ROCHESTER, Minn. — Cardiologists in Mayo Clinic's Heart Rhythm Clinic are using a new innovative energy source to safely and successfully treat a common type of heart arrhythmia. The therapy, called pulsed field ablation (PFA), has received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and represents a significant milestone in treating atrial fibrillation (AFib). The irregular and often very rapid heart rhythm of AFib can lead to blood clots in the heart, increasing a patient's risk of stroke. Clinicians can use medication and therapies to help reset the heart rhythm, but some patients have AFib that ...

Planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions associated with the global food supply chains induced by diets could fall by 17% if people change their food choices towards more plant-based diets, a new study reveals.   Researchers believe that a currently over-consuming 56.9% of the global population would save 32.4% of global dietary emissions by changing their diet to the planetary health diet proposed by the EAT-Lancet Commission.  Publishing their findings today (13 Aug) in Nature Climate Change, an international group of researchers note that a diet switch to the planetary health diet would balance the ...

Key points: Researchers identified a significant link between heme iron—iron found in red meat and other animal products —and risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D), as well as the metabolic pathways underlying the link. Non-heme iron—iron found in plant-based foods—was not associated with risk of T2D. The study suggests that cutting down on heme iron from red meat and adopting a plant-rich diet can help lower diabetes risk. And it raises concerns about the addition of heme to increasingly popular plant-based meat alternatives. Boston, MA—Higher intake ...

TORONTO, ON – Do older adults who live alone feel less satisfied with their lives? A new analysis of about 12,000 respondents aged 65 and older reveals that what matters for Canadian older adults’ life satisfaction is not living alone per se. Rather personality-based social dispositions play a key role in how older adults feel about living alone. In addition, the role these dispositions play tend to differ between Canadian-born and immigrant older adults. The researchers found that despite the existence ...

A computer algorithm has achieved a 98% accuracy in predicting different diseases by analysing the colour of the human tongue. The proposed imaging system developed by Iraqi and Australian researchers can diagnose diabetes, stroke, anaemia, asthma, liver and gallbladder conditions, COVID-19, and a range of vascular and gastrointestinal issues. Engineering researchers from Middle Technical University (MTU) and the University of South Australia (UniSA) achieved the breakthrough in a series of experiments where they used 5260 images to train machine learning algorithms to detect tongue colour. Two ...

Bisphenols are widely used as the main raw material for plastics such as receipts, water bottles, water containers, and vinyl due to their heat-resistant and mechanochemical properties. Among bisphenols, bisphenol A (BPA) that we often refer to as an "endocrine-disrupting chemicals" has been linked to adverse effects on reproduction, development, intelligence, and various metabolic diseases. Bisphenol F (BPF), a recently developed alternative to BPA Bisphenol A has also been reported in the literature to cause neurological disruption and various health risks. Dr. Jong Min Kim of the Materials Architecturing ...

Cell–cell adhesion-induced patterning in keratinocytes can be explained by just starvation and strong adhesion, Hokkaido University researchers find. Fingerprints are one of the best-recognised examples of pattern formation by epithelial cells. The primary cells in the epithelium are the keratinocytes, and they are known to form patterns at the microscopic and macroscopic levels. While factors affecting this pattern formation have been reported, the exact mechanisms underlying the process are still not fully understood. A team of researchers, led by Associate ...

RICHLAND, Wash.—Last year marked Earth’s warmest year on record. A new study finds that some of 2023’s record warmth, nearly 20 percent, likely came as a result of reduced sulfur emissions from the shipping industry. Much of this warming concentrated over the northern hemisphere. The work, led by scientists at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, published today in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Regulations put into effect in 2020 by the International Maritime Organization required a roughly 80 percent reduction in the sulfur content of shipping ...

HOUSTON – (Aug. 12, 2024) – Ammonia plays a critical role in sustaining food production for the world’s growing population, but making it accounts for about 2% of global energy consumption and 1.4% of carbon dioxide emissions. Rice University engineers have developed a revolutionary reactor design that could decarbonize ammonia production while also mitigating water pollution. In a study published in Nature Catalysis, a team of Rice engineers led by Haotian Wang described the development of a new reactor system that converts nitrates — common pollutants found in industrial wastewater and ...

New research from a Florida State University professor and colleagues explains the mathematics behind how initial predispositions and additional information affect decision making. The research team’s findings show that when decision makers quickly come to a conclusion, the decision is more influenced by their initial bias, or a tendency to err on the side of one of the choices presented. If decision makers wait to gather more information, the slower decision will be less biased. The work was published today in Physical Review E. “The basic result might ...

A new study found that most routine laboratory tests are not reliable for diagnosing Long COVID, also known as Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). The study, published today in Annals of Internal Medicine, found no reliable biomarker among 25 routine clinical laboratory values for prior infection, PASC or specific types of PASC clusters. This suggests none of these routine labs can serve as a clinically useful biomarker of PASC. "Our study shows patients can have severe Long COVID with normal lab results. This ...

Common push puppet toys in the shapes of animals and popular figures can move or collapse with the push of a button at the bottom of the toys’ base. Now, a team of UCLA engineers has created a new class of tunable dynamic material that mimics the inner workings of push puppets, with applications for soft robotics, reconfigurable architectures and space engineering. Inside a push puppet, there are connecting cords that, when pulled taught, will make the toy stand stiff. But by loosening these cords, the “limbs” of the toy will go limp. Using the same cord tension-based principle that controls a puppet, researchers have developed a new type of metamaterial, a material ...

From a nondescript industrial building in the small town of Crossville, Tennessee, the team of engineers at Whisper Aero is planning a revolution in aviation technology. Previously home to a publisher of magazines — including, coincidentally, Trade-A-Plane, an airplane sales publication started in 1937 — the long-empty property’s cavernous spaces are now filled with multidisciplinary activities that include the creation of a new electric aircraft engine. In January 2024, employees of the 3-year-old start-up moved into their new headquarters, refurbishing its dusty rooms into a 21st century aerospace technology facility with areas ...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — A new study that explores ancient temperatures and rainfall patterns in the tropical Andes of South America has revealed how 16,000 years of climate history in this part of the world was driven by carbon dioxide levels and ocean currents from global climate events. Led by Brown University researchers, the study marks the first high-resolution temperature record covering the past 16,000 years in the tropical Andes and could help scientists predict and mitigate future climate impacts in tropical regions of the planet. The work is described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. “Usually ...

Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah (the U) are proud to announce the induction of two physician-scientists, Heloisa Soares, MD, PhD, and Skyler Johnson, MD, as members of The Society of Huntsman Translational Scholars. The Society of Huntsman Translational Scholars supports scientists who focus on translating research discoveries made in the lab into innovations that improve outcomes for cancer patients. Scholars receive financial support for their scientific work, have opportunities for mentorship, and collaborate with other society members in advancing scientific discoveries. “The Society of Huntsman Translational Scholars ...

AMHERST, Mass. – New research from the University of Massachusetts Amherst shows that programming robots to create their own teams and voluntarily wait for their teammates results in faster task completion, with the potential to improve manufacturing, agriculture and warehouse automation. This research was recognized as a finalist for Best Paper Award on Multi-Robot Systems at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation 2024. “There’s a long history of debate on whether we want to build a single, powerful humanoid robot that can do all ...

Glenview, Illinois – For the second year of the APCCMPD and CHEST Medical Educator Scholar Diversity Fellowship, Tristan Huie, MD, FCCP, and Anna Neumeier, MD, will be co-mentors for 2025. Designed to pair a fellow-in-training with an established medical educator, the unique scholarship was launched in August 2023 by the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) and the Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors (APCCMPD) to improve diversity in respiratory care. The program focuses on creating opportunities for fellows at institutions ...

ChatGPT and other large language models (LLMs) cannot learn independently or acquire new skills, meaning they pose no existential threat to humanity, according to new research from the University of Bath and the Technical University of Darmstadt in Germany. The study, published today as part of the proceedings of the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Association for Computational Linguistics (ACL 2024) – the premier international conference in natural language processing – reveals that LLMs have a superficial ability to follow instructions and excel at proficiency in language, ...

A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported study has found that routine lab tests may not be useful in making a long COVID diagnosis for people who have symptoms of the condition. The study, part of NIH’s Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (NIH RECOVER) Initiative and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, highlights how challenging it can be to identify and diagnose a novel illness such as long COVID.   “Our challenge is to discover biomarkers that can help us quickly and accurately diagnose long ...

Since the first demonstration of the laser in the 1960s, laser spectroscopy has become an essential tool for studying the detailed structures and dynamics of atoms and molecules. Advances in laser technology have further enhanced its capabilities. There are two main types of laser spectroscopy: frequency comb-based laser spectroscopy and tunable continuous-wave (CW) laser spectroscopy. Comb-based laser spectroscopy enables extremely precise frequency measurements, with an accuracy of up to 18 digits. This remarkable precision led to ...

Recent large-scale epidemiologic studies have increasingly suggested that aberrant brain development and psychiatric disorders may share common mechanisms. The interplay between genetic variants and environmental stress has been shown to significantly impact genome integrity, reshaping brain development. This can result in changes to neural networks, which are linked to neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders—areas where many questions remain unresolved. For more information, visit: bit.ly/4ddJSV0 For contributing article to this research topic, visit: bit.ly/4crNG41 Please use the Hot-Topic Code: BMS-CMP-2024-HT-33 ...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Four of the nation’s top scientists have each been awarded $1 million in direct funding via the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Distinguished Scientist Fellows program.   The program was established to develop, sustain, and promote scientific and academic excellence in Office of Science (SC) research through collaborations between universities and national laboratories.  The awards, authorized by the America COMPETES act, are bestowed on senior national laboratory scientists. The United States has ...

UPTON, N.Y. — Physicist Mary Bishai of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory has been named a 2024 DOE Office of Science Distinguished Scientist Fellow. The honor recognizes her “enduring contributions at the intensity frontier of high energy physics in unraveling fundamental properties of neutrinos, extraordinary leadership and service to the particle physics community, and deep commitment to broadening participation through mentoring next generation scientists.” As described in a DOE Office of Science press release issued today, the ...

People suffering from cirrhosis may find some symptom relief from two accessible activities: stretching and meditation.   A study from the University of Michigan compared the two therapies as a means to relieve nocturnal muscle cramps and found both effective.  The resulting paper, “The RELAX randomized controlled trial: Stretching versus meditation for nocturnal muscle cramps,” appeared in Liver International.  The study Two out of every three people with cirrhosis experience muscle cramps at night that wake them from sleep.  Since ...

Respiratory infections can be severe, even deadly, in some individuals, but not in others. Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity and other collaborators have gained new understanding of why this is the case by uncovering an early molecular driver that underpins fatal disease. Oleoyl-ACP-hydrolase (OLAH) is an enzyme involved in fatty acid metabolism. A study, published today in Cell, shows that OLAH drives severe disease outcomes.   The important role of OLAH in immune response has gone unrecognized for several reasons, including a lack of noticeable expression in healthy ...