This news release is available in German. They are invisible, but perfectly suited for analysing liquids and gases; infrared laser beams are absorbed differently by different molecules. This effect can for instance be used to measure the oxygen concentration in blood. At the Vienna University of Technology, this technique has now been miniaturized and implemented in the prototype for a new kind of sensor. Specially designed quantum cascade lasers and light detectors are created by the same production process. The gap between laser and detector is only 50 micrometres. ...

This news release is available in German. Larvae of the marine bristle worm Platynereis dumerilii orient themselves using light. Early in their development, these larvae swim towards the light to use surface currents for their dispersal. Older larvae turn away from the light and swim to the sea floor where they develop into adult worms. Scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology in Tübingen have discovered that this change in the behavioural response to light is coupled to different neuronal systems underlying the eyes. The scientists have reconstructed ...

Foaling in horses is extremely fast. Labour and the active part of foaling, resulting in delivery of the foal, take 10 to 20 minutes and are considerably shorter than giving birth in humans or in cows. Is this brief period stressful for the animals or are horses more relaxed than humans when giving birth? This issue has been addressed by Christina Nagel and colleagues, who closely observed 17 foalings at the Brandenburg State Stud in Neustadt (Dosse), Germany, as well as recording electrocardiograms before, during and after foaling. The researchers also took samples of ...

This news release is available in German. Occasionally, two different plant species interbreed with each other in nature. This usually causes problems since the genetic information of both parents does not match. But sometimes nature uses a trick. Instead of passing on only half of each parent's genetic material, both plants transmit the complete information to the next generation. This means that the chromosome sets are totted up. The chromosomes are then able to find their suitable partner during meiosis, a type of cell division that produces an organism's reproductive ...

Alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use is very widespread among youths in Spain compared to the majority of European countries, according to the latest data from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. An international team, led by the European Institute of Studies on Prevention (IREFREA) with headquarters in Mallorca, together with other European and Spanish universities (Oviedo, Santiago de Compostela and Valencia), has analysed the role that parents play at the time of determining the risk of their children using alcohol, tobacco and cannabis in six ...

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified the evolutionary origins of human herpes simplex virus (HSV) -1 and -2, reporting that the former infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimpanzees 6 million years ago while the latter jumped from ancient chimpanzees to ancestors of modern humans – Homo erectus – approximately 1.6 million years ago. The findings are published in the June 10 online issue of Molecular Biology and Evolution. "The results help us to better understand how these viruses evolved and found ...

OTTAWA, Ontario – June 11, 2014 –The results of a national research project to assess breastfeeding knowledge, confidence, beliefs, and attitudes of Canadian physicians are available today in the Journal of Human Lactation. "Physicians' attitudes and recommendations are known to directly impact the duration that a mom breastfeeds," said Dr. Catherine Pound, pediatrician and lead author of the study at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO). "Worldwide healthcare organizations readily promote the benefits of breastfeeding, and yet now we find a gap exists where ...

BOSTON (June 11, 2014) — Researchers from Tufts have gained new insight into a protein associated with bipolar disorder. The study, published in the June 3 issue of Science Signaling, reveals that calcium channels in resting neurons activate the breakdown of Sp4, which belongs to a class of proteins called transcription factors that regulate gene expression. This study, led by Grace Gill, identifies a molecular mechanism regulating Sp4 activity. Her previous research had determined that reduced levels of Sp4 in the brain are associated with bipolar disorder. Her work ...

UPTON, NY—Scientists seeking ways to engineer the assembly of tiny particles measuring just billionths of a meter have achieved a new first—the formation of a single layer of nanoparticles on a liquid surface where the properties of the layer can be easily switched. Understanding the assembly of such nanostructured thin films could lead to the design of new kinds of filters or membranes with a variable mechanical response for a wide range of applications. In addition, because the scientists used tiny synthetic strands of DNA to hold the nanoparticles together, the study ...

Scientists investigating how one of the greatest shape shifters in the natural world is able to trick predators to avoid being eaten have identified the gene behind the fascinating feat. The African Swallowtail butterfly, also known as the 'Mocker Swallowtail' or the 'Flying Handkerchief,' can appear to change both colour and shape. Males of the species fly boldly around the tree tops, their rapid flight making them look like shaking handkerchiefs, however females lurk in the bushes and pretend to be examples of Monarch butterflies that are nasty to eat. The females ...

Previous studies have indicated that early exposure to complex foreign proteins, such as cow's milk proteins, increases the risk of type 1 diabetes in predisposed individuals. "Therefore, In 2002, we embarked on a large-scale study on more than 2100 infants with a family member affected by type 1 diabetes and with genetic disease susceptibility to find an answer to the question whether delaying the exposure to complex foreign proteins will decrease the risk of diabetes", tells Professor Mikael Knip from the University of Helsinki, the leader of the TRIGR Study. After ...

A new study presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) showed that, for the majority of lupus patients who are in remission, it is possible to successfully stop immunosuppressant therapy without triggering a flare of their disease.1 Within two years, it was possible to stop the immunosuppressant in about 70% of clinically stable patients. Half were successful within three years, and this proportion remained stable for up to five years.1 Lupus is a chronic inflammatory disease that can affect any organ system, but mainly involves ...

The results of a study presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) identify a correlation between the presence of biomarkers in the blood, known as micro RNAs (miRNAs), and the development of severe osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee or hip joint. The findings suggest that miRNAs may be used as biomarkers to predict severe OA disease in individuals.2 Preventative measures and early treatments are considered to be the most effective way of managing OA, but to date there has been no way of identifying the disease early on.2 "These ...

Two new studies presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) have helped clarify the relationship between the dietary intake of monounsaturated fatty acids and cholesterol with disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA) respectively. In the TOMORROW study, daily intake of monounsaturated fatty acids as a component of the Mediterranean diet has been shown to be an independent predictor of remission in patients with RA; monounsaturated fatty acids might therefore be suppressing disease activity1 In another ...

Data presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) showed that a significant number of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) were not receiving doses of the tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) inhibitor adalimumab necessary to achieve optimal clinical benefit.1 Further data revealed that, in the case of the TNFα inhibitor infliximab, nearly three-quarters of PsA patients were on doses lower than recommended in international guidelines. 2 In the first study, after 28 weeks of treatment one-third of PsA patients were ...

A new study presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) shows that in postmenopausal women with low bone mass, romosozumab significantly increased bone mineral density and bone content in both the spine and hip compared to baseline, and also compared with the commonly prescribed anabolic agent teriparatide and placebo.1 Romosozumab, administered subcutaneously at monthly intervals over a period of 12 months, resulted in gains in both the trabecular* and cortical† compartments of the spine and hip regions, with important differences ...

New data presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) show that the newly-approved infliximab biosimilar CT-P13 achieves statistically similar improvements in disease activity, disability and mobility in patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) compared to its original reference product infliximab (INX).1 CT-P13 is the world's first biosimilar monoclonal antibody to receive a positive opinion from an advanced and developed nations' regulatory body. According to Dr Won Park, Inha University Hospital, Korea, and lead investigator ...

Five different presentations at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) have introduced new patient empowerment and educational initiatives, which are predicted to bring significant benefits to the many thousands of patients worldwide who suffer from a rheumatic disease. These initiatives include: A new model of patient care involving self-monitoring and patient initiated follow-up1 An online learning resource to prepare patients and carers to actively engage in research, guideline development, advocacy and media activities2 A new patient ...

The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) has announced today at its Annual Congress major successes in driving the public agenda for addressing the escalating burden of RMDs in Europe. These advances include: Recognition for Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases (RMDs) from major European Commission research initiative, Horizon 2020 'FOREUM', Foundation for Research in Rheumatology, grants research funding for four osteoarthritis projects in its first year. "It is with great satisfaction that we have seen a progressive dedication of EU research funds for RMDs ...

New data presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) show that ultrasound-guided injections of growth factors-containing platelet-rich plasma (PRP) are no more effective in treating recently developed epicondylitis than injections of saline.1 Lead researcher, Patrick Le Goux of the Hôpitaux Universitaires Paris Ile-de-France Ouest, France, commented, "while PRP injections were shown to have no inherent benefit in the treatment of epicondylitis, what is exciting is that pain scores in both treatment groups decreased significantly ...

A new study presented today at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2014) showed that obese patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have higher DAS (disease activity) scores than non-obese patients, irrespective of their disease stage.1 With clinical remission as the ultimate therapeutic goal in RA,2 several studies have demonstrated that treatment to target – a treatment approach guided by its impact on reducing DAS scores – is more effective in lowering disease activity and, ultimately, reaching remission than usual care.3-7 Because obese patients ...

Trackways formed on an ancient seabed have shed new light on how nothosaurs, ancient marine reptiles that lived during the age of the dinosaurs, propelled themselves through water. The evidence is described by a team from Bristol and China in Nature Communications today. During the Mesozoic, 252-66 million years ago, the seas were ruled by a variety of marine reptiles. One of the earliest groups were the nothosaurs, voracious semi-aquatic hunters with elongate bodies and paddle-like limbs. They were the top predators of the Triassic coasts, some 245 million years ago. Their ...

Debris from forests that washes into freshwater lakes supplements the diets of microscopic zooplankton and the fish that feed off them – creating larger and stronger fish, new research shows. The researchers warn that, as forests are eroded through human activities such as logging, the impacts will be felt in aquatic as well as terrestrial food chains. In fact, the study was conducted at a Canadian lake chosen because it had suffered ecological disaster during the mid-20th century: acid rain as a result of the local nickel smelting industry. Despite moves to reduce ...

As the FIFA World Cup kicks off and the NBA finals "heat" up, new research suggests that there is such a thing as having too much talent on a sports team. The research indicates that, after a certain point, the addition of more superstar talent to a team can actually be detrimental, resulting in poorer team performance. The findings are forthcoming in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The research, led by INSEAD Professor Roderick Swaab, showed that the presence of too many individuals with top talent can undermine players' ...

Satellite dwarf galaxies at the edges of the Milky Way and neighboring Andromeda defy the accepted model of galaxy formation, and recent attempts to pigeon-hole them into the model are flawed, an international team of scientists reports. The mismatch raises questions about the accuracy of the standard model of cosmology, which is the widely accepted paradigm for the origin and evolution of the universe, the astrophysicists say. A preprint of the research paper, accepted for publication by the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, is online at http://arxiv.org/abs/1406.1799. The ...