FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Working with mammalian retinal cells, neuroscientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine have shown that, unlike most light-sensing cells (photoreceptors) in the retina, one special type uses two different pathways at the same time to transmit electrical “vision” signals to the brain. The work also reveals that such photoreceptors, according to the researchers, may have ancient origins on the evolutionary scale. This and other findings, published Dec 18, in PNAS, “shed scientific as well as literal light” on a decades-long mystery ...

Speaking today at a hearing of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, Gerontological Society of America members Jennifer Craft Morgan, PhD, FGSA, and Richard J. Mollot, JD, called on lawmakers to enact policies that enable greater state and national oversight of assisted living facilities, and that bolster the workforce and engagement of residents and care partners. Senators convened the hearing, titled “Assisted Living Facilities: Understanding Long-Term Care Options for Older Adults,” to examine challenges faced by assisted living facility residents. Committee Chair Bob Casey recently sent letters to the CEOs of three ...

Philadelphia, January 25, 2024 – The American College of Radiology® (ACR®), working in close collaboration with four other radiology societies from around the world, have issued a joint statement on the development and use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in radiology. This groundbreaking joint statement is openly available in ACR’s Journal of the American College of Radiology, published by Elsevier. It explores the potential challenges and ethical and safety concerns related to integrating this new technology into radiology practice. “Developing, Purchasing, Implementing and Monitoring AI Tools ...

Las Vegas, NV (Jan. 25, 2024) — The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation® and the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) are proud to host the annual Crohn’s & Colitis Congress®, taking place on Jan. 25-27, 2024, in Las Vegas. The Crohn’s & Colitis Congress convenes researchers, clinicians, and other professionals involved in the care of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) to share the latest research breakthroughs and treatment advancements in IBD. During this premier meeting, we’ll review the latest advancements in IBD care that aim to improve the lives of the millions of Americans living with Crohn’s disease ...

All animals need sleep. When humans or animals don’t get enough, it can lead to trouble paying attention, irritability, and other ill effects. And yet, researchers reporting in the journal Current Biology on January 25 have made the surprising discovery that a small Australian marsupial called an antechinus will sacrifice hours of sleep per night to make more time for sex during the mating season. The researchers say the multi-year study is the first to show direct evidence for this type of sleep restriction in any land-dwelling mammal. It’s a trade-off between sleep and reproduction that they say is likely driven by ...

What are the origins of wings and tails in birds? This is one of the key questions in the evolution of animals. It has long been accepted that their evolution began in feathered dinosaurs. Some of these dinosaurs had feathers on the tails and small wing-like feathers on their forelimbs (arms). These small wing-like structures called ‘proto-wings’ are composed of special feathers known as pennaceous feathers — the stiff feathers found in the wings and tails of birds. The ancient form of these feathers first emerged in dinosaurs during the Jurassic Period, and these dinosaurs, called ...

Small omnivorous and insectivorous dinosaurs may have flapped small, feathered primitive wings to scare prey out of hiding places, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. The authors built a robot dinosaur named Robopteryx to investigate how grasshoppers responded to different potential scaring behaviours, and speculate that the results could help explain why feathered wings evolved before they were capable of flight in some types of dinosaurs. Although the remains of numerous species of feathered dinosaurs have been discovered, so far only members of one group of dinosaurs known as ...

About The Study: The current approach to vision screening in the U.S. may not adequately provide care to all children. At each stage along the care pathway, children from historically marginalized racial and ethnic groups, low-income households, and non–English language speakers experience worse outcomes—they were less likely to receive screening, more likely to be referred for failed screening, and less likely to establish care with a specialist. High referral rates in these vulnerable groups may suggest higher prevalence of undiagnosed conditions or elevated false-positive results from suboptimal screening strategies.  Authors: Isdin Oke, M.D., M.P.H., ...

About The Study: This study of 2,780 adolescents found that persistent withdrawn symptoms and increasing somatic symptoms during early to mid-adolescence were associated with an increased risk of suicidal thoughts in mid-adolescence, even after accounting for comorbid symptoms and confounders. Attention should be paid to the suicidal risk associated with these symptoms, particularly when they persist or increase in the longitudinal follow-up. Authors: Shuntaro Ando, Ph.D., of the University of Tokyo, is the corresponding author.  To ...

Carbonic maceration wines are increasingly in demand on the market. They are young red wines in which floral and fresh fruit aromas predominate and they must be consumed within the first year. The best-known example is Beaujolais nouveau in France, but there is also a tradition in La Rioja and Catalonia, especially in the Montsant area and the Conca de Barberà. Research by the URV has found that the quality of these wines can be increased by using an unconventional yeast that considerably improves their organoleptic properties and speeds up the malolactic fermentation process. ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, January 25, 2024 Contact: Gina DiGravio, 617-358-7838, ginad@bu.edu BU’s Thanh Nguyen, MD, Elected President of the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology First woman to serve as president of the society (Boston)—Thanh N. Nguyen, MD, FRCP, FSVIN, FAHA, professor of neurology, radiology and neurosurgery at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, has been elected President of the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology (SVIN), the first woman to serve in this role in its 17-year history.   Previously, Nguyen was an elected board member of SVIN in 2008 and ...

AMSTERDAM and TUCSON, Ariz., January 25, 2024 — Critical Path Institute (C-Path) today announced the promotion of Cécile Ollivier, M.S., from Managing Director, Europe to Vice President of Global Affairs. “We are thrilled to announce the promotion of Cécile Ollivier to Vice President of Global Affairs,” said C-Path Board member Tomas Salmonson Ph.D., M.S. “Cécile has been an invaluable contributor to our European operations, and her extensive experience in global drug development and regulatory science makes her the ideal choice for this expanded role. Her leadership will ...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25, 2024 – AIP and the American Physical Society (APS) are pleased to announce David Brydges as the recipient of the 2024 Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics “for achievements in the fields of constructive quantum field theory and rigorous statistical mechanics, especially the introduction of new techniques including random walk representation in spin systems, the lace expansion, and mathematically rigorous implementations of the renormalization group.” This annual award recognizes significant contributions within the ...

A newly published review of the CABI-led Pest Risk Information Service (PRISE) project shows that smallholder farmers in four African countries who received pest alerts created using earth observation data benefitted from reduced crop losses and higher incomes compared to farmers who did not. Crop pests are the major cause of loss of smallholder productivity resulting in negative impacts on livelihoods – the estimated the economic impact of invasive alien pests alone on Africa’s agricultural sector is USD $65.58 billion a year (CABI, 2021, CABI Agriculture and Bioscience). This review is a keystone ...

HOUSTON ― Women in low-income areas of the U.S. face a stark rise in cervical cancer incidence and mortality, according to a new study led by researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.   The results, published in the International Journal of Cancer, demonstrate that the incidence rate for distant-stage cervical cancer has increased most among white women living in low-income counties, at 4.4% annually since 2007. The largest increase in cervical cancer mortality rates occurred ...

Journalists who register for the American Chemical Society’s (ACS’) upcoming hybrid meeting and exposition — ACS Spring 2024 — will have access to nearly 12,000 presentations on topics including agriculture and food, energy and fuels, health and medicine, sustainability, and more. ACS Spring 2024 is being held virtually and in person in New Orleans on March 17-21, with the theme “Many Flavors of Chemistry.” ACS considers requests for press credentials and complimentary meeting registration from reporters ...

UTSA announced a pioneering initiative to reshape its academic landscape with the creation of a new college dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, computing, data science and related disciplines. This initiative aligns with the university's commitment to innovation and academic excellence while also positioning UTSA to lead in the rapidly evolving landscape of advanced technologies. Nearly 6,000 students are enrolled in AI, cyber, computing and data science-related degree programs at UTSA, reflecting ...

Measuring the amount of precipitation that falls in a specific location is simple if that location has a device designed to accurately record and transmit precipitation data. In contrast, measuring the amount and type of precipitation that falls to Earth in every location is logistically quite difficult. Importantly, this information could provide a wealth of data for characterizing and predicting Earth’s water, energy and biogeochemical cycles. Researchers from China recently deployed a satellite, FengYun 3G (FY-3G), that is successfully collecting Earth precipitation data from space.   Scientists from the China Meteorological Administration developed and launched ...

WASHINGTON—Middle-aged women who are exposed to toxic metals may have fewer eggs in their ovaries as they approach menopause, according to new research published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.  Diminished ovarian reserve is when women have fewer eggs compared to others their age. The condition may be linked to health problems such as hot flashes, weak bones and a higher chance of heart disease. Menopause is a normal part of the aging process a woman goes through that causes her monthly periods to end. The menopausal transition includes the years leading up to that point, when women may experience symptoms such as changes in ...

Earth’s moon shrank more than 150 feet in circumference as its core gradually cooled over the last few hundred million years. In much the same way a grape wrinkles when it shrinks down to a raisin, the moon also develops creases as it shrinks. But unlike the flexible skin on a grape, the moon’s surface is brittle, causing faults to form where sections of crust push against one another. A team of scientists discovered evidence that this continuing shrinkage of the moon led to notable surface warping in its south polar ...

New York, NY [January 25, 2024]—The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has been awarded a grant of more than $4 million from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to support an innovative research project aimed at understanding the early stages of Crohn’s disease before noticeable symptoms develop. Led by the Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences along with the Dr. Henry D. Janowitz Division of Gastroenterology in the Department of Medicine at the Icahn School of ...

Fukuoka, Japan—Kyushu University researchers have found that Japanese beech (Fagus crenata) in the forests of southern Kyushu have seen reduced growth, due to soil erosion caused by the overpopulation of sika deer (Cervus nippon). Their findings, which were published in the journal Catena, could help in the development of new strategies for forest conservation. Conservation is more than just preserving forests; it's about protecting the diverse web of life. One area where conservation has become critical is a beech forest in Shiiba Village, in the remote mountains of Southern Kyushu. The Japanese beech is a prominent and iconic species in ...

(SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS) — Mason Leist is working remotely—127 million light-years from Earth—on images of a supermassive black hole in his office at the UTSA Department of Physics and Astronomy. The UTSA Graduate Research Assistant led a study, published in The Astronomical Journal, on the best method to improve images obtained by the James Webb Science Telescope (JWST) using a mathematical approach called deconvolution. He was tasked by the Galactic Activity, Torus, and Outflow Survey (GATOS), an international team of scientists, to enhance JWST observations of the galaxy NGC 5728. The GATOS team, co-led by UTSA Professor and Leist’s doctoral ...

Lithium-ion batteries are a widely used class of rechargeable batteries in today’s world. One of the processes that can hamper the functioning of these batteries is an internal short circuit caused by direct contact between the cathode and anode (the conductors that complete the circuit within a battery). To avoid this, separators composed of polyolefins—a type of polymer— can be employed to maintain separation. However, these separators can melt at higher temperatures, and the inadequate absorption of electrolytes (essential for conveying ...

Are there specific communities that bear the brunt of suicide mortality? Certain studies have revealed that historically marginalized and economically deprived indigenous populations are linked with higher rates of cluster suicides—especially in Canada, the United States, and Australia. Public health officials need to consider that the risk of suicide contagion—social transmission due to insufficient interventions and resources—is real and must be countered. Now, a consortium of public health experts from Japan, Australia, and China have analyzed trends in suicide mortality in American Indian or Alaskan Native (AIAN) populations, while exploring ...