Researchers have amassed vast single-cell gene expression databases to understand how the smallest details impact human biology. However, current analysis methods struggle with the large volume of data and, as a result, produce biased and contradictory findings. Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital created a machine-learning algorithm capable of scaling with these single-cell data repositories to deliver more accurate results. The new method was published today in Cell Genomics.  Before single-cell analysis, bulk gene expression data ...

MINNEAPOLIS – Older people wait an average of just over a month to see a neurologist for specialty care after being referred by their primary care physician or another physician, according to a study published in the January 8, 2025, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study, which looked at people who have Medicare insurance, also found some people wait more than three months to see a neurologist. “Neurologists provide important and ongoing care for people ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Ferroelectrics are special materials with polarized positive and negative charges — like a magnet has north and south poles — that can be reversed when external electricity is applied. The materials will remain in these reversed states until more power is applied, making them useful for data storage and wireless communication applications. Now, turning a non-ferroelectric material into one may be possible simply by stacking it with another ferroelectric material, according to a team led by scientists from Penn State who demonstrated the phenomenon, called proximity ferroelectricity. The ...

LA JOLLA, CA—Scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) have discovered how a mutated gene kicks off a dangerous chain of events during blood cell production. The study, published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reveals how a mutated gene called ASXL1 is involved in a disease called clonal hematopoiesis, a precursor to malignant diseases such as myeloid malignancies and chronic monomyelocytic leukemia. "We know that many diseases—and all cancers—are driven by mutations in the genome," says LJI Instructor Zhen Dong, ...

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER (FL), January 7, 2025 – The International Space Station (ISSInternational Space Station) National Laboratory is soliciting flight concepts for technology advancement that utilizes the space-based environment of the orbiting laboratory. This solicitation, “Technology Advancement and Applied Research Leveraging the ISS National Lab,” is open to a broad range of technology areas, including chemical and material synthesis in space, translational medicine, in-space edge computing, and in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing. It also encompasses the application of space station remote sensing data to improve geospatial analytics ...

A new study has shown that sleep deprivation can inhibit the brain’s ability to suppress unwanted memories and intrusive thoughts. Scientists at the University of York, in collaboration with the University of East Anglia, have shown that sleep deprivation interferes with the ability of the prefrontal area of the brain to restrict the retrieval of memories that would have otherwise been suppressed. Dr Scott Cairney from the University of York said: “Memories of unpleasant experiences often intrude into our conscious ...

Irvine, Calif., Jan. 8, 2025 — A University of California, Irvine-led research team has discovered intricate molecular mechanisms driving the RNA processing defects that lead to Huntington’s disease and link HD with other neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal lobar dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.   The findings may pave the way for neurodegenerative disorder researchers to collaborate and share therapeutic strategies across diseases, opening additional avenues for treatment.   While it’s known that HD is caused by an abnormal ...

HOUSTON, January 8, 2025 — Eight active college football coaches make up the American Heart Association’s 2024 Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award finalist list. The award is given each January to a college football coach for contributions that make the sport better for athletes and fans alike by demonstrating grit, integrity and a winning approach to coaching and life – both on and off the field. The Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award is the only college football coaching honor ...

In a recent essay, pediatrician-scientist Peter Hotez proposes a focus on local data, improved benefit-risk communications, actively countering health disinformation, and state-level action to address antivaccine sentiment in the U.S. Anti-vaccine sentiment isn’t going away any time soon. In a new opinion article published January 8 in the open-access journal PLOS Global Public Health, Prof. Peter Hotez from Baylor College of Medicine, outlines key actions to stem the momentum of anti-vaccine advocates in the U.S. over the next five years. Anti-vaccine activities in the U.S. transformed to become a politically charged movement ...

Electrical stimulation of the spinal cord is a promising strategy for reestablishing walking after spinal cord injury, recent studies show. But for patients suffering from muscle spasms, the stimulation protocols have a limited effect due to the unpredictable behaviour of involuntary muscle stiffness related to spasticity. Muscle spasticity affects almost 70% of spinal cord injured patients Now, scientists at EPFL, Università San Raffaele and Scuola Sant’Anna have found a promising way to address and reduce muscle spasticity in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury. ...

A new study published in Science Advances reveals evidence of electrical signaling and coordinated behavior in choanoflagellates, the closest living relatives of animals. This elaborate example of cell communication offers key insights into the early evolution of animal multicellularity and nervous systems. Researchers from the Burkhardt group at the Michael Sars Centre, University of Bergen, uncovered a remarkable diversity of behaviors within the rosette-shaped colonies of the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta - and the small organisms held even more surprises. “We found communication among the cells of the colonies, which regulates shape and ciliary beating across the rosette,” ...

Ion-adsorption rare earth deposits (IADs) are primary sources of heavy rare earth elements (HREE), supplying over 90% of the global demand for HREE. However, the current ammonium-salt-based in-situ mining technique has led to severe environmental impacts. To facilitate sustainable REE mining, Professors ZHU Jianxi and HE Hongping’s team from the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has developed a green and efficient electrokinetic mining (EKM) technology. Their work was published in Nature Sustainability on Jan. 6, 2025. To address the challenges of sustainable and efficient REE extraction, ...

In an unprecedented new study in the journal Cell Reports, researchers have shown neurotransmitters in the human brain are released during the processing of the emotional content of language, providing new insights into how people interpret the significance of words. The work, conducted by an international team led by Virginia Tech scientists, offers deeper understanding into how language influences human choices and mental health. Spearheaded by computational neuroscientist Read Montague, a professor of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and ...

A recent study published in Health Data Science, led by Dr. Fengyu Wen from the Institute of Medical Technology at Peking University Health Science Center and Professor Luxia Zhang from the National Institute of Health Data Science at Peking University, reveals significant survival disparities among cancer patients depending on their mobility patterns for medical care.   The study analyzed data from over 20,000 cancer patients in Shandong Province, China, to assess the impact of intra-city, local center, and national center mobility patterns on survival rates. Patients who traveled to local or national healthcare centers had higher five-year survival ...

Getting a good night’s sleep is a critical part of our daily biological cycle and is associated with improved brain function, a stronger immune system, and a healthier heart. Conversely, sleep disorders like insomnia and sleep apnea can significantly impact health and quality of life. Poor sleep often precedes the onset of neurodegenerative diseases and is a predictor of early dementia. New research appearing in the journal Cell describes for the first time the tightly synchronized oscillations in the neurotransmitter norepinephrine, ...

LA JOLLA (January 8, 2025)—Human bodies defend themselves using a diverse population of immune cells that circulate from one organ to another, responding to everything from cuts to colds to cancer. But plants don’t have this luxury. Because plant cells are immobile, each individual cell is forced to manage its own immunity in addition to its many other responsibilities, like turning sunlight into energy or using that energy to grow. How these multitasking cells accomplish it all—detecting threats, communicating those threats, and ...

January 8, 2025—Marked variation in the prevalence of depression was found in a multisite sample of community-dwelling older adults in the United States reports a study by Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Until now, few studies, have examined the frequency of depression in community-dwelling older adults in the U.S. The study is published in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society. Of the 2,900 participants studied, 6.2 percent had depression. Older adults who had a negative history of depression or had annual household incomes of $50,000 or greater were at significantly decreased ...

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Amid the many mysteries of quantum physics, subatomic particles don’t always follow the rules of the physical world. They can exist in two places at once, pass through solid barriers and even communicate across vast distances instantaneously. These behaviors may seem impossible, but in the quantum realm, scientists are exploring an array properties once thought impossible. In a new study, physicists at Brown University have now observed a novel class of quantum particles called fractional excitons, which behave in unexpected ways and could significantly ...

About The Study: The results of this economic evaluation suggest that cardiovascular polypill treatment (single pill containing a statin and 3 half-standard dose antihypertensives) could be a high value intervention for a low-income, majority Black population with limited access to health care services. It could additionally reduce health disparities. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Ciaran N. Kohli-Lynch, PhD, email ciaran.kohli-lynch@northwestern.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media ...

About The Study: In this prognostic study, with the use of a statistical modeling approach, the Florey Dementia Index was developed and validated to predict the onset age of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer dementia. This tool may be useful in organizing health care for older adults with cognitive decline or dementia and in the future may help prioritize patients for the use of disease-modifying monoclonal antibody drugs. Corresponding Authors: To contact the corresponding authors, email Yijun Pan, PhD (yijun.pan@unimelb.edu.au) ...

NEW YORK, NY (Jan. 8, 2025)--Using a new artificial intelligence method, researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons can accurately predict the activity of genes within any human cell, essentially revealing the cell’s inner mechanisms. The system, described in the current issue of Nature, could transform the way scientists work to understand everything from cancer to genetic diseases. “Predictive generalizable computational models allow to uncover biological ...

Nitrogen is an essential component in the production of amino acids and nucleic acids — both necessary for cell growth and function. Although the atmosphere is composed of nearly 80% nitrogen, this nitrogen is in the form of dinitrogen (N2), which cannot be processed by most organisms. Atmospheric nitrogen must first be converted, or “fixed,” into a form that can be used by plants, often as ammonia. There are only two ways of fixing nitrogen, one industrial and one biological. To better understand a key component of the biological process, University of California San Diego Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Akif Tezcan and Assistant Professor of Chemistry ...

A new study has unravelled the hidden mechanics of how earthquakes ignite, shedding light on the mysterious transition from quiet, creeping motion to the violent ruptures that shake the Earth. Using cutting-edge experiments and innovative models, the research reveals that slow, silent stress release is a prelude and a necessary trigger for seismic activity. By incorporating the overlooked role of fault geometry, the study challenges long-held beliefs and offers a fresh perspective on how and when earthquakes begin. These findings not only deepen our understanding of nature’s ...

BUSHLAND, Texas, Jan. 8, 2025 –A new study from USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and Iowa State University (ISU) reveals that generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help expedite the search for solutions to reduce enteric methane emissions caused by cows in animal agriculture, which accounts for about 33 percent of U.S. agriculture and 3 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.   "Developing solutions to address methane emissions from animal agriculture is a critical priority. Our scientists continue to use innovative and data-driven strategies to help ...

A collaborative effort between Mount Sinai and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has shed valuable light on how monoamine neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and now histamine help regulate brain physiology and behavior through chemical bonding of these monoamines to histone proteins, the core DNA-packaging proteins of our cells. By uncovering how these histone modifications influence the brain, the team has identified a novel mechanism for controlling circadian gene expression and behavioral rhythms. ...