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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for May 20, 2019:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
Astronomy & Space news
 | Astronomers investigate peculiar outburst activity of AG DraconisUsing a set of various ground-based telescopes, European astronomers have conducted photometric and spectroscopic observations of a symbiotic binary known as AG Draconis. Results of this observational campaign, presented in a paper published May 10 on arXiv.org, unveil the system's peculiar outburst activity in recent years. |
 | Juno finds changes in Jupiter's magnetic fieldNASA's Juno mission to Jupiter made the first definitive detection beyond our world of an internal magnetic field that changes over time, a phenomenon called secular variation. Juno determined the gas giant's secular variation is most likely driven by the planet's deep atmospheric winds. |
 | After the Moon, people on Mars by 2033... or 2060On December 11, 2017, US President Donald Trump signed a directive ordering NASA to prepare to return astronauts to the Moon "followed by human missions to Mars and other destinations." |
 | A massive collision in the Milky Way's pastOur Milky Way galaxy has probably collided or otherwise interacted with other galaxies during its lifetime; such interactions are common cosmic occurrences. Astronomers can deduce the history of mass accretion onto the Milky Way from a study of debris in the halo of the galaxy left as the tidal residue of such episodes. The approach has worked particularly well for studies of the most recent events like the infall of the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy a few billion years ago that left tidal streamers of stars visible in galaxy maps. The damaging effects these encounters can cause to the Milky Way have, however, not been as well studied, and events even further in the past are even less obvious as they become blurred by the galaxy's natural motions and evolution. |
 | Is dark matter made of axions? Black holes may reveal the answerWhat is dark matter made of? It's one of the most perplexing questions of modern astronomy. We know that dark matter is out there, since we can see its obvious gravitational influence on everything from galaxies to the evolution of the entire universe, but we don't know what it is. Our best guess is that it's some sort of weird new particle that doesn't like to talk to normal matter very often (otherwise, we would have seen it by now). One possibility is that it's an exotic hypothetical kind of particle known as an axion, and a team of astronomers are using none other than black holes to try to get a glimpse into this strange new cosmic critter. |
 | Giant impact caused difference between Moon's hemispheresThe stark difference between the Moon's heavily-cratered farside and the lower-lying open basins of the Earth-facing nearside has puzzled scientists for decades. |
 | First look at NASA's completed spacecraft that will carry Mars 2020 roverAn engineer inspects the completed spacecraft that will carry NASA's next Mars rover to the Red Planet, prior to a test in the Space Simulator Facility at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. |
 | Advanced civilizations could be communicating with neutrino beamsIn 1960, famed theoretical physicist Freeman Dyson made a radical proposal. In a paper titled "Search for Artificial Stellar Sources of Infrared Radiation," he suggested that advanced extra-terrestrial intelligences (ETIs) could be found by looking for signs of artificial structures so large that they encompass entire star systems (also known as megastructures). Since then, many scientists have come up with their own ideas for possible megastructures. |
Technology news
 | PAL: A wearable system for context-aware health and cognition supportResearchers at MIT Media Lab have developed a wearable platform that provides real-time, personalized, and context-aware health and cognition support. Their system, called personalized active learner (PAL), was presented in a paper pre-published on arXiv. |
 | Samsung at foundry event talks about 3nm, MBCFET developments"The nanometer process deals with the space between the transistors mounted on a substrate at a nanometer level," said Pulse. |
 | Google and Android system start to cut ties with HuaweiUS internet giant Google, whose Android mobile operating system powers most of the world's smartphones, said it was beginning to cut ties with China's Huawei, which Washington considers a national security threat. |
 | Driverless cars working together can speed up traffic by 35%A fleet of driverless cars working together to keep traffic moving smoothly can improve overall traffic flow by at least 35 percent, researchers have shown. |
 | AlterEgo opens silent spring of computer connections via wearableOK, we get it. Artificial intelligence experts are on a fast clip from year to year, month to month, showing off what their research can promise. But could it be that we have reached that stage in human-computer interaction, where you can think of a question —— without saying a word— and the machine will respond with the answer? |
 | Dog-like robot jumps, flips and trotsPutting their own twist on robots that amble through complicated landscapes, the Stanford Student Robotics club's Extreme Mobility team has developed a four-legged robot that is not only capable of performing acrobatic tricks and traversing challenging terrain but is also designed with reproducibility in mind. Anyone who wants their own version of the robot, dubbed Stanford Doggo, can consult comprehensive plans, code and a supply list that the students have made freely available online. |
 | As bitcoin gyrates, less euphoria in evidence at blockchain gatheringThe vibe at a gathering this week for blockchain enthusiasts felt decidedly less exuberant than its predecessor a year ago after dizzying swings in bitcoin. |
 | Researchers develop new flying / driving robotThe first experimental robot drone that flies like a typical quadcopter, drives on tough terrain and squeezes into tight spaces using the same motors, has been developed by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers. |
US states' drones inspect bridges, help predict avalanchesIn Utah, drones are hovering near avalanches to watch roaring snow. In North Carolina, they're searching for the nests of endangered birds. In Kansas, they could soon be identifying sick cows through heat signatures. | |
 | Huawei could be stripped of Google services after US banHuawei could lose its grip on the No. 2 ranking in worldwide cellphone sales after Google announced it would comply with U.S. government restrictions meant to punish the Chinese tech powerhouse. |
 | Google v Huawei hits millions of smartphone usersHundreds of millions of smartphone users will be affected by Google's decision to sever its Android operating system ties with Chinese handset maker Huawei. |
 | Smart device detects food contaminants in real timeSome consumers place importance on locally grown or organic food. Others want the products they purchase to look and taste good. Yet others focus on low prices. However, no matter what their other requirements, everyone would like their food to be free of contaminants, which makes it quite worrying that over 97 percent of European food products contain pesticide residues. The problem is that current contamination testing processes can be long and expensive, and can only be conducted by specialist personnel. |
 | Sprint, T-Mobile mega-merger gets nod from key US officialThe top official at the US communications regulator on Monday announced his support for the proposed $26 billion merger between telecoms firms Sprint and T-Mobile. |
 | Boeing acknowledges flaw in 737 MAX simulator softwareBoeing acknowledged Saturday it had to correct flaws in its 737 MAX flight simulator software used to train pilots, after two deadly crashes involving the aircraft that killed 346 people. |
 | Cement as a climate killer: Using industrial waste to produce carbon neutral alternativesProducing cement takes a heavy toll on our climate: Around eight per cent of annual global carbon dioxide emissions can be attributed to this process. However, the demand for cement continues to rise. A team of geoscientists from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) has found a way to produce more environmentally friendly and sustainable alternatives. In the journal Construction and Building Materials they describe how industrial residues can be used to produce high-quality, climate-friendly materials. |
 | Ford to cut 7,000 jobs, 10% of global salaried staffFord plans to cut 7,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its global salaried workforce, as part of a reorganization as it revamps its vehicle offerings, the company said Monday. |
 | Microsoft and Sony team up for video games in the cloud, but what's it mean for gamers?Microsoft and Sony usually battle it out for dominance in console video games. But in the growing realm of cloud gaming, in which games stream over the internet just as Netflix does, the two tech titans have decided to team up. |
 | Ryanair sees more turbulence after profit slumps on cheaper faresIrish no-frills airline Ryanair on Monday warned of further profits turbulence after annual earnings slumped almost a third, mainly on cheaper fares triggered by overcapacity in the European short-haul sector. |
 | Tata Motors profits fall 47% amid Jaguar Land Rover China slowdownIndian carmaker Tata Motors on Monday reported a 47 percent fall in quarterly profits after being hit by new struggles to sell its luxury Jaguar Land Rover cars in China and other key markets. |
Want to curb your robocall agony? Try these 3 things nowWe all hate robocalls and spam calls, but there's an easy solution for answering the phone with ease. | |
 | High-tech Estonia votes online for European ParliamentEstonia was crippled by cyberattacks on government networks during a dispute with Russia in 2007. Today the tiny tech-savvy nation is so certain of its cyber defenses that it is the only country in the world to allow internet voting for the entire electorate, in every election, and thousands have already done so in the European Parliament elections. |
 | US tech firms to take hit from Huawei sanctionsThe tough sanctions imposed on Huawei by President Donald Trump could deal a blow to the many US firms that make up the Chinese tech giant's supply chain. |
Medicine & Health news
 | Exercise and antioxidants: A winning combination for brain health?An international team of researchers representing several institutions in Japan and the US has published promising findings that may stand to benefit people living with the specter of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases, as well as age-related cognitive decline. In their paper published in PNAS, "Leptin in hippocampus mediates benefits of mild exercise by an antioxidant on neurogenesis and memory," Yook and colleagues present results from a series of experiments—murine and in vitro—that elucidate the role of leptin in cognitive function. Leptin is a hormone that is produced in adipose tissue and in the hippocampus, the part of the brain where memory and spatial learning are processed. |
 | Artificial intelligence system spots lung cancer before radiologistsDeep learning—a form of artificial intelligence—was able to detect malignant lung nodules on low-dose chest computed tomography (LDCT) scans with a performance meeting or exceeding that of expert radiologists, reports a new study from Google and Northwestern Medicine. |
 | Researchers discover placental stem cells that can regenerate heart after heart attackResearchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have demonstrated that stem cells derived from the placenta known as Cdx2 cells can regenerate healthy heart cells after heart attacks in animal models. The findings, published in the May 20 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), may represent a novel treatment for regenerating the heart and other organs. |
 | Big data reveals hidden subtypes of sepsisMuch like cancer, sepsis isn't simply one condition but rather many conditions that could benefit from different treatments, according to the results of a University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine study involving more than 60,000 patients. |
 | Noninvasive biomarker for Parkinson's disease possibly found in EEG dataSpecific angles and sharpness of brain waves seen in unfiltered raw data from scalp electroencephalograms have been tied to Parkinson's disease. |
 | Lupus treatments can be tailored to patient's individual cells, study showsThe kidneys of patients living with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are often under assault, and not all those living with the disease will respond to standard treatment. A new report published in the journal Nature Immunology online May 20 shows how tissue samples from these patients can accurately predict those more likely than not to respond to therapy. SLE is a disease marked by the attack on joints, skin, and kidneys by the body's immune system. |
 | Anxiety might be alleviated by regulating gut bacteriaPeople who experience anxiety symptoms might be helped by taking steps to regulate the microorganisms in their gut using probiotic and non-probiotic food and supplements, suggests a review of studies published today in the journal General Psychiatry. |
 | Predicting breast cancer metastasis by cell behavior instead of geneticsResearchers and clinicians don't fully understand why some cancers spread and others do not. What they do know is that when cancer does spread, it dramatically decreases survival rates. |
 | Dead cells disrupt how immune cells respond to wounds and patrol for infectionDead cells disrupt immune responses and undermine defence against infection, new research has found. |
 | Circadian mechanism may not be driver behind compound linked to obesity and diabetesSR9009 is a compound that can lead to a wide range of health benefits in animals, including reduced risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Until now, researchers—and companies that sell the compound for human use in the form of a nutraceutical—have attributed the effects to SR9009's role in altering the body's circadian clock, specifically its work through proteins called REV-ERBS that link metabolism and circadian rhythm. However, in a first-of-its-kind study from Penn Medicine, published today in PNAS, researchers found that SR9009 can effect cell growth and metabolic function without the involvement of REV-ERBs. |
 | Anxious people quicker to flee dangerFear and anxiety are both responses to danger but differ in timing. Fear strikes when something is an imminent threat: a tiger jumps over a fence, lunging at you. Anxiety, on the other hand, occurs when you have a moment to consider a threat: you spot a tiger in the distance and have time to think about whether to run or hide. |
 | New single vaccination approach to killer diseasesScientists from the University of Adelaide's Research Centre for Infectious Diseases have developed a single vaccination approach to simultaneously combat influenza and pneumococcal infections, the world's most deadly respiratory diseases. |
 | Discovery in mice could remove roadblock to more insulin productionBy the time someone gets diagnosed with diabetes—in either of its forms—the insulin-making factory inside their body has ground to a halt, or at least a slow crawl. |
 | Shedding light on cancer metabolism in real-time with bioluminescenceEPFL scientists have invented a new way to quantify—in real-time—glucose metabolism of cancerous tumors by making them bioluminesce. This new light probe is not radioactive and works on living organisms such as mice that carry the tumor cells. The technique requires tagged tumor cells, two jabs and a camera. The results are published in Nature Methods. |
 | Key drug target shown assembling in real-timeOver one-third of all FDA-approved drugs act on a specific family of proteins: G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Drugs to treat high blood pressure, asthma, cancer, diabetes and myriad other conditions target GPCRs throughout the body—but a recent study shows what happens next. In results published in Cell, researchers outline the timeline of events, including precisely when and how different parts of a GPCR interacts with its G protein signaling partners. The findings provide new insights into the fundamental mechanisms of drug-induced signaling in cells, including ways to identify the most critical portions of GPCRs for targeting development of novel therapeutics. |
 | Eating ultra-processed foods will make you gain weight. Here's the scientific proofFor four weeks, 20 healthy volunteers checked into a research center hospital and were served a variety of tempting meals: cinnamon french toast, stir-fry beef with broccoli and onions, turkey quesadillas and shrimp scampi. Researchers scrutinized everything that was eaten and came away with the first hard evidence to support a long-held suspicion: Heavily processed foods could be a leading factor in America's obesity epidemic. |
 | Integrated stepped alcohol treatment for people in HIV care improves both HIV and alcohol outcomesNew clinical research supported by the National Institutes of Health shows that increasing the intensity of treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD) over time improves alcohol-related outcomes among people with HIV. This stepped approach to AUD treatment also improves HIV-related disease measures in this patient population. A report of the new study, led by researchers at Yale University, is now online in The Lancet HIV. |
 | Button batteries can rapidly damage stomach lining before symptoms appearDamage to the lining of the stomach can occur quickly when children swallow button batteries; therefore, clinicians should consider prompt endoscopic removal, even when the child is symptom free and the battery has passed safely through the narrow esophagus, according to research presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2019. The recommendations represent a change from current practice of watching and waiting. |
 | Nearly one in five parents say their child never wears a helmet while riding a bikeDespite evidence that helmets are critical to preventing head injuries, not all children wear them while biking, skateboarding and riding scooters, a new national poll finds. |
 | Breastfeeding reduces long-term risk of heart disease in mothersWomen who breastfed their babies are less likely to develop heart disease later in life, according to findings to be presented in Lyon, at the European Society of Endocrinology annual meeting, ECE 2019. The study also suggests that the protective effect on heart health is increased in women who breastfed for longer periods of time. These findings provide further evidence for the long-term health benefits of breastfeeding and that women should be encouraged to do so when possible. |
 | Men ignore serious health risks of steroid abuse in pursuit of the body beautifulMany men continue to abuse steroids despite knowing that they have serious, life-limiting and potentially lethal side effects, according to findings to be presented in Lyon, at the European Society of Endocrinology annual meeting, ECE 2019. The study findings indicate that men using anabolic steroids to improve strength and physical performance are often aware of the side effects but choose to continue taking them. This raises serious concerns not only for their own health but that of future generations, since side effects are known to damage sperm as well as increase the risk of sexual dysfunction, heart disease and liver damage. |
 | New risk scores help physicians provide better care for high-risk pulmonary patients, study findsA new laboratory-based method of estimating outcomes for patients with a severe pulmonary disorder that has no cure can help physicians better provide proper care, referrals, and services for patients at the end of life, according to a new study of more than 17,000 patients from Intermountain Healthcare. |
 | Growth in life expectancy in Australia slows, research findsAfter 20 years of rapid increases in life expectancy at birth, the rate of growth in Australia is now falling behind most other high-income nations, meaning better control of health risk factors such as obesity will be needed if further life expectancy increases are to be achieved, research shows. |
 | Sedation and controlled paralysis do not improve survival of ICU patients with ARDSReversibly paralyzing and heavily sedating hospitalized patients with severe breathing problems do not improve outcomes in most cases, according to a National Institutes of Health-sponsored clinical trial conducted at dozens of North American hospitals and led by clinician-scientists at the University of Pittsburgh and University of Colorado schools of medicine. |
 | Patients with mild persistent asthma, low sputum eosinophils respond equally well to inhaled corticosteroids as placeboA study of nearly 300 patients with mild persistent asthma found that inhaled steroids—long considered the gold standard for asthma treatment—were no more effective than placebo in nearly three-fourths of the study patients, all over age 12. Inhaled steroids were better than placebo for a subset of the patients who had high levels of a particular type of inflammatory cells, called eosinophils, in their sputum, but they represented about a fourth of patients enrolled in the trial. |
 | Researchers document impact of coffee on bowelsCoffee drinkers know that coffee helps keep the bowels moving, but researchers in Texas are trying to find out exactly why this is true, and it doesn't seem to be about the caffeine, according to a study presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2019. Researchers, feeding rats coffee and also mixing it with gut bacteria in petri dishes, found that coffee suppressed bacteria and increased muscle motility, regardless of caffeine content. |
 | Walking and strength training may decrease the risk of dying from liver diseasePhysical activity, including walking and muscle-strengthening activities, were associated with significantly reduced risk of cirrhosis-related death, according to research presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2019. Chronic liver disease is increasing, partly due to the obesity epidemic, and currently there are no guidelines for the optimal type of exercise for the prevention of cirrhosis-related mortality. Researchers hope these findings will help provide specific exercise recommendations for patients at risk for cirrhosis and its complications. |
 | Children who walk to school less likely to be overweight or obese, study suggestsChildren who regularly walk or cycle to school are less likely to be overweight or obese than those who travel by car or public transport, a new study suggests. |
 | Diabetes patients at higher risk of deadly liver disease, finds study of 18 million peopleMany patients with potentially deadly liver cirrhosis and liver cancer are being diagnosed at late advanced stages of disease, according to a study led by Queen Mary University of London and the University of Glasgow. |
 | Sleep problems in teenagers reversed in just one week by limiting screen useSleep in teenagers can be improved by just one week of limiting their evening exposure to light-emitting screens on phones, tablets and computers, according to findings to be presented in Lyon, at the European Society of Endocrinology annual meeting, ECE 2019. The study indicates that by simply limiting their exposure to blue-light emitting devices in the evening, adolescents can improve their sleep quality and reduce symptoms of fatigue, lack of concentration and bad mood, after just one week. |
Environmental toxins can impair sexual development and fertility of future generationsExposure to environmental pollutants can cause alterations in brain development that affect sexual development and fertility for several generations, according to findings to be presented in Lyon, at the European Society of Endocrinology annual meeting, ECE 2019. The offspring of pregnant rats exposed to a mixture of common endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), at doses equivalent to those commonly experienced by people, showed impairments in sexual development and maternal behaviour that were passed on through several generations. These findings suggest that current levels of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in our environment may already be causing long-lasting harm and that people and agencies should take measures to minimise exposure. | |
Sexual minority cancer survivors face disparities in access to care and quality of lifeResults from a study published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, point to the need for improved access to medical care for sexual minority cancer survivors, in particular female survivors. In female cancer survivors, poor access to care is more strongly related to poor quality of life among sexual minorities compared with heterosexuals. | |
 | Pinterest homemade sunscreens: A recipe for sunburnSocial media and other online tools have changed the way people seek and share health information. Recent consumer interest in natural, organic, and ethically-made personal care products has led to an increase of shared recipes for homemade products including sunscreen. A new study conducted by researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital and the Brooks College of Health at University of North Florida examined how homemade sunscreens were portrayed on Pinterest. |
 | Teens with ADHD get more traffic violations for risky driving, have higher crash riskTeen drivers diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are significantly more likely to crash, be issued traffic and moving violations, and engage in risky driving behaviors than their peers without ADHD, according to a Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) study published today in the journal Pediatrics. |
 | New recommendations for stroke systems of care to improve patient outcomesImprovements in stroke systems of care are necessary to ensure scientific advances in the treatment and care of stroke patients improve patient outcomes, according to a policy statement published today by the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association, in the journal Stroke. |
Chinese-Americans abused earlier in life face greater abuse risk as eldersChinese-Americans who were victims of child abuse or intimate partner violence are at a greater risk of abuse when they are elderly, according to a Rutgers study in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. | |
First confirmed case of measles in Chicago is 8th in state this year, health officials sayA second case of measles in Cook County is the first in the city of Chicago and the eighth in the state of Illinois so far this year, according to health officials. | |
 | Enzyme may indicate predisposition to cardiovascular diseaseMeasuring the blood plasma levels of an enzyme called PDIA1 could one day become a method of diagnosing a person's predisposition to cardiovascular disease even if they are not obese, diabetic or a smoker, and with normal cholesterol. |
 | Brain surgeons turn to basic science to fight childhood brain cancerIn 2012, a pair of neurosurgery residents traded their scrubs for lab coats in an effort to understand, at the most basic level, what causes medulloblastoma, the most common pediatric brain cancer. |
 | Less than half of children in the U.S. are flourishing, study findsA new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has determined that less than half of school-aged children in the U.S. are flourishing. The study also found that the children most likely to flourish—across all levels of household income, health status, and exposure to adverse childhood experiences—are those who come from families with higher levels of resilience and connection. |
 | It's not all gym junkies and 'roid rage'—people use steroids for a variety of reasonsMost media reports would have you believe steroid users are predominantly young men suffering a "crisis of male ego" who are on a "deadly crusade to get ripped". |
 | Mixed reality makes for better surgeonsWhen neurosurgeons cut into the brain, they must be very, very precise: A single slip could mean disaster. Ehsan Azimi is working on a new augmented reality platform that could greatly improve brain surgeons' ability to navigate and visualize important landmarks during the procedure. |
 | Cancer drug approved for NHS use in England gives some multiple myeloma patients another optionA drug has been made available on the NHS in England for adults with a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma who cannot receive standard treatment. |
 | Global study links newly named syndrome with other disordersA new kind of congenital disorder caused by a group of mutations in a gene previously linked only to a rare progressive brain disease has been discovered by an international team co-led by Saudi investigators. |
 | Dietary cholesterol and egg consumption do not increase the risk of strokeA new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows that a moderately high intake of dietary cholesterol or consumption of up to one egg per day is not associated with an elevated risk of stroke. Furthermore, no association was found in carriers of the APOE4 phenotype, which affects cholesterol metabolism and is remarkably common among the Finnish population. The findings were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. |
 | New autism research on single neurons suggests signaling problems in brain circuitsAutism affects at least 2% of children in the United States—an estimated 1 in 59. This is challenging for both the patients and their parents or caregivers. What's worse is that today there is no medical treatment for autism. That is in large part because we still don't fully understand how autism develops and alters normal brain function. |
Why cannabis legalization must include cannabis equityCanada's federal government is currently working to pass a bill that would provide pardons for people convicted of minor cannabis possession. With a federal election around the corner, it may be too little, too late. | |
 | Research shows carer's experience can influence how well a person lives with dementiaNew research has identified how a carer's experience can impact on the ability of a person with dementia to 'live well' with the condition. |
 | What your ability to engage with stories says about your real-life relationshipsThe best TV shows and films don't simply distract from the drudgery of everyday life. They're places to vicariously get to know different people, and learn from their relationships and experiences. |
Nearly all women are confronted with health problems after breast cancerNearly all women who have been treated for non-metastatic breast cancer suffer from health problems after primary treatment. The problems reported by women include fatigue, tingling in the hands and feet (neuropathy), and memory and concentration problems. For two-third of these problems, healthcare services were sought. Chemotherapy was the treatment responsible for most of the health issues. These are the findings from research conducted by the University of Twente, the Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation (IKNL) and the Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL). The researchers documented the health problems experienced by breast cancer patients up to five years after diagnosis. | |
Researchers find stark social inequalities in children's body mass indexResearchers at Trinity College have found that socio-economic inequalities in children's body mass index (BMI) emerge during the pre-school years and widen across childhood and into early adolescence. These are the striking findings of a study published in the international, peer-reviewed journal Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology today. The findings arise from Trinity's involvement with the LIFEPATH project, an EU-funded consortium project investigating social differences in healthy ageing. | |
 | Strained relationships, past trauma and family responsibilities contribute to loneliness among midlife womenUrban minority midlife women commonly experience significant loneliness due to strained family and romantic relationships, responsibilities as a caregiver, past trauma and social isolation, according to new research being presented today at the American Psychiatric Association's Annual Meeting here. Supportive relationships were identified as protective against feelings of loneliness. |
 | How passionate people respond when good things happenA new Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management study found that the ways in which passionate people respond when good things happen in their favourite activities depends on their predominant passion type. |
 | Waking 'sleeping genes' could help Prader-Willi syndromeNew funding is enabling Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers to develop new approaches to potentially help people with Prader-Willi syndrome, a devastating and incurable genetic condition. |
 | Adherence to Mediterranean diet and reduced risk of late-life depressionMaintaining a Mediterranean-type diet may protect against symptoms of depression in later life, according to new research presented here at the American Psychiatric Association's 2019 Annual Meeting. |
 | The long-term physical-psychiatric effects of childhood traumaExposure to trauma in childhood is associated with both psychiatric and physical problems for decades afterward, according to new research presented here today at the American Psychiatric Association's (APA) Annual Meeting. Researchers are longitudinally assessing more than 1,000 individuals who were directly exposed to the 9/11 terror attack as children, as well as a matched control group of 500 individuals who were not. |
 | The healing power of a smile: A link between oral care and substance abuse recoveryYour smile, and associated oral health, may be a factor for successfully passing through the revolving doors of life. It is your first impression to a stranger, the closing argument to land a job and a major factor to achieving a good quality of life. For those who struggle with substance use disorder, oral health often falls off the precipice of self-care thereby seriously damaging interpersonal skills, while causing poor nutrition, increased oral and general infections and debilitating oral pain. |
 | Strawberry tree honey inhibits cell proliferation in colon cancer linesSpanish and Italian researchers have proven that when honey from strawberry trees, a product typical of Mediterranean areas, is added to colon cancer cells grown in the laboratory, cell proliferation stops. The authors hope that these promising results and the anti-tumour potential of this food will be confirmed in in vivo models. |
 | Australian drivers ready to embrace phone restriction apps—if they can still talkAlmost 70 per cent of drivers would be willing to install smartphone apps that block texting and browsing according to new QUT research—but only if they can still do hands-free calls and listen to Bluetooth music. |
Eliminating extended work shifts improves sleep duration for senior resident physiciansGetting a good night's sleep is important for everyone—including physicians. In 2011, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) set a limit on first-year resident physician shifts of 16 or fewer continuous hours of work. This policy change was based primarily on the results of studies comparing outcomes for first-year residents who worked extended-duration work shifts (24 hours or more) to those who worked rapid-cycling work shifts. | |
 | Behold the Bili-ruler: A novel, low-cost device for screening neonatal hyperbilirubinemiaNeonatal hyperbilirubinemia, commonly known as newborn jaundice, is a condition that affects up to 80 percent of newborns in the first week of life. Severe hyperbilirubinemia (bilirubin levels >20mg/dL) affects an estimated 1 million infants around the world annually. If diagnosed early, severe hyperbilirubinemia is largely treatable with high-intensity phototherapy, resulting in recovery without long-term consequences. If left undiagnosed or untreated, severe hyperbilirubinemia may lead to irreversible brain damage or even death. These complications often arise in low-resource settings; in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), one-third of infants with extreme hyperbilirubinemia die from a condition that is largely treatable. |
First-ever set of sextuplets born in PolandA woman has given birth to Poland's first sextuplets with each newborn weighing about one kilogram (2.2 pounds), physicians at the University Hospital in the city of Krakow announced on Monday. | |
 | Sex sells: How masculinity is used as currency to buy sperm donors' timeSperm banks in the United Kingdom and Australia use images and phrases associated with masculinity to attract donors because laws prohibit them from paying for sperm. |
 | Infant deaths highlight danger of misusing car seats, other sitting devicesCar safety seats are vital to protect children while traveling, but a new infant death study underlines the need to follow the seats' instructions and to use them only for their intended purpose. |
 | Biochemistry shows how the protein MITOL kicks off Parkin activityResearchers at Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Sciences are reporting new insight into how the Parkinson's disease-associated protein Parkin selects its targets. Cells depend on Parkin to help get rid of damaged mitochondria. This new work, which appears in the Journal of Biological Chemistry on Monday, May 20, suggests that Parkin depends on other proteins, including one called MITOL that has not previously been linked to Parkinson's disease, to direct it to those damaged mitochondria. The finding might help improve experimental therapies for Parkinson's that aim to boost Parkin activity. |
People with benign skin condition willing to trade time, money to cure disorderPeople with benign hyperpigmentation (the darkening or increase in the natural color of the skin), are willing to pay (WTP) nearly 14 percent of their monthly income and approximately 90 minutes a day to cure their condition. | |
California law led to an increase in childhood vaccination ratesA first of its kind analysis published today by researchers at the George Washington University (GW) found that a 2016 California vaccine law boosted protective coverage against measles and other serious childhood diseases compared to states that acted as statistical controls. At the same time, the data also revealed a sharp increase in medical exemptions to the vaccine mandate, concentrated in a few California counties. | |
 | The best exercises for brain health(HealthDay)—There's a lot you can learn from your elders, starting with the results of a multi-year study of exercise and brain health in seniors. |
 | Heavy teen boys may face higher heart disease risk as adults(HealthDay)—Just a few extra pounds during adolescence may translate into higher odds for heart disease in adulthood, a new study of young men suggests. |
 | Many lives could be saved if all hospitals had grade A rating(HealthDay)—More than 50,000 lives could be saved if all hospitals had an avoidable death rate equivalent to "A" grade hospitals, according to an updated report prepared for The Leapfrog Institute. |
 | Pool chemical injuries led to ~13,500 ED visits in 2015-2017(HealthDay)—Pool chemical injuries led to an estimated 13,508 U.S. emergency department visits during 2015 to 2017, and about one-third of these injuries occurred in children, according to research published in the May 17 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. |
 | CDC: Salmonella outbreaks linked to backyard poultry(HealthDay)—Backyard flocks of live poultry have been linked with Salmonella outbreaks that have sickened 52 people in 21 states, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. |
 | Studies: Benralizumab not effective reducing exacerbations in moderate to very severe COPDMore than 15.3 million people in the U.S. suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which is the third leading cause of death in this country, according to the American Lung Association. Patients often experience potentially life-threatening exacerbations, which can include days-long flare-ups of symptoms including shortness of breath that occur when the airways narrow from muscle tightness, swelling and mucus. |
 | Young children willing to punish misbehavior, even at personal cost, new research showsChildren as young as three years old are willing to punish others' bad behavior, even at personal cost, finds a new study by psychology researchers at New York University. The work adds to growing evidence that human beings distinguish between right and wrong at a very young age and are willing to pay a personal cost to encourage positive behavior in others. |
 | Stress from work, home can harm women's heartsEven with supportive spouses, many women still find themselves helping the kids with homework and cleaning up household messes, often while scrambling to make dinner after a 10-hour workday filled with deadlines and challenging colleagues. |
 | Medicaid expansion cuts racial disparities in preterm births(HealthDay)—Overall, state Medicaid expansion did not significantly impact rates of low birth weight or preterm birth outcomes from 2011 to 2016, but there were significant improvements in disparities for black infants relative to white infants for states that expanded Medicaid versus those that did not, according to a study published in the April 23/30 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. |
 | Cancer screening less likely among current smokers(HealthDay)—Current smokers are less likely to receive guideline-concordant screening studies for breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer versus never smokers, according to a study published online May 17 in JAMA Network Open. |
 | Scientists succeed in testing potential brain-based method to diagnose autismScientists at Wake Forest School of Medicine have taken the first step in developing an objective, brain-based test to diagnose autism. |
 | Protein that hinders advancement of prostate cancer identifiedResearchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have discovered that blocking a specific protein, may be a promising strategy to prevent the spread of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). |
 | Novel technique reduces obstruction risk in heart valve replacementResearchers at the National, Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a novel technique that prevents the obstruction of blood flow, a common fatal complication of transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR). The new method, called LAMPOON, may increase treatment options for high-risk patients previously ineligible for heart valve procedures. The Journal of the American College of Cardiology published the findings online on May 20. |
 | Do family members belong in ICU during procedures? Study finds clinicians mixed on practiceDo family members of loved ones who are critically ill and being treated in an intensive care unit at a hospital belong there when clinicians are performing bedside procedures? A new study from Intermountain Healthcare researchers finds many critical care clinicians have conflicting feelings about the practice. |
 | New computer-based predictive tool more accurately forecasts outcomes for respiratory patientsAre electronic health records and computer calculations a better, more accurate way to predict clinical outcomes for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease? |
 | Study identifies enzymes that prevent diabetic kidney diseaseA new study from Joslin Diabetes Center has proven that certain biological protective factors play a large role in preventing diabetic kidney disease in certain people. The study was published online in Diabetes Care. |
 | Progress in family planning in Africa acceleratingA new study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows that women in eight sub-Saharan African countries are gaining access to and using modern contraception at a faster rate than previously projected. This rate is well ahead of benchmark goals designed to give access to family planning services to an additional 120 million women in 69 of the world's poorest countries by 2020. |
 | Why do women military vets avoid using VA benefits?Many women military veterans turn to the Veterans Administration (VA) for health care and social services only as a "last resort" or "safety net," typically for an emergency or catastrophic health event, or when private health insurance is unaffordable. |
 | Nearly half of Juul Twitter followers are teens, young adults: study(HealthDay)—Juul became the dominant brand of e-cigarettes in the United States by targeting teens with its clever use of social media, a new study suggests. |
 | Island off Seattle known for low vaccine rates is changingSarah Day is a school nurse with "street cred" when it comes to the polarizing issue of vaccines on an idyllic island in Washington state known for its rural beauty, counterculture lifestyle and low immunization rates. |
 | Record number of patients take part in clinical researchOver 870,000 participants involved in health and social care research across England—a huge increase. The number of new life sciences studies supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) the highest yet. |
DRC must unite in Ebola fight amid 'high' risk of spread: WHO chiefThe World Health Organization chief on Monday urged different political factions in the Democratic Republic of Congo to unite in the battle against Ebola, warning that the risk of spread "remains very high". | |
 | Prediabetes does not increase the cardiac risk of patients with CADPrediabetes, the precursor stage before type 2 diabetes, does not increase the cardiac risk of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). An extensive study led by the University of Oulu, Finland, examined the effects of prediabetes on the cardiac risk of patients with CAD by monitoring the health of approximately 2,000 patients with CAD for six years. It is the first extensive follow-up study on this topic. |
London heart disease patients take part in clinical trial to test alternative to statinsA clinical trial, coordinated by researchers from Queen Mary University of London, is currently recruiting patients in London to see whether a new cholesterol-lowering drug could save lives in people who are intolerant to statins. | |
Mental health impacts of increasingly severe storms—lessons from the 2017 Atlantic storm seasonThe 2017 Atlantic storm season provides important lessons on the need to anticipate and prepare for the mental health impacts of increasingly severe weather events, according to new research presented here at the American Psychiatric Association's 2019 Annual Meeting. | |
 | SCAI releases multi-society endorsed consensus on the classification stages of cardiogenic shockA newly released expert consensus statement proposes a classification schema for cardiogenic shock (CS) that will facilitate communication in both the clinical and research settings. The document was published online in SCAI's Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions journal, and is endorsed by the American College of Cardiology, American Heart Association, the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. |
 | Progress to restore movement in people with neuromotor disabilitiesA study published in the advanced edition of 12 April in the journal Neural Computation shows that approaches based on Long-Short Term Memory decoders could provide better algorithms for neuroprostheses that employ Brain-Machine Interfaces to restore movement in patients with severe neuromotor disabilities. |
 | The top 5 veggies to add to your diet(HealthDay)—The guidelines to eat more vegetables are clear, and eating a rainbow of colors gets you the widest variety of nutrients and phyto-nutrients, those hard-to-duplicate compounds that go beyond vitamins and minerals. |
 | Pyrrolizidine alkaloid levels in dried and deep-frozen spices and herbs too highThe German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) deals regularly with the contamination of food with 1,2-unsaturated PA. It has already published opinions on the occurrence of 1,2-unsaturated PA in herbal teas, tea and honey, as well as a salad mixture contaminated with ragwort and food supplements (FS). The BfR has now made a health assessment of levels of 1,2-unsaturated PA determined by the monitoring authorities of the federal states in samples of various dried and deep-frozen herbs and spices. |
 | Project aims to transfer visual perceptions from the sighted to the blindA Rice University-led team of neuroengineers is embarking on an ambitious four-year project to develop headset technology that can directly link the human brain and machines without the need for surgery. As a proof of concept, the team plans to transmit visual images perceived by one individual into the minds of blind patients. |
Biology news
 | Bacteria change behavior to tackle tiny obstacle courseIt's not exactly the set of TV's "American Ninja Warrior," but a tiny obstacle course for bacteria has shown researchers how E. coli changes its behavior to rapidly clear obstructions to food. Their work holds implications for not only biology and medicine, but also robotic search-and-rescue tactics. |
 | Reverse-engineered computer model provides new insights into larval behaviorScientists have developed a new approach to describe the behaviours of microscopic marine larvae, which will improve future predictions of how they disperse and distribute. |
 | SABER tech gives DNA and RNA visualization a boostResearchers have been using "Fluorescence in situ hybridization" (FISH) analysis for decades to literally fish for specific DNA and RNA sequences in intact cells and tissues within their vast seas of nucleic acid molecules. Because of its ability to light specific sequences up under the microscope at the exact locations at which they reside, FISH has come to be a go-to method in the diagnosis of chromosomal abnormalities, investigation of the 3-D organization of genomes in cells' nuclei, analysis of the immediate products of gene expression known as messenger RNAs and more. |
 | Can a hands-on model help forest stakeholders fight tree disease?When a new, more aggressive strain of the pathogen that causes sudden oak death turned up in Oregon, scientists and stakeholders banded together to try to protect susceptible trees and the region's valuable timber industry. |
 | Bonobo moms play an active role in helping their sons find a mateMany social animals share child-rearing duties, but research publishing May 20 in the journal Current Biology finds that bonobo moms go the extra step and actually take action to ensure their sons will become fathers. From physically preventing other males from mating to bringing their sons in close proximity to ovulating females, bonobo moms bring new meaning to the notion of being overbearing—but in so doing, they increase their sons' chance of fatherhood three-fold. |
 | Key acid-activated protein channel identifiedJohns Hopkins researchers have discovered a long-sought protein, the proton-activated chloride channel (PAC), that is activated in acidic environments and could protect against the tissue-damaging effects of stroke, heart attack, cancer and inflammation. The researchers believe the discovery of this protein could provide a new drug target for potential therapies for stroke and other health issues. |
 | Climate change has long-term impact on species adaptabilityHistoric climate change events can have a lasting impact on the genetic diversity of a species, reveals a new study published in Current Biology. This unexpected finding emerged from an analysis of the alpine marmot's genome. |
 | Zebrafish help researchers explore alternatives to bone marrow donationBlood diseases such as leukemia and lymphoma are currently treated with bone marrow transplants—a transfer of blood stem cells from a healthy person to a patient in need. But the demand for patient-matched blood stem cells far exceeds their availability, and many patients go without. To bypass the need for donations, University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers are using zebrafish and human cells to determine how to grow blood stem cells in a laboratory dish. |
 | Cutting the time on early disease diagnoses with extracellular vesiclesWhen an individual has cancer, or any number of other diseases, early detection can make a huge difference in the outcome. A research team led by the University of Notre Dame is working to cut the test time for disease biomarkers. The new timeline—30 minutes instead of 13 hours—uses even smaller sample sizes to offer a new liquid biopsy option. |
 | Intensive silviculture accelerates Atlantic rainforest biodiversity regenerationAn experiment conducted in Brazil in an area of Atlantic Rainforest suggests that intensive silviculture, including the use of herbicide and substantial amounts of fertilizer, is a more effective approach to promoting the regeneration of tropical forest and biomass gain than the traditional method based on manual weeding and less fertilizer. |
 | Replace soil with foam to solve global food security crisis, say scientistsSpecially developed foams could help avert a global food security crisis by replacing fast-degrading soils, according to scientists. |
 | Rat poison now affects peri-urban wildlife in Cape Town, study findsUrban rat poisons are spilling over into Cape Town's natural environment, threatening species such as caracal, mongoose, otter and owl, a team of University of Cape Town (UCT) researchers in the Institute for Communities and Wildlife in Africa (iCWild) has discovered. |
 | Managing mutations of a species: the evolution of dog breedingIn the first edition of On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin mentions dogs 54 times. He does so mainly because the extraordinary variation between dog breeds provides a marvellous illustration of the power of selection. For most of the roughly 15,000 years since their domestication, dogs were selected by humans for their usefulness as hunters, retrievers, herders, guards or companions. |
 | Biodiversity loss has finally got political — and this means new thinking on the left and the rightThe world recently discovered that disastrous deterioration in the health of most of the planet's ecosystems means that a million species are threatened with extinction. This is among the findings of the most thorough ever survey of the state of the biosphere, carried out by the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). |
 | 3-D technology looks into the distant pastResearchers from the University of Tübingen and their colleagues from Switzerland have studied hundreds of fossil carp teeth for the first time using 3-D technologies. In 4 million-year old lake sediments from what is now the Armenian highlands, they found evidence of an astonishing variety of carp. Thanks to "virtual palaeontology," the researchers identified four closely-related species of Mesopotamian barb fish, so-called scrapers. They believe that these species lived together in a giant system of lakes and formed a "species flock:" a group of closely related species inhabiting the same biotope. It is the first time that a species flock of freshwater fish has been found in western Asia. Today, these carp species live in separate regions. Findings such as this can help us to understand evolutionary developments and the origins of species diversity. |
 | Structural and functional mechanisms of a new class of bacterial sigma/anti-sigma factors revealedTranscription is the process of synthesizing messenger RNA by RNA polymerase based on the DNA sequence of a gene and is the initial step in gene expression. In bacteria, σ factor is a key component of RNA polymerase for promoter recognition and transcription initiation. |
 | Size is everything, ecologist findsNatural ecosystems are as vulnerable as they are diverse. Environmental changes such as climate change, pollution or the spread of alien species can easily throw an ecosystem off balance. Researchers are therefore investigating how susceptible ecosystems are to disruption. But in their search for answers they face the problem that the complex network of relationships includes innumerable interactions, which are virtually impossible to record comprehensively and convert into measurable data. |
 | Researchers demonstrate double-lock protection mechanism in crucial cellular switchesLudwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich researchers have used CRISPR technology to probe the mechanisms that guide the developmental trajectories of stem cells in the brain. The results show that crucial cellular switches are doubly protected against unintended activation. |
 | Traumatised by conflict, animals find haven in JordanFor more than a year after being moved to a Jordanian wildlife reserve from war-hit Syria, two bears, Loz and Sukkar, would cower whenever planes flew by, traumatised by past bombardments. |
 | China's pig disease outbreak pushes up global pork pricesHong Kong retiree Lee Wai-man loves pork fresh from the market but eats a lot less now that the price has jumped as China struggles with a deadly swine disease that has sent shockwaves through global meat markets. |
 | Chinese official hands over new panda to Vienna zooA senior Chinese official has officially handed over a 19-year-old male giant panda to Vienna's Schoenbrunn zoo. |
 | The return of the wolvesThe current return of wolves to human-dominated landscapes poses a major challenge for the protection of this species, says conservation biologist and private lecturer (PD) Dr. Marco Heurich from the University of Freiburg. He emphasizes that conflicts arise around the conservation of wolves in these landscapes due to farm animal slaughter, competition with hunters and human protection. The question of how humans can coexist with predators triggers a strong emotional debate. Based on these observations, a team of scientists led by Dr. Dries Kuijper from the Mammal Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences analyzed the existing knowledge on how to deal with large carnivores living in the wild in Europe and other parts of the world. The aim was to enable an objective, scientifically sound discussion of various scenarios of wolf management. The researchers have presented their results in the current issue of the scientific journal Biological Conservation. |
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