Biotechnologies harnessing microbes might enable us to extract rare elements and minerals, chemicals and fuels from wastewater. #### Article URL: https://journals.plos.org/water/article?id=10.1371/journal.pwat.0000105 Article Title: Environmental biotechnologies can make water pollutants part of the path to mitigating climate change Author Countries: USA Funding: The author received no specific funding for this work.   END ...

Consuming a diet rich in vitamin A or its analogs may help prevent children and young adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) reduce their risk of developing painful pancreas inflammation during chemotherapy treatment. Details about this potential dietary solution to prevent a potentially life-threatening adverse event were published March 15, 2023, in Science Translational Medicine. The research team was led by Sohail Husain, MD, chief of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Stanford University and Anil Goud Jegga, DVM, MRes, a computational ...

Embargoed: Not for release until 2 p.m. U.S. Eastern time Wednesday, March 15, 2023 Venus appears to have volcanic activity, according to a new research paper that offers strong evidence to answer the lingering question about whether Earth’s sister planet currently has eruptions and lava flows. Venus, although similar to Earth in size and mass, differs markedly in that it does not have plate tectonics. The boundaries of Earth’s moving surface plates are the primary locations of  volcanic activity. New research by University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute research professor Robert Herrick revealed ...

The long-term effects on forests of more extreme climate events, plus other drivers of forest change, are highly uncertain. A new study of the tropical forests across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), spanning 19 years, found that after Hurricane Maria in 2017, the total biomass of a fast-growing nonnative species, the African tulip Tree (Spathodea campanulata), may again be overtaking that of the most common group of native tree species, even though, at least for young and small trees, nonnatives ...

For some people receiving methadone for treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD), the co-use of opioids and stimulants such as cocaine is an issue. Now, a new study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers found that bupropion, an antidepressant medication also used for smoking cessation, may help people stop using cocaine while in treatment for OUD. The results of the study were published March 15 in JAMA Network Open. For this double-blind randomized study, the researchers used an adaptive treatment design, meaning that it allowed ...

The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) — the nation’s largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to the field of aging — has named David Zook of Faegre Drinker LLP as an at-large member of its Board of Directors. GSA’s Board of Directors provides governance oversight, establishes Society policy, sets the organization’s strategic plan, and oversees implementation thereof. It comprises 12 members representing the broad diversity of the Society’s membership. Zook’s three-year term became effective January 1. “GSA is very effective in applying knowledge to policymaking as the role of older individuals in our society continues to evolve,” ...

Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) face difficulty breathing and a decline in lung function and are at risk of early death. CF is an inherited condition that results in thick mucus build-up, persistent infection and inflammation in the lungs. Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) researcher Patrick Flume, M.D., was lead author of a recent Journal of Cystic Fibrosis article reporting the findings of a trial of a two-drug combination for treating CF. The study demonstrated long-term safety and clinical benefit of the combination therapy. Flume is director of the ...

March 15, 2023, Mountain View, California – In a groundbreaking announcement at the 54th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference held in The Woodlands, Texas, scientists revealed the discovery of a relict glacier near Mars' equator. Located in Eastern Noctis Labyrinthus at coordinates 7° 33' S, 93° 14' W, this finding is significant as it implies the presence of surface water ice on Mars in recent times, even near the equator. This discovery raises the possibility that ice may still exist at shallow depths in the ...

Educational Impact and Implications Statement We investigated associations among teachers’ and students’ anxiety in mathematics, science, and literacy. We found that teachers’ anxiety in mathematics and science was associated with the mathematics and science anxiety of their low-SES students. Results highlight STEM content areas as contexts in which transmission of negative emotions between teachers and students may take place, as well as highlight the particular impacts these processes might have on students from underserved socioeconomic backgrounds. The ...

HOUSTON ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center today announced Kerin Adelson, M.D., as the institution’s chief quality and value officer. An accomplished clinician and researcher with extensive leadership experience in delivering high-quality and value-based cancer care, Adelson will begin her role March 20. She also will hold a faculty appointment in Breast Medical Oncology. As chief quality and value officer, Adelson will partner with Chief Administrative Quality Officer José Rivera to lead MD Anderson’s medical practice quality improvement efforts and ...

Images Micron-sized "bow ties," self-assembled from nanoparticles, form a variety of different curling shapes that can be precisely controlled, a research team led by the University of Michigan has shown.    The development opens the way for easily producing materials that interact with twisted light, providing new tools for machine vision and producing medicines.    While biology is full of twisted structures like DNA, known as chiral structures, the degree of twist is locked in—trying to change it breaks the structure. Now, researchers can engineer the degree of twist.    Such materials ...

BOSTON – A new targeted drug has not only sparked remissions in patients with a common form of leukemia but also induced the cancer cells to reveal one of their schemes for resisting the drug, investigators at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and other research centers report in a new pair of studies in the journal Nature. One of the papers presents results of a clinical trial in which approximately 40% of patients with acute leukemia subtypes had a complete response – a disappearance of all signs of cancer – to treatment with the drug revumenib. The other paper uncovers a molecular countermove by which leukemia cells come to sidestep the drug and reassert their growth. The ...

Breaking a longstanding impasse in our understanding of olfaction, scientists at UC San Francisco (UCSF) have created the first molecular-level, 3D picture of how an odor molecule activates a human odorant receptor, a crucial step in deciphering the sense of smell. The findings, appearing online March 15, 2023, in Nature, are poised to reignite interest in the science of smell with implications for fragrances, food science, and beyond. Odorant receptors - proteins that bind odor molecules on the surface of olfactory cells - make up half of the largest, most diverse family of receptors in our bodies; A deeper understanding of them paves the way for ...

Scientists have long known that mitochondria, the "powerhouses" of cells, play a crucial role in the metabolism and energy production of cancer cells. However, until now, little was known about the relationship between the structural organization of mitochondrial networks and their functional bioenergetic activity at the level of whole tumors. In a new study, published in Nature, researchers from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center used positron emission tomography (PET) in combination ...

Francis Crick Institute press release Under strict embargo: 16:00hrs GMT Wednesday, March 15, 2023 Peer reviewed Experimental study Animals / Cells   Artificial Sweetener could dampen immune response to disease in mice Scientists at the Francis Crick Institute have found that high consumption of a common artificial sweetener, sucralose, lowers activation of T-cells, an important component of the immune system, in mice. If found to have similar effects in humans, one day it could be used therapeutically to help dampen T-cell responses. For example, in patients with autoimmune diseases who ...

A pioneering global study has found deforestation and forests lost or damaged due to human and environmental change, such as fire and logging, are fast outstripping current rates of forest regrowth. Tropical forests are vital ecosystems in the fight against both climate and ecological emergencies. The research, published today in Nature and led by the University of Bristol, highlights the carbon storage potential and the current limits of forest regrowth to addressing such crises. The findings showed degraded forests recovering from human disturbances, and secondary forests regrowing ...

Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center showed that inhibiting menin with revumenib, previously known as SNDX-5613, yielded encouraging responses for advanced acute leukemias with KMT2A rearrangements or mutant NPM1. Findings from the Phase I AUGMENT-101 trial were published today in Nature. The overall response rate among 60 patients was 53%, and the rate of complete remission or complete remission with partial hematologic recovery was 30%, with 78% of patients achieving clearance of measurable residual disease. Responses were seen across multiple dose ...

Researchers at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University found that an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was associated with the deaths of more than 330 New England harbor and gray seals along the North Atlantic coast in June and July 2022, and the outbreak was connected to a wave of avian influenza in birds in the region. The study was published on March 15 in the journal Emerging Infectious Disease. HPAI is more commonly known as bird flu, and the H5N1 strain has been responsible for about 60 million poultry ...

In a step forward for genetic engineering and synthetic biology, researchers have modified a strain of Escherichia coli bacteria to be immune to natural viral infections while also minimizing the potential for the bacteria or their modified genes to escape into the wild. The work promises to reduce the threats of viral contamination when harnessing bacteria to produce medicines such as insulin as well as other useful substances, such as biofuels. Currently, viruses that infect vats of bacteria can halt production, compromise ...

Scientists at EPFL and IBM have developed a new type of laser that could have a significant impact on optical ranging technology. The laser is based on a material called lithium niobate, often used in the field of optical modulators, which controls the frequency or intensity of light that is transmitted through a device. Lithium niobate is particularly useful because it can handle a lot of optical power and has a high “Pockels coefficient”, which means that it can change its optical properties when an electric field is applied to it. The researchers achieved their breakthrough by combining ...

A single cell contains 2-3 meters of DNA, meaning that the only way to store it is to package it into tight coils. The solution is chromatin: a complex of DNA wrapped around proteins called histones. In the 3D space, this complex is progressively folded into a multi-layered organization composed of loops, domains, and compartments, which makes up what we know as chromosomes. The organization of chromatin is closely linked to gene expression and the cell’s proper function, so any problems in chromatin structure can have detrimental effects, including the development of cancer. A common event in around 30% of all human cancers is “whole genome doubling” ...

NEW YORK – For a functioning brain to develop from its embryonic beginnings, so much has to happen and go exactly right with exquisite precision, according to a just-so sequence in space and time. It’s like starting with a brick that somehow replicates and differentiates into a hundred types of building materials that also replicate, while simultaneously self-assembling into a handsome skyscraper replete with functioning thermal, plumbing, security and electrical systems. The accompanying microscope image, from ...

A team of chemical engineering researchers has developed a self-driven lab that is capable of identifying and optimizing new complex multistep reaction routes for the synthesis of advanced functional materials and molecules. In a proof-of-concept demonstration, the system found a more efficient way to produce high-quality semiconductor nanocrystals that are used in optical and photonic devices. “Progress in materials and molecular discovery is slow, because conventional techniques for discovering new chemistries rely on varying ...

National and global plans to combat climate change include increasing the electrification of vehicles and the percentage of electricity generated from renewable sources. But some projections show that these trends might require costly new power plants to meet peak loads in the evening when cars are plugged in after the workday. What’s more, overproduction of power from solar farms during the daytime can waste valuable electricity-generation capacity. In a new study, MIT researchers have found that it’s possible to mitigate or eliminate both these problems without the need for ...

About The Study: In this case-control study of COVID-19 vaccines and illness, vaccine effectiveness associated with protection against medically attended COVID-19 illness was lower with increasing time since last dose; estimated vaccine effectiveness was higher after receipt of one or two booster doses compared with a primary series alone.  Authors: Ruth Link-Gelles, Ph.D., M.P.H., of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 Response Team in Atlanta, is the corresponding ...