EMS workers 3 times more likely to experience mental health issues

Patients with a high number of genes most associated with pathways that lead to cell death in lung cancer are at increased risk of dying early from their disease, researchers report. Also seemingly paradoxically, patients with high expression of this "21-gene cell death signature" the researchers have identified, have indicators that their immune system is attacking the cancer, like higher levels of cytotoxic T cells, which typically kill cancer. But they also have high levels of molecules that can suppress those T cells, helping transform them into dysfunctional, "exhausted" T cells, they report in the journal Cancers. This novel genomic signature can be used both to better predict how a patient with ...

In 2020, the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization stated that breast cancer accounts for most cancer morbidities and mortalities in women worldwide. This alarming statistic not only necessitates newer methods for the early diagnosis of breast cancer, but also brings to light the importance of risk prediction of the occurrence and development of this disease. Ultrasound is an effective and noninvasive diagnostic procedure that truly saves lives; however, it is sometimes difficult for ultrasonologists to distinguish between malignant tumors and other ...

X-Ray Experiments, Machine Learning Could Trim Years Off Battery R&D By Glenn Roberts Jr. An X-ray instrument at Berkeley Lab contributed to a battery study that used an innovative approach to machine learning to speed up the learning curve about a process that shortens the life of fast-charging lithium batteries. Researchers used Berkeley Lab's Advanced Light Source, a synchrotron that produces light ranging from the infrared to X-rays for dozens of simultaneous experiments, to perform a chemical imaging technique known as scanning transmission ...

Parkinson's disease (PD) is well known as a debilitating disease that gradually worsens over time. Although the disease's progression has been largely tied to the loss of motor functions, non-motor symptoms, including the loss of cognitive abilities, often emerge early in the disease. Much less understood is the role that specific neural circuits play in these distinct motor and non-motor functions. A new study led by neurobiologists at the University of California San Diego and their colleagues found that specific, identifiable neural pathways are charged with particular functions during stages of the disease. ...

Developing new materials and novel processes has continued to change the world. The M3I3 Initiative at KAIST has led to new insights into advancing materials development by implementing breakthroughs in materials imaging that have created a paradigm shift in the discovery of materials. The Initiative features the multiscale modeling and imaging of structure and property relationships and materials hierarchies combined with the latest material-processing data. The research team led by Professor Seungbum Hong analyzed the materials research projects reported by leading global ...

Researchers at the Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have developed DeepTCR, a software package that employs deep-learning algorithms to analyze T-cell receptor (TCR) sequencing data. T-cell receptors are found on the surface of immune T cells. These receptors bind to certain antigens, or proteins, found on abnormal cells, such as cancer cells and cells infected with a virus or bacteria, to guide the T cells to attack and destroy the affected cells. "DeepTCR is an open-source software that ...

A research team led by Professor PAN Jianwei and Professor XU Feihu from University of Science and Technology of China achieved single-photon 3D imaging over 200 km using high-efficiency optical devices and a new noise-suppression technique, which is commented by the reviewer as an almost "heroic" attempt at single photon lidar imaging at very long distances. Lidar imaging technology has enabled high precision 3D imaging of target scene in recent year. Single photon imaging lidar is an ideal technology for remote optical imaging with single-photon level sensitivity and picosecond resolution, yet its imaging range is strictly limited by the quadratically decreasing count of photons that echo back. Researchers first optimized transceiver optics. The lidar system setup adopted ...

A new automated process prints a peptide-based hydrogel scaffold containing uniformly distributed cells. The scaffolds hold their shapes well and successfully facilitate cell growth that lasts for weeks. "Bioprinting" -- 3D printing that incorporates living cells -- has the potential to revolutionize tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Scientists have experimented with natural and synthetic "bioinks" to print out scaffolds that hold cells in place as they grow and form a tissue with a specific shape. But there are challenges with cell survival. Natural bioinks, such as gelatin and collagen, need to be treated with chemicals or ultraviolet light to hold their shape, which affects ...

A new analysis of the entire genetic makeup of more than 53,000 people offers a bonanza of valuable insights into heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders, paving the way for new and better ways to treat and prevent some of the most common causes of disability and death. The analysis from the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program examines the complete genomes of 53,831 people of diverse backgrounds on different continents. Most are from minority groups, which have been historically underrepresented in genetic studies. The increased representation should translate into better understanding of how heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders affect minorities and should help reduce longstanding health disparities. "The Human Genome Project has generated ...

Researchers at Tel Aviv University were able to reconstruct the nutrition of stone age humans. In a paper published in the Yearbook of the American Physical Anthropology Association, Dr. Miki Ben-Dor and Prof. Ran Barkai of the Jacob M. Alkov Department of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University, together with Raphael Sirtoli of Portugal, show that humans were an apex predator for about two million years. Only the extinction of larger animals (megafauna) in various parts of the world, and the decline of animal food sources toward the end of the stone age, led humans to gradually increase the vegetable element in their nutrition, until finally they had no choice but to domesticate both plants and animals - and became farmers. "So far, attempts to reconstruct the diet of stone-age humans ...