DURHAM, N.C. -- Having the biggest playlist doesn't make a male songbird the brainiest of the bunch, a new study shows. "For songbirds, singing a lot of songs indicates a bird is smart, but that signal is not necessarily indicative of intelligence for everything," said Duke biologist Steve Nowicki. In a series of problem-solving tests with the birds, he and his colleagues found that the male song sparrows that sang the most songs learned to solve food-finding puzzles more slowly than the birds singing fewer songs. The results are the first to show that a larger song ...

The researchers say that in a group of 10,000 young people, they would expect 39 cancers to occur during the next 10 years, but if they all had one CT scan, up to six extra cancers would occur. CT (computed tomography) scans have great medical benefits, but their increasing use since the 1980s has raised some concerns about possible cancer risks, particularly following exposures in childhood. Most previous studies have estimated risks indirectly, and some radiation experts have questioned the validity of these estimates. There is currently much uncertainty and as ...

The higher death rate associated with mental illness has been extensively documented, but most of the attention has focused on the elevated risk of suicide, whereas most of the risk can be attributed to physical illness such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and cancer (80% of deaths). The higher death rate is also normally reported in terms of mortality rates but other measures can be used such as potential years of life lost, average age at death and life expectancy. Life expectancy is also a useful alternative as it can reflect changes in rates across ages. ...

He calls on the UK's Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition and the Department of Health "to act swiftly" to tackle the rising obesity crisis and increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes. In 2003 the World Health Organization stated that "added sugars" should contribute no more than 10% of total energy intake. This was in line with the UK government's Committee on Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy (COMA) recommendations. This nutritional advice has formed the basis of UK food labelling since 2003 and subsequently influenced European legislation, but Dr ...

They show that up to 50% of all heart attack cases are missed using just one data source. These findings may be relevant to other common conditions, such as stroke, and support the wider use of linked multiple record sources by clinicians, policy makers and researchers, say the authors. Electronic health records are increasingly used to measure health outcomes, and for research, but records from one part of the health service (e.g. primary care) may not capture health events occurring in other parts of the health system (e.g. hospital care). So a team of researchers ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Children with obstructive sleep apnea who had a common surgery to remove their tonsils and adenoids showed notable improvements in behavior, quality of life and other symptoms compared to those treated with "watchful waiting" and supportive care, according to a new study. However, surprisingly, there was no difference between both groups in the primary study outcome, attention and executive functioning, as measured by formal neuropsychological tests. The research was published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine, in conjunction with ...

Children with sleep apnea syndrome who have their tonsils and adenoids removed sleep better, are less restless and impulsive, and report a generally better quality of life, finds a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, the study found cognitive abilities did not improve compared with children who did not have surgery, and researchers say the findings don't mean surgery is an automatic first choice. The findings of the Childhood Adenotonsillectomy Trial (CHAT) will be presented May 21 at the American Thoracic Society 2013 meeting in Philadelphia. ...

Overweight and obese patients are significantly more likely than their normal-weight counterparts to repeatedly switch primary care doctors, a practice that disrupts continuity of care and leads to more emergency room visits, new Johns Hopkins research suggests. The practice of "doctor shopping" among overweight patients may be a result of negative experiences with the health care system, whether that be off-putting comments by office staff, unsolicited weight loss advice by providers, or improperly sized medical equipment and office furniture, says Kimberly A. Gudzune, ...

Irvine, Calif., May 21, 2013 — Children with autism showed significant improvement after six months of simple sensory exercises at home using everyday items such as scents, spoons and sponges, according to UC Irvine neurobiologists. They found that a treatment known as environmental enrichment led to notable gains in male subjects between the ages of 3 and 12. Results appear online in Behavioral Neuroscience. Study co-authors Cynthia Woo and Michael Leon randomly assigned 28 boys to one of two groups, balanced for age and autism severity. For half a year, all subjects ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Cancers of all types become most deadly when they metastasize and spread tumors throughout the body. Once cancer has reached this stage, it becomes very difficult for doctors to locate and treat the numerous tumors that can develop. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have found a way to create radioactive nanoparticles that target lymphoma tumor cells wherever they may be in the body. Michael Lewis, an associate professor of oncology in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine, says being able to target secondary tumors is vital to successfully ...

DURHAM, N.C. – An attack on glioblastoma brain tumor cells that uses a modified poliovirus is showing encouraging results in an early study to establish the proper dose level, researchers at Duke Cancer Institute report. The treatment, developed at Duke and tested in an ongoing phase 1 study, capitalizes on the discovery that cancer cells have an abundance of receptors that work like magnets drawing the poliovirus, which then infects and kills the cells. The investigational therapy, known as PVSRIPO, uses an engineered form of the virus that is lethal to cancer cells, ...

RICHLAND, Wash. – A new analysis shows that the nation's land and water resources could likely support the growth of enough algae to produce up to 25 billion gallons of algae-based fuel a year in the United States, one-twelfth of the country's yearly needs. The findings come from an in-depth look at the water resources that would be needed to grow significant amounts of algae in large, specially built shallow ponds. The results were published in the May 7 issue of Environmental Science and Technology, published by the American Chemical Society. "While there are many ...

Concerns continue to grow about the effects of climate change on fire. Wildfires are expected to increase 50 percent across the United States under a changing climate, over 100 percent in areas of the West by 2050 as projected by some studies. Of equal concern to scientists and policymakers alike are the atmospheric effects of wildfire emissions on climate. A new article published in the journal Forest Ecology and Management by U.S. Forest Service scientists synthesizes recent findings on the interactions between fire and climate and outlines future research needs. Authored ...

The results of a new study led by George Washington University Professor Tianshu Li provide direct computational evidence that nucleation of ice in small droplets is strongly size-dependent, an important conclusion in understanding water's behavior at the nanoscale. The formation of ice at the nanoscale is a challenging, basic scientific research question whose answer also has important implications for climate research and other fields. The crystallization of ice from supercooled water is generally initiated by a process called nucleation. Because of the speed and size ...

When infections occur in the body, stem cells in the blood often jump into action by multiplying and differentiating into mature immune cells that can fight off illness. But repeated infections and inflammation can deplete these cell populations, potentially leading to the development of serious blood conditions such as cancer. Now, a team of researchers led by biologists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has found that, in mouse models, the molecule microRNA-146a (miR-146a) acts as a critical regulator and protector of blood-forming stem cells (called ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke University engineers have developed a novel method for producing clean hydrogen, which could prove essential to weaning society off of fossil fuels and their environmental implications. While hydrogen is ubiquitous in the environment, producing and collecting molecular hydrogen for transportation and industrial uses is expensive and complicated. Just as importantly, a byproduct of most current methods of producing hydrogen is carbon monoxide, which is toxic to humans and animals. The Duke engineers, using a new catalytic approach, have shown in ...

Researchers at USC have found that a class of pharmaceuticals can both prevent and treat Alzheimer's Disease in mice. The drugs, known as "TSPO ligands," are currently used for certain types of neuroimaging. "We looked at the effects of TSPO ligand in young adult mice when pathology was at an early stage, and in aged mice when pathology was quite severe," said lead researcher Christian Pike of the USC Davis School of Gerontology. "TSPO ligand reduced measures of pathology and improved behavior at both ages." The team's findings were published online by the Journal ...

(Santa Barbara, California) –– About 12,800 years ago when the Earth was warming and emerging from the last ice age, a dramatic and anomalous event occurred that abruptly reversed climatic conditions back to near-glacial state. According to James Kennett, UC Santa Barbara emeritus professor in earth sciences, this climate switch fundamentally –– and remarkably –– occurred in only one year, heralding the onset of the Younger Dryas cool episode. The cause of this cooling has been much debated, especially because it closely coincided with the abrupt extinction of the majority ...

URBANA - As many as 35 percent of Mexican young adults may have a genetic predisposition for obesity, said a University of Illinois scientist who conducted a study at the Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosί. "The students who inherited genetic risk factors from both parents were already 15½ pounds heavier and 2 inches bigger around the waist than those who hadn't. They also had slightly higher fasting glucose levels," said Margarita Teran-Garcia, a U of I professor of food science and human nutrition. In the study, 251 18- to 25-year-olds were tested for risk ...

A new report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) highlights the plight of great apes in the forest concessions of Central Africa and recommends actions to improve protection for gorillas and chimpanzees in these mixed-used landscapes, according to authors from the Wildlife Conservation Society, WWF, IUCN, Lincoln Park Zoo and Washington University. While most conservation efforts are focused on protecting great apes and other species in Central Africa's protected areas, a significant area of the region's rainforest used by gorillas and chimpanzees ...

Ninety-seven teams from 28 Colorado schools participated in today's car competitions hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The student teams raced solar and lithium ion powered vehicles they designed and built themselves. Trophies for the fastest lithium-ion powered model cars were given to Colorado students from University School, Greeley, "Lucky Charms," first place; Southern Hills Middle School, Boulder, "Fat Albert,", second place; and Southern Hills, "Green Spartan," third place. Three lithium-ion design trophies ...

Environment is not the only factor in shaping regulatory patterns -- and it might not even be the primary factor, according to a new Rice University study that looks at how cells' protein networks relate to a bacteria's genome. The Rice lab of computer scientist Luay Nakhleh reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that when environmental factors are eliminated from an evolutionary model, mutations and genetic drift can give rise to the patterns that appear. They studied changes that show up in regulatory networks that determine the organism's ...

VIDEO: This animation of imagery from NOAA's GOES-13 satellite shows the movement of storm systems in the south central United States on May 20, 2013. Warm, moist gulf air flowing across... Click here for more information. On May 20, 2013, NASA and NOAA satellites observed the system that generated severe weather in the south central United States and spawned the Moore, Okla., tornado. The tornado that struck Moore on the afternoon of Monday, May 20, was an F-4 tornado ...

AURORA, Colo. (May 21, 2013) – A paper recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine and co-written by physicians and scientists at the University of Colorado School of Medicine finds that an important genetic risk factor for pulmonary fibrosis can be used to identify individuals at risk for this deadly lung disease. Researchers looked at a fairly common variant of the gene for mucin-5B, a protein that is a component of the mucous produced by the bronchial tubes. While this variant of the MUC5B gene is fairly common, pulmonary fibrosis is an uncommonly reported ...

Boston, Mass.—By studying the roles two proteins, thrombospondin-1 and prosaposin, play in discouraging cancer metastasis, a trans-Atlantic research team has identified a five-amino acid fragment of prosaposin that significantly reduces metastatic spread in mouse models of prostate, breast and lung cancer. The findings suggest that a prosaposin-based drug could potentially block metastasis in a variety of cancers. The study team, led by Randolph Watnick, PhD, at Boston Children's Hospital, Vivek Mittal, PhD, at Weill Cornell Medical College and Lars Akslen, MD, PhD, ...