University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers have shed new light on how our brains develop, revealing that the very last step in cell division is crucial for the brain to reach its proper size and function. The new findings identify a potential contributor to microcephaly, a birth defect in which the head is underdeveloped and abnormally small. That's because the head grows as the brain grows. The federal Centers for Disease Control estimates that microcephaly affects from 1 in 800 children to 1 in 5,000 children in the United States each year. The condition is associated with learning disabilities, developmental delays, ...

Waking up just one hour earlier could reduce a person's risk of major depression by 23%, suggests a sweeping new genetic study published May 26 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. The study of 840,000 people, by researchers at University of Colorado Boulder and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, represents some of the strongest evidence yet that chronotype--a person's propensity to sleep at a certain time --influences depression risk. It's also among the first studies to quantify just how much, or little, change is required to influence mental health. ...

Until now, competing types of robotic hand designs offered a trade-off between strength and durability. One commonly used design, employing a rigid pin joint that mimics the mechanism in human finger joints, can lift heavy payloads, but is easily damaged in collisions, particularly if hit from the side. Meanwhile, fully compliant hands, typically made of molded silicone, are more flexible, harder to break, and better at grasping objects of various shapes, but they fall short on lifting power. The DGIST research team investigated the idea that a partially-compliant ...

Australian scientists have found what could prove to be a new and effective way to treat a particularly aggressive blood cancer in children. Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, or ALL, is the most common cancer diagnosed in children. Despite dramatic improvements in the survival of children with ALL over past several decades, children who develop 'high risk' ALL - subtypes that grow aggressively and are often resistant to standard treatments - often relapse, and many of these children die from their disease. One common type of high-risk ALL for which new therapies are urgently needed is 'Philadelphia chromosome-like ALL' (Ph-like ALL), named for its similarity ...

Scientists from Japan, Europe and the USA have described a pathway leading to the accelerated flowering of plants in low-nitrogen soils. These findings could eventually lead to increases in agricultural production. Nitrogen is one of the three macronutrients required by plants for growth and development, along with phosphorus and potassium. Nitrogen-rich condition induces plant growth, particularly the growth of stems and leaves, while delaying flowering. On the other hand, in some plants, low-nitrogen conditions lead to a change from growth mode to reproductive mode, therefore accelerating flowering. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate flowering under these conditions are not known. A team of scientists led by Associate ...

Corona Virus Disease (COVID -19) patients primarily appear with respiratory issues and viral pneumonia. The patients may also present cardiovascular issues includes early signs of acute myocardial injury. The researchers from Sohag University, Egypt, found that cardiac troponin I (cTnI) can prove to be a gold-standard biomarker for necrosis and myocardial risk assessment in COVID-19 sufferers. The researchers aimed to assess the prognostic value of cTnI in COVID-19 sufferers. The study included ninety-two COVID-19 patients admitted in the El Helal ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The microscopic algae that live inside and provide nutrients to their reef-building coral hosts may be evolving in tandem with the corals they inhabit, so each partner is fine-tuned to meet one another's needs. A new study by Penn State biologists reveals that genetic differences within a species of these microalgal symbionts correspond to the coral species they inhabit, a discovery that could have implications for the conservation of these endangered corals. "Acroporid corals are some of the primary reef-building species in the Caribbean, providing protection to coastlines and habitat for economically important species," said Iliana Baums, professor of biology at Penn State and leader of the research team. "However, these corals are critically ...

A study examining Japanese schools' hands-off approach when children fight showed it could create opportunities for autonomy and encourage ownership of solutions, suggesting a new strategy in handling kids squabbles in other countries. Called mimamoru, the pedagogical strategy is a portmanteau of the Japanese words mi, meaning watch, and mamoru, meaning guard or protect. It is generally understood as "teaching by watching" -- where adults, including early childhood educators, intentionally let kids handle disagreements on their own to promote their learning through voluntary exploration and actions. While not an official part of Japan's early childhood ...

While DNA is often idealised as the "molecule of life", it is also a highly sophisticated polymer that can be used for next-generation materials. Beyond the fact that it can store information, further fascinating aspects of DNA are its geometric and topological properties, such as knotting and super-coiling. Indeed, very much like a twisted telephone cord, DNA is often found coiled up inside bacteria and other cells and even knotted in viruses. Now, a collaboration of scientists from the Universities of Edinburgh, San Diego and Vienna have started to harness these properties to craft "topologically ...

MISSOULA - In bear country, it's normal to find bruins munching down on temptations left out by humans - from a backyard apple tree to leftovers in the trash bin - but these encounters can cause trouble for humans and bears alike. One method to reduce human-bear conflicts is to secure attractants like garbage and livestock feed. While effective when implemented, this approach requires people to change their behavior, and that makes things a little more complicated. University of Montana researchers recently published a new study in the Journal of Wildlife Management analyzing why landowners do or don't secure attractants in bear country. ...

Ishikawa, Japan - Protons--subatomic particles with a positive electric charge--are one of the first particles to have formed after the universe began and are a constituent of every atom today out there. The movement of protons plays a key role in energy conversion processes, such as photosynthesis and respiration, in biological systems. In addition, proton conduction is an important factor for hydrogen fuel cells, which are often touted as the ideal clean energy source for the next generation. High proton conduction observed in biomaterials such as sugar and protein derivatives is attributed to the presence of proton-donating functional groups (substituents in a molecule that governs its characteristic ...

ITHACA, N.Y. - A Cornell University-developed technology provides beekeepers, consumers and farmers with an antidote for deadly pesticides, which kill wild bees and cause beekeepers to lose around a third of their hives every year on average. An early version of the technology ¬- which detoxified a widely-used group of insecticides called organophosphates - is described in a new study, "Pollen-Inspired Enzymatic Microparticles to Reduce Organophosphate Toxicity in Managed Pollinators," published in Nature Food. The antidote delivery method has now been adapted to effectively ...

The authors, Kirill Vasin and Mikhail Eremin, contribute to the theory of electronic and structural properties of FeCr2O4 ferrimagnet. Due to the specific quantum state and the symmetry of FeO4 fragment, it has unusual electric and magnetic properties. Below TOO~150K, it lowers the symmetry with the macroscopic deformations due to the cooperative Jahn-Teller effect. The coupling between macroscopic deformation of the crystal FeCr2O4 and its inner ions shifts was revealed. The team enhanced the microscopic crystal field theory for 3D electrons with Kleiner's correction - the effect of penetrating charges density. It allows to have better prediction of electron-deformation ...

In a paper published in NANO, the author reviewed many kinds of nanofibrous filters including the component, preparation process, and application performances to provide directional guidance for improvement of the air purification field. Poor air quality is worldwide recognized as one of five health risks for causing adverse impacts on human health. Nanofibrous membrane is competitive to capture unclean nanoparticles since its lightweight, small diameter, high specific surface area, and easy to combine with functional additives. However, the trade-off between high filtration efficiency and low pressure drop posts challenge. The removal mechanisms of fibrous filters to nanoparticles follow ...

How to construct the dual emission nitrogen-doped carbon dots (CDs) by a simple method? Professor Lili Ren with her collaborators proposed a new strategy to prepare such materials which were used to the detection of dopamine. The traditional ratiometric fluorescence (FL) probe usually needs to combine different nanomaterials by chemical or physical methods and the manufacturing process is more complicated. While the dual-emission carbon dots (DECDs) can simplify the detection process. Therefore, it is of great significance to design a simple ratiometric fluorescence probe based on the DECDs for the accurate determination of DA concentration. ...

Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) researchers have uncovered how the environment can impact highly sensitive quantum behaviours like localisation. Their findings, published in Chaos, could lead to future innovations in the design of superconducting materials and quantum devices, including super precise sensors. Quantum technology, in particular quantum sensing, promises to measure and capture our world at levels of precision never before possible. Such precision has diverse applications, from speedier and more sensitive medical imaging to recording time on high-frequency ...

In the Philippines, in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, there occurred a supply shortage of hydroxychloroquine and methotrexate. Limited access to medication and the life changes caused from the COVID-19 pandemic may prompt patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) to experience disease flares. The researchers investigated self-reported symptoms of disease flares among patients with rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus during the COVID-19 pandemic. They collected information through online surveys from 512 patients with SLE or RA. The data included ...

The Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) announces that the COLCORONA study results are published today in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine. The article, which is entitled Colchicine for community-treated patients with COVID-19 (COLCORONA): a phase 3, randomised, double-blinded, adaptive, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial, concludes that, given the lack of oral therapies available to prevent COVID-19 complications among non-hospitalized patients and the observed benefit of colchicine in patients with a PCR-confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19, this anti-inflammatory drug could be considered as a treatment for those at risk of ...

Multiple scientific studies show switching completely to vaping with high-quality products has reduced health risks compared to smoking, contrary to many consumer beliefs Study data indicates that vaping products can provide an alternative for smokers who would not otherwise quit Review supports the important role for vaping products in Tobacco Harm Reduction Reinforces the importance of BAT's unique consumer-centric model and how we are reducing the health impact of our business and building A Better Tomorrow™ through our multicategory approach To mark World Vape Day, BAT has today published a comprehensive review of the scientific evidence ...

In a world first, scientists from the University of Sussex have recorded blood oxygen levels in the hippocampus and provided experimental proof for why the area, commonly referred to as 'the brain's memory centre', is vulnerable to damage and degeneration, a precursor to Alzheimer's disease. To understand why this region is so sensitive, the University of Sussex researchers, headed up by Dr Catherine Hall from the School of Psychology and Sussex Neuroscience, studied brain activity and blood flow in the hippocampus of mice. The researchers then used simulations to predict that the amount of oxygen supplied to hippocampal neurons furthest from blood vessels is only just enough for the cells to keep working normally. Dr Catherine ...

The basis for this new take on the classification was laid in 1985, when John Long attributed a fossil tooth plate to a new species, Edaphodon eyrensis. The species was named after Lake Eyre, near which the tooth was found in 1978. Asscoiate Professor Evgeny Popov had his doubts about the attribution. However, he had to study the fossil personally to advance his theory. The opportunity presented itself during a trip to Australia in 2010. The tooth plate was stored in a museum in Adelaide, South Australia. "I didn't plan to go there, but I was able to negotiate a temporary ...

A research group from Aarhus University has developed a special biocompatible electrode for electrical muscle stimulation that the group has integrated and 3D-printed onto medical support stockings. In the winter 2020/2021, the stockings were tested on hospitalised Covid patients. The studies were completed in March, but apart from a case study (Danish Medical Journal) data have not yet been published. However, the project group reveal that the results are very promising. The stockings were tested on 16 Covid-19 patients who agreed to try the support stocking during their hospitalisation. The participants were hospitalised for five to seven days and were given a support stocking on each leg, but only ...

The countries around the Baltic Sea do not respect their binding international agreement to reduce agricultural pollution of the marine environment. Despite farming activities being the single most important source of nutrient pollution to the Baltic Sea. An international research team presents evidence on these circumstances in a recent scientific article in the journal Ambio, published by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The countries made a commitment 20 years ago to implement 10 specific reduction measures in their national legislation on agricultural pollution - e.g. featuring minimum storage capacity for manure and regulations on animal densities. Now the researchers' study of legislations and regulations in place at national level, to address ...

AMES, Iowa - Researchers have developed new types of materials that combines two or three types of nanoparticles into structures that display fundamental new properties such as superfluorescence. "The whole goal of this research is to make new materials with new properties and/or exotic new structures," said Alex Travesset, an Iowa State University professor of physics and astronomy and an associate scientist for the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory. "Those materials are made of very tiny materials, nanoparticles, and lead to properties not shared by more traditional materials made of atoms and molecules." In this case, an international research team is combining perovskite nanocubes - tiny crystals with useful electrical or optical properties ...

Metal-organic framework compounds (MOFs) consist of inorganic and organic groups and are characterised by a large number of pores into which other molecules can be incorporated. MOFs are therefore interesting for many applications, for example for the storage of gases, but also for substance separation, sensor technology or catalysis. Some of these MOF structures react to different guest molecules by changing their structures. They are thus considered switchable. One of these is "DUT-8", a material that has now been studied at the MX beamlines of BESSY II. "MOF crystals can be analysed very well at the MX beamlines," says HZB expert Dr. Manfred Weiss, who heads the MX team. ...