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Science

Unlocking the secrets of salt stress tolerance in wild tomatoes

As our climate changes and soil salinity increases in many agricultural areas, finding crops that can thrive in these challenging conditions is crucial. Cultivated tomatoes, while delicious, often struggle in salty soils. Their wild cousins, however, have evolved to survive in diverse and often harsh environments. A recent study delved into the genetic treasure trove of wild tomatoes to uncover secrets of salt tolerance that could be used to develop resilient crop varieties. A team of researchers focused on Solanum pimpinellifolium, the closest wild relative of our beloved cultivated tomato. These tiny, ...

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Exploring the impact of attentional uniqueness and attentional allocation on firm growth
Science

Exploring the impact of attentional uniqueness and attentional allocation on firm growth

According to the attention-based view, a firm’s actions and growth performance are directly influenced by its attentional allocation to specific issues. The consequences of organizational attention are reflected in the firm’s strategic decision-making and adaptability. However, existing literature is limited in its exploration of how a firm’s attentional uniqueness impacts its behavior and performance. Notably, attentional uniqueness refers to how the firm’s attentional allocation diverges from competitors in the same industry. To address the above-mentioned knowledge gap, Associate Professor Takumi ...

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Breakthrough in molecular control: new bioinspired double helix with switchable chirality
Science

Breakthrough in molecular control: new bioinspired double helix with switchable chirality

The deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA, the molecular system that carries the genetic information of living organisms, can transcribe and amplify information using its two helical strands. Creating such artificial molecular systems that match or surpass DNA in functionality is of great interest to scientists. Double-helical foldamers are one such molecular system. Helical foldamers are a class of artificial molecules that fold into well-defined helical structures like helices found in proteins and nucleic acids. They have garnered considerable attention as stimuli-responsive switchable molecules, tuneable chiral materials, and cooperative supramolecular systems due to their chiral and ...

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Science

Short, intense bursts of exercise more effective after stroke than steady, moderate exercise

Research Highlights: Researchers found repeated one-minute bursts of high-intensity interval training were more effective than traditional, moderate continuous exercise for improving the body’s aerobic fitness after a stroke. Fitness level improvements doubled in participants in the high-intensity interval training group compared to those in the moderate intensity exercise group. Researchers found the level of fitness changes in the high intensity interval training group were associated with improved survival and lower risk of stroke-related ...

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Steady flight of kestrels could help aerial safety soar
Science

Steady flight of kestrels could help aerial safety soar

A new joint study by RMIT and the University of Bristol has revealed secrets to the remarkably steady flight of kestrels and could inform future drone designs and flight control strategies. Watch video: YouTube Making drones safer and more stable in turbulent conditions, or in cities where wind gusts from tall buildings make flying more difficult, makes applications like parcel delivery, food delivery and environmental monitoring more feasible, more often. The study conducted in RMIT’s Industrial Wind Tunnel facility – one of the largest of its kind in ...

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Science

Sugar-sweetened beverage intake increasing globally among children and teens

A new global analysis of the dietary habits of children and adolescents from 185 countries revealed that youth, on average, consumed nearly 23% more sugar-sweetened beverages in 2018 compared to 1990. Overall, intakes were similar in boys and girls, but higher in teens, urban residents, and children of parents with lower levels of education. Researchers from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University published the findings Aug. 7 in The BMJ. The study drew from the Global Dietary Database, a large comprehensive compilation of what people around the world eat or drink, to generate the first global estimates and trends of sugar-sweetened ...

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Science

Sugary drink intake by children and adolescents increased by almost a quarter between 1990 and 2018

Children and adolescents across the world consumed on average 23% more sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) in 2018 than they did in 1990, show the results of a study published in The BMJ today. Over the same period, a corresponding rise was seen in the prevalence of obesity among young people. Unhealthy diets, especially intake of sugar sweetened beverages, play a crucial role in obesity. Although tracking the consumption of these drinks by children and adolescents is essential to understanding ...

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When mammoths roamed Vancouver Island: SFU and Royal BC Museum delve into beasts’ history in our region
Science

When mammoths roamed Vancouver Island: SFU and Royal BC Museum delve into beasts’ history in our region

Mammoths, the massive pre-historic ice age cousins of the modern-day elephant, have always been understood to have inhabited parts of British Columbia, but the question of when has always been a bit woolly. Now, a new study from Simon Fraser University has given scientists the clearest picture yet when the giant mammals roamed Vancouver Island. As part of SFU researcher Laura Termes’ PhD and published earlier this month in the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, the study examined 32 suspected mammoth samples collected on Vancouver Island. Of those samples, just 16 ...

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Discovering how plants make life-and-death decisions
Science

Discovering how plants make life-and-death decisions

Researchers at Michigan State University have discovered two proteins that work together to determine the fate of cells in plants facing certain stresses. Ironically, a key discovery in this finding, published recently in Nature Communications, was made right as the project's leader was getting ready to destress. Postdoctoral researcher Noelia Pastor-Cantizano was riding a bus to the airport to fly out for vacation, when she decided to share a promising result she had helped gather a day earlier. “I didn’t want to wait ten days until I came back to send it. It took almost two years to get there,” said Pastor-Cantizano, who then worked ...

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Science

New research challenges conventional wisdom on wet surface adhesion

Scientists at the University of Akron and the University of Pittsburgh have overturned long-held assumptions in new research that finds water can be a help for adhesion. Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, distinguished W. Gerald Austen Endowed Chair and H.A. Morton Professor at The University of Akron’s School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering, lead a team whose significant breakthrough — that water can unexpectedly enhance adhesion under controlled conditions — was published Aug. 7 in Science Advances. The implications of this research are profound, particularly in biomedical applications ...

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Science

When is too much knowledge a bad thing?

CORNELL UNIVERSITY MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE FOR RELEASE: August 7, 2024 Kaitlyn Serrao 607-882-1140 kms465@cornell.edu When is too much knowledge a bad thing? ITHACA, N.Y. – A new study finds an increase in knowledge could be a bad thing when people use it to act in their own self-interest rather than in the best interests of the larger group. Cornell University economics professor Kaushik Basu and Jörgen Weibull, professor emeritus at the Stockholm School of Economics, are co-authors ...

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Pesticide exposure linked to stillbirth risk in new study
Science

Pesticide exposure linked to stillbirth risk in new study

Living less than about one-third of a mile from pesticide use prior to conception and during early pregnancy could increase the risk of stillbirths, according to new research led by researchers at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health and Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center. Researchers found that during a 90-day pre-conception window and the first trimester of pregnancy, select pesticides, including organophosphates as a class, were associated with stillbirth. The paper, “Pre-Conception ...

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Work-from-home success might depend on home office setup
Science

Work-from-home success might depend on home office setup

In a new survey study, Dutch employees who worked from home tended to report higher levels of productivity and less burnout if they were more satisfied with their home office setup. The study also linked more air ventilation in the home office to higher self-reported productivity. Martijn Stroom and colleagues at Maastricht University in the Netherlands report these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on August 7, 2024. In recent years, thanks in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic and technological advancements, ...

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Indian business owners from the stigmatized Dalit group experience a business income gap of around 16% compared to others
Science

Indian business owners from the stigmatized Dalit group experience a business income gap of around 16% compared to others

Indian business owners from the stigmatized Dalit group experience a business income gap of around 16% compared to others ### Article URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0307660 Article Title: It’s not who you know, but who you are: Explaining income gaps of stigmatized-caste business owners in India Author Countries: India, UK, Australia Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. END ...

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Science

Researchers unlock life history secrets of Jurassic mammals using X-ray imaging

A new study published in Science Advances reveals how early mammals grew and developed during their pivotal Jurassic radiation. Using a technique called synchrotron X-ray tomography to image growth rings in fossilised tooth roots, the researchers were able to estimate lifespans, growth rates, and even the timing of sexual maturity in these ancient creatures. “This is the first time we've been able to reconstruct the growth patterns of these early mammals in such detail,” said Dr Elis Newham, a Postdoctoral Research Associate ...

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Science

Studying how serotonin alters locust’s sense of smell

By Leah Shaffer Researchers at Wash U have spent the better part of the decade studying the ins and outs of how locusts smell, including how odors affect the insect’s behavior. In research recently published in eLife, Barani Raman, a professor of biomedical engineering at the McKelvey School of Engineering, starts to map out just how olfactory circuits are altered in driving different behavior in locusts. Neuromodulator serotonin is a key factor in triggering how locusts can go from being a “loner” to “gregarious” — otherwise known as swarming ...

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Science

Asthma emergencies spike when allergenic pollen blooms

ITHACA, N.Y. – A new Cornell University study that tracks how many asthma-related emergency room visits result from pollen in metropolitan areas highlights the importance of knowing local plants and the need for developing science-based pollen forecasts. Such forecasts could alert vulnerable individuals on days when they should consider staying indoors or taking allergy medications ahead of time. “Even though the percent of asthma-related emergency department visits associated with pollen overall was only a few percent on an annual basis, ...

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Science

MD Anderson Research Highlights for August 7, 2024

HOUSTON ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Research Highlights showcases the latest breakthroughs in cancer care, research and prevention. These advances are made possible through seamless collaboration between MD Anderson’s world-leading clinicians and scientists, bringing discoveries from the lab to the clinic and back. Recent developments at MD Anderson include insights into evolutionary cellular adaptations to environmental stressors, potential targets to overcome trouble swallowing in head and neck cancer patients treated with radiation therapy, a promising chemotherapy-free ...

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Science

Some e-cigarette chemicals mimic nicotine, possibly bypassing regulation

DURHAM, N.C. – In what appears to be an effort to bypass public health regulations covering vaping products, some tobacco companies have begun replacing nicotine in e-cigarettes with related chemicals that have similar properties but unknown health effects, Duke Health researchers report. In a research letter appearing Aug. 7 in JAMA, study authors at Duke and Yale University also found that the quantity of these chemicals, known as nicotine analogs, are not accurately disclosed on the packaging. “Vaping products containing nicotine are subject to federal laws that prohibit sales to people under the age of 21,” said study co-author Sairam V. Jabba, ...

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New 400-year temperature record shows Great Barrier Reef is facing catastrophic damage, researchers warn
Science

New 400-year temperature record shows Great Barrier Reef is facing catastrophic damage, researchers warn

The Great Barrier Reef is under critical pressure, with warming sea temperatures and mass coral bleaching events threatening to destroy the remarkable ecology, biodiversity, and beauty of the world’s largest coral reef, according to new research published today. ‘Highest ocean heat in four centuries places Great Barrier Reef in danger’, published in Nature (8 August), led by University of Wollongong (UOW) Honorary Fellow and University of Melbourne Lecturer Dr Benjamin Henley, provides new evidence of the impact that rising sea surface temperatures ...

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Corn’s ‘missing link’
Science

Corn’s ‘missing link’

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has begun to unravel a mystery millennia in the making. Our story begins 9,000 years ago. It was then that maize was first domesticated in the Mexican lowlands. Some 5,000 years later, the crop crossed with a species from the Mexican highlands called teosinte mexicana. This resulted in cold adaptability. From here, corn spread across the continent, giving rise to the vegetable that is now such a big part of our diets. But how did it adapt so quickly? What biological mechanisms allowed the highland crop’s traits to take hold? Today, a potential answer emerges. CSHL Professor and HHMI Investigator Rob Martienssen had ...

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Science

Variability in constituents of e-cigarette products containing nicotine analogues

About The Study: Discrepancies were observed between labeled and measured concentrations of nicotine analogues in e-cigarettes and e-cigarette liquids marketed as nicotine replacements and exempt from FDA’s regulatory purview. Such discrepancies may lead to uncertainty about user exposure. When coupled with the largely unknown acute and chronic inhalation hazards and addictive potential of nicotine analogues, assessing product risk based on exposure becomes challenging from a clinical and regulatory standpoint. With e-cigarettes increasingly considered for smoking cessation, the advent of nicotine analogue–containing products with ...

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Science

A vaping cessation text message program for adolescent e-cigarette users

About The Study: A tailored, interactive text message intervention increased self-reported vaping cessation rates among adolescents recruited via social media channels. Quote from corresponding author Amanda L. Graham, PhD: “Health care providers, teachers, and parents have been asking how to help teens quit vaping. This study is a critical breakthrough that demonstrates the power of a behavioral intervention for vaping cessation. Text messages serve as powerful reminders of an initial commitment to quit and can deliver proven behavior change support right to a young person’s phone. “We also did not see evidence that teens who quit ...

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Plants show surprising diversity in arid landscape
Science

Plants show surprising diversity in arid landscape

Understanding how plants cope with climatic extremes and grazing pressure is important for reliable prediction about future biodiversity and the functioning of dryland ecosystems[1]. An international team, coordinated by KAUST’s Fernando Maestre, has assessed how 20 chemical and morphological plant functional traits jointly respond to changes in aridity and grazing pressure across global drylands. Increasing aridity and grazing pressure could be expected to reduce the level of plant diversity. However, the diversity of plant traits — including key traits linked to nutrient cycling such as specific leaf area and foliar ...

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Researchers show pesticide contamination is more than apple skin deep
Science

Researchers show pesticide contamination is more than apple skin deep

Pesticides and herbicides are critical to ensuring food security worldwide, but these substances can present a safety risk to people who unwittingly ingest them. Protecting human health, therefore, demands sensitive analytical methods to identify even trace levels of potentially harmful substances. Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Nano Letters have developed a high-tech imaging method to detect pesticide contamination at low levels, and its application on fruits reveals that current food safety practices ...

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