(SYDNEY, Monday 17th May 2021) The early immune response in a person who has been vaccinated for COVID-19 can predict the level of protection they will have to the virus over time, according to analysis from Australian mathematicians, clinicians, and scientists, and published today in Nature Medicine. The researchers from UNSW's Kirby Institute, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, and the University of Sydney have identified an 'immune correlate' of vaccine protection. This has the potential to dramatically cut development times for new vaccines, by measuring neutralising antibody levels as a 'proxy' for immune protection from COVID-19. "Neutralising antibodies are tiny Y-shaped proteins produced by our body in response to infection or vaccination. They ...

A weather pattern that pushes snowfall away from parts of Greenland's ice sheet is causing the continent to become darker and warmer, according to Dartmouth research published in Geophysical Research Letters. The reduction in the amount of fresh, light-colored snow exposes older, darker snow on the surface of the ice sheet. The resulting decrease in reflectivity, known as albedo, causes the ice to absorb more heat, also likely contributing to faster melting. "As snow ages, even over hours to a few days, you get this reduction in reflectivity, and that's why the fresh snow is so important," said Erich Osterberg, associate professor of earth sciences at Dartmouth and the principal investigator of the study. According to the ...

A new study led by Dr. Wei and Dr. Qiao from the First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources provides an evaluation of the performance of the newly released CMIP6 models in simulating the global warming slowdown observed in the early 2000s. This study reveals that the key in simulating and predicting near-term temperate change is to correctly separate and simulate the two distinct signals, i.e., the human-induced long-term warming trend and natural variabilities, especially those at interannual, interdecadal and multidecadal scales. This work was online published in SCIENCE CHINA Earth Sciences on April 15th, 2021. After the unprecedented warming over the last quarter of the 20th century, the global surface temperature growth slowed unexpectedly during ...

The collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates resulted in the formation of the Tianshan Tectonic Belt; however, the formation mechanism of Tianshan and the construction of a dynamic model explaining it remain to be achieved and an integrated understanding has not been reached. A new study adopted shear-wave splitting system to collect and analyze shear-wave splitting parameters of 33 stations in the Tianshan area, it provides new evidence for potentially enhance the understanding the dynamic mechanism of the Tianshan tectonic belt. The research paper is titled:"Anisotropic zoning in the upper crust of the Tianshan Tectonic Belt, Published in Science China Earth Sciences Issue 4, 2021, Corresponding author ...

In our ongoing quest to transform into a more eco-friendly society, hydrogen (H2) is heralded as the clean fuel of tomorrow. Because H2 can be produced from water (H2O) without generating carbon emissions, developing H2-compatible technologies has become a top priority. However, the road ahead is bumpy, and many technical limitations must be ironed out. "Hydrogen is the smallest molecule in nature, and finding feasible ways to store it is a critical issue to realize a hydrogen economy," states Associate Professor Youngjune Park from the Gwangju Institute of Science ...

WASHINGTON, DC--People with cardiovascular disease (CVD) taking aspirin to lower their chances of suffering a heart attack or stroke experienced similar health benefits, including reduced death and hospitalization for heart attack and stroke, whether they took a high or low dose of aspirin, according to a study presented today at ACC.21, the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. CVD--and atherosclerosis, in particular, which is a narrowing and hardening of the arteries--is a leading cause of death for men, women, and most racial and ethnic groups in the United States, with estimated direct costs of END ...

New research has shown that people with type 1 diabetes may have features of premature heart disease induced by the condition often before they even get their diagnosis. Early markers for this heart disease could be used to ensure patients get targeted therapies as soon as they are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes to slow down or even halt cardiovascular problems. The findings, published in Stem Cell Research and Therapy, show that tiny pieces of genetic material, called miR-424-5p, increased in early stages of heart disease - these could be targeted to help reduce inflammation in order to compensate for elevated risk. Early heart disease Dr Jolanta Weaver, from Newcastle University's Faculty of Medical Sciences, UK, ...

There's been a breakthrough in the case of the missing planets. While planet-hunting missions have discovered thousands of worlds orbiting distant stars, there's a severe scarcity of exoplanets that measure between 1.5 and two times Earth's radius. That's the middle ground between rocky super-Earths and larger, gas-shrouded planets called mini-Neptunes. Since discovering this 'radius gap' in 2017, scientists have been sleuthing out why there are so few midsize heavenly bodies. The new clue arose from a fresh way of looking at the data. A team of researchers led by the Flatiron Institute's Trevor David investigated whether the radius gap changes as planets age. They divvied up exoplanets into two groups -- young and old -- and reassessed the gap. The ...

The blood thinner apixaban was not superior to standard of care following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), according to findings from a new trial called ATLANTIS presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Researchers found that while apixaban reduced the formation of blood clots (thrombosis) around the implanted valve with no increased bleeding risk, a subset of patients taking apixaban who did not have an indication for anticoagulation apart from the TAVR procedure showed a tendency toward a higher rate of non-cardiovascular death--a ...

Transcatheter left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) with a WATCHMAN device was associated with a low rate of stroke at one year even among older patients with atrial fibrillation (AFib) who faced a high risk for stroke or bleeding based on their previous health history, according to new data presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. The WATCHMAN device, which blocks a small portion of the heart to help reduce the risk of a dangerous clot forming, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2015. The device is used to reduce the risk of stroke in patients with AFib, a heart rhythm disorder, that is not caused by problems with the heart valve. ...

Patients with an elevated risk of stroke due to heart rhythm problems, or atrial fibrillation (AFib), were much less likely to suffer a stroke after undergoing heart surgery if doctors concurrently performed an additional procedure, called left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO), according to the results of a trial presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. AFib increases a person's risk of stroke or systemic embolism, which are life-threatening conditions caused by blood clots blocking an artery. It has been hypothesized that the blood clots that cause these conditions often originate in the left atrial appendage, a small sac on the upper left chamber of the heart. LAAO is a procedure to ...

The heart failure drug sacubitril/valsartan did not significantly reduce the rate of heart failure or cardiovascular death following a heart attack compared to ramipril, an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor proven effective in improving survival following heart attacks. Findings from the PARADISE-MI trial were presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. The study is the first large trial to examine whether sacubitril/valsartan can reduce heart failure and associated hospitalizations and deaths in patients post-heart attack who face a high risk of developing heart failure. Patients taking sacubitril/valsartan were about 10% less likely than those ...

Researchers found no significant differences in cardiovascular events or major bleeding in patients with pre-existing cardiovascular disease who were taking 81 milligrams (mg), also called baby aspirin, versus 325 mg of daily aspirin, according to new data presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Aspirin is the most common medication for people with established cardiovascular disease--for example, those who have had a heart attack, a stent placed or bypass surgery--to help prevent another heart attack, stroke or premature death. But despite aspirin's proven and widespread use, there has been no evidence as to whether low-dose aspirin (81 mg) or regular-strength (325 mg) aspirin is ...

Two months after undergoing renal denervation (RDN), patients with high blood pressure who did not respond to treatment with multiple medications had a greater reduction in daytime systolic blood pressure than patients who did not receive RDN, with no difference in major adverse effects, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Patients who received RDN--a procedure that delivers energy to overactive nerves in the kidneys to decrease their activity--saw a median reduction of 8 mmHg in their daytime ambulatory systolic blood ...

The coronavirus pandemic has upended nearly every aspect of everyday life and continues to have devastating effects worldwide. It has also taken a significant toll on cardiovascular clinicians, many of whom provide direct care to patients with COVID-19, according to results of a new survey presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Among those surveyed, burnout increased from 20% to 38% during the peak of the pandemic. Rates of burnout pre- and peak COVID-19 increased across all members of the cardiology team and was particularly striking among cardiovascular team members, ...

Clopidogrel outperformed aspirin in what is believed to be the first and largest randomized trial to compare the effectiveness of the two antiplatelet drugs as long-term maintenance therapy for patients who had no adverse events after one year of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) following the insertion of a coronary stent. After two years of follow-up, chronic maintenance therapy with clopidogrel resulted in a 30% reduction in deaths, heart attacks, strokes or major bleeding events, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. "These data ...

Using more sensitive and frequent repeat testing of a blood test that indicates heart injury to guide the treatment of low-risk patients with symptoms of a possible heart attack resulted in patients being discharged earlier and receiving fewer cardiac stress tests but did not improve patient outcomes after one year, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. In fact, a subset of patients receiving this more sensitive and frequent blood testing protocol were more likely to have a heart attack or to die during the one-year follow-up period compared with patients whose treatment was informed by the results of conventional blood testing procedures. Troponins are proteins found in ...

Among patients who had a cardiac stent inserted after a heart attack, switching to less-potent dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after 30 days was safer and more effective in preventing adverse events a year later than continuing on a high-potency DAPT regimen, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. "We have shown that, in patients who have had a heart attack and who've been treated with newer-generation stents and guideline-recommended medical therapy, de-escalation of DAPT by switching from ticagrelor to clopidogrel is completely safe and more effective than continuing to treat patients with ticagrelor," said Kiyuk Chang, MD, professor of Cardiology, Division of Internal Medicine at the Catholic University of ...

People with extremely high levels of triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood) and a specific genetic profile saw a substantial reduction in triglycerides after taking the human monoclonal antibody evinacumab compared with those taking a placebo, in a study presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Severe hypertriglyceridemia is a rare disorder that causes extremely high levels of triglycerides, an accumulation of fat in the blood that can lead to heart, liver and pancreatic disease. People with severe hypertriglyceridemia commonly have triglyceride levels of 1,000 mg/dL ...

Patients at high risk for cardiovascular events who had the highest levels of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in their blood one year after taking daily omega-3 carboxylic acid, a prescription-grade fish oil, had similar rates of major cardiovascular events as people taking a corn oil placebo, according to a secondary analysis of the STRENGTH trial presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Researchers also found no increase in cardiovascular events among patients with the highest levels of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) compared to placebo. The impetus for this post-hoc analysis was to further examine the strikingly divergent results between STRENGTH and REDUCE-IT, another large, randomized clinical trial that used a ...

Dapagliflozin, a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, did not significantly reduce the risk of organ failure or death or improve recovery in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 who are at high risk of developing serious complications compared to placebo, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. The researchers, while acknowledging the results were not statistically significant, said they were encouraged by the lower numbers of organ failure and deaths observed in patients treated with dapagliflozin and by favorable safety ...

Older patients hospitalized with acute heart failure who participated in a novel 12-week physical rehabilitation (rehab) program tailored to address their specific physical impairments had significant gains not only in physical functioning but also quality of life and depression compared with those receiving usual care, regardless of their heart's ejection fraction, according to a new study presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. Participation in the program, however, did not significantly reduce rehospitalizations during the six-month follow up. Heart failure, which ...

Taking medications to protect the heart from damage associated with adjuvant breast cancer therapy--medications that are administered in addition to surgery to remove a tumor--did not significantly improve markers of heart health two years after breast cancer treatment, according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. The researchers reported no significant differences between patients who took an angiotensin receptor blocker (candesartan cilexetil) or a beta-blocker (metoprolol succinate) compared with placebos in terms of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), a measure of the heart's ability to effectively pump ...

Rivaroxaban, in addition to low-dose aspirin, significantly reduced the occurrence of total severe events of the heart, limb or brain and issues related to other vascular complications in patients with symptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD) who underwent lower extremity revascularization, a procedure to open blocked arteries in the leg. The findings, presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session, expand on earlier data and underscore the broad absolute benefits of this strategy in this high-risk patient population, researchers said. "To our knowledge, this is the first time that the addition of low-dose rivaroxaban to aspirin has been clearly shown to reduce ...

In patients who had a coronary stent inserted after experiencing the most severe type of heart attack, the use of a technique that measures blood flow and pressure through a partially blocked artery to determine if a second stenting procedure is needed did not improve outcomes and was more costly than using angiography, or a heart X-ray, alone to guide the procedure, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's 70th Annual Scientific Session. "The strategy of using fractional flow reserve (FFR) to guide the stenting procedure is not superior to the standard technique of using angiography to treat additional partially blocked arteries," said Etienne Puymirat, MD, professor of cardiology at the University of Paris, director of intensive care at the Georges ...