Science
press releases.

Science18 Apr 2025

Acyclovir-induced nephrotoxicity: Protective potential of N-acetylcysteine

Background and objectives Oxidative stress could be a key process in acyclovir (ACV)-induced nephrotoxicity. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a water-soluble antioxidant with anti-inflammatory activity. This study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of NAC on ACV-induced nephrotoxicity in adult Wistar rats. Methods Forty adult male Wistar rats (200–220 g) were used. The rats were randomly divided into eight groups (n = 5/group) and were treated intraperitoneally daily for seven days as follows: Group 1 (Control) was administered water (0.2mL), while groups 2–4 were administered NAC (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg). Group 5 was administered ACV (150 mg/kg), while ...

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Science18 Apr 2025

AERA announces winners of the 2025 Palmer O. Johnson Memorial Award

Washington, April 18, 2025—The American Educational Research Association (AERA) has announced the winners of the 2025 Palmer O. Johnson Memorial Award. The Palmer O. Johnson Memorial Award is presented annually in recognition of the most outstanding article published in an AERA journal. The recipients are Denisa Gándara (University of Texas at Austin), Hadis Anahideh (University of Illinois, Chicago), Matthew P. Ison (Northern Illinois University), and Lorenzo Picchiarini (Interlake Mecalux) for their article, “Inside the Black Box: Detecting and Mitigating Algorithmic Bias Across Racialized ...

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Science18 Apr 2025

Mapping minds: The neural fingerprint of team flow dynamics

Summary: A collaborative study by researchers from Toyohashi University of Technology and California Institute of Technology (Caltech) introduces a groundbreaking algorithm that maps individual brain activity in a multi-dimensional space. This “neural fingerprint” reveals stable, long-term neural traits that interplay with transient brain states during social interactions. The study demonstrates that individuals whose neural fingerprints are more aligned tend to more readily enter a shared state of deep focus—commonly known as team flow—which has profound implications for enhancing teamwork ...

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Science18 Apr 2025

AACR: MD Anderson’s John Weinstein elected Fellow of the AACR Academy

CHICAGO ― John N. Weinstein, M.D., Ph.D., chair of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology and professor of Systems Biology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, has been elected to the 2025 class of Fellows of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Academy in recognition of decades of combined laboratory and computational work pioneering multi-omic molecular profiling, including the introduction of new laboratory techniques, clustered heat maps, and early innovations in artificial intelligence for cancer drug discovery. The mission of the AACR Academy is to honor distinguished scientists whose contributions have propelled ...

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Science18 Apr 2025

How wide are faults?

At the Seismological Society of America’s Annual Meeting, researchers posed a seemingly simple question: how wide are faults? Using data compiled from single earthquakes across the world, Christie Rowe of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory at the University of Nevada, Reno and Alex Hatem of the U.S. Geological Survey sought a more comprehensive answer, one that considers both surface and deep traces of seismic rupture and creep. By compiling observations of recent earthquakes, Rowe and Hatem conclude that from Turkey to California, it’s not just a ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Americans don’t think bird flu is a threat, study suggests

New York, NY | April 17, 2025 - In an editorial in the American Journal of Public Health, a team led by researchers from the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy (CUNY SPH) say public ignorance and apathy towards bird flu (highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI) could pose a serious obstacle to containing the virus and preventing a larger-scale public health crisis. The authors, including CUNY SPH Assistant Professor Rachael Piltch-Loeb, Associate Professor Katarzyna Wyka, ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

New CDC report shows increase in autism in 2022 with notable shifts in race, ethnicity, and sex

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health contributed to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report examining autism among children who turned 4 and 8 years old in 2022. The CDC report, which includes data from 16 study sites across the U.S. including Maryland, found an overall prevalence of autism of 1 in 31 (3.2%) among 8-year-olds in 2022. The Maryland study site, led by researchers at Bloomberg School’s Wendy Klag Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities, found a prevalence of 1 in 38 (2.6%) ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Nonalcoholic beer yeasts evaluated for fermentation activity, flavor profiles

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Small organisms can have a big impact. That’s why researchers explored nearly a dozen nontraditional yeast strains to find out which ones could brew the best nonalcoholic beers for a rapidly growing market. The Center for Beverage Innovation and Lafontaine Lab — including researchers with the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas and the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station — evaluated 11 commercially available yeasts to identify their strengths based ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Millions could lose no-cost preventive services if SCOTUS upholds ruling

A study by the Stanford Prevention Policy Modeling Lab (PPML) finds that almost 30% of privately insured individuals in the United States, or nearly 40 million people, use at least one of the free preventive health services guaranteed under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). But those services are now under threat by an ongoing legal challenge. On April 21, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in Kennedy v. Braidwood Management Inc. to decide whether to uphold the ruling from a Texas district court that the ACA preventive services mandate was unconstitutional. The ACA requires that private insurers cover specific preventive services at no cost to ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Research spotlight: Deer hunting season linked to rise in non-hunting firearm incidents

How would you summarize your study for a lay audience? We wanted to study any changes in firearm incidents—both hunting-related and non-hunting-related—brought on by deer hunting season. We looked at four years’ worth of data across 10 states where hunting is popular. We found an unsurprising increase in hunting-related firearm incidents, but we also saw increases in the rates of non-hunting related firearm incidents, including those categorized as suicide, involving alcohol or other substances, domestic violence, home invasion or robberies, and defensive use; meanwhile, there were no changes in incidents involving police officers or children. What ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Finding friendship at first whiff: Scent plays role in platonic potential

ITHACA, N.Y. – Two women meeting for the first time can judge within minutes whether they have the potential to be friends — guided as much by smell as any other sense, new Cornell University research on friendship formation finds. “The Interactive Role of Odor Associations in Friendship Preferences,” published in Scientific Reports, adds to our understanding of the complex picture of what goes on when meeting someone for the first time — and judging the potential for future interactions. In a study of heterosexual women, the researchers found that personal, idiosyncratic preferences based on a person’s everyday scent, captured on ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers releases 2025 expert panel document on best practices in MS management

Keeping up with scientific advances and practice changes can be one the biggest challenges in managing a complex disease like multiple sclerosis (MS). The Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) regularly publishes Best Practices statements on aspects of MS care. This month, a new “Best Practices in Multiple Sclerosis Therapies: 2025 Update” has been released on the organization’s website [https://www.mscare.org/best-practices-in-multiple-sclerosis-therapies/] and will be distributed at the upcoming CMSC Annual Meeting, May 28-31, 2025, in Phoenix, ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Fresh insights into why solid-state batteries fail could inform longer-lasting batteries

Solid-state lithium batteries fail for the same reason over-bent paperclips snap – metal fatigue in the anode itself, according to a new study. The findings, which show that this fatigue follows well-documented mechanical behavior, provide a quantitative framework for predicting the cycle life of solid-state batteries, enabling new pathways for designing longer-lasting and safer energy storage systems. Solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSBs) promise both high energy and improved safety by combining a lithium ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

New study reveals how cleft lip and cleft palate can arise

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Cleft lip and cleft palate are among the most common birth defects, occurring in about one in 1,050 births in the United States. These defects, which appear when the tissues that form the lip or the roof of the mouth do not join completely, are believed to be caused by a mix of genetic and environmental factors. In a new study, MIT biologists have discovered how a genetic variant often found in people with these facial malformations leads to the development of cleft lip and cleft palate. Their findings suggest that the variant diminishes cells’ supply of transfer RNA, a molecule ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Nontraditional risk factors shed light on unexplained strokes in adults younger than 50

Research Highlights: Among adults ages 18-49 (median age of 41 years) who were born with a hole in the upper chambers of their heart known as patent foramen ovale (PFO), strokes of unknown cause were more strongly associated with nontraditional risk factors, such as migraines, liver disease or cancer, rather than more typical factors such as high blood pressure. Migraine with aura was the top factor linked to strokes of unknown causes, also called cryptogenic strokes, especially among women. Embargoed ...

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Science17 Apr 2025

Veterinary: UK dog owners prefer crossbreeds and imports to domestic pedigree breeds

The UK pedigree dog population shrank by a yearly decline of 0.9% between 1990 and 2021, according to research published in Companion Animal Genetics and Health. The study highlights a rise in the populations of crossbreeds and imported pedigree dogs since 1990, but finds that only 13.7% of registered domestic pedigree dogs were used for breeding between 2005 and 2015. There are more than 400 breeds of dogs globally, characterised by different appearances and behaviours. While the overall population of pet dogs in the UK ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

Start of US hunting season linked to increased firearm incidents, including violent crimes and suicide

The start of deer hunting season in the US - when firearms and ammunition are more available in certain states - is associated with increases in both hunting and non-hunting related firearm incidents, including violent crime and suicide, finds a study published by The BMJ today. While increases in hunting related incidents are to be expected at this time, increases in non-hunting related firearm incidents “indicate the potential general effect of greater firearm availability on different ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

National Center to Reframe Aging teams up with West End Home Foundation

The National Center to Reframe Aging — the leading organization for proven communication strategies and tools to effectively frame aging issues — is partnering with The West End Home Foundation (WEHF), an independent charitable foundation located in Nashville, Tennessee. The National Center to Reframe Aging will be a strategic partner to support the WEHF’s mission to enrich the lives of older people through grant making, advocacy, and community collaboration. Key leaders of the Tennessee Department of Disability and Aging and the Tennessee aging network will participate in educational opportunities and receive tools from the National Center ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

RoboBee comes in for a landing

The Harvard RoboBee has long shown it can fly, dive, and hover like a real insect. But what good is the miracle of flight without a safe way to land? A storied engineering achievement by the Harvard Microrobotics Laboratory, the RoboBee is now outfitted with its most reliable landing gear to date, inspired by one of nature’s most graceful landers: the crane fly. Publishing in Science Robotics, the team led by Robert Wood, the Harry Lewis and Marlyn McGrath Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences in the John A. Paulson School ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

“Ban-the-Box” policy did not effectively help job applicants with criminal records in one analysis

Analysis of job applicant data from one large employer suggests that a policy meant to improve employment prospects for people with criminal records did not actually lead to changes in job offers for people with records. Deborah Weiss of Northwestern University, U.S., and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on April 16, 2025. Parts of the U.S. have introduced “Ban-the-Box” (BTB) laws, which aim to improve job prospects for people with criminal records. ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

Sunscreen, clothes and caves may have helped Homo sapiens survive 41,000 years ago

ANN ARBOR—Ancient Homo sapiens may have benefitted from sunscreen, tailored clothes and the use of caves during the shifting of the magnetic North Pole over Europe about 41,000 years ago, new University of Michigan research shows. These technologies could have protected Homo sapiens living in Europe from harmful solar radiation. Neanderthals, on the other hand, appear to have lacked these technologies and disappeared around 40,000 years ago, according to the study, published in Science Advances and led by researchers at Michigan Engineering and the U-M Department of Anthropology. The team found ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

Bite-sized chunks of chicken with the texture of whole meat can be grown in the lab

A bioreactor that mimics a circulatory system can deliver nutrients and oxygen to artificial tissue, enabling the production of over 10 grams of chicken muscle for cultured meat applications. These results are publishing in the Cell Press journal Trends in Biotechnology on April 16. “Our study presents a scalable, top-down strategy for producing whole-cut cultured meat using a perfusable hollow fiber bioreactor,” says senior author Shoji Takeuchi of The University of Tokyo. “This system enables cell distribution, alignment, contractility, ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

A compact, mid-infrared pulse generator

Physicists in the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have created a compact laser that emits extremely bright, short pulses of light in a useful but difficult-to-achieve wavelength range, packing the performance of larger photonic devices onto a single chip. Published in Nature, the research is the first demonstration of an on-chip, picosecond, mid-infrared laser pulse generator that requires no external components to operate. The device can make what’s called an optical frequency comb, a spectrum of light consisting of equally spaced frequency lines (like a comb), used today in precision measurements. ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

Sex-based differences in binge and heavy drinking among US adults

About The Study: This analysis found that past-month binge drinking among young adult females in 2021-2023 was higher than males, reversing 2017-2019 patterns, whereas males in other age groups continued to binge and heavy drink at higher rates. These findings may be due to more rapid decreases in binge drinking over time among young adult males relative to females, or to plateauing or increases in binge drinking among females. Further investigation using other nationally representative surveys is needed to elucidate these explanations. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Bryant Shuey, MD, MPH, email bryant.shuey@pitt.edu. To ...

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Science16 Apr 2025

Using vibrations to see into Yellowstone's magma reservoir

Beneath Yellowstone lies a magma reservoir, pulsing with molten and superheated rock and exsolved gases. Scientists have long known about the chamber’s existence, but have yet to precisely locate its uppermost boundary and characterize the contents of the chamber closest to the surface—information crucial for understanding the potential perils this volcanic feature poses. That changed this week with new research by seismologists from the University of Utah and the University of New Mexico (UNM) who used hundreds of portable seismometers and a mechanical vibration source to render 2D seismic reflection images of the ground beneath Yellowstone’s caldera. Using ...

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