The brain is one of the most metabolically active organs in the human body. Although it represents only about 2 percent of the human body’s weight, it receives 15 to 20 percent of the body’s total blood supply. Disrupted blood flow to the brain over a long period of time, a condition known as “chronic cerebral hypoperfusion” (CCH), can lead to serious cerebrovascular diseases such as white matter disease. CCH manifests as lesions in the white matter, a brain region vulnerable to problems with blood supply. Unfortunately, CCH has no available cure. An early diagnosis by visualizing the microvascular changes in the brain that occur prior to lesion ...

A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham has found that a brief, simulated task of navigating a phone menu can detect the earliest changes in daily functioning in people at risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Investigators found that an older adult’s performance on the test, which can be completed in a matter of minutes, was associated with the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease pathology, including amyloid and tau depositions in the brain. The findings, which were published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, could help inform prevention trials testing treatments for Alzheimer’s disease before ...

Rich individuals living in communities with greater levels of economic inequality tend to be more generous with charitable giving and prosocial behaviors, according to a study published June 14, 2023 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Joel H. Suss from the London School of Economics & Political Science and Bank of England, UK. Many studies have attempted to assess whether the rich are more or less generous than the poor, and whether this shifts depending on the starkness of economic inequality. Thus far, the results have been inconclusive. Previous work in this vein has been conducted at a macro level, using state, region, and country-level aggregated data. In this study, Suss ...

Marine heatwaves are emerging as a key impact of climate change and pose a particularly significant threat to corals that form the backbone of coral reefs. Researchers have now identified a phenomenon that could help coral reef managers better plan and act for the future.[1] Every few years, the cyclic climate pattern called El Niño arises in the tropical Pacific, causing significant changes in winds, weather and ocean temperatures. From April 2015 to May 2016, the Central Pacific witnessed one of the strongest El Niño events ever recorded. Coral reefs were so stressed by the warmer ocean temperatures that they experienced mass bleaching, whereby the ...

New research from the University of Cambridge and the University of Melbourne, published in Science Advances, shows neurotypical workers and students taking cognitive enhancers, or ‘smart’ drugs, may actually be inhibiting their performance and productivity. Drugs such as methylphenidate, sold under the brand name Ritalin among others, are commonly prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but are also taken by those without a diagnosis, in the belief that the drugs will enhance focus and cognitive performance. In four double-blinded, ...

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science (CBS) in Japan have discovered a set of related mutations that lead to intracranial aneurysms—weakened blood vessels in the brain that can burst at any time. The mutations all appear to act on the same biological signaling pathway, and the researchers report the first ever pharmaceutical treatment in a mouse model, which works by blocking this signal. The study was published in Science Translational Medicine on June 14. About 5% of the population have unruptured intracranial aneurysms in blood vessels on the surface of the brain. Despite being ballooned arteries with ...

The chances of surviving massive blood loss from a traumatic injury such as a gunshot wound are around 50 percent. To survive, a patient needs two things to happen quickly: a large infusion of blood and coagulation at the wound to stop the bleeding. The problem is one of these solutions prevents the other. Introducing a large amount of blood to those suffering a massive hemorrhage impairs the blood’s ability to clot, a condition known as coagulopathy.   Now, Tulane University researchers have uncovered the cause of coagulopathy in trauma victims receiving a blood infusion. They also found that a synthetic compound ...

People in the earliest stage of Alzheimer’s disease — after brain changes have begun but before cognitive symptoms become apparent — harbor an assortment of bacteria in their intestines that differs from the gut bacteria of healthy people, according to a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The findings, published June 14 in Science Translational Medicine, open up the possibility of analyzing the gut bacterial community to identify people at higher risk of developing dementia, and of designing microbiome-altering preventive treatments to stave off cognitive decline. “We don’t yet know ...

A research group from the Graduate School of Medicine and iGCORE at Nagoya University in Japan, has discovered that using an antibiotic to target Fusobacterium reduced the formation of lesions associated with endometriosis, a gynecological disorder characterized by endometrial tissue usually found inside the uterus being found outside it. Their findings suggest an alternative treatment for this disorder. The study was published in Science Translational Medicine.    Endometriosis affects one in ten women between the ages of 15 and 49. The disorder can cause lifelong health problems, including pelvic pain and infertility. ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Newly planted vegetation on coastal sand dunes can accelerate erosion from extreme waves, a study involving researchers from the Oregon State University College of Engineering suggests. The authors note the findings run counter to the widely accepted paradigm that vegetation always acts to reduce erosion on dunes, the first line of storm defense for landscapes that are among the world’s most ecologically important and economically valuable. The experiments involved building beach dune profiles 70 meters long and 4.5 meters high and subjecting ...

A recent study led by scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of Zurich has revealed that the organic compounds proposed for carbon sequestration in deep soil are highly vulnerable to decomposition under global warming. The finding has implications for a key strategy in carbon management that relies on soil and forests – natural carbon “sinks” – to mitigate global warming. About 25 percent of global carbon emissions are captured by forests, grasslands, and rangelands. During photosynthesis, plants store carbon in their cell walls and in the soil. Because ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A new treatment tested on a high-quality steel alloy produces extraordinary strength and plasticity, two traits that must typically be balanced rather than combined. Ultra-fine metal grains that the treatment produced in the outermost layer of steel appear to stretch, rotate and then elongate under strain, conferring super-plasticity in a way that Purdue University researchers cannot fully explain. The researchers treated T-91, a modified steel alloy that is used in nuclear and petrochemical ...

NEW YORK – June 14, 2023 – The Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) has announced the TCT 2023 Program Guide is now available. TCT is the annual scientific symposium of CRF and the world’s premier educational meeting specializing in interventional cardiovascular medicine. TCT 2023 will take place October 23-26 in San Francisco, California, at the Moscone Center and will celebrate 35 years of leading the field. Every year, TCT features major medical research breakthroughs and gathers ...

Scientists have taken a journey back in time to unlock the mysteries of Earth’s early history, using tiny mineral crystals called zircons to study plate tectonics billions of years ago. The research sheds light on the conditions that existed in early Earth, revealing a complex interplay between Earth’s crust, core, and the emergence of life. Plate tectonics allows heat from Earth’s interior to escape to the surface, forming continents and other geological features necessary for life to emerge. Accordingly, “there has been the assumption that plate tectonics is necessary for life,” says John Tarduno, who teaches in the Department ...

For Immediate Release   Contact Colleen McDonald Sr. Consultant, Earned Media - MCW 414.801.3146 | cmcdonald@mcw.edu   Milwaukee, Wis., June 14, 2023 – In a new multi-center study, researchers from the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) joined with leading cancer centers from across the nation to examine whether cancer and its treatments accelerate aging. Using novel epigenetic measures to assess biological aging, investigators found that older breast cancer survivors – particularly those exposed to chemotherapy – showed greater epigenetic aging than their same-aged peers without cancer, which ...

WOODS HOLE, Mass. – Nearly a third of Earth’s freshwater resources lie in groundwater – much more than in all lakes, rivers and the atmosphere combined, and exceeded only by the frozen water in polar ice caps. Accordingly, about half of humankind depends on groundwater as a source of drinking water. Despite the global occurrence and essential importance of groundwater, however, knowledge of the organisms that inhabit it, and how they survive, remains thin. A recent investigation led by microbial ecologist Emil Ruff of the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) has discovered ...

The IEEE Photonics Society invites applications and nominations for the volunteer position of Editor-in-Chief (EiC) for the IEEE Photonics Journal, delivered through IEEE’s research digital library IEEE Xplore. The term for the current EiC will end this year and the Society is conducting an open search for potential candidates.   “The IEEE Photonics Journal led the way for the IEEE, being the IEEE’s first open access journal. We’re excited to find a candidate who can lead this pioneering journal for the next term, and I encourage all qualified ...

WASP-76b is a strange world. Located 634 light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation of Pisces, the Jupiter-like exoplanet orbits its host star at an exceptionally close distance — approximately 12 times closer than Mercury is to the Sun — which heats its atmosphere to a searing 2000°C. Such extreme temperatures have “puffed up” the planet, increasing its volume to nearly six times that of Jupiter. At such extreme temperatures, mineral- and rock-forming elements, which would otherwise remain hidden in the atmosphere of a colder gas-giant planet, can reveal themselves.  Using ...

Experts have identified coordinated efforts to saturate YouTube’s recommender algorithm, flooding users with pro- Bolsonaro content during the 2022 Brazil election. Researchers from the University of Exeter and Instituto Vero have uncovered a complex, web-like influencer system of channels that shaped political narratives during this period. This is in addition to YouTube’s own recommender algorithm which also generates suggestions based on users’ viewership patterns.  This network of influencer-driven videos was promoted by mentions, tags, interviews, and cuts (shorter video formats) and heavily contributed ...

Oxidative stress – characterized by elevated levels of unstable molecules called reactive oxygen species– is associated with neurodegeneration and cardiovascular disease. However, until recently it has not been possible to demonstrate a causal relationship between oxidative stress and disease states. A new study used “chemogenetics” to activate a recombinant yeast protein expressed in mouse tissues to manipulate levels of oxidative stress in living mice. Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the Novartis ...

Study shows improvements in depression and anxiety scores among individuals supplementing  with probiotics alongside standard antidepressant medication Data from a randomised double-blind placebo-controlled pilot trial published today in JAMA Psychiatry A new study published today (14 June) in JAMA Psychiatry has found evidence that supplementing the diet with a probiotic blend containing 14 strains of bacteria can help individuals who are being treated for major depressive disorder with antidepressants. The research, led by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) ...

About The Study: This survey study of a nationally representative sample suggests that the prevalence of food allergies was highest among Asian, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Black individuals compared with non-Hispanic white individuals in the U.S. Further assessment of socioeconomic factors and corresponding environmental exposures may better explain the causes of food allergy and inform targeted management and interventions to reduce the burden of food allergies and disparities in outcomes.  Authors: Ruchi S. Gupta, M.D., M.P.H., of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, is the corresponding ...

About The Study: Many physicians and scientists in this survey study reported being harassed on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic, often due to their advocacy and on the basis of gender, race, sexual orientation, or disability. Many reported sexual harassment and sharing of their private information. Authors: Regina Royan, M.D., M.P.H., of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, 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.2023.18315) Editor’s ...

SAN ANTONIO —Wednesday,  June 14, 2023 —The search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system just got more exciting. A team of scientists including Southwest Research Institute’s Dr. Christopher Glein has discovered new evidence that the subsurface ocean of Saturn’s moon Enceladus contains a key building block for life. The team directly detected phosphorus in the form of phosphates originating from the moon’s ice-covered global ocean using data from NASA’s Cassini mission. Cassini explored Saturn and its system of rings and moons for over ...

Neuroscientists have long searched for ways to reopen “critical periods” in the brain, when mammals are more sensitive to signals from their surroundings that can influence periods of brain development. Now, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine say a new study in mice shows that psychedelic drugs are linked by their common ability to reopen such critical periods, but differ in the length of time the critical period is open — from two days to four weeks with a single dose. The findings, published June 16 in the journal Nature, provide a new explanation for how psychedelic drugs work, say the scientists, and suggest potential to treat a wider ...