UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL 8AM EST ON FEB. 13, 2024 ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell University researchers have created a new version of a microbe to compete economically with E. coli – a bacteria commonly used as a research tool due to its ability to synthesize proteins – to conduct low-cost and scalable synthetic biological experiments. As an inexpensive multiplier – much like having a photocopier in a test tube – the bacteria Vibrio natriegens could help labs test protein variants for creation of pharmaceuticals, synthetic fuels and sustainable compounds that battle weeds or pests. The microbe can work effectively without costly incubators, shakers or deep freezers ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study examines the circumstances behind who is found at fault when cars hit pedestrians in an urban area.   Results showed that the environment where the crash took place – especially the types of roads and the amount of access to marked crosswalks – played a key role in whether the pedestrian or the driver was blamed for the collision.   In the study, done in Columbus, pedestrians were more likely to be blamed when they were crossing roads with a high volume of cars traveling at faster speeds, and where crosswalks were few and far between.   In areas of the city – such as downtown – ...

Oxytocin (OXT) is a hormone that is known for its effects on psychological well-being and emotional bonding in animals. Interestingly, research has shown that this natural chemical in the brain plays a crucial role in other cognitive processes as well, including learning and memory. Now, scientists may have discovered exactly how OXT influences memory in animals by studying “OXT neurons” that contain OXT receptors and function differently based on the availability of the chemical in the brain. In a recent study published on 16 November 2023, in PLOS One, a group ...

In supramolecular chemistry, the self-assembly state of molecules plays a significant role in determining their tangible properties. Controlling the self-assembled state has garnered significant attention as it can be exploited to design materials with desired properties like charge transport capability and fluorescence wavelength. For years, scientists have been trying to decipher how molecular organization impacts the properties of supramolecular assemblies that are in the nano (<10 nm) and mesoscopic (10–1000 nm) scales. However, the study of structures with supramolecular polymer assemblies derived from the same monomer is often hindered by dynamic structural ...

Marine heatwaves will become a regular occurrence in the Arctic in the near future and are a product of higher anthropogenic greenhouse-gas emissions – as shown in a study just released by Dr. Armineh Barkhordarian from Universität Hamburg’s Cluster of Excellence for climate research CLICCS. Since 2007, conditions in the Arctic have shifted, as confirmed by data recently published in the journal Nature Communications Earth & Environment. Between 2007 and 2021, the marginal zones ...

University of Leeds Press Release Under embargo until 10:00 GMT on 13 February There are graphics and photographic images that help explain this story – see under Note to editors Greenland’s ice sheet is melting - and being replaced by vegetation An estimated 11,000 sq miles or 28,707 sq kilometres of Greenland’s ice sheet and glaciers have melted over the last three decades, according to a major analysis of historic satellite records. The total area of ice loss is equivalent to the size of Albania, and represents about 1.6 % of Greenland’s ...

-With pictures- A new research from scientists at Durham University reveals an unexpected pathway towards brighter, more efficient, and more stable blue organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). The findings, published in the journal Nature Photonics could help enable the next generation of energy-saving display technologies. OLED displays, used in most modern smartphones and TVs, rely on light emission from specialised organic molecules. Obtaining stable, efficient blue emission suitable for displays remains a key challenge. Now, Durham ...

A new study, co-led by UCLA Health and the University of Glasgow, found that young teenagers who develop a strong distrust of other people as a result of childhood bullying are substantially more likely to have significant mental health problems as they enter adulthood compared to those who do not develop interpersonal trust issues. The study, published in the journal Nature Mental Health on Feb. 13, is believed to be the first to examine the link between peer bullying, interpersonal distrust, and the subsequent development of mental health problems, such as anxiety, depression, hyperactivity and anger. Researchers ...

On healthy reefs around the world, corals, algae, fishes and microbes live interconnected and in balance—exchanging nutrients, resources, and chemical signals. New research led by the University of Hawai‘i (UH) at Mānoa and and the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) revealed that when coral bleaching occurs, corals release unique organic compounds into the surrounding water that not only promote bacterial growth overall, but select for opportunistic bacteria that may further stress reefs.  “Our results demonstrate how the impacts of both short-term thermal ...

Short and simple comments from ordinary social media users can help others online to spot fake news, a new study shows.   Research shows reading corrections from others online can reduce the perceived accuracy of and engagement with incorrect content.   Experts found the format and strength of corrective comments do not matter much. Social media users do not need to write long and detailed comments to flag false content.   While the study shows the general effectiveness of social correction, it also finds ...

HOUSTON ― A specific combination of targeted therapy and immunotherapy may better help patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) overcome inherent immune resistance and reinvigorate anti-tumor activity, according to a new study led by a researcher from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.   Results from the Phase II umbrella HUDSON study, published today in Nature Medicine, demonstrated that the anti PD-L1 antibody, durvalumab, coupled with the ATR inhibitor, ceralasertib, provided the greatest clinical benefit of four combinations evaluated.   This pair had an objective response ...

A diet that limits meat and dairy but is rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts is linked to less erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence, and other common side effects seen in prostate cancer patients, a new study shows. Led by researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the analysis of more than 3,500 men with prostate cancer explored whether eating a more plant-based diet was associated with quality-of-life issues that often arise after treatment. Sorting patients into five groups (quintiles) based on the proportion of plant versus animal foods the men said they eat, the authors found ...

Emergency medical service (EMS) systems are not consistently providing optimal care based on new national standards of quality to patients who call 911, according to a new study from the Icahn School of Medicine of Mount Sinai. The study demonstrates that EMS performance on key clinical and patient safety measures varies widely across urban and rural communities. The findings, published in the peer-reviewed Prehospital Emergency Care, identify opportunities that could lead to improved care during 911 responses and improved outcomes for patients across the United States. “EMS systems in the United States have traditionally relied ...

CRISPR/Cas systems have undergone tremendous advancement in the past decade. These precise genome editing tools have applications ranging from transgenic crop development to gene therapy and beyond. And with their recent development of CRISPR-COPIES, researchers at the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) are further improving CRISPR’s versatility and ease of use. “CRISPR-COPIES is a tool that can quickly identify appropriate chromosomal integration sites for genetic engineering in any organism,” said Huimin Zhao, CABBI Conversion Theme Leader ...

Nearly half of teenagers are worried about having children and many lack knowledge about their reproductive health, find two new studies by UCL researchers. The studies, published in Human Fertility and Health Education Journal, used survey results from 931 students in England aged 16 to 18, collected between May 2021 and July 2022. The Human Fertility paper found that a majority of students (64%) still wanted to have children in the future – with nearly half (49%) desiring to have two children. However, 45% of all participants said that they had concerns about future ...

The use of a digital remote monitoring technology in care homes has been found to reduce hospital A&E attendances by 11% and emergency admissions by 25% in a new study from the Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) Better Care programme, published today in Age and Ageing - the official journal of the British Geriatrics Society. There are over 400,000 people living in care homes across the UK, many of whom will be living with complex medical needs that put them at greater risk of needing emergency healthcare, especially during the winter months. Through the HDR UK Better Care programme, a collaboration between the universities ...

New research on rural New Englanders shows that gardening, hunting, fishing and other HWFP activities are important tools for maintaining food security through extreme events, such as pandemics or climate change events.  University of Vermont and University of Maine researchers found that both food insecurity and home and wild food production (HWFP) – gardening, hunting, fishing, foraging, and having “backyard” poultry or livestock – increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and those who undertook HWFP activities exhibited improved food security 9-12 months later.   The paper, published in Scientific Reports, surveyed ...

UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL:  Feb. 12, 2024 5:45 p.m. Eastern Standard Time                                                                                          Media Contacts: Karen Addis, APR, karen@addispr.com, +1 (301) 787-2394; Kerri Wade, MPA, kwade@smfm.org, +1 ...

“[...] people of the northeastern region [of India] consume betel quid, consisting of raw areca nut [...]. People often swallow the entire betel-quid after chewing, which is believed to contribute to the development of oral, esophageal, and gastric cancers.” BUFFALO, NY- February 12, 2024 – A new research paper was published in Oncotarget's Volume 15 on February 5, 2024, entitled, “Differential expression of Mad2 gene is consequential to the patterns of histone H3 post-translational modifications in its promoter region in human esophageal ...

Rochester Institute of Technology’s Center for Detectors has been chosen by NASA for two research programs: Early Stage Innovations (ESI) and Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT), with the hope of helping future spacecraft find new discoveries in the vast universe. Under the leadership of Center for Detectors Director Don Figer, the team will be advancing and characterizing single-photon sensing complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors to determine if they can survive the harsh radiation environments in NASA missions. The intent is to fly these types of detectors on future missions to find life on Jupiter’s ...

University of Wyoming archaeology Professor Todd Surovell and his team of collaborators have discovered a tube-shaped bead made of bone that is about 12,940 years old. The bead, found at the La Prele Mammoth site in Converse County, is the oldest known bead in the Americas. Surovell’s research was published in the peer-reviewed journal Scientific Reports; the paper is titled “Use of hare bone for the manufacture of a Clovis bead.” Members of the research team included people from UW, the Office of the Wyoming State Archaeologist, the University of Manchester, Weber ...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Multiple system atrophy is a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disease, where insoluble inclusions of the protein alpha-synuclein appear in oligodendrocyte cells of the brain. The resulting pathogenesis features neuroinflammation, demyelination and neurodegeneration. Oligodendrocytes produce myelin, an insulating sheath on the axons of nerves. In 2020, Ashley Harms, Ph.D., and University of Alabama at Birmingham colleagues published an Acta Neuropathologica study that used a mouse model to show that the ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Pumpkin toadlets are in trouble. Progressively severe droughts are disrupting the microbiomes of the thumbnail-sized orange frogs, potentially leaving them vulnerable to a deadly fungal disease, according to a new study by an international research team. The finding suggests that abnormal rainfall patterns, which are expected to worsen due to climate change and deforestation, may upset mutually beneficial relationships between wildlife and microorganisms, leading to biodiversity decline.   The researchers, led by Penn State doctoral ...

UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL: Feb. 12, 2024, 4:30 PM EST                                                                                Media Contacts:  Karen Addis, APR, karen@addispr.com, +1 (301) 787-2394; Kerri Wade, MPA, kwade@smfm.org, +1 (202) 236-1780                                National ...

Your morning cereal, a jar of nuts, the sands of distant planets, and even the concrete in your city are all examples of granular systems surrounding us. And such systems are harboring secrets that could change the way we mix things up. In a new paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), scientists at the University of Rochester, including Rachel Glade, an assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences and of mechanical engineering; Fernando David Cúñez, a former postdoctoral research associate ...