Science
press releases.

Science26 Mar 2024

Researchers a step closer to a cure for HIV

By 2030, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Global Fund and UNAIDS are hoping to end the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and AIDS epidemic. An international team of researchers led by Eric Arts, professor at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, and Jamie Mann, senior lecturer at the University of Bristol (U.K.), has brought us another step closer to meeting this goal, by finding an effective and affordable targeted treatment strategy for an HIV cure. In a first, the study published ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Sodium intake and cause-specific mortality among predominantly low-income Black and white residents

About The Study: In this cohort study of 64,000 low-income Americans, nearly 80% of study participants consumed sodium exceeding the current recommended daily amount, which was associated with 10% to 30% of cardiovascular disease mortality. Public health programs targeted to reduce sodium intake among this underserved population may be beneficial. Authors: Xiao-Ou Shu, M.D., Ph.D., of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.3802) Editor’s Note: Please see the ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

USC researchers find genetic variant contributing to disparities in childhood leukemia risk

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common childhood cancer, disproportionately affects children of Hispanic/Latino origin in the United States. They are 30-40% more likely to get ALL than non-Hispanic white children, but the exact genetic basis and cause of that increased risk are unknown. Now, a study from the Keck School of Medicine of USC has revealed a key genetic variant contributing towards the increased risk, as well as details about the biological basis of ALL. The team used genetic fine-mapping analysis, a statistical method that allows researchers ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Among deaf people, women have higher levels of personal growth

One of the features of the deaf community is that it is highly diverse. As well as including people of different ages and genders, the members of the community do not all share the same type of deafness or form of communication. Firstly, the time of onset of deafness and the degree of hearing loss vary greatly. And secondly, not everybody uses sign and oral language in the same way. All these aspects have a bearing on the well-being of deaf people. However, few studies specifically analyse the effect of each one. The PhD thesis, defended by Amaia Jauregi-Orbe at the Faculty ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Faux reefs for coastal protection

Engineers have designed a modular artificial reef that can dissipate wave energy far better than natural coral reefs, according to a study. Sixty percent of the world’s coral reefs are under threat from rising ocean temperatures, overfishing, or coastal development. At the same time, climate change is leading to sea level rise, frequent high-tide flooding, and powerful storm surges. Artificial reefs can help protect coastal infrastructure from storms as well as provide habitat for marine organisms. Michael Triantafyllou and colleagues proposed and tested an architected cellular reef structure ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

New method to measure entropy production on the nanoscale

Entropy, the amount of molecular disorder, is produced in several systems but cannot be measured directly. An equation developed by researchers at Chalmers University of Technology and Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, now sheds new light on how entropy is produced on a very short time scale in laser excited materials. “New computational models give us new research opportunities. Extending thermodynamics for ultrashort excitations will provide novel insights into how materials function on the nanoscale,” says Matthias Geilhufe, Assistant Professor ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

New maps help decision-makers factor albedo into tree-planting decisions

Arlington, VA – As efforts to restore tree cover accelerate to help avoid runaway climate change, a new study highlights how restoring tree cover can, in some locations, heat up the Earth rather than cool it by affecting how much sunlight the surface reflects (i.e. “the albedo"). This new study by researchers at Clark University in the United States alongside scientists from The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and ETH-Zurich, published today in the journal Nature Communications, provides a global analysis of where restoration of tree cover is most effective at cooling the global climate system, considering ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Spielberg was right: Triceratops teamed up

Actually, the team from Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands was looking for a Tyrannosaurus, that summer of 2013 in Wyoming. Instead, they found a Triceratops: the famous dinosaur with the three horns and the large neck frill. And then they found another one. And another one. And more. The dig turned into a project that would last for more than ten years. All in all, they dug up 1200 bones and bone fragments, of at least five individuals. A team of professional and volunteer paleontologists ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Young adults with migraine, other nontraditional risk factors may have higher stroke risk

Research Highlights: Nontraditional risk factors for stroke were significantly associated with the development of strokes in adults younger than ages 35 to 45. Migraine was the most important nontraditional risk factor for stroke among both men and women, according to the study of adults in Colorado. Embargoed until 4 a.m. CT/5 a.m. ET Tuesday, March 26, 2024 DALLAS, March 26, 2024 — Adults younger than 35- to 45-years old may have a higher risk of developing a stroke from nontraditional risk factors ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Tiniest ‘starquake’ ever detected – new study

An orange dwarf star has yielded the tiniest ‘starquakes’ ever recorded, measured by an international team of scientists. Named Epsilon Indi, the star is the smallest and coolest dwarf star yet observed with solar-like oscillations – “starquakes” like those shown by the Sun. These oscillations provide indirect glimpses of stellar interiors – just as earthquakes tell us about Earth's interior – and so are important sources of information about the makeup of the star. The measurements ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

Discovery of amino acid unveils how light makes plants open

Scientists from Nagoya University have discovered a novel regulatory mechanism that controls the opening of stomata in plants, which is crucial for harnessing solar energy through photosynthesis. The team uncovered the role of phosphorylation at the 881st threonine residue (Thr881) of the plasma membrane proton pump in response to red and blue light in this process. This research opens up possibilities for manipulating plant physiology in specific ways, benefiting agriculture and the environment. The researchers reported their findings in Nature Communications. “This phosphorylation event, ...

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Science26 Mar 2024

More needs to be done for depressed stroke survivors as incidence climbs

Researchers say more needs to be done for depressed stroke survivors as new findings show 60% of stroke survivors would experience depression within 18 years, a much higher estimation than previous studies. This compares to 22% of the general population experiencing depression in the same time frame. The King’s College London study, published today in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, also found 90% of cases of depression occurred within five years of surviving a stroke, indicating a key time for healthcare intervention. The findings, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, looks at incidence of mild ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Essays on democracy draw attention to critical threats, explore safeguards ahead of Jan. 6

Following the events of Jan. 6, 2021 — when a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol building in an effort to interrupt the certification process of the 2020 presidential election — experts began to question how to protect the next presidential election from a similar threat. To that end, University of Notre Dame political scientists have partnered with preeminent scholars of democracy from across the country to produce a set of recommendations to strengthen and safeguard democracy in America. The University’s Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy established the January 6th, ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Study suggests that estrogen may drive nicotine addiction in women

A newly discovered feedback loop involving estrogen may explain why women might become dependent on nicotine more quickly and with less nicotine exposure than men. The research could lead to new treatments for women who are having trouble quitting nicotine-containing products such as cigarettes. Sally Pauss is a doctoral student at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington. She led the project. “Studies show that women have a higher propensity to develop addiction to nicotine than men and are less successful at quitting,” said Pauss, ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Fathers’ perceptions of their teen sons’ readiness for sex linked to their likelihood to provide guidance on condom use

The purpose of this study was to delve deeper into the link between fathers’ perceptions of their adolescent sons’ preparedness to engage in sexual intercourse, and how likely they were to provide their sons with guidance on using condoms correctly and consistently. Researchers recruited 191 father-son pairs from among Black and Latino residents of the South Bronx in New York City; adolescent participants ranged in age from 15 to 19 years old. Using a sequential mixed-methods explanatory design, all participants completed a confidential survey, after which a random ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

A national quality improvement initiative provides insight into how to successfully implement change in primary care practices

In 2015, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) launched EvidenceNOW: Advancing Heart Health. This three-year initiative, AHRQ’s largest-ever investment in primary care research, was designed to provide external quality improvement support to help small and medium-size primary care practices implement the latest evidence and improve their delivery of cardiovascular care. AHRQ awarded grants to primary care practices in seven regions across the U.S. to implement this initiative and to evaluate their own experiences with it, thereby accounting for regional differences in needs and existing resources. Additionally, ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Gotta go? New bladder device lets you know

Should you run to the bathroom now? Or can you hold it until you get home? A new implant and associated smartphone app may someday remove the guess work from the equation. Northwestern University researchers have developed a new soft, flexible, battery-free implant that attaches to the bladder wall to sense filling. Then, it wirelessly — and simultaneously — transmits data to a smartphone app, so users can monitor their bladder fullness in real time. The study will be published next week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). It ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Global study could change how children with multiple sclerosis are treated

A ground-breaking study – the largest of its kind globally – has found children with multiple sclerosis (MS) have better outcomes if treated early and with the same high-efficacy therapies as adults. There are a limited number of therapies approved for children with MS, with only one considered to be of high-efficacy – meaning highly effective. However, a Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH) observational study has determined that paediatric patients should be treated with the same high-efficacy ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Bengal cat coats are less wild than they look, genetic study finds

Bengal cats are prized for their appearance; the exotically marbled and spotted coats of these domestic pets make them look like small, sleek jungle cats. But the origin of those coats — assumed to come from the genes of Asian leopard cats that were bred with house cats — turns out to be less exotic. Stanford Medicine researchers, in collaboration with Bengal cat breeders, have discovered that the Bengal cats’ iridescent sheen and leopard-like patterns can be traced to domestic cat genes that were aggressively selected for after the cats were bred with wild cats. “Most ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Uncovering the mystery of Dorset’s Cerne Giant

For centuries, the Cerne Giant, a figure carved into a hillside in Dorset depicting a nude man carrying a club and stretching some 180 feet high, has fascinated locals and visitors to the area. The history of the giant, however, and in particular, its age, has long been a mystery. A new paper in Speculum: A Journal of Medieval Studies proposes that the Cerne Giant can in fact be dated to the early Middle Ages, and, as a result, its cultural context and significance more clearly understood. “The Cerne Giant in its Early Medieval Context,” by authors Thomas Morcom and Helen Gittos, acknowledges that previous attempts to date the giant placed ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Bees use antennae to decode hive mates’ dances in the dark

Scientists have discovered how honeybees can decipher dances by their hive mates that relay directions to food. The findings reveal how, in the complete darkness of the hive, each bee uses its antennae to help interpret the information communicated through the dances. It has been known for decades that honeybees do so-called waggle dances, in which their movements and orientation on the honeycomb signal the direction and distance to food outside the hive. However, until now, it was unclear how the bees gathered around a waggle dancer make sense of the information. Gaining greater insights into how bees communicate could help scientists to better understand the effects of ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Researchers Discover Evolutionary “Tipping Point” in Fungi

Scientists have found a “tipping point” in the evolution of fungi that throttles their growth and sculpts their shapes. The findings, published in the journal Cell Reports, demonstrate how small changes in environmental factors can lead to huge changes in evolutionary outcomes. Fungi are nature’s great composters. They wait within the forest floor to feed on fallen trees and autumn leaves, releasing essential nutrients from these plants back into the Earth. Although fungi often ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Breakthrough in modeling

Coastal seas form a complex transition zone between the two largest CO2 sinks in the global carbon cycle: land and ocean. Ocean researchers have now succeeded for the first time in investigating the role of the coastal ocean in a seamless model representation. The team led by Dr. Moritz Mathis from the Cluster of Excellence for Climate Research CLICCS at Universität Hamburg and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon was able to show: The intensity of CO2 uptake is higher in coastal seas than in the open ocean. This is evidenced by a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. To ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Caller ID of the sea

For researchers studying the acoustic behavior of whales, distinguishing which animal is vocalizing is like a teacher trying to figure out which student responded first when the entire class is calling out the answer. This is because many of the techniques used to capture audio record a large sample size of sounds. A major example of this is passive acoustic monitoring (PAM), which records audio via a microphone in one location, usually a stationary or moving platform in the ocean. While this method allows researchers to gather acoustic data over a long time period, it ...

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Science25 Mar 2024

Honey bees at risk for colony collapse from longer, warmer fall seasons

PULLMAN, Wash. – The famous work ethic of honey bees might spell disaster for these busy crop pollinators as the climate warms, new research indicates. Flying shortens the lives of bees, and worker honey bees will fly to find flowers whenever the weather is right, regardless of how much honey is already in the hive. Using climate and bee population models, researchers found that increasingly long autumns with good flying weather for bees raises the likelihood of colony collapse in the spring. The study, published in Scientific Reports, focused on the Pacific Northwest but holds implications for hives across the U.S. The researchers ...

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