Cleveland Clinic Study Shows Bariatric Surgery Outperforms GLP-1 Diabetes Drugs for Kidney Protection   Bariatric surgery was shown to protect kidney function and reduce the risk of kidney failure in study participants when compared to GLP-1 medications  Friday, September 20, 2024, CLEVELAND: A Cleveland Clinic study showed that in patients with type 2 diabetes, obesity, and chronic kidney disease, bariatric surgery was associated with a significant decrease in the progression of chronic kidney disease compared to those who received GLP-1 diabetes medications. The paper was published in Annals ...

As one of the largest heat reservoirs in the climate system, the global ocean absorbs more than 90% of the excess energy from ongoing anthropogenic warming. In the last century, the greatest warming in the ocean has occurred in the upper 500 m, with relatively weak warming in the deep ocean, corresponding to a small ocean heat storage efficiency of ~0.1.   Paleoceanographic observations, however, suggest that on long time scales, the deep ocean warming can be comparable to or larger than the surface ocean warming, with ocean heat storage efficiency during the last ...

Fever temperatures rev up immune cell metabolism, proliferation and activity, but they also — in a particular subset of T cells — cause mitochondrial stress, DNA damage and cell death, Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers have discovered.  The findings, published Sept. 20 in the journal Science Immunology, offer a mechanistic understanding for how cells respond to heat and could explain how chronic inflammation contributes to the development of cancer.  The impact of ...

One major reason why it has been difficult to develop an effective HIV vaccine is that the virus mutates very rapidly, allowing it to evade the antibody response generated by vaccines.  Several years ago, MIT researchers showed that administering a series of escalating doses of an HIV vaccine over a two-week period could help overcome a part of that challenge by generating larger quantities of neutralizing antibodies. However, a multidose vaccine regimen administered over a short time is not practical for mass vaccination campaigns.  In a new study, the researchers have now found that they ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — First used in the 1940s to monitor for polio, wastewater surveillance proved such a powerful disease monitoring tool that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the National Wastewater Surveillance System to support SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in September of 2020. Now, a team of scientists from Penn State and the Pennsylvania Department of Health have shown that domestic sewage monitoring is useful for a foodborne pathogen as well.  In findings published today (Sept. 19) in the Journal of Clinical ...

Building equipment and envelope scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory were recognized for research excellence during the ASHRAE 2024 summer conference held in Indianapolis. Stephen Kowalski and Mikael Salonvaara received the Distinguished Service Award, which salutes members who have served the society with distinction in chapter, regional and society activities. Kowalski and Salonvaara have each been active members of ASHRAE for more than 25 years and have supported the organization’s Technical and Standards Project Committees. ASHRAE is the largest international professional organization ...

Funded by a five-year, $20 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Simons Foundation, the National Center for Supercomputing Applications is partnering with other academic institutions and federal laboratories in the Midwest to develop new artificial intelligence (AI) tools to advance astrophysics research and exploration of the universe. Led by Northwestern University, the collaboration will establish the NSF-Simons AI Institute for the Sky or SkAI (pronounced “sky”), one of two AI research centers that will help astronomers better understand the cosmos. Located close to NCSA’s home in Illinois, SkAI will ...

ST. LOUIS — Researchers at Saint Louis University School of Medicine investigated differences in T-cell responses between male and female patients with lung cancer that may help direct future treatments. T-cell responses are part of the adaptive immune system, part of the body’s “smart system” that monitors for threats and fights them with customized defenses.  "Therapies that use the patient's immune system to fight their disease have a lot of potential to ...

By Andy Flick, Evolutionary Studies scientific coordinator In a groundbreaking study led by Sarah Worthan, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in the Behringer Lab at Vanderbilt University, scientists have successfully evolved microbial cultures that possess the ability to sense pH changes, enabling rapid responses to environmental fluctuations. Along with highlighting the power of lab-driven evolution, this discovery also led to finding similar mutations in nature in emerging pathogens and coral symbionts—organisms that navigate challenging pH shifts in their environments and are ...

Investigators at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed the largest collection of sarcoma patient-derived organoids to date that can help improve the understanding of the disease and better identify therapies that are most likely to work for each individual patient. The approach, detailed in the journal Cell Stem Cell, uses patients’ own tumor cells that replicate the unique characteristics of a patient's tumor allowing scientists to quickly screen a large number of drugs in order to identify personalized treatments that can target this rare and diverse group of cancers. “Sarcoma is a rare and complex disease, which makes conducting clinical trials ...

A novel drug molecule could potentially lead to new treatments to prevent Parkinson’s disease in younger patients, according to new research. “We are excited about this drug compound because we might have the possibility to develop the first cure for Parkinson’s disease, at least for a subset of patients,” said lead author Kalle Gehring, a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at McGill University and Canada Research Chair in Structural Studies of Neurodegenerative Diseases. While Parkinson’s symptoms — slowed movements, tremors and balance problems — often appear in ...

Brazilian Legal Amazonia (BLA) – which comprises the entirety of the Amazon Basin located in Brazil and vast adjacent swathes of the Cerrado, spanning nine states – is more than 5 million square kilometers (km2) in area and corresponds to almost 60% of the country’s land mass. Almost a quarter of this area (23%) has been deforested, and over 1 million km2 are degraded, so that the region risks reaching an ecological tipping point at which ecosystems collapse and billions of tons of carbon are released into the atmosphere. Some parts of ...

Using state-of-the-art energy efficiency technologies to renovate existing properties and construct new ones could enable Europe’s construction sector to almost eliminate its carbon emissions by 2060, a new study suggests. Published in the journal Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, the research is the first to fully assess the potential for energy demand reduction across the construction sectors of the United Kingdom and all European Union member states. It highlights that 75% of Europe’s building stock is currently classed as energy inefficient, with total floor space also ...

Virginia Tech researchers have learned how bacteria manipulate molecules to infect the host organism. Daniel Capelluto and his research team have discovered the mechanism by which the bacterial pathogen Shigella flexneri, the causative agent of dysentery, manipulates molecular activity to assure its survival against its host’s natural defenses. Their findings were recently published in Structure, a Cell Press journal that supports open access.  “This infection strategy may be employed by other bacteria, making this research a potential foundation for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying various bacterial infections,” said Capelluto, associate professor ...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20, 2024 – Within the cycling realm, “to Everest” involves riding up and down the same mountain until your ascents total the elevation of Mt. Everest — 8,848 meters. After a new cycling “Everesting” record was set a few years ago, a debate ensued on social media about the strong tailwind the cyclist had on climbs — 5.5 meters per second (20 kilometers per hour or 12 miles per hour) — when he set the record. To what extent did the tailwind help him? Should limits be set on the allowed ...

About The Study: This cross-sectional study found that extreme temperature–related deaths in the contiguous U.S. were projected to increase substantially by mid–21st century, with certain populations, such as non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic adults, projected to disproportionately experience this increase. The results point to the need to mitigate the adverse outcome of extreme temperatures for population health.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Sameed Ahmed M. Khatana, MD, MPH, ...

About The Study: In this nonrandomized clinical trial, integration of perioperative exercise interventions using wearable devices improved physical activity (especially moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) and dyspnea at 6 months after lung cancer surgery compared with usual care. This finding suggests a promising role for wearable devices in personalizing perioperative rehabilitation strategies. Corresponding Authors: To contact the corresponding authors, email Danbee Kang, PhD, (dbee.kang@gmail.com) and Hye Yun Park, MD, (hyeyunpark@skku.edu). To access ...

Displaced individuals experience high rates of emotional distress, depression and anxiety resulting from trauma and stress from displacement and loss. Their mental health may suffer further due to a lack of resources, language barriers, and discrimination during resettlement. A new study by University of California San Diego researchers reports that displaced Syrian refugees with higher reported self-compassion were less likely to report poor mental health outcomes. The study was published in PLOS ONE on September 19, 2024. Sarah Alsamman, a student at UC San Diego School of Medicine, and Wael Al-Delaimy, M.D., Ph.D., professor of public health at the Herbert Wertheim School of Public ...

Fukuoka, Japan—Researchers from Japan and Thailand investigating microplastics in coral have found that all three parts of the coral anatomy—surface mucus, tissue, and skeleton—contain microplastics. The findings were made possible thanks to a new microplastic detection technique developed by the team and applied to coral for the first time. These findings may also explain the ‘missing plastic problem’ that has puzzled scientists, where about 70% of the plastic litter that has entered the oceans cannot be found. The team hypothesizes ...

(WASHINGTON, September 20, 2024) –The incidence of stroke continues to increase for adults and children living with sickle cell disease (SCD) despite the Stroke Prevention Trial in Sickle Cell Anemia (STOP) establishing standards of care like transfusions and tests to measure blood flow in the brain for those deemed high-risk, according to a study published today in Blood. Individuals living with SCD, the most common inherited red blood cell disorder in the United States, are especially susceptible to cerebrovascular events (CVEs). This includes ischemic or hemorrhagic strokes, when a blood vessel leading to the brain is ...

Radomes and wave-transmitting antenna windows are critical structural components in aircraft, protecting radar antennas from external interference while ensuring reliable communication. Currently, the most widely used wave-transmitting materials are ceramics based on oxides and nitrides. Si3N4 ceramics, with their high melting point and superior mechanical properties, are considered promising candidates for hypersonic vehicle applications. However, the dielectric and thermal insulation properties of dense Si3N4 ceramics need improvement to meet the precise guidance and thermal protection demands of high-speed flight. By adjusting the microstructure, it is possible to enhance the ...

A joint research team from the Renewable Energy System Laboratory and the Energy ICT Research Department at the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) has developed key technologies to realize "Urban Electrification" using artificial intelligence (AI). Urban electrification aims to reduce the use of fossil fuels and introduce renewable energy sources, such as building-integrated solar technology, to transform urban energy systems. While this concept is relatively unfamiliar in the Republic of Korea, it is being promoted as a key strategy in the U.S. and Europe for achieving carbon neutrality and creating sustainable urban environments. In ...

Using a fusion of traditional and novel technological methods, researchers are hoping to better quantify emotions to transform the face of the emotion quantification field   Human emotions are complex and are not always easily able to be boiled down to a recognizable pattern. Determining one’s emotional state can be difficult human-to-human, and the many nuances of existence as an emotional entity seem impossible to train a non-human entity to understand, identify and learn from. However, a considerable amount of work and research has been put into training artificial intelligence (AI) to observe, quantify and recognize various states of emotion in humans. ...

Key points: Glioblastoma is an incurable and fatal type of brain cancer. In a large-scale drug screening, the antidepressant, vortioxetine emerged as one of the most effective agents against these types of cancer cells. Clinical trials are already in the planning phase at the University Hospital Zurich. Glioblastoma is a particularly aggressive brain tumour that at present is incurable. Cancer doctors can extend patients’ life expectancy through operations, radiation, chemotherapy or surgical interventions. Nevertheless, half of patients die within twelve months of diagnosis. Drugs that are effective against brain tumours are ...

The European Union aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050 as part of the comprehensive Green Deal that was agreed upon four years ago. However, an analysis of the policy documents outlining the practical measures of the Green Deal shows that it will decrease carbon emissions in Europe, but also increase carbon emissions outside of the EU. This increase is more than double the amount of carbon emissions saved by the Green Deal. This analysis was published in Nature Sustainability on <DATE> by an international team of scientists led by Klaus Hubacek, Professor of Science, Technology and Society ...