Science X Newsletter Wednesday, Nov 28

Dear Reader ,

Now Available: COMSOL Multiphysics 5.4

Just released, COMSOL Multiphysics 5.4 features two new products and updates bringing more powerful modeling tools and faster solvers. Check out the release highlights to learn more: https://goo.gl/5jZHyb

---

Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for November 28, 2018:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

A new approach for designing and implementing a hybrid systems language

EuMoBot: Replicating euglenoid movement in a soft robot

Moscovium and Nihonium: FIONA measures the mass number of two superheavy elements

Earth's polar regions communicate via oceanic 'postcards,' atmospheric 'text messages'

NIST atomic clocks now keep time well enough to improve models of Earth

'Mini-placentas' could provide a model for early pregnancy

Study shows regions increasingly suffer hot, dry conditions at the same time

Potential arthritis treatment prevents cartilage breakdown

Study reveals how long it takes for LEGO head to pass through adult human digestive tract

Endurance but not resistance training has anti-aging effects

Genetic mutation drives tumor regression in Tasmanian Devils

Researchers regrow hair on wounded skin

Wind turbine swap in Denmark turns focus on superconductors

Study reveals why older women are less healthy than older men

The potentially deadly bacterium that's on everyone's skin

Astronomy & Space news

	Behind the scenes of recovering NASA's Hubble In the early morning of October 27, the Hubble Space Telescope targeted a field of galaxies not far from the Great Square in the constellation Pegasus. Contained in the field were star-forming galaxies up to 11 billion light-years away. With the target in its sights, Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 recorded an image. It was the first picture captured by the telescope since it closed its eyes on the universe three weeks earlier, and it was the result of an entire team of engineers and experts working tirelessly to get the telescope exploring the cosmos once again.
	The quest for galactic relics from the primordial universe A new study reports characteristics of massive, ultracompact galaxies. It was published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics and was carried out by an international team led by Fernando Buitrago of Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço (IA2) and Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa (FCUL).
	S. Korea conducts successful rocket engine test South Korea has launched a single-stage rocket to test a locally made engine as part of efforts to place a satellite into orbit.
	Image: ExoMars rover prototype The sun set on a week of trials for the ExoMars rover prototype named Charlie (in the foreground). The first of two field trials for the mission, known as ExoFiT, took place in the Tabernas desert in Spain between 13-26 October.

Technology news

	A new approach for designing and implementing a hybrid systems language Hybrid systems are systems that exhibit both continuous and discrete dynamic behavior, allowing more flexibility in modeling dynamic phenomena. Hybrid systems modeling languages are widely used for the development of cyber-physical systems, in which control software interacts with physical devices.
	EuMoBot: Replicating euglenoid movement in a soft robot Swimming is a form of locomotion employed by many organisms across a wide range of scales in nature. Microorganisms with small mass that encounter dominance of viscous forces in the medium require a change in shape that does not vary with time to achieve fluidic propulsion aligned with hydrodynamics. To overcome this challenge, unicellular flagellates of the Euglena family evolved a characteristic movement known as 'euglenoid movement' in which the body significantly changes shape, allowing the organism to navigate through viscous fluids and tiny spaces. This ability to change the body shape and move through constrained spaces and cluttered environments is particularly attractive in engineering biomimetic robots. Example applications of miniature robots include movement through biological fluids during medical procedures in vivo and navigating through rubble in external environments during search and rescue operations of survivors.
	Wind turbine swap in Denmark turns focus on superconductors The EcoSwing consortium announced it has taken a special generator to a site in Denmark. This was momentous. A previously installed permanent magnet generator was now swapping places with a new superconducting device. The people making this all work have contributed their own sets of expertise in Germany, The Netherlands and France.
	Helping the blind to navigate Picture yourself going to an unfamiliar supermarket for the first time. If you are a person who can see, you can simply look around to guide yourself and identify objects and obstacles. However, blind people must use other senses to find their way through a new space.
	Computer graphics researchers make drone navigation easier Drone operators struggling to fly the multi-propeller device and take pictures simultaneously could soon have a much simpler method to steering flight.
	A big step toward the practical application of 3-D holography with high-performance computers Japanese computer scientists have developed a special purpose computer that can project high-quality three-dimensional (3-D) holography as video. The research team led by Tomoyoshi Ito, who is a professor at the Institute for Global Prominent Research, Chiba University, has been working to increase the speed of the holographic projections by developing new hardware.
	A new way to provide cooling without power MIT researchers have devised a new way of providing cooling on a hot sunny day, using inexpensive materials and requiring no fossil fuel-generated power. The passive system, which could be used to supplement other cooling systems to preserve food and medications in hot, off-grid locations, is essentially a high-tech version of a parasol.
	Easy to use 3-D bioprinting technique creates lifelike tissues from natural materials Bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a 3-D bioprinting technique that works with natural materials and is easy to use, allowing researchers of varying levels of technical expertise to produce lifelike organ tissue models.
	AI could help cities detect expensive water leaks Costly water losses in municipal water systems could be significantly reduced using sensors and new artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
New Zealand halts Huawei from 5G upgrade over security fears New Zealand's international spy agency on Wednesday halted mobile company Spark from using Huawei equipment in its planned 5G upgrade, saying it posed a "significant network security risk."
	Apple raises old iPhone trade-in values to try and entice upgrades to new models Apple seems to have an upgrade problem and a new fix to try and entice upgrades.
	YouTube adds student plans in latest attempt to challenge Hulu, Spotify and Apple Music Hoping for a student plan for YouTube? You now can have one.
	Are phones listening to us? What they can learn from the sound of your voice The vast majority of people in developed countries now carry a smartphone everywhere. And while many of us are already well aware of privacy issues associated with smartphones, like their ability to track our movements or even take surreptitious photos, an increasing number of people are starting to worry that their smartphone is actually listening to everything they say.
	Computing faces an energy crunch unless new technologies are found There's little doubt the information technology revolution has improved our lives. But unless we find a new form of electronic technology that uses less energy, computing will become limited by an "energy crunch" within decades.
	Smart speakers make passive listeners People explore less when they get recommendations from voice-based platforms such as Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri, making it more likely that they'll hear options chosen by an algorithm than those they might actually prefer.
	Artificial joint restores wrist-like movements to forearm amputees A new artificial joint restores important wrist-like movements to forearm amputees, which could dramatically improve their quality of life. A group of researchers led by Max Ortiz Catalan, Associate Professor at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, has published their research in the journal IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems & Rehabilitation Engineering.
	Refugees reclaim human rights with technology Arabic bounces off the walls of a small room in a nondescript building in Lebanon's notorious Bekaa Valley. About a dozen Syrian refugees carefully take photos of their diplomas and training certificates. One young man steadies a document on the brace around his left leg—a reminder of the civil war that has driven millions from their country, many here to Lebanon.
	What are tech companies doing about ethical use of data? Not much Our relationship with tech companies has changed significantly over the past 18 months. Ongoing data breaches, and the revelations surrounding the Cambridge Analytica scandal, have raised concerns about who owns our data, and how it is being used and shared.
Is Silicon Valley ready for fully autonomous Waymo vehicles? Waymo, the first company to get approval from the Department of Motor Vehicles to test fully self-driving vehicles on California roads, faces questions and concerns galore as it prepares to roll out the cars in Silicon Valley.
	5 ways to help robots work together with people For most people today, robots and smart systems are servants that work in the background, vacuuming carpets or turning lights on and off. Or they're machines that have taken over repetitive human jobs from assembly-line workers and bank tellers. But the technologies are getting good enough that machines will be able work alongside people as teammates – much as human-dog teams handle tasks like hunting and bomb detection.
	Image: Robotic hopper This walking and hopping robot is currently being tested in ESA's Mars Yard.
	Smartphone ad analyzer creates 'individual footprint' for advertising outreach analysis A Purdue University doctoral candidate is developing an advertisement and audience analysis system that will enable advertisers to track specific commercials' outreach and audience ratings by analyzing short video clips and demographic surveys sent directly from viewers' smartphones.
	Future wildfires: Stronger buildings could delay, but not stop, destruction alone California's deadly Camp Fire is now 100 percent contained, but low humidity and strong winds in the state mean that wildfires could strike again.
	Lasers could take 3-D printing to next level Cars that go more than 1,000 miles on a single fill-up and smartphones that can run for days without recharging are among the possibilities that could come out of a new Clemson University research project that brings together 3-D printing and laser processing.
	Computer hackers could be thwarted by new 'deception consistency' method Can you deceive a deceiver? That's the question that computer scientists at Binghamton University, State University of New York have recently been exploring.
	New method automatically computes realistic movement with friction from 3-D design Simulating any 3-D surface or structure—from tree leaves and garments to pages of a book—is a computationally challenging, time-consuming task. While various geometric tools are available to mimic the shape modeling of these surfaces, a new method is making it possible to also compute and enable the physics—movement and distortion—of the surface and does so intuitively and with realistic results.
	Intelligent framework aims to optimize data transfer in 5G networks A North Carolina State University researcher has developed technology designed to allow cellular communication nodes in 5G systems to partition bandwidth more efficiently in order to improve end-to-end data transmission rates. In simulations, the tech is capable of meeting the international goal of 10 gigabits per second in peak performance areas.
With an eye on past problems, Facebook expands local feature Facebook is cautiously expanding a feature that shows people local news and information, including missing-person alerts, road closures, crime reports and school announcements.
	US teens drawn to social media despite 'drama' American teenagers remain generally upbeat about social media, saying it helps them feel included and connected, despite persistent problems of social pressure and bullying, a study showed Wednesday.
	Innate fingerprint could detect tampered steel parts Researchers using magnetic signals have found unique "fingerprints" on steel, which could help to verify weapons treaties and reduce the use of counterfeit bolts in the construction industry.
	Google extends telecom service Fi to iPhones Google said Wednesday it was expanding its "virtual" telecommunication service that was limited to select Android-powered smartphones to a wider range of devices, including iPhones.
Germany's CEBIT computer show scrapped after 32 years Organizers say they are scrapping the annual CEBIT computer show in Germany, an event that has drawn tech enthusiasts to Hannover for more than three decades.
	To replicate physical objects for virtual reality, just turn on your smartphone Capturing and reproducing realistic, real-world objects for any virtual environment is complex and time-consuming. Imagine using a conventional camera with a built-in flash—from any mobile device or off-the-shelf digital camera—to simplify this task. A global team of computer scientists have developed a novel method that replicates physical objects for the virtual and augmented reality space just using a point-and-shoot camera with a flash, without the need for additional, and oftentimes expensive, supporting hardware.
	Online 'funeral kits' help grieving Indians From providing cow urine, incense and bamboo stretchers to booking a Hindu priest at the last minute, startups are seeking to cash in on India's elaborate traditional funeral ceremonies.
	Australian billionaire to spend US$72 mn on journalism institute A billionaire Australian philanthropist vowed Wednesday to spend at least AU$100 million (US$72 million) of her fortune to create a journalism institute committed to "the pursuit of truth".
	Lion Air jet should have been grounded before fatal flight, Indonesia says A Lion Air jet that crashed last month should have been grounded over a recurrent technical problem and never permitted to make the fatal flight, Indonesian authorities said Wednesday in a report that took aim at the carrier's poor safety culture.
	Black Friday and Cyber Monday have come and gone, but sales continue Perhaps you never got around to shopping on Black Friday, and when Cyber Monday blew in, you had other things on your mind.
	Porsche shows off new edition of mainstay 911 sports car Porsche says its future is in electric cars but for now it is rolling out a more powerful version of its internal combustion mainstay, the sleek 911 sports car.
	Using solar to light up communities, grow incomes of rural households Immaculate Tumwebaze, is a resident of Katara village, Kichwamba sub county, Rubirizi district. She is one of the 18 members of Katara Women Poverty Eradication Group (KWPEG) that have benefited from the Scaling-up rural electrification using innovative solar PV distribution models project by World Wide Fund for Nature Uganda Country Office (WWF-UCO) with funding from European Union. This project aims at increasing access to clean energy for lighting and cooking for households in the Albertine Graben.
	Two Iranian hackers charged in US ransomware scheme Two Iranian computer hackers were charged Wednesday in connection with a multimillion-dollar cybercrime and extortion scheme that targeted government agencies, cities and businesses, the Justice Department said.
	Google CEO to appear before US House panel December 5 Google chief executive Sundar Pichai will testify at a congressional hearing next week where he will be questioned on "transparency" and "filtering practices" used by the internet search giant, lawmakers said Wednesday.
	Online sex ads rebound, months after shutdown of Backpage Smaller escort websites are vying for the lucrative online sex-for-hire market Backpage.com dominated before U.S. authorities shut it down earlier this year, a move that fractured the industry and forced law enforcement to adapt their efforts combating sex trafficking.

Medicine & Health news

	'Mini-placentas' could provide a model for early pregnancy Researchers say that new 'mini-placentas'—a cellular model of the early stages of the placenta—could provide a window into early pregnancy and help transform our understanding of reproductive disorders. Details of this new research are published today in the journal Nature.
	Potential arthritis treatment prevents cartilage breakdown Osteoarthritis, a disease that causes severe joint pain, affects more than 20 million people in the United States. Some drug treatments can help alleviate the pain, but there are no treatments that can reverse or slow the cartilage breakdown associated with the disease.
	Study reveals how long it takes for LEGO head to pass through adult human digestive tract A team of researchers from several medical institutions in Australia and the U.K. has discovered how long it takes for a LEGO head to pass through the digestive tract of a normal healthy adult human. In their paper published in Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, the group explains their reasons for conducting the research and what they found.
	Endurance but not resistance training has anti-aging effects Researchers have discovered evidence that endurance exercise, such as running, swimming, cross-country skiing and cycling, will help you age better than resistance exercise, which involves strength training with weights.
	Researchers regrow hair on wounded skin By stirring crosstalk among skin cells that form the roots of hair, researchers report they have regrown hair strands on damaged skin. The findings better explain why hair does not normally grow on wounded skin, and may help in the search for better drugs to restore hair growth, say the study's authors.
	The potentially deadly bacterium that's on everyone's skin Forget MRSA and E. coli, there's another bacterium that is becoming increasingly dangerous due to antibiotic resistance—and it's present on the skin of every person on the planet.
	Another gene-edited baby may be on the way, scientist says A Chinese researcher who claims to have helped make the world's first genetically edited babies says a second pregnancy may be underway.
	Only 12 percent of American adults are metabolically healthy, study finds The prevalence of metabolic health in American adults is 'alarmingly low,' even among people who are normal weight, according to a new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Gillings School of Global Public Health. Only one in eight Americans is achieving optimal metabolic health. This carries serious implications for public health since poor metabolic health leaves people more vulnerable to developing Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other serious health issues.
	Surgical adhesions can be treated, prevented in mice A cellular culprit—as well as a possible treatment—for a common, sometimes life-threating post-surgical complication has been identified by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.
	Parkinson's therapy creates new brain circuits for motor function, study finds Scientists have uncovered that an emerging gene therapy for Parkinson's disease creates new circuits in the brain associated with improved motor movement. These findings, published today in Science Translational Medicine by Feinstein Institute for Medical Research Professor David Eidelberg, MD, and his team, explain the therapeutic mechanisms involved in the emerging Parkinson's gene therapy called AAV2-GAD. These findings help the scientific and clinical communities by progressing AAV2-GAD into clinical trials while providing a better understanding about Parkinson's disease treatment response and effectiveness.
	Checkmating tumors Chess and cancer research have one thing in common: It takes strategy to defeat the opponent. And that's exactly what scientists at the MDC are doing. They are seeking to selectively make only those cancer cells aggressive that would otherwise evade chemotherapy—and then lure them into a trap.
	Next step toward replacement therapy in type 1 diabetes Scientists have discovered the signals that determine the fate of immature cells in the pancreas. The research shows that they are very mobile and that their destiny is strongly influenced by their immediate environment. This breakthrough, published in the journal Nature, will facilitate the manufacturing of pancreatic islet cells from stem cells to combat type 1 diabetes. Prof. Dr. Henrik Semb, who led the study, recently joined Helmholtz Zentrum München.
	Cancer under pressure: Visualizing the activity of the immune system on tumor development As tumors develop, they evolve genetically. How does the immune system act when faced with tumor cells? How does it exert pressure on the genetic diversity of cancer cells? Scientists from the Institut Pasteur and Inserm used in vivo video techniques and cell-specific staining to visualize the action of immune cells in response to the proliferation of cancer cells. The findings have been published in the journal Science Immunology on November 23, 2018.
	Resilience may be neurobiological Neighborhood violence has been associated with adverse health effects on youth, including sleep loss, asthma and metabolic syndrome. Yet some youth living in high-crime neighborhoods manage to avoid these effects.
	Single cell sequencing sheds light on why cancers form in specific cell types While many cells in our bodies can accumulate oncogenic mutations, the majority of these events do not lead to tumor formation as these abnormal cells are eliminated by defense mechanisms. Instead, tumors arise when a mutation happens in a particular cell type that is uniquely sensitive to it. Identifying such cancer cells of origin is essential to properly target cancer.
	Re-programming the body's energy pathway boosts kidney self-repair A team of researchers led by Jonathan Stamler, MD, of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, has discovered a pathway for enhancing the self-repair efforts of injured kidneys The finding may pave the way for new drugs to stop or even reverse the progression of serious kidney disease in humans—and other potentially lethal conditions of the heart, liver, and brain as well.
	Scientists solve longtime mystery in innate immunity UT Southwestern biochemist and Breakthrough Prize winner Dr. Zhijian "James" Chen's newest study answers a long-standing question in the field of innate immunity.
Ambulances in Syria deliberately and repeatedly targeted as part of war tactics Syrian government and Russian armed forces have deliberately and repeatedly targeted ambulances in Syria as part of the Assad regime's strategy to destabilise and intimidate through the 'weaponisation of healthcare,' reveals research published in the online journal BMJ Global Health.
	Exposure to e-cigarette adverts linked to teenagers using e-cigarettes and smoking The more often adolescents say they have seen adverts for e-cigarettes, the more often they use both e-cigarettes and smoke tobacco cigarettes, according to a study published in ERJ Open Research.
	At-home HPV tests could be powerful tool for hard-to-reach US women Screening women for HPV, or human papillomavirus, is a promising way to help detect cervical cancer early, but many at-risk women go without screening for the virus and without Pap tests that look for abnormal cells on the cervix.
	Gene-edited baby trial 'paused': China scientist The Chinese scientist who claims to have created the world's first genetically-edited babies said Wednesday the trial had been paused, following an international outcry over the highly controversial procedure.
	Some spices may be a source of lead exposure in kids, study finds Paint chips in older homes, contaminated soil and water pumped though lead pipes are all known sources of lead exposure for children. Now, you might add to that list spices such as turmeric, chili powder and vanilla.
	Blue Brain Project releases first-ever digital 3-D brain cell atlas The first digital 3-D atlas of every cell in the mouse brain provides neuroscientists with previously unavailable information on major cell types, numbers and positions in all 737 brain regions—which will potentially accelerate progress in brain science massively. Released by EPFL's Blue Brain Project and published in Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience, the Blue Brain Cell Atlas integrates data from thousands of whole brain tissue stains into a comprehensive, interactive and dynamic online resource that can continuously be updated with new findings. This groundbreaking digital atlas can be used for analyzing and further modeling specific brain areas, and is a major step toward a full simulation of the rodent brain.
	New study supports mammography screening at 30 for some women A new, large-scale study of more than 5 million mammograms found that annual mammography screening beginning at age 30 may benefit women with at least one of three specific risk factors: dense breasts, a personal history of breast cancer or a family history of breast cancer. The study will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
	Online gaming addiction in men affects brain's impulse control Researchers using functional MRI (fMRI) have found differences in the brains of men and women who are addicted to online gaming, according to a new study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
	Cryoablation shows promise in treating low-risk breast cancers Cryoablation—the destruction of cancer cells through freezing—shows early indications of effectiveness in treating women with low-risk breast cancers, according to research being presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Researchers said that over the four years of the study, there has only been one case of cancer recurrence out of 180 patients.
Got menopause? Healthy lifestyle now is crucial for heart health A healthy lifestyle during the transition to menopause may offset the acceleration of atherosclerosis, the slow narrowing of the arteries that increases with age, according to new research in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.
	Researchers discover why some parts of the body have hair and others don't Why do humans have hair on our arms and legs but not on the palms of our hands and the soles of our feet? It's a fundamental question in human evolution that researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania say they've found clues to in a new study. Their findings reveal the existence of a naturally-occurring inhibitor secreted in developing hairless skin which blocks a signaling pathway, known as the WNT pathway, that controls hair growth. Cell Reports published the study today.
Mental health care increasing most among those with less distress It sounds like good news: a new study shows that more Americans are getting outpatient mental health care and the rate of serious psychological distress is decreasing.
Cost and weight-loss potential matter most to bariatric surgery patients A JAMA Surgery study found that patients are likely to base their weight loss surgery choice on expected out-of-pocket costs, and how much weight they can lose—not risk of complications or recovery time.
	Increasing staffing levels could reduce cesarean delivery use High staffing levels for obstetricians and midwives at hospital maternal units are associated with lower cesarean rates, according to a study published November 28 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Saad Zbiri of Versailles Saint Quentin University, Carine Milcent of the Paris School of Economics (PSE) and the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), and colleagues.
	People with more knowledge about benefits of physical activity may also exercise more Most people have a poor understanding of how much physical activity is good for you, and what health benefits such activity conveys. But the better your knowledge on these topics, the more physical activity you're likely to get, according to a study published November 28, 2018 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE.
	Antibiotics eliminate senescent cells associated with ageing Antibiotics have emerged as potentially lifespan-enhancing drugs, according to the results of new research carried out in the UK.
	Why we are not ready for genetically designed babies The media is buzzing with the surprise news that a Chinese researcher, Jainkui He, has created the world's first genome-edited twins. He did this, ostensibly, to provide resistance to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
	Fighting cancer one cell at a time A team of scientists from Agency for Science, Technology and Research's (A*STAR) Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) has identified a new approach to cancer therapeutics by targeting the evolution of cancer cells. This approach prevents or delays the progression of cancer into treatment-resistant/metastatic disease. The study was published in Nature Communications on 22 November 2018.
	Music supports the auditory skills of hearing-impaired children Researchers at University of Helsinki, Finland, and University College London have found evidence that children with hearing impairment and cochlear implants can benefit from hobbies involving music and especially singing. The results, published in Music Perception, show that the auditory skills of hearing impaired children are connected to the amount of singing and music in their everyday lives.
	Stillbirth and infant death rates are decreasing, but still vary widely across Europe Rates of stillbirth and deaths in the first year of life have decreased in Europe over the five years 2010 to 2015. However, countries still vary widely, and differences persist in their populations and the maternity care provided.
	Unhealthy weight-control practices can persist and intensify in adulthood As many as one-third of adolescents and two-thirds of adults engage in dieting. Unhealthy forms of weight control such as purging, fasting and dieting are linked to problems later in life including eating disorders, depression and substance abuse.
	USPSTF: Evidence lacking for prevention of child maltreatment (HealthDay)—The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that the evidence on the benefits and harms of primary care interventions for preventing child maltreatment is currently inadequate. These findings form the basis of a final recommendation statement published online Nov. 27 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
	FDA approves Vitrakvi for cancers with certain genetic trait (HealthDay)—Vitrakvi (larotrectinib) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat adult and pediatric patients whose cancers have a specific genetic feature.
FDA warns high levels of heavy metals found in kratom products The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an advisory Tuesday after finding "disturbingly high levels" of heavy metals in the herbal product kratom.
	Self-testing: A potentially powerful tool for fighting HIV In recent years, more emphasis has been placed on testing for HIV. The idea behind this drive is that if people know their status, they'll be able to seek treatment and support. One approach that's become fairly common is self-testing, or self-screening.
	Liver transplant from HIV+ living donor to negative recipient: The unanswered questions A lifesaving partial liver transplant from an HIV-infected mother to her uninfected child – the first of its kind – was conducted last year at the University of the Witwatersrand's Donald Gordon Medical Centre in Johannesburg. More than a year later, both mother and child are doing well.
	Babies born to mums with HIV face higher risks even though they're HIV negative One of the most remarkable public health successes of the last decade in southern Africa has been the reduction in the number of babies born with HIV. This was achieved through the provision of antiretroviral therapy to pregnant and breastfeeding women living with HIV. For example, the number of new HIV infections in children in South Africa has come down from a peak of 70 000 in 2003 to 13 000 in 2017.
	Overcoming the real—and perceived—barriers to HIV testing There was a time when HIV was untreatable, heavily stigmatised, and the benefits of testing weren't as clear as they are now. But that was 25 years ago.
	Research review underscores progress in treating kidney cancer, importance of close patient monitoring With the swift introduction of approved immunotherapy approaches into the treatment landscape for many cancers, medical professionals across many care-delivery settings and specialties are tasked with the need to follow and understand a set of treatment standards that are changing rapidly. The treatment of renal cell carcinoma (RCC), or kidney cancer, has been one of the fields most dramatically affected by what the authors of a new research review article call a period of "remarkable progress," with FDA approval of the first immunotherapy combination regimen for the treatment of patients newly diagnosed with kidney cancer coming just a few months ago, in April 2018.
	Self-assessing back pain by app just as effective as traditional methods, study shows Patients can assess their own back pain using an app on their phone or tablet as effectively as current paper methods, a new study from the University of Warwick has shown.
	Chemsex and PrEP reliance are fuelling a rise in syphilis among men who have sex with men No one is entirely sure about the origins of syphilis, a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum. The first recorded outbreak in Europe appeared during the 1495 invasion of Naples, where it led to widespread disease and death, particularly among troops on the French side. Later, disbanded armies helped to spread syphilis, the "great pox", across Europe, where the disease rapidly became endemic.
	Young people with dementia need new approaches to care Research conducted by academics at the University of Hertfordshire outlines new approaches to care for people diagnosed with young onset dementia.
	IVF linked to lower birth weight and child growth A study has linked babies conceived through a type of IVF to lower birth weight followed by increased growth after birth.
	How much do you trust Dr Google? Women experiencing signs of breast cancer vary in how they value, use, and trust "Dr. Google' when making sense of their symptoms, a new study in the journal Health, Risk & Society reports.
Want to know what toxins you're being exposed to? Your urine has answers Over the course of a lifespan, from conception to death, each person encounters a wide variety of environmental stressors such as pollution, tobacco smoke, the sun's rays, pharmaceutical agents, and some constituents of food. Evidence of the exposure and a person's ability to metabolize these stressors is all hiding in the urine.
	Study: Public transportation use linked to better public health Promoting robust public transportation systems may come with a bonus for public health—lower obesity rates. A new study from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign compares data from two years to find that a single percentage-point increase in mass transit ridership is associated with a 0.473 percentage-point lower obesity rate in counties across the United States.
	Antibiotic could protect against neurodegenerative diseases during aging An antibiotic, minocycline, can increase the lifespan of roundworms by preventing the build-up of proteins during aging, a study in the open-access journal eLife reports.
New study finds racial disparities in oral anticoagulant use Black patients with atrial fibrillation are significantly less likely to receive oral anticoagulants—particularly newer, more effective versions—than white and Hispanic patients, according to a new study published today in JAMA Cardiology.
	Transfusions with older blood linked to adverse events, death, new study finds After a serious injury, the leading cause of death is loss of blood. Major trauma victims who receive transfusions of packed blood 22 days old or older may face increased risk of death within 24 hours, according to a new study in Annals of Emergency Medicine.
	Research reveals that 1 in 4 suicide attempts are associated with perceptual difficulties Researchers at RCSI (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland) have revealed that one quarter of suicide attempts are associated with dysfunction in how the brain interprets basic perceptual information, such as what we see, hear and think. The research shows that this dysfunction can predict suicidal behaviour, and offers new prospects for treatment and suicide prevention. The research has today been published in JAMA Psychiatry.
	Skin cancer rates far higher than previously thought, according to new national database Data from the newly established UK skin cancer database, the largest database of its kind in the world, has revealed that there are over 45,000 cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (cSCC) every year in England, 350 per cent more than previous estimates suggested. Squamous cell carcinoma is the second most common form of skin cancer.
	Rewriting the brain pathway for consciousness With a finding that will "rewrite neuroanatomy textbooks," University of Iowa neurologist Aaron Boes, MD, Ph.D., and his colleagues show that the thalamus is not a critical part of the brain pathway involved in keeping humans awake and conscious.
Researchers examine trends in opioid prescriptions in children and adolescents While the opioid crisis remains a major public health concern in the United States for people of all ages, relatively little research has been conducted in younger populations. A new study by investigators from Brigham and Women's Hospital examined the trends in opioids prescribed for children and adolescents in an analysis of data between 2004 and 2017 from a large commercial insurance provider. The researchers observed a downward shift in opioid prescriptions in children and adolescents, which aligns with previously reported trends in adult populations. Their results are published in JAMA Pediatrics.
	Platelets grown from stem cells may be alternative to donated platelets Researchers have developed a way to grow human platelets in the laboratory from stem cells derived from fat tissue. The achievement, reported today in the journal Blood, suggests manufactured platelets could eventually reduce the reliance on donated platelets to help patients with cancer and other disorders.
Fitbits go the distance in running study La Trobe University researchers have put one of the world's most popular activity trackers to the test.
	A terrible choice: Cancer treatment or hospice care, but not both Veterans Health Administration (VHA) hospitals offer something Medicare does not: In some cases, treatments meant to alter the course of a disease can be offered along with hospice care. Now Colorado researchers are looking into the costs, benefits, and experiences of veterans receiving concurrent treatment and hospice care, and experiences of the providers and staff delivering this care. Their findings may provide the basis for wider adoption of this nonstandard practice.
	What's best for babies with recurring ear infections (HealthDay)—Infant ear infections can be a source of frustration for parents and babies alike. But there are steps to lessen them and, when they do occur, "less is more" is a better way to treat them.
	Seniors on multiple meds a driving hazard (HealthDay)—Many older drivers take medications known to raise the risk of a crash, a new study shows.
	Infections may be a trigger for heart attack, stroke Diabetes, high blood pressure and elevated cholesterol are well-known risk factors for cardiovascular disease. But what about just getting sick? Could picking up some type of bug increase your chance of having a stroke or heart attack?
	Amblyopia linked to lower self-perception in children (HealthDay)—Children with amblyopia report lower self-perception for scholastic, social, and athletic measures, which may be associated with slower reading speed and worse motor skills, according to a study published online Nov. 15 in JAMA Ophthalmology.
Study finds biases in widely used dementia identification tests Quick tests used in primary care settings to identify whether people are likely to have dementia may often be wrong, according to a study published in the November 28, 2018, online issue of Neurology Clinical Practice, an official journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
	91 percent response rate for venetoclax against newly diagnosed AML in older adults Clinical trial results published in the journal Nature Medicine show 91 percent response rate to the combination of venetoclax with azacitidine in older adults newly diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Of 33 patients given combination venetoclax and azacitidine, 20 experienced a complete response (aka complete remission) and eight experienced a complete response but with continued low blood counts. Of the three patients who did not respond to treatment, two discontinued the study before the first week due to personal reasons unrelated to treatment or side-effects.
	FDA approves new targeted drug for leukemia The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first ever inhibitor drug specifically approved for treating patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a mutation in the Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) gene. Patients with these mutations who have relapsed or refractory AML have very low response rates to chemotherapy at the time of relapse and their survival is poor as a result. The approval was granted for the drug gilteritinib and was based on clinical trials led by Alexander Perl, MD, MS, an associate professor of Hematology-Oncology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Abramson Cancer Center. Gilteritinib is sold under the name XOSPATA and manufactured by Astellas Pharma, Inc.
	Vaccine signatures in humanized mice point to better understanding of infectious diseases Infectious diseases kill millions of people each year, but the search for treatments is hampered by the fact that laboratory mice are not susceptible to some human viruses, including killers like human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). For decades, researchers have turned to mice whose immune systems have been "humanized" to respond in a manner similar to humans.
National data resource proves valuable in protecting nation's health A new Perspective in the New England Journal of Medicine discusses the evolution of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Sentinel Initiative since its launch in 2008. Coauthored by the scientists at the lead organization, the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, and at the FDA and the Duke Margolis Center for Health Policy, the piece describes the evolution of the Sentinel Initiative from a pilot program designed to assess potential drug-safety signals in insurance claims into a core component of the FDA's evolving safety surveillance system. The Perspective will be published in the November 29 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
	Children who start school a year early more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD, study shows Could a child's birthday put them at risk for an ADHD misdiagnosis? The answer appears to be yes, at least among children born in August who start school in states with a Sept. 1 cutoff enrollment date, according to a new study led by Harvard Medical School researchers.
	25-year study shows that incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing by more than 3 percent per year in Europe New research published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes [EASD]) shows that new cases of type 1 diabetes are rising by 3.4% per year across Europe. If this trend continues, incidence would double in the next 20 years. The study is coordinated by Professor Chris Patterson, Centre for Public Health, Queen's University Belfast, UK.
Number of diagnostic tests ordered by GPs rises more than threefold in 15 years GPs are ordering more than three times as many tests diagnostic for their patients as they were 15 years ago as they now provide more services previously provided by hospitals and monitor more patients with chronic diseases, shows a study published in The BMJ today.
	Baby up at night? Inactivity may be a culprit New Michigan State University research suggests babies who are less active get less sleep, something new parents may want to consider when looking for possible solutions for the long, sleepless nights.
	New service transforms childhood cancer treatment Children with cancer are to benefit nationally from a service which for the first time will allow doctors to personalise their treatment.
	Cancer prevention research and practice—the way forward to tackle rising cancer burden Research shows that up to 50 percent of cancer cases and deaths are preventable. Cancer prevention is the most cost-effective and sustainable long-term strategy for the control of cancer.
Extract from soursop leaves can prevent the symptoms of fibromyalgia Researchers from the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Seville have recently published a study reporting that diets supplemented with aqueous extract of Annona muricata L. leaves can prevent symptoms associated with fibromyalgia, improving the lives of patients.
Pharmacological therapy to fight a rare pediatric disease Scientists from the University of Granada (UGR) have developed a new pharmacological therapy using a molecule that presents similarities with one of the precursors of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). The therapy is effective against a severe mitochondrial disease that targets mostly children, and for which there is currently no effective treatment.
New report calls for health monitoring and research program on Gulf War and post-9/11 veterans To help determine if the descendants of Gulf War and post-9/11 veterans are at risk for health effects resulting from the service members' exposure to toxicants during deployment, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommends the creation of a health monitoring and research program (HMRP). The committee that carried out the study and wrote the report assessed the available evidence on the reproductive, developmental, and generational health effects related to exposures that may have occurred during the Gulf War and post-9/11 conflicts. While there is a growing base of human and animal evidence on the reproductive and developmental effects of many toxicants of concern, there is a dearth of information on the specific effects of veterans' exposures on their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
More Oregonians sharing end-of-life wishes with POLST More Oregonians are making their end-of-life wishes known through forms known as Physician Order for Life-Sustaining Treatment, or POLST, according to research published in the Journal of Palliative Medicine.
Study: Italy's economic crisis has affected nutrition A new study shows that Italy's long economic crisis is having an impact on nutritional health in the country synonymous with the Mediterranean diet.
Study shows high costs of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a common condition with a high economic impact in both children and adults, concludes an updated review in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM).

Biology news

	Genetic mutation drives tumor regression in Tasmanian Devils Washington State University scientists have discovered genes and other genetic variations that appear to be involved in cancerous tumors shrinking in Tasmanian devils.
	Study reveals why older women are less healthy than older men Genes that act late in life could explain why women have poorer health than men in older age, according to new research.
	North American checklist identifies the fungus among us Some fungi are smelly and coated in mucus. Others have gills that glow in the dark. Some are delicious; others, poisonous. Some spur euphoria when ingested. Some produce antibiotics.
	Researchers discover honeybee gynandromorph with two fathers and no mother A team of researchers at the University of Sydney has discovered a honeybee gynandromorph with two fathers and no mother—the first ever of its kind observed in nature. In their paper published in the journal Biology Letters, the group describes their study of honeybee gynandromorphs and what they found.
	Great apes and ravens plan without thinking Planning and self control in animals do not require human-like mental capacities, according to a study from Stockholm University. Newly developed learning models, similar to models within artificial intelligence research, show how planning in ravens and great apes can develop through prior experiences without any need of thinking.
	Tassie devils' decline has left a feast of carrion for feral cats The decline of Tasmanian devils is having an unusual knock-on effect: animal carcasses would once have been gobbled up in short order by devils are now taking many days longer to disappear.
	Example of microplastic pollutants disrupting predator-prey relationship found A team of researchers with the French National Centre for Scientific Research has found an example of environmental microplastics disrupting a predator-prey relationship. In their paper published in the journal Biology Letters, the group describes their study of the impact of microplastic consumption on the common periwinkle and what they found.
	Researchers identify key players in mysterious process of protein quality control Proteins are the workhorses of our cells, carrying out essential tasks to keep our cells – and our bodies – functioning properly. But proteins can only do their jobs if they fold into the right shape.
	How antibiotics spread resistance Bacteria can become insensitive to antibiotics by picking up resistance genes from the environment. Unfortunately for patients, the stress response induced by antibiotics activates competence in microorganisms, the ability to take up and integrate foreign DNA. Microbiologists from the University of Groningen (UG) and the University of Lausanne have now described a new mechanism by which Streptococcus pneumoniae can become competent, and why biofilms may be important in this process. Their results were published in Cell Reports on November 27.
	Why do some plants live fast and die young? An international team led by researchers at The University of Manchester have discovered why some plants "live fast and die young" whilst others have long and healthy lives.
	Indian peafowls' crests are tuned to frequencies also used in social displays Indian peafowl crests resonate efficiently and specifically to the same vibration frequencies used in peacock social displays, according to a paper published November 28, 2018 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Suzanne Amador Kane from Haverford College, USA, and colleagues.
	Swapping bacteria may help 'Nemo' fish cohabitate with fish-killing anemones Nemo, the adorable clownfish in the movie Finding Nemo, rubs himself all over the anemone he lives in to keep it from stinging and eating him like it does most fish. That rubbing leads the makeup of microbes covering the clownfish to change, according to a new study.
	US biologist: Gene-editing work a failure of self-regulation A leader of an international conference on gene editing said Wednesday that the work of a Chinese scientist who claims to have helped make the world's first gene-edited babies showed a failure of self-regulation among scientists.
	Mass Australian stranding leaves 28 whales dead Twenty-eight whales were found dead in the remote southeast of Australia Wednesday, following a mass stranding that has baffled experts.
	Argentine polo turns to genetics to produce champions Are champions born, or raised? That's the question scientists in Argentina are trying to answer as they look to pinpoint the genes that make local horses the best in the world for playing polo.
	Rogue science strikes again: The case of the first gene-edited babies The idea of scientists tinkering with the genes of babies was once the provenance of science fiction, but now it's apparently entered the realm of reality: On Nov. 26, Chinese scientist He Jiankui reported the historic live births of twin girls whose genes he had edited. The goal may have been noble: to use CRISPR to alter their genes to include a variant protective against transmission of HIV. But the announcement – yet to be verified – has quickly become mired in a deluge of scientific and ethical criticism of He as a reckless researcher who overstepped well-established boundaries.
	Food webs essential for nature conservation efforts in the future Lake ecosystems make annual environmental changes more predictable. Nature conservation should not focus on individual species but on whole food webs, because the protection of their functioning is important for the predictability of species, especially when global warming is increasing environmental variability.
	Study explains the dominance of non-native ants Could the behavior of an invasive species of ants explain the way humans interact?
	Predators drive clownfish relationship with an unlikely friend Predators have been identified as the shaping force behind mutually beneficial relationships between species such as clownfish and anemones.
	Recovery plan for endangered butterfly takes wing in San Diego They trudged single file up a dirt trail to a hillside shoulder of open land in Rancho San Diego. It was a clear midweek morning, blue skies, with views to San Miguel Mountain and the Sweetwater Reservoir.
	The protein with the starting gun Whether dormant bacteria begin to reproduce is no accidence. Rather, they are simply waiting for a clear signal from a single protein in the cell interior. ETH researchers have now deciphered the molecular mechanisms behind this.
Global warming increases the risk of an extinction domino effect The complex network of interdependencies between plants and animals multiplies the species at risk of extinction due to environmental change, according to a JRC study.
	The secret to better berries? Wild bees Want bigger, faster-growing blueberries? New research shows wild bees are an essential secret ingredient in larger and better blueberry yields—producing plumper, faster-ripening berries.
	'Stash your trash,' say rat researchers Rats. Can't live with them, can't live without them—or so it seems in a city like Chicago. Researchers from Lincoln Park Zoo's Urban Wildlife Institute and Davee Center for Epidemiology and Endocrinology set out to understand why. The findings are published Nov. 28 in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.
	New study explores ecosystem stability In an era of rapid ecological change, scientists are turning to historical periods of persistence to better understand what drives stability. A team from the California Academy of Sciences and the Field Museum of Natural History has examined the structural complexity of ancient ecosystems by looking at the number of species and how they're organized by function, such as top predators or decomposers. All stable ecosystems have species grouped by function, and the study found that these functional groupings are more important to an ecosystem's stability than the sheer number of species present. Surprisingly, the study also found that among simulated systems of equal but different complexity, those representing actual ancient ecosystems tended to be more stable. The team is now investigating why certain functional compositions are better than others and how those structures arise over time. Understanding the organization of stable ecosystems of the past allows scientists to better predict whether modern human impacts have pushed our current planetary system past a point of recovering to its original state.
	Algae testbed experiment yields data useful for future projects A unique experiment that explored how well algae grows in specific regions of the United States yielded data that could prove useful as the industry moves forward, according to research from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Arizona State University (ASU).
	The virus detectives—The secret of brown trout dying uncovered Every summer in Southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland, tons of brown trout perish. An interdisciplinary team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now discovered the culprit of the mysterious dying afflicting brown trout. It is triggered by a previously unknown virus, which is related to a virus that infects salmon in the North Atlantic and the Pacific.

---

This email is a free service of Science X Network
You received this email because you subscribed to our list.
If you do not wish to receive such emails in the future, please unsubscribe here.
You are subscribed as jmabs1@gmail.com. You may manage your subscription options from your Science X profile