As the privatized form of Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans advertise dental, vision, and hearing benefits not covered by traditional Medicare, but a recent analysis found that Medicare Advantage beneficiaries do not typically receive more of these supplemental services than traditional Medicare beneficiaries. Additionally, out-of-pocket spending was similar for most supplemental services. The research led by a team from Mass General Brigham is published in JAMA Network Open.   “Medicare Advantage plans receive more money per beneficiary than traditional Medicare plans, but our findings add to the evidence that this increased cost is not justified,” said first author Christopher ...

"Over the past three years, global project announcements for green hydrogen have almost tripled," says PIK researcher and lead author Adrian Odenweller. "However, only seven percent of the production capacity originally announced for 2023 has been completed on time during this period." According to the study, the recent problems with the market ramp-up of green hydrogen can be attributed to increased costs, a lack of willingness to pay on the demand side and uncertainties about future subsidies and regulation. "Enormous additional subsidies of around one trillion US dollars would be required to realise all announced hydrogen projects by 2030," explains Falko ...

New genetic risk factors for depression have been identified across all major global populations for the first time, allowing scientists to predict risk of depression regardless of ethnicity. The world’s largest and most diverse genetic study ever into major depression has revealed nearly 300 previously unknown genetic links to the condition, experts say. 100 of the newly discovered genetic variations – small differences in the DNA sequence that makes up a gene – were identified due to the inclusion of people of African, East Asian, Hispanic and South Asian descent, the study found. Previous research into the genetics ...

If the development of blood vessels in the placenta is impaired, fetal growth retardation may result. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Mannheim Medical Faculty of Heidelberg University discovered that the correct development of functioning blood vessels in the mouse placenta is controlled epigenetically: One of the enzymes that modify gene activity using methyl groups is responsible. The researchers also observed a connection with a deficiency of this “methyltransferase” in a well-known pregnancy complication. In all female mammals, including humans, the growing fetus in the uterus is supplied via the placenta. Through this temporary ...

With antibiotic resistance a growing problem, University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers have developed cutting-edge computer models that could give the disease-fighting drugs a laser-like precision to target only specific bacteria in specific parts of the body. As it stands, antibiotics kill bacteria indiscriminately. Because the drugs are used so widely, increasing numbers of dangerous bugs are growing resistant, threatening one of modern medicine’s most important weapons against disease.  UVA’s new approach, on the other hand, would dramatically limit how ...

Cigarette smoking is widespread and deadly, yet our understanding of how cigarette smoke actually causes serious respiratory illnesses is incomplete, which has severely hampered the development of effective treatments. Today (TBC) Australian researchers reveal how multiple chemicals found in cigarette smoke and e-cigarettes alter the function of a key type of immune cell found in the lungs.   The study, published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM), suggests that these alterations make cigarette smokers, ...

Miami (January 14, 2025) – People with COPD experience more falls and related injuries requiring medical care when using common fall-risk increasing drugs, according to a new study. The study is published in the November 2024 issue of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases: Journal of the COPD Foundation, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal.   Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an inflammatory lung disease, comprising several conditions, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Symptoms include breathlessness, fatigue and chronic cough. The disease affects more than 30 million Americans and is the fourth leading ...

UNSW engineers have demonstrated a well-known quantum thought experiment in the real world. Their findings deliver a new and more robust way to perform quantum computations – and they have important implications for error correction, one of the biggest obstacles standing between them and a working quantum computer. Quantum mechanics has puzzled scientists and philosophers for more than a century. One of the most famous quantum thought experiments is that of the “Schrödinger’s cat” – a cat whose life or death depends on the decay of a radioactive atom. According to quantum mechanics, unless the atom is directly observed, ...

The vaquita, which means “little cow” in Spanish, is the world’s smallest porpoise and most endangered marine mammal. They also have the smallest range of any marine mammal; about 1,500 square miles within the northern Gulf of California. Since 1997, vaquitas have experienced a dramatic population loss from about 600 individuals to an estimate of less than 10 animals to date. At this current rate, vaquitas are expected to become extinct imminently.  The vaquita’s decline is caused by entanglement in illegal gillnets used to fish totoaba, an endangered species prized for its swim bladder. Despite a gillnet ban and conservation efforts, ...

Giant isopods of the genus Bathynomus, which can reach more than 30 cm in length, are known as bọ biển or “sea bugs” in Vietnam. For the first time, one such species was described from Vietnamese waters and named Bathynomus vaderi. The name “vaderi” is inspired by the appearance of its head, which closely resembles the distinctive and iconic helmet of Darth Vader, the most famous Sith Lord of Star Wars. Bathynomus vaderi belongs to a group known as “supergiants,” reaching lengths of 32.5 cm and weighing over a kilogram. So far, this ...

Babies were weaned earlier in cities in the Roman Empire than in smaller and more rural communities, according to a study of ancient teeth. Urban weaning patterns more closely hewed to guidelines from ancient Roman physicians, mirroring contemporary patterns of adherence to medical experts in urban and rural communities. Roman health authorities recommended breastfeeding babies for two years. Carlo Cocozza and colleagues were interested in how ancient Romans actually fed their babies in varying settlement types. Carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in dentine from the first permanent molars record ...

VANCOUVER, Wash. – While many studies have looked at possible evolutionary links between men’s strength and sexual behavior, a Washington State University study included data on women with a surprising result. Women, as well as men, who had greater upper body strength tended to have more lifetime sexual partners compared to their peers. The study, published in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior, was designed to test evolutionary theories for human sexual dimorphism—namely that in early human history there was likely a reproductive advantage selecting for men’s greater upper body strength.   Another ...

New research1 underscores the potential role of pork consumption in supporting dietary and muscle health in Korean older adults. Older adults are a nutritionally vulnerable population who often face unique challenges, including meeting daily protein and micronutrient requirements. The study,* conducted through a collaborative partnership between researchers from Gachon University in South Korea, Tufts University, Think Healthy Group, LLC, and other leading institutions, suggests that pork consumption may be positively linked to nutrient intake, diet quality and handgrip strength—an indicator of overall muscle strength in older adults. Using data from more than 2,000 ...

The world is hurtling rapidly towards a developed future, and carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) play a key role in enabling technological and industrial progress. These composite materials are lightweight and highly strong, making them desirable for applications in various fields, including aviation, aerospace, automotive, wind power generation, and sports equipment. However, recycling CFRPs presents a significant challenge, with waste management being a pressing issue. Conventional recycling methods ...

The global burden of anxiety- and depression-related disorders is on the rise. While multiple drugs have been developed to treat these conditions, current medications have several limitations, including slow action and adverse effects with long-term use. This underscores the urgent need for novel, rapidly-acting therapeutic agents with minimal side effects. The delta opioid receptor (DOP) plays a key role in mood regulation, making it a promising target for therapeutic intervention. Studies have shown that selective DOP agonists (compounds that activate DOP), such as SNC80 ...

CLEVELAND and CHAMPAIGN-URBANA, ILL.—Diamond, often celebrated for its unmatched hardness and transparency, has emerged as an exceptional material for high-power electronics and next-generation quantum optics. Diamond can be engineered to be as electrically conductive as a metal, by introducing impurities such as the element boron. Researchers from Case Western Reserve University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have now discovered another interesting property in diamonds with added boron, known as boron-doped diamonds. Their findings could pave the way for new types ...

A new study from Oxford University has uncovered why the deep neural networks (DNNs) that power modern artificial intelligence are so effective at learning from data. The new findings demonstrate that DNNs have an inbuilt ‘Occam's razor,’ meaning that when presented with multiple solutions that fit training data, they tend to favour those that are simpler. What is special about this version of Occam’s razor is that the bias exactly cancels the exponential growth of the number of possible solutions with complexity. The study has been published ...

An international team of researchers led by the University of California San Diego has developed a new strategy to enhance pharmaceutical production in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells, which are commonly used to manufacture protein-based drugs for treating cancer, autoimmune diseases and much more. By knocking out a gene circuit responsible for producing lactic acid—a metabolite that makes the cells’ environment toxic—researchers eliminate a primary hurdle in developing cells that can produce higher amounts of pharmaceuticals like Herceptin and Rituximab, without compromising their growth or energy production. The research, published on Jan. 14 in Nature Metabolism, ...

New research funding will investigate the early stages of heart disease associated with chronic kidney disease led by the University of Birmingham. Dr Davor Pavlovic will lead an international research team after receiving almost £300,000 from the British Heart Foundation to understand the mechanisms driving the early stages of CKD-associated cardiomyopathy. The research approach will allow detailed investigation of cellular and electrophysiological changes before irreversible damage to the heart occurs. Researchers will also test whether in the setting of CKD, early treatment can reverse or prevent heart disease. The research will be ...

CLEVELAND—Researchers at Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals and Houston Methodist will harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to more accurately predict risk of heart failure and other cardiovascular events, including estimating when an adverse event might occur, by developing an AI model that “learns” from patient scans. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, claiming over 17 million lives every year, according to the American Heart Association. Accurately ...

New Haven, Conn., Jan. 14, 2025—After four years of decline, U.S. patent grants headed upward, rising 3.8 percent from calendar year 2023 to 324,043 and Samsung retained the top spot for the third year in a row, according to IFI CLAIMS Patent Services, the world’s most trusted patent data source. IFI CLAIMS Patent Services is a Digital Science company that compiles and tracks data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and other patent-issuing agencies around the globe. IFI translates its world-leading data into an annual U.S. Top 50 and ...

Wildlife trade poses one of the greatest threats to the survival of numerous species. According to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) at least 50,000 species are involved in trade. However, while this figure already seems huge, it risks overlooking less traditional sectors of wildlife trade, such as the pet or fashion trade. For instance, recent data shows that the number of butterflies traded exceeds the total number of terrestrial arthropods in the IPBES assessment. This raises a critical question: How many ...

A new paper in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, published by Oxford University Press, finds that smoking has a negative effect on earnings among younger workers. This is particularly true among the less well educated. The adverse health effects of smoking are well known. Smoking increases the risk of various cancers, respiratory issues, and cardiovascular diseases, with approximately 14% of all deaths in 2019 attributed to smoking. Despite smoking rates declining since the 1990s, in 2019 18% of women and 27% of men in high income countries still smoked. Tobacco smoking has ...

Society is often vulnerable to disasters, but how humans manage during and after can turn devastation into opportunities for improved resilience. For instance, private wells are attracting attention as an alternative resource for securing water for daily use and consumption in the event the water supply is cut off after a disaster. However, there are few records on how wells are used in the confusion of disasters, so detailed research is needed to promote the use of emergency wells. Professor Takahiro Endo of the Graduate School of Sustainable System Sciences at Osaka Metropolitan University conducted a survey on the use ...

St. Petersburg, Fla -  Welcoming a newborn is something many couples dream of doing, but it can get complicated when conceiving becomes a roadblock. Infertility affects one in six people, but obesity can also be a problem. When diet and exercise aren’t enough to lose weight, bariatric surgery can become an option. Yet a new national survey by Orlando Health finds that 56% of Americans do not know that bariatric surgery is an effective way to improve fertility.   “Every day we have more patients ...