Science X Newsletter Thursday, Sep 10

Dear Reader ,

Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for September 10, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Entanglement lifetime extended orders of magnitude using coupled cavities
- New limit to the Church-Turing thesis accounts for noisy systems
- Study: Bones in South African cave reveal new human relative
- Scientists produce cancer drug from rare plant in lab
- More efficient memory-management scheme could help enable chips with thousands of cores
- Brain cells get tweaked 'on the go'
- Astronomers find galaxy cluster with bursting heart
- Moon's crust as fractured as can be
- New protein manufacturing process unveiled
- Physicists show 'molecules' made of light may be possible
- Google debuts mobile-pay service in second try
- When it comes to touch, to give is to receive
- How to beat the climate crisis? Start with carrots
- Avoidable risk factors take an increasing toll on health worldwide
- Apple TV aims to capture 'cord cutters'

Astronomy & Space news

	Oxygen is not definitive evidence of life on habitable extrasolar planets The Earth's atmosphere contains oxygen because plants continuously produce it through photosynthesis. This abundant supply of oxygen allows life forms like animals to flourish. Therefore, oxygen had been thought to be an essential biomarker for life on extrasolar planets. But now, a research assistant professor Norio Narita of the Astrobiology Center of National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS), which was founded in April 2015, and an associate professor Shigeyuki Masaoka, of the Institute of Molecular Science of NINS, have presented a novel hypothesis that it could be possible for planets to have large quantities of abiotic (non-biologically produced) oxygen. This study is a good example of interdisciplinary studies that combine knowledge from different fields of science to promote astrobiology in the search for life on extrasolar planets. The study is published in Scientific Reports on Sep 10, 2015.
	SETI reborn—the new search for intelligent life A new influx of money has saved the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) from collapse, but what does the future hold for our quest to discover intelligent life in the Universe?
	Moon's crust as fractured as can be Scientists believe that about 4 billion years ago, during a period called the Late Heavy Bombardment, the moon took a severe beating, as an army of asteroids pelted its surface, carving out craters and opening deep fissures in its crust. Such sustained impacts increased the moon's porosity, opening up a network of large seams beneath the lunar surface.
	Astronomers find galaxy cluster with bursting heart An international team of astronomers has discovered a gargantuan galaxy cluster with a core bursting with new stars - an incredibly rare find. The discovery, made with the help of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, is the first to show that gigantic galaxies at the centres of massive clusters can grow significantly by feeding off gas stolen from other galaxies.
	Underground magma ocean could explain Io's 'misplaced' volcanoes Tides flowing in a subsurface ocean of molten rock, or magma, could explain why Jupiter's moon Io appears to have its volcanoes in the "wrong" place. New NASA research implies that oceans beneath the crusts of tidally stressed moons may be more common and last longer than expected. The phenomenon applies to oceans made from either magma or water, potentially increasing the odds for life elsewhere in the universe.
	Europe ready for next Galileo satnav launch Europe is poised for the launch on Friday of the next two satellites in its troubled multi-billion-euro Galileo satnav programme.
	The secrets of NASA's Webb telescope's "deployable tower assembly" Building a space telescope to see the light from the earliest stars of our universe is a pretty complex task. Although much of the attention goes to instruments and the giant mirrors on NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, there are other components that have big jobs to do and that required imagination, engineering, and innovation to become a reality.
	ESA image: Andreas in space ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen's 10-day 'iriss' mission to the International Space Station includes many technology demonstrations and scientific experiments. His first scientific task on arriving at the weightless research laboratory was to purify some of the Station's waste water and test a 'biomimetic' membrane from Denmark. The membrane mimics nature to create clean drinking water using a nano-technology that requires no energy. Throughout the day, Andreas returned to the experiment to flush and change the purified water to gather as many samples as possible.
	What are asteroids? 4.6 billion years ago, our solar system formed from a collection of gas and dust surrounding our nascent sun. While much of the gas and dust in this protoplanetary disk coalesced to form the planets, some of the debris was left over.

Technology news

	More efficient memory-management scheme could help enable chips with thousands of cores In a modern, multicore chip, every core—or processor—has its own small memory cache, where it stores frequently used data. But the chip also has a larger, shared cache, which all the cores can access.
	First Look: What's inside matters in new iPhones Don't let looks deceive you. The new iPhones look the same as last year's models on the outside. But changes on the inside matter, from camera improvements to new sensors that enable quicker access to tasks.
	Q2 2015 an impressive quarter for the US solar PV market The business of photonics site, optics.org, reported on Wednesday that Solar PV (photovoltaic) was responsible for 40 percent of new US electricity generating capacity brought online in the first half of this year. As important, the site said that the installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels continues to gather momentum in the United States.
	Kuwait signs $385 mn solar energy project Kuwait signed a contract worth 116 million dinars ($385 million) with Spain's TSK Group on Thursday for a 50 megawatt solar energy project as part of its renewable energy drive.
	Google debuts mobile-pay service in second try Google's answer to the Apple Pay mobile-payment service is debuting in the U.S., marking a do-over by the company behind the world's most-used operating system for smartphones.
	New tool reduces smartphone battery drain from faulty apps The first large-scale study of smartphones in everyday use by consumers has revealed that apps drain 28.9 percent of battery power while the screen is off. To address the problem, researchers have created a software tool that reduces the energy drain by about 16 percent.
	Watch out: If you've got a smart watch, hackers could get your data They're the latest rage in jewelry and gadgetry, but like all computer devices, smart watches are vulnerable to hackers, say researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
	Apple TV aims to capture 'cord cutters' The new Apple TV unveiled this week has the potential to do for television what iPhone did to mobile phones, while claiming a starring role in home entertainment.
	Nintendo, Google spinoff Niantic in smartphone Pokemon game Imagine coming out of your office, home, or school and getting an alert: A Pikachu is lurking behind a nearby tree, and the chase is on.
	Samsung launches industry's first 12Gb LPDDR4 DRAM Samsung Electronics announced that it is mass producing the industry's first 12-gigabit (Gb) LPDDR4 (low power, double data rate 4) mobile DRAM, based on its advanced 20-nanometer (nm) process technology.
	Diagnosing 'sick' buildings to save energy Are you feeling too cold right now? Too warm? Is your office's air a little stale today? On average, Americans spend 90 percent of the day indoors, in a controlled environment. Controlling that environment, at least in the workplace, is the Sisyphean labor of building operators. "Operating" a building requires not only striking the perfect balance between heating, cooling and ventilation, but also repairing and maintaining all of the equipment and systems that allow this magical equilibrium to exist. Endlessly pushing a boulder up a hill might actually be less work. As part of a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, researchers from Drexel University are working on a cloud-based data analysis tool that could help consolidate these labors while also spotting undetected problems that lead to wasted energy and poor indoor environmental quality.
	The age of drones has arrived quicker than the laws that govern them Just because you may not have seen a drone overhead doesn't mean it hasn't seen you. And, as was demonstrated by the killing of two British jihadis in Syria recently, these unmanned aerial vehicles are increasingly deployed by the West as frontline weapons of war.
	Fiat Chrysler recalls 1.7M trucks for air bag, weld troubles Fiat Chrysler is recalling more than 1.7 million trucks to fix problems with air bags and welds in the steering system.
Apple accused over $71 million in Chinese taxes A Chinese subsidiary of US tech giant Apple failed to pay 452 million yuan in taxes (now $71 million) due at the end of 2013, Beijing's finance ministry said.
	Fighting fakes with the first integral 3-D barcode The first 3D barcode which can be built into products during manufacture has been developed by UK engineers.
	Apple stock lifts following product launches Apple shares rebounded in early trade Thursday, a day after a lukewarm market reaction to the US tech giant's launch of upgraded iPhones and other devices.
	Mobile phones driving user growth in Africa: Facebook More than 80 percent of the 120 million Africans using Facebook access the site through their mobile phones, the social media group said Thursday.
	With 'Mario Maker,' Nintendo relinquishes control Nintendo is giving players the keys to the Mushroom Kingdom.
	Doctor in blockaded Gaza makes stethoscope with 3-D printer A Palestinian-Canadian doctor has created a low-cost stethoscope using a 3-D printer, the first in a series of inventions he hopes will help alleviate medical supply shortages caused by an eight-year blockade on the Gaza Strip.
	Journalists get Facebook livestream capability Journalists and other public figures can now offer live video to their followers on Facebook, which announced plans Thursday to broaden the streaming service.
	Breakthrough switching technology could revolutionise the global rail industry A failsafe track switch designed to eradicate a 200-year-old problem on the railway has been created by engineers at Loughborough University.
New Anchor Robotics facility opens to develop robots that help elderly to live independently Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL) is launching its latest project – the Anchor Robotics Personalised Assisted Living (ARPAL) facility - that will enable robotics researchers, elderly people with assistive needs and those supporting them, to work together to devise and test new robotic solutions in a home environment.
	Japan book seller buys 90 percent of new Murakami release Best-selling Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami's latest book has gone on sale, with 90 percent of the release claimed by a single buyer.
	Needed: Soft robots to solve hard problems Seeking to explore potential applications for soft, deformable robots, a largely unexplored area of robotics engineering, a Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) professor has secured nearly $600,000 in federal funding for two separate projects that could point toward practical uses in medicine, manufacturing, and disaster response.
	Intelligence chief: Little penalty for cyberattacks Cyberattacks against American interests are likely to continue and grow more damaging, in part because hackers face a low risk of consequences, the director of national intelligence told Congress Thursday.
	Kenya signs China nuclear power deal Kenya has signed a deal with China as part of the east African nation's plans to have a nuclear power station by 2025, the Kenya Nuclear Electricity Board (KNEB) said Thursday.
SurveyMonkey adds HP CEO Meg Whitman to its board SurveyMonkey said Thursday that it added Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO Meg Whitman to its board of directors.
Google's Internet service eyes southern California, Kentucky Google may expand its ultra-fast Internet service into southern California and Kentucky for the first time.

Medicine & Health news

	Major complication of Parkinson's therapy explained Researchers have discovered why long-term use of L-DOPA (levodopa), the most effective treatment for Parkinson's disease, commonly leads to a movement problem called dyskinesia, a side effect that can be as debilitating as Parkinson's disease itself.
	Closer look at proteins involved in Parkinson's disease reveals segment involved in amyloid formation (Medical Xpress)—A team of scientists from several research centers in the U.S. has taken a closer look at α-synuclein, a protein that is abundant in the human brain, and which is also involved in the development of Parkinson's disease. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the team describes their study and offers some new ideas on how neurodegenerative diseases may come about due to the formation of fibrils. Michel Goedert of Cambridge University in the U.K. and Yifan Cheng with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute offer a News & Views piece on the work done by the team and how it has added to a better understanding of how diseases such as Parkinson's get their start.
	Solving a genetic mystery: Bridging diagnostic discovery through social media "Help us find others like Tess." Bo Bigelow's plea jumps off the page of his blog, echoing across the continent from his leafy green home city of Portland, Maine.
	Identified genetic interaction offers possible new target for glaucoma therapy Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have elucidated a genetic interaction that may prove key to the development and progression of glaucoma, a blinding neurodegenerative disease that affects tens of millions of people worldwide and is a leading cause of irreversible blindness.
	Errant gene turns cells into mobile cancer factories A single stem cell has the potential to generate an animal made of millions of different types of cells. Some cancers contain stem-like but abnormal cells that can act like mini factories to rapidly churn out not only more copies of themselves, but also variants that are able to better survive in the challenging and changing environments to which cancers are exposed. Worse still, these stem cell-like cancers can spread to other tissues in the body, causing metastasis.
	You'd have to be smart to walk this lazy—and people are Those of you who spend hours at the gym with the aim of burning as many calories as possible may be disappointed to learn that all the while your nervous system is subconsciously working against you. Researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on September 10 have found that our nervous systems are remarkably adept in changing the way we move so as to expend the least amount of energy possible. In other words, humans are wired for laziness.
	When it comes to touch, to give is to receive Have you ever touched someone else and wondered why his or her skin felt so incredibly soft? Well, now researchers reporting in the journal Current Biology on September 10 present evidence that this experience may often be an illusion.
	Brain cells get tweaked 'on the go' Researchers from the MRC Centre for Developmental Neurobiology (MRC CDN) at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, have discovered a new molecular 'switch' that controls the properties of neurons in response to changes in the activity of their neural network. The findings, published in Science, suggest that the 'hardware' in our brain is tuneable and could have implications that go far beyond basic neuroscience - from informing education policy to developing new therapies for neurological disorders such as epilepsy.
	Avoidable risk factors take an increasing toll on health worldwide A wide range of avoidable risk factors to health - ranging from air pollution to poor diets to unsafe water - account for a growing number of deaths and a significant amount of disease burden, according to a new analysis of 79 risks in 188 countries.
Major European study moves a step closer to treatments for severe asthma Initial findings from a major European study have helped identify key characteristics of severe asthma, which will help with the development of new treatments for patients with the condition.
	Stress main cause of smoking after childbirth Mothers who quit smoking in pregnancy are more likely to light-up again after their baby is born if they feel stressed - according to a new report from the University of East Anglia.
	Where flu vaccination rates are higher in adults under 65, lower flu risk for seniors Healthy adults who get the flu vaccine may help protect not only themselves but also older adults in their community at higher risk for serious complications from influenza, suggest findings from a new study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Based on a national sample of more than 3 million people across eight flu seasons, researchers observed that seniors were up to 21 percent less likely to be diagnosed with flu-related illness if they lived in areas where more adults under 65 were immunized.
	Breast cancer incidence, death rates rising in some economically transitioning countries A new study finds breast cancer incidence and death rates are increasing in several low and middle income countries, even as death rates have declined in most high income countries, despite increasing or stable incidence rates. The findings come from a new report examining global patterns and trends in breast cancer using the most up-to-date cancer registry-based data available. It appears early online in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention.
Preemptive drug should be routine in AIDS fight: study Gay men at high risk of contracting HIV should have access to a daily dose of a drug used to treat the AIDS-causing virus, but as a preventive measure, researchers recommended Thursday.
Surgery improves quality of life for patients with chronic sinus infection, sleep dysfunction Patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (sinus infection) and obstructive sleep apnea report a poor quality of life, which is substantially improved following endoscopic sinus surgery, according to a study published online by JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
	Study assesses mothers' attitudes towards government activity targets for preschool children Mothers who took part in a study about their attitudes towards physical activity and sedentary behaviour levels of preschool children do not feel that government targets are relevant to their child, according to new University of Bristol research. The findings, published today in the journal BMJ Open, suggests that information to help mothers make more accurate assessments of their child's activity levels should be provided alongside the guidelines.
	Placenta's oxygen tanks for early embryos revealed A new role for the placenta has been revealed by University of Manchester scientists who have identified sites which store, and gradually release, oxygen for newly formed embryos in the weeks after the baby's heart is developed.
	New research finds balance between 'good' and 'bad' bacteria in humans altered Researchers from Macquarie University released new findings this week about the 'good' and 'bad' bacteria that live inside the human body.
	Mom's maternal identity linked to relationship with child's dad A mother's maternal identity is closely linked to the relationship she has with her child's father as well as his involvement pre- and post-birth, according to a new study released by University of Georgia researchers.
Trauma heightens brain sensitivity to negative events Survivors of an August 2001 trans-Atlantic flight that lost all power nearly 100 miles from land vividly recalled the ordeal nearly a decade later and showed heightened memories of a separate trauma - the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
	Paying women to have mammograms is unethical, ethicist says The widespread practice of incentivizing mammogram completion via cash payments, typically by insurance companies and ranging from $10 to $250, is unethical according to a Viewpoint article published this week in JAMA by an expert from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Instead, incentives should be offered to women to use evidence-based decision aids to decide if they want a mammogram, even if this policy likely averts fewer breast cancer deaths overall.
Back-to-school anxieties not uncommon Some things are routine about a child's return to school after summer break.
	Stigma against fetal alcohol spectrum disorder Stigma against fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), a leading cause of developmental delay in North America, can lead to prejudice and discrimination or impact self-esteem for individuals with FASD and their families. A recent study by IRCM neuroethics experts, published in the journal Public Health Ethics, suggests that public health practices or policies may inadvertently increase the stigma experienced by those affected by FASD.
Perceptions of health don't translate country to country How healthy do you feel? Where you are from may determine your answer.
	Lessons from history to improve drug ads for consumers Flip through any magazine, and chances are you'll spot a flashy ad for a new medication to treat arthritis, fibromyalgia or a slew of other conditions, followed by a wall of dense print on risks you should discuss with your doctor.
	Cell surface discovery may lead to major breakthrough in cancer treatment University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers have discovered a new strategy for attacking cancer cells that could fundamentally alter the way doctors treat and prevent the deadly disease. By more selectively targeting cancer cells, this method offers a strategy to reduce the length of and physical toll associated with current treatments.
	Researchers observe upward trend in hepatitis C infection rates among HIV+ men who have sex with men While sexual contact is not the most efficient means of hepatitis C (HCV) transmission, there have been several reports of outbreaks of sexually transmitted HCV in HIV-positive men who have sex with men (MSM). HCV infections are more likely to become persistent and to lead to progressive liver disease in people who are HIV-infected, even if they are receiving HIV treatment. Factors underlying these infections in HIV-positive MSM are only partially understood.
	Deadliest superbugs are not the most toxic, new study shows Infamous bacteria such as MRSA are considered "superbugs" because not only can they kill us using a wide range of virulence mechanisms, but they can also resist the effects of antibiotics. However, some superbugs reside on the skin and in the noses of a huge proportion of the human population causing only negligible problems for the majority.
	Your stomach bacteria determines which diet is best for weight reduction New research enables "tailored" diet advice – based on our personal gut microbiome – for persons who want to lose weight and reduce the risk of disease. Systems biologists at Chalmers University of Technology have for the first time successfully identified in detail how some of our most common intestinal bacteria interact during metabolism.
	Vitamin K shots necessary to prevent internal bleeding in newborns The growing trend of parents' shunning vaccines has crept into another area that has physicians recommending caution—forgoing vitamin K shots in newborns.
	Mining linked to regional violence spike Men and women are more likely to be assaulted in a WA mining town than in regional towns with more diversified industry.
	Schools serving healthier meals for students Several grade school students set down their forks to eat their green salad, picking up individual lettuce leaves with their fingers and pushing them into their mouths. Not that I was there to judge for style; it was just an observation as I looked around the cafeteria festooned in colorful hand-cut paper banners to see how many of the kids had taken a salad.
	Next-generation genomic tests ID brain-eating amoeba Last summer, a 74-year-old resident of San Francisco's Chinatown was admitted to San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center with fever and disorientation, which rapidly degenerated into a coma.
	Real crisis in psychology isn't that studies don't replicate, but that we usually don't even try Psychology is still digesting the implications of a large study published last month, in which a team led by University of Virginia's Brian Nosek repeated 100 psychological experiments and found that only 36% of originally "significant" (in the statistical sense) results were replicated.
Invisible health risks from harmful environmental exposures in slum areas As an increasing proportion of the population in low- and middle-income countries migrates to urban slums areas, the risk of illness and death increases due to harmful environmental exposure. This is presented in a doctoral thesis at Umeå University in Sweden.
How childhood stress can affect female fertility Can events you endured as a child really impact your ability to have children yourself? New research in the Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology examines the mechanism by which adverse experiences in childhood impact female fertility.
Are women getting the support they need after giving birth? "I really did not feel like I fitted the box." New research indicates the need for postnatal support that encompasses all mental health issues, not only postnatal depression.
Clearing a path for cancer research EMBL-EBI researchers have developed a new computational method to study biological signalling networks in healthy and cancer cells.
	Oliver Sacks, the brain and God Oliver Sacks, the celebrated neurologic storyteller who died at the end of August at age 82, once described himself as "strongly atheist by disposition."
	Is it really OK to eat food that's fallen on the floor? When you drop a piece of food on the floor, is it really OK to eat if you pick up within five seconds? This urban food myth contends that if food spends just a few seconds on the floor, dirt and germs won't have much of a chance to contaminate it. Research in my lab has focused on how food and food contact surfaces become contaminated, and we've done some work on this particular piece of wisdom.
	Cocoa flavanols lower blood pressure and increase blood vessel function in healthy people Two recently published studies in the journals Age and the British Journal of Nutrition (BJN) demonstrate that consuming cocoa flavanols improves cardiovascular function and lessens the burden on the heart that comes with the ageing and stiffening of arteries. The studies also provide novel data to indicate that intake of cocoa flavanols reduces the risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD).
Drunk, distracted drivers are double dangers An accident waiting to happen: that's what an intoxicated driver is whose attention is further distracted by anything from a text message to dashboard controls. Such distractions are just too much to handle safely, even for people who drive while still within the legal alcohol limits, say Nicholas van Dyke and Mark Fillmore of the University of Kentucky in the US. Their study provides some of the first evidence on the degree to which distractions influence the ability of intoxicated drivers to safely control their vehicles. The findings are published in Springer's journal Psychopharmacology.
New DNA testing for liver cancer could improve survival Detection of small fragments of tumor DNA, known as circulating tumor DNA, in a patient's pre-surgery serum samples predicts early recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma and may guide treatment, according to a study published in Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the basic and translational science journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. Hepatocellular carcinoma—the most common type of liver cancer—is the third leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide.
Changing patient's position helps effectiveness of colonoscopy—especially on one side September 10, 2015—Having patients lie on their left side while the right side of their colon is being examined can result in more polyps being found, thus increasing the effectiveness of colonoscopy for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening, according to a study in the September issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE).
Frozen embryos as successful as fresh embryos in IVF IVF cycles using embryos that have been frozen and thawed are just as successful as fresh embryos according to a new UNSW report.
Damage in retinal periphery closely matches loss of blood flow in people with diabetes Research from the Joslin Diabetes Center's Beetham Eye Institute demonstrated earlier this year that in people with diabetic retinopathy, the presence of lesions in the periphery of their retina substantially increases the risk that the disease will progress more rapidly. A follow-up study has shown that these peripheral lesions, which are not detected by traditional eye imaging, correlate very closely with the loss of retinal blood flow called retinal "non-perfusion" caused by loss of small blood vessels or capillaries.
New health care model saving money, report says A new model of health care run by doctors and hospitals is growing and saving money in the taxpayer-funded Medicare program, according to a new report from the federal government. However, experts say most patients still don't understand how an Accountable Care Organization works.
	Melatonin explains the mystery of seasonal multiple sclerosis flare-ups Seasonal flare-ups in patients with multiple sclerosis are caused by plummeting levels of melatonin in the spring and summer, according to research published September 10 in Cell. The study reveals that relapses in patients with this autoimmune disorder are much less frequent in the fall and winter, when levels of the so-called darkness hormone are at their highest, but the reverse is true in the spring and summer seasons.
Vision testing an effective tool for detecting concussion on the sidelines A timed vision test that involves rapidly reading numbers off of cards can be a valuable sideline tool for detecting whether a concussion occurred while playing sports, according to a meta-analysis and systematic review led by NYU Langone Medical Center concussion specialists.
	GI side effects of chemotherapy reduced in mice by targeting gut microbes The blame for some of chemotherapy's awful side effects may lie with our gut microbes, early evidence suggests. As chemotherapy drugs are eliminated from the body, bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract can latch onto them and transform them into toxic species that cause severe diarrhea. In a Chemistry & Biology article published online on September 10, researchers present ways to shut down the ability of GI microbes to convert chemotherapy drugs to a toxic species in mice as a first step to helping cancer patients.
New risk score for colorectal cancer, advanced polyps could guide selection of screening test for patients, physicians Researchers at the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine have developed a new risk assessment scoring system that could help physicians judge which patients can forgo invasive colonoscopy testing for cancer screening and which should receive the test.
Gut bacteria may impact body weight, fat and good cholesterol levels For better cardiovascular health, check your gut. Bacteria living in your gut may impact your weight, fat and good cholesterol levels, factors necessary to help maintain a healthy heart, according to new research in Circulation Research, an American Heart Association journal.
	Struggles with sleep may affect heart disease risk Are you getting enough quality sleep? Are you sleeping longer than you should? Poor sleep habits may put you at higher risk for early signs of heart disease when compared to those who get adequate, good quality sleep, according to a study published in the American Heart Association journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.
Pancreatic cancer stem cells could be 'suffocated' by an anti-diabetic drug Cancer cells commonly rely on glycolysis, the type of metabolism that does not use oxygen to generate their energy however, researchers from Queen Mary University of London's Barts Cancer Institute and the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) in Madrid have now found that not all cancer cells are alike when it comes to metabolism.
	Discovery offers hope for treating leukemia relapse post-transplant Targeting exhausted immune cells may change the prognosis for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) relapse after a stem cell transplant, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.
	Reduced heart rate variability may indicate greater vulnerability to PTSD A prospective longitudinal study of U.S. Marines suggests that reduced heart rate variability - the changing time interval between heartbeats - may be a contributing risk factor for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The findings are reported in the September 9 online issue of JAMA Psychiatry by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System.
	Nonsmokers account for rising proportion of lung cancer cases, studies find (HealthDay)—Nonsmokers account for a growing percentage of aggressive lung cancer cases in the United States and the United Kingdom, new research finds.
	2nd death reported in nationwide salmonella outbreak (HealthDay)—A second death has been reported in a salmonella outbreak that has been linked to contaminated cucumbers and caused 341 illnesses in 30 states, U.S. health officials said Wednesday.
	Fewer US teens abusing alcohol, prescription meds: survey (HealthDay)—There's good news from a new U.S. government report: The percentage of people ages 12 to 17 who smoke, drink or abuse certain drugs is falling.
	Sublingual birch pollen preparation improves allergy (HealthDay)—For adults with birch pollen-induced allergic rhinitis, a sublingual birch pollen preparation (SB) is associated with improvement in symptom scores versus placebo, according to a study published online Sept. 3 in Allergy.
	Elevated liver enzymes common in severe anorexia nervosa (HealthDay)—For adults with severe anorexia nervosa (AN), elevated liver enzymes are relatively common and are associated with lower body mass index (BMI) and hypoglycemia, according to research published online Sept. 8 in the International Journal of Eating Disorders.
	Four percent increase in population of actively licensed physicians (HealthDay)—The total population of actively licensed physicians in the United States and the District of Columbia has increased by 4 percent since 2012, according to a report published in the Journal of Medical Regulation.
	Physician re-entry program set to redress physician shortage (HealthDay)—An online educational program aims to help physicians get back to work and reduce the nation's physician shortage, according to an article published by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP).
	Modest predictive power for HbA1c in atherosclerotic CVD risk (HealthDay)—In the context of conventional cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) has a modest effect on predicted atherosclerotic CVD risk, according to a study published online Sept. 8 in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.
	Vemurafenib deemed highly effective in hairy-cell leukemia (HealthDay)—For patients with relapsed or refractory hairy-cell leukemia, a short oral course of vemurafenib is highly effective, according to a study published online Sept. 9 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
	Various dermatoses may occur after acupuncture (HealthDay)—Various dermatological adverse events may occur after acupuncture, with the most common adverse event being infectious skin disease, according to a study published online Sept. 4 in the International Journal of Dermatology.
	Blood cancers develop when immune cell DNA editing hits off-target spots Sometimes when the immune system makes small mistakes, the body amplifies its response in a big way: Editing errors in the DNA of developing T and B cells can cause blood cancers. Now, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania have shown that when the enzyme key to cutting and pasting segments of DNA hits so-called "off-target" spots on a chromosome, the development of immune cells can lead to cancer in animal models. Knowing the exact nature of these editing errors will be helpful in designing therapeutic enzymes based on these molecular scissors. The Penn team's findings appear online this week in Cell Reports ahead of the print issue.
First 'biosimilar' of a biologic drug reaches US, finally Years after discounted versions of some of the most expensive drugs ever went on sale in other countries, they're finally coming to the world's biggest medicine market.
	Philippines suspends monkey exports after Ebola deaths The Philippines has suspended macaque exports after an Ebola virus strain that is non-fatal to humans struck 20 monkeys, killing 11, officials said Thursday.
Spain: Conservatives tighten abortion availability for teens Spain's ruling conservative Popular Party has used its majority in Parliament to restrict abortion availability, making parental permission once again obligatory for 16- and 17-year-olds who seeking abortions.
Cancer preventative surgery could become a thing of the past, new research suggests Surgery to remove the breasts of women at increased risk of developing breast cancer may not be necessary in the future, according to research published in EBioMedicine. Two new studies looking at the effect the menstrual cycle has on the development of breast and ovarian cancer reveal alternative prevention strategies that may render surgery unnecessary.
	Advanced dialysis tech moves into WA homes A Lockridge man is the first person in WA to use a breakthrough haemodiafiltration (HDF) machine for kidney dialysis in the comfort of his own home.
Mondelez plans to concentrate more on healthy snacks Mondelez, the company behind the Oreo and Cadbury brands, says that it plans to have 50 percent of its portfolio contain healthy snacks within the next five years.
	Key without a lock: Only the balance between receptors controls blood vessel development The term "orphan receptor" is used for receptor proteins on the cell surface whose matching binding partner has not yet been identified. The binding partners, usually growth factors, activate the receptor, thus transmitting a biological signal into the cell interior. "Orphan receptors are like a key without a lock," says Hellmut Augustin, departmental head at the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) and the Medical Faculty of Heidelberg University. "Nobody wants to work with them, because their function is so hard to determine."
Researchers to test drug candidate for eumycetoma The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and the Japanese pharmaceutical company Eisai Co., Ltd. have signed an agreement to proceed with the clinical development of Eisai's anti-fungal drug fosravuconazole for the potential new treatment of eumycetoma, a fungal form of mycetoma, one of the world's most neglected diseases.
AGA recommends all patients with colorectal cancer get tested for Lynch syndrome All colorectal cancer patients should undergo tumor testing to see if they carry Lynch syndrome, the most common inherited cause of colorectal cancer, according to a new guideline published in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association.
	Small brain models distort contact intensity between neurons The goal of brain simulations using supercomputers is to understand the processes in our brain. This is a mammoth task: the activity of an estimated 100 billion nerve cells - also known as neurons - must be represented . It is also a task that has historically been impossible because even the most powerful computers in the world can only simulate one percent of the nerve cells due to memory constraints. For this reason, scientists have turned to downscaled models. However, this downscaling is problematic, as shown by a recent Juelich study published in PLOS Computational Biology.
	New federal food safety rules issued after deadly outbreaks Food manufacturers must be more vigilant about keeping their operations clean under new government safety rules released Thursday in the wake of deadly foodborne illness outbreaks linked to ice cream, caramel apples, cantaloupes and peanuts.
	Researchers find neuroanatomical signature for schizophrenia While it is known that the incidence and outward symptoms of schizophrenia are strongly influenced by ethnic factors—for instance, patients from Asian ethnicities are more likely to experience visual hallucinations, whereas patients from western cultures and Caucasian ethnicities are more likely to suffer from auditory hallucinations—it was unclear if brain deficits would differ amongst suffers from various ethnic backgrounds.
	DTES residents dying at more than eight times the national average Marginalized residents of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside are dying at more than eight times the national average, and treatable conditions are the greatest risk factors for mortality, researchers at the University of British Columbia have found.
Study provides Class 1 evidence for cognitive training efficacy in TBI Kessler Foundation researchers published results of a randomized clinical trial (RCT) of a cognitive intervention to improve learning and memory in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) - the TBI-MEM trial. The treatment protocol, the modified Story Memory Technique (mSMT), was found to improve memory in adults with moderate to severe TBI, providing the first Class I evidence for the efficacy of this intervention in the TBI population. The article, "An RCT to Treat Learning Impairment in Traumatic Brain Injury: The TBI-MEM Trial," was e-published by Neurorehabilitation & Neural Repair. The authors are Nancy D. Chiaravalloti, Ph.D., Joshua Sandry, Ph.D., Nancy B. Moore, M.A., and John DeLuca, Ph.D., of Kessler Foundation.
ASHG issues statement supporting licensure of genetic counselors The American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) issued today a statement of support for state licensure of certified genetic counselors. To receive and maintain licensure, providers would need to receive a degree in genetic counseling, pass a national-level exam to receive certification, and fulfill continuing education requirements.
Probe of military labs expands to plague, encephalitis The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expanding its investigation into possible mishandling and improper shipment by Defense Department laboratories of organisms that cause deadly diseases, including plague and encephalitis, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Biology news

	Sensitivity of smell cilia depends on location and length in nasal cavity Like the hairs they resemble, cilia come in all lengths, from short to long. But unlike the hair on our heads, the length of sensory cilia on nerve cells in our noses is of far more than merely cosmetic significance. A team of researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found a location-dependent pattern in cilia length in the mouse nasal cavity that affects sensitivity to odors. The discovery may also have important implications for the study of sight and touch. Their work was published this week online in Current Biology ahead of print.
	Genetic mutants alter entire biological communities Scientists from Trinity College Dublin have discovered that one gene mutation in a single species can trigger dramatic changes in whole biological communities; changes can be as great as those caused by the extinction of a top predator.
	Research reveals why humans like to share Human intelligence and knowledge depends on how we collect and use sharable resources, according to scientists from The University of Manchester.
	Researchers transform recoded cells into factories that produce novel proteins A Yale research team led by Jesse Rinehart and their colleagues at Northwestern University has improved ways to use genetically recoded organisms to produce a host of valuable new protein products that may pave the way for improved cancer drugs.
	Study uncovers new approaches for sorghum breeders A study on a sorghum population at Kansas State University has helped researchers better understand why a crop hybrid often performs better than either of its parent lines, known as heterosis.
	Protein aggregation after heat shock is an organized, reversible cellular response Protein aggregates that form after a cell is exposed to high, non-lethal temperatures appear to be part of an organized response to stress, and not the accumulation of damaged proteins en route to destruction. Reporting in Cell on Sept. 10, 2015, scientists from the University of Chicago and Harvard University discovered that aggregates are fully reversible - after the cell returns to normal temperatures, aggregated proteins are disentangled and resume their normal cellular functions. Some proteins were found to remain intact and even functional while in an aggregated state.
	Scientists home in on origin of human, chimpanzee facial differences The face of a chimpanzee is decidedly different from that of a human, despite the fact that the apes are our nearest relative in the primate tree. Now researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have begun to pinpoint how those structural differences could arise in two species with nearly identical genetic backgrounds.
	Mental math helps monk parakeets find their place in pecking order A study of aggression in monk parakeets suggests that where they stand in the pecking order is a function of the bird's carefully calibrated perceptions of the rank of their fellow-feathered friends.
New protein manufacturing process unveiled Researchers from Northwestern University and Yale University have developed a user-friendly technology to help scientists understand how proteins work and fix them when they are broken. Such knowledge could pave the way for new drugs for a myriad of diseases, including cancer.
	Rare photos of Colorado lynx captured by automated cameras Scores of fierce-looking lynx roam the remote Colorado high country, 16 years after they were reintroduced to the state. But the elusive animals are rarely seen or photographed.
	GenoCAD designs complex genetic constructs Researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech and the Slovenia National Institute of Biology may have found a way to make plants do their bidding.
	Blue Planet Aquarium to trial world's first automated fish health monitor Scientists from the University of Liverpool will showcase a novel automated fish health monitor to visitors at Blue Planet Aquarium for the first time this weekend.
	Researchers burrow deep to protect endangered frog To protect the locally endangered crawfish frog, researchers at Indiana State University first had to get to know the reclusive amphibian.
	Why our native plants are not so special after all New Zealand's native plant life is renowned by botanists the world over for its uniqueness. But scientists at Victoria University of Wellington are calling into question a long-held belief about our flora, saying that maybe it's not so different after all.
Single-molecule localization techniques provide high spatial resolution in protein labeling Protein labeling with synthetic fluorescent probes is a key technology in chemical biology and biomedical research. The target proximity achieved by small-molecule probes is essential to exploit the full potential of super-resolution fluorescence microscopy.
	Sticklebacks urinate differently when nestbuilding Fish also build nests. Among sticklebacks this is done by the male, requiring so many of his resources that he cannot function normally while at work: He loses his ability to produce urine normally. Now scientists from University of Southern Denmark reveal how the hard-working males manage to get rid of surplus fluid from their body.
	French court upholds poisoning case against Monsanto A French court on Thursday upheld a ruling in which US biotech giant Monsanto was found guilty of poisoning a farmer who says he suffered neurological damage after inhaling a weedkiller made by the company.
Economic development drives world-wide overfishing Stocks of wild fish cannot be protected from overfishing in the long term by the expansion of aquaculture alone. Economic driving forces such as increasing global demand for fish or improved fishing methods will lead in future to increased fishery pressure on the most popular types of edible fish. Ocean researchers from Kiel and Finland come to this conclusion in a current study, which will be published online yesterday (September 8th) in the journal "Global Change Biology".
Bringing 'dark data' into the light: Best practices for digitizing herbarium collections Imagine the scientific discoveries that would result from a searchable online database containing millions of plant, algae, and fungi specimen records. Thanks to a new set of workflow modules to digitize specimen collections currently preserved in herbaria, something like that might be within reach. The modules are provided by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Integrated Digitized Biocollections (iDigBio), which is facilitating a collective effort to unify digitization projects across the nation.

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