GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (May 11, 2023) — Van Andel Institute scientists have pinpointed how a specific gene mutation triggers an inflammatory cascade that may drive development of treatment-resistant cancers. The new findings, published today in Molecular Cell, reveal for the first time the molecular circuitry by which mutations in the gene STK11 cause inflammation to spiral out of control. The resulting chemical firestorm damages healthy cells and can enable cancer development. Tumors that lose the STK11 gene are tough ...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — For two decades, physicists have tried to directly manipulate the spin of electrons in 2D materials like graphene. Doing so could spark key advances in the burgeoning world of 2D electronics, a field where super-fast, small and flexible electronic devices carry out computations based on quantum mechanics. Standing in the way is that the typical way in which scientists measure the spin of electrons — an essential behavior that gives everything in the physical universe its structure — usually doesn’t work in 2D materials. This makes it incredibly difficult to fully understand the materials and propel forward technological ...

CHICAGO, May 11, 2023 – You may know how other planets look, like the rust orange, dusty surface of Mars or the vibrant teal of Uranus. But what do those planets sound like? Timothy G. Leighton from the University of Southampton in the U.K. designed a software program that produces extraterrestrial environmental sounds and predicts how human voices might change in distant worlds. He will demonstrate his work at the upcoming 184th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, running May 8-12 at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile Hotel. His presentation will take place ...

Answers could be cloudy for researchers using Landsat images to investigate the coverage of the continental United States. The National Land Cover Database (NLCD) are useful products for scientists to understand how things like tree canopy and road coverage changes over time, but something as simple as cloud coverage can be misinterpreted in the satellite images as a significant surface coverage change. How can researchers be sure they’re getting a truly representative understanding of any one area?   The answer lies in composite ...

About The Study: In this study of more than 45,000 individuals drawn from the French general population, COVID-19–like symptoms, but not SARS-CoV-2 infection, during the first months of the pandemic were associated with an increased occurrence of subsequent depression and anxiety eight months or more after the occurrence of COVID-19–like symptoms, even when SARS-CoV-2 serologic test results were negative.  Authors: Alexandra Rouquette, M.D., Ph.D., of the Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines in Paris, is the corresponding ...

About The Study: The number of U.S. cancer survivors with self-reported functional limitation has more than doubled during the past 20 years, with relatively less growth in the number of limitation-free survivors.  Authors: Vishal R. Patel, B.S., of the University of Texas at Austin, is the corresponding author.  To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/  (doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2023.1180) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, ...

Overuse of antibiotic prescriptions for patients with upper respiratory illnesses at urgent care clinics in the United States has been an ongoing challenge, but a new study led by researchers at two Utah health systems – Intermountain Health and University of Utah Health – finds that a targeted approach utilizing antibiotic stewardship practices significantly reduces overuse of these medications. In this Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded study, published today in JAMA Network ...

University of Cambridge media release   Obesity accelerates loss of COVID-19 vaccination immunity, study finds   UNDER STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL 16:00 (UK TIME) / 11:00 (US ET) ON THURSDAY 11 MAY 2023   The protection offered by COVID-19 vaccination declines more rapidly in people with severe obesity than in those with normal weight, scientists at the Universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh have found. The study suggests that people with obesity are likely to need more frequent booster doses to maintain their immunity. Clinical trials have shown that COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at reducing symptoms, hospitalisation and deaths ...

A common chemical reaction that most people have seen first-hand is the inspiration for a new way to make a flexible gel film that could lead to innovations in sensors, batteries, robotics and more. A research team led by Texas Engineers developed what they call a "dip-and-peel" strategy for simple and rapid fabrication of two-dimensional ionogel membranes. By dipping sustainable biomass materials in certain solvents, molecules naturally respond by arranging themselves into functional thin films at the edge of the material that can easily be removed using nothing more than a simple set ...

Glioblastoma cancer cells use mitochondria from the central nervous system to grow and form more aggressive tumors, according to new Cleveland Clinic-led findings published in Nature Cancer. The research showed that it is common for healthy astrocytes – a type of glial cell with important functions in the central nervous system – to transfer the energy-producing organelles to glioblastoma cancer cells. When this process happens, it makes the cancer more deadly and the tumors more likely to grow. Researchers found that acquiring mitochondria ...

UCLA researchers have developed an “all-in-one,” next-generation statistical simulator capable of assimilating a wide range of information to generate realistic synthetic data and provide a benchmarking tool for medical and biological researchers who use advanced technologies to study diseases and potential therapies. Specifically, the new computer-modeling – or “in silico” – system can help researchers evaluate and validate computational methods. Single-cell RNA sequencing, called single-cell transcriptomics, is the foundation for analyzing genetic makeup (genome-wide gene ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Genomic studies of cancer patients have revealed thousands of mutations linked to tumor development. However, for the vast majority of those mutations, researchers are unsure of how they contribute to cancer because there’s no easy way to study them in animal models. In an advance that could help scientists make a dent in that long list of unexplored mutations, MIT researchers have developed a way to easily engineer specific cancer-linked mutations into mouse models. Using this technique, which ...

[HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA] May 11, 2023 – HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, along with several regional collaborators, was awarded $1 million from the US National Science Foundation's Regional Innovation Engines, or NSF Engines, program. They are among the more than 40 unique teams to receive one of the first-ever NSF Engines Development Awards, which aim to help partners collaborate and create economic, societal, and technological opportunities for their regions. The funded project, entitled “Advancing carbon-neutral crop technologies to develop sustainable consumer goods (AL, GA, NC, TN)” (“Greening the Southeast” ...

University of Queensland researchers have used artificial intelligence to build a 3D map of key cell components to better understand dementia and infectious diseases including COVID-19. Professor Brett Collins from UQ’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience and Professor Pete Cullen from the University of Bristol led a team that modelled the 16 subunit Commander complex, a bundle of proteins that act as ‘postal workers’ in cells. “Just as the postal system has processes to transport ...

An algorithm developed using artificial intelligence could soon be used by doctors to diagnose heart attacks with better speed and accuracy than ever before, according to new research from the University of Edinburgh, funded by the British Heart Foundation and the National Institute for Health and Care Research, and published today in Nature Medicine [1]. The effectiveness of the algorithm, named CoDE-ACS [2], was tested on 10,286 patients in six countries around the world. Researchers found that, compared to current testing methods, CoDE-ACS was able to rule ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SpaceMarkers, a new machine learning software developed by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Convergence Institute and the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, can identify molecular interactions among distinct types of cells in and around a tumor. SpaceMarkers harnesses the information available through spatial transcriptomics — a cutting edge technology advancing the ability to measure gene expression in tissue samples based on their location in cells. Understanding the molecular profile of individual cells and the impact of intercellular interactions in the tumor microenvironment (cells ...

Obstructive sleep apnea associated with increased risks for long COVID Study suggests adults with both the sleep disorder and COVID may benefit from clinical monitoring   Among people who have had COVID-19, adults with obstructive sleep apnea were more likely to experience long-term symptoms suggestive of long COVID than those without the sleep disorder, according to a large study supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In fact, multiple analyses of electronic health records (EHR) identified adults with sleep apnea may have up to a 75% higher risk ...

The senses represent our gates to receive information from the environment, but not all of them are always available for everyone, as in the case of blind or deaf people. Researchers know today quite well that the brain has the critical ability to adapt to different sensory experiences and, in some ways, to “compensate” for the lack of one sense or the other. In a recent study, a group of researchers from the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca (Italy), in collaboration with a group from the University of Ulm (Germany), ...

New lens analysis approach could improve treatments for nearsightedness Instrumentation recreates properties of the myopic eye to test lenses that prevent visual decline WASHINGTON — Researchers have developed new instruments for rigorously quantifying and comparing the light focusing properties of specialized eyeglass lenses that are used to slow the progression of myopia, or nearsightedness. The information gained with this new approach could help inform future lens designs that are even more effective at preventing visual decline. Nearsightedness is on the rise around the globe, especially among children. If current trends continue, ...

The freely available compliance checker will use natural language processing to automatically assess scientific manuscripts for the information in the ARRIVE Essential 10, a checklist of the most important details to include in any publication describing animal research. A major factor influencing the reliability and reproducibility of animal experiments is how transparently they are reported. The ARRIVE guidelines help researchers improve the reporting of animal studies by clearly laying out the information that should be included in a manuscript. Reporting animal experiments in line with the ARRIVE guidelines is a requirement ...

The Louisiana Cancer Research Center (LCRC) is stepping up its statewide efforts to reduce the state’s extraordinarily high cancer rates by enlisting the help of the public and communities.  The LCRC’s newly established Office of Community Outreach and Engagement (OCOE) is convening an all-day “Promising Practices Conference” on Friday, June 2 at Louisiana Tech University and online to highlight the resources and assistance that are available to support better health and wellness throughout Louisiana and strategize on ways to overcome challenges.  There is no charge to attend the conference, which is presented by the LCRC in collaboration with ...

In a recent study, researchers determined that derivatives of natural emulsifiers such as phospholipids found in high-fat, high-cholesterol diets can promote atherosclerosis via gut bacteria interactions with the immune system. This study could pave the way for targeted interventions for individuals who are at risk for developing heart disease. Obesity and a high-cholesterol, high-fat diet are both well-established risk factors for atherosclerosis. In fact, obese individuals are two and a half times more likely to develop heart disease. ...

The common ragweed plant (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) has spread rapidly in Europe and has intensified the pollen season for many allergy sufferers. Now the plant has arrived in Norway. Common ragweed can extend Norway's pollen season into November, but fortunately the species is struggling in this country. “Common ragweed can be found in Norway, but for now it has no stable populations,” says Vanessa Carina Bieker, a postdoc at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) ...

Proteins tend to fold wrongly and become defective when exposed to stressors such as heat, oxidation, and pH changes. Accumulation of abnormal proteins contributes to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. So, how does the human body deal with such misfolded or defective proteins? It regulates protein networks via a process called ‘proteostasis,’ which prevents protein aggregation and any damage that may result from misfolded protein accumulation inside (intracellular) or outside (extracellular) cells. A set of unique proteins—molecular chaperones—play an essential role in proteostasis: they target and interact with misfolded proteins, maintain their solubility, ...

Short-term therapy sessions with parents and their children in homeless shelters could help improve parenting skills and reduce parental stress and children’s post-traumatic stress symptoms, according to a pilot study published by the American Psychological Association. Researchers from Florida International University partnered with Lotus House in Miami, one of the largest women’s homeless shelters in the U.S. The study included 144 families (mother and one child) with children from 18 months to 5 years of age. The research was published online in the Journal ...