Jumping workouts could help astronauts prevent the type of cartilage damage they are likely to endure during lengthy missions to Mars and the Moon, a new Johns Hopkins University study suggests. The research adds to ongoing efforts by space agencies to protect astronauts against deconditioning/getting out of shape due to low gravity, a crucial aspect of their ability to perform spacewalks, handle equipment and repairs, and carry out other physically demanding tasks. The study, which shows knee cartilage in mice grew healthier following jumping exercises, appears ...

A guardian molecule ensures that liver cells do not lose their identity. This has been discovered by researchers from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the Hector Institute für Translational Brain Research (HITBR), and from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). The discovery is of great interest for cancer medicine because a change of identity of cells has come into focus as a fundamental principle of carcinogenesis for several years. The Heidelberg researchers were able to show ...

Researchers have developed a reactor that pulls carbon dioxide directly from the air and converts it into sustainable fuel, using sunlight as the power source. The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, say their solar-powered reactor could be used to make fuel to power cars and planes, or the many chemicals and pharmaceuticals products we rely on. It could also be used to generate fuel in remote or off-grid locations. Unlike most carbon capture technologies, the reactor developed by the Cambridge researchers does not require fossil-fuel-based power, or the transport and storage of carbon dioxide, but instead converts atmospheric CO2 into something useful using sunlight. ...

Darwin’s theory of natural selection provides an explanation for why organisms develop traits that help them survive and reproduce.    Because of this, death is often seen as a failure rather than a process shaped by evolution.    When organisms die, their molecules need to be broken down for reuse by other living things.    Such recycling of nutrients is necessary for new life to grow.    Now a study led by Professor Martin Cann of ...

Conversations about parental duties continue to be led by mothers, even if both parents earn the same amount of money, finds a new study by a UCL researcher. A new study by Dr Clare Stovell (IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education & Society), published in the Journal of Family Studies, highlights how a lack of discussion between parents about important choices such as parental leave, work and childcare is perpetuating traditional gender roles. The study found that women usually lead the conversations and there is little discussion about the man’s work schedule, even in cases where the woman earns as much or more than her partner. Dr Stovell said: “These interviews ...

Covalent bonding is a widely understood phenomenon that joins the atoms of a molecule by a shared electron pair. But in nature, patterns of molecules can also be connected through weaker, more dynamic forces that give rise to supramolecular networks. These can self-assemble from an initial molecular cluster, or crystal, and grow into large, stable architectures. Supramolecular networks are essential for maintaining the structure and function of biological systems. For example, to ‘eat’, cells rely ...

Pesticides are causing overwhelming negative effects on hundreds of species of microbes, fungi, plants, insects, fish, birds and mammals that they are not intended to harm – and globally their use is a major contributor to the biodiversity crisis. That is the finding of the first study assessing the impacts of pesticides across all types of species in land and water habitats, carried out by an international research team that included the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) and the University of Sussex. Multiple negative impacts The scientists analysed over 1,700 existing lab and field studies of the impacts of 471 different ...

Osaka, Japan – Heart transplant is a scary and serious surgery with high cost, but for patients with heart failure it can be the only option for cure. Now, however, a multi-institutional research team led by Osaka University has found that simply taking a supplement might be all that is needed for certain patients with heart failure to recover – no surgery needed. In a study published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, the research team found that tricaprin, a natural supplement, can improve long-term survival and recovery from heart failure in patients with triglyceride deposit cardiomyovasculopathy ...

Neuropsychiatric disorders are becoming increasingly prevalent. Given their complex and multifactorial pathogenesis, there is an urgent need for effective and targeted therapies that can improve patients’ quality of life. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified various genetic alterations that contribute to the development and progression of neuropsychiatric disorders, ranging from mild dyslexia to more severe conditions such as schizophrenia. While thousands of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)—changes in a single nucleotide position in the DNA—have been associated with neurological ...

A team of researchers from the Sant Pau Research Institute (IR Sant Pau) has published a study in the Journal of Neuroinflammation that, for the first time, examines in depth the role of the peripheral immune system in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at the single-cell level. Their findings suggest that immune system cells—particularly two subpopulations of Natural Killer (NK) cells—may play a crucial part in the development and progression of this neurodegenerative disease. ALS is a condition that causes the progressive degeneration of motor neurones, leading to a loss of muscle function and, eventually, affecting ...

A UCLA Health research team has identified changes in brain rhythms that indicate seizure activity in Alzheimer’s patients.   The findings, published in Brain Communications, build on UCLA neurologist and senior author Dr. Keith Vossel’s pioneering work that first linked silent epileptic activity to cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease.  Vossel’s previous studies showed that silent seizures, detected through overnight electroencephalography (EEG) and one-hour magnetoencephalography (MEG), occur in more than 40% of Alzheimer’s patients—beyond the 20% who experience overt seizures. His research has demonstrated ...

Hydrogels are polymeric materials with three-dimensional network structures containing large amounts of water. They serve as sustained-release drug delivery systems as they can encapsulate various bioactive substances, including drugs, antigens, and even cells. Hydrogels are better drug delivery alternatives than conventional systems, as they are more biocompatible, biodegradable, and easily administered as an injectable scaffold. DNA has gained significant attention as a promising hydrogel material thanks to its customizable physicochemical properties, leading to the development of various DNA ...

Paramedics in England are experiencing wide-ranging challenges in responding to the increasing number of end-of-life care patients they are being called out to, according to a study from the University of Southampton. The study published in BMC Palliative Care highlights the issues paramedics face when responding to patients at end-of-life, including a lack of patient information, barriers to administering medication, and insufficient training. It was funded by Marie Curie and supported by National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Applied ...

A study of nematodes by researchers at Nagoya University in Japan has found that aging-related decline in brain function is caused by the excessive activation of certain neurons over time, rather than a decline in neuronal activity. This finding, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggests that interventions aimed at reducing neuronal hyperactivation, such as dietary changes, could potentially mitigate age-related cognitive decline. Proper brain function occurs when a large number of neurons are connected to each other and work ...

Osaka, Japan – From disaster zones to extreme environments, there remain areas difficult for even humans to reliably access. This poses a problem for search-and-rescue operations, research, surveillance, and more. Now, however, a research team from Osaka University and Diponegoro University, Indonesia is hard at work on one potential solution: the cyborg insect. Cyborg insects have a lot of advantages over traditional robots. Power consumption is less of an issue, so it’s easier to miniaturize them, and they are even ‘pre-built’ in a sense. However, research on cyborg insects has been limited to simple environments, like flat surfaces supplemented ...

New research from the University of Sydney has found people tend to discriminate in favour of individuals who show a similarity to them, even when the similarity arises from a random event like the flip of a coin. Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the research runs counter to traditional theories, in particular social identity theory, that assume discrimination occurs because we divide people into groups. It finds, instead, differences between individuals are enough to trigger discrimination. Previous research (using the seminal ‘minimal group’ experiment) showed participants tend to financially benefit members of their own group over ...

As solar energy plays an increasing role in the global power supply, ensuring accurate forecasts of photovoltaic (PV) power generation is critical for balancing energy demand and supply. A new study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences explores how machine learning and statistical techniques can refine these forecasts by correcting errors in weather models. Weather forecasts are a key input for PV power prediction models, yet they often contain systematic errors that impact accuracy. Researchers from the Institute of Statistics at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology ...

Scientists led by Prof. LIU Jing from the Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have created a leukocyte-like liquid metallic entity that vividly simulates various leukocyte behaviors in nature. Published in Matter on February 10, the researchers demonstrated how these "liquid metallic leukocytes" can autonomously perform complex actions like engulfing foreign substances, changing shape, moving in a pulsatile manner, and even climbing against gravity—showing striking similarities to the dynamic behavior of living cells. The research ...

RICHLAND, Wash.—Curled up inside every single one of the trillions of cells in the human body is six feet of DNA, spooled tightly and carrying the genetic instructions that govern so much of who a person becomes. It’s a nicely wrapped package of instructions for a lifetime.   But having the package in hand is a far cry from understanding how it’s executed.   It’s been 20 years since scientists completed the Human Genome Project, sequencing the entire length of DNA found in a person. Scientists have now done the same with an amazing array of organisms, including some types of worms, mice, mosquitoes, fruit flies, trees, rice and pufferfish.   Science ...

Researchers at Flinders University say there is an urgent need to encourage more girls to participate in sports, following a new study that reveals a striking lack of research on girls' sport engagement. A new study in Sport in Society journal set out to review existing data on interventions to engage female adolescents in organised sport, and to explore the different factors that influence their experience and decision making in sport. “Despite a rigorous systematic search of more than 3,000 articles, only five (globally) were found to ...

Certain hormonal contraceptives are associated with a higher stroke and heart attack risk, finds a large study from Denmark in The BMJ today that draws on prescription records to give more precise estimates for different products than previous studies. The highest risk estimates were for oestrogen containing products, in particular the vaginal ring and skin patch. The researchers stress that the absolute risk remains low, but given the widespread use of these products and the seriousness of these conditions, they say clinicians should consider these potential risks when prescribing them. Almost 250 million women worldwide are estimated to use hormonal contraception. Previous ...

Australian researchers are designing a global real-time monitoring system to help save the world’s coral reefs from further decline, primarily due to bleaching caused by global warming. Coral reefs worldwide are dying at an alarming rate, with 75% of reefs experiencing bleaching-level heat stress in the past two years. The World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef (GBR), considered the jewel in the crown of coral reefs worldwide and one of Australia’s most significant ecological and tourism assets, has been decimated ...

A new study finds that training in critical thinking skills can be effective in counteracting conspiracy beliefs. Many well-established programmes for reducing people's belief in conspiracies have either no effect or a negative effect. The study is the first to directly compare different strategies to reduce conspiracy thinking.  A new experimental study has found that fostering critical thinking can be an effective method to reduce people's tendency to believe in conspiracy theories. Led by researchers at University College Cork (UCC), the ...

Embargoed until 00:01 GMT on Thursday 13 February 2025 -With pictures- Babies show positive responses to the smell of foods they were exposed to in the womb after they are born, according to a new study. The findings, led by Durham University, UK, could have implications for understanding how healthy eating habits might be established in babies during pregnancy. Researchers analysed the facial expressions of babies who had been repeatedly exposed to either kale or carrot in the womb after birth. Newborns whose mothers had taken carrot powder capsules when pregnant were more likely to react favourably to the smell of carrot. Likewise, ...

Researchers at McMaster University have made a groundbreaking discovery in the field of hematology, providing an explanation for spontaneous and unusual blood-clotting that continues to occur despite treatment with full-dose blood thinners. The discovery, published Feb. 12, 2025 in The New England Journal of Medicine, is expected to influence how doctors test for, and treat patients with, unusual or recurrent blood clotting, with the potential to improve patient outcomes. Researchers found this new blood clotting disorder to have certain similarities to vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT) – a rare but aggressive clotting disorder ...