Austin - February 13, 2014 - Social media can do more than just entertain us and keep us connected. It also can help scientists better understand human behavior and social dynamics. The volume of data created through new technology and social media such as Facebook and Twitter is lending insight into everything from mapping modern family dynamics to predicting postpartum depression. "By analyzing different types of social media, search terms, or even blogs, we are able to capture people's thinking, communication patterns, health, beliefs, prejudices, group behaviors – ...

Atlantic salmon production could be boosted by a new technology that will help select the best fish for breeding. The development will enable salmon breeders to improve the quality of their stock and its resistance to disease. A chip loaded with hundreds of thousands of pieces of DNA – each holding a fragment of the salmon's genetic code – will allow breeders to detect fish with the best genes. It does so by detecting variations in the genetic code of each individual fish – known as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). These variations make it possible to identify ...

A new study could help to answer an important riddle in our understanding of genetics: why research to look for the genetic causes of common diseases has failed to explain more than a fraction of the heritable risk of developing them. Susceptibility to common diseases is believed to arise through a combination of many common genetic variants that individually slightly increase the risk of disease, plus a smaller number of rare mutations that often carry far greater risk. However, even when their effects are added together, the genetic variants so far linked to common ...

This news release is available in German. When individuals from different groups interbreed, their offspring's DNA becomes a mixture of the DNA from each admixing group. Pieces of this DNA are then passed along through subsequent generations, carrying on all the way to the present day. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, Oxford University and University College London (UCL) have now produced a global map detailing the genetic histories of 95 different populations across the world, spanning the last four millennia. The ...

DENVER (Feb. 13, 2014) – When a tsunami struck American Samoa in 2009, indigenous institutions on the islands provided effective disaster relief that could help federal emergency managers in similar communities nationwide, according to a study from the University of Colorado Denver and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. The study found that following the tsunami, residents of the remote U.S. territory in the South Pacific relied on Fa'aSamoa or The Samoan Way, an umbrella term incorporating a variety of traditional institutions governing the lives of its citizens. "We ...

Can more accurate climate models help us understand extreme weather events? Can we use synthetic biology to create better biofuels? These questions, and the ongoing search for Dark Matter and better photovoltaic materials, are just some of the presentations by Lawrence Berkeley National Lab researchers at this year's AAAS meeting. Here's a quick look at Berkeley Lab@AAAS: Friday, Feb. 14 1:00-2:30 Opportunities for New Materials in Photovoltaics (Toronto Room, Hyatt Regency) Ramamoorthy Ramesh The Department of Energy's ...

UPTON, NY—Armed with just the right atomic arrangements, superconductors allow electricity to flow without loss and radically enhance energy generation, delivery, and storage. Scientists tweak these superconductor recipes by swapping out elements or manipulating the valence electrons in an atom's outermost orbital shell to strike the perfect conductive balance. Most high-temperature superconductors contain atoms with only one orbital impacting performance—but what about mixing those elements with more complex configurations? Now, researchers at the U.S. Department of ...

We know much about how embryos develop, but one key stage – implantation – has remained a mystery. Now, scientists from Cambridge have discovered a way to study and film this 'black box' of development. Their results – which will lead to the rewriting of biology text books worldwide – are published in the journal Cell. Embryo development in mammals occurs in two phases. During the first phase, pre-implantation, the embryo is a small, free-floating ball of cells called a blastocyst. In the second, post-implantation, phase the blastocyst embeds itself in the mother's ...

[TORONTO,Canada, Feb 18, 2014] – A protein that has been known until recently as part of a complex communications network within the cell also plays a direct role in regulating sugar metabolism, according to a new study published on-line in the journal Science Signaling (February 18, 2014). Cell growth and metabolism are tightly controlled processes in our cells. When these functions are disturbed, diseases such as cancer and diabetes occur. Mohamed Soliman, a PhD candidate at the Lunenfeld Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, found a unique role for ...

In a report published today, new research suggests the enigmatic "ribbon" of energetic particles discovered at the edge of our solar system by NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) may be only a small sign of the vast influence of the galactic magnetic field. IBEX researchers have sought answers about the ribbon since its discovery in 2009. Comprising primarily space physicists, the IBEX team realized that the galactic magnetic field wrapped around our heliosphere — the giant "bubble" that envelops and protects our solar system — appears to determine the orientation ...

DETROIT – Enhancing the brain's inherent ability to rebuild itself after a stroke with molecular components of stem cells holds enormous promise for treating the leading cause of long-term disability in adults. Michael Chopp, Ph.D., Scientific Director of the Henry Ford Neuroscience Institute, will present this approach to treating neurological diseases Thursday, Feb. 13, at the American Heart Association's International Stroke Conference in San Diego. Although most stroke victims recover some ability to voluntarily use their hands and other body parts, half are ...

February 13,2014 --With many regions of the country braced by an unrelenting cold snap, the problem of energy insecurity continues to go unreported despite its toll on the most vulnerable. In a new brief, researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health paint a picture of the families most impacted by this problem and suggest recommendations to alleviate its chokehold on millions of struggling Americans. The authors note that government programs to address energy insecurity are coming up short, despite rising energy costs. Energy Insecurity (EI) is ...

Harvard stem cell scientists have a new theory for how stem cells decide whether to become liver or pancreatic cells during development. A cell's fate, the researchers found, is determined by the nearby presence of prostaglandin E2, a messenger molecule best known for its role in inflammation and pain. The discovery, published in the journal Developmental Cell, could potentially make liver and pancreas cells easier to generate both in the lab and for future cell therapies. Wolfram Goessling, MD, PhD, and Trista North, PhD, both principal faculty members of the Harvard ...

Unique and irreplaceable Arctic wildlife and landscapes are crucially at risk due to global warming caused by human activities according to the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA), a new report prepared by 253 scientists from 15 countries under the auspices of the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the biodiversity working group of the Arctic Council. "An entire bio-climatic zone, the high Arctic, may disappear. Polar bears and the other highly adapted organisms cannot move further north, so they may go extinct. We risk losing several species forever," says ...

A report in the Feb. 13 New England Journal of Medicine confirms previous studies suggesting that long-term treatment with the type of drugs commonly prescribed to treat restless leg syndrome (RLS) can cause a serious worsening of the condition in some patients. The year-long study from a multi-institutional research team found that pregabalin – which is FDA-approved to treat nerve pain, seizures, and other conditions – was effective in reducing RLS symptoms and was much less likely to cause symptom worsening than pramipexole, one of several drugs that activate the dopamine ...

The way indigenous cultures around the globe use traditional medicines and pass on knowledge developed over centuries is directly linked to the natural environment, new research has found. This makes indigenous cultures susceptible to environmental change, a threat that comes on top of the challenges posed by globalisation. "Traditional medicine provides health care for more than half the world's population, with 80 per cent of people in developing countries relying on these practices to maintain their livelihood. It is a very important part of traditional knowledge," ...

Scientists know there is a strong genetic component to bipolar disorder, but they have had an extremely difficult time identifying the genes that cause it. So, in an effort to better understand the illness's genetic causes, researchers at UCLA tried a new approach. Instead of only using a standard clinical interview to determine whether individuals met the criteria for a clinical diagnosis of bipolar disorder, the researchers combined the results from brain imaging, cognitive testing, and an array of temperament and behavior measures. Using the new method, ...

Four out of five people in the United States live within an hour's drive of a hospital equipped to treat acute stroke — yet very few get recommended treatment, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2014. Of the more than 370,000 Medicare stroke claims for 2011 that researchers examined: Only 4 percent received tPA, a drug that can reduce disability if given intravenously within three to four hours after the first stroke symptoms. Only 0.5 percent had endovascular therapy to reopen clogged arteries. These ...

Exposure to common infections is linked to memory and brain function — even if the infections never made you ill, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2014. Researchers found an index of antibody levels caused by exposure to Chlamydia pneumoniae, Helicobacter pylori, cytomegalovirus, and herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2 was associated with worse cognitive performance, including memory, speed of mental processing, abstract thinking, planning and reasoning ability. "We were very interested in what were the risk ...

Women's blood clot risk remains elevated for at least 12 weeks after delivering a baby — twice as long as previously recognized, according to a large study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2014. The chance of a blood clot rises during pregnancy, when platelets and other blood-clotting factors increase. The risk peaks around the time of delivery, but researchers found that afterwards it remained: 10.8 times higher during weeks 0-6; 2.2 times higher during weeks 7-12; and 1.4 times higher (a non-significant rise) during ...

Women don't need to run marathons or do intense aerobics to reduce their stroke risk. Moderate-intensity exercise — such as brisk walking or playing tennis -- may do the trick, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2014. "I was surprised that moderate physical activity was most strongly associated with a reduced risk of stroke," said Sophia Wang, Ph.D., the study's lead author and professor in the department of population sciences within the Beckman Research Institute at the City of Hope in Duarte, Calif. "More ...

Giving intravenous magnesium to stroke patients soon after the start of symptoms, in an attempt to protect brain cells deprived of oxygen, failed to improve stroke-related disability 3 months later, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2014. Investigators showed that paramedics can successfully deliver intravenous medications to most stroke patients within an hour after symptoms begin. This is the "golden hour" the time in which patients have the best chance to survive and avoid long-term neurological damage. ...

Platelets, whose primary function is to prevent bleeding, are vital for treating various forms of trauma and blood diseases. However, they can only be obtained through blood donations at present. Researchers reporting online February 13 in the Cell Press journal Cell Stem Cell recently found a way to create platelets without the need for donated blood, an advance that could possibly erase supply shortages and ensure platelet treatments for all who need them. The supply of donated platelets, which have a short shelf life and must be kept at room temperature, is often ...

In addition to their trouble with reading, people with dyslexia also have greater difficulty than typical readers do when it comes to managing competing sensory cues, according to a study reported February 13 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. The findings suggest that action video games might improve literacy skills in those with dyslexia, which represent five to ten percent of the population. "Imagine you are having a conversation with someone when suddenly you hear your name uttered behind you," says Vanessa Harrar of the University of Oxford. "Your attention ...

Osteoarthritis is a leading cause of disability, characterized by the destruction of cartilage tissue in joints, but there is a lack of effective therapies because the underlying molecular causes have been unclear. A study published by Cell Press February 13th in the journal Cell reveals that osteoarthritis-related tissue damage is caused by a molecular pathway that is involved in regulating and responding to zinc levels inside of cartilage cells. A protein called ZIP8 transports zinc inside these cells, setting off a cascade of molecular events that result in the destruction ...