(Boston) – Emergency Medical Service (EMS) responders felt better prepared to respond to an active shooter incident after receiving focused tactical training according to a new study in the journal Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. This is the first study to specifically examine the EMS provider comfort level with respect to entering a scene where a shooter has not yet been neutralized or working with law enforcement personnel during that response. Incidents such as the Columbine High School shooting, the Virginia Tech campus shooting, the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, the ...

BEER-SHEVA, Israel – Ben-Gurion University of the Negev scientists have discovered that scorpions create a platform in their burrows where they warm up before the evening hunt. As ectothermic animals, scorpions rely on energy from the environment to regulate their internal temperature. The researchers believe that this platform provides a safe, warm spot for the scorpions to increase their body temperature before they leave their hiding places to forage at night. After trapping the wild large-clawed scorpions (Scorpio maurus palmatus) in Israel's Negev desert the ...

As the Northwestern Pacific is bidding goodbye to Tropical Cyclone Neoguri, another tropical depression has formed. NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite passed over Tropical Depression 09W (TD09W) and captured infrared data on the storm indicating some powerful thunderstorms within. Because TD09W is close to land areas, watches are already in effect. On July 10, a tropical storm watch is in force for Guam, Rota, Tinian and Saipan. Tropical depression 09W was formerly known as low pressure System 92W. VIIRS instrument aboard NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite taken July 10 at ...

JUPITER, FL, July 10, 2014 – Amidst the astounding complexity of the billions of nerve cells and trillions of synaptic connections in the brain, how do nerve cells decide how far to grow or how many connections to build? How do they coordinate these events within the developing brain? In a new study, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have shed new light on these complex processes, showing that a particular protein plays a far more sophisticated role in neuron development than previously thought. The study, published in the journal ...

Chronic oral infection with the periodontal disease pathogen, Porphyromonas gingivalis, not only causes local inflammation of the gums leading to tooth loss but also is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis. A study published on July 10th in PLOS Pathogens now reveals how the pathogen evades the immune system to induce inflammation beyond the oral cavity. Like other gram-negative bacteria, P. gingivalis has an outer layer that consists of sugars and lipids. The mammalian immune system has evolved to recognize parts of this bacterial coating, which then ...

Imagine the open ocean as a microbial megacity, teeming with life too small to be seen. In every drop of water, hundreds of types of bacteria can be found. Now scientists have discovered that communities of these ocean microbes have their own daily cycles—not unlike the residents of a bustling city who tend to wake up, commute, work, and eat at the same times. What's more, it's not all about the sun. Light-loving photoautotrophs—bacteria that need solar energy to help them photosynthesize food from inorganic substances—have been known to sun themselves on a regular schedule. ...

New research on HIV transmission shows that viral fitness is an important basis of a "genetic bottleneck" imposed every time a new person is infected. The findings define a window of opportunity for drugs or vaccines to prevent or limit infection. HIV represents evolution on overdrive. Every infected individual contains a swarm of viruses that exhibit variability in their RNA sequence, and new mutations are constantly appearing. Yet nearly every time someone new is infected, this diverse population of viruses gets squeezed down to just one individual. The genetic bottleneck ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists have identified a protein that is essential to the survival of E. coli bacteria, and consider the protein a potential new target for antibiotics. In the study, the researchers confirmed that this protein, called MurJ, flips a fatty molecule from one side of a bacterial cell membrane to the other. If that molecule isn't flipped, the cell cannot construct a critical layer that keeps pressurized contents of the cell contained. If those contents aren't contained, the cell bursts. E. coli is part of the gram-negative family of bacteria, characterized ...

Circulating tumor cells captured with a microchip-based device developed at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Engineering in Medicine and the MGH Cancer Center can be cultured to establish cell lines for genetic analysis and drug testing. In the July 11 issue of Science, an MGH research team reports that the cultured cells accurately reflect a tumor's genetic mutation over time and changing susceptibility to therapeutic drugs. "We now can culture cells from the blood that represent those present in metastatic deposits, which allows testing for drug ...

When a pregnant mother is undernourished, her child is at a greater than average risk of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes, in part due to so-called 'epigenetic' effects. A new study in mice demonstrates that this 'memory' of nutrition during pregnancy can be passed through sperm of male offspring to the next generation, increasing risk of disease for her grandchildren as well. In other words, to adapt an old maxim, 'you are what your grandmother ate'. The study also raises questions over how epigenetic effects are passed down from one generation to the next – and ...

ANN ARBOR--- Researchers at the University of Michigan, University of California Berkeley, and Arizona State University have developed a new data infrastructure for measuring economic activity. The infrastructure uses aggregated and de-identified data on transactions and account balances from Check, a mobile payments app, to produce accurate and comprehensive measures of consumers' spending and income on a daily basis. In a paper appearing in the July 11 issue of Science, economists Michael Gelman, Shachar Kariv, Matthew Shapiro, Dan Silverman, and Steven Tadelis ...

This news release is available in German. An international team of researchers, led by the University of Leicester, has solved a long-standing mystery in biology, by identifying the molecular structure of a vital biological chemical. The debate – which has raged within the scientific community for years – boils down to something as simple as a hydrogen atom: is it there, or is it not? The controversy centres around a form of enzyme called a heme (or haem, as in haemoglobin) at the centre of which is an iron atom (Fe) called a 'ferryl' which becomes oxidised when ...

Decades of overfishing in the English Channel has resulted in the removal of many top predators from the sea and left fishermen 'scraping the barrel' for increasing amounts of shellfish to make up their catch. Sharks, rays, cod, haddock and many other species at the head of the food chain are at historic lows with many removed from the area completely. These are some of the findings of a study led by marine biologists at Plymouth University, in association with international non-profit research organization WorldFish. They analysed catches over the past 90 years and found ...

Scientists at Stanford University and the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have found a way to estimate uncertainties in computer calculations that are widely used to speed the search for new materials for industry, electronics, energy, drug design and a host of other applications. The technique, reported in the July 11 issue of Science, should quickly be adopted in studies that produce some 30,000 scientific papers per year. "Over the past 10 years our ability to calculate the properties of materials and chemicals, such as reactivity and mechanical ...

As scientists learn more about earthquakes that rupture at fault zones near the planet's surface—and the mechanisms that trigger them—an even more intriguing earthquake mystery lies deeper in the planet. Scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have discovered the first evidence that deep earthquakes, those breaking at more than 400 kilometers (250 miles) below Earth's surface, can rupture much faster than ordinary earthquakes. The finding gives seismologists new clues about the forces behind deep earthquakes as well as fast-breaking earthquakes ...

Microplastics – microscopic particles of plastic debris – are of increasing concern because of their widespread presence in the oceans and the potential physical and toxicological risks they pose to organisms. This is the view of two of the world's most eminent authorities on the subject, Professor Kara Lavender Law, of Sea Education Association (Woods Hole, MA), and Professor Richard Thompson of Plymouth University (UK). In an article published today in the journal Science, the two scientists have called for urgent action to "turn off the tap" and divert plastic waste ...

Mosquitoes infected with the bacteria Wolbachia are more likely to become infected with West Nile virus and more likely to transmit the virus to humans, according to a team of researchers. "Previous research has shown that Wolbachia -- a genus of bacteria that live inside mosquitoes -- render mosquitoes resistant to pathogen infection, thereby preventing the mosquitoes from infecting humans with the pathogens," said Jason Rasgon, associate professor of entomology, Penn State. "As a result, researchers are currently releasing Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes into the wild ...

PHILADELPHIA – Reducing the amount of alcoholic beverages consumed, even for light-to-moderate drinkers, may improve cardiovascular health, including a reduced risk of coronary heart disease, lower body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure, according to a new multi-center study published in The BMJ and co-led by the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The latest findings call into question previous studies which suggest that consuming light-to-moderate amounts of alcohol (0.6-0.8 fluid ounces/day) may have a protective effect on cardiovascular ...

Childhood obesity is one of the top public health concerns in the United States, with 32 percent of youths aged 2-19 classified as obese as of 2012. As health problems such as childhood obesity grow, individuals and organizations have taken to Twitter to discuss the problem. A new study, led by Jenine K. Harris, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, examined the use of the hashtag #childhoodobesity in tweets to track Twitter conversations about the issue of overweight kids. The study published this month in the American ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Nuclear engineers at Oregon State University have developed a small, portable and inexpensive radiation detection device that should help people all over the world better understand the radiation around them, its type and intensity, and whether or not it poses a health risk. The device was developed in part due to public demand following the nuclear incident in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011, when many regional residents were unsure what level of radiation they were being exposed to and whether their homes, food, environment and drinking water were safe. Devices ...

The child known as the "Mississippi baby"—an infant seemingly cured of HIV that was reported as a case study of a prolonged remission of HIV infection in The New England Journal of Medicine last fall—now has detectable levels of HIV after more than two years of not taking antiretroviral therapy without evidence of virus, according to the pediatric HIV specialist and researchers involved in the case. "Certainly, this is a disappointing turn of events for this young child, the medical staff involved in the child's care, and the HIV/AIDS research community," said NIAID ...

With the help of a smart tablet and Angry Birds, children can now do something typically reserved for engineers and computer scientists: program a robot to learn new skills. The Georgia Institute of Technology project is designed to serve as a rehabilitation tool and to help kids with disabilities. The researchers have paired a small humanoid robot with an Android tablet. Kids teach it how to play Angry Birds, dragging their finger on the tablet to whiz the bird across the screen. In the meantime, the robot watches what happens and records "snapshots" in its memory. ...

HOUSTON – (July 10, 2014) – New research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) shows that It's Your Game…Keep it Real (IYG), a health education program designed to delay sexual behavior and promote healthy dating relationships, can significantly reduce dating violence behaviors among minority youth. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 percent of high school youth are victims of physical dating violence and other studies suggest that more than 20 percent are victims of emotional dating violence. Previous studies ...

NOAA and its research partners predict that western Lake Erie will have a significant bloom of cyanobacteria, a toxic blue-green algae, during the 2014 bloom season in late summer. However, the predicted bloom is expected to be smaller than last year's intense bloom, and considerably less than the record-setting 2011 bloom. Bloom impacts will vary across the lake's western basin and are classified by an estimate of both its concentration and how far it spreads. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) were common in western Lake Erie between the 1960s and 1980s. After a lapse of ...

The Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) Macromolecular Crystallography Group has managed to reprogramme the binding of a protein called BuD to DNA in order to redirect it towards specific DNA regions. Guillermo Montoya, the researcher who led the study, says the discovery: "will allow us to modify and edit the instructions contained in the genome to treat genetic diseases or to develop genetically-modified organisms." The study is published in the journal Acta Crystallographica, Section D: Biological Crystallography. The possibility of making à la carte modifications ...