Organic compounds in the field of chemistry range from simple hydrocarbons to complex molecules, with diverse functional groups added to the main carbon backbone. These functional groups impart the compounds distinct chemical properties as well as participate in various chemical transformations, making them important precursors for the synthesis of diverse compounds. Scientists have, therefore, actively engaged in creating molecules that feature novel and highly reactive functional groups. One such class of compounds are dibenzothiophenes and their derivatives containing ...

A sequence variant that increases risk of pregnancy loss Scientists at deCODE genetics, a subsidiary of Amgen and their collaborators from Iceland, Denmark and USA published a study today in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology titled “Variant in the synaptonemal complex protein SYCE2 associates with pregnancy loss through effects on recombination”. While it is well established that chromosomal abnormalities are a major cause of miscarriages the biology behind pregnancy losses with or without chromosomal errors is not well understood. Over 114 thousand women from Iceland, Denmark, UK, USA and Finland who have ...

The number of people with obesity has nearly tripled since 1975, resulting in a worldwide epidemic. While lifestyle factors like diet and exercise play a role in the development and progression of obesity, scientists have come to understand that obesity is also associated with intrinsic metabolic abnormalities. Now, researchers from University of California San Diego School of Medicine have shed new light on how obesity affects our mitochondria, the all-important energy-producing structures of our cells. In a study published January ...

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have made an unusual discovery that could help to identify patients who are up to two and a half times more likely to respond to currently available cancer drugs.  Scientists at the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in the USA have “rewired” the DNA of mitochondria – energy factories found in every living cell. They found that creating mutations in parts of this DNA determines how well cancer will respond to immunotherapy – treatments which harness the body’s natural defences ...

For decades scientists have been trying to solve Feynman’s Sprinkler Problem: How does a sprinkler running in reverse—in which the water flows into the device rather than out of it—work? Through a series of experiments, a team of mathematicians has figured out how flowing fluids exert forces and move structures, thereby revealing the answer to this long-standing mystery. “Our study solves the problem by combining precision lab experiments with mathematical modeling that explains how a reverse sprinkler operates,” explains Leif Ristroph, an associate professor at New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences and the senior author ...

(Utrecht/Vienna, 29.1.2024) Neuroblastoma mainly affects toddlers and young children - in the EU region there are 1500 new cases per year. Neuroblastoma is a malignant tumor of the peripheral nervous system and around 50% of patients are high-risk cases. Recurrences occur frequently, and conventional therapies are no longer effective for these children. With liquid biopsies it is possible to monitor therapy success and to predict the recurrence of the tumor in time to take medical countermeasures. Scientists from leading European ...

Social robots can help us with many things: teaching, learning, caring. Because they’re designed to interact with humans, they’re designed to make us comfortable — and that includes the way they talk. But how should they talk? Some research suggests that people like robots to use a familiar accent or dialect, while other research suggests the opposite.  “Surprisingly, people have mixed feelings about robots speaking in a dialect — some like it, while others prefer standard language,” said Katharina Kühne of the University of Potsdam, lead author ...

Harvesting energy sources such as heat, vibration, light, and electromagnetic waves from everyday environments such as industrial sites and automobiles and converting them into electrical energy is known as energy harvesting. Energy harvesting makes it easier to power today's popular IoT sensors and wireless devices that are located in environments where battery replacement is difficult. Dr. Hyun-Cheol Song and Dr. Sunghoon Hur of Electronic Materials Research Center at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) have developed a hybrid energy harvesting ...

Organ donation after medical assistance in dying (MAiD) represented 14% of Quebec's total deceased donations in 2022, according to a new study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.230883. To understand the impact of organ donation after MAiD, Quebec researchers analyzed data on all patients referred to Transplant Québec for possible organ donation after MAiD from January 2018 to December 2022. This represented the first 5 full years when organ donation after MAiD was allowed in the province. Over the 5-year period, Transplant Québec received 245 referrals for donation after MAiD, ...

A new review in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) is aimed at helping clinicians diagnose and manage polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), an endocrine disorder that affects about 10% of femaleshttps://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.231251. This disorder affects females of reproductive age and is associated with infertility, miscarriage and pregnancy complications. Its long-term health consequences include hypertension, cancer risks, and metabolic and psychological impacts. Patients usually present to health care between ages 18 and 39 years complaining of menstrual cycle irregularities, ...

Researchers have developed a robotic sensor that incorporates artificial intelligence techniques to read braille at speeds roughly double that of most human readers. The research team, from the University of Cambridge, used machine learning algorithms to teach a robotic sensor to quickly slide over lines of braille text. The robot was able to read the braille at 315 words per minute at close to 90% accuracy. Although the robot braille reader was not developed as an assistive technology, the researchers say the high sensitivity required to read braille makes it an ideal test in the development of robot ...

Overweight and obesity are contributing to rising death rates from bowel cancer among people aged 25-49 years in the European Union (EU) and the UK, although death rates from this type of cancer are decreasing overall across Europe.   These findings are from a new study published in the leading cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1] today (Monday), which predicts death rates from cancer in the EU and UK for 2024. It is the first time that an increase in bowel cancer death rates among young adults has been predicted for the EU, and it confirms a trend in the UK that the researchers first noted in 2021.   Researchers led by Carlo La Vecchia (MD), ...

Engaging in music throughout your life is associated with better brain health in older age, according to a new study published by experts at the University of Exeter. Scientists working on PROTECT, an online study open to people aged 40 and over, reviewed data from more than a thousand adults over the age of 40 to see the effect of playing a musical instrument – or singing in a choir - on brain health. Over 25000 people have signed up for the PROTECT study, which has been running for 10 years. The team reviewed participants’ musical experience and lifetime exposure ...

A study of pediatric heart surgery centers across the United States has demonstrated that, when it comes to successful surgery, it’s not just the size of the program that matters in determining quality outcomes. Historically, hospitals with a “low volume” of pediatric heart operations—in this case, those that perform 103 surgeries or fewer a year—have been associated with worse outcomes for patients. However, a team led by D. Chauhan, MD, from WVU Medicine Children’s ...

Despite national guidelines recommending surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) for patients under age 65 with severe aortic stenosis, many hospitals are still opting for a nonsurgical approach in patients under 60—possibly with poorer survival rates. In a study presented at The Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ 2024 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, researchers from the department of cardiac surgery in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles and the department of population health science and policy at Mount Sinai New York compared ...

Pet owners forced to be separated from their animals in crisis situations, including those who are victims of domestic violence, are suffering from a lack of support services needed to protect them. These are the findings of a new review of 27 years of international research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Anthrozoös, which unveils the increased risks to both safety and psychological well-being when people are faced with the threat of forced separation from their pets. The results provide important insights towards addressing the challenges arising from domestic violence, homelessness or natural disasters that can threaten the bond between humans and ...

Boston – For the first time in fifty years, results from a phase 3 randomized, placebo-controlled trial have shown an overall survival benefit from an adjuvant therapy in patients with kidney cancer. Treatment with pembrolizumab, an immunotherapy drug, after surgery significantly prolonged overall survival in patients with clear-cell renal-cell carcinoma (ccRCC) at high risk for recurrence, according to an analysis of results from the KEYNOTE-564 study. Pembrolizumab was associated with a 38% reduction in risk of death compared with placebo. “We can now ...

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons has released late-breaking research scheduled for presentation at the 2024 Annual Meeting taking place January 27 - 29 in San Antonio. The conference, healthcare’s leading scientific and educational convening specializing in cardiothoracic surgery, has a rich history of showcasing clinical trials with a strong foundation of detailed methodology and trusted data collection governed by ethical clinical principles. The event’s late-breaking trial sessions focus on studies anticipated to significantly influence advances in cardiothoracic patient care. In this fast-paced healthcare landscape, ...

A new study presented at The Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ 2024 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, examines the ongoing controversy surrounding the choice between multi-arterial grafting (MAG) and single arterial grafting (SAG) in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) for multivessel coronary revascularization. The research, spanning from 2008 to 2019 and involving over one million patients undergoing isolated CABG with more than two bypass grafts, found that multi-arterial grafting CABG ...

Tokyo, Japan – Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have been studying the strength and toughness of sand columns made of a mixture of sticky and non-sticky grains. They have uncovered the mechanism behind how the strength changes as grains are mixed in different ratios, and how a mixture can help keep the column more resilient to deformation. Non-sticky grains are also easily replaceable with other materials, enabling the design of stronger, tougher, functional matter.   Granular matter consists of vast numbers of small grains, like sand and powders. Such grains can be made to stick to each other, yielding strong materials ...

Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah (the U) has received a $20 million land donation from the developers of Utah City, a new walkable mixed-use city center. This significant contribution from Woodbury Corporation and Flagship Companies, in partnership with the City of Vineyard, will pave the way for the establishment of the state-of-the-art Huntsman Cancer Institute campus in Utah County. Huntsman Cancer Institute is the National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center for Utah, Idaho, ...

Building on $180 million in joint energy-related research, EPB and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) marked 10 years of collaboration Friday with the announcement of the new Collaborative for Energy Resilience and Quantum Science (CERQS). The new joint research effort will focus on utilizing Chattanooga’s highly advanced and integrated energy and communications infrastructure to develop technologies and best practices for enhancing the resilience and security of the national power grid while accelerating the commercialization of quantum technologies.  U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03), ...

Validating its status as a leader in power electronics for grid and aviation applications, the University of Tennessee has been awarded a grant from the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) of the US Department of Energy (DOE) to help modernize the nation’s power grid. ARPA-E is distributing $42 million for 15 projects across 11 states to improve the reliability, resiliency, and flexibility of the domestic power grid through the development of next-generation semiconductor technologies. Funded through ARPA-E’s Unlocking Lasting Transformative Resiliency Advances by Faster Actuation of power ...

Pregnant women exposed to specific classes of flame-retardant chemicals may face an increased risk of preterm birth, especially for baby girls, or higher birth weights, according to a Rutgers Health researcher. Emily Barrett, professor and vice chair of the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the Rutgers School of Public Health and a member of the Rutgers Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, took part in a study that was published in Environmental Health Perspectives and funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program at the National Institutes of Health. Manufacturers commonly use organophosphate esters (OPEs) ...

Recording the activity of large populations of single neurons in the brain over long periods of time is crucial to further our understanding of neural circuits, to enable novel medical device-based therapies and, in the future, for brain–computer interfaces requiring high-resolution electrophysiological information. But today there is a tradeoff between how much high-resolution information an implanted device can measure and how long it can maintain recording or stimulation performances. Rigid, silicon ...