NJIT mathematician to help map Earth's last frontier with Navy grant
2025-03-14
We’ve mapped nearly all of Mars’ surface from orbit, yet we know less about Earth’s ocean floor — almost 75% remains unmapped in high resolution.
This terrestrial blind spot is driving NJIT Mathematics Professor Eliza Michalopoulou’s latest research, funded by the Office of Naval Research (ONR). The project aims to improve how scientists explore the vast, uncharted ocean floor through sound.
“Mapping the seabed is a challenging endeavor due to the extreme conditions,” said Michalopoulou, ...
NASA atmospheric wave-studying mission releases data from first 3,000 orbits
2025-03-14
Following the 3,000th orbit of NASA’s AWE (Atmospheric Waves Experiment) aboard the International Space Station, researchers publicly released the mission’s first trove of scientific data, crucial to investigate how and why subtle changes in Earth’s atmosphere cause disturbances, as well as how these atmospheric disturbances impact technological systems on the ground and in space.
“We’ve released the first 3,000 orbits of data collected by the AWE instrument in space and transmitted back to Earth,” said Ludger Scherliess, principal investigator for the mission and physics professor at Utah State University. “This is a view of atmospheric ...
‘Microlightning’ in water droplets may have sparked life on Earth
2025-03-14
Life may not have begun with a dramatic lightning strike into the ocean but from many smaller “microlightning” exchanges among water droplets from crashing waterfalls or breaking waves.
New research from Stanford University shows that water sprayed into a mixture of gases thought to be present in Earth’s early atmosphere can lead to the formation of organic molecules with carbon-nitrogen bonds, including uracil, one of the components of DNA and RNA.
The study, published in the journal Science Advances, adds evidence – and a new angle – to the much-disputed Miller-Urey ...
Smoke from wildland-urban interface fires more deadly than remote wildfires
2025-03-14
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The smoke from fires that blaze through the wildland-urban interface (WUI) has far greater health impacts than smoke from wildfires in remote areas, new research finds.
The study, published this week in Science Advances, estimates that emissions from WUI fires are proportionately about three times more likely to lead ...
What’s your body really worth? New AI model reveals your true biological age from 5 drops of blood
2025-03-14
Osaka-Japan - We all know someone who seems to defy aging—people who look younger than their peers despite being the same age. What’s their secret? Scientists at Osaka University (Japan) may have found a way to quantify this difference. By incorporating hormone (steroid) metabolism pathways into an AI-driven model, they have developed a new system to estimate a person’s biological age a measure of how well their body has aged, rather than just counting the years since birth.
Using just five drops of ...
Protein accidentally lassos itself, helping explain unusual refolding behavior
2025-03-14
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Proteins are long molecules that must fold into complex three-dimensional structures to perform their cellular functions. This folding process occasionally goes awry, resulting in misfolded proteins that, if not corrected, can potentially lead to disease. Now, a new study has described a potential mechanism that could help explain why some proteins refold in a different pattern than expected. The researchers, led by chemists at Penn State, found that a type of misfolding, in which the ...
With bird flu in raw milk, many in U.S. still do not know risks of consuming it
2025-03-14
PHILADELPHIA – Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) located H5N1 bird flu virus in samples of raw, or unpasteurized, milk in tests in four states in April 2024, and bird flu has been detected in commercially sold raw milk, many Americans do not know that consuming raw milk and its products poses greater health risks than consuming pasteurized milk and its products, especially for children. Consuming raw milk can expose one to Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, Listeria, and Brucella – and, potentially, H5N1 bird flu.
A majority of U.S. adults (56%) knows that drinking raw milk from cows, sheep, or goats is less safe than drinking pasteurized milk. ...
University of Minnesota research team awarded $3.8 million grant to develop cell therapy to combat Alzheimer’s disease
2025-03-14
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (03/14/2025) — A University of Minnesota research team was recently awarded a five-year, $3.8 million grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health to develop a new cell therapy to combat Alzheimer’s disease. More than 55 million people worldwide live with dementia, which includes Alzheimer's disease and other related conditions.
The project aims to adapt advanced techniques developed for cancer treatment to create specialized macrophages — immune cells that can surround and remove proteins from their environment — to seek out and clear harmful proteins in the brain.
"Engineered ...
UConn uncovers new clue on what is leading to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and ALS
2025-03-14
In Nature Neuroscience, UConn School of Medicine researchers have revealed a new scientific clue that could unlock the key cellular pathway leading to devastating neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, and the progressive damage to the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes in frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) and the associated disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
The study, “Endothelial TDP-43 Depletion Disrupts Core Blood-Brain Barrier Pathways in Neurodegeneration,” was published on March 14, 2025. The lead author, Omar Moustafa Fathy, an MD/Ph.D. candidate at the Center for Vascular Biology at UConn School of ...
Resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest – it’s how quickly it is done, rather than who does it
2025-03-14
Key takeaways:
The proportion of bystanders (as opposed to emergency medical services) performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on individuals experiencing out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) has steadily increased over the past decades.
The study emphasises that the speed of CPR initiation, rather than who performs it, is crucial to survival and better outcomes.
Each 5-minute delay in return of spontaneous circulation in patients experiencing OCHA is associated with a 38% increased risk of death.
Based on these findings, the authors emphasise that increasing the number of individuals trained in proper CPR ...
A closer look at biomolecular ‘silly putty’
2025-03-14
Biomolecular condensates are shifting blobs in our cells that organize cellular matter. They are distinct molecular communities made of DNA, RNA and proteins that “condense” molecules to key locations, yet they frequently defy description. Partly this is because they are so small, they cannot be measured using traditional microscopes.
“These blobs were once described as being ‘liquid-like’ because some of them were observed to kiss, fuse, drip and flow like raindrops on windshields,” said Rohit Pappu, Gene K. Beare Distinguished Professor of biomedical engineering ...
Oxytocin system of breastfeeding affected in mothers with postnatal depression
2025-03-14
The oxytocin system – which helps release breast milk and strengthens the bond between mother and baby – may be affected during breastfeeding in mothers experiencing postnatal depression, finds a new study by UCL researchers.
The new research, published in Psychoneuroendocrinology, investigated the link between maternal mood and the oxytocin pathway during breastfeeding, in mothers with and without symptoms of postnatal depression.
Oxytocin is a hormone that is released in both the brain and body. It plays a central role in childbirth and breastfeeding, ...
Liquid metal-enabled synergetic cooling and charging: a leap forward for electric vehicles
2025-03-14
A recent study published in Engineering presents a novel approach to address the challenges of high-power direct current fast charging (DC-HPC) in electric vehicles (EVs). The research, led by a team from China Agricultural University, focuses on developing a synergetic cooling and charging strategy using a gallium-based liquid metal flexible charging connector (LMFCC).
As the demand for EVs grows, DC-HPC technology, especially for megawatt-level charging currents (≥1000 A), is crucial for reducing charging time. However, it brings the ...
Defensive firearm use is far less common than exposure to gun violence
2025-03-14
Those with access to firearms rarely use their weapon to defend themselves, and instead are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence in other ways, according to a Rutgers Health study.
An overwhelming majority of firearm users, or about 92%, indicated they never have used their weapons to defend themselves, with less than 1% say they did in the previous year, a new study by the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center found.
“Adults with firearm access are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence than they are to defend themselves with their firearms,” ...
Lifetime and past-year defensive gun use
2025-03-14
About The Study: In this survey of adults with firearm access, defensive gun use (DGU) was rare relative to gun violence exposure. Perceived threats may not necessitate DGU, and given the association between DGU and gun violence exposure, the consequences of DGU may be substantial. Narratives centering DGU as a consideration in firearm policies may misstate the risk profile of firearm access.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Michael D. Anestis, PhD, email mda141@sph.rutgers.edu.
To access the ...
Lifetime health effects and cost-effectiveness of tirzepatide and semaglutide in US adults
2025-03-14
About The Study: This economic evaluation found that although tirzepatide and semaglutide offered substantial long-term health benefits, they were not cost-effective at current net prices. Efforts to reduce the net prices of new anti-obesity medications are essential to ensure equitable access to highly effective anti-obesity medications.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Jennifer H. Hwang, DO, email jennifer.hwang2@bsd.uchicago.edu.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamahealthforum.2024.5586)
Editor’s ...
New members of the CDKL family of genes linked to neurodevelopmental disorders
2025-03-14
CDKL5, one of the five members of the CDKL family of genes, is important for proper neurodevelopment and associated with seizures. However, the role the other four members of this family play in health and disease is unknown.
A team led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI) at Texas Children’s Hospital has deepened our understanding of two other members of the CDKL family, CDKL2 and CDKL1. The labs of Drs. Oguz Kanca and Hugo Bellen show that ...
Advancements in organ preservation: paving the way for better transplantation outcomes
2025-03-14
A review article published in Engineering delves into the crucial field of organ preservation, exploring its history, current techniques, and future prospects. The shortage of donor organs remains a significant global challenge, with only about 10% of the global demand for organ transplantation being met, as stated by the World Health Organization. This shortage is further exacerbated by the limitations of current organ preservation methods.
Currently, the main clinical methods for organ preservation are static cold storage (SCS) and machine perfusion (MP). SCS, which involves storing organs in a preservation solution at low temperatures (usually 4 °C), is simple and ...
Pitt study makes new insights into the origins of ovarian cancer
2025-03-14
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have identified a novel trigger of a deadly form of ovarian cancer: a subset of progenitor cells that reside in fallopian tube supportive tissue, or stroma.
The discovery of these high-risk cells, described in a new study published today in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, could pave the way for better approaches to prevent and detect high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), the most common form of ovarian cancer, which kills more than 12,000 women in the U.S. each year.
“Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of death from gynecologic cancer in the Western world, but we currently ...
Topical steroid withdrawal diagnostic criteria defined by NIH researchers
2025-03-14
WHAT:
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have determined that dermatitis resulting from topical steroid withdrawal (TSW) is distinct from eczema and is caused by an excess of an essential chemical compound in the body. Scientists from NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) identified treatments that could be studied in clinical trials for the condition based on their potential to lower levels of the chemical compound—called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), a form of ...
CeSPIACE: A broad-spectrum peptide inhibitor against variable SARS-CoV-2 spikes
2025-03-14
SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, infects cells by binding its spike protein to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors. Blocking this interaction with inhibitors could prevent infection. Since these inhibitors act directly on the virus without affecting human cells, they may be safer than some existing treatments. However, mutations in the spike protein can alter its structure, reducing the effectiveness of these inhibitors.
In a significant breakthrough, a research team led by Professor Yoshinori Fujiyoshi ...
Understanding the origin of magnetic moment enhancement in novel alloys
2025-03-14
Magnetic materials have become indispensable to various technologies that support our modern society, such as data storage devices, electric motors, and magnetic sensors. High-magnetization ferromagnets are especially important for the development of next-generation spintronics, sensors, and high-density data storage technologies. Among these materials, the iron-cobalt (Fe-Co) alloy is widely used due to its strong magnetic properties. However, there is a limit to how much their performance can be improved, necessitating a new approach.
Some of the earlier studies have shown that epitaxially grown films made up of Fe-Co alloys doped with heavier elements exhibit remarkably high ...
BU researchers develop computational tools to safeguard privacy without degrading voice-based cognitive markers
2025-03-14
(Boston)—Digital voice recordings contain valuable information that can indicate an individual’s cognitive health, offering a non-invasive and efficient method for assessment. Research has demonstrated that digital voice measures can detect early signs of cognitive decline by analyzing features such as speech rate, articulation, pitch variation and pauses, which may signal cognitive impairment when deviating from normative patterns.
However, voice data introduces privacy challenges due to the personally identifiable information embedded in recordings, ...
Breakthrough in rapid polymer nanostructure production
2025-03-14
Researchers at the University of Birmingham have developed a new method for the rapid scalable preparation of uniform nanostructures directly from block polymers.
This novel approach, led by the Dove and O'Reilly groups, significantly reduces processing time from a week to just minutes, enabling high-throughput production of precision polymer nanomaterials.
Publishing their findings today (14 Mar) in Nature Chemistry, the teams outline a rapid seed preparation technique that supersaturates polymer solutions in a flow system.
The process facilitates uniform seed micelle formation and allows ...
Artificial photosynthesis: Researchers mimic plants
2025-03-14
Photosynthesis is a marvellous process: plants use it to produce sugar molecules and oxygen from the simple starting materials carbon dioxide and water. They draw the energy they need for this complex process from sunlight.
If humans could imitate photosynthesis, it would have many advantages. The free energy from the sun could be used to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it to build carbohydrates and other useful substances. It would also be possible to produce hydrogen, as photosynthesis splits water into its components oxygen and hydrogen.
Photosynthesis: a Complex Process ...
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