An international collaboration of researchers, led by Philip Walther at University of Vienna, have achieved a significant breakthrough in quantum technology, with the successful demonstration of quantum interference among several single photons using a novel resource-efficient platform. The work published in the prestigious journal Science Advances represents a notable advancement in optical quantum computing that paves the way for more scalable quantum technologies.  Interference among photons, a fundamental phenomenon in quantum optics, serves as a cornerstone of optical quantum computing. It involves harnessing the properties of light, such as its wave-particle duality, ...

Toxic chemicals used to flame-proof plastic materials can be absorbed into the body through skin, via contact with microplastics, new research shows.  The study offers the first experimental evidence that chemicals present as additives in microplastics can leach into human sweat, and then be absorbed through the skin, into the bloodstream.  Many chemicals used as flame retardants and plasticisers have already been banned, due to evidence of adverse health effects including damage to the liver or nervous system, cancer, and risks to reproductive health. However, these chemicals ...

Mount Sinai scientists, in collaboration with researchers from the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) in Madrid, Spain, have located and identified alterations in the monkeypox virus genome that potentially correlate with changes in the virus’s transmissibility observed in the 2022 outbreak. The findings were published April 18 in Nature Communications. Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is a double-stranded DNA virus that can infect animals and humans. MPXV causes a disease known as mpox, with symptoms that include fever, swollen lymph nodes, and a rash. Most cases are mild and tend to get better on their own; however, mpox ...

The number of biological products registered in Brazil in recent years for crop protection against agricultural pests has surpassed that of agrochemicals. Around 90% of the area under sugarcane cultivation in the country, for example, already uses natural enemies such as microorganisms, macroorganisms, biochemicals (compounds of natural origin that control pests and diseases) and semiochemicals (molecules that induce behavioral responses in target organisms). The data were presented by José Maurício Simões Bento, a ...

The longstanding advice to “check your baggage at the door” may not be the best way for leaders to engage and empower their employees. Instead, acknowledging that leaders are complete individuals with experiences outside of the office is a key factor in assisting them with the challenging, exhausting and often thankless work they do daily. According to new research from the University of Florida, leaders who reflect on gratitude that they receive from family members at home feel higher levels of ...

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in collaboration with the University of Arizona led a study that can help surgeons obtain biofeedback of their posture during long surgical procedures. Ultimately, the aim is to reduce the stress associated with maintaining static postures while operating. Published in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine, this pilot study evaluated the feasibility of using wearable technology to assess the posture of neurosurgeons during long spine and cranial procedures. The findings show that wearable technology is a feasible and reproducible approach to provide ...

NEW YORK – April 19, 2024 – The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) and the Cardiovascular Research Foundation® (CRF®) announced today a strategic partnership for CRF’s New York Valves 2024: The Structural Heart Summit, making AATS the exclusive cardiothoracic surgical society partner of this preeminent valve meeting. New York Valves 2024, the expanded iteration of CRF’s renowned annual Transcatheter Valve Therapy (TVT®) conference, will take place June 5-7 ...

About The Study: This study including 903 women with BRCA germline pathogenic variants found that a breast cancer diagnosis less than 10 years postpartum was associated with higher risk of mortality compared with nulliparous women and women diagnosed at least 10 years postpartum. These results should inform genetic counseling, prevention, and treatment strategies for BRCA pathogenic variant carriers.  Authors: Zhenzhen Zhang, Ph.D., of Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, is the corresponding author.  To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at ...

About The Study: In this randomized clinical trial with 314 participants, self-administered acupressure with a brief knee health education program was efficacious and cost-effective in relieving knee pain and improving mobility in middle-aged and older adults with probable knee osteoarthritis.  Authors: Wing-Fai Yeung, Ph.D., of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong, is the corresponding author.  To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/  (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.5830) Editor’s ...

This year’s Communicator Award presented by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) and Stifterverband goes to an interdisciplinary research team consisting of one computer scientist and two cultural scholars, all of whom are based in Tübingen: Ulrike von Luxburg, Professor for the Theory of Machine Learning at the University of Tübingen, Tim Schaffarczik, doctoral researcher at the Institute of Historical and Cultural Anthropology, University of Tübingen, and Thomas Thiemeyer, Professor of Museum Studies, likewise at the Institute of ...

SAN FRANCISCO—April 19, 2024—For the roughly 1.5 million Americans per year who survive a traumatic brain injury, health outcomes vary widely. Not only can these injuries lead to a loss of coordination, depression, impulsivity, and difficulty concentrating, but they come with an amplified risk for developing dementia in the future. The glaring absence of treatments for such a widespread condition drove a team of scientists at Gladstone Institutes to uncover, on a molecular level, how traumatic brain injuries trigger neurodegeneration—and just as importantly, how to target that process to prevent long-term damage. “We set out to ...

Earth’s magnetic field cocoons our planet from the onslaught of cosmic radiation streaming through space while also shielding us from charged particles hurled outward by the sun. But the geomagnetic field is not stationary.  Not only does magnetic north wobble, straying from true north (a geographically defined location), but occasionally, it flips. During these reversals, north becomes south, south becomes north, and in the process, the intensity of the magnetic field wanes.   But there’s also ...

Embargoed for release until 9:00 a.m. ET on Friday 19 April 2024    Embargoed Content from the Annals of Internal Medicine Breaking News Scientific Plenary at Internal Medicine 2024 Annals of Internal Medicine Tip Sheet     @Annalsofim    Below please find summaries of new articles that will be published in the next issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The summaries are not intended to substitute for the full articles as a source of information. This information is under strict embargo and by taking it into possession, media representatives are committing ...

While heavy drinking is a well-established risk factor for liver cancer, the specific mechanisms by which alcohol contributes to A-HCC remain unclear. This insightful review, published in Hepatology, provides a comprehensive summary of the pathogenesis, heterogeneity, preclinical approaches, epigenetic and genetic profiles of A-HCC. Compared to other types of liver cancer, A-HCC is often diagnosed at a later stage, when the disease is more advanced. This is partly due to a lack of readily available screening tools for individuals with alcohol-related liver disease (ALD). "A-HCC is a serious public health concern," ...

The first clue for finding life on other planets is finding liquid water. The moons of Saturn and Jupiter like Enceladus, Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto are suspected of holding oceans of liquid water beneath icy crusts. Similarly, some exoplanets beyond our solar system likely host liquid water, crucial for habitability. But detecting water, when we can’t physically access these celestial bodies, poses challenges. Ice-penetrating radar, a geophysical tool, has proven capable of detecting liquid water ...

 In a discovery that could hasten treatment for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), UC San Francisco scientists have discovered a harbinger in the blood of some people who later went on to develop the disease.     In about 1 in 10 cases of MS, the body begins producing a distinctive set of antibodies against its own proteins years before symptoms emerge. These autoantibodies appear to bind to both human cells and common pathogens, possibly explaining the immune attacks on the brain and spinal cord that are the hallmark of MS.   The findings were published in Nature Medicine on ...

In the 1930s, it turned out that neither the energy nor the momentum balance is correct in the radioactive beta decay of an atomic nucleus. This led to the postulate of "ghost particles" that "secretly" carry away energy and momentum. In 1956, experimental proof of such neutrinos was finally obtained. The challenge: neutrinos only interact with other particles of matter via the weak interaction that is also underlying the beta decay of an atomic nucleus. For this reason, hundreds of trillions of neutrinos from the cosmos, especially the sun, can pass through our bodies every second without causing any damage. Extremely ...

Observing proteins precisely within cells is extremely important for many branches of research but has been a significant technical challenge - especially in living cells, as the required fluorescent labelling had to be individually attached to each protein. The research group led by Stefan Kubicek at CeMM has now overcome this hurdle: With a method called "vpCells," it is possible to label many proteins simultaneously, using five different fluorescent colours. This automated high-throughput approach, aided by AI-assisted image recognition, opens up entirely new applications in various disciplines, from fundamental cell biology to drug discovery. The study ...

    Graphic Climate change will increase the future value of residential rooftop solar panels across the United States by up to 19% by the end of the century, according to a new University of Michigan-led study.   The study defines the value of solar, or VOS, as household-level financial benefits from electricity bill savings plus revenues from selling excess electricity to the grid—minus the initial installation costs.   For many U.S. households, increased earnings from residential rooftop ...

PHILADELPHIA – Liver inflammation, a common side-effect of cancers elsewhere in the body, has long been associated with worse cancer outcomes and more recently associated with poor response to immunotherapy. Now, a team led by researchers from the Abramson Cancer Center and Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has found a big reason why. In their study, published today in Nature Immunology, the researchers discovered that cancer-induced liver inflammation causes liver cells to secrete proteins called serum amyloid A (SAA) proteins, which circulate through the body and hinder the ability of T cells—major anticancer weapons of the immune system—to ...

Analysis of mooring observations and hydrographic data suggest the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation deep water limb in the North Atlantic has weakened. Two decades of continual observations provide a greater understanding of the Earth’s climate regulating system. A new study published in the journal Nature Geoscience led by scientists at University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Atlantic ...

HOUSTON ― In a new study published today in Nature Biomedical Engineering, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have designed a new method for developing immunotherapy drugs using engineered peptides to elicit a natural immune response inside the body. In preclinical models of locally advanced and metastatic breast cancer, this method improved tumor control and prolonged survival, both as a monotherapy and in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors. “Amino acids are the building blocks of life and, when a few of them are linked together, they create a peptide. ...

Remember #BabyShark? And no, this was not the very catchy song for kids that took the internet by storm. Earlier this year, social media was abuzz with stunning footage of a newborn great white shark, captured by a flying drone. Now, marine scientists have shown for the first time that juvenile great white sharks select warm and shallow waters to aggregate within one kilometer from the shore. These results, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, are important for conservation of great white sharks – especially as ocean temperatures increase due ...

When Kevin Ryan and the other hardworking volunteers at Mossom Creek Hatchery in Port Moody, B.C. release young coho smolts into the ocean, they’re never quite certain how many will return as adults. Mossom releases between 5,000 and 10,000 coho smolts each year, and is one of the few hatcheries to release coho directly into the ocean, rather than into a river. Until now, no research had looked at the success of direct ocean releases of coho. UBC researchers used acoustic telemetry to tag and track coho on their journey. The results were revealing: ...

Thanks to the dizzying growth of cosmic observations and measurement tools and some new advancements (primarily the “discovery” of what we call dark matter and dark energy) all against the backdrop of General Relativity, the early 2000s were a time when nothing seemed capable of challenging the advancement of our knowledge about the cosmos, its origins, and its future evolution. Even though we were aware there was still much to uncover, the apparent agreement between our observations, calculations, and theoretical framework was indicating that our knowledge of the universe was set to grow significantly and without ...