The chance sighting of a dead snake beside a sandy track in remote Western Australia, and the investigation of its stomach contents, has led Curtin University researchers to record the first known instance of a spotted mulga snake consuming a pygmy spiny-tailed skink, raising concerns for a similar-looking, endangered lizard species. Lead researcher Dr Holly Bradley from Curtin’s School of Molecular and Life Sciences said the discovery of the partially digested pygmy spiny-tailed skink within the snake had implications for the vulnerable western spiny-tailed skink species. “Found about 300km east ...

Movies such as ‘X-Men,’ ‘Fantastic Four,’ and ‘The Guardians,’ which showcase vibrant mutant heroes, have captivated global audiences. Recently, a high-throughput genetic screening of meiotic crossover rate mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana garnered the interest of the academic community by unraveling a century-old mystery in the life sciences.   A research team, consisting of Professor Kyuha Choi, Dr. Jaeil Kim, and PhD candidate Heejin Kim from the Department ...

A University of Colorado Department of Medicine faculty member says she and her colleagues have identified the means in which bacteria in the digestive system can break down tryptophan in the diet into an inflammatory chemical that primes the immune system towards arthritis. The research was co-authored by Kristine Kuhn, MD, PhD, Scoville Endowed Chair and head of the CU Division of Rheumatology. Several of her division colleagues collaborated on the paper, which was published in February in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Tryptophan is an essential amino acid found in many protein-rich foods, including meats, fish, dairy products, and certain seeds and nuts. It has many uses in the ...

Adults who had amblyopia (‘lazy eye’) in childhood are more likely to experience hypertension, obesity, and metabolic syndrome in adulthood, as well as an increased risk of heart attack, finds a new study led by UCL researchers. In publishing the study in eClinicalMedicine, the authors stress that while they have identified a correlation, their research does not show a causal relationship between amblyopia and ill health in adulthood. The researchers analysed data from more than 126,000 participants aged 40 to 69 years old from the UK Biobank cohort, who had undergone ocular examination. Participants ...

A new psychological treatment for children with epilepsy, developed by a UCL-led team of scientists, has been shown to reduce mental health difficulties compared to standard care, a new study finds. Mental health problems such as worries, low mood and behaviour problems are more common in children and young people with brain conditions such as epilepsy, than in the general population – with up to 60% of those with epilepsy having associated mental health disorders and many having more than one mental ...

Is obesity passed down the generations?  Individuals are much more likely to be living with obesity in middle age if their parents were living with obesity, Norwegian research finds Embargo: 2301H UK time Thursday 7 March *This is an early press release from the European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2024) Venice 12-15 May. Please credit the Congress if using this material* Individuals have six times the odds of living with obesity in middle age if both their parents lived with obesity at that age, ...

Waltham — February 21, 2024 — African American patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) are less likely to receive surgical treatment, reports the March issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.  "Our study shows significant race- and gender-related differences in treatment choices among Medicaid beneficiaries with CTS," comments ASPS Member Surgeon Rachel C. Hooper, MD, of University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. ...

Waltham — February 21, 2024 — For women undergoing autologous breast reconstruction – reconstruction using the patient's own tissues, rather than implants – the risks of overall and specific complications are increased at higher body mass index (BMI) levels, reports the March issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.  "Our study clarifies the impact of high BMI as a risk factor for adverse outcomes of autologous breast reconstruction," comments senior author Merisa Piper, MD, of ...

Waltham — March 7, 2024 — In caring for transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people, psychiatrists should focus on alleviating the sequelae of gender minority stress, with the goal of promoting resilience, according to a review published in Harvard Review of Psychiatry, part of the Lippincott portfolio from Wolters Kluwer.  "We envision a role for psychiatry that goes beyond gatekeeping gender-affirming hormone therapy and surgeries," says Alex Keuroghlian, MD, MPH, Michele and Howard J. Kessler Chair and Director of the Division of Public and Community Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and ...

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation awarded researchers at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson a $2.7 million grant for clinical testing of a novel, oxygen-enabled, implantable pouch containing pancreatic cell clusters that produce insulin. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body makes insufficient insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas that regulates blood glucose levels. The disease is currently treated with supplemental insulin delivered by manual injection ...

FRANKFURT. Bettina Stark-Watzinger, Germany’s Federal Minister of Education and Research, emphasizes: "The rapid and successful development of active substances against the SARS-CoV-2 virus illustrated the importance of good and trusting international cooperation among scientists, especially in the field of integrated structural biology. Exchanging information at an international level is crucial, especially when it comes to using specialist infrastructures. There are many advantages to us joining Instruct-ERIC, which ...

The nationwide baby formula shortage two years ago forced many parents to involuntarily switch brands or types. A recent survey from researchers at the University of California, Davis, highlights how these substitutions led to undesirable effects for babies, including vomiting. The study was published in the journal Nutrients. In an online survey of 178 parents whose infants were under six months of age during the May 2022 shortage, 81% of respondents switched formulas, with 87% of those switching because they could not find the formula ...

NJIT Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Wunmi Sadik has recently been honored with the prestigious Wallace H. Coulter Lectureship during a guest appearance at one of the largest scientific conferences on laboratory science in the world, Pittcon. The Wallace H. Coulter Lectureship is presented each year at Pittcon to an “outstanding individual who has demonstrated a lifetime commitment to, and made important contributions that have had a significant impact on education, practice and/or research in laboratory science.” Sadik, chair of NJIT's ...

NEW ORLEANS, La – Ochsner Health cardiologist Salima Qamruddin, MD, MPH, FASE, FACC has been named a 2024 “Women in STEM” honoree by the American Heart Association and Entergy. This annual award gives recognition to six local female leaders who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment and made an impact in the field of science, technology, engineering and math across New Orleans. As an honoree, Dr. Qamruddin was formally recognized at the 2024 “Go Red for Women” luncheon on Friday, March 1. The event, held at the Hilton Riverside, celebrated the accomplishments of all six “Women in ...

A U.S.-Canadian research collaboration led by Vanderbilt University Medical Center has identified common, age-associated changes in the blood as a risk factor for acute kidney injury (AKI), which occurs in more than 1 in 5 hospitalized adults worldwide. This discovery, reported in the journal Nature Medicine, could open the door to new, more effective treatments for AKI and a way to prevent its progression to end-stage renal disease requiring kidney dialysis. The focus of this investigation was clonal hematopoiesis ...

The Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience will establish its first International Partner Group in India. Dr. Anant Jain, a former MPFI scientist in the lab of Dr. Ryohei Yasuda, will begin his own research group at CHINTA (Centres for High Impact Neuroscience and Translational Applications), TCG Centres for Research Education Science and Technology (CREST). “I am thrilled to head the Max Planck Partner Group, which will create a formal channel of collaboration between my new group and the experts at MPFI. This partnership will help launch my research program in India,” says Dr. Jain. The Max Planck Partner Group program aims to ...

Philadelphia, March 7, 2024 – Researchers from the Minds Matter Concussion Program at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) found that youth with pre-existing mental health diagnoses experienced a greater burden from emotional symptoms after concussion, as well as a prolonged time to recovery. Importantly, the study was the first of its kind to find a “dose-response” effect--that a greater number of mental health diagnoses was associated with increased emotional symptoms after concussion and a longer recovery. This finding suggests that addressing pre-existing mental ...

SAN ANTONIO, March 7, 2024 – The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) has secured approximately $16.4 million in funding from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas the past six months, attracting three top cancer researchers and advancing child and adolescent cancer research. A primary driver of San Antonio’s leading $44.1 billion health care and biosciences sector, UT Health San Antonio is the largest academic research institution in South Texas with an annual research portfolio of $413 million, and accounts for more than 70% of National Institutes of Health research funding to all institutions locally. Simon ...

About The Study: This scoping review determined that although artificial intelligence (AI) dermatology mobile apps hold promise for improving access to care and patient outcomes, in their current state, they may pose harm due to potential risks, lack of consistent validation, and misleading user communication. Addressing challenges in efficacy, safety, and transparency through effective regulation, validation, and standardized evaluation criteria is essential to harness the benefits of these apps while minimizing risks. Authors: Veronica Rotemberg, M.D., Ph.D., of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and Associate Editor, JAMA Dermatology, is the corresponding ...

An egg-laying species of worm-like amphibian feeds a lipid-rich milk-like substance to its hatchlings, according to a new study. The findings report a previously unobserved behavior and offer new insight into the species’ parental care and communication. Among vertebrates, the embryonic yolk is often the only nutritional investment mothers offer to feed offspring. However, some species have developed parental care behaviors involving the production and provisioning of specialized foods, such as the production of lipid-rich milk in mammals. Feeding offspring with nutrient-rich milk was long seen as a trait unique to mammals. However, several non-mammalian ...

The international liver oil and meat trade is driving rapid depletion of deepwater sharks and rays – an outcome that is potentially irreversible due to these animals’ extremely slow life histories. The findings highlight the need for immediate trade and fishing regulations . The deep ocean – the largest and one of the most complex ecosystems on Earth – is considered the last natural biodiversity refuge from the reach of human activities. It also remains one of the Earth’s least-studied environments. As such, there have been no comprehensive evaluations of the state of deepwater biodiversity. Despite international commitments ...

Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) drawdown from the chemical weathering of rocks peaks across a narrow range of moderate erosion rates, according to a new study. The findings provide new insights into the constraints of weathering-mediated CO2 drawdown and help to resolve conflicting data on the impact of uplift and erosion on the carbon cycle. The chemical weathering of rocks on Earth’s surface, in part, mediates the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere and, thereby, the planet’s climate. Understanding the constraints of this process is critical to modeling Earth’s evolution over geologic time scales and ...

A new device tested in pigs enables monitoring and early detection of pH changes in deep tissues due to post-operative leaks following gastrointestinal surgery. Such leaks – which occur at high rates 3-7 days following surgery – can be fatal if overlooked, and as such, require constant monitoring. Yet, early detection of these leaks remains a challenge. To address this need, Jaiqi Liu and colleagues developed a novel class of pH-responsive materials for real-time ultrasound measurement of pH changes indicative of leaks from healing ...

For many hundreds of millions of years, the average temperature at the surface of the Earth has varied by not much more than 20° Celsius, facilitating life on our planet. To maintain such stable temperatures, Earth must have a ‘thermostat’ that regulates the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide over geological timescales, influencing global temperatures. The erosion and weathering of rocks are important parts of this ‘thermostat.’ A team led by LMU geologist Aaron Bufe and Niels Hovius from the German Research Centre for Geosciences has now modeled the influence of these processes on carbon in the atmosphere. Their surprising result: CO2 capture through weathering ...

A protein that appears in postsynaptic protein agglomerations has been found to be crucial to their formation. The Kobe University discovery identifies a new key player for synaptic function and sheds first light on its hitherto uncharacterized cellular role and evolution. What happens at the synapse, the connection between two neurons, is a key factor in brain function. The transmission of the signal from the presynaptic to the postsynaptic neuron is mediated by proteins and their imbalance can lead to neuropsychiatric ...