An “invisible forest” of phytoplankton is thriving in part of our warming ocean, new research shows. Phytoplankton are tiny drifting organisms that do about half of the planet’s “primary production” (forming living cells by photosynthesis). The new study, by the University of Exeter, examined phytoplankton at the ocean surface and the “subsurface” – a distinct layer of water beneath – to see how climate variability is affecting them. Published in the journal Nature Climate Change, the findings show these two communities are reacting differently. Over the last decade, the total “biomass” (living material) of subsurface ...

Whether we are predisposed to particular diseases depends to a large extent on the countless variants in our genome. However, particularly in the case of genetic variants that only rarely occur in the population, the influence on the presentation of certain pathological traits has so far been difficult to determine. Researchers from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and the Technical University of Munich have introduced an algorithm based on deep learning that can predict the effects of rare genetic variants. The method allows persons with high risk of disease to be distinguished more precisely and facilitates the identification ...

The hype surrounding machine learning, a form of artificial intelligence, can make it seem like it is only a matter of time before such techniques are used to solve all scientific problems. While impressive claims are often made, those claims do not always hold up under scrutiny. Machine learning may be useful for solving some problems but falls short for others. In a new paper in Nature Machine Intelligence, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and Princeton University performed a systematic review of research comparing machine learning to traditional methods for solving ...

There are more than 7,000 rare and undiagnosed diseases globally. Although each condition occurs in a small number of individuals, collectively these diseases exert a staggering human and economic toll because they affect some 300 million people worldwide. Yet, with a mere 5 to 7 percent of these conditions having an FDA-approved drug, they remain largely untreated or undertreated. Developing new medicines represents a daunting challenge, but a new artificial intelligence tool can propel the discovery of new therapies from existing medicines, offering hope for patients with rare and neglected conditions and for the clinicians who treat them. The AI model, called TxGNN, is the first one ...

Francis Crick Institute press release Under strict embargo: 10:00hrs BST Wednesday 25 September 2024 Peer reviewed Experimental study Animals Combination treatment improves response to immunotherapy for lung cancer Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute, in collaboration with Revolution Medicines, have tested a combination of treatments in mice with lung cancer and shown that these allow immunotherapies to target non-responsive tumours. Their findings show that targeting tumours in ...

Researchers led by Ryuhei Nakamura at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) in Japan and The Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) of Tokyo Institute of Technology have discovered inorganic nanostructures surrounding deep-ocean hydrothermal vents that are strikingly similar to molecules that make life as we know it possible. These nanostructures are self-organized and act as selective ion channels, which create energy that can be harnessed in the form of electricity. Published Sep. 25 in Nature Communications, the findings impact not only our understanding of how life began, but can also ...

When thinking of animal camouflage, we typically imagine creatures remaining still, blending seamlessly into their surroundings. But remaining motionless isn’t always practical, and many animals are highly mobile, constantly moving through their environment to graze their food. New research suggests that high-contrast patterns on animals’ bodies may serve a dual purpose: offering camouflage when stationary, then creating a ‘motion dazzle’ effect when moving, confusing potential predators into misjudging their location – and helping them avoid being ...

New research published in Advanced Materials reports a novel nasal spray for preventing respiratory infections. The spray works by forming a protective coating on the nasal cavity, which captures airborne respiratory droplets and acts as a physical barrier against viruses and bacteria, while effectively neutralizing them. In studies conducted on mice, the Pathogen Capture and Neutralizing Spray (PCANS) demonstrated up to 8 hours of nasal retention. In a severe Influenza A model, a single pre-exposure dose of PCANS resulted in a greater than 99.99% reduction ...

In research published in Brain and Behavior, investigators found increased rates of menstrual irregularities in women living in areas affected by the 2023 earthquake in Turkey. In the study, 309 women of reproductive age living in regions declared as disaster areas completed online forms 9 months after the earthquake. Responses revealed an increase of menstrual irregularities from 14.3% before the earthquake to 44.8% after the earthquake. Risk factors for menstrual irregularities included post-traumatic stress symptoms, chronic diseases, and smoking. The findings reveal that reproductive health ...

During missions into outer space, galactic cosmic radiation (GCR) will penetrate current spacecraft shielding and thus pose a significant risk to human health. Previous studies have shown that GCR can cause short-term cognitive deficits in male rodents. Now a study published in the Journal of Neurochemistry reveals that GCR exposure can also cause long-lasting learning deficits in female rodents. The impact of GCR on cognition was lessened when mice were fed an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound called CDDO-EA. Beyond ...

Preventive health technologies—such as wrist-worn activity trackers or health and fitness apps—are popular tools for promoting wellbeing, but new research published in the Journal of Consumer Affairs reveals that consumer engagement with these technologies can be considered a double-edged sword. The study, which involved 30 in-depth interviews with users, found that consumers engage with preventive health technologies based on a variety of health goals—for example, to lose weight, improve performance, monitor data of an enjoyable activity, or acquire a healthy routine. These diverse goals led users ...

Researchers from the Brigham detail how the spray they created may offer broad-spectrum protection from respiratory infections by COVID-19, influenza, everyday cold viruses, and pneumonia-causing bacteria A new study details how a nasal spray formulated by investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, may work to protect against viral and bacterial respiratory infections. Based on their preclinical studies, the researchers say the broad-spectrum nasal spray is long-lasting, safe, and, if validated in humans, could play a key role in reducing respiratory diseases ...

Bacterial infections resulting in enteritis, sometimes extra-intestinal infections such as sepsis, continue to be a global health concern. A leading cause of diarrheal and extra-intestinal infectious mortality among children under 5 and elderly persons is infection with Campylobacter bacteria, against which there is no effective vaccine or medication. An Osaka Metropolitan University-led team has recently uncovered what could be an important step toward preventing, diagnosing, and treating a species of Campylobacter bacteria. Researchers including Professor Shinji Yamasaki and Associate Professor Noritoshi Hatanaka of the Graduate School ...

Martin Obr is on edge, anxiously waiting for his train to the airport. A storm called “Sabine” is brewing, shutting down all public transport. He catches his flight from Frankfurt to Vienna just in time. Obr spent the last days in Germany meticulously analyzing what he calls the “perfect sample”. This sample helped him and Florian Schur from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) decode the structure of a virus called HTLV-1 (Human T-cell Leukemia Virus Type 1). In collaboration with the University of Minnesota and Cornell University, ...

Physics-informed virtual reality could be key to reducing the exposure of pedestrians and cyclists to harmful, non-exhaust vehicle emissions, according to a study published today (25 Sep) in the Royal Society Open Science journal. The research lead by the University of Birmingham (supported by Rosetrees Trust and Research England QR Funding), targets the issue of major health risks and chronic diseases caused by exposure to unregulated particle pollutants from road, tyre and brake sources by providing easy, accessible guidance to the public, policy makers, and city planners, through immersive VR experiences. Detailed ...

In a compelling Genomic Press Interview published in Brain Medicine on September 25, 2024, Professor Hermona Soreq of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel unveils the profound implications of her groundbreaking research on the cholinergic system and small RNA regulators in brain-body communication. Prof. Soreq, holder of the Endowed Slesinger Professorship of Molecular Neuroscience, has dedicated her career to unraveling the complexities of the parasympathetic nervous system, with a particular focus on acetylcholine's role in stress responses and neurodegenerative diseases. Her work has revolutionized our understanding of how the brain ...

Will modern coral reefs go extinct? The answer is uncertain, but some of their ancient counterparts managed to dodge a bullet — for a while, at least. Scientists from Osaka Metropolitan University have discovered that ancient reef-building organisms called stromatoporoids survived the Late Devonian mass extinction event and continued to thrive as major reef-builders long after their presumed extinction. These findings shed light on how life on Earth has responded to past environmental changes, offering ...

The global production of plastics and the resulting plastic waste has increased to such an extent that plastics have become ubiquitous in our environment. Plastics of various sizes are also found along the German North Sea and Baltic coasts. Previous studies of microplastic pollution on German beaches have often been limited to a few locations. In the citizen science project “Microplastic Detectives”, researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute, together with citizens, have now collected samples from beaches along the entire German coast to be analyzed for microplastics. The resulting dataset is the first to be large enough to ...

Sunlight filters through the canopy of pines, holly, sweet gum, and red maple while bird calls echo in the distance. These coastal forests may seem like others in the Mid-Atlantic, but a hidden challenge looms. Standing tall next to their salt marsh neighbors, where the wind carries the sharp scent of sulfidic seawater, these trees are more than just part of the landscape—they are living monuments to a rapidly changing environment. As sea levels rise, the future of these forests is uncertain. While the adjacent salt marshes can adapt to encroaching waters, the trees, vulnerable to the increasing frequency ...

Noise from aircraft at night is linked with disturbed sleep quality and sleep-wake cycle, a new study using movement trackers has shown. Environmental health experts at the University of Leicester combined measurements from activity monitors and self-reported sleep information for the first time to put together a more detailed picture of how aircraft noise impacts sleep, in the largest such study to date. The results, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, show that people exposed to higher levels of night-time aircraft noise experienced more restlessness during sleep and disruption in daily sleep rhythm, even if they had a full night’s sleep. The team was led from the ...

If you’d stopped monitoring the Adriatic Sea’s marine life in the mid-20th century, the outlook would have been promising. Snails and the clams they hunt for food increased in abundance for several decades during the late 1800s and early 1900s, evidence of a vibrant and healthy ecosystem. Then, a threshold was crossed. Populations of both predator and prey abruptly plummeted and in some cases disappeared entirely. They were replaced by the common corbulid clam (Varicorbula gibba), which has the ability to slow down its metabolism in unfavorable conditions. Whenever paleontologists find an abundance of this species in the marine fossil record, it often means ...

KANEOHE, HI (Sept 24, 2024 1:05 p.m. HST)- In a study published today in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, researchers at the UH Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) Toonen- Bowen “ToBo” Lab have identified scenarios under which eight of the most common species of coral found in Hawaiʻi can adapt to and survive ocean warming and acidification. The corals in the study are prevalent throughout the Indo-Pacific, a region that comprises more than two-thirds of the coral reefs on planet Earth, and were found to be capable of surviving a “low ...

Around 1 in 3 children and teens around the world is short (near)-sighted, with the global prevalence of myopia set to top 740 million cases by 2050 in this age group, finds a pooled data analysis of the available evidence, published online in the British Journal of Ophthalmology. Female sex, East Asian or urban area residence, and educational level all seem to be key factors influencing prevalence, the findings indicate. Short (near)-sightedness (myopia), which describes difficulty seeing objects at a distance, typically starts in early childhood and tends to worsen with age, explain the researchers. It has emerged ...

The huge and growing toll bottled water is taking on human and planetary health warrants an urgent rethink of its use as 1 million bottles are bought every minute around the globe, with that figure set to rise further still amid escalating demand, warn population health experts in a commentary published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health. Some 2 billion people around the world with limited or no access to safe drinking water rely on bottled water. But for the rest of us, it’s largely a matter of convenience and the unshaken belief—aided and abetted by industry marketing—that bottled water is safer and often healthier than tap ...

Women in the UK, and elsewhere, are still missing out on vital treatment for their No 1 killer—cardiovascular disease—despite significant progress in the medical management of heart disease and stroke, concludes a consensus statement published online in the journal Heart. They continue to be underdiagnosed, undertreated, and underrepresented in clinical trials in all areas of cardiovascular disease, says the statement. Among other things, it calls for dedicated women’s heart champions and heart hubs, plus a women’s ...