Science
press releases.

Science27 Aug 2024

Discovery of a rare genotype causing primary ovarian insufficiency

Scientists at deCODE genetics and collaborators, have identified a sequence variant in the CCDC201 gene that when inherited from both parents homozygous causes menopause on average nine years earlier. deCODE genetics, a subsidiary of Amgen, and collaborators from Iceland, Denmark, the UK, and Norway published a study in Nature Genetics today revealing a rare genotype with a significant impact on women's health. Age at menopause significantly affects fertility and disease risk. This research focused on ...

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Science27 Aug 2024

Dungeons and Dragons can help autistic people gain confidence and find their inner hero

Dungeons and Dragons is a hugely popular roleplaying game enjoyed by millions of people all over the world, both in person and online, every day. However, new research has found it could be particularly beneficial for people with autism, giving them a safe space to engage in social interactions away from some of the challenges they face in their daily lives. The study, published in the journal Autism, was led by researchers from the University of Plymouth’s School of Psychology along with colleagues at Edge ...

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Science27 Aug 2024

KKH study: Exclusive breastfeeding leads to greater weight loss in women with high body mass index as compared to women with normal weight

27 August 2024, Singapore – A KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) study[1] on breastfeeding practices revealed that among the women who exclusively breastfed, those with high body mass index[2] (BMI) before pregnancy lost more weight than women with a healthy BMI pre-pregnancy. Women with high BMI who exclusively breastfed, in addition to losing their pregnancy weight, lost an extra 200 grammes on average, 12 months after childbirth. Women with normal BMI who exclusively breastfed lost weight ...

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Science27 Aug 2024

Preventing counterfeiting by adding dye to liquid crystals to create uncrackable coded tags

A research group led by Nagoya University has developed an innovative approach to creating anti-counterfeiting labels for high-value goods. Their findings, published in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, enhance the security of the currently used cholesteric liquid crystals (CLCs) by adding fluorescent dyes to produce florescent CLCs (FCLCs). Using this unique technology, the group created unique labels with almost impossible-to-counterfeit security features. These advanced labels are designed to protect valuable items, important documents, and sensitive products ...

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Science27 Aug 2024

Beckman announces 2024 research seed grant awardees

The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology funded two research projects in 2024 as part of its research seed grant program. The program supports interdisciplinary research projects and is now in its second year. This year, two research projects beginning in May 2024 received $75,000 per year for up to two years. Research projects seeded by the Beckman Institute anticipate growth and typically lead to external funding proposals after the two-year seeding term. Exploring how ASD-related genes influence brain networks that guide behavior The CDC estimates that “1 in 36 children has been identified with autism spectrum disorder,” or ASD. ASDs ...

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Science27 Aug 2024

Are crops worldwide sufficiently pollinated?

A team of researchers led by Rutgers University-New Brunswick scientists has analyzed crop yields of more than 1,500 fields on six continents, and found that production worldwide of important, nutritionally dense foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes is being limited by a lack of pollinators. The results, detailed in Nature Ecology & Evolution, showed that across diverse crops and locations, one-third to two-thirds of farms contain fields that aren’t producing at the levels they should be due to a lack of pollinators. The phenomenon of a low crop yield because of insufficient visits by insects is known as pollinator limitation. The ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

NJIT and Illinois research on data analytics will measure impact of scientific literature

Three distinct problems in data science — trend identification in graphs, the quantitative study of scientific literature and evaluation of single-cell genomics — will all be addressed by new research in large-scale network analytics, jointly led by Distinguished Professor David Bader at New Jersey Institute of Technology. The problems have a common challenge of finding patterns, known as community detection, from inside incredibly large datasets. Work is funded by a $648,000 National Science Foundation grant, Cyber-Infrastructure ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

The Lundquist Institute announces updates to its Board of Directors

The Lundquist Institute for Biomedical Innovation at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (TLI) announced updates to its Board of Directors today. TLI welcomes one new distinguished member and thanks the two outgoing members for their invaluable contributions. “On behalf of the Board, I am delighted that Dr. Bill Dorfman, a global leader in cosmetic dentistry, has joined the TLI Board. Dr. Dorfman's extensive expertise and commitment to philanthropy make him an invaluable addition to our leadership,” said Mitchel Sayare, PhD, TLI Board ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Spin squeezing for all

Nothing in science can be achieved or understood without measurement. Today, thanks to advances in quantum sensing, scientists can measure things that were once impossible to even imagine: vibrations of atoms, properties of individual photons, fluctuations associated with gravitational waves. A quantum mechanical trick called “spin squeezing” is widely recognized to hold promise for supercharging the capabilities of the world’s most precise quantum sensors, but it’s been notoriously difficult to achieve. In new research, Harvard physicists describe how they’ve put spin squeezing ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Genotype Matters: Tailored screening for germline CHEK2 variants

“In our study, we postulated that these differences were driven by three common low-risk (LR) missense variants: p.I157T, p.S428F, and p.T476M, all of which have a BC odds ratio of

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Science26 Aug 2024

Interlimb and intralimb synergy modeling for lower limb assistive devices: Modeling methods and feature selection

A research paper by scientists at Hainan University proposed FSS-eq2Seq as a 2-stage strategy for gait synergy modeling in lower limb assistive devices to achieve synergic and user-adaptive trajectories that improve human-machine interactions. The new research paper, published on Jul. 03 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, indicatedSeq2Seq outperforms LSTM, RNN, and GRU in both interlimb and intralimb synergy modeling. Further, FS significantly improves Seq2Seq’s modeling performance. The concept of gait synergy provides novel human-machine interfaces and has been applied ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Darwin’s fear was unjustified: Writing evolutionary history by bridging the gaps

Fossils are used to reconstruct evolutionary history, but not all animals and plants become fossils and many fossils are destroyed before we can find them (e.g., the rocks that contain the fossils are destroyed by erosion). As a result, the fossil record has gaps and is incomplete, and we’re missing data that we need to reconstruct evolutionary history. Now, a team of sedimentologists and stratigraphers from the Netherlands and the UK examined how this incompleteness influences the reconstruction of evolutionary history. To their surprise, they found that the incompleteness itself is actually not such a big issue. “It’s ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Trends of heat-related deaths in the US, 1999-2023

About The Study: This study found that heat-related mortality rates in the U.S. increased between 1999 and 2023, especially during the last 7 years. Although a study using data through 2018 found a downward trend in heat-related mortality in the U.S., this study is the first to our knowledge to demonstrate a reversal of this trend from 2016 to 2023. These results align with site-specific data analyzed in a global study that suggest increases in heat-related mortality. As temperatures continue to rise because of climate change, the recent increasing trend is likely to continue. Local authorities in high-risk areas should consider investing in the expansion of access to hydration centers ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Sharing expands caring – UMD study finds solution to a major source of doctor burnout

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Who hasn’t sat in a medical office, listening to computer keys clacking while their provider rapidly types up notes, wondering what they are spending so much time writing about? For doctors, who have always written clinical care notes but increasingly must spend time cataloging billing details, this additional documentation is a major source of job dissatisfaction and burnout. A new study out today by University of Maryland’s School of Public Health illuminates a solution that can meaningfully reduce the amount of time doctors spend writing notes, without losing vital information. “Providers are already stretched thin and under intense pressure to ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Early galaxies were not too big for their britches after all

When astronomers got their first glimpses of galaxies in the early universe from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, they were expecting to find galactic pipsqueaks, but instead they found what appeared to be a bevy of Olympic bodybuilders. Some galaxies appeared to have grown so massive, so quickly, that simulations could not account for them. Some researchers suggested this meant that something might be wrong with the theory that explains what the universe is made of and how it has evolved since the big bang, known as the standard model of cosmology. According to a new study in The Astrophysical Journal led by University of Texas at Austin graduate student ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Study finds salamanders are surprisingly abundant in northeastern forests

RESTON, Va. — Two recent amphibian-focused studies shed light on the ecological importance of red-backed salamanders, while confirming that proactive measures would prevent costly impacts from a wildlife disease spreading across Europe that has not yet reached North America. Scientists knew that red-backed salamanders were abundant in eastern North America, but a recent study found their densities and biomass across the region were much higher than expected. The study authors estimated an average of ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Why children can’t pay attention to the task at hand

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists have learned that children find it hard to focus on a task, and often take in information that won’t help them complete their assignment. But the question is, why? In a new study, researchers found that this “distributed attention” wasn’t because children’s brains weren’t mature enough to understand the task or pay attention, and it wasn’t because they were easily distracted and lacked the control to focus. It now appears that kids distribute their attention broadly either out of simple curiosity or because their working memory isn’t developed enough to complete a task without “over ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Exploring the role of cytochrome oxygenases in augmenting austocystin D-mediated cytotoxicity

Austocystin D, a natural compound produced by fungi, has been recognized for its cytotoxic effects and anticancer activity in various cell types. It exhibits potent activity even in cells that express proteins associated with multidrug resistance, attracting significant global research interest. Austocystin D promotes cell death by damaging their DNA, a process which might be dependent on cytochrome P450 (CYP) oxygenase enzymes. Notably, austocystin D has shown significant activity against cancer cells with increased CYP expression. However, the specific role and function of the CYP2J2 enzyme in the cytotoxicity of austocystin D remain ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Researchers develop high-entropy non-covalent cyclic peptide glass

Researchers from the Institute of Process Engineering (IPE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a sustainable, biodegradable, biorecyclable material: high-entropy non-covalent cyclic peptide (HECP) glass. This innovative glass features enhanced crystallization-resistance, improved mechanical properties, and increased enzyme tolerance, laying the foundation for its application in pharmaceutical formulations and smart functional materials. This study was published in Nature Nanotechnology on ...

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Science26 Aug 2024

Sustaining oyster farming with sturdier rafts

Amid the rising human population and pressure on food supplies, the world can’t be everyone’s oyster. But perhaps there might be more oysters to eat if an Osaka Metropolitan University-led research team’s findings mean sturdy plastic rafts will be used in their farming. Conventional oyster farming uses bamboo rafts with additional flotation devices such as Styrofoam. Though relatively affordable, these rafts can be damaged in typhoons. The OMU-led researchers propose a polyethylene raft that keeps costs manageable but is about five times more durable than a bamboo raft. OMU Graduate School of Engineering Associate ...

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Science23 Aug 2024

Researcher finds sound progress in babies’ speech development

The sounds babies make in their first year of life may be less random than previously believed, according to a language development researcher from The University of Texas at Dallas. Dr. Pumpki Lei Su, an assistant professor of speech, language, and hearing in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, is co-lead author on two recent articles in which researchers examined the sounds babies make. The results suggest that children in their first year are more active than previously thought in their acquisition of speech. “We observed in these studies that infant vocalizations are not produced randomly; they form a pattern, producing three categories of sounds in clusters,” ...

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Science23 Aug 2024

To mask or not to mask: That is still the question

CHICAGO --- Despite the association between mask mandates/mask wearing and reduced death rates during the pandemic, masking remains controversial and highly politicized, with many people still asking, “do masks work, and should they be recommended?” In an editorial about the use of surgical face masks in public, published today, Aug. 23, in The BMJ, Northwestern Medicine internal medicine experts Drs. Jeffrey Linder and Rachel Amdur make the case for masking but acknowledge it’s not a cut-and-dried topic. The ...

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Science23 Aug 2024

MSU study finds placebos reduce stress, anxiety, depression — even when people know they are placebos

MSU has a satellite uplink/LTN TV studio and Comrex line for radio interviews upon request. EAST LANSING, Mich. – A study out of Michigan State University found that nondeceptive placebos, or placebos given with people fully knowing they are placebos, effectively manage stress — even when the placebos are administered remotely. Researchers recruited participants experiencing prolonged stress from the COVID-19 pandemic for a two-week randomized controlled trial. Half of the ...

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Science23 Aug 2024

Good sleep habits important for overweight adults, OHSU study suggests

New research from Oregon Health & Science University reveals negative health consequences for people who are overweight and ignore their body’s signals to sleep at night, with specific differences between men and women. The study published this week in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. “This study builds support for the importance of good sleep habits,” said lead author Brooke Shafer, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in the Sleep, Chronobiology and Health Laboratory in the OHSU School of Nursing. “Sleep practices, like going to bed when you’re tired or setting aside your screen at ...

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Science23 Aug 2024

NIH grant establishes UAB’s Global Research Resource for Human Tuberculosis

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A $5.8 million grant led by Adrie Steyn, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the Africa Health Research Institute, or AHRI, in Durban, South Africa, will provide user-requested infected human lung tissue and analytical services to tuberculosis researchers worldwide. Tuberculosis, or TB, is a bacterial infection that causes 1.3 million deaths and 10.6 million new active cases each year, yet experimental animal models of TB do not reproduce the full spectrum of disease as it occurs in humans. A paucity of human lung tissue ...

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