Big seeds produced by tropical trees such as black palms were probably once ingested and then left whole by huge mammals called gomphotheres. Gomphotheres weighed more than a ton and dispersed the seeds over large distances. But these Neotropical creatures disappeared more than 10,000 years ago. So why aren't large-seeded plants also extinct? A paper published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) suggests that rodents may have taken over the seed-dispersal role of gomphotheres. "The question has been: how did a tree like ...

San Diego, CA, July 17, 2012 – Most research into youth violence has sought to understand the risk factors that increase the likelihood of violence. Now, a federal panel has called for a new research approach to identify the protective factors that would reduce the likelihood that violence will happen. Grounded in the tools and insights of public health, the approach calls for studies that can guide the development of prevention strategies to reduce or eliminate risk factors, and add or enhance protective factors. The findings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's ...

Summer is just around the corner and it's time to dust off the garden tables and chairs. But garden furniture that has been left in the shade too long is often covered with a slimy film of algae, moss, bacteria and fungi which is difficult or even impossible to remove. Scientists are now hoping that they can solve this problem by incorporating titanium dioxide molecules in the plastic used to make the garden chair and adding a little bit of sunlight. When these titanium dioxide molecules are 'activated' by the UV light in the sun's rays, they act as a kind of catalyst, ...

WAKHAN CORRIDOR, AFGHANISTAN, (July 17, 2012) – Two snow leopards were captured, fitted with satellite collars, and released for the first time in Afghanistan by a team of Wildlife Conservation Society conservationists and Afghan veterinarians conducting research during a recent expedition. The team successfully captured and released the male snow leopards on May 27 and June 8 respectively. Each cat was weighed, measured, fitted with a Vectronix satellite collar, and DNA samples were taken. After DNA samples, the healthy snow leopards were released and headed up the ...

A cancer diagnosis for adolescents and young adults can be especially challenging, and new research shows the social, psychological and informational support these patients need might be going unmet. Compared to both children and older adult cancer patients, adolescents and young adults, ages 14-39, demonstrate a different set of psychosocial needs and issues related to their unique age-related development. Whether these patients are treated in a pediatric or adult setting can influence their clinical and psychosocial well-being. A new study lead by University of ...

New Rochelle, NY, July 16, 2012—A small, naturally occurring nucleic acid sequence, called a microRNA, known to regulate a number of different cancers, appears to alter the activity of the androgen receptor, which plays a critical role in prostate cancer. Directly targeting microRNA-125b to block androgen receptor activity represents a novel approach for treating castrate-resistant prostate cancer. This promising new strategy for improving the effectiveness of anti-androgenic and other hormonal therapies is described in an article in BioResearch Open Access, a new bimonthly ...

July 17, 2012 – Toronto – Scientists have discovered two genetic variants associated with the substantial, rapid weight gain occurring in nearly half the patients treated with antipsychotic medications, according to two studies involving the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). These results could eventually be used to identify which patients have the variations, enabling clinicians to choose strategies to prevent this serious side-effect and offer more personalized treatment. "Weight gain occurs in up to 40 per cent of patients taking medications called ...

Researchers from the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) at the University of Barcelona (UB) have coordinated a research into how the IDPN nitrile causes neurological syndromes similar to those of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a severe neuromuscular degenerative disease. The study, led by Jordi Llorens, has been recently published in Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology journal. Nitriles, chemical compounds containing the cyano (-CN) group, are ubiquitous in nature and have diverse applications in industry. In nature they appear as cyanogenic ...

URBANA -- Phosphorus is a vital nutrient for pig growth, but pigs do not always digest it well. Research conducted at the University of Illinois has determined how adding various levels of the enzyme phytase to the diet improves how pigs digest the phosphorus in four different feed ingredients. Improving phosphorus digestibility has positive implications for producers' bottom lines as well as for the environment. "The majority of the phosphorus in plant feed ingredients is bound in phytate," said U of I animal sciences professor Hans Stein. "It is difficult for pigs to ...

CLEMSON — Computerized aids that include person-like characteristics can influence trust and dependence among adults, according to a Clemson University researcher. A recently published study by Clemson University psychology associate professor Richard Pak examined how decision-making would be affected by a human-like aid. The study focused on adults' trust, dependence, and performance while using a computerized decision-making aid for persons with diabetes. The study is one of the first to examine how the design of decision-support aids on consumer devices can influence ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. – People who experience a physical health problem, from diabetes and back pain to cancer or heart disease, are three times more likely to seek mental health care than patients who report having no physical ailment, according to a new study by Oregon State University researchers. The study, which is now online in the journal Health Services Research, indicates there is a need for better-coordinated care between physical and mental health providers. It is the first nationally representative study that statistically shows a major link between physical health ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Frequent abuse by a parent can increase a child's cancer risk in adulthood, and the effects are especially significant when mothers abuse their daughters and fathers abuse their sons, according to new research from Purdue University. "People often say that children are resilient and they'll bounce back, but we found that there are events that can have long-term consequences on adult health," said Kenneth Ferraro, distinguished professor of sociology and director of Purdue's Center on Aging and the Life Course. "In this case, people who were frequently ...

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Scientists searching for clues to understand how superweeds obtain resistance to the popular herbicide glyphosate may have been missing a critical piece of information, a Purdue University study shows. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in the weed killer sold under the name RoundUp, is the most widely used herbicide in the United States, but some plants have grown resistant to it. This has caused farmers to turn to additional herbicides. While the mechanisms that have led to resistance are not fully known, Bill Johnson, a professor of weed science; ...

Drexel University engineers continue to drive research into the use of carbon nanotubes, straw-like structures that are more than 1,000 times thinner than a single human hair. Their most recent development uses the tiny tubes to separate liquids within a solution. The researchers have shown that individual carbon nanotubes can act as a separation channel that would force two differing molecules to separate as easily as oil and water. For example, the molecules that comprise two chemically distinct liquids will interact differently with the walls of the nanotube as the ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — For years, the U.S. Navy has employed human divers, equipped with sonar cameras, to search for underwater mines attached to ship hulls. The Navy has also trained dolphins and sea lions to search for bombs on and around vessels. While animals can cover a large area in a short amount of time, they are costly to train and care for, and don't always perform as expected. In the last few years, Navy scientists, along with research institutions around the world, have been engineering resilient robots for minesweeping and other risky underwater missions. The ...

Johns Hopkins tissue engineers have used tiny, artificial fiber scaffolds thousands of times smaller than a human hair to help coax stem cells into developing into cartilage, the shock-absorbing lining of elbows and knees that often wears thin from injury or age. Reporting online June 4 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, investigators produce an important component of cartilage in both laboratory and animal models. While the findings are still years away from use in people, the researchers say the results hold promise for devising new techniques to ...

WASHINGTON — Changing the way that Medicare payments are adjusted to account for regional variations in the cost of providing care as recommended by a previous report from the Institute of Medicine would result in payment increases for some hospitals and practitioners and decreases for others, concludes the Phase II report from the IOM study. Geographic adjustments should be used to ensure the accuracy of payments, said the committee that wrote the report, but they are not optimal tools to tackle larger national policy goals such as improving access to care in medically ...

ERIE, Pa. - Just as the globalization of trade and travel is rapidly evolving, so is the globalization of infectious diseases and the need for cooperative approaches to detect, prevent and control them, according to Dr. David Dausey, chair of the Mercyhurst University Public Health Department. The outbreaks of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and avian influenza H5N1 in recent years showed how infectious diseases can significantly impact national economies and exposed the need for cooperation in detecting and controlling disease to protect populations and economies. Such ...

AURORA, Colo. (July 17, 2012) –Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have found a drug that boosts memory function in those with Down syndrome, a major milestone in the treatment of this genetic disorder that could significantly improve quality of life. "Before now there had never been any positive results in attempts to improve cognitive abilities in persons with Down syndrome through medication," said Alberto Costa, MD, Ph.D., who led the four- year study at the CU School of Medicine. "This is the first time we have been able to move the needle ...

PASADENA, Calif.—Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) pioneered the study of the link between irregularities in the immune system and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism a decade ago. Since then, studies of postmortem brains and of individuals with autism, as well as epidemiological studies, have supported the correlation between alterations in the immune system and autism spectrum disorder. What has remained unanswered, however, is whether the immune changes play a causative role in the development of the disease or are merely a side ...

PHILADELPHIA (July 17, 2012)— The combination of obesity and vitamin D deficiency may put people at even greater risk of insulin resistance than either factor alone, according to new research from the Drexel University School of Public Health recently published early online in the journal Diabetes Care. Insulin resistance is a major risk factor for Type 2 diabetes, a condition that affects 25.6 million adults and is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. "Vitamin D insufficiency and obesity are individual risk factors for insulin resistance and diabetes," ...

Scientists from Western University in London, Canada and the Children's Health Research Institute, an Institute within the Lawson Health Research Institute, have identified the critical role of a receptor called c-Kit in the development and function of insulin-producing beta cells, making it an exciting therapeutic target for the management of diabetes. The research, led by Rennian Wang, demonstrated that overexpression of c-Kit not only leads to increased insulin production but also counteracts the early diabetic effects of a high-fat diet. The paper and an accompanying ...

Intuitively it simply makes sense: exposure to sexual content in movies at an early age probably influences adolescents' sexual behavior. And yet, even though a great deal of research has shown that adolescents who watch more risky behaviors in popular movies, like drinking or smoking, are more likely to drink and smoke themselves, surprisingly little research has examined whether movies influence adolescents' sexual behaviors. Until now. Over six years, psychological scientists examined whether or not seeing sex on the big screen translates into sex in the real world ...

Santa Barbara, Calif. – As spatial planning is used increasingly to manage fisheries and other ocean resources, researchers are working to determine the best ways to use and refine the various spatial management tools. Among them are marine protected areas (MPAs), one of the most common methods, which limit or entirely curtail fishing in a given area. A new paper published in the early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA) on July 2 describes research in this area conducted by UCSB Marine Science Institute project scientist Andrew Rassweiler ...

Major disparities exist along racial and ethnic lines in the United States for various medical conditions, but guidance is scarce about how to reduce these gaps. Now, a new "roadmap" has been unveiled to give organizations expert guidance on how to improve health equity in their own patient populations. Finding Answers, a national program based at the University of Chicago and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, seeks evidence-based solutions to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities. Its new roadmap, outlined as part of a symposium of six papers published ...