The early evolution of mollusks has been hard to pin down, but now a newly discovered fossil – of a shell-less, soft-bodied, spiny mollusk from the early Cambrian – provides crucial insights, researchers report. The findings suggest that this fossil, of a creature called Shishania aculeata, is a stem mollusk – representative of an intermediate between early members of the superphylum lophotrochozoans and more derived mollusks. Mollusks are one of the most diverse groups of animals, encompassing various well-known forms such as clams, ...

Researchers have developed a novel approach to three-dimensional (3D) printing they call “CLEAR,” which significantly improves the strength and durability of materials by using a combination of light and dark chemical reactions to create densely entangled polymer chains. The authors used their approach to print structures with special features, such as the ability to adhere to wet tissues. Incorporation of polymer chain entanglements as reinforcements within 3D printed materials can significantly enhance their mechanical properties. However, traditional vat photopolymerization-based 3D printing techniques, such as digital ...

The evolutionary gain and loss of plant prickles – sharp pointed epidermal outgrowths – are controlled by a shared genetic program involving cytokinin biosynthesis, researchers report. The study sheds light on the genetic basis of the emergence of similar traits in distantly related organisms and reveals genomic targets for prickle removal for crop improvement. The genetic basis of trait convergence is a central question in evolutionary biology, and the extent to which it is driven by ...

New research suggests that an El Niño event may have aided the establishment and spread of a novel cholera strain during an early 20th-century pandemic, supporting the idea that climate anomalies could create opportunities for the emergence of new cholera strains. Xavier Rodo of Instituto de Salud Global de Barcelona, Spain, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. Since 1961, more than 1 million people worldwide have died in an ongoing cholera pandemic, the seventh cholera ...

Recent joint research led by Professor AN Zhisheng from the Institute of Earth Environment of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has revealed the pivotal role of the growth of the Antarctic ice sheet and associated Southern Hemisphere sea ice expansion in triggering the mid-Pleistocene climate transition (MPT). It has also shown how asymmetric polar ice sheet evolution affects global climate. The MPT refers to a shift in Earth’s climate system between about ~1.25–0.7 million years ago, marking a shift to more pronounced and regular ...

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Aug. 1, 2024) — Humans and baker’s yeast have more in common than meets the eye, including an important mechanism that helps ensure DNA is copied correctly, reports a pair of studies published in the journals Science and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The findings visualize for the first time a molecular complex — called CTF18-RFC in humans and Ctf18-RFC in yeast — that loads a “clamp” onto DNA to keep parts of the replication machinery from falling off the DNA strand. It is the latest discovery from longtime collaborators Huilin Li, Ph.D., of Van Andel Institute, ...

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a way to capture the effects of aging in the development of Alzheimer’s disease. They have devised a method to study aged neurons in the lab without a brain biopsy, an advancement that could contribute to a better understanding of the disease and new treatment strategies. The scientists transformed skin cells taken from patients with late-onset Alzheimer’s disease into brain cells called neurons. Late-onset Alzheimer’s ...

Chestnut Hill, Mass (8/1/2024) – Rocks recently exposed to the sky after being covered with prehistoric ice show that tropical glaciers have shrunk to their smallest size in more than 11,700 years, revealing the tropics have already warmed past limits last seen earlier in the Holocene age, researchers from Boston College report today in the journal Science. Scientists have predicted glaciers would melt, or retreat, as temperatures warm in the tropics – those regions bordering the Earth’s ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A Purdue University invention that may shorten construction timelines and increase long-term durability of concrete highways, bridges and other transportation infrastructure is emerging as a viable alternative to methods that have been used for decades to estimate when newly poured concrete is mature enough to withstand heavy loads such as those from trucks and other vehicles. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Committee on Materials and Pavements (AASHTO COMP) has approved the Purdue-developed method as a new national ...

BOSTON—Plant-based proteins have major health advantages over animal-based proteins, according to a New England Journal of Medicine letter to the editor by Neal D. Barnard, MD, published Aug. 1, 2024. New findings show that all plants contain all essential amino acids, in contrast to the common but mistaken belief that plants lack one or more amino acids. Of the 20 amino acids that are the building blocks of protein, nine cannot be produced by the human body. All are found in plant sources. “In addition, plant-based ...

WASHINGTON, D.C., Aug. 1, 2024 — The latest issues of three American Psychiatric Association journals, The American Journal of Psychiatry, Psychiatric Services, and Focus are now available online. The August issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry brings together research on PTSD, phobias, suicide attempts, and psychiatric vulnerabilities. Highlights include:   Neurobiology and Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Testing Quantitative and Qualitative Sex Effects in a National Swedish Twin-Sibling Study of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Sexual Identity Continuity and Change in a U.S. National Probability Sample of Sexual Minority Adults: Associations ...

By Jade Boyd Special to Rice News Rice University’s Angel Martí has been elected a fellow of the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of his discipline’s highest honors. Martí, professor and department chair of chemistry, is among 37 newly elected fellows announced by ACS this week. With more than 200,000 members in 140 countries, ACS is one of the largest scientific organizations. Fewer than 1% of its members are fellows, a distinction reserved for those with exemplary records of both service to the society and outstanding scientific or professional achievement. Martí joined ...

HOUSTON – (August 1, 2024) – Materials behave differently in different size regimes, and researchers tend to cluster their efforts either at the nanoscale, examining materials in atom-level detail, or at the microscale, looking at structures between three and five orders of magnitude greater. However, less is known about what happens in the “in-between” realm spanning from 10 billionths to 1 millionth of a meter. “We call this the mesoscale,” said Rice University materials scientist Lane Martin, who together with collaborators at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National ...

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, has recently published the first issue of Proceedings of the ACM on Software Engineering (PACSME), a new Gold Open Access journal publishing top-quality, original research on all aspects of software engineering, from requirements elicitation to quality assessment, design, maintenance, evolution, and deployment. PACMSE covers a broad range of topics and methods that help conceive, create, and maintain better software be it embedded, cloud-based, mobile and ubiquitous, or runs on conventional computers. “The overarching goal of the new PACSME journal is to make ...

An estimated 16% of people worldwide live with a significant disability that impacts their daily life. Of this population, only about 40% engage in aerobic activity. Due to this lack of exercise, people with disabilities (PWD) are more likely to suffer from chronic conditions such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, or cancer and are at higher risk of mental illnesses like depression and anxiety. “Many PWD struggle with psychological issues such as low self-esteem and negative body image, which can further reduce their motivation to participate in exercise activities, especially in public places ...

As the Venezuelan crisis intensifies, researchers and policy experts have worked to understand its ramifications on the country’s politics, economics, health services, water security, infrastructure and more. Now, Northwestern University computer scientists have comprehensively examined the effects of the crisis on a previously unexplored area: the Internet. In a new study, the researchers found the crisis has significantly — and negatively — affected Venezuela’s Internet infrastructure and connectivity. Compared to the ...

The Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) has successfully concluded its 45th COSPAR Scientific Assembly in Busan, Korea, held from 13 to 21 July. This prestigious event brought together more than 3,000 experts and leaders from 55 countries in all major fields of space science, under the theme “Team Spirit in Space Research”. This biennial event, actively supported by major space organizations, is a benchmark for fostering dialogue and collaboration within the global space science community. Bringing space leaders together Of particular note this time was the showcasing of ...

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic Gregory Berns, a neuroscientist at Emory University, moved from Atlanta to a farm an hour south of the city. His reinvention from city dweller to farmer led to his upcoming book “Cowpuppy: An Unexpected friendship and a Scientist’s Journey into the Secret World of Cows.” Set for publication by Harper Collins on August 20, the book describes Berns’ crash course to becoming a cattleman and his ongoing fascination with the interior world of cows. Berns originally bought a few cows to keep the grass in the ...

Hotter conditions prevent two tiny organisms working together for mutual benefit, new research shows. University of Exeter scientists studied a single-celled organism (Paramecium bursaria) which can absorb and host algae (Chlorella spp). This pairing is common in freshwater worldwide, and their symbiotic relationship provides benefits including trading of nutrients and protection for the algae. But when scientists made the water 5°C warmer, the partnership stopped working – and the results suggest the algae may even become parasitic. The breakdown of such relationships could have a major impact on ecosystems. “This ...

Despite widespread support, laws enforcing universal background checks at the time of firearm purchase may not be enough to move the needle on reducing shooting deaths in the United States. A Tufts University School of Medicine study, published August 1 in the journal JAMA Network Open, reports that states that require gun permits rather than relying solely on universal background checks see firearm homicide rates, on average, 18% lower than states with background check policies alone. The analysis compared firearm homicide data from the 12 states with universal background check laws but no permit ...

Regular aspirin may help lower risk of colorectal cancer in people with greater lifestyle-related risk factors for the disease, according to a study led by researchers at Mass General Brigham. The study, published in JAMA Oncology, could encourage a more nuanced approach to preventive aspirin use. “We sought to identify individuals who are more likely to benefit from aspirin to facilitate more personalized prevention strategies,” said co-senior author Andrew Chan, MD, MPH, Director of Epidemiology for the Mass General Cancer Center and gastroenterology Director of the Center for ...

About The Study: Between 14 and 27 weeks’ gestation, novice users with no prior training in ultrasonography estimated gestational age as accurately with the low-cost, point-of-care artificial intelligence (AI) tool as credentialed sonographers performing standard biometry on high-specification machines. These findings have immediate implications for obstetrical care in low-resource settings, advancing the World Health Organization goal of ultrasonography estimation of gestational age for all pregnant people. Quote from corresponding author Jeffrey ...

About The Study: Aspirin use was associated with a greater absolute reduction in risk of colorectal cancer among individuals with less healthy lifestyles in this cohort study. The findings of the study suggest that lifestyle risk factors may be useful to identify individuals who may have a more favorable risk-benefit profile for cancer prevention with aspirin.  Corresponding Authors: To contact the corresponding authors, email Andrew T. Chan, MD, MPH (achan@mgh.harvard.edu) and Long H. Nguyen, MD, MS (lnguyen24@mgh.harvard.edu). To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/  (doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2024.2503) Editor’s ...

About The Study: In this purposive national survey study of clinicians providing abortion, moral distress was elevated among all clinicians and more than twice as high among those practicing in states that restrict abortion compared with those in states that protect abortion. The findings suggest that structural changes addressing bans on necessary health care, such as federal protections for abortion, are needed at institutional, state, and federal policy levels to combat widespread moral distress.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, ...

About The Study: This cross-sectional study found that universal background checks alone were not associated with firearm homicide rates, but a permit requirement for the purchase and possession of firearms was associated with substantially reduced rates of firearm homicide. The findings suggest that combining universal background checks and permit-to-purchase requirements is an effective strategy for firearm-related fatality reduction.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Michael Siegel, MD, MPH, email mike.siegel@tufts.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.25025) Editor’s ...