Researchers from The University of Warwick and the University of Manchester have finally solved the long-standing puzzle of why graphene is so much more permeable to protons than expected by theory. A decade ago, scientists at The University of Manchester demonstrated that graphene is permeable to protons, nuclei of hydrogen atoms. The unexpected result started a debate in the community because theory predicted that it would take billions of years for a proton to permeate through graphene’s dense crystalline structure. ...

By Benjamin Boettner (Boston) — A growing repertoire of cell and molecule-based immunotherapies is offering patients with indomitable cancers new hope by mobilizing their immune systems against tumor cells. An emerging class of such immunotherapeutics, known as T cell bispecific antibodies (TCBs), are of growing importance with several TCBs that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved for the treatment of leukemias, lymphomas, and myelomas. These antibody drugs label tumor cells with one of their ends, and attract immune cells with another end to coerce them into tumor cell killing. One major challenge in the development of TCBs and other immunotherapy ...

Many plants and crops rely on insects to pollinate them so they can reproduce. A new study has shown that several flowering plants from the group Euonymus are pollinated by fungus gnats, a dipteran insect. Specifically, they pollinate Euonymus plants which have red-petaled flowers with short stamens and yogurt-like scent. Although fungus gnats are known to pollinate hundreds of plant species, this study shows that the particular traits of red Euonymus flowers were likely to have been acquired via pollination syndrome, evolving over a process of natural selection to be pollinated specifically by fungus gnats. This research highlights the important role of Diptera, which are commonly regarded ...

In sub-Saharan Africa 80% of agricultural production is from smallholder farmers, who face constraints on increasing farm productivity resulting in a large yield gap. Extensive rain-fed agriculture (90% of all cropland) under unpredictable and erratic rainfall pattern is a leading cause of the low productivity and food insecurity in Africa, together with a low degree of mechanization. This has been reinforcing a persistent poverty trap, triggered by cyclical famines that are jeopardizing local development opportunities. In a new IIASA-led study as part of the research project Renewables for African Agriculture (RE4AFAGRI), an international ...

In the weeks following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, public health directives called for masking, social distancing, social isolation, and stay-at-home orders. Apart from the severe medical consequences as a direct result of the pandemic, the ensuing social isolation had far-reaching impacts on children. The pandemic control measures affected the pediatric population by increasing mental distress, limiting physical activity, changing sleep patterns, and reducing emergency room visits. Unfortunately, the scope of pediatric trauma during the pandemic remains ...

SAN ANTONIO — August 23, 2023 — A Southwest Research Institute project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has demonstrated an average of 15% energy savings when vehicles outfitted with connected and automated vehicle systems, or CAVs, are introduced into traffic.   CAVs use wireless smart technology to communicate with other CAVs and traffic infrastructure. SwRI’s eco-driving framework uses custom software and predictive powertrain algorithms to enable human drivers to make more efficient driving ...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (August 23, 2023) – Researchers from Nemours Children’s Health will present a range of studies at the World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, Aug. 27 – Sept. 1 in Washington D.C., the leading global conference in the field. Nemours Children’s presentations will highlight advances in complex congenital heart disease, prevention, cardiomyopathy in rare diseases, and the benefit of integration with other areas like psychology and telehealth. "In pediatric cardiac surgery, the Nemours Children’s Cardiac Center has pioneered a number of procedures, and we are pleased to share our new findings with researchers and clinicians ...

Lanthanide-containing complexes are important compounds for sophisticated nuclear-fuel processing and medical imaging. Moreover, they often have interesting symmetric crystal structures and associated dynamics that render unique properties for practical applications.  The seven-coordinate lanthanide complex Ho(III) aqua-tris(dibenzoylmethane) or Ho-(DBM)3·H2O was first reported in the late 1960s. It has a three-fold symmetric structure with holmium (Ho) at the center of three propeller-shaped dibenzoylmethane (DBM) ligands and a water (H2O) ...

With the rise in global demand for staple crop products projected to substantially increase by 2050 due to population growth, rising per capita income, and the growing use of biofuels, it is necessary to adopt sustainable agricultural intensification practices in existing croplands to meet this demand. However, estimation processes currently employed in the global South remain inadequate. Traditional methods like self-reporting and crop cutting have their limitations, and remote sensing technologies are not fully utilized in this context.   However, recent advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, particularly deep learning with convolutional ...

The NIH/National Institute on Aging has awarded a R01 $3 million grant to study the impact of a probiotic/prebiotic (synbiotic) medical food developed by Solarea Bio on maintaining bone health of older women.  The study will support an 18-month clinical trial of a synbiotic medical food in 220 older women to test whether it maintains lumbar spine bone mineral density (BMD) with aging. Grant recipients are Hebrew SeniorLife, USDA HNRCA at Tufts University, Maine Medical Center Research Institute, and Solarea Bio. “There is an unmet need for safe and effective dietary interventions for the ...

TAMPA, Fla. (Aug. 23, 2023) – A University of South Florida geoscientist led an international team of researchers to create a new method that can reconstruct the drift path and origin of debris from flight MH370, an aircraft that went missing over the Indian Ocean in 2014 with 239 passengers.  Associate Professor Gregory Herbert was inspired the moment he saw photographs of the plane debris that washed ashore Reunion Island off the coast of Africa a year after the crash. “The flaperon ...

DALLAS, August 23, 2023 — A 2023 survey from the American Heart Association conducted by The Harris Poll, found that a majority (70%) of heart attack and stroke survivors are unaware that LDL cholesterol is commonly referred to as 'bad cholesterol.' This matters because LDL cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein cholesterol) significantly contributes to the development of cardiovascular disease, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ...

Worldwide, the practice of preparing agricultural fields by burning crop residue contributes large quantities of gaseous pollutants and aerosol particles to the atmosphere and is a known cardiorespiratory health hazard. It has been shown that combustion byproducts in smoke cross the blood-brain barrier causing brain inflammation, and repeated inhalation of smoke can contribute to cognitive decline and dementia among older adults. Federal efforts to monitor air quality have been focused on population-dense urban communities. As such, impacts of smoke exposure from agricultural fires ...

Figuring out how hundreds of different kinds of brain cells develop from their unique expression of thousands of genes promises to not only advance understanding of how the brain works in health, but also what goes wrong in disease. A new MIT study that precisely probes this “molecular logic” in two neuron types of the Drosophila fruit fly, shows that even similar cells push and pull many levers to develop distinct functions. In the study in Neuron, a team of neurobiologists at The Picower Institute for Learning and ...

INDIANAPOLIS – A new study from researchers at Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University School of Dentistry reports on linking electronic health records and electronic dental records to provide better care and outcomes for individuals with Sjögren's disease, an autoimmune disorder that can affect the entire body, including teeth. Their work may have implications for other systemic autoimmune diseases, including lupus and possibly rheumatoid arthritis. Sjögren’s is a chronic autoimmune connective tissue disorder affecting four million Americans ...

Researchers from Lehigh University, University of Hong Kong, and Wuhan University published a new Journal of Marketing article that examines in-feed advertising’s performance across subscription versus AI recommended news feeds. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled “Tales of Two Channels: Digital Advertising Performance Between AI Recommendation and User Subscription Channels” and is authored by Beibei Dong, Mengzhou Zhuang, Eric (Er) Fang, and Minxue Huang. How ...

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA [August 23, 2023] — Today the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)—a not-for-profit alliance of leading academic cancer centers—announced Crystal S. Denlinger, MD, FACP, as incoming Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Dr. Denlinger—who is currently NCCN’s Senior Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer—is being promoted to lead the global guidelines organization following a national search to replace the retiring longtime CEO, Robert W. Carlson, MD. Dr. Denlinger has a long history of global cancer care leadership with NCCN and beyond. She was named an ...

NEW YORK, August 23, 2023 — Physicist Matthew Sfeir is among 21 innovative mid-career scientists who will each receive $1.25 million from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to pursue experimental physics research with the promise of significantly transforming understanding of physics and facilitating next-generation technological breakthroughs.   The five-year Experimental Physics Investigator Award will allow Sfeir—a Photonics Initiative professor with the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY Graduate Center (CUNY ASRC) ...

New Yorkers can apparently breathe a sigh of relief, at least for now. Their exposure to the smoke in June 2023 from Canadian wildfires led to only a slightly higher bump in visits to New York City hospital emergency departments for breathing problems or asthma attacks than what is seen on days when pollen counts are high. However, authors of a new study say other possible health effects, such as possible heart attacks and stroke, still need to be investigated. For the study, researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine analyzed daily levels of air pollution, as measured ...

When Dr. Bodo Beck first saw the three children of a family who had fled Syria sitting in his consultation room at University Hospital Cologne, the human geneticist was surprised. His genetic analysis diagnosed Bartter syndrome type 3, but never before had he seen such severe joint changes in patients with this rare disease. The kidney disease is hereditary – affected individuals lack the CLCNKB gene, which is responsible for a specific chloride channel. The electrolyte balance becomes disrupted because the kidneys cannot reabsorb important nutrients and salts back into ...

A recent study in the Journal of Orthopaedic Research found that cast immobilization is as effective as surgery for treating older patients with bone fractures near the wrist. The study included 276 patients aged 70–89 years who suffered a distal radius fracture that didn’t penetrate the skin and that was treated conservatively or surgically between August 2018 and January 2022. Cast immobilization was used on 213 patients, whereas the other 63 had plates or pins placed during different types of surgery. Nineteen patients experienced complications within the first year, with the most common being complex regional pain syndrome (5 patients who ...

It is estimated that, globally, mental disorders affect about one in seven children and adolescents aged 10–19 years. A recent analysis of published studies indicates that most research on child and adolescent mental health and psychological interventions in low- and middle-income countries is reactive rather than proactive, focusing on treating rather than preventing mental health problems or promoting mental health. For the analysis, which is published in Campbell Systematic Reviews, investigators searched a wide range of bibliographic databases, libraries, and websites for relevant studies published between 2010 and ...

Research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association reveals that many US young adults have poor lifestyle factors and cardiometabolic diseases—such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension—with varying rates based on race and ethnicity. The study included 10,405 individuals aged 18–44 years whose information was available from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2011–2018. The prevalence of lifestyle risk factors ranged from 16.3% for excessive drinking to 49.3% for poor diet quality. The prevalence of cardiometabolic ...

Hearing impairment may cause difficulties in social interactions, but new research indicates that social struggles experienced by deaf individuals are likely not due to brain alterations but rather due to non-supportive environments. The findings, which are published in Human Brain Mapping, suggest that deafness does not affect the mechanisms and brain circuits supporting social skills. For the research, investigators analyzed published neuroimaging studies focusing on social perception in deaf versus hearing participants. Results indicated that both deaf and hearing participants recruited the ...

Previous studies have shown a link between catheter ablation and a lower risk of dementia and premature death for patients with atrial fibrillation. This procedure involves a flexible wire that is inserted into a blood vessel in the groin and guided to the heart where it destroys tissue that is causing rapid and irregular heartbeats. It’s unclear if the associations between catheter ablation and lower dementia and mortality risks hold among different subgroups of patients stratified by age, sex, co-morbidities, and medication use. Now, a large study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society including more ...