With CRISPR-Cas9 technology, humans can now rapidly change the evolutionary course of animals or plants by inserting genes that can easily spread through entire populations. Evolutionary geneticist Asher Cutter proposes that we call this evolutionary meddling “genetic welding.” In an opinion paper publishing March 28 in the journal Trends in Genetics, he argues that we must scientifically and ethically scrutinize the potential consequences of genetic welding before we put it into practice. “The capability to do genetic welding has only taken off in the last few years, and much of the thinking about it has focused on what can happen ...

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2023 – Energy production in nature is the responsibility of chloroplasts and mitochondria and is crucial for fabricating sustainable, synthetic cells in the lab. Mitochondria are not only “the powerhouses of the cell,” as the middle school biology adage goes, but also one of the most complex intracellular components to replicate artificially. In Biophysics Reviews, by AIP Publishing, researchers from Sogang University in South Korea and the Harbin Institute of Technology in China identified the most promising advancements and greatest challenges of artificial mitochondria ...

About The Study: In this analysis of a national data set representing an estimated 4.7 million pediatric hospitalizations between 2009 and 2019, the number and proportion of pediatric acute care hospitalizations due to mental health diagnoses increased significantly. The majority of mental health hospitalizations in 2019 included a diagnosis of attempted suicide, suicidal ideation, or self-injury, underscoring the increasing importance of this concern.  Authors: Mary Arakelyan, M.P.H., of the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical ...

An international research collaboration has developed a VR*1 imaging system that can measure a wide range of neural activity in the cortices of mice during active behavior. This enabled them to illuminate the abnormalities in cortical functional network*2 dynamics that are found in autism*3 model mice. Using machine learning*4, they were also able to highly accurately distinguish between autism model mice and wild-type mice based on the cortical functional network patterns when the mice start or stop running. The research group was led by Professor ...

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2023 – Fibroblasts build and maintain the extracellular matrix, or physical scaffolding for cells, in the connective tissues within the body. It is believed that cancerous tumors can recruit nearby fibroblasts and use them to promote their own growth and invasion. This process, called cancer-associated fibroblast activation, can also protect tumors from chemotherapy and make treatment difficult. In APL Bioengineering, by AIP Publishing, researchers from Academia Sinica, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, National Taiwan University Hospital, and National Taiwan University developed ...

About The Study: The findings of this study that included 29,000 patients suggest that recent COVID-19 infection was not associated with risk of adverse postoperative outcomes, regardless of timing within the previous 60 days.  Authors: William J. O’Brien, M.S., of Veterans Affairs Boston, 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.2023.4876) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, ...

About The Study: In this study of 3,101 adult participants, the number of days per week taking 8,000 steps or more was associated with a lower risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in a curvilinear fashion. The findings suggest that for adults who face difficulties in exercising regularly, achieving the recommended daily steps only a couple days a week may have meaningful health benefits. Authors: Kosuke Inoue, M.D., Ph.D., of Kyoto University in Kyoto, Japan, is the corresponding ...

WASHINGTON, DC – The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) today announced funding awards totaling $123 million to support 15 new research studies. These studies aim to fill evidence gaps, enhance research methods, or improve health care decision making for a range of high-burden concerns among adults and children, including postpartum complications occurring in populations experiencing the greatest disparities in health outcomes.   In addition, PCORI awarded $4 million for two implementation projects intended to accelerate uptake of strategies shown in PCORI-funded studies, one to improve decision making about colorectal ...

The burden of cardiovascular, metabolic, and neurological diseases (including ischemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and Parkinson’s disease) is particularly high, and these conditions affect millions around the world annually. In order to develop effective treatment strategies against these diseases, it is important to delineate the cellular and molecular pathways that contribute to their development. Three pre-clinical studies published in Volume 13 Issue 2 of Journal of Pharmaceutical Analysis have done just that. The first study, published online on December 5, 2022, focused on myocardial infarction (MI), better known as a heart attack. Given that the ...

NEW YORK — MARCH 28, 2023 – For patients with psychiatric conditions, illness severity and instability are key factors in predicting future risk of hospitalization, according to a new study by Holmusk, a leading behavioral health real-world evidence and data analytics company, that has been published in The Lancet Psychiatry. The study, which was enabled by Holmusk’s NeuroBlu Database, could prove useful across the behavioral health care and research ecosystem, from facilitating early intervention to supporting the development of more targeted treatments. The research was conducted using Holmusk’s NeuroBlu Database, a real-world data source that contains ...

How do clouds shape the planet’s future? Clouds are not just fluffy white shapes in the sky. They are vital for regulating the earth’s climate, as they influence the water cycle, atmospheric dynamics and energy balance. However, studying clouds is not easy. One way to do so is to use spaceborne imagers, but these imagers still face challenges of efficiency and scalability. To overcome these limitations, Ido Czerninski and Yoav Y. Schechner from the Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, a partner of CloudCT, have developed an effective inverse rendering framework ...

Science requires data, and survey research is one important means of gathering it. Surveys provide a scientific way of acquiring information that is used to inform policy decisions, guide political campaigns, clarify the needs of stakeholders, enhance customer service, help society understand itself, and improve the quality of life in the United States. In recent years, concerns have been raised about growing rates of refusal to participate in surveys, as well as about inaccurate forecasts in high-profile ...

Key takeaways Inequitable access to breast cancer care: Treatment options for breast cancer are increasing, but many groups still do not have equitable access to preventative services, such as screening mammograms, and new therapies or drugs. Wide spectrum of disparities: Screening, genetic testing, reconstruction, and fertility preservation are four significant areas where disparities exist and where surgeons should maintain awareness. Surgeons can drive change: Surgeons can raise the standard of care at their institutions by improving their understanding of these disparities and advocating for their patients. CHICAGO: Surgeons can play a key role ...

SAN ANTONIO — March 28, 2023 - A new hydrogen compressor developed at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) can improve the efficiency and reliability of hydrogen compression used in the refueling of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). The SwRI-developed linear motor-driven reciprocating compressor (LMRC) is designed to compress hydrogen as a fuel source for FCEVs and other hydrogen-powered vehicles. Unlike most hydrogen compressors, SwRI’s LMRC is hermetically sealed and has a linear motor design that increases its ...

Europe PMC, one of the largest providers of high-performance search tools for life sciences literature, has announced that its Grant Finder now incorporates Research Organization Registry (ROR) IDs to help users find active and completed grants awarded by Europe PMC funders. As one of the operating organizations of ROR, Crossref is pleased to jointly announce this news. Integrating ROR IDs into the Europe PMC Grant Finder means that organizational name variations are now aggregated under a single name, which allows people to search for different aliases and receive the same set of results. Europe PMC used the ROR API in conjunction with a manual screening step to match 82% of ...

OAK BROOK, Ill. – Researchers found that a minimally invasive procedure combined with epidural steroid injection treatment led to superior pain reduction and disability improvement over one year in patients with sciatica. The results of the study were published in Radiology, a journal of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). The combined treatment performed better than steroid injections alone. Sciatica is pain that originates along the sciatic nerve, which extends from the back of the pelvis down the back of the thigh. The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body. Treatments ...

Fukuoka, Japan—Solid oxide fuel cells, or SOFC, are a type of electrochemical device that generates electricity using hydrogen as fuel, with the only 'waste' product being water. Naturally, as we strive to reduce our carbon output and mitigate the casualties of the climate crisis, both business and academia have taken major interest in the development of SOFCs. In what can potentially accelerate the development of more efficient SOFCs, a research team led by Kyushu University has uncovered the chemical innerworkings of a perovskite-based ...

Can monetary policy such as the United States Federal Reserve raising interest rates affect the environment? According to a new study by Florida Atlantic University’s College of Business, it can.  Using a stylized dynamic aggregate demand-aggregate supply (AD-AS) model, researchers explored the consequences of traditional monetary tools – namely changes in the short-term interest rate – to the environment. Specifically, they looked at how monetary policy impacts CO2 emissions in the short and long run. The AD-AS model conveys several interlocking relationships between the four macroeconomic goals of growth, unemployment, inflation and a sustainable balance ...

Endometrial cancer, which makes up about 90% of uterine cancers, will be diagnosed in more than 65,000 people in the United States this year. It is the fourth most common cancer in women and is one of the few cancers that is increasing in incidence and mortality. Unfortunately, very few treatments have been developed specifically for endometrial cancer. Now, new research published March 27, 2023, in The New England Journal of Medicine finds adding the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) to standard chemotherapy greatly improves patient outcomes in both patients whose tumors have a genetic alteration leading ...

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology submitted testimony to the U.S. House Appropriations Committee March 22 outlining its recommended budgets for major scientific funding agencies. Notably, the society requested a significant 10% increase in the budget for the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, which is part of the National Institutes of Health. “The ASBMB has a longstanding history of advocating for NIGMS and its researchers, and the majority of our members are funded by and rely on NIGMS to advance their research,” Sarina Neote, public affairs director of the ASBMB, said. “The ...

WHAT: Scientists have identified an autoinflammatory disease caused by mutations in the LYN gene, an important regulator of immune responses in health and disease. Named Lyn kinase-associated vasculopathy and liver fibrosis (LAVLI), the identification sheds light on how genes linked to certain illnesses can potentially be targets for treatment by repurposing existing drugs. The research, published in Nature Communications, was led by Adriana A. de Jesus, M.D. Ph.D., and Raphaela Goldbach-Mansky, M.D., M.H.S. of the Translational ...

The Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT, President Kim Byung-suk) developed a smart sensor that detects signs of ground or structure collapses and a real-time remote monitoring system.   The development of the sensor and system began with a search for a method of instant sensing of the collapse of slopes or buildings caused by ground movement for immediate response. This led to the development of a smart sensor that turns on a LED warning light upon detecting ground movement. The ...

Replacement per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) heralded as safe for use in food packaging break down into toxic PFAS that leak into our food and environment, suggests a study published today in Environmental Science & Technology Letters. Due to the known exposure risks of using smaller PFAS molecules like PFOA and PFOS in food-contact materials, many companies have pivoted to using larger polymeric PFAS to make their wrappers, bowls, and other fast-food packaging water- and grease-repellant. ...

Gaithersburg, MD—March 28, 2023 – Cartesian Therapeutics, a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company pioneering RNA cell therapy for autoimmune diseases and cancer, today announced the appointment of five internationally recognized experts in autoimmune diseases.  Cartesian’s appointments include distinguished physicians and scientists as leaders in clinical trials and medicine. “Cartesian is proud to have these prestigious, multidisciplinary advisors committed to treating other autoimmune diseases,” said Miloš Miljković, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Cartesian Therapeutics. “Their perspectives will provide the utmost value ...

Researchers at the University of Toronto, Indiana University and University of Notre Dame have detected levels of toxic PFAS chemicals—short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances—for the first time in Canadian fast-food packaging, specifically water-and-grease repellent paper alternatives to plastic.  Published today in Environmental Science and Technology Letters, the findings suggest that food packaging exposes people directly to PFAS, which have been linked to serious health effects such as increased cancer risk and immune system damage, by contaminating the food they eat. Further, once discarded packaging enters waste streams, PFAS enter the environment, where these ...