About The Study: In this diagnostic study of 45 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 50 with typical development, a deep learning system trained on videos acquired using a joint attention–eliciting protocol for classifying ASD versus typical development and predicting ASD symptom severity showed high predictive performance. This new artificial intelligence–assisted approach based predictions on participants’ behavioral responses triggered by social cues. The findings suggest that this method may allow digital measurement of joint attention; however, follow-up studies are necessary for further validation.  Authors: Yu ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Using an artificial intelligence algorithm, researchers at MIT and McMaster University have identified a new antibiotic that can kill a type of bacteria that is responsible for many drug-resistant infections. If developed for use in patients, the drug could help to combat Acinetobacter baumannii, a species of bacteria that is often found in hospitals and can lead to pneumonia, meningitis, and other serious infections. The microbe is also a leading cause of infections in wounded soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. “Acinetobacter can survive on hospital doorknobs and equipment ...

PORTLAND, Oregon -- New animal research is helping explain why at least five people have become HIV-free after receiving a stem cell transplant. The study’s insights may bring scientists closer to developing what they hope will become a widespread cure for the virus that causes AIDS, which has infected about 38 million people worldwide. Published in the journal Immunity, the Oregon Health & Science University-led study describes how two nonhuman primates were cured of the monkey form of HIV after receiving a stem cell transplant. ...

Since the emergence of SARS in 2002, coronaviruses have been recognized as potential pandemic threats. This emergence highlights a need for evidence-based strategies to monitor bat coronaviruses. Daniel Becker, Ph.D., a researcher at the University of Oklahoma, is collaborating with other scientists nationwide to determine directions for future research. Becker, an OU assistant professor of biology, was the senior author of a paper published in Nature Microbiology. The study’s lead author was Lily Cohen, a medical student at the Icahn ...

Long COVID, or Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), includes a wide range of symptoms that present or persist more than 30 days after COVID-19 infection. With over 650 million people globally having been infected with SARS-CoV-2, long COVID represents a significant public health concern that affects quality of life, earnings, and health care costs. To better understand the prevalence and severity of symptoms, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER-Adult), ...

About The Study: In this analysis of data from 9,764 participants in the RECOVER adult cohort, a prospective longitudinal cohort study, 37 symptoms across multiple pathophysiological domains were identified as present more often in SARS-CoV-2–infected participants at six months or more after infection compared with uninfected participants. A preliminary rule for identifying postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), also known as long COVID, was derived based on a composite symptom score. As a first step to providing a framework for other investigations, iterative refinement that further incorporates other clinical features is needed ...

Researchers from the Quadram Institute and University of East Anglia have identified what makes some strains of gut bacteria life-threatening in pre-term babies. The findings will help identify and track dangerous strains and protect vulnerable neonatal babies. A major threat to neonatal babies with extremely low birth weight is necrotising enterocolitis (NEC). Rare in full term babies, this microbial infection exploits vulnerabilities destroying gut tissue leading to severe complications. Two out of five cases are fatal. One bacterial species that causes especially sudden and severe disease is Clostridium perfringens. These ...

Surface electromyography (EMG) has been widely used to measure the electrical activity of muscles. However, the variability in EMG sensing signals due to biological differences of different users significantly degrades the performance and potential of EMG systems. Recently, researchers from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) developed a deep learning-based framework called EMGSense, which can achieve high sensing performance for new users using AI self-training techniques. This opens a new path for developing more advanced and accurate wearable EMG devices in areas like neurorehabilitation and virtual reality. This ...

Insilico Medicine (“Insilico”), a generative artificial intelligence (AI)-driven clinical stage drug discovery company, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved the initial investigational new drug (IND) application for ISM3091 for the treatment of patients with solid tumors. This is Insilico's first oncology program to advance to the clinical validation stage. The open-label, multicenter Phase I clinical trial of ISM3091 will be conducted simultaneously in the U.S. and China ...

Scientists in Finland have developed a nanodevice that can measure the absolute power of microwave radiation down to the femtowatt level at ultra-low temperatures – a scale trillion times lower than routinely used in verifiable power measurements. The device has the potential to significantly advance microwave measurements in quantum technology.     Measuring extremely low power  Quantum science takes place mostly at ultra-low temperatures using devices called dilution refrigerators. ...

An early advocate for the electronic health records now found in hospitals across the country has developed a plan to improve their use, lighten clinicians’ workload and enhance patient care. The University of Virginia School of Medicine’s Don Detmer, MD, MA, designed the improvement plan in collaboration with Andrew Gettinger, MD, of Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine. Detmer oversaw UVA’s adoption of electronic physician order entry in the early 1990s while vice president ...

When we talk about defects, we generally think of flaws or impairments. However, as far as materials science is concerned, defects represent windows of opportunity. A new Collaborative Research Center (CRC) in the field of soft matter based at and administered by Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) will explore these opportunities. The German Research Foundation (DFG) has approved CRC 1552 "Defects and Defect Engineering in Soft Matter" and will be providing funding of some EUR 8 million over the next four years. Also participating are the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and the Fraunhofer Institute for Microengineering and Microsystems ...

Scientists have made a significant advancement with quantum technologies that could transform complex systems modelling with an accurate and effective approach that requires significantly reduced memory. Complex systems play a vital role in our daily lives, whether that be predicting traffic patterns, weather forecasts, or understanding financial markets. However, accurately predicting these behaviours and making informed decisions relies on storing and tracking vast information from events in the distant past – a process which presents huge challenges. Current models using artificial intelligence see their ...

Key Takeaways Current cancer diagnoses compared with pre-pandemic rates: Researchers quantified missed diagnoses of lung, breast, and colorectal cancers by comparing observed cancer rates in 2020 with pre-pandemic cancer rates (2010-2019). Potential increase in undiagnosed disease: Incidence rates for all three types of cancer have significantly decreased, suggesting that many patients may currently harbor undiagnosed disease. Importance of screening: Study adds to the growing body of literature on pandemic-related disruptions and serves as a vital reminder to encourage all patients to stay up to date on their recommended cancer screenings. CHICAGO: ...

Nearly $13 million in federal grant funds to study treatments for traumatic brain injury, which kills an average of 190 people and hospitalizes another 600 in the U.S. every day, has been awarded to UTHealth Houston by the Department of Defense’s Office of Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). The funding marks a positive step forward for patients suffering from the medical condition, said Charles S. Cox Jr., MD, the George and Cynthia Mitchell Distinguished Chair in Neurosciences and the Glassell Family Distinguished Chair in the Department of Pediatric Surgery with McGovern ...

A group of Virginia Tech faculty who represent a variety of disciplines is bringing the principles of disability justice to Appalachia through educational workshops, cultural events, and technology research.  The team received a $502,000 grant from the Andrew Mellon Foundation to create local and regional programming for disability-led arts, culture, reflection, and technology guidance. The foundation is a nonprofit organization that funds arts and humanities work nationwide. With the three-year project, called “Just ...

Butterflies, bees, and even bats are celebrated as pollinators: creatures that travel from flower to flower to feed, and in the process, help fertilize the plants by spreading pollen. But some of nature’s most diverse pollinators often go unnoticed, even by scientists: long-snouted beetles called weevils. A new study in the journal Peer Community in Ecology provides a deep dive into the more than 600 species of weevils, including ones whose entire life cycles are interwoven with a specific plant that they help pollinate. “Even people who work on pollination don't usually consider weevils as one of the main pollinators, and people who ...

INDIANAPOLIS -- Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 100 million hospital emergency department (ED) visits took place annually in the U.S. In two studies, Regenstrief Institute Research Scientist Sharmistha Dev, M.D., MPH, and colleagues characterize an ED visit as part of a continuum of care, exploring how an ED visit is a valuable arena to support care beyond the issue that motivated the visit. “Many people view a patient’s ED visit as a moment of acute care and a moment of dealing with just one issue and then the patient is either admitted or discharged. But ...

Teen girls who have greater difficulty effectively solving interpersonal problems when they experience social stress, and who experience more interpersonal stress in their lives, are at greater risk of suicidal behavior, suggests research published by the American Psychological Association. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among teens, and rates of suicidal behavior are particularly high among girls. Previous research has found that interpersonal stressors – such as conflict with peers, friends and family – are related to suicidal behavior. Some theories of ...

May 25, 2023   Saving Our Soil: How to Extend US Breadbasket Fertility for Centuries New research from UMass Amherst shows that the rapid and unsustainable rate of topsoil erosion can be drastically reduced with no-till agricultural methods already in practice AMHERST, Mass. – The Midwestern United States has lost 57.6 billion tons of topsoil due to farming practices over the past 160 years, and the rate of erosion, even following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s guidelines, is still 25 times higher than the rate at which topsoil ...

Aging often is accompanied by cognitive decline. Among the first structures of the brain affected are the hippocampus and adjacent cortices, areas essential for learning and memory. Deficits in cognitive ability are associated with reduced hippocampal volume and degradation of synaptic connectivity between the hippocampus and the (peri)-entorhinal cortex.  Increasing evidence indicates that physical activity can delay or prevent these structural and functional reductions in older adults. A new study by Florida Atlantic University and CINVESTAV, Mexico City, Mexico, provides novel insight into the benefits of exercise, which should motivate ...

Over 37 million Americans have diabetes, and 90-95% of that population are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Lifestyle interventions, such as a healthy diet and a regular physical activity program, are methods to manage diabetes. A new study from a collaboration of investigators at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and Joslin Diabetes Center, part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, uses data from the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) study, a randomized controlled trial that compared an intensive lifestyle intervention with diabetes support and education in patients diagnosed ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The mental distress of cognitive dissonance – encountering information that conflicts with how we act or what we believe – can lead to added pressure on the neck and low back during lifting and lowering tasks, new research suggests. When study participants were told they were performing poorly in a precision lowering experiment in the lab, after initially being told they were doing well, their movements were linked to increased loads on vertebrae in their neck and low back. Results showed that the higher the cognitive dissonance score, the greater the extent of loading on the upper ...

The George Institute for Global Health today announced data from the phase III INTERACT3 study demonstrating that a new combination of treatments for stroke due to intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) significantly improves the chances of surviving without major disability. Results were presented today at the European Stroke Organisation Conference in Munich, Germany, and simultaneously published in The Lancet. The INTERACT3 study is the first-ever randomised controlled trial to show a clearly positive outcome for the treatment of ICH. Timely administration of the new treatment protocol – known as a Care Bundle – centred on the rapid control of ...

In the past, it was considered unprofitable to electrify heavy goods vehicles that transport cargo over long distances. But now researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have shown that it can be cheaper to run heavy goods vehicles on electricity than on diesel. ‘I myself am surprised by the results and hope that more haulage companies and heavy goods vehicle manufacturers will be willing to invest in electrification now that we have shown that it can be cost-effective,’ says Johannes Karlsson, Doctoral student in Automatic Control Engineering at Chalmers. The transition ...