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Earth Science28 Jan 2021

New Geology articles published online ahead of print in January

Boulder, Colo., USA: Eleven new articles were published ahead of print for Geology in January 2021. The include new modeling, geochemical evidence of tropical cyclone impacts, transport of plastic in submarine canyons, and a porphyry copper belt along the southeast China coast. These Geology articles are online at http://geology.geoscienceworld.org/content/early/recent. Episodic exhumation of the Appalachian orogen in the Catskill Mountains (New York State, USA) Chilisa M. Shorten; Paul G. Fitzgerald Abstract: Increasing evidence indicates the eastern North American passive margin has not remained tectonically quiescent since ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Genomic studies implicate specific genes in post-traumatic stress disorder

After analyzing the genomes of more than one-quarter of a million military veterans, a team of scientists, led by researchers at University of California San Diego, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS), Yale University and West Haven VA, have identified 18 specific, fixed positions on chromosomes (known as loci) that appear associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The findings validate the underlying biology of PTSD, its relationship to comorbid anxiety and depressive disorders and provide potential new targets for treatment, write the authors in the January 28, 2021 online issue of Nature Genetics. "We're very intrigued by the findings of this study, for example, as they pertain to the genetic relationships between different kinds of PTSD symptoms," ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

3D printing resins in dental devices may be toxic to reproductive health

3D-printable resins, such as those used in dental applications, are marketed as biocompatible Clear tooth aligners, a multi-billion-dollar industry, use these resins Many other consumer products use 3D-printable resins CHICAGO --- Two commercially available 3D-printable resins, which are marketed as being biocompatible for use in dental applications, readily leach compounds into their surroundings. These compounds can induce severe toxicity in the oocyte, the immature precursor of the egg which can eventually be fertilized, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study in ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Study shows why anesthetic stops cell's walkers in their tracks

HOUSTON - (Jan. 28, 2021) - Like a wrench that gums up the gears, a common anesthetic keeps the motor proteins in your cells from making their rounds. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but how it works has been a mystery until now. Researchers at Rice's Center for Theoretical Biological Physics (CTBP) detail the mechanism that allows propofol -- the general anesthetic injected to knock you out before surgery -- to halt the movement of kinesin proteins that deliver cargoes along microtubules to the far reaches of cells. The drug's effect on kinesin was known, ...

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Social Science28 Jan 2021

Baylor study: Management without morals can lead to employees' unethical behavior

WACO, Texas (Jan. 28, 2021) - An organization that projects an ethical face but whose managers fail to respond to internal ethical situations sends mixed messages to its employees, which can lead to a lack of employees' moral courage and an increase in unethical behavior, according to a study led by a Baylor University researcher. The study, "Management Without Morals: Construct Development and Initial Testing of Amoral Management," is published in the journal Human Relations. The research comprises three survey-based studies of 1,034 full- and part-time workers to answer the question of, "What happens when leaders do not respond to the ethical components of business situations?". "I ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

First study to look at potency of maternal antibodies

Washington, DC — Research shows that certain segments of the population who contract SARS-CoV-2, the strain of the virus that causes COVID-19, tend to get sicker and are at higher risk for worse outcomes, and that includes pregnant women and infants under two months. In a new study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's (SMFM) annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting™, researchers will unveil findings that suggest that women who contract COVID-19 during pregnancy are able to make antibodies, but that transfer of these antibodies to their infants is less than expected. Antibodies are produced by the body's immune ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

New research finds severity of COVID-19 determines likelihood of pregnancy complications

Washington, DC — Pregnant women who contract SARS-CoV-2, the strain of the virus that causes COVID-19, are at greater risk of dying and experiencing serious complications compared to nonpregnant women who contract the disease, according to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Now, in a new study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's (SMFM) annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting™, researchers will unveil findings that suggest that pregnant women who become severely or critically ill due to COVID-19 are at greater risk of dying and experiencing serious pregnancy complications compared to pregnant women who ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Pharmaceutical research: when active substance and target protein 'embrace' each other

FRANKFURT. Many anti-cancer drugs block signals in cancer cells that help degenerated cells to multiply uncontrollably and detach from tissue. For example, blocking the signalling protein FAK, a so-called kinase, causes breast cancer cells to become less mobile and thus less likely to metastasise. The problem is that when FAK is blocked by an inhibitor, the closely related signalling protein PYK2 becomes much more active and thus takes over some of FAK's tasks. The ideal would therefore be an inhibitor that inhibits both FAK and PYK2 in the same way for as ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Heparin targets coronavirus spike protein, research shows

An international team of researchers led by the Universities of Liverpool and Keele, working with Public Health England, has found that the common anticoagulant drug heparin inhibits the SARS-Cov2 virus spike protein, by reducing the virus' ability to attach to human cells and infect them. The research, published in the journals British Journal of Pharmacology, and Thrombosis and Haemostasis, found that heparin interacts with the spike protein on the surface of coronavirus (SARS-CoV2), destabilising its structure and preventing it from docking with the ACE2 receptor on human ...

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Environment28 Jan 2021

Research illuminates lobsters' genetic response to changing climate

The American lobster, which supports the most valuable fishery in North America, may be more susceptible to the effects of climate change than previously thought, according to a new study published in END ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Livestock workers face high MRSA risk

EAST LANSING, Mich. - For Michigan State University's Felicia Wu, the surprise isn't that people who work with livestock are at higher risk of picking up antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but instead how much higher their risk levels are. "This is a bit of a wakeup call," said Wu, John. A Hannah Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Food Science and Human Nutrition and Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics. "I don't think there was much awareness that swine workers are at such high risk, for example. Or that large animal vets are also at extremely high risk." Compared with individuals who don't work with animals, those working on swine farms are more than 15 times more likely to harbor a particular strain of a bacterium known as methicillin-resistant ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Drugs used to treat HIV and flu can have detrimental impact on crops

The increased global use of antiviral and antiretroviral medication could have a detrimental impact on crops and potentially heighten resistance to their effects, new research has suggested. Scientists from the UK and Kenya found that lettuce plants exposed to a higher concentration of four commonly-used drugs could be more than a third smaller in biomass than those grown in a drug-free environment. They also examined how the chemicals transferred throughout the crop and found that, in some cases, concentrations were as strong in the leaves as they were in the roots. The study - published in Science of the Total Environment - was conducted by environmental chemists from the University of Plymouth (UK), Kisii University (Kenya) and ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Study details N439K variant of SARS-CoV-2

An international team of researchers has characterized the effect and molecular mechanisms of an amino acid change in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein N439K. Viruses with this mutation are both common and rapidly spreading around the globe. The peer reviewed version of the study appears January 25 in the journal Cell. Investigators found that viruses carrying this mutation are similar to the wild-type virus in their virulence and ability to spread but can bind to the human angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor more strongly. Importantly, researchers show that this mutation confers resistance to some individual's serum antibodies and against many neutralizing monoclonal antibodies, including one that is part of a treatment authorized for emergency use by the U.S. ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

The decline in grazing practices threatens the existence of a Basque cheese

The multidisciplinary research group Lactiker - Quality and Safety of Foods from Animal Origin, which is attached to the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), is working on (among other things) characterising the biochemical, microbiological and technological processes involved in cheese manufacturing that have a direct impact on its technological, nutritional and sensory quality, as well as on its food safety status. The aim is to provide the cheesemaking industry with the information it requires to ensure safe, high-quality products. The group, which has been working in this field for 25 years, has conducted studies focusing on all aspects of the production of cheeses under the Idiazabal Protected Designation of Origin ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Scientists discover how remdesivir works to inhibit coronavirus

More effective antiviral treatments could be on the way after research from The University of Texas at Austin sheds new light on the COVID-19 antiviral drug remdesivir, the only treatment of its kind currently approved in the U.S. for the coronavirus. The study is END ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Transportation investments could save hundreds of lives, billions of dollars

BOSTON - Investments in infrastructure to promote bicycling and walking could save as many as 770 lives and $7.6 billion each year across 12 northeastern states and the District of Columbia under the proposed Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), according to a new Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health study. Published in the Journal of Urban Health, the analysis shows that the monetary benefit of lives saved from increased walking and cycling far exceed the estimated annual investment for such infrastructure, without ...

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Technology28 Jan 2021

Malaria threw human evolution into overdrive on this African archipelago

DURHAM, N.C. -- Malaria is an ancient scourge, but it's still leaving its mark on the human genome. And now, researchers have uncovered recent traces of adaptation to malaria in the DNA of people from Cabo Verde, an island nation off the African coast. An archipelago of ten islands in the Atlantic Ocean some 385 miles offshore from Senegal, Cabo Verde was uninhabited until the mid-1400s, when it was colonized by Portuguese sailors who brought enslaved Africans with them and forced them to work the land. The Africans who were forcibly brought to Cabo Verde carried ...

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Medicine28 Jan 2021

Scientists find key function of molecule in cells crucial for regulating immunity

CHAPEL HILL, NC - Many molecules in our bodies help our immune system keep us healthy without overreacting so much that our immune cells cause problems, such as autoimmune diseases. One molecule, called AIM2, is part of our innate immunity - a defense system established since birth - to fight pathogens and keep us healthy. But little was known about AIM2's contribution to T cell adaptive immunity - defenses developed in response to particular pathogens and health problems we develop over the course of our lives. Now, UNC School of Medicine scientists led by Jenny Ting, PhD, the William Kenan Distinguished Professor of Genetics, and Yisong Wan, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology, discovered that AIM2 is important for the proper function of regulatory ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

'Be a man': Why some men respond aggressively to threats to manhood

DURHAM, N.C. -- When their manhood is threatened, some men respond aggressively, but not all. New research from Duke University suggests who may be most triggered by such threats - younger men whose sense of masculinity depends heavily on other people's opinions. "Our results suggest that the more social pressure a man feels to be masculine, the more aggressive he may be," said Adam Stanaland, a Ph.D. candidate in psychology and public policy at Duke and the study's lead author. "When those men feel they are not living up to strict gender norms, they may feel the need to act aggressively to prove their manhood -- to 'be a man'." The pair of studies considered 195 undergraduate students and a random pool of 391 men ages 18 to 56. Study participants were asked a series ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Lasing mechanism found in water droplets

Tiny molecular forces at the surface of water droplets can play a big role in laser output emissions. As the most fundamental matrix of life, water drives numerous essential biological activities, through interactions with biomolecules and organisms. Studying the mechanical effects of water-involved interactions contributes to the understanding of biochemical processes. According to Yu-Cheng Chen, professor of electronic engineering at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), "As water interacts with a surface, the hydrophobicity at the bio-interface mainly determines the mechanical equilibrium ...

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Earth Science28 Jan 2021

Thick lithosphere casts doubt on plate tectonics in Venus's geologically recent past

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- At some point between 300 million and 1 billion years ago, a large cosmic object smashed into the planet Venus, leaving a crater more than 170 miles in diameter. A team of Brown University researchers has used that ancient impact scar to explore the possibility that Venus once had Earth-like plate tectonics. For a study published in Nature Astronomy, the researchers used computer models to recreate the impact that carved out Mead crater, Venus's largest impact basin. Mead is surrounded by two clifflike faults -- rocky ripples frozen in time after the basin-forming impact. The models showed that for those rings to be where they ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

Post-overdose outreach programs in Massachusetts expanding

BOSTON-Boston Medical Center has released a study that shows post overdose outreach programs in Massachusetts have expanded across the state, as 44 percent of municipalities reported having such programs available - a majority established since 2015 - to reduce risks for those who survive an overdose. The results are published online in the February 2021 issue of Drug and Alcohol Dependence. These post-overdose outreach programs leverage collaborations between public health overdose prevention practitioners and public safety organizations (police, fire, EMS) to engage overdose survivors and/or their social networks (family, friends, and acquaintances) at their home one to three days after an overdose. ...

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Physics28 Jan 2021

Breakthrough for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is a rapid chemical analysis tool. A powerful laser pulse is focused on a sample to create a microplasma. The elemental or molecular emission spectra from that microplasma can be used to determine the elemental composition of the sample. Compared with more traditional technology, like atomic absorption spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), LIBS has some unique advantages: no sample pretreatment, simultaneous multi-element detection, and real-time noncontact measurements. These advantages make it suitable for practical analysis of solids, gases, and liquids. Traditional LIBS and extensions Traditional ...

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Technology28 Jan 2021

Harnessing the power of AI to understand warm dense matter

The study of warm dense matter helps us understand what is going on inside giant planets, brown dwarfs, and neutron stars. However, this state of matter, which exhibits properties of both solids and plasmas, does not occur naturally on Earth. It can be produced artificially in the lab using large X-ray experiments, albeit only at a small scale and for short periods of time. Theoretical and numerical models are essential to evaluate these experiments, which are impossible to interpret without formulas, algorithms, and simulations. Scientists at the Center for Advanced Systems Understanding (CASUS) at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) have now developed a method to evaluate such ...

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Science28 Jan 2021

National laboratories' look to the future of light sources with new magnet prototype

With a powerful enough light, you can see things that people once thought would be impossible. Large-scale light source facilities generate that powerful light, and scientists use it to create more durable materials, build more efficient batteries and computers, and learn more about the natural world. When it comes to building these massive facilities, space is money. If you can get higher-energy beams of light out of smaller devices, you can save millions on construction costs. Add to that the chance to significantly improve the capabilities of existing light sources, and you have the motivation behind a project that has brought scientists at three U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories together. This team has just achieved an important milestone ...

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