Tantalising evidence has been uncovered for a mysterious population of "free-floating" planets, planets that may be alone in deep space, unbound to any host star. The results include four new discoveries that are consistent with planets of similar masses to Earth, published today in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. The study, led by Iain McDonald of the University of Manchester, UK, (now based at the Open University, UK) used data obtained in 2016 during the K2 mission phase of NASA's Kepler Space Telescope. During this two-month campaign, Kepler monitored a crowded field of millions ...

Hannah Enders and Dr. Florian Hennicke describe the precise anatomy of these structures of the poplar mushroom in the Journal of Fungi of 19 May 2021. An edible wild mushroom One of the organisms attacked by the fungus Cyclocybe parasitica is the Tawa tree (Beilschmiedia tawa), which is relevant to the timber industry in New Zealand. Cyclocybe parasitica is widespread in the Pacific region and has long been known to the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, under the name "Tawaka" as an edible wild mushroom. Biology student Hannah Elders, supervised by Florian Hennicke at ...

A research collaboration based in Kumamoto University, Japan has discovered that muscles and the resident stem cells (satellite cells) responsible for muscle regeneration retain memory of their location in the body. This positional memory was found to be based on the expression pattern of the homeobox (Hox) gene cluster, which is responsible for shaping the body during fetal life. These findings are expected to provide clues to elucidate the pathogenesis of muscle diseases such as muscular dystrophy, in which the position of muscle vulnerability varies depending on the type of muscle, and to help develop regenerative ...

Overview: A research team from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Information Engineering at Toyohashi University of Technology developed a chlorine (Cl) substituted Na3SbS4 solid electrolyte for use in all-solid-state sodium (Na) ion batteries. Compared to the sample without a Cl substitution, the ionic conductivity of the Na3SbS4 solid electrolyte where sulfur (S) was partially substituted with Cl improved by up to three times. The team also demonstrated that the Cl-substituted Na3SbS4 has a crystal structure framework that allows Na ions to move easier ...

The Mid-infrared lasers (MIR) with high peak power and high repetition rate operating in the range of 2.7~3 μm have important application in laser surgery and optical parametric oscillator (OPO). A recent study conducted by SUN Dunlu's research group at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science(HFIPS) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) achieved high power, high efficiency and quasi-continuous mid-infrared laser in the free running and langasite [La3 Ga5 SiO14 (LGS)] Q-switched modes by using the Er3+ ions-doped YAP crystals as laser gain medium. Based on their previous research work on laser, the researchers further improved the laser performance of Er:YAP laser crystal by laser-diode (LD) side-pumping method, a Er:YAP crystal ...

Sleep problems are common in the general population with up to half of Singaporean adults reporting insufficient or unsatisfying sleep. Sleep quality tends to worsen with age and poor sleep is a modifiable risk factor for multiple disorders, including cardiovascular disease and cognitive impairment. Currently, insomnia is treated with either medication or psychological interventions. However, even frontline treatments such as cognitive-behavioural therapy have limitations - up to 40% of patients do not get relief from their insomnia symptoms after undergoing ...

In 2016, researchers from the EDDyLab - Evolution & Diversity Dynamics Lab - at the University of Liège (Belgium) proposed a new definition of the geological boundary between the Devonian and Carboniferous periods (359 million years). This new definition has been tested by hundreds of researchers around the world and the results are now compiled in a special issue of the journal Palaeodiversity & Palaeoenvironments. Geological time is divided into periods (Cambrian, Carboniferous, Jurassic, etc.), together covering the 4.6 billion year history of the Earth. The many climatic, environmental and biological changes that have punctuated this history are recorded in the rock layers, forming an incredibly rich archive of the Earth's past. "The study of these successive ...

Scientists from Tohoku University and the University of Maryland have pinpointed the strong magnetic field of the early sun as the reason behind the radial variation of rock and metal in rocky planets' cores. This magnetic field, which pulled small iron grains inward, explains Mercury's big iron core and why Mars has so little iron in its core. The details of their research were published in the journal Progress in Earth and Planetary Science on July 5, 2021. Planets have iron cores surrounded by a rocky shell, mostly made up of mantle and a thin skin of crust. The four inner planets of our Solar System, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars have their own distinctive size and density. These ...

Recently, a research team led by Prof. KONG Lingtao at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has prepared a type of hollow amorphous Co/C composites to activate hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to generate singlet oxygen, achieving selective elimination of oxytetracycline (OTC) in complicated water matrices. The relevant results was published in Chemical Engineering Journal. OTC is the most common tetracycline antibiotic in the field of animal husbandry. It can be detected in water, soil and other areas which features ...

The study is the first on epidemiology and causes of traumatic brain injury in over 20 years. The research team reports in the journal BMJ Open of 4 June 2021. Falling and cycling without a helmet are common causes From a minor fall on a bicycle to a serious road traffic accident: The causes of a traumatic brain injury are manifold. About 90 percent of the approximately 270,000 cases per year are classified as mild, ten percent as moderate or severe. Current findings show that traumatic brain injury is increasing in the age group of over-65s. The research team at BG Kliniken in Bochum, Hamburg, Berlin, Halle, Frankfurt, Ludwigshafen and Murnau found that there has been a shift in the age group most frequently affected and ...

[Background] Aryl halides*1) with a benzene ring directly bonded to a halogen atom are readily available and chemically stable, so they are used as a source of benzene rings in organic synthesis. For example, a chemical reaction that generates a highly reactive aryl radical*2) from an aryl halide using a toxic tin compound has long been known as a method for supplying a benzene ring (Figure 1A). In recent years, chemical reactions have been developed, in which an aryl halide is reduced using a metal catalyst or a photocatalyst*3) followed by cleavage of the bond between the benzene ring and the halogen atom to generate ...

Together with their multifaceted action mechanisms, activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and so-called APOBEC proteins are important factors in the body's immune response and offer fast and effective protection against a large number of DNA and RNA viruses. The task of AID is to strengthen the human immune response, while APOBECs are able to block the virus. A MedUni Vienna research team comprising Anastasia Meshcheryakova, Diana Mechtcheriakova and Peter Pietschmann from the Institute of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research has now addressed the potential interrelations between AID/APOBECs and the SARS-CoV-2 virus, ...

Ishikawa, Japan - Many researchers in the field of materials science constantly seek novel and versatile platforms that can be used to tailor materials to match their intended use. One example of this are covalent organic frameworks (COFs), an emerging class of crystalline porous polymers with a favorable set of fundamental properties, namely crystallinity, stability, and porosity. This combination makes them, in theory, adjustable to many modern applications. Unfortunately, owing to the way COFs are usually obtained, these properties are not very pronounced, resulting in unstable, low-crystallinity solids with limited porosity. At the Japan Advanced Institute of ...

Recently, Prof. WANG Zhenyang's research group from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has prepared macroscopic thick three-dimensional (3D) porous graphene films. Using high-energy electron beam as the energy source and taking advantages of high kinetic energy and low reflection characteristics of e-beam, the researchers directly induced polyimide precursor into a 3D porous graphene crystal film with a thickness of up to 0.66 mm. Related research results were published in the journal Carbon. Graphene has been proved ...

A new nanotechnology development by an international research team led by Tel Aviv University researchers will make it possible to generate electric currents and voltage within the human body through the activation of various organs (mechanical force). The researchers explain that the development involves a new and very strong biological material, similar to collagen, which is non-toxic and causes no harm to the body's tissues. The researchers believe that this new nanotechnology has many potential applications in medicine, including harvesting clean energy to operate devices implanted ...

Recently, with the help of a steady-state strong magnetic field experimental device, scientists constructed nano-scale borate bioactive glass (Nano-HCA@BG), which can effectively reduce the biological toxicity of borate bioglass, improve the biocompatibility of the glass, and promote the effect of borate bioglass on skin repair. Prof. WANG Junfeng from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), collaborating with Prof. ZHANG Teng from Fuzhou University in this study, said, "it is expected to become the next generation of skin wound repair dressings." Related research was published in Chemical Engineering Journal. Borate bioglass is a glass with boron element (B) as the glass network matrix. With good dopability and degradability, it ...

Sleep deprivation - from lifestyle choices, pandemic stress, or late-night computer study - can quickly lead to loss of energy and function during the day and even feelings of anger and depression, an Australian sleep institute study has shown. The study, led by Flinders University, asked 34 health teenagers (20 males) aged between 15 and 17 to spent 10 days and nine nights in a specially designed sleep centre. They were allocated to one of three sleep 'doses' for five consecutive nights- from five hours, 7.5 hours, or 10 hours in bed per night - with two baseline and two 'recovery' nights of up to 10 hours' time in bed. Their mood was measured every three hours after waking up to assess responses to feelings such as 'depressed', 'afraid', 'angry', 'confused', ...

Wetland, forest, and ocean are the three largest ecosystems in the world. Although the area of wetland ecosystem accounts for only 4-6% of the total land area, the carbon reserves of wetland ecosystem accounts for 12-24% of the global land carbon reserves. Under the background of global climate change, the research on carbon sequestration of wetland has become an important subject of global carbon cycle research. The area of marshes in China ranks third in the world, and herbaceous marsh is the most widely distributed among all the types of marshes. As an important quality parameter of marsh ecosystem, aboveground biomass of vegetation is a crucial index estimating the carbon storage of marsh vegetation, and the basis for studying ...

A KAIST immunology research team found that most convalescent patients of COVID-19 develop and maintain T cell memory for over 10 months regardless of the severity of their symptoms. In addition, memory T cells proliferate rapidly after encountering their cognate antigen and accomplish their multifunctional roles. This study provides new insights for effective vaccine strategies against COVID-19, considering the self-renewal capacity and multipotency of memory T cells. COVID-19 is a disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. When patients recover from COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2-specific adaptive immune memory is developed. The adaptive immune system consists ...

While this isn't the fountain of youth, scientists may have improved healing in our joints - even in areas that become weaker as we grow older. The meniscus is a durable, yet flexible tissue found in joints like our wrist and knees that helps them absorb shock during movement. Occasionally tears can occur in the meniscus due an awkward movement or structural weakness from old age. When we are young, there is plenty of blood flowing to this area allowing for quick healing, but as we get older, the meniscus receives less and less blood - with the inner most area becoming ...

An international team including Lancaster University researchers has created a strategy for understanding the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the African continent. Their COVID-19 surveillance strategy will improve the ability of African countries to interpret the complex data available to them during the pandemic. Professor Peter Diggle, Dr Chris Jewell and Dr Claudio Fronterre from the Centre for Health Informatics, Computing and Statistics (CHICAS) at Lancaster Medical School worked with colleagues in the USA, Uganda and Switzerland to create a data-driven disease surveillance framework to track and predict ...

Cleft lip and palate is one of the most common congenital malformations. Its causes are mainly genetic. However, it is still largely unknown exactly which genes are affected. A new international study led by the University of Bonn now provides new insights. The results are published in the journal Human Genetics and Genomics Advances, but are already available online. The researchers from the Institute of Human Genetics at the University Hospital Bonn combined various data sources in their work. In the course of their research, they discovered five new regions in the human genome in which variations in the DNA sequence are associated with an ...

A new report that could help improve how immersive technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are used in healthcare education and training has been published with significant input from the University of Huddersfield. Professor David Peebles, Director of the University's Centre for Cognition and Neuroscience, and Huddersfield PhD graduate Matthew Pears contributed to the report - 'Immersive technologies in healthcare training and education: Three principles for progress' - recently published by the University of Leeds with input from range of academics, technologists and health professionals. The principles have also been expanded upon in a letter to the prestigious journal BMJ ...

A train carrying cargo has finite space. The amount of cargo that can be carried onboard is limited by the size of the cargo and the capacity of the train. Analogously, the amount of time taken up by an optical signal limits the amount of data that can be carried. Temporally shorter signals allow more data to be squeezed into a given time duration, in a method called optical time division multiplexing. Photonics researchers have recently succeeded in squeezing light in time by 11 times. The developed temporal compression system allows an equivalent increase in the number of bits transmitted by light ...

A new international study has found that the key properties of the spikes of SARS-CoV-2 virus which causes COVID-19 are consistent with those of several laboratory-developed protein spikes, designed to mimic the infectious virus. A central component in designing serological tests and vaccines to protect against COVID-19 is the manufacture of protein "spikes". These recombinant spikes closely mimic those sticking out of surface of the infectious virus and trigger the body's immune system into action. Laboratory manufactured spikes are also used for serological testing (also referred to as antibody testing) and as research reagents. The findings show how that viral spike manufactured through different methods in laboratories across the globe ...