When pathogens attack the body, the innate immune system goes to work protecting against the invading disease. The innate immune system is the first line of defense. It detects precisely what the virus or bacteria is and then activates the proteins that fight the pathogens. Wanting to better understand how the body’s innate immune system works, a team of scientists undertook a study of STING, a protein that plays a vital role in innate immunity. The team provides quantitative results, showing how STING, an acronym for stimulator of interferon genes, works in innate immune signaling.  Their work is published in the journal Nature Communications on Jan ...

Petaluma, CA--Newly published research by Petaluma-based non-profit, Point Blue Conservation Science, shows how Adélie penguins within the Ross Sea, Antarctica use sea ice in their annual migrations. The results were published in the journal Ecology, a publication of the Ecological Society of America.  Adélie penguins, though flightless, can undertake extraordinary migrations like their flying relatives, traveling thousands of kilometers out to sea from their on-land breeding colonies in Antarctica, tracking daylight and food during the long Antarctic winter. Many other species are known to use wind ...

For the first time, researchers have analysed the impact of antibiotic use on the rise of treatment-resistant bacteria over the last 20 years in the UK and Norway. They show that while the increase in drug use has amplified the spread of superbugs, it is not the only driver. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the University of Oslo, the University of Cambridge, and collaborators, conducted a high-resolution genetic comparison of bacteria. They compared over 700 new blood samples with nearly 5,000 ...

(MEMPHIS, Tenn. – January 11, 2024) Data from the St. Jude lifetime cohort study (St. Jude LIFE) revealed that two common biomarkers of cardiac function and damage could better predict cardiomyopathy within five years than routine clinical evaluations in high-risk, asymptomatic childhood cancer survivors. Early detection through screening using these two biomarkers may lead to earlier treatment to prevent and protect against further heart damage. The findings were published today in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.    Cardiomyopathy is often asymptomatic at onset and thus “invisible” to routine clinical evaluations. St. Jude ...

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have discovered key insights into the molecular basis of skin color variations among African populations. Their findings, published in Nature Genetics, broaden the understanding of human evolution and the genetics underpinning contemporary human skin color diversity. “Despite the abundant genetic diversity within African populations, they have been historically underrepresented in genetic studies,” says senior author Sarah Tishkoff, a Penn Integrates ...

Media contacts: Jillian McKoy, jpmckoy@bu.edu Michael Saunders, msaunder@bu.edu ## BOSTON, MA – January 11, 2024 marks the 22nd anniversary of the opening of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, a facility shrouded in controversy and synonymous with indefinite detention and alleged human rights abuses. Established in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, Guantanamo has held hundreds of individuals suspected of terrorism, many without charge or trial, and under conditions widely condemned by international human rights organizations. A Legacy of Controversy: Indefinite Detention: Over ...

The University of California, Davis, is leading the establishment of a new Integrative Center for Alternative Meat and Protein, or iCAMP. The center will work toward large-scale commercialization and technological advancement of alternative proteins, including cultivated meat (from animal cells grown in large fermentors), plant- and fungal-based foods, and innovative hybrids that combine conventional meat products with alternative proteins. Bringing together leading researchers and academic institutions, industry ...

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) — The sun has just set on a quiet mudflat in Australia’s Northern Territory; it’ll set again in another 19 hours. A young moon looms large over the desolate landscape. No animals scurry in the waning light. No leaves rustle in the breeze. No lichens encrust the exposed rock. The only hint of life is some scum in a few puddles and ponds. And among it lives a diverse microbial community of our ancient ancestors. In a new account of exquisitely preserved microfossils, researchers at UC Santa Barbara and McGill University revealed that eukaryotic organisms had already evolved into a diverse array ...

EL PASO, Texas (Jan. 11, 2024) – Researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso have identified a novel pharmaceutical compound that successfully kills leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells, potentially paving the way for new forms of therapy. Renato Aguilera, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, is the principal investigator on the project that identified the promising compound, called thiophene F-8. His team’s findings were recently published in the research journal PLOS One. “The main ...

TUCSON, Ariz., January 11, 2024 — Critical Path Institute (C-Path) today announced the launch of a task force focused on accelerating drug development for mitochondrial and inherited metabolic diseases. The task force will lay the groundwork for specific solutions, offering valuable insights that aim to contribute to regulatory decision-making. C-Path’s demonstrated expertise will be leveraged to ensure success, specifically its track record in generating tangible solutions that have accelerated drug development in rare and pediatric ...

The world is filled with a myriad of sounds and vibrations—the gentle tones of a piano drifting down the hall, the relaxing purr of a cat laying on your chest, the annoying hum of the office lights. Imagine being able to selectively tune out noises of a certain frequency. Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have synthesized polymer networks with two distinct architectures and crosslink points capable of dynamically exchanging polymer strands to understand how the network connectivity and bond exchange mechanisms govern the overall damping behavior of the network. The incorporation of dynamic bonds into the polymer network demonstrates ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Building off the previous month’s survey, the December 2023 Consumer Food Insights Report digs deeper into the relationships between food-date labels and the decision to discard food. The report also explores generational differences in food behaviors and reviews 2023 trends for out-of-stock items and common foods that people reported limiting in their diets over the year. The survey-based report out of Purdue University’s Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability assesses food spending, consumer satisfaction and values, support ...

HOUSTON, January 10, 2024 – Mike Norvell, head coach at Florida State University, was named college football Coach of the Year at the American Heart Association’s Paul “Bear” Bryant Awards, presented by Marathon Oil. The 38th annual awards program benefits the American Heart Association, the world’s leading voluntary health organization devoted to a world of longer, healthier lives for all. In his fourth season as the head coach at Florida State, Norvell led the Seminoles to a 13-1 overall record and an 8-0 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Norvell was previously honored as the ACC Coach of the Year and was ...

Wastewater surveillance is a potent tool in understanding COVID-19 transmission within school settings, according to a ground-breaking study led by epidemiologist David Larsen from Syracuse University. The research team’s work that was published recently in PLOS Global Public Health establishes the pivotal role of wastewater analysis in managing the public health response to COVID-19 at schools. The study focused on a middle and high school campus in Jefferson County, New York, serving 600 students and compared results from wastewater surveillance to COVID-19 case trends. The surveillance ...

New UC Davis research shows that men with an FMR1 premutation who experienced reduced executive function were at higher likelihood of developing fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS). FXTAS is a progressive genetic condition that causes movement issues and cognitive decline. These findings, published in the journal Movement Disorders, could help clinicians determine which premutation carriers will eventually develop FXTAS. “There's converging evidence that the premutation is affecting certain circuits in the brain ...

Human activity, from burning fossil fuels and fireplaces to the contaminated dust produced by mining, alters Earth’s atmosphere in countless ways. Records of these impacts over time are preserved in everlasting polar ice that serves as a sort of time capsule, allowing scientists and historians to link Earth’s history with that of human societies. In a new study, ice cores from Antartica show that lead and other toxic heavy metals linked to mining activities polluted the Southern Hemisphere as early as the 13th century.  “Seeing evidence that early Andean ...

    Images     An insight into preventing perovskite semiconductors from degrading quickly, discovered at the University of Michigan, could help enable solar cells estimated to be two to four times cheaper than today's thin-film solar panels.    Perovskites may also be combined with the silicon-based semiconductors that are prevalent in today's solar panels to create "tandem" solar cells that could surpass the maximum theoretical efficiency of silicon solar cells.   "Silicon solar cells are great because they are very efficient and can last for a very long time, but the high efficiency comes with a high cost," ...

Sharks have persisted as powerful ocean predators for more than 400 million years. They survived five mass extinctions, diversifying into an amazing variety of forms and lifestyles. But this ancient lineage is now among the world's most threatened species groups due to overexploitation in poorly regulated fisheries and the proliferation of wasteful finning practices. Governments around the world have introduced a host of regulations aimed at reducing shark catch and finning, the latter of which typically sees valuable shark fins retained for sale while carcasses are discarded at sea. But until ...

A dense system of pre-Hispanic urban centers, characterized by constructed platforms and plazas and connected by large, straight roads, has been discovered in the upper Amazon, according to a new study. The research, based on more than 20 years of interdisciplinary research, suggests that this original 2500-year-old society constitutes the earliest and largest low-density agrarian urbanism documented in the Amazon thus far. Such extensive early development in the Upper Amazon resembles similar Maya urban systems in Central America. ...

Clinical prediction models for schizophrenia treatment outcomes that work well within the trials from which they were developed fail to generalize to future trials, according to a new study. “The findings not only highlight the necessity for more stringent methodological standards for machine learning approaches but also require reexamination of the practical challenges that precision medicine is facing,” writes Frederike Petzschner in a related Perspective. Despite receiving the same treatments for the same afflictions, some patients get better while others show no improvement. Precision medicine approaches seek to address this problem by providing tailored treatments for individual ...

Despite widespread legislation and fishing regulations aimed at reducing wasteful shark finning practices, global shark fishing mortality is still on the rise, researchers report. The findings suggest that improved regulations are needed to reverse the continued overexploitation of these species. Over the last several decades, sharks have been increasingly recognized as some of the planet’s most threatened wildlife. Increasing shark mortality has been driven in part by overfishing – large numbers of sharks are often captured as bycatch in tuna ...

A comprehensive analysis of tree species’ conservation statuses across Atlantic Forest trees reveals high extinction risks. According to the report, roughly two-thirds of the 4950 tree species living in this biodiversity hotspot are threatened with extinction. This includes 82% of endemic species, which have quite limited geographic ranges. Based on these findings, the authors suggest that the conservation status of tropical forests worldwide may be worse than previously believed. Conservation efforts and decisions often ...

With human retinas grown in a petri dish, researchers discovered how an offshoot of vitamin A generates the specialized cells that enable people to see millions of colors, an ability that dogs, cats, and other mammals do not possess. “These retinal organoids allowed us for the first time to study this very human-specific trait,” said author Robert Johnston, an associate professor of biology. “It’s a huge question about what makes us human, what makes us different.” The findings, published in PLOS Biology, increase understanding of color ...

Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, Month Day, Year – Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have unveiled a roadmap for bringing perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells to market, paving the way for a future powered by abundant, inexpensive clean energy in Saudi Arabia and the world.   The authors of the article, published in esteemed journal Science, include Prof. Stefaan De Wolf and his research team at the KAUST Solar Center.  The team is working on improving solar efficiency to meet Saudi Arabia’ solar targets.  Perovskite/silicon tandem technology combines the strengths of two materials – perovskite's efficient ...

New Haven, Conn. — The quest for personalized medicine, a medical approach in which practitioners use a patient’s unique genetic profile to tailor individual treatment, has emerged as a critical goal in the health care sector. But a new Yale-led study shows that the mathematical models currently available to predict treatments have limited effectiveness. In an analysis of clinical trials for multiple schizophrenia treatments, the researchers found that the mathematical algorithms were able to predict patient outcomes within the specific ...