accelerated by the secure sharing of the data, while also protecting individual privacy.
Netflix adds 5 mn subscribers, doubles profit Netflix said Monday it added some five million new subscribers over the past three months as profits doubled, in a quarterly update that sent shares of the streaming video giant higher.
	Greenpeace faults many tech giants for environment impact The environmental group Greenpeace issued a report on Tuesday giving technology titans including Samsung Electronics, Amazon and Huawei low marks for their environmental impact.
Australia rejects clean energy target for cheaper power The Australian government on Tuesday rejected a plan to generate 42 percent of the country's power from wind and solar energy, in a setback for compliance with climate change commitments
	US tech giants may find their future shaped by Europe Silicon Valley is a uniquely American creation, the product of an entrepreneurial spirit and no-holds-barred capitalism that now drives many aspects of modern life.
	Pricey high-tech features define new smartphone wars The front lines of the battle for smartphone dominance over the coming years have grown clearer after Chinese technology firm Huawei presented an AI-powered phone designed to go head-to-head with Samsung and Apple.
	Research team determines that constructing offshore wind turbines in port is the most cost effective method Working closely with industry partners, University of Delaware researchers have developed a new method for constructing offshore wind farms and proven that it is cheaper, faster and could make possible offshore wind deployment at a scale and pace able to keep up with the region's scheduled retirements of nuclear and coal-fired power plants.
	Researchers defy the limits of streaming Given the growing number of users and the widening range of devices, streaming is no longer viable in its current form owing to the substantial amount of power and storage capacity it requires. But researchers at EPFL's Embedded Systems Laboratory (ESL) have found a way to reduce those requirements without impacting the quality of the video itself.
	Exascale and the city Walk around any city neighborhood and chances are it looks nothing like it did 20 years ago. Thanks to growing urbanization, cities globally are rapidly expanding and accounting for more of our world's population, gross domestic product and greenhouse gases.
	Do gamers behave the way game theory predicts they should? When faced with a decision, people have varying ways of analyzing the choices. Give many people the same information, and they'll all think about the situation differently, and often will choose slightly different options. As economists, we want to learn more about how people perceive and solve problems – including what sorts of situations are too difficult for people to analyze well.
How technology will fight food fraud Food fraud is everywhere. In the aftermath of the horsemeat scandal in Europe, and with cases reported around the world, including in Canada, awareness is high.
	Student makes design of 'swarm robot' Zebro suitable for serial production Mattijs Otten, an Industrial Design Engineering student at TU Delft, has created a modular design that facilitates serial production of the Zebro. Zebros are walking hexapod robots. In the future, researchers plan to create autonomous swarms of these robots, and serial production is essential to achieving this goal.
	Engineers could learn a lot from dance when designing urban transport There is little more important for the sustainability of cities than the ways we move around them. With transportation estimated to account for 30% of energy consumption across the majority of the world's most developed nations, reducing the necessity for energy-reliant vehicles is fundamental to addressing the environmental impact of mobility.
	3-D mapping of rooms using radar Engineers from University Alliance Ruhr have developed novel signal processing methods for imaging and material characterisation with the aid of radar. Their long-term objective is to use these techniques in combination with radar-based localisation of objects. Their vision is a flying platform capable of generating a three-dimensional representation of its surroundings. The technology might be, for example, useful for finding out what firefighters might encounter behind clouds of smoke in a burning building.
Volvo's electric car brand Polestar unveils first model Volvo Cars' performance electric car brand, Polestar, unveiled a four-seat coupe in lightweight carbon fiber as its first model Tuesday, adding to competition in a market dominated until now by Tesla.
	Microsoft rolls out new Windows 10 update and laptops Microsoft has begun rolling out an update to its Windows 10 operating system, hoping to spark enthusiasm for its virtual- and augmented-reality ambitions.
	"Burnout culture" fuels sexism at Uber: Huffington Uber board member Arianna Huffington blamed a "burnout culture" for fueling sexism at the world's leading smartphone-summoned ride sharing service.
Wearables to boost security of voice-based log-in A security-token necklace, ear buds or eyeglasses developed at the University of Michigan could eliminate vulnerabilities in voice authentication—the practice of logging in to a device or service with your voice alone.
	Preservation for the (digital) ages When Deborah Beck was preparing her book, Speech Presentation in Homeric Epic, her publisher suggested she make the database she had started in 2008—a searchable catalogue of features from every speech in the Homeric poems—available to the public as a web application and companion resource.
	Google to offer stepped-up security for 'high risk' users Google said Tuesday it would offer stronger online security for "high risk" users who may be frequent targets of online attacks.
Facebook buys anonymous teen compliment app TBH Facebook has bought TBH, a teen-focused app that lets people give anonymous compliments to each other through polls and messages.
	Autonomous cars head for the Big Apple Autonomous vehicles are already navigating the verdant hills of Pittsburgh and cruising the pitched avenues of San Francisco. They may soon be tested by the chaos of downtown Manhattan, where pedestrians, taxis, buses and bikes embark daily on an eternal quest to avoid impact.
Univision goes dark for Verizon's cable customers Univision's channels have gone dark for Verizon's 4.7 million Fios cable customers because of a contract dispute.
Apple clinics for your health? It almost just happened How about hitting your local Apple store for a quick health check-up? It's not as crazy as it sounds.
As bids for Amazon's headquarters come due, tech has a chance to spread the wealth As Amazon established its dominance in online retail, logistics and cloud computing, the company's headquarters in Seattle grew appropriately massive. Today it represents a $5 billion investment in 33 buildings, 8 million square feet and more than 40,000 employees.
	Airbnb rentals boom across Africa Rent-a-room giant Airbnb said Tuesday that it had provided accommodation for 1.2 million visitors to Africa over the last year—double the previous year as tourism expands across the continent.
	US nuke waste repository in New Mexico will get more space Workers are expected to begin mining operations at the U.S. nuclear waste dump in New Mexico for the first time in three years following a radiation release that contaminated part of the underground repository, the Energy Department said Tuesday.
Israel Aerospace Industries, Hankuk Carbon, to make drones Israel Aerospace Industries says it has formed a joint venture with Korean company Hankuk Carbon to make unmanned aircraft together.
What next for Amazon studio? As the head of Amazon's entertainment studio since 2014, Roy Price was tasked with shaping the e-retailer into a major player in the film and TV world.
	Hiring not part of Alibaba pledge to create US jobs Alibaba executive vice chairman Joseph Tsai said Tuesday he expects to boost US jobs by expanding the Chinese firm's e-commerce platform—not by hiring American workers.

Medicine & Health news

	Before assigning responsibility, our minds simulate alternative outcomes, study shows How do people assign a cause to events they witness? Some philosophers have suggested that people determine responsibility for a particular outcome by imagining what would have happened if a suspected cause had not intervened.
Researchers find novel mechanism of resistance to anti-cancer drugs The targeted anti-cancer therapies cetuximab and panitumumab are mainstays of treatment for advanced colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. However, many patients have tumors with genetic mutations that make them resistant to these anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibodies, or the cancers develop resistance during treatment.Researchers seeking to understand mechanisms of intrinsic and acquired resistance have focused on gene mutations, such as activating mutations in the oncogene KRAS.
	Saving hearts after heart attacks: Overexpression of a gene enhances repair of dead muscle University of Alabama at Birmingham biomedical engineers report a significant advance in efforts to repair a damaged heart after a heart attack, using grafted heart-muscle cells to create a repair patch. The key was overexpressing a gene that activates the cell-cycle of the grafted muscle cells, so they grow and divide more than control grafted cells.
	Signaling pathway may be key to why autism is more common in boys Researchers aiming to understand why autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are more common in boys have discovered differences in a brain signaling pathway involved in reward learning and motivation that make male mice more vulnerable to an autism-causing genetic glitch.
	Schizophrenia disrupts the brain's entire communication system, researchers say Some 40 years since CT scans first revealed abnormalities in the brains of schizophrenia patients, international scientists say the disorder is a systemic disruption to the brain's entire communication system.
Many pelvic tumors in women may have common origin—fallopian tubes Most—and possibly all—ovarian cancers start, not in ovaries, but instead in the fallopian tubes attached to them.
	How cytoplasmic DNA triggers inflammation in human cells A team led by LMU's Veit Hornung has elucidated the mechanism by which human cells induce inflammation upon detection of cytoplasmic DNA. Notably, the signal network involved differs from that used in the same context in mice.
	An architect gene is involved in the assimilation of breast milk A family of "architect" genes called Hox coordinates the formation of organs and limbs during embryonic life. Geneticists from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland, have discovered an essential function of one of these genes, Hoxd3, in the development of the gut of suckling mice. Specific mutations in this gene induce defective breast milk assimilation and important growth retardation. In humans, this genetic defect probably contributes to certain types of intestinal insufficiency in premature infants such as necrotizing enterocolitis. The detection of a mutated Hoxd3 gene would enable physicians to identify one of the causes of this disease, which remain unknown to this day.
	New method to measure how drugs interact Cancer, HIV and tuberculosis are among the many serious diseases that are frequently treated with combinations of three or more drugs, over months or even years. Developing the most effective therapies for such diseases requires understanding how combining drugs affects their efficacy.
	Gene transcription in virus-specific CD8 T cells differentiates chronic from resolving HCV Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have identified differences in gene transcription within key immune cells that may distinguish those individuals infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) who develop chronic infection from those whose immune systems successfully clear the virus. As they describe in a paper published in the journal Immunity, these changes appear soon after initial emergence of the T-cell response and long before conventional T-cell testing or clinical symptoms indicate whether or not an infection will become chronic.
	'Busybody' protein may get on your nerves, but that's a good thing Sensory neurons regulate how we recognize pain, touch, and the movement and position of our own bodies, but the field of neuroscience is just beginning to unravel this circuitry. Now, new research from the Salk Institute shows how a protein called p75 is critical for pain signaling, which could one day have implications for treating neurological disorders as well as trauma such as spinal cord injury.
	Regulatory T cells harbor HIV/SIV virus during antiviral drug treatment Scientists at Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University have identified an additional part of the HIV reservoir, immune cells that survive and harbor the virus despite long-term treatment with antiviral drugs.
New approach helps rodents with spinal cord injury breathe on their own One of the most severe consequences of spinal cord injury in the neck is losing the ability to control the diaphragm and breathe on one's own. Now, investigators show for the first time in laboratory models that two different sets of neural signals control the movement of the diaphragm—one that originates in the brain and one that starts in the spinal cord. The researchers used a drug to turn on this alternative nerve pathway and restore breath-like movements in rodents. The study appears October 17 in Cell Reports.
	Worms learn to smell danger Worms can learn. And the ways they learn and respond to danger could lead scientists to new treatments for people with neurodegenerative diseases.
	Pair of discoveries illuminate new paths to flu and anthrax treatments Two recent studies led by biologists at the University of California San Diego have set the research groundwork for new avenues to treat influenza and anthrax poisoning.
	Team finds training exercise that boosts brain power One of the two brain-training methods most scientists use in research is significantly better in improving memory and attention, Johns Hopkins University researchers found. It also results in more significant changes in brain activity.
	Machine learning identifies breast lesions likely to become cancer A machine learning tool can help identify which high-risk breast lesions are likely to become cancerous, according to a new study appearing online in the journal Radiology. Researchers said the technology has the potential to reduce unnecessary surgeries.
	Youth football: How young athletes are exposed to high-magnitude head impacts The majority of football players in the US (70%) are elementary and middle school students. These young athletes enthusiastically put on their gear, learn strategy, acquire skills, and participate in games with their peers. Unfortunately, like their professional counterparts these athletes sometimes get injured. Fairly often they sustain head impacts during tackling and blocking maneuvers. Exposure to head impacts in American football has become a national concern: neurocognitive and brain changes can occur from repeated head impacts, even when no evidence of concussion is found.
Cancer relapse linked to body's own immune system Cancer cells that survive after treatment may use the body's own immune system to wake themselves up and fuel their growth, a new study shows.
	Ten pence restaurant chain levy on sugary drinks linked to fall in sales The introduction of a 10 pence levy on sugar sweetened drinks across the 'Jamie's Italian' chain of restaurants in the UK was associated with a relatively large fall in sales of these beverages of between 9 and 11 per cent, reveals research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.
No evidence that widely marketed technique to treat leaky bladder/prolapse works There is no scientific evidence that a workout widely marketed to manage the symptoms of a leaky bladder and/or womb prolapse actually works, conclude experts in an editorial published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
	Untangling vitamin D activation pathways in inflammation and bone health Researchers have identified a region of the genome that regulates vitamin D activation in the kidneys, opening the door for more sophisticated treatments of diseases, including bone and immune disorders, involving vitamin D. The results of this research will be published in the Oct. 20 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
	Physically active white men at high risk for plaque buildup in arteries White men who exercise at high levels are 86 percent more likely than people who exercise at low levels to experience a buildup of plaque in the heart arteries by middle age, a new study suggests.
	New assay may boost targeted treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is an aggressive cancer and the most frequently diagnosed non-Hodgkin lymphoma worldwide (nearly 40% of cases). Recent advancements indicate that both the prognosis and choice of treatment of DLBCL may depend on identifying its molecular subtype. In a report in the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics, researchers describe their development of a reliable, accessible, rapid, and cost-effective new gene expression signature assay that can enhance lymphoma management by helping to match tumors with the appropriate targeted therapy.
	Skimping on sleep may contribute to gestational diabetes The amount of time spent sleeping in the United States has dropped significantly in the past twenty years with almost a quarter of women and 16 percent of men experiencing insufficient sleep. Now, a new study has found that lack of sleep among pregnant women may be a contributing factor to the development of gestational diabetes.
Biology of childhood brain tumor subtypes offers clues to precision treatments Researchers investigating pediatric low-grade gliomas (PLGG), the most common type of brain tumor in children, have discovered key biological differences in how mutated genes combine with other genes to drive this childhood cancer. By shedding light on subtle distinctions in tumor biology, these findings offer clues to designing more effective anticancer treatments to precisely target tumors in individual patients.
	Portable 3-D scanner assesses patients with elephantiasis An estimated 120 million people worldwide are infected with lymphatic filariasis, a parasitic, mosquito-borne disease that can cause major swelling and deformity of the legs, a condition known as elephantiasis. Health-care workers rely on leg measurements to assess the severity of the condition. However, measuring legs that are severely swollen often proves cumbersome and impractical.
	Smoking to be stubbed out on Thai beaches Smokers who flaunt a smoking ban on 20 of Thailand's most famous tourist beaches will face a $3,000 fine or up to a year in prison, Thai authorities have said.
Doctors urged to make public commitment to talk to patients about guns and gun safety As guardians of health and gatekeepers to the world of medicine, primary care doctors are expected to plunge dauntlessly into the most delicate topics with their patients. Now, in the wake of the worst mass shooting in recent U.S. history, a new campaign is challenging these physicians to talk to their patients about guns.
Researchers find factor that delays wound healing New research carried out at The University of Manchester has identified a bacterium—normally present on the skin that causes poor wound healing in certain conditions.
	Study finds that skipping breakfast does not lead to overeating later in the day Girls who skipped breakfast as part of a study into energy intake and physical activity were found to consume 350 fewer calories (kcals) a day.
	Our calculator will guess how many healthy years of life you have left As the old saying goes, the only things certain in life are death and taxes. While death is inevitable, the quality of life you experience until death is often within an individual's control.
	Diabetes pill might replace injection to control blood sugar (HealthDay)— An injectable class of diabetes medication—called glucagon-like peptide-1 or GLP-1—might one day be available in pill form, research suggests.
Risks associated with receipt of blood transfusion from previously pregnant donor Among patients who received red blood cell transfusions, receiving a transfusion from a donor who was ever pregnant, compared with a male donor, was associated with an increased risk of death among male recipients of transfusions but not among female recipients, according to a study published by JAMA.
	Findings add to evidence of association between Zika virus and Guillain-Barre syndrome An examination of cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome in Puerto Rico identified Zika virus infection as a risk factor, according to a study published by JAMA.
	Possible approach discovered for treating multiple sclerosis Around 2.5 million people are affected by the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis (MS), the most common central nervous system disease among young adults. There are around 12,500 MS sufferers in Austria and 400 new cases every year. There is currently no cure for MS but, with appropriate treatment, it is possible to delay the typical progression of the disease. In collaboration with national and international groups in Japan, Germany and Switzerland, researchers from MedUni Vienna, led by Wilfried Ellmeier from MedUni Vienna's Institute of Immunology, have now discovered in an animal model that the family of histone deacetylases (HDACs) plays a major role in the development of this type of autoimmune disease. After the necessary follow-up studies, this could lead to a new approach to treating multiple sclerosis in the future.
	Research predicts increase in inflammatory bowel disease in developing world For the last century, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been a challenge for patients and the medical community in the western world. New research published today in The Lancet by Dr. Gilaad Kaplan shows that countries outside the western world may now be facing the same pattern of increasing IBD rates.
	Futile hospital treatments cost millions Non-beneficial treatment of patients who are at the end of their life costs Australia approximately $153.1 million a year, a study published in the British Medical Journal Open today has found.
	Research explains lack of evidence for some health care treatments In 2002, Eric Patashnik, came across a puzzling study in the New England Journal of Medicine, which found that a widely used surgical procedure for osteoarthritis of the knee worked no better than a sham procedure in which a surgeon merely pretended to operate.
The cardiovascular risk of antidepressant drugs—new data Antidepressants are commonly prescribed medications, but their long-term health effects are debated. Antidepressants disrupt multiple adaptive processes regulated by evolutionarily ancient biochemicals, potentially increasing mortality. However, many antidepressants also have anticlotting properties that can be efficacious in treating cardiovascular disease.
A new form of psychotherapy for suicidal patients In the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics a study discloses the long term effects of a particular form of psychotherapy in suicidal patients. Abandonment psychotherapy is a 3-month, twice-a-week, manualized cognitive-psychodynamic intervention that specifically targets the abandonment experiences and fears that are considered the cardinal feature of borderline personality disorder. It focuses on difficulties with romantic relationships that are common correlates of suicide attempt among these patients and depression.
	More patients with ulcerative colitis but fewer surgeries Today, a higher number of patients with ulcerative colitis are able to keep their bowel and steer clear of surgery, as shown in a study from Örebro University. Carl Eriksson, doctoral student at Örebro University, has also shown that the number of people suffering from the disease is 10 times higher today than in the 60s.
	Right brain also important for learning a new language Novel language learning activates different neural processes than was previously thought. A Leiden research team has discovered parallel but separate contributions from the hippocampus and Broca's area, the learning centre in the left hemisphere. The right hemisphere of the brain also seems to play an important role.
	For older adults, volunteering could improve brain function Older adults worried about losing their cognitive functions could consider volunteering as a potential boost, according to a University of Missouri researcher. While volunteering and its associations with physical health are well known, less has been known about its associations with mental functioning. Now, Christine Proulx, an associate professor in the Human Development and Family Science Department in the MU College of Human Environmental Sciences, has identified a link between volunteering and higher levels of cognitive functioning in older adults.
	What 115 years of data tells us about Africa's battle with malaria past and present It's difficult to accurately measure the number of people who get malaria each year. This is because the malaria symptoms are shared with many other diseases that lead to death or illness, especially among young children.
	Research finds that zinc binding is vital for regulating pH levels in the brain Researchers in Oslo, Norway, have discovered that zinc binding plays an important role in the sensing and regulation of pH in the human brain. The findings come as one of the first studies that directly link zinc binding with bicarbonate transporters.
	Using artificial intelligence to improve early breast cancer detection Every year 40,000 women die from breast cancer in the U.S. alone. When cancers are found early, they can often be cured. Mammograms are the best test available, but they're still imperfect and often result in false positive results that can lead to unnecessary biopsies and surgeries.
Researchers show the potential of precision medicine for treating rare cancers For the first time, researchers have been able to identify effective treatments for patients with rare cancers by analyzing genes and proteins in their blood and tumors. In a study reported in The Oncologist, half the patients receiving these targeted treatments saw their rare cancers either stabilize, shrink or go into remission.
	New bowel cancer drug target discovered Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have discovered a new drug target for bowel cancer that is specific to tumour cells and therefore less toxic than conventional therapies.
	High blood pressure linked to common heart valve disorder For the first time, a strong link has been established between high blood pressure and the most common heart valve disorder in high-income countries, by new research from The George Institute for Global Health at the University of Oxford.
	'Mystery clients' reveal weaknesses of tuberculosis care in rural China Many health care providers in China—especially those at village clinics and township health centers—fail to correctly manage tuberculosis (TB) cases, according to a study involving standardized patients published this week in PLOS Medicine by Sean Sylvia of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA, Chengchao Zhou of Shangdong University, China, and colleagues at the World Bank, McGill University, Stanford University and other institutions in China.
Corticosteroids aid healing – if the timing is right A corticosteroid can improve the healing of damaged tendons, but it must be given at the right time, according to a new study from Linköping University in Sweden. In rats, the tendon became twice as strong. The results are presented in the journal Scientific Reports.
Resolving traffic jams in human ALS motor neurons A team of researchers at VIB and KU Leuven used stem cell technology to generate motor neurons from ALS patients carrying mutations in FUS. They found disturbed axonal transport in these motor neurons, but also identified genetic and pharmacological strategies that mitigate this defect.
Study: Timing of melanoma diagnosis, treatment critical to survival A new Cleveland Clinic study underscores the importance of early detection and treatment of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. The research, published online today in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, indicates that the sooner patients were treated, the better their survival, particularly for stage I melanoma.
	New study: Nearly half of US medical care comes from emergency rooms Nearly half of all US medical care is delivered by emergency departments, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM). And in recent years, the percentage of care delivered by emergency departments has grown. The paper highlights the major role played by emergency care in health care in the U.S.
	Team develops iPhone app to screen for postpartum depression Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital's (MGH) Ammon-Pinizzotto Center for Women's Mental Health have developed the MGH Perinatal Depression Scale (MGHPDS) , a free iPhone application designed to refine how women around the world are screened for postpartum depression (PPD). The app includes questionnaires about mood, anxiety, sleep and stress at important time periods during and after pregnancy. The questionnaires will identify which specific symptoms are most critical in the diagnosis of PPD in women ages 18-45 who are pregnant or up to 12 weeks postpartum.
	Go fish! (HealthDay)—Seems like there's no end to the list of benefits from eating seafood. Ounce for ounce, you get more protein and less fat and fewer calories from most fish and shellfish.
	Kneeling posture impacts chest compressions' effectiveness (HealthDay)—During cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) performed by males, self-adjusted and nearest kneeling postures are more effective for chest compression, with lower perceived exertion, according to a study published online Oct. 5 in the Journal of Clinical Nursing.
	U.S. M.D. graduates make up half of new family medicine residents (HealthDay)—U.S. M.D. graduates make up half the entering first-year class of family medicine residencies, and the increase in postgraduate year 1 (PGY-1) family medicine and primary care positions is lagging behind that of non-primary care specialties, according to two studies published in the October issue of Family Medicine.
	Most female physicians have faced sexist patient comments (HealthDay)—Most female physicians have been sexually harassed by patients at some point in their careers, according to a blog post published in Medical Economics.
	Online ratings not aligned with objective quality measures (HealthDay)—Online consumer ratings of specialist physicians do not predict objective measures of quality of care or peer assessment of clinical performance, according to a study published online Sept. 8 in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association.
	ACG: diphenhydramine ups sedation in chronic opioid users (HealthDay)—For patients using chronic opioids, use of diphenhydramine in addition to conventional sedatives appears to decrease pain and is associated with improved sedation during colonoscopy, according to a study presented at the World Congress of Gastroenterology, being held in partnership with the American College of Gastroenterology's annual scientific meeting and postgraduate course Oct. 13 to 18 in Orlando, Florida.
	Clinical study finds scalp acupuncture effective for treating autistic children The School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) conducted a clinical observation of scalp acupuncture treatment for 68 children with autism. The findings indicated that 66 patients have shown improvements after treatment, resulting in an overall efficacy rate of 97%. The treatment was found to be more effective in younger children.
HIV infection, even with antiretroviral therapy, appears to damage a growing child's brain HIV infection alters brain development in young children, even when they receive antiretroviral treatment early in life, shows a report in Frontiers in Neuroanatomy. Children exposed to, but not infected by, HIV also appear to have ongoing changes in their brain development.
	On-and-off fasting helps fight obesity Up to sixteen weeks of intermittent fasting without otherwise having to count calories helps fight obesity and other metabolic disorders. Such fasting already shows benefits after only six weeks. This is according to a study by Kyoung-Han Kim and Yun Hye Kim in the journal Cell Research. Intermittent fasting in mice helped to kick-start the animals' metabolism and to burn fat by generating body heat. The research team was led by Hoon-Ki Sung of The Hospital for Sick Children in Ontario, Canada.
Assessment shows metagenomics software has much room for improvement A recent critical assessment of software tools represents a key step toward taming the "Wild West" nature of the burgeoning field of metagenomics, said an Oregon State University mathematical biologist who took part in the research.
	Breast cancer treatments today—and tomorrow The concept of "collective intelligence" is simple - it asserts that if a team performs well on one task, it will repeat that success on other projects, regardless of the scope or focus of the work. While it sounds good in theory, it doesn't work that way in reality, according to an Iowa State University researcher.
	Experts devise plan to slash unnecessary medical testing Researchers at top hospitals in the U.S. and Canada have developed an ambitious plan to eliminate unnecessary medical testing, with the goal of reducing medical bills while improving patient outcomes, safety and satisfaction.
A new compound targets energy generation, thereby killing metastatic cells Cancer can most often be successfully treated when confined to one organ. But a greater challenge lies in treating cancer that has metastasized, or spread, from the primary tumor throughout the patient's body. Although immunotherapy can be effective in treating the metastatic phase of the disease, it is still applicable to a limited number of patients.
	New research opens the door to 'functional cure' for HIV In findings that open the door to a completely different approach to curing HIV infections, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have for the first time shown that a novel compound effectively suppresses production of the virus in chronically infected cells, and prevents viral rebound, even when those infected cells are subjected to vigorous stimulation.
	Who's most at risk of head injury in youth football? (HealthDay)—Young football players are more likely to experience a brain-jarring hit to the head if they're part of a team's running and passing game or a fast-moving defender, a small study found.
	Weight-loss surgery may curb risk for certain cancers (HealthDay)—Weight-loss surgery could help some severely obese people reduce their risk for cancer by at least 33 percent, a new study suggests.
	Venovenous hemodiafiltration improves metformin toxicity (HealthDay)—High-volume continuous venovenous hemodiafiltration (CVVH) and resin-sorbent hemoperfusion is effective for eliminating metformin, according to a case study published online Oct. 5 in the Journal of Diabetes Investigation.
	Screening tools identify potentially inappropriate meds (HealthDay)—Internal medicine patients are frequently prescribed potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs), but screening tools can detect clinically relevant PIMs, according to a study published online Oct. 8 in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics.
	Prevalence of oral HPV infection higher for U.S. men (HealthDay)—Oral human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and high-risk oral HPV infection are more common among men than women, according to a study published online Oct. 16 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
	Thrombosis odds up with bioresorbable vascular scaffolds (HealthDay)—Everolimus-eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffolds (BVSs) are associated with increased odds of scaffold thrombosis and other thrombotic events compared with everolimus-eluting metallic stents (EESs), according to a review published online Oct. 16 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
	Ketamine not linked to PTSD in military trauma setting (HealthDay)—Ketamine administration is not associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the military trauma setting, according to a study published online Oct. 3 in Anaesthesia.
New anti-clotting drugs not associated with higher risk of major bleeding A new group of drugs used to treat patients with serious blood clots are not associated with a higher risk of major bleeding compared with the older anti-clotting drug, warfarin, finds a study published by The BMJ today.
Therapeutic form of arsenic is a potential treatment for deadly type of brain cancer From Sherlock Holmes to Agatha Christie, arsenic is often the poison of choice in popular whodunits. But in ultra-low dosage, and in the right form, this naturally occurring chemical element can be a potent force against cancer.
	New book explores drinking, drug abuse, and addiction in the autism community What is the connection between autism and addiction? Why are individuals with autism more likely to develop a substance use disorder than the general population?
Gender, pain and dementia Men and women feel pain differently, and the same is true for people with Alzheimer's disease.
Pharmaceutical advertising can empower patients Autumn is flu season and that means it is high season for pharmacies selling over-the-counter cold and flu remedies. Those who aren't reminded by their own running noses, are sure to be alerted to these types of pharmaceutical drugs by advertisements and posters. A team of researchers has recently studied the extent to which pharmaceutical advertising supports the so-called self-empowerment of patients. The investigation focused on Brazil, the fastest-growing pharmaceutical drug market in the world.
Study assesses awareness and approach towards blood donation in Bangladesh Blood donation is a vital life-saving process but low awareness about the importance of blood donation can impact the safe and adequate supply of blood in hospitals. A research article published in the Update Dental College Journal (UpDCJ) found a positive attitude to blood donation among the donors in Bangladesh but a big disparity between male and female, as well as some knowledge gaps about blood donation.
	Canadian study of gender-affirming surgery highlights patients' long, frustrating journey Access to gender-affirming surgery has improved in British Columbia over the past couple of years, but transgender people needing to access surgery still face complex and often unclear pathways, according to a new study from the Stigma and Resilience Among Vulnerable Youth Centre (SARAVYC) at UBC.
Researchers confirm IASLC characterization of uncertain R status with prognosis between R0 and R1 The findings of a recent study confirm the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)'s proposed criteria for uncertain resection margin status, R(un), in residual tumor (R) classification. Dr. John Edwards of the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom presented his team's findings today at the IASLC 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Yokohama, Japan.
Treatment based On BRCA1 level does not increase survival of stage II/III NSCLC N+ resected patients New research shows that treating stage II and III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) N+ resected patients with customized chemotherapy (CT) treatment based on their specific BRCA1 expression levels, as opposed to providing the standard treatment, did not increase overall survival rates among those patients who received individualized CT treatment. However, BRCA1 expression levels could be prognostic and treatment could achieve different outcomes. Dr. Bartomeu Massuti of Alicante University Hospital in Spain on behalf the Spanish Lung Cancer Cooperative Group (GECP-SCLG) presented his findings today at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Yokohama, Japan.
Biopsy specimen found to be reliable for evaluating DLL3 expression in small cell lung cancer Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) biopsy specimen was found to be reliable material for evaluating DLL3 expression; high levels of DLL3 in SCLC are correlated with poor survival trends. Dr. Li-Xu Yan of Guangdong General Hospital and Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences in China presented her findings from this study today at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Yokohama, Japan.
	New teleneurology curriculum provides guidelines for care Health professionals can deliver quality neurological care remotely to patients through the emerging field of teleneurology. However, medical training has not caught up with the field, and a lack of formalized education for teleneurology doesn't exist. Now, a researcher at the University of Missouri School of Medicine, as part of an American Academy of Neurology (AAN) team, has developed a standardized curriculum for providing remote neurology care via telecommunication.
	Predicting how healthy your heart will be years down the road Picture this: you're battling heart failure and meeting with your doctor to discuss treatment. Before prescribing anything, the doctor pulls up a virtual model of your heart on her computer and "treats" it with several drugs. A few moments later, she can see how your heart is doing five years down the road.
	UB spinoff company For-Robin moves one step closer to human clinical trials Scientists from For-Robin Inc., a University at Buffalo biotechnology spinoff, have published new scientific results showing that the company's cancer-fighting antibody can target, penetrate and kill human tumor cells effectively.
NSQIP geriatric surgery pilot study may help improve outcomes for older surgical patients Adding geriatric-specific risk factors to the blend of traditional risk factors could significantly improve the ability of surgeons to predict poor outcomes in older surgical patients, according to new study findings published online as an "article in press" on the Journal of the American College of Surgeons website ahead of print publication. The study's authors believe that surgical databases should be expanded to include information reflecting the unique needs of older adults in order to provide the best possible care for them.
Appeals court tosses $72 million award in talcum powder case A Missouri appeals court on Tuesday that vacated a $72 million award to an Alabama woman who claimed her use of Johnson & Johnson products that contained talcum contributed to her ovarian cancer has thrown the fate of awards in similar cases into doubt.
Finding the right osteoporosis medication Dear Mayo Clinic: The bisphosphonate drugs I take for osteoporosis aren't working in my case. My doctor has suggested a few alternatives. Any thoughts on what might be best?
	Sleep and Alzheimer's disease connection How often do you get a good night's sleep? Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines recommend adults get an average of at least seven hours of sleep a night. Dr. Ronald Petersen, a Mayo Clinic neurologist, says prolonged lack of sleep could raise your risk of many health issues, including Alzheimer's disease.

Biology news

	Wolves found to be more cooperative with their own kind than dogs with theirs (Phys.org)—A team of researchers from the Wolf Science Center and the Comparative Cognition, Messerli Research Institute, both part of the Medical University of Vienna, has found that packs of wolves behave more cooperatively among themselves than do groups of dogs. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes how they tested both groups of animals at their research institute and what they found by doing so.
	'Hiding in plain sight'—Discovery raises questions over scale of overlooked biodiversity Scientists have used cutting-edge DNA technology and museum samples collected over the past two centuries to reveal a new species of diving beetle living in streams around the Mediterranean.
Keratin, proteins from 54 million-year-old sea turtle show survival trait evolution Researchers from North Carolina State University, Lund University in Sweden and the University of Hyogo in Japan have retrieved original pigment, beta-keratin and muscle proteins from a 54 million-year-old sea turtle hatchling. The work adds to the growing body of evidence supporting persistence of original molecules over millions of years and also provides direct evidence that a pigment-based survival trait common to modern sea turtles evolved at least 54 million years ago.
	New research shows dinosaur dung fertilizes planet Whether it started with exhibits at the Natural History Museum or fun-terrified screams watching Jurassic Park, humans have always been awestruck by dinosaurs.
	Fish respond to predator attack by doubling growth rate Scientists have known for years that when some fish sense predators eating members of their species, they try to depart the scene of the crime and swim toward safer waters. This sensible behavior is exactly what evolution would be expected to produce.
	The importance of asymmetry in bacteria New research published in Nature Microbiology has highlighted a protein that functions as a membrane vacuum cleaner and which could be a potential new target for antibiotics.
	Need for speed makes genome editing efficient, if not better Rice University researchers have developed a computational model to quantify the mechanism by which CRISPR-Cas9 proteins find their genome-editing targets.
	Tiny protein coiled coils that self-assemble into cages (Phys.org)—A large team of researchers with members from Slovenia, the U.K, Serbia, France and Spain has developed a technique that causes proteins to self-assemble into geometric shapes on demand. In their paper published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, the group describes their technique and possible uses for the tiny cages.
	Clues to the innate drug resistance of a cocoa-fermenting pathogen At first glance, the yeast Candida krusei seems as innocuous as microbes come: it's used for fermenting cocoa beans and gives chocolate its pleasant aroma. But it's increasingly found as a pathogen in immunocompromised patients—and C. krusei infections aren't always easy to cure. This yeast is naturally resistant to fluconazole, a first-line antifungal that's vital not just for treating many fungal infections but also for preventing them in susceptible populations. In the September issue of G3, Cuomo et al. unveil the first whole-genome sequence of a clinical sample of C. krusei, providing leads on genes that may be important for the species' fluconazole resistance.
	Habitat loss is the top threat to Australia's species Earlier this month, Australia's outgoing Threatened Species Commissioner Gregory Andrews told ABC radio that land clearing is not the biggest threat to Australia's wildlife. His claim caused a stir among Australia's biodiversity scientists and conservation professionals, who have plenty of evidence to the contrary.
	How to behave at a zoo – according to science With October half-term approaching, millions around the world will head to their local zoo to indulge in the Halloween activities and get a little fresh autumnal air in the presence of some extraordinary animals. At this time of year, the animals are still wonderfully active and there's plenty to see and do. But there are certain things you should be doing as a visitor to ensure that the animals are able to act as naturally as possible within their environments.
	How bees find their way home How can a bee fly straight home in the middle of the night after a complicated route through thick vegetation in search of food? For the first time, researchers have been able to show what happens in the brain of the bee.
	Researchers find mechanism by which plant roots avoid oxygen-deficient soil Researchers are warning about more frequently occurring extreme weather events in the future as a result of climate change. Current environmental catastrophes such as the numerous and particularly severe tropical hurricanes this year tend to confirm this trend. These extreme weather events are often accompanied by flooding, which increasingly affects agricultural land. This flooding is becoming an ever more serious problem for crop cultivation, because the majority of intensively grown crops are not very tolerant to too much water. Greater losses in yield are becoming apparent. At the same time, the pressure on the available agricultural land to produce crops is rapidly increasing in light of a growing global population.
	Matchmaking with consequences Most human tumours have one thing in common: They harbour drastically increased amounts of the so-called Myc proteins. Animal experiments show that such high Myc concentrations contribute to causing cancer. But Myc proteins not only have harmful properties, they are also crucial in healthy cells: Acting as "transcription factors", they control the activity of a limited number of genes. A lot of these genes activated by Myc are essential for the growth and proliferation of normal cells so that Myc is indispensable for normal human development.
	North American first: Researchers publish scientific study on cannabis production University of Guelph researchers have published what is believed to be the first scientific paper in North America on improving medicinal cannabis plant production, helping move the industry into the realm of high-tech laboratories and evidence-based practices.
Tropical beetles face extinction threat Climate change is putting many tropical high altitude beetles at risk of extinction, warn an international team of scientists.
Yeast spotlights genetic variation's link to drug resistance Researchers have shown that genetic diversity plays a key role in enabling drug resistance to evolve. Scientists at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the Institute for Research on Cancer and Ageing of Nice in France, show that high genetic diversity can prime new mutations that cause drug resistance. The study published today (17 October) in Cell Reports has implications for our understanding of the evolution of resistance to antimicrobial and anticancer drugs.
Invasive ladybird species threatens other ladybirds in England The harlequin ladybird, officially known as Harmonia axyridis, was widely introduced across continental Europe to limit the population of pest insects. In Britain, harlquins arrived primarily by spread from mainland Europe, and it is now very common and widespread over most of England and Wales. A new Insect Conservation and Diversity study shows a clear decrease in the numbers of a native ladybird species—the 2-spot ladybird (Adalia bipunctata—on lime trees over an 11 year period in which the harlequin invaded England.
	Human remains found in large Australian croc Human remains were found Tuesday in a large crocodile that police believe killed an elderly woman who wandered away from her aged-care home in northeast Australia.
	A new type of robotic microscope Scientists at Oldenburg University can now use a "digitizing robotic microscope" for biological and medical research. Oldenburg University is one of the few German universities where this new type of microscope, which costs approximately 200,000 euros, is in use.
	How far do invasive species travel? Around the globe, an increasing number of plant and animal species are introduced into new regions through human activity. However, the global patterns of their distribution are only poorly understood to date. Researchers at the Senckenberg and at the universities of Oldenburg and Vienna have now discovered that the spread of species can be convincingly explained by a combination of global trade flows and the species' original distribution. And, contrary to previous assumptions, the spread basically follows very simple laws.
	The use of jellyfish blooms as solutions for producing new products While some people might find these slimy creatures at the beach very exciting, a number of species are poisonous; some tropical species are even among the most toxic animals on earth. Even worse, rising water temperatures, ocean acidification and overfishing seem to favor the jellyfish blooms. More and more often, they appear in huge swarms, which have already destroyed whole fish farms on European coasts and blocked cooling systems of power stations near the coast. Can we find a solution to this emerging environmental threat?

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