Most microplastics in French bottled and tap water are smaller than 20 µm - fine enough to pass into blood and organs, but below the EU-recommended detection limit for water quality assessments.  #### Article URL: https://journals.plos.org/water/article?id=10.1371/journal.pwat.0000250 Article Title: Majority of potable water microplastics are smaller than the 20 μm EU methodology limit for consumable water quality Author Countries: Denmark, France Funding: This work and the PhD fellowship of O.H. is funded by an 80Prime CNRS grant «4DμPlast» (G.L.R, J.E.S.). This publication was supported by ANR-20-CE34-0014 ATMO-PLASTIC (G.L.R, J.E.S.) and the Plasticopyr ...

An analysis of the nine top players in the U.S. fossil fuel-derived hydrocarbon industries (oil/gas, plastics, and agrichemicals) shows tight linkages across the three different sectors, with news media, other petrochemical industry players, and politicians also frequently tagged, according to a study published January 15, 2025 in the open-access journal PLOS Climate by Alaina Kinol from Northeastern University, United States, and colleagues. Previous research on connections between the fossil fuel and plastics sectors and ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA — With a more efficient method for artificial pollination, farmers in the future could grow fruits and vegetables inside multilevel warehouses, boosting yields while mitigating some of agriculture’s harmful impacts on the environment. To help make this idea a reality, MIT researchers are developing robotic insects that could someday swarm out of mechanical hives to rapidly perform precise pollination. However, even the best bug-sized robots are no match for natural pollinators like bees when it comes to endurance, speed, and maneuverability. Now, inspired by the anatomy of these natural pollinators, the researchers ...

Hamilton, ON (January 15, 2025) – Researchers at McMaster University have made an important discovery in the field of asthma research, identifying a new population of immune cells that may play a crucial role in the severity of asthma symptoms.   The study, published in Science Translational Medicine on Jan. 15, 2025, sheds light on the complex mechanisms behind severe asthma and opens new avenues for potential treatments.  Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition characterized by inflammation and narrowing of the airways, leading to difficulty breathing. Severe ...

The study, published in Science Advances, was led by researchers Qigao Jiangzuo, from Peking University, and Joan Madurell Malapeira, from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB). Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are in serious danger of extinction, with only about 4,000 specimens remaining. They are medium to large felids that live at high altitudes, over 2,000 meters above sea level, mainly in the Himalayas. Although their distinctive traits have long been recognized, the correlation between these ...

Researchers have demonstrated new wearable technologies that both generate electricity from human movement and improve the comfort of the technology for the people wearing them. The work stems from an advanced understanding of materials that increase comfort in textiles and produce electricity when they rub against another surface. At issue are molecules called amphiphiles, which are often used in consumer products to reduce friction against human skin. For example, amphiphiles are often incorporated into diapers to prevent chafing. “We set out to develop a model that would give us ...

Most treatments being pursued today to protect against Alzheimer’s disease focus on amyloid plaques and tau tangles that accumulate in the brain, but new research from Mass General Brigham and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis points to a novel—and noble—approach: using Xenon gas. The study found that Xenon gas inhalation suppressed neuroinflammation, reduced brain atrophy, and increased protective neuronal states in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. Results are published in Science Translational Medicine, and a phase 1 clinical trial of the treatment in healthy volunteers will begin in early 2025.   “It ...

A small helper for big tasks: an oxygen sensor protein protects the enzymatic machinery of biological nitrogen fixation from serious damage. Its use in biotechnology could help to reduce the use of synthetic fertiliser in agriculture in the future. A research team led by biochemist Prof. Dr Oliver Einsle from the Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy and the Centre for Biological Signalling Studies (BIOSS) at the University of Freiburg has discovered exactly how the so-called Shethna protein II works. The scientists used the newly established cryo-electron microscopy in Freiburg. ...

Three-quarters of medical facilities in Mariupol sustained damage during Russia’s siege of 2022, with some evidence that the attacks may have been intentionally targeted, per study using satellite imagery. #### Article URL: https://journals.plos.org/globalpublichealth/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgph.0003950 Article Title: The effect of conflict on damage to medical facilities in Mariupol, Ukraine: a quasi-experimental study Author Countries: Germany, United States Funding: This work was supported ...

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is a large feline unique to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and its surrounding areas. As the apex predator in the region, the snow leopard plays a crucial role in maintaining ecological stability. Its unique characteristics, coupled with its striking appearance, have made it a flagship species for conservation efforts aimed at protecting the ecosystem of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Unfortunately, few snow leopard fossils have been found in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau region, particularly fossils from the Quaternary period. As a result, it’s unclear how snow leopards evolved their specialized adaptations to this environment. On the one hand, molecular ...

Researchers from the National Institute of Health Data Science at Peking University and the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Peking University People's Hospital have conducted a comprehensive systematic review evaluating strategies for addressing missing data in electronic health records (EHRs). Published in Health Data Science, the study highlights the growing importance of machine learning methods over traditional statistical approaches in managing missing data scenarios effectively​​. Electronic health records have become a cornerstone in modern healthcare research, enabling analysis across clinical trials, treatment effectiveness studies, and ...

About The Study: In this multicenter validation study, trained health care professionals with artificial intelligence (AI) assistance achieved lung ultrasound images meeting diagnostic standards compared with lung ultrasound experts without AI. This technology could extend access to lung ultrasound to underserved areas lacking expert personnel.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Cristiana Baloescu, MD, MPH, email cristiana.baloescu@yale.edu. To access the embargoed ...

About The Study: This survey study documents increasingly prevalent poor mental health from 2011 to 2022 across multiple U.S. health surveys, with notable prevalence differences in Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and National Survey on Drug Use and Health vs National Health Interview Survey. Inequities in these outcomes by age, sex, and racial and ethnic group were often sizeable and changed over time in distinct ways, consistent with findings in prior literature.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding ...

About The Study: In this cohort study including 38 attending surgeons and 793 patients, increased surgeon stress at the beginning of a procedure was associated with improved clinical patient outcomes. The results are illustrative of the complex relationship between physiological stress and performance, identify a novel association between measurable surgeon human factors and patient outcomes, and may highlight opportunities to improve patient care.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Jake Awtry, MD, email jawtry@bwh.harvard.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media ...

According to the United Nations, soil salinization affects between 20% and 40% of arable land globally, with human activity and climate change – especially rising sea levels – largely responsible for this process. While the human body needs sodium to function, this is not the case for most plants. In fact, excess salt around plants’ roots gradually blocks their access to water, stunting their growth, poisoning them and hastening their death. Ten million hectares of farmland are destroyed by soil salinization every year, posing a threat to global food security. Scientists at EPFL, ...

While most known types of DNA damage are fixed by our cells’ in-house DNA repair mechanisms, some forms of DNA damage evade repair and can persist for many years, new research shows. This means that the damage has multiple chances to generate harmful mutations, which can lead to cancer. Scientists from the Wellcome Sanger Institute and their collaborators analysed family trees of hundreds of single cells from several individuals. The team pieced together these family trees from patterns of shared mutations between the cells, indicating common ancestors. Researchers uncovered unexpected ...

Researchers have discovered a biological mechanism that makes plant roots more welcoming to beneficial soil microbes.  This discovery by John Innes Centre researchers paves the way for more environmentally friendly farming practices, potentially allowing farmers to use less fertiliser.   Production of most major crops relies on nitrate and phosphate fertilisers, but excessive fertiliser use harms the environment.  If we could use mutually beneficial relationships between plant roots and soil microbes to enhance nutrient uptake, ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Nearly 50 years ago, neuroscientists discovered cells within the brain’s hippocampus that store memories of specific locations. These cells also play an important role in storing memories of events, known as episodic memories. While the mechanism of how place cells encode spatial memory has been well-characterized, it has remained a puzzle how they encode episodic memories. A new model developed by MIT researchers explains how those place cells can be recruited to form episodic memories, even when there’s no spatial component. According to this model, place cells, along with grid cells found in the entorhinal cortex, act as a scaffold ...

Arizona State University and a team of its collaborators have received $11.2 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to begin developing a regional Direct Air Capture (DAC) Hub for removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. The team will prepare to build a multi-site Direct Air Capture Hub located in the Four Corners area of the Southwestern United States. Additionally, the project will receive $11.2 million in matching funds from the project partners.  In May of 2022, the Biden administration announced the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s $3.5 billion DOE program to establish large-scale Direct Air Capture Hubs for removing carbon ...

Isotretinoin, commonly referred to as Accutane, is the only approved medical treatment capable of inducing long-term remission of severe acne. Although highly effective, some individuals experience recurrence of acne after a course of treatment. A new study from researchers at Mass General Brigham examined how often acne recurs after isotretinoin and what factors might put patients at risk of acne coming back. They found that acne recurrence necessitating treatment with an oral medication such as oral antibiotics, spironolactone, or another ...

New proteins not found in nature have now been designed to counteract certain highly poisonous components of snake venom. The deep learning, computational methods for developing these toxin-neutralizing proteins offer hope for creating safer, more cost-effective and more readily available therapeutics than those currently in use.   Each year more than 2 million people suffer snakebites. More than 100,000 of them die, according to the World Health Organization, and 300,000 suffer severe complications and lasting disability ...

Proteins are the foundation of all life we currently know. With their virtually limitless diversity, they can perform a broad variety of biological functions, from delivering oxygen to cells and acting as chemical messengers to defending the body against pathogens. Furthermore, most biochemical reactions are only possible thanks to enzymes, a special type of protein catalysts. The molecular surface of proteins is the key to their function, such as docking small molecules or other proteins or driving ...

An international team of geneticists, led by those from Trinity College Dublin, has joined forces with archaeologists from Bournemouth University to decipher the structure of British Iron Age society, finding evidence of female political and social empowerment.   The researchers seized upon a rare opportunity to sequence DNA from many members of a single community. They retrieved over 50 ancient genomes from a set of burial grounds in Dorset, southern England, in use before and after the Roman Conquest of AD 43. The results revealed that this community was centred around bonds of female-line descent.  Dr Lara Cassidy, Assistant Professor in Trinity’s Department of Genetics, led ...

Researchers at Nagoya University in Japan have discovered sophisticated behavioral strategies that enable parasitic crickets to survive within ant colonies. Led by Ryoya Tanaka, the team documented how these insects successfully navigate life among potentially lethal hosts through precise evasion tactics. Their findings, published in Communications Biology, reveal remarkable adaptations that allow these cricket species to thrive in a hostile environment.  Animals that live in ant colonies, known as “ant guests”, exploit their hosts’ resources.  However, this ...

WASHINGTON — Researchers have developed a reliable and reproducible way to fabricate tapered polymer optical fibers that can be used to deliver light to the brain. These fibers could be used in animal studies to help scientists better understand treatments and interventions for various neurological conditions. The tapered fibers are optimized for neuroscience research techniques, such as optogenetic experiments and fiber photometry, which rely on the interaction between genetically modified neurons and visible light delivered to and/or collected from the brain. “Unlike standard optical fibers, which are cylindrical, the tapered fibers we developed have a conical shape, which ...