COLUMBUS, Ohio – New research suggests that pigs may function as a transmission vehicle for a strain of the hepatitis E virus (HEV) common in rats that has recently been found to infect humans. The Rocahepevirus ratti strain is called “rat HEV” because rats are the primary reservoir of the virus. Since the first human case was reported in a person with a suppressed immune system in Hong Kong in 2018, at least 20 total human cases have been reported – including in people with normal immune function. People infected with rat HEV did not report exposure to rats, leaving the cause of infection undefined. ...

(Hackensack, NJ, September 2024) The Foundation of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (FCMSC) recently received a generous donation of $100,000 from EMD Serono Inc., in honor of June Halper, MSN, APN-C, FAAN, MSCN. Ms. Halper a longtime pioneer in the comprehensive care movement for multiple sclerosis (MS), and leading nurse practitioner and MS advocate, passed away on July 24, 2024, at the age of 86, working until her final days as CEO of the CMSC, FCMSC and IOMSN (International Organization of MS Nurses).  Since 1978, Ms. ...

Cirrhosis is one of the leading causes of mortality from non-communicable diseases, with complications arising as liver function deteriorates. HRS and HPS represent the most severe outcomes of cirrhosis, associated with systemic vasodilation driven by elevated levels of vasodilators like nitric oxide (NO). These complications significantly impair renal and pulmonary functions, leading to high mortality rates. TIPS, by shunting blood from the portal to systemic circulation, can potentially improve renal function by increasing systemic blood volume. However, the diversion of NO through TIPS could exacerbate systemic hypotension, posing a risk to renal ...

A landmark study led by UCLA Health has begun to unravel one of the fundamental mysteries in neuroscience – how the human brain encodes and makes sense of the flow of time and experiences. The study, published in the journal Nature, directly recorded the activity of individual neurons in humans and found specific types of brain cells fired in a way that mostly mirrored the order and structure of a person’s experience. They found the brain retains these unique firing patterns after the experience is concluded and can rapidly replay them while at rest. Furthermore, the brain is also able to utilize these learned patterns to ready itself for future stimuli following that experience. ...

TAMPA, Fla. (Sept. 23, 2024) – The ocean’s twilight zone is deep, dark, and — according to new research — iron deficient. No sunlight reaches this region 200 to 1,000 meters below the sea surface, where levels of iron, a key micronutrient, are so low that the growth of bacteria is restricted. To compensate, these bacteria produce molecules called siderophores, which help the bacteria scavenge trace amounts of iron from the surrounding seawater. The paper detailing these unexpected findings from the Pacific Ocean will publish on Wednesday, Sept. 25, at 11 a.m. ET (4 p.m. London Time) in Nature, and will be viewable at that time at this link. The ...

These fossils, belonging to the mammal-precursor species Brasilodon quadrangularis and Riograndia guaibensis, offer critical insights into the development of the mammalian jaw and middle ear, revealing evolutionary experiments that occurred millions of years earlier than previously thought. Mammals stand out among vertebrates for their distinct jaw structure and the presence of three middle ear bones. This transition from earlier vertebrates, which had a single middle ear bone, has long fascinated scientists. The new study explores how mammal ancestors, known as cynodonts, evolved these features ...

People with Down’s syndrome face a higher risk of developing Leukemia. Now researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Stanford University explain why, by identifying specific changes in blood cells of people with Down’s syndrome. In the world, one out of 700 children are born with Down’s syndrome. A syndrome, where the child has an extra copy of chromosome 21, resulting in 47 chromosomes instead of 46. This typically results in characteristic physical features and some level of learning disability. But newborns with Downs syndrome also tend to have an elevated number of red blood ...

About The Study: Treatment-emergent nirmatrelvir resistance mutations were commonly detected, especially in individuals who were immunosuppressed in this cohort study of 156 participants. However, these mutations were generally present at low frequencies and were transient in nature, suggesting a low risk for the spread of nirmatrelvir resistance in the community with the current variants and drug usage patterns. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Jonathan Z. Li, MD, MMsc, email jli@bwh.harvard.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit ...

About The Study: In this study, semaglutide was associated with reduced opioid overdose risk in patients with comorbid type 2 diabetes and opioid use disorder, suggesting its potential therapeutic value for preventing overdoses. The results need validation from other data resources and study populations. Further research is warranted to investigate the underlying mechanisms and randomized clinical trials are necessary to corroborate the clinical effects on opioid use disorder.  Corresponding Authors: To contact the corresponding authors, email Rong Xu, PhD, (rxx@case.edu) ...

Food fermentation is the oldest production practice using microorganisms in human history. Milk fermentation, for example, can be traced back to 6000–4000 BC in India, and Mediterranean populations produced and consumed cheese as early as 7000 before present (BP). Despite the long history of human consumption of fermented products, though, little has been known about the history of the use of fermentative microorganisms and the history of related cultural transmission. In particular, the evolutionary trajectories, especially functional adaptation, of these ...

Adults with opioid use disorder who receive a higher daily dose of the opioid addiction treatment medication buprenorphine may have a lower risk of subsequent emergency department visits or use of inpatient services related to behavioral health (such as for mental health and substance use disorders) than adults receiving the recommended dose, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These findings suggest that higher buprenorphine doses could be more effective in managing opioid use disorder, which may be particularly relevant for improving treatment for those who use fentanyl, a major ...

With the climate pattern known as El Niño in full force from mid-2023 to mid-2024, global temperatures broke records for 12 months in a row. As one of the strongest El Niño events on record, it was likely the main culprit of unprecedented heat, floods and droughts worldwide. In a new study published Sep. 25 in the journal Nature, a University of Colorado Boulder climate scientist and collaborators reveal that the planet could see more frequent extreme El Niño events by 2050 if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase.  “It’s ...

Imagine being one cartwheel away from changing your appearance. One flip, and your brunette locks are platinum blond. That’s not too far from what happens in some prokaryotes, or single-cell organisms, such as bacteria, that undergo something called inversions. A study led by scientists at Stanford Medicine has shown that inversions, which cause a physical flip of a segment of DNA and change an organism’s genetic identity, can occur within a single gene, challenging a central dogma of biology — that one gene can code ...

Gladstone Institutes has established a new scientific award, the Sobrato Prize in Neuroscience, to advance breakthroughs in brain research with high potential for patient impact—and announced it will present the inaugural prize to Yadong Huang, MD, PhD, a trailblazer in Alzheimer’s research. In his nearly three decades at Gladstone, Huang has led a series of pioneering studies on the genetic underpinnings of Alzheimer’s disease, with discoveries that have opened multiple new avenues for drug development. He ...

Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are growing in adoption, used in devices like smartphones and laptops, electric vehicles, and energy storage systems. But supplies of nickel and cobalt commonly used in the cathodes of these batteries are limited. New research led by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) opens up a potential low-cost, safe alternative in manganese, the fifth most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust.  Researchers showed that manganese can be effectively used in emerging cathode materials called disordered rock salts, or DRX. Previous research suggested that to perform well, DRX materials had to be ground down to nanosized ...

Link to Google Drive folder containing images: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ZTBXkIFqwl_OyIMrUA1se_iv7hqEm_52?usp=sharing   Link to release: https://www.washington.edu/news/2024/09/25/tesla-coil-shark-intestines/   FROM: James Urton University of Washington 206-543-2580 jurton@uw.edu   (Note: researcher contact information at the end)   For immediate release Sept. 25, 2024   To make fluid flow in one direction down a pipe, it helps to be a shark   Flaps perform essential jobs. From pumping hearts to revving engines, flaps help fluid flow in one direction. ...

Rural men are dying earlier than their urban counterparts, and they’re spending fewer of their later years in good health, according to new research from the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics. Higher rates of smoking, obesity and cardiovascular conditions among rural men are helping fuel a rural-urban divide in illness, and this gap has grown over time, according to the study published this week in the Journal of Rural Health. The findings suggest that by the time rural men reach age 60, there are limited opportunities to fully address this disparity, and earlier interventions may be needed to prevent it from widening ...

Held annually, NY Climate Week is a pivotal event in the global climate change calendar. Bringing together notable leaders, celebrities, climate professionals, and innovators from around the world, the event serves as a critical platform for discussing and advancing climate action. This year’s theme, "It’s Time," underscores the urgency for immediate and ambitious efforts to tackle climate change, and the process could be accelerated with Generative AI and other cutting-edge technologies. Insilico Medicine ...

Young adults who vape show chemical changes in their DNA similar to those found in young adults who smoke — changes known to be linked to the development of cancer — according to a new study just published in the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology. A team of researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC measured DNA methylation, a chemical modification of DNA that can effectively turn genes “on” or “off, in the oral cells of young adult vapers, smokers and non-users. DNA methylation is vital to normal cellular ...

DALLAS, Sept. 25, 2024 — The American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of lifesaving service as the world’s leading nonprofit organization focused on heart and brain health for all, is joining with other top cardiovascular research funders around the world to support an international scientific research grant focused on women’s cardiovascular health. Scientific researchers around the world are invited to apply for the award to foster global advancements in understanding and improving the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among women. A 2022 presidential advisory ...

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), recently reclassified as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), has become the most prevalent chronic liver disease globally. This reclassification underscores the metabolic dysfunction central to the disease, which spans a spectrum from simple steatosis to more severe forms like steatohepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Given the significant overlap between MASLD and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), the therapeutic strategies for MASLD have increasingly focused on addressing metabolic derangements. Despite its global prevalence, no specific drugs have been approved for MASLD, highlighting an urgent need ...

September 25, 2024 (Washington, DC)—The Kissick Family Foundation Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) Grant Program, in partnership with the Milken Institute Science Philanthropy Accelerator for Research and Collaboration (SPARC), today announced six research teams awarded two-year grants to advance scientific understanding of FTD, totaling $3 million in new funding for this disease.  This inaugural cycle of the Kissick Family Foundation FTD Grant Program represents a unique philanthropic strategy that specifically targets basic or early-stage translational research projects that focus on those disease cases ...

Metastatic cancer can be a devastating diagnosis. The cancer is spreading. It may travel to multiple organs in the body. This could mean more pain and ultimately, death. Unfortunately, just how cancer spreads remains unclear. But now, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Professor Adam Siepel and colleagues have a way to better understand that process. New technology developed at Weill Cornell Medicine barcodes cells to track the highways by which prostate cancer spreads throughout the body. The resulting roadmap shows that most cancer cells actually stay put within the tumor. However, ...

Augmented reality (AR) takes digital images and superimposes them onto real-world views. But AR is more than a new way to play video games; it could transform surgery and self-driving cars. To make the technology easier to integrate into common personal devices, researchers report in ACS Photonics how to combine two optical technologies into a single, high-resolution AR display. In an eyeglasses prototype, the researchers enhanced image quality with a computer algorithm that removed distortions. AR systems, like those in bulky goggles and automobile head-up displays, require portable optical components. But shrinking the typical four-lens AR system to the size of eyeglasses or smaller ...

Professor Ron Boschma is the first Dutch person to receive the Prix Vautrin Lud, the highest academic award within the field of geography. The award will be presented in Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, France on 6 October. Prior to the award ceremony, Prof. Boschma will give an invited lecture at the Sorbonne University in Paris on 4 October. Boschma was nominated for the award in recognition of his scientific contributions to the field of economic geography, especially for laying the foundations of evolutionary economic geography and his research into regional diversification and innovation policy. The European Union’s regional policy is based in part on his ...