CHESTNUT HILL, MA (July 29, 2013) – A new, computationally-inspired approach has led a team of Boston College chemists to re-conceptualize a highly valued catalytic process, dramatically increasing the efficiency of a chemical transformation that selectively produces chiral, or handed, molecules valued for medical and life sciences research, the team reports in the current online edition of the journal Nature Chemistry. The new approach allows for reducing the reaction time to less than an hour, down from a period of two to five days, the team reports. That gain was accompanied ...

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Less contact during practice could mean a lot less exposure to head injuries for young football players, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and Virginia Tech. Their study of 50 youth-league players ages 9 to 12 -- the largest ever conducted to measure the effects of head impacts in youth football -- found that contact in practice, not games, was the most significant variable when the number and force of head hits incurred over the course of a season were measured. Numerous studies in this area have been done on high school ...

PITTSBURGH -- Amphibians exposed to insecticides early in life—even those not yet hatched—have a higher tolerance to those same insecticides later in life, according to a recent University of Pittsburgh study. Published in Evolutionary Applications, the Pitt study found that wood frog populations residing farther from agricultural fields are not very tolerant to a particular type of insecticide, but they can become more tolerant with early exposure. "This is the first study to show that tadpole tolerance to insecticides can be influenced by exposure to insecticides ...

New research from The Center for Injury Research and Prevention at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), signals that emergency and outpatient healthcare providers may need to prepare for higher demand for treatment among younger patients with mild and moderate injuries. As federal and state policies encouraging people to be covered by health insurance go into effect, researchers estimate the potential for more than 730,000 additional medically attended injuries annually, or a 6.1 percent increase if all currently uninsured children and young adults (ages 0-26) ...

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Workers who are loyal to their employers tend to be paid more, according to the first broad-scale study of worker loyalty and earnings. Michigan State University researchers surveyed 10,800 employees in former socialist countries that introduced capitalist economies in the 1990s. While previous research has found that worker loyalty bolsters companies' bottom lines by lowering labor turnover costs and enhanced customer service, this study shows that employees benefit as well – by making more money, said Susan Linz, lead author and professor of economics. "We ...

Hamilton, ON, July 29, 2013 – Job applicants interviewed through video conferencing come across as less likeable, a new study from the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University has found. The study, conducted by Greg Sears and Haiyan Zhang when they were PhD students at DeGroote, shows that using video conferencing for job interviews disadvantages both employers and candidates. With use of video conferencing growing—in recent surveys 50% up to 65% of employers have reported using the technology for job interviews—the DeGroote study raises cautions about widespread ...

Tuesday, July 29: Chile and Argentina may face critical water storage issues due to rain-bearing westerly winds over South America's Patagonian Ice-Field to moving south as a result of global warming. A reconstruction of past changes in the North and Central Patagonian Ice-field, which plays a vital role in the hydrology of the region, has revealed the ice field had suddenly contracted around 15,000 years ago after a southerly migration of westerly winds. This migration of westerly winds towards the south pole has been observed again in modern times and is expected ...

WASHINGTON-–A team of theoretical physicists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and Boston College has identified cubic boron arsenide as a material with an extraordinarily high thermal conductivity and the potential to transfer heat more effectively from electronic devices than diamond, the best-known thermal conductor to date. As microelectronic devices become smaller, faster and more powerful, thermal management is becoming a critical challenge. This work provides new insight into the nature of thermal transport at a quantitative level and predicts a new material, ...

The burden of improved conditions in state prisons may be borne by welfare recipients, according to new research from Rice University and Louisiana State University. The study, "Intended and Unintended Consequences of Prison Reform" published online this month in the Journal of Law, Economics & Organization, examined the impact of federal court orders condemning prison crowding and the outcomes among states following these orders. The researchers found that court-mandated efforts by the federal government to improve living conditions in state prisons resulted in decreased ...

WASHINGTON, July 29, 2013 — After six years of anticipation, that rock star of plants — a rainforest giant known as the corpse flower for its putrid odor — has bloomed here, and is the subject of a new video by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society. It is available at http://www.bytesizescience.com. The video, produced by ACS Office of Public Affairs' award-winning Digital Services Unit, focuses on the chemical cocktail responsible for the offensive odor of the flower. More formally known as titan arum or Amorphophallus titanum, the ...

A Virginia Commonwealth University study¹ shows intensive job training benefits youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), one of the most challenging disabilities in the world where only 20 percent find employment. Published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, the study demonstrates that nine months of intensive internship training, in conjunction with an engaged hospital, can lead to high levels of competitive employment in areas such as cardiac care, wellness, ambulatory surgery and pediatric intensive care units. "This is the first study of its ...

NOAA-supported scientists found a large Gulf of Mexico oxygen-free or hypoxic "dead" zone, but not as large as had been predicted. Measuring 5,840 square miles, an area the size of Connecticut, the 2013 Gulf dead zone indicates nutrients from the Mississippi River watershed are continuing to affect the nation's commercial and recreational marine resources in the Gulf. "A near-record area was expected because of wet spring conditions in the Mississippi watershed and the resultant high river flows which deliver large amounts of nutrients," said Nancy Rabalais, Ph.D. executive ...

The island of Madagascar harbors a unique biodiversity that evolved due to its long-lasting isolation from other land masses. Numerous plant and animal species are found solely on Madagascar. Lemurs, a subgroup of primates, are among the most prominent representatives of the island's unique fauna. They are found almost exclusively on Madagascar. The only exceptions are two species of the genus Eulemur that also live on the Comoros Islands, where they probably have been introduced by humans. Thanks to extensive field research over the past decades, numerous previously unknown ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Researchers have uncovered the genetics behind what makes some people susceptible to Takayasu arteritis, a debilitating disease that can lead to poor circulation, easy tiredness in the legs and arms, organ damage and stroke. A study led by the University of Michigan has identified five genes tied to Takayasu arteritis, an inflammation that damages the aorta and can lead to narrowed arteries, aneurysms, high blood pressure, and heart failure. The findings appear in the August issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics. "Discovering the genetic ...

Male fruit flies have one X chromosome per cell, females have two. So genes on the male X must work twice as hard to produce the same amount of protein as its female counterparts. A team of researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich has found a new switch involved in making this possible. In the fruit fly Drosophila -- as in humans -- the sexes have different sets of chromosomes. While females have two X chromosomes in their somatic cells, males have one X and one copy of the much smaller Y. The latter determines maleness but carries very few genes, ...

Antibiotic use—and misuse—is the main driver for selection of antibiotic resistant bacteria. This has led many countries to implement interventions designed to reduce overall antibiotic consumption. Now, using methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as an example, Laura Temime of the Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers, Paris, and collaborators warn that simply reducing antibiotics consumption does not necessarily reduce resistance. The research is published online ahead of print in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. The success of antibiotic reduction ...

Philadelphia, Pa. (August 29, 2013) - Cataract surgery can lead to good results from a clinical standpoint yet have poor outcomes from the patient's point of view, reports a study, "Analyzing Patient-Reported Outcomes to Improve Cataract Care", appearing in the August issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. Using well-designed and validated tools to assess patient-reported outcomes can lead to new insights for improving the ...

WASHINGTON D.C., July 29, 2013 -- If genes are the currency of life, then the whole economies are genetic networks, which include genes as well as the complex webs of interactions and interconnections between them. Genetic networks are integrally important to the proper development and functioning of an organism, just as genes are, but they tend to be far more complex and difficult to understand. Because of their complexity, the field has been slow to unravel genetic networks, said Leon Glass, the Isadore Rosenfeld Chair in Cardiology and a professor of physiology at ...

VIDEO: Now, new computer technology is making highly sophisticated biological systems available for viewing by students and researchers. In a new study, a scientist from the University of Missouri's School of... Click here for more information. COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Many scientists agree that the best way to learn the anatomy of any species is to utilize donor bodies. However, thousands of junior high, high school and college students, and university researchers do not have access ...

What do wound healing, cancer metastasis, and bacteria colonies have in common? They all involve the collective displacement of biological cells. New research sheds some new light on the physical mechanisms provoking the displacement of a sheet of cell, known as an epithelium. It typically covers our organs including the stomach and intestine, as well as our epidermis. In a paper about to appear in EPJ E, Martine Ben Amar from Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris explains the importance of understanding the displacement of the epithelium as a means of influencing ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Broken bones and joint replacements may someday heal faster, thanks to an unusual coating for medical implants under development at The Ohio State University. Researchers here have found that bone cells grow and reproduce faster on a textured surface than they do on a smooth one—and they grow best when they can cling to a microscopic shag carpet made of tiny metal oxide wires. In tests, the wires boosted cell growth by nearly 80 percent compared to other surfaces, which suggests that the coating would help healthy bone form a strong bond with an implant ...

Scientists have long been worried about the possible harmful effects of regular cellular phone use, but so far no study has managed to produce clear results. Currently, cell phones are classified as carcinogenic category 2b – potentially carcinogenic to humans – by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). A new Tel Aviv University study, though, may bring bad news. To further explore the relationship between cancer rates and cell phone use, Dr. Yaniv Hamzany of Tel Aviv University's Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University and the Otolaryngology ...

Year-round ice-free conditions across the surface of the Arctic Ocean could explain why the Earth was substantially warmer during the Pliocene Epoch than it is today, despite similar concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to new research carried out at the University of Colorado Boulder. In early May, instruments at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii marked a new record: The concentration of carbon dioxide climbed to 400 parts per million for the first time in modern history. The last time researchers believe the carbon dioxide concentration ...

Boston, MA, July 29, 2013 -- While most children cannot be shielded from emotionally traumatic events, clinicians can target those who are most vulnerable to developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a large study from Boston Children's Hospital. Findings appear online in the August issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, accompanied by an editorial. Researchers led by Katie McLaughlin, PhD, of the Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at Boston Children's, analyzed data on 6,483 teen–parent pairs from the ...

PITTSBURGH -- Diets lacking omega-3 fatty acids—found in foods like wild fish, eggs, and grass-fed livestock—can have worsened effects over consecutive generations, especially affecting teens, according to a University of Pittsburgh study. Published in Biological Psychiatry, the Pitt team found that in a rodent model second-generation deficiencies of omega-3s caused elevated states of anxiety and hyperactivity in adolescents and affected the teens' memory and cognition. "We have always assumed that stress at this age is the main environmental insult that contributes ...