MADISON — University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers have developed low-cost sensors that allow for real-time, continuous monitoring of nitrate in soil types that are common in Wisconsin. These printed electrochemical sensors could enable farmers to make better informed nutrient management decisions and reap economic benefits.   “Our sensors could give farmers a greater understanding of the nutrient profile of their soil and how much nitrate is available for the plants, helping them to make more precise decisions on how much fertilizer they really need,” says Joseph Andrews, an assistant professor of mechanical ...

Growing up in neighborhoods with more educational and socioeconomic opportunities has a positive impact on infants’ brain activity, according to new research from Boston Medical Center (BMC). The study, published in The Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, suggests that enhancing neighborhood opportunities, particularly in education, can be a promising approach to promoting early childhood development.  A team of early childhood researchers examined how neighborhood opportunity – the socioeconomic, educational, health, and ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Across the Midwest during the warmer months, studying the sky for signs of storms and tornadoes becomes one of the most popular pastimes. Dan Chavas, an associate professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University’s College of Science, takes it further: All day every day, he studies what makes tornadoes tick. Working at the intersection of climate science and meteorology, he looks at the big picture of what causes severe storms and tornadoes — and what dictates where ...

Philadelphia, June 27, 2024 – Researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) found that young children between the ages of 5 and 12 were more likely to experience a concussion from recreation and other non-sport activities, yet those injuries were not seen by specialists until days later compared with sports-related concussions in the same age group. This study suggests concussion research is needed for children outside of sports and that providing more resources and education ...

A common algorithm to check for endometrial cancer is not reliable for Black women, according to a new study published today in JAMA Oncology. In Black patients with concerning symptoms, a tissue biopsy is strongly recommended to rule out endometrial cancer instead of using transvaginal ultrasound, the report concluded. Endometrial cancer is the most common type of gynecological cancer in the United States. It is one of the few types of cancer now on the rise, especially among Black women, who are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of the disease. This cancer can cause symptoms such as abnormal vaginal ...

·  Black participants with greater access to green spaces had up to 35% lower odds of calcification ·  Black participants living near a river had 32% lower odds of calcification ·  Coronary artery calcification is an early sign of cardiovascular disease CHICAGO --- Being near and having more exposure to urban green space and blue (water) space is linked to lower odds of having coronary artery calcification in middle age, which is an early marker of cardiovascular disease. The associations were more pronounced among Black individuals and those living in neighborhoods ...

Compared to straight and cisgender individuals, sexual and gender minority adults in the US are more likely to face barriers paying for or accessing adequate health insurance and healthcare, but few states collect sexual and gender identity (SOGI) information to better understand the health challenges and needs of this population. To close this knowledge gap, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) added three optional SOGI questions to its model application, with guidance for states that choose to incorporate the questions into their Medicaid and Child Health Insurance ...

MADISON–In a rare opportunity to study carnivores before and after wolves were reintroduced to their ranges, researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison found that the effects of wolves on Isle Royale have been only temporary. And even in the least-visited national park, humans had a more significant impact on carnivores’ lives. The paper, published recently in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, uses DNA from foxes and martens’ scat and hair to understand where these animals were and what they ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. ― Researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine found that a targeted gene therapy may make acute myeloid leukemia (AML) more sensitive to chemotherapy, while also protecting the heart against toxicity often caused by cancer treatments.  Acute myeloid leukemia is the most common type of leukemia in adults and the resulting chemotherapy treatment can put patients at an increased risk for cardiac damage. Associate Professor of Medicine Dr. Xunlei Kang and PhD students Yi Pan and Chen Wang led a study looking at similarities between leukemia and cardiovascular disease. They found a shared target -- AGTR1, ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The availability and adoption of high-speed broadband appears to boost the number of farms offering agritourism activities, according to a new study led by Penn State researchers. Their findings, the researchers said, bolster the argument for expanding broadband availability in support of farm operators who want to benefit from the growing consumer interest in on-farm experiences. “Agritourism operations are consumer-facing businesses that offer activities to farm or ranch visitors, such as farm stands, pumpkin patches, corn mazes, hayrides and ...

URBANA, Ill. -- LGBTQ+ people involved in farm work are over three times more likely to experience depression and suicidal intent and about two and a half times more likely to experience anxiety than the general population. That’s according to a new study led by farmer mental health experts at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.   “For several years, I've done work around farm stress and mental health among farmers in general. We’ve found people who work in agriculture have adverse mental health compared to those who work in other areas. Similarly, there are findings that queer folks have worse mental health than their ...

Since the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, 10 to 30 per cent of the general population has experienced some form of virus-induced cognitive impairment, including trouble concentrating, brain fog or memory loss. This led a team of researchers to explore the mechanism behind this phenomenon and pinpoint a specific protein that appears to be driving these cognitive changes.    A new study published in Nature Immunology, led by researchers at Western and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, also looked at how vaccination may help reduce the impacts of memory loss following COVID-19 infections.     The ...

A study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation, provides new evidence on the adverse effects of prenatal exposure to ethylene oxide (EO) on foetal development. The results, published in Epidemiology, show that increased EO exposure in utero is associated with a reduction in birth weight and head circumference in newborns. Ethylene oxide is a chemical used in various industrial processes and in hospitals, is known for its ...

Repetitive tasks carried out by ancient Egyptian scribes — high status men with the ability to write who performed administrative tasks — and the positions they sat in while working may have led to degenerative skeletal changes, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. Petra Brukner Havelková and colleagues examined the skeletal remains of 69 adult males — 30 of whom were scribes — who were buried in the necropolis at Abusir, Egypt between 2700 and 2180 BCE. They identified degenerative joint changes that were more common among scribes compared to men with other occupations. These were in the joints connecting the lower jaw to the skull, ...

Most coral reef restoration efforts involve restocking reefs with nursery-grown corals. However, if these corals are of the same stock as their wild counterparts, they will be equally vulnerable to the heat stress that caused the bleaching event in the first place. In a review publishing June 27 in the journal Trends in Microbiology, researchers discuss the potential of improving corals’ chances by inducing the evolution of heat tolerance in their symbionts—the mutualistic microbes that provide corals with nutrients in ...

About The Study: Rural residents with head and neck cancer experienced higher mortality rates and less annual improvement compared to urban counterparts in this cross-sectional study. Multilevel barriers may explain the widening rural-urban mortality gap, including alcohol and tobacco use and lower human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, S. M. Qasim Hussaini, M.D.,M.S., email shussaini@uabmc.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamaoto.2024.1650) Editor’s Note: Please see the article ...

About The Study: This study provides insights into complex factors surrounding maternal suicide, and it highlights opportunities for further research to understand long-term consequences of perinatal mental health. These findings also underscore the need for targeted evidence-based interventions and effective policies targeting mental health, substance use, and intimate partner problems to prevent maternal suicide and enhance maternal health outcomes.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Kara Zivin, Ph.D., M.S., M.A., M.F.A., email kzivin@umich.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this ...

In many cases of malignant melanoma, the effect of targeted treatment is lost over time. A research team from UZH and USZ has now discovered that a factor secreted by tumor cells is responsible for the resistance. These findings could pave the way for more effective therapies.   Malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive types of cancer. Despite recent progress in effective therapies, the tumors of many patients are either resistant from the outset or become so during the course of treatment. “It is therefore crucial to understand the mechanism ...

Researchers at Princeton and UCLA have developed a passive mechanism to cool buildings in the summer and warm them in the winter. In an article published June 27 in the journal Cell Reports Physical Science, they report that by restricting radiant heat flows between buildings and their environment to specific wavelengths, coatings engineered from common materials can achieve energy savings and thermal comfort that goes beyond what traditional building envelopes can achieve. “With the increase ...

HOUSTON ― Results from a new study led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center support standard use of the more precise intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) over the alternative 3D-conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) for patients with unresectable, locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The study, published today in JAMA Oncology, revealed fewer side effects with IMRT, with similar survival outcomes. A prospective secondary analysis of long-term outcomes from 483 patients on the Phase III NRG Oncology-RTOG 0617 randomized trial demonstrated ...

A study of multiple Mycena mushroom species reported in the journal Cell Genomics has found that they have unexpectedly large genomes. While the mushrooms had been thought to be purely saprotrophic – living by degrading dead organic material alone – the discovery suggests that they may instead have a collection of genes to enable them to adapt to different lifestyles as circumstances change. Interestingly, they show certain Mycena strains living in the Arctic have some of the largest mushroom genomes ever described.   These mushrooms show widespread growth across their genome. This includes not only the genes that help them invade or interact ...

In collaboration with the BioInnovation Institute (BII), AAAS is announcing the establishment of the BII & Science Translational Medicine Prize for Innovations in Women’s Health. Submissions are now open for the first year of the prize, which will be awarded in 2025. The new award will aim to recognize and elevate scientists who have made outstanding research discoveries that have translational potential to impact women’s health around the world. Relevant research topics include, but are not limited to, investigation into maternal health and gynecological conditions, areas of ...

Images   Simultaneously advancing biomaterials research with clinical applications and connecting researchers at well-resourced institutions with those rich in diverse talent is the aim of a $10.5 million center supported by the National Institutes of Health.    The Humanity Unlocking Biomaterials center, led by the University of Michigan and University of Washington, is designed to spur the development of biomaterials solutions that have potential in medical treatments by bringing together researchers and providing seed funding to kickstart ...

The European Southern Observatory’s Extremely Large Telescope (ESO’s ELT), under construction in the Chilean Atacama Desert, is one step closer to completion. German company SCHOTT has successfully cast the blank for the last of the 949 segments commissioned for the telescope’s primary mirror (M1). With a diameter of more than 39 metres, M1 will be by far the largest mirror ever made for a telescope. Too large to be made from a single piece of glass, M1 will consist of 798 hexagonal segments, each about five centimetres thick and 1.5 ...

Older coastal cities, like Philadelphia, New York and Boston are at risk of being inundated by untreated sewage during floods. Due in part to the design of their combined sewer systems and in part due to sea level rise, these cities could be facing a growing public health crisis as climate change also drives more extreme precipitation, according to researchers at Drexel University who study urban stormwater management. The group recently published research that modeled the potential extent of the problem in a section of the coastal city of Camden, New Jersey, and the effectiveness of one proposed intervention to help ...