PITTSBURGH, June 13, 2013 – Allowing all employees access to paid sick days would reduce influenza infections in the workplace, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis by University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health modeling experts. The researchers simulated an influenza epidemic in Pittsburgh and surrounding Allegheny County and found that universal access to paid sick days would reduce flu cases in the workplace by nearly 6 percent and estimated it to be more effective for small, compared to large, workplaces. The results are reported in the online version ...

Irvine, Calif. – Ocean waters melting the undersides of Antarctic ice shelves, not icebergs calving into the sea, are responsible for most of the continent's ice loss, a study by UC Irvine and others has found. The first comprehensive survey of all Antarctic ice shelves discovered that basal melt, or ice dissolving from underneath, accounted for 55 percent of shelf loss from 2003 to 2008 – a rate much higher than previously thought. Ice shelves, floating extensions of glaciers, fringe 75 percent of the vast, frozen continent. The findings, to be published in the June ...

With mutations, it turns out that context can be everything in determining whether or not they are beneficial to their evolutionary fate. According to the traditional view among biologists, a central tenet of evolutionary biology has been that the evolutionary fates of new mutations depend on whether their effects are good, bad or inconsequential with respect to reproductive success. Central to this view is that "good" mutations are always good and lead to reproductive success, while "bad" mutations are always bad and will be quickly weeded out of the gene pool. However, ...

Washington, D.C.—-A team of researchers has discovered evidence that an extrasolar planet may be forming quite far from its star—- about twice the distance Pluto is from our Sun. The planet lies inside a dusty, gaseous disk around a small red dwarf TW Hydrae, which is only about 55 percent of the mass of the Sun. The discovery adds to the ever-increasing variety of planetary systems in the Milky Way. The research is published in the Astrophysical Journal.* This dusty protoplanetary disk is the closest one to us, some 176 light-years away in the constellation Hydra. The ...

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – June 13, 2013 – Hot weather may be the work environment for the 1.4 million farmworkers in the United States who harvest crops, but new research shows that these workers continue to experience excessive heat and humidity even after leaving the fields. Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center researchers conducted a study to evaluate the heat indexes in migrant farmworker housing and found that a majority of the workers don't get a break from the heat when they're off the clock. Lead author Sara A. Quandt, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology and prevention ...

WORCESTER — Postmenopausal women who use antidepressant medication or suffer from depression might be more likely to have a higher body mass index (BMI), larger waist circumference and inflammation—all associated with increased risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease, according to a study led by University of Massachusetts Medical School investigator Yunsheng Ma, PhD, MD, MPH, and published in the June 13 issue of the American Journal of Public Health. The UMass Medical School study investigated whether elevated depressive symptoms and antidepressant use are associated ...

URBANA, Ill. – Researchers from the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of Illinois, evaluating the biomass potential of woody crops, are taking a closer look at the black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), which showed a higher yield and a faster harvest time than other woody plant species that they evaluated, said U of I associate professor of crop sciences Gary Kling. "For now the only thing you can do with it is use it for direct combustion," Kling said. "But if it becomes a major crop other researchers could start working on the process of how to break it ...

States that want to reduce rates of adult smoking may consider implementing stringent tobacco restrictions on teens, suggests a new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers discovered that states with more restrictive limits on teens purchasing tobacco also have lower adult smoking rates, especially among women. And compared with states with less restrictive limits, they also tend to have fewer adult heavy smokers. The study is published online June 13 in the American Journal of Public Health. "In most states for ...

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A toxin dangerous to humans may help E. coli fend off aquatic predators, enabling strains of E. coli that produce the toxin to survive longer in lake water than benign counterparts, a new study finds. Researchers from the University at Buffalo and Mercyhurst University reported these results online June 7 in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. "The take-home lesson is that E. coli that produce Shiga toxin persisted longer in recreational water than E. coli that don't produce this toxin," said UB Professor of Biological Sciences Gerald ...

Cheaper clean-energy technologies could be made possible thanks to a new discovery. Research team members led by Raymond Schaak, a professor of chemistry at Penn State University, have found that an important chemical reaction that generates hydrogen from water is effectively triggered -- or catalyzed -- by a nanoparticle composed of nickel and phosphorus, two inexpensive elements that are abundant on Earth. The results of the research will be published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Schaak explained that the purpose of the nickel phosphide nanoparticle ...

PHILADELPHIA (June 13, 2013) -- According to new research from the Monell Center and collaborating institutions, odors from human skin cells can be used to identify melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. In addition to detecting a unique odor signature associated with melanoma cells, the researchers also demonstrated that a nanotechnology-based sensor could reliably differentiate melanoma cells from normal skin cells. The findings suggest that non-invasive odor analysis may be a valuable technique in the detection and early diagnosis of human melanoma. Melanoma ...

Out in the wilds or anywhere off the grid, sophisticated instruments small enough to fit in a shirt pocket will one day scavenge power from sunlight, body heat, or other sources to monitor water quality or bridge safety, enabling analysis in the field rather than bringing samples and data back to the lab. Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario are using optics and photonics in their quest to "bring the lab to the sample," said lead researcher Vassili Karanassios of the Department of Chemistry and of the university's Institute for Nanotechnology (WIN). A ...

HOUSTON – (June 13, 2013) – Researchers at Rice University have come up with a new way to boost the efficiency of the ubiquitous lithium ion (LI) battery by employing ribbons of graphene that start as carbon nanotubes. Proof-of-concept anodes -- the part of the battery that stores lithium ions -- built with graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) and tin oxide showed an initial capacity better than the theoretical capacity of tin oxide alone, according to Rice chemist James Tour. After 50 charge-discharge cycles, the test units retained a capacity that was still more than double ...

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a way to trigger reproduction in the laboratory of clusters of human cells that make insulin, potentially removing a significant obstacle to transplanting the cells as a treatment for patients with type 1 diabetes. Efforts to make this treatment possible have been limited by a dearth of insulin-producing beta cells that can be removed from donors after death, and by the stubborn refusal of human beta cells to proliferate in the laboratory after harvesting. The new technique uses a cell ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic and Cayetano Heredia Peruvian University researchers have partnered on a study showing that Peruvian physicians rarely sought to involve their patients in shared decision-making regarding medical care. This was true for physicians at public and private clinics. The findings are being discussed in Lima, Peru, at ISDM 2013, an international conference on globalizing shared decision-making held from June 16-19. (Follow the proceedings and participate in discussion at ISDM 2013.) "Some evidence suggests involving patients in decisions decreases ...

EAST LANSING, Mich. --- Perhaps the hardest part of owning a pet is making difficult decisions when a beloved companion becomes seriously ill. That's why Michigan State University researchers are developing a new tool to help people assess their ailing pets' quality of life, a key factor in decisions about when to order life-prolonging procedures and when an animal's suffering means it's time to let go. In a new paper in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, MSU researchers describe a survey they created to help pet owners monitor the quality of ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) has identified an abnormal metabolic pathway that drives cancer-cell growth in a particular glioblastoma subtype. The finding might lead to new therapies for a subset of patients with glioblastoma, the most common and lethal form of brain cancer. The physician scientists sought to identify glioblastoma subtype-specific cancer stem cells. Genetic analyses have shown that high-grade ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A medical test previously developed to measure a toxin found in tobacco smokers has been adapted to measure the same toxin in people suffering from spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, offering a potential tool to reduce symptoms. The toxin, called acrolein, is produced in the body after nerve cells are injured, triggering a cascade of biochemical events thought to worsen the injury's severity. Acrolein (pronounced a-KRO-le-an) also may play an important role in multiple sclerosis and other conditions. Because drugs already exist to reduce ...

Contact: Michelle Geis mgeis@burnesscommunications.com 254-711-326-770 Julie-Anne Savarit-Cosenza julieanne@burnesscommunications.com 301-280-5720 Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security New report identifies 'regret-free' approaches for adapting agriculture to climate change Researchers provide clarity on action amid fears of wasted investments and imprecise science BONN, GERMANY (14 JUNE 2013)—Whether it’s swapping coffee for cocoa in Central America or bracing for drought in Sri Lanka with a return to ancient water storage systems, findings from ...

A protein used by embryo cells during early development, and recently found in many different types of cancer, apparently serves as a switch regulating the spread of cancer, known as metastasis, report researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center in the June 15, 2013 issue of the journal Cancer Research. Metastasis is responsible for 90 percent of cancer-related deaths. More than 575,000 Americans die of cancer each year, the second leading cause of death in the United States after cardiovascular disease. ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass - In the near future, a buzz in your belt or a pulse from your jacket may give you instructions on how to navigate your surroundings. Think of it as tactile Morse code: vibrations from a wearable, GPS-linked device that tell you to turn right or left, or stop, depending on the pattern of pulses you feel. Such a device could free drivers from having to look at maps, and could also serve as a tactile guide for the visually and hearing impaired. Lynette Jones, a senior research scientist in MIT's Department of Mechanical Engineering, designs wearable tactile ...

Asbestos and its link to mesothelioma Article provided by Savinis, D'Amico & Kane, L.L.C. Visit us at http://www.pghmesothelioma.com/ Although the dangers of asbestos exposure have been well known for many years now, many people are still being diagnosed and treated for mesothelioma. The reason for this is partially that it can take two to four decades before the symptoms of the disease present themselves. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were about 18,000 people diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma between 1999 and 2005. ...

California leads the nation in dog bite claims Article provided by Hansen & Miller Law Firm Visit us at http://www.hansenmiller.com When you think of injuries that are prevalent, one of the last things that may come to mind are dog bites. However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dogs bite about 4.7 million people every year. Of those bitten, about 800,000 require medical treatment. In addition to causing a significant number of injuries on an annual basis, dog bites also are a common cause of insurance claims. According to the ...

The basics of Chapter 7 bankruptcy Article provided by The Troglin Firm, P.C. Visit us at http://www.troglinlawoffices.com If you are considering filing for bankruptcy, you typically have two options under the Bankruptcy Code: Chapter 7 or Chapter 13. Both types of bankruptcy achieve similar ends such as a fresh financial start and protection from creditor harassment, garnishment proceedings and repossession. However, for many with little or no assets or income, Chapter 7 may be the better solution. Basic differences Chapter 13 bankruptcy, works by consolidating ...

Domestic violence and protective orders Article provided by Law Office of Michael D. Tracton, P.C. Visit us at http://www.tractonlaw.com Research from the National Violence Against Women Prevention Center suggests that most victims of domestic abuse do not request restraining orders after an initial incident of violent mistreatment. It usually takes years -- sometimes decades -- before victims petition the court for safety. The survey determined that only 36 percent of those victimized by stalking, 17 percent of assault victims and 16 percent of sexual assault victims ...