Science
press releases.

Science4 Dec 2024

From snapshots to motion: watching biology in action

Choosing a film for a movie night is always a battle. Now imagine if you could pick one that provided a window into some of the most fundamental biological processes that keep us alive. For the first time ever, researchers have captured a real-time molecular movie to show how two essential cellular processes – transcription and translation – interact with each other in bacteria. In all living organisms, DNA contains the code that defines cellular structures and functions. An enzyme called RNA polymerase deciphers this code and converts it into RNA, a molecule ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Key breakthrough in autism: pivotal role of CPEB4 condensates revealed

A study by IRB Barcelona unveils how the lack of a fraction of the CPEB4 protein causes a decrease in the expression of genes that are crucial for neuronal development. Published in the journal Nature, the study opens new avenues for the development of targeted treatments for autism. Barcelona, 4 December 2024 –Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by difficulties in communication and social behaviour. Approximately 20% of cases are linked to a specific genetic mutation, but the origin of the remaining 80%, known as idiopathic autism, remains a mystery. A team of scientists led by Drs. Raúl Méndez and Xavier Salvatella at the Institute ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Neural signature could show the way to recovery from trauma

Researchers at UCSF find a brain signature of resilience in mice that suggests a new way of treating severe depression. Some people bounce back from trauma, but others get caught in depressive loops that sap the joy from their lives. Now, scientists at UC San Francisco are learning how the brain creates these divergent experiences. They hope it will help them find a way to treat those who struggle with long-lasting symptoms of stress. The researchers found that stress changes activity in a brain circuit ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Largest study of CTE in male ice hockey players finds odds increased 34% with each year played

EMBARGOED by JAMA Network Open until 11 a.m. ET, Dec. 4, 2024 Contact: Gina DiGravio, 617-358-7838, ginad@bu.edu Largest Study of CTE in Male Ice Hockey Players Finds Odds Increased 34% With Each Year Played 18 of 19 NHL Players Had CTE, but zero of 6 who played fewer than 6 years (Boston)—The largest study ever of 77 deceased male ice hockey players by the Boston University CTE Center found that the odds of having chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) increased by 34% each year played, and 18 of 19 National Hockey League players had CTE. CTE is a neurodegenerative disease caused by repeated traumatic brain injuries and most frequently found in former contact sport athletes ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Insects wearing two hats solve botanical mystery

The discovery of a unique case where the same insect species both pollinate a plant and distribute its seeds not only solves a long-standing botanical mystery. The Kobe University find also stresses the diverse roles insects play in our ecosystem. In the dark and moist understories of the subtropical forests of Shimoshima Island in Japan grow parasitic plants that feed on the roots of other plants. They are called Balanophora, and for over a century, the mechanism of their seed dispersal has remained a mystery. It has been ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Owning a home in the US linked to longer life

Dr Casey Breen, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Oxford University’s Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science and Department of Sociology, conducted the study, published today in Demography. The study found that homeownership was associated with 0.36 years of additional life expectancy for Black male Americans who were born in the early twentieth century, and 0.42 years for their White counterparts. Dr Casey Breen said ‘My study finds homeownership has a meaningful positive impact on life expectancy. These results ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Study finds perceptions of parent cannabis use shape teen attitudes

PULLMAN, Wash. — Teens who think their parents use cannabis are more likely to hold favorable attitudes toward the drug and to consider trying it themselves, according to a new Washington State University study. The research, published in the Journal of Child and Family Studies, also reveals that parental monitoring and the closeness of parent-child relationships play crucial roles in adolescents’ views about cannabis, often with distinct effects based on the parent’s gender. The ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

$230K grant awarded to The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) to advance translational research on SYNGAP1-Related Disorders

Mill Valley, CA – December 4, 2024 – The SynGAP Research Fund (SRF) has awarded a $230,000 grant to The Jackson Laboratory Rare Disease Translational Center to characterize a mouse model for SYNGAP1-Related Disorders, (SRD), a severe neurodevelopmental disorder marked by seizures, intellectual disabilities, and motor and behavioral challenges. This work, under Matthew Simon Ph.D., senior study director and lead scientist at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX), will focus on the characteristics of the SYNGAP1-Q503X mouse model, which mirrors a specific patient variant of SRD. A key SRF partner, Tevard Biosciences, will use the SYNGAP1-Q503X ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Eating high-processed foods impacts muscle quality

CHICAGO – A diet high in ultra-processed foods is associated with higher amounts of fat stored inside thigh muscles, regardless of the amount of calories consumed or level of physical activity, according to a study being presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Higher amounts of intramuscular fat in the thigh could also increase the risk for knee osteoarthritis. The use of natural and minimally processed ingredients in many modern diets has decreased, more often being replaced with ingredients that have been industrially processed, artificially flavored, colored or chemically altered. Foods ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Study Exposes High Injury Rates in Transgender Women

CHICAGO – A new study found that injury rates among transgender women are significantly higher than injuries among cisgender women, based on radiological imaging. The findings will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). ‘Cisgender’ is a term used to describe people whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth, while ‘transgender’ describes people whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

A new catalyst can turn methane into something useful

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Although it is less abundant than carbon dioxide, methane gas contributes disproportionately to global warming because it traps more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, due to its molecular structure. MIT chemical engineers have now designed a new catalyst that can convert methane into useful polymers, which could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “What to do with methane has been a longstanding problem,” says Michael Strano, the Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT and the senior author of the study. “It’s a source of carbon, and we want to keep it out ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Study explores race and ethnicity dynamics in survival in the United States after people reach their mid-80s and beyond

Though African Americans have higher death rates before their 80s, after about age 85, their age-specific death rate falls below that of the white population, a phenomenon known as the "Black-White mortality crossover." New research published in the Journal of Internal Medicine reveals that this lower mortality among African Americans persists to age 100+ years. The study relied on data adjusted for potential misreporting of age, race, and ethnicity from the US National Center for Health Statistics to obtain life expectancy ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

Non-invasive imaging tests may lead to early sepsis detection

Clinicians lack methods for early detection of sepsis, a dysregulated response to infection that can result in life-threatening organ failure if treatment is delayed. New research published in The FASEB Journal reveals the potential of a non-invasive strategy that assesses blood flow through skeletal muscle. The strategy involves imaging methods—called hyperspectral near-infrared spectroscopy and diffuse correlation spectroscopy—commonly used at the bedside to monitor tissue conditions. In experiments conducted in rodents, use of these methods together detected signs of sepsis in the skeletal muscle ...

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Science4 Dec 2024

People who use vapes as well as cigarettes are less likely to quit and often switch to just smoking

People who use both vapes and cigarettes are less likely to quit compared to people who only smoke or only vape, according to a study published today (Wednesday) in ERJ Open Research [1]. Instead, the research suggests that over time, most of these ‘dual users’ tend to revert to only smoking cigarettes. The researchers say their findings suggest that taking up vaping while continuing to smoke will probably not help people to stop smoking. The study, by researchers from Germany, the USA and Denmark, was ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

nTIDE Deeper Dive November 2024: Employment trends highlight strength of veterans with disabilities

East Hanover, NJ – December 3, 2024 – Veterans with disabilities continue to outperform the general population of people with disabilities in employment rates, highlighting the possible impact of specialized training and participation in essential industries, according to a new analysis shared during a National Trends in Disability Employment (nTIDE) Deeper Dive Lunch & Learn Webinar held on November 22. nTIDE is a joint effort by Kessler Foundation and the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability (UNH-IOD). Despite ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

How the speed of viral spread can be estimated by the analysis of genomic sequences

Evaluating the speed at which viruses spread and transmit across host populations is critical to mitigating disease outbreaks. A study published December 3rd in PLOS Biology by Simon Dellicour at the University of Brussels (ULB), Belgium, and colleagues evaluate the performance of statistics measuring how viruses move across space and time in infected populations. Genomic sequencing allows epidemiologists to examine the evolutionary history of pathogenic outbreaks and track the spatial movement of an outbreak. However, the sampling intensity of genomic sequences can potentially impact the accuracy of dispersal insights gained through these evolutionary ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

An inflatable gastric balloon could help people lose weight

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Gastric balloons — silicone balloons filled with air or saline and placed in the stomach — can help people lose weight by making them feel too full to overeat. However, this effect eventually can wear off as the stomach becomes used to the sensation of fullness. To overcome that limitation, MIT engineers have designed a new type of gastric balloon that can be inflated and deflated as needed. In an animal study, they showed that inflating the balloon before a meal caused the animals to reduce their food intake by 60 percent. This type of intervention ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Debra Bangasser honored with prestigious research award

ATLANTA — Debra Bangasser, a professor of neuroscience and director of the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience (CBN) at Georgia State University, has been awarded the Daniel H. Efron Research Award by the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP). The award recognizes outstanding basic research contributions to the field of neuropsychopharmacology, which integrates neuroscience and pharmacology to advance understanding of the causes of psychiatric disorders and develop new therapies. Bangasser’s research identifies how stress throughout the lifespan affects the brain to promote ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation awards $9 million to new Allen Distinguished Investigators

SEATTLE, WASH.—December 3, 2024—The funding, provided through the Allen Distinguished Investigators, a program of The Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group at the Allen Institute, will fuel innovative research in Organelle Communication and Membrane Biophysics. Together these awards represent a total of $9 million dollars in funding from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, which will be distributed between 14 researchers investigating the biological principles governing fundamental cellular functions and how they interact. These ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Imaging synaptic vesicles in 3D

Researchers led by Uljana Kravčenko and her colleagues in the lab of Professor Misha Kudryashev, Group Leader of the In Situ Structural Biology lab at the Max Delbrück Center, have revealed new features of the molecular architecture of synaptic vesicles. Using cryo-electron tomography, the team was able to visualize SVs in 3D and confirm a potentially important protein-protein interaction. They also broadened our understanding of SV function and of how the vesicles are recycled. The study was published in the Proceedings ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

New hydrogel could preserve waterlogged wood from shipwrecks

From the RMS Titanic to the SS Endurance, shipwrecks offer valuable — yet swiftly deteriorating — windows into the past. Conservators slowly dry marine wooden artifacts to preserve them but doing so can inflict damage. To better care for delicate marine artifacts, researchers in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering developed a new hydrogel that quickly neutralizes harmful acids and stabilized waterlogged wood from an 800-year-old shipwreck. Wooden artifacts from shipwrecks are drenched with seawater, an environment that enables acid-producing ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Studies of misinformation risk inculcating false beliefs without proper debriefs

To study the effects of misinformation on attitudes, some social science experiments expose participants to false, misleading, or dangerous information. Most Institutional Review Boards require that such studies be followed by a debriefing session, in which participants are told that the information that was presented was not true. Katherine Clayton and colleagues sought to determine whether these debriefs can “undo” the effects of exposure to misinformation. The authors first replicated existing misinformation ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Experts on aging disagree on the causes and definition of aging

Vadim N. Gladyshev and 80 colleagues surveyed the participants of the 2022 Systems Aging Gordon Research Conference to explore how researchers of aging perceive their subject of study. The authors found wide disagreement on fundamental questions, including “what is aging?” and “what causes aging?”. The collected responses indicated that some of the 103 professors, postdocs, graduate students, industry professionals, and other experts in the survey saw aging as a demographic increase in mortality rate, while other respondents saw aging as a loss of function over time, while still other respondents saw aging as the accumulation of damage ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Twenty-seven scientists become EMBO Young Investigators

3 December 2024 – EMBO announces the selection of 27 life scientists as the newest members of the EMBO Young Investigator Programme. The programme supports young group leaders in Europe and beyond. The new young investigators will start in January, be active members of the programme for four years, and become part of an international network of nearly 800 current and former EMBO Young Investigators, Installation Grantees and Global Investigators. They carry out research across a wide range of life sciences topics from cell and computational biology to immunology and neuroscience. "EMBO welcomes ...

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Science3 Dec 2024

Minimally invasive procedure relieves knee arthritis

CHICAGO – A minimally invasive procedure provides significant relief from knee pain and may prevent the need for knee replacement surgery in people with osteoarthritis, according to a study being presented this week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). “This study addresses osteoarthritis, which is a significant public health issue and the leading cause of chronic pain and disability worldwide,” said the study’s lead author, Florian Nima Fleckenstein, M.D., interventional radiologist at Charité – University Hospital Berlin in Germany. “With millions of people affected by knee ...

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