New research from North Carolina State University provides molecular-level insights into how cellulose – the most common organic compound on Earth and the main structural component of plant cell walls – breaks down in wood to create "bio-oils" which can be refined into any number of useful products, including liquid transportation fuels to power a car or an airplane. Using a supercomputer that can perform functions thousands of times faster than a standard desktop computer, NC State chemical and biomolecular engineer Dr. Phillip Westmoreland and doctoral student Vikram ...

Highlights In a study of African Americans with kidney disease, levels of mineral metabolites rose over time; those with faster rates of kidney function decline had the greatest increases in metabolites. Higher baseline levels of metabolites were linked with an increased risk for kidney failure or death independent of kidney function. Disordered mineral metabolism is more severe in African Americans with chronic kidney disease, which might partially explain why their disease progresses more rapidly to kidney failure. Washington, DC (December 13, 2012) — Abnormalities ...

Highlights Blocking the receptor for endothelin lowers novel cardiovascular risk factors in patients with chronic kidney disease independent of blood pressure. The findings suggest that blocking the receptor may provide heart-related benefits to these patients. 60 million people globally have chronic kidney disease. Washington, DC (December 13, 2012) — Blocking the receptor for proteins that constrict blood vessels reduces markers of heart-related problems in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue ...

A new study from the rainforests of Panama provides an unprecedented level of detail regarding the diversity and distribution of arthropod species from the soil to the forest canopy. Yves Basset, scientific coordinator of the CTFS Arthropod Initiative at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, led an international team on Project IBISCA-Panama to sample, sort, catalogue, and finally estimate that a 6,000 hectare forest hosts a total of around 25,000 arthropod species – a figure vastly outnumbering that of better-studied organisms. The study will be published online ...

People over age 65 with high psychosocial distress face increased risk of stroke, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Stroke. Psychosocial distress is a broad concept that includes depression, stress, a negative outlook and dissatisfaction with life. In their 10-year study, researchers followed 4,120 people in the Chicago Health and Aging Project for rates of death and stroke incidents. Due to some participants being involved in an HMO only 2,649 participants were analyzed for rates of incident stroke. Participants were 65 years and older ...

Washington, D.C. — When materials are stressed, they eventually change shape. Initially these changes are elastic, and reverse when the stress is relieved. When the material's strength is exceeded, the changes become permanent. This could result in the material breaking or shattering, but it could also re-shape the material, such as a hammer denting a piece of metal. Understanding this last group of changes is the focus of research from a team including Carnegie's Ho-kwang "Dave" Mao. Their breakthrough research on the behavior nickel nanocrystals under intense pressure ...

The Government and police efforts to tackle financial crime – from business fraud to tax evasion – are hampered by a lack of accurate data about the nature and extent of offending, according to new research. Most of the data available on financial crime is produced without a credible methodology, says Michael Levi, Professor of Criminology at Cardiff University, whose research was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). "Typically, the information available on offending or threat is just a marketing hype," says Professor Levi. "It comes from business ...

Scientists at the University of Liverpool have found that male mice produce a pheromone that provokes females and competitor males to remember a preference for the place where the pheromone was previously encountered. Some animals, such as moths, use a sensitive tracking system to trace airborne sex pheromones to the source, while others, such as snakes, follow trails of pheromones left on the ground. A team from the University's Institute of Integrative Biology has discovered that mice use a different system to locate mates and competitors by remembering exactly where ...

Two major barriers to the advancement of DNA nanotechnology beyond the research lab have been knocked down. This emerging technology employs DNA as a programmable building material for self-assembled, nanometer-scale structures. Many practical applications have been envisioned, and researchers recently demonstrated a synthetic membrane channel made from DNA. Until now, however, design processes were hobbled by a lack of structural feedback. Assembly was slow and often of poor quality. Now researchers led by Prof. Hendrik Dietz of the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) ...

Treating infection-prone patients over a 12-month period with high doses of vitamin D reduces their risk of developing respiratory tract infection – and consequently their antibiotic requirement. This according to a new study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital published in the online scientific journal BMJ Open. "Our research can have important implications for patients with recurrent infections or a compromised immune defence, such as a lack of antibodies, and can also help to prevent the emerging resistance to antibiotics that ...

In a study published today in the Open Access journal PLOS Pathogens, researchers at Emory University have discovered a potentially important mechanism by which the Ebola virus alters and evades the immune response of its infected host. Ebola virus is the causative agent of Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever (EHF), a disease with up to 90 percent mortality. While human outbreaks of Ebola hemorrhagic fever have been confined to Africa, Ebola virus infections in bats, the presumed natural reservoir of the virus, have also been detected in Europe and Asia. The high lethality of ...

ANN ARBOR — A new genetic analysis has revealed that many Amazon tree species are likely to survive human-caused climate warming in the coming century, contrary to previous findings that temperature increases would cause them to die out. However, the authors of the new study warn that extreme drought and forest fires will impact Amazonia as temperatures rise, and the over-exploitation of the region's resources continues to be a major threat to its future. Conservation policy for the Amazon should remain focused on reducing global greenhouse-gas emissions and preventing ...

In a study published today in the Open Access journal PLOS Pathogens, scientists at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario have determined that a specialized class of immune cells, known as T cells, retains its functionality with age and can respond to virus infections with the same vigor as T cells from a young person. This is a valuable finding as it is generally believed that elderly individuals are at increased risk of infection because immunity deteriorates with age. T cells play an important role in defending the body from virus infections. For a long time, ...

New genetic analysis has revealed that many Amazon tree species are likely to survive man-made climate warming in the coming century, contrary to previous findings that temperature increases would cause them to die out. A study, published in the latest edition of Ecology and Evolution, reveals the surprising age of some Amazonian tree species – more than 8 million years – and therefore shows that they have survived previous periods as warm as many of the global warming scenarios forecast for the year 2100. The authors write that, having survived warm periods in the ...

Multiple myeloma is a type of leukaemia which affects B lymphocytes. There have been some indications that exposure to pesticides or chlorinated solvents increases the risk of developing this cancer. New research published in Biomed Central's open access journal Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology provides a large (from 22 centres across Europe), matched control study into lifetime risk of multiple myeloma. They find that risk of Multiple myeloma is related to farm work, printing and cleaning. But although exposure to pesticides seemed to be a risk, exposure ...

Wearable technology is not only for sports and fashion enthusiasts it can also be used to monitor and aid clinical rehabilitation according to new research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BioMedical Engineering OnLine. Neurorehabilitation researchers from Italy have developed a low cost, wearable system, consisting of strain sensors made of conductive elastomers printed onto fabric. A low voltage battery powers the sensors, which are then able to send data to a computer via Bluetooth. In this case study a wireless inertial sensor (MEMS) containing ...

The origins of congenital heart defects could be traced right back to the first stages of embryonic development - according to University of East Anglia (UEA) research. Findings published today in the journal PLOS ONE show that the beginnings of important parts of the heart can be traced to very early stages of embryo development. The research has been funded by the British Heart Foundation. Biologists investigated chicken eggs at the gastrulation stage - between 12 and 14 hours after fertilisation. They found that some cells would go on to create the anterior ...

Survival of the fittest: longevity of Olympic medallists in the modern era Mortality in former Olympic athletes: retrospective cohort analysis Editorial: Everyone could enjoy the "survival advantage" of elite athletes Olympic medallists live longer than the general population, regardless of country of origin, medal won, or type of sport played, finds a study in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today. A second study comparing athletes who trained at different physical intensities, found that those from high or moderate intensity sports have no added survival ...

A detection dog to identify Clostridium difficile in stool samples and infected patients: proof of principle study Dogs can sniff out Clostridium difficile (the infective agent that is responsible for many of the dreaded "hospital acquired infections") in stool samples and even in the air surrounding patients in hospital with a very high degree of accuracy, finds a study in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today. The findings support previous studies of dogs detecting various types of cancer and could have great potential for screening hospital wards to help ...

Researchers in Belgium also show how dogs can help patients with severe sleep problems. They describe a 35 year old patient with severe excessive daytime sleepiness. She suffered sleep attacks up to six times a day and sometimes slept up to 16 hours a day. Until recently, this severe sleepiness considerably hampered her social life and limited her use of public transport, as she usually fell asleep within a few minutes of sitting down. She'd then wake up at the end of the line and have to fight sleepiness on the way back. Sometimes she'd forget where she started ...

The tooth fairy and malpractice Opinions of the tooth fairy as kind and giving may need to be revised following "mounting reports of less child-friendly activity", says a paper published in the BMJ Christmas edition and appearing online today. Researchers from across London became concerned following misdemeanours of the mythical character and a worrying trend in malpractice. One boy in particular became extremely distressed because the tooth fairy "had put a tooth in his left ear" after he left it under his pillow. Further investigation turned out he was right. Further ...

Mind wandering and driving: responsibility case-control study People whose minds wander whilst driving, especially when intense, are significantly more likely to be responsible for a crash and are threatening safety on the roads, warns a study in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today. The term "mind wandering" has been coined to describe thinking unrelated to the task at hand. It happens most often at rest or during repetitive tasks. All drivers experience occasional drifting of their minds towards internal thoughts, a temporary "zoning out" that might dangerously ...

Can I take a space flight? Considerations for doctors With the prospect of space travel for tourists looming, clinicians could soon be asked to advise on medical clearance for their patients, says a paper published in the BMJ Christmas edition and appearing online today. Space travel opportunities are becoming increasingly available to the general public with bookings already in place. A team of experts from North America therefore looked to provide advice to clinicians who require direction when advising patients on space travel. The Aerospace Medical Association ...

Hamilton, Ont. (Dec. 13, 2012) — Our immune system does not shut down with age, says a new study led by McMaster University researchers. A study published in PLOS Pathogens today shows a specialized class of immune cells, known as T cells, can respond to virus infections in an older person with the same vigour as T cells from a young person. "For a long time, it was thought the elderly were at a higher risk of infections because they lacked these immune cells, but that simply isn't the case," said Jonathan Bramson, the study's principal investigator. "The elderly are ...

(TORONTO, Canada – Dec. 13, 2012 ) – Cancer scientists led by Dr. John Dick at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre have found a way to follow single tumour cells and observe their growth over time. By using special immune-deficient mice to propagate human colorectal cancer, they found that genetic mutations, regarded by many as the chief suspect driving cancer growth, are only one piece of the puzzle. The team discovered that biological factors and cell behaviour – not only genes – drive tumour growth, contributing to therapy failure and relapse. The findings, published ...