Research Highlights: A study of married or partnered, middle-aged and older heterosexual couples in the U.S., England, China and India found that in 20% to 47% of the couples, both spouses/partners had high blood pressure. The prevalence of both spouses/partners having high blood pressure was highest in England and the U.S., however, spouses/partners whose spouses/partners had high blood pressure were more likely to also have high blood pressure in China and India. Researchers suggest couple-based interventions to improve high blood pressure diagnosis and management, such as couple-based screening, skills training or joint ...

LA JOLLA (December 6, 2023)—Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers—only about one in eight patients survives five years after diagnosis. Those dismal statistics are in part due to the thick, nearly impenetrable wall of fibrosis, or scar tissue, that surrounds most pancreatic tumors and makes it hard for drugs to access and destroy the cancer cells. Now, researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered how a class of anti-cancer drugs called HDAC inhibitors can help treat pancreatic cancer by modulating ...

New research has shown that fire-ice - frozen methane which is trapped as a solid under our oceans - is vulnerable to melting due to climate change and could be released into the sea. An international team of researchers led by Newcastle University found that as frozen methane and ice melts, methane - a potent greenhouse gas - is released and moves from the deepest parts of the continental slope to the edge of the underwater shelf. They even discovered a pocket which had moved 25 miles (40 kilometres). Publishing in the journal Nature Geoscience, the researchers say this means that much more methane could potentially be vulnerable and released into the atmosphere ...

Francis Crick Institute press release Under strict embargo: 10:00hrs GMT Wednesday 6 December 2023 Peer reviewed Experimental study Animals Influx of water and salts propel immune cells through the body Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute, working with Imperial College London, King’s College London and University of Cambridge, have shown that an influx of water and ions into immune cells allows them to migrate to where they’re needed in the body.   Our bodies respond to illness by sending out ...

Coral reefs are the most biodiverse systems in the sea and central to the life of many coastal human communities. Half a billion people rely on coral reefs for protection from storms, provision of seafood as well as promotion of tourism and recreation. But climate change is compromising the health of coral reefs globally. Increasing sea temperatures are driving coral bleaching and death. So, the resilience of reefs in the face of climatic challenges is crucial to our collective future, and new research led by Arizona State University has delivered greater understanding of a key aspect of reef health. In a paper published on December 6, 2023, by the London, UK-based journal Proceedings of ...

Most people with schizophrenia have extensive impairment of memory, including prospective memory, which is the ability to remember to perform future activities. Results from a randomized clinical trial published in Neuropsychopharmacology Reports indicate that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive method that uses alternating magnetic fields to induce an electric current in the underlying brain tissue, may help ameliorate certain aspects of prospective memory in individuals with schizophrenia. The trial included 50 patients with schizophrenia and 18 healthy controls. Of the 50 patients, 26 completed ...

In a recent study published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Veterans with housing instability were 53% more likely to receive a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia (ADRD) than those with stable housing. The study included 44,194 Veterans experiencing homelessness or housing instability and 44,194 with secure housing who were followed from 2011 to 2019. None of the Veterans had a diagnosis of ADRD prior to 2011. By 2015, the midpoint of the study, 7.23% and 3.66% of housing ...

New research published in JCCP Advances indicates that experiencing negative life events (NLE) during childhood is linked with a higher risk of developing symptoms of depression during young adulthood. Thinning of the orbitofrontal cortex, a region in the brain that affects emotion, during adolescence was also associated with increased depressive symptoms later in life. The study involved brain imaging tests conducted in 321 participants across four time points from ages 14 to 22 years. Investigators also used a questionnaire at the first time point to measure NLE, and they tested for depressive symptoms at the fourth time point. A higher ...

New research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology suggests that for people overweight or with obesity who also have knee or hip osteoarthritis, a slow-to-moderate—but not fast—rate of weight loss caused by anti-obesity medications may lower their risk of premature death. Among 6,524 participants with knee or hip osteoarthritis who were taking orlistat, sibutramine, or rimonabant, the 5-year death rate was 5.3%, 4.0%, and 5.4% for the “weight gain/stable”, “slow-to-moderate weight loss,” and “fast weight loss” groups, respectively. ...

The world has reached a pivotal moment as threats from Earth system tipping points – and progress towards positive tipping points – accelerate, a new report shows. The Global Tipping Points Report – the most comprehensive assessment of tipping points ever conducted – says humanity is currently on a disastrous trajectory. The speed of fossil fuel phase out and growth of zero-carbon solutions will now determine the future of billions of people. The report says current global governance is inadequate for the scale of the challenge and makes six key ...

SYDNEY, Dec. 6, 2023 – Prisons are typically noisy environments, filled with clanking metal bars and echoing concrete surfaces. This level of constant noise is harmful to both prisoners and staff, but there are few guidelines for designing better, quieter facilities. James Boland, an acoustician for SLR Consulting, employed insights from the field of sensory criminology to better understand the unique acoustic needs inside prison environments. His presentation will take place Dec. 6 at 2:40 p.m. Australian Eastern Daylight Time, as part of Acoustics 2023 Sydney, running Dec. 4-8 at the International Convention Centre ...

SYDNEY, Dec. 6, 2023 – Table tennis has been played for decades as a more accessible version of tennis. The sport is particularly beginner-friendly while maintaining a rich level of competitive play. However, like many sports, it remains inaccessible to people who are blind or have low vision. Phoebe Peng, an Engineering Honours student at the University of Sydney, is researching ways to allow people with low vision and blindness to play pingpong using sound. The process uses neuromorphic cameras and an array of loudspeakers, designed to allow players ...

Twice daily non-invasive electrical stimulation of the brain may boost mental processes (cognitive function) in people with Alzheimer’s disease, suggest the results of a small clinical trial published online in the open access journal General Psychiatry. The technology, known as transcranial direct current stimulation, or tDCS for short, may help to fire up the brain’s plasticity, enabling ‘rewiring’ through the formation of new neural networks, the findings suggest.  tDCS comes in the form of a device with two electrodes, placed over specific areas of a person’s ...

Starting menstrual cycles at a young age—before the age of 13—is linked to a heightened risk of developing type 2 diabetes in mid-life, finds US research published online in the open access journal BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health. And it also seems to be associated with an increased risk of having a stroke before the age of 65 in those with the disease, particularly those who started having periods before the age of 10 or younger, the findings indicate. Diabetes and its complications are on the rise among young and middle aged US adults, while the age at which women start having periods is falling ...

State access to abortion is a key factor in choosing where to apply for residency (training) programmes for around three out of four future US doctors, indicate the results of a survey published online in the Journal of Medical Ethics. These medical students care about the quality of care they will be able to provide patients when qualified as well as the options for their own health, the responses indicate. In 2022 the US Supreme Court revoked the constitutional right to privacy and autonomy ...

The annual tobacco-related healthcare spend of US Minorities who smoke is double that of White adults who smoke, finds an analysis of national health and medical spend survey data, published online in the journal Tobacco Control.  And the excess risks of 3 or more long term health conditions associated with smoking are more than 40% higher among Minority adults, despite their lower smoking rates and more numerous quit attempts than their White peers, the analysis indicates. The findings prompt the researchers to conclude that Minority adults ...

SYDNEY, Dec. 6, 2023 – A bundengan wears many hats – and is one too. This portable shelter woven from bamboo has protected Indonesian duck herders from the sun and rain for centuries. Able to comfortably balance on the wearer’s head, a bundengan is equipped with a visor that curves around the side to meet at a long back. A more surprising, but no less practical, feature is the collection of strings and bamboo bars added in to produce music. Duck herders fill the hours spent tending to ducks sitting underneath their outfitted shelter, playing their shield as an instrument. Over the years, bundengan musicians ...

In southern Germany just north of the Danube, there lies a large circular depression between the hilly surroundings: the Nördlinger Ries. Almost 15 million years ago, an asteroid struck this spot. Today, the impact crater is one of the most useful analogues for asteroid craters on early Mars. Studying the deposits of the former lake that formed in the crater is particularly informative. These deposits have been of great interest ever since NASA began exploring Martian craters for signs of water and life on Mars. However, the chemical development of the former crater lake and its habitable areas is only partially understood. An international research team led by the ...

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is pleased to announce its partnership with the Korean Society for Biomaterials (KSBM) to publish Biomaterials Research as a Science Partner Journal. Biomaterials Research’s mission is to contribute to the development of the global biomaterials field and the benefit of the community and people through the expansion of international collaboration. The journal welcomes submissions from interdisciplinary fields of biomaterials research, including novel biomaterials, cutting-edge technologies of biomaterials synthesis and fabrication, ...

SYDNEY, Dec. 6, 2023 – Australia’s most iconic sound is almost certainly the didjeridu. The long wooden tube-shaped instrument is famous for its unique droning music and has played a significant role in Australian Aboriginal culture for thousands of years. Despite the instrument’s simple design, the playing technique can be highly complex. Joe Wolfe and John Smith from the University of New South Wales conducted acoustic experiments to study the didjeridu’s unusual and complicated performance techniques. Smith will be presenting their work on Dec. 6 at 8:20 a.m. Australian Eastern Daylight Time, as part of Acoustics 2023 Sydney, ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Sniffles, snorts and blows of runny noses are the hallmarks of cold and flu season — and that increase in mucus is exactly what bacteria use to mount a coordinated attack on the immune system, according to a new study from researchers at Penn State. The team found that the thicker the mucus, the better the bacteria are able to swarm. The findings could have implications for treatments that reduce the ability of bacteria to spread. The study, recently published in the journal PNAS Nexus, demonstrates how bacteria ...

Eating or being eaten, competing for resources – these are certainly the best-known interactions among organisms coexisting in an ecosystem, but they are by no means the only ones. In fact, different species live together and interact in complex ways. But how do different species evolve or coevolve in a community as temperatures rise due to climate change? Current research focuses primarily on how individual species react to climate change. However, as species interact with each other in the ecosystem, the evolutionary responses to climate change are difficult to predict from studying each species in isolation. For example, a plant may grow faster due ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — People with celiac disease, or intolerance to dietary gluten, may soon have more food options, thanks to an unlikely source: sourdough bread. Sourdough contains less gluten than other breads, making it more tolerable for people with gluten sensitivities. Now, Penn State and Colorado State University researchers are studying whether bacteria in the yeast starter needed to make sourdough bread might help reduce gluten in other bread products. Gluten is a protein naturally found in cereal grains such as wheat, barley and rye that can trigger an ...

The Forensic Anthropology Center at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has received two grants totaling over $580,000 from the Office of Justice Program’s National Institute of Justice, the research, development and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. A longtime grantee across numerous forensics research topics, the center – which includes the Anthropological Research Facility, also known as the Body Farm – is known worldwide for its research and training. The first of the two new research projects will help law enforcement locate clandestine graves, and the second will help inform how relic DNA in the soil affects forensic ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — For some people, extreme stressors like psychiatric disorders or childhood neglect and abuse can lead to a range of health problems later in life, including depression, anxiety and cardiovascular disease. A new study led by researchers in the Penn State Center for Healthy Aging identified genetic indicators that can predict another health problem, the decline of cognitive abilities, among people who have been affected by these extreme stressors.  The team recently published their findings ...