Fossils from more than 600,000 years ago reveal how Southern Europe’s animal community shifted between warm and cold climate fluctuations, according to a study published October 23, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Beniamino Mecozzi from the Sapienza Università di Roma, Italy and colleagues. The Notarchirico site has long been valued as a source of information on the Early-Middle Pleistocene, with fossils stretching from around 695 thousand to 614 thousand years ago. The authors of the present study examined mammalian fossils at the site and how they might ...

Your ability to balance on one leg may be a reliable indicator of neuromuscular aging, with men and women showing significant declines over the decades ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0310764 Article Title: Age-related changes in gait, balance, and strength parameters: A cross-sectional study Author Countries: U.S., Taiwan Funding: AR-K25AG068368 RJP-Robert and Arlene Kogod Professorship in Geriatric Medicine KRK-W. Hall Wendel, Jr. Musculoskeletal Professorship The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. END ...

Most young adults in the UK consider non-consensual condom removal during sex to be wrong and a violation of consent, with almost 9 in 10 seeing it as a form of sexual assault, per survey of 18-25-year-olds ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0298561 Article Title: A UK survey of young people’s views on condom removal during sex Author Countries: U.K. Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. END ...

Under climate change scenarios, 30-44% more land in Ethiopia might become suitable for growing arabica coffee by 2080, although some cultivated areas might also become unsuitable, per modelling study ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0310945 Article Title: Analysis of current and future bioclimatic suitability for C. arabica production in Ethiopia Author Countries: Ethiopia Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. END ...

Cockroaches and maggots might be able to turn an invasive seaweed into a high quality compost, finds a new experimental study which provides hope for the environment and the circular economy ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0311483 Article Title: Invertebrate composting quality of the invasive alga Rugulopteryx okamurae, prospects for its bio-recycling, management and circular economy Author Countries: Spain Funding: All the financial support has been received by professor Jose Carlos García-Gómez and any funder have influence in the research. The details are: - JCGG (68/83 / 4081/0171) Organization of American ...

The opioid epidemic claims more 70,000 lives each year in the U.S., and lifesaving interventions are urgently needed. Although naloxone, sold as an over-the-counter nasal spray or injectable, saves lives by quickly restoring normal breathing during an overdose, administrating the medication requires a knowledgeable bystander ­– limiting its lifesaving potential. A team from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Northwestern University in Chicago has developed a device that may rescue people from overdose without bystander help. In animal studies, the researchers found that the implantable device detects an overdose, rapidly delivers naloxone ...

Almost nine in 10 young adults in the UK believe that removing a condom during sex without the other person’s permission is sexual assault, and around half support prison time as a penalty, finds a new study by UCL researchers. This is the first UK study to cover views on non-consensual condom removal. It is published in PLOS ONE and surveyed 1,729 people between the ages of 18 and 25, living in the UK. Young people were chosen as the focus of the study as, out of all demographics, they use condoms the most. The survey consisted of several examples of non-consensual condom removal, which ...

The transition from water to land is one of the most significant events in the history of life on Earth. Now, a team of roboticists, palaeontologists and biologists is using robots to study how the ancestors of modern land animals transitioned from swimming to walking, about 390 million years ago. Writing in the journal Science Robotics, the research team, led by the University of Cambridge, outline how ‘palaeo-inspired robotics’ could provide a valuable experimental approach to studying how the pectoral and pelvic fins of ancient fish evolved ...

Science laboratories across disciplines—chemistry, biochemistry and materials science—are on the verge of a sweeping transformation as robotic automation and AI lead to faster and more precise experiments that unlock breakthroughs in fields like health, energy and electronics, according to UNC-Chapel Hill researchers in the paper, “Transforming Science Labs into Automated Factories of Discovery,” published in Science Robotics, the most prestigious journal covering robotics research. “Today, the development of new molecules, materials and chemical systems requires ...

A team of paleontologists working near Rangely, Colorado, has uncovered a new (or, more accurately, very old) state resident—a fossil mammal about the size of a muskrat that may have scurried through swamps during the Age of Dinosaurs.  The researchers, led by the University of Colorado Boulder’s Jaelyn Eberle, published their findings Oct. 23 in the journal PLOS ONE. Eberle and her colleagues named their discovery, which they identified from a piece of jawbone and three molar teeth, Heleocola piceanus. The animal lived in Colorado roughly 70 to 75 million years ago—a time when a vast inland sea covered ...

Ghent, October 24, 2024 – During the COVID pandemic, many of us have received multiple mRNA vaccines. New work by researchers at the VIB-UGent Center for Inflammation Research, Ghent University, and University Hospital Ghent, among others, has found that such repeated vaccinations lead to the presence of mucosal antibodies, for example, inside the nose. Their work appears in Science Translational Medicine. Protective booster shots Part of the global response strategy against the COVID pandemic involves the administration of booster shots, or ‘vaccine updates’ to ensure ...

HOUSTON ― As part of its ongoing commitment to patient comfort and healing, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center today announced a new focus on art to support the revitalization and expansion of its clinical facilities. This initiative will include the creation of a multisensory healing environment in both public spaces and patient care areas that are designed to prevent disease, promote health and foster well-being. This transformative project aims to enhance every aspect of the patient experience, reinforcing MD Anderson's dedication to comprehensive ...

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – There are 45.3 million African Americans living in the United States and they represent 13.6 percent of the U.S. population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But only 5.7 percent of physicians in the United States self-identify as Black, despite multiple efforts over many years to increase the number of Black doctors. A new study led by Jasmine Weiss, MD, MHS, FAAP, assistant professor of pediatrics in the UNC School of Medicine, describes the barriers to medical school admission that students at Historically Black Colleges and ...

Coral reefs rank among the most biodiverse habitats on Earth and are often referred to as the rainforests of the sea. Modern reef building corals evolved in the Triassic Period around 250 million years ago. They can live in symbiosis with tiny organisms, often algae, that can carry out photosynthesis. This photosymbiosis is particularly beneficial in nutrient-poor waters because it helps the corals to recycle scarce nutrients. Geological evidence reveals that corals already existed in the Devonian period, over 385 million ...

Almost a ubiquitous presence in landscapes across Southwest Virginia, the invasive autumn olive thrives. But it’s not supposed to be here. Autumn olive is known for its nitrogen-fixing ability, allowing it to thrive in poor soils and outcompete native plants. The shrub’s berries are edible, rich in antioxidants such as lycopene, and have a tart-sweet flavor. While its berries are beneficial for wildlife, the plant's aggressive spread disrupts local ecosystems, reducing biodiversity. With a one-year grant from the Powell River ...

Early detection is critical when it comes to curing diseases like cancer, but not everyone has easy access to screening tools. For problems in the genitourinary (GU) tract (which includes the kidneys, prostate, and bladder), health providers usually use a combination of screening tools, including blood tests, imaging, and physical examinations. Scientists are now working on an even simpler tool for screening illnesses before they become a problem – urine analysis. According to a new study from scientists at The University of Texas at Arlington, Chan-Zuckerberg Biohub, and Stanford University, ...

A Rutgers Health study has found that people who took multiple courses of penicillin antibiotics had a modestly lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease, a surprising finding that researchers say highlights the complex relationship between bacteria in the digestive tract and brain health. The study, published in Parkinsonism & Related Disorders, analyzed medical records from more than 93,000 people in the United Kingdom. Researchers found that those who received five or more courses of penicillin antibiotics in the five years before diagnosis had about a 15% lower risk of Parkinson's compared with those ...

Nightmares affect 30-40% of patients with narcolepsy, but are often overlooked Treatment can transform patients’ sleep and their daytime mood in a matter of weeks Study found overall reduction in nightmare severity and frequency in six patients CHICAGO --- A new Northwestern Medicine study has demonstrated a new way to treat narcolepsy-related nightmares. The scientists combined cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and lucid dreaming to help patients in a small clinical trial. “We had them imagine what they’d like to dream instead of their nightmare, almost like they’re writing a movie script,” said corresponding author ...

Mass General Brigham has been selected by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) as an awardee of the Sprint for Women’s Health to address critical unmet challenges in women’s health, champion transformative innovations, and tackle health conditions that uniquely or disproportionately affect women. Mass General Brigham will receive $3.29 million in funding over two years through the Sprint for Women’s Health spark track for early-stage research efforts. Understanding and improving sleep is especially important for women, who face a higher risk of neurodegenerative diseases ...

Speaking, singing, coughing, laughing, yelling, yawning, chewing—we use our jaws for many purposes. Each action requires a complex coordination of muscles whose activity is managed by neurons in the brain. But it turns out that the neural circuit behind the jaw movement most essential to survival—eating—is surprisingly simple, as researchers from Rockefeller University recently described in a new paper in Nature. Christin Kosse and other scientists from the Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, headed by Jeffrey M. Friedman, have identified a three-neuron circuit that connects a hunger-signaling hormone to the jaw movements of chewing. ...

Woods Hole, Mass. – Coral reefs worldwide are in trouble. These ecosystems support a billion people and more than a quarter of marine species. Still, many have been damaged by unsustainable fishing and tourism, coastal construction, nutrient runoff, and climate change. Now, researchers have shown that broadcasting the sounds of healthy reefs is a way to encourage larval corals to repopulate degraded sites and help revitalize them. A recent study done by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) showed that golfball coral larvae can be encouraged to settle when they hear the sounds of a vibrant, healthy reef. This is the second coral species ...

An international research team led by NYU Tandon School of Engineering and KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) has pioneered a new technique to identify and characterize atomic-scale defects in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), a two-dimensional (2D) material often dubbed "white graphene" for its remarkable properties.  This advance could accelerate the development of next-generation electronics and quantum technologies. The team reported that it was able to detect the presence of individual carbon atoms replacing boron atoms in hBN crystals. This discovery was made possible by listening to ...

Animals not only need sufficient calories to function, but also essential nutrients — including omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Insects and arachnids are an important source of these essential fatty acids for birds, hedgehogs, lizards and the like. However, the content depends on the specific types of insects and spiders consumed. Aquatic insects, such as caddisflies or dragonflies, contain significantly more omega-3 long-chain (LC) PUFA than terrestrial insects because omega-3- LC-PUFA rich algae form the base of the food chain in aquatic ecosystems. The ...

PHILADELPHIA — Donald E. Arnold, M.D., FACHE, FASA, chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, Mercy Hospital in St. Louis and member of the board of directors of Western Anesthesiology Associates, Inc., in Ballwin, Missouri, was today named president of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), the nation’s largest organization of anesthesiologists. Dr. Arnold assumed office at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2024 annual meeting and will serve for one year. “I’m honored to be named president of ASA and committed to serving our members, supporting the Society’s mission to advance the specialty, preserving physician-led anesthesia care, and above ...

Wealth is one of the strongest indicators of social status, acting as a key indicator of social inequality and influencing access to education, health care and professional success. In a study, researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, the University of Cologne, GESIS and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health examined how financial wealth changes related to various generational transitions within families. The study used data from Norwegian registries and focused on people born in 1953. Investigating changes in wealth within the ...