Miami (December 4, 2024) – The perspectives and priorities of people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) should be integrated into the development process of new therapies for COPD, according to a new commentary. The article is published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. COPD comprises several conditions, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and can be caused by genetics and irritants like smoke or pollution. The disease affects more than 15 million Americans and is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide, yet awareness of the disease’s symptoms, methods to reduce risk, and disease management remains ...

Many Italian texts, lexicons, and dictionaries are just a click away, interacting seamlessly to form a bridge between words and knowledge. This enables users to see, and thus predict, where these terms are and will be used (in other words, their occurrences), creating a network that interlinks Italian language resources. This network fosters dialogue between resources, revealing new perspectives and enabling the development of artificial intelligence models for advanced linguistic analyses. These are ...

Dr Casey Breen, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Oxford University’s Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science and Department of Sociology, conducted the study, published today in Demography.   The study found that homeownership was associated with 0.36 years of additional life expectancy for Black male Americans who were born in the early twentieth century, and 0.42 years for their White counterparts.   Dr Casey Breen said ‘My study finds homeownership has a meaningful positive impact on life expectancy. These results ...

Genome editing with various CRISPR-Cas molecule complexes has progressed rapidly in recent years. Hundreds of labs around the world are now working to put these tools to clinical use and are continuously advancing them. CRISPR-Cas tools allow researchers to modify individual building blocks of genetic material in a precise and targeted manner. Gene therapies based on such gene editing are already being used to treat inherited diseases, fight cancer and create drought- and heat-tolerant crops. Starting the repair The CRISPR-Cas9 molecular complex, also known as genetic scissors, ...

Fiber optics are a means of transmitting information at incredibly high speeds; however, the technology can be used for more than just providing a fast internet connection. Researchers reporting in ACS Sensors have developed an optical fiber sensing system that could help medical professionals monitor patients for complications after a traumatic brain injury. The technology tracks six biomarkers simultaneously, continuously and automatically to provide crucial information on brain health in lab tests. After a traumatic brain injury, such as a concussion, secondary damage can occur from swelling in the brain. Biomarkers found in blood or spinal fluid provide medical professionals ...

DALLAS, December 4, 2024 — An estimated 1 in 500 people in the U.S. are living with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — the most common inherited heart disease — and many are unaware.[1] HCM is a thickening of the lower main pumping chamber of the heart (the left ventricle). The disease is often underdiagnosed and inconsistently managed, leading to delayed treatment, increased risk of complications and preventable death. Yet, systems of care for this disease are fragmented and varied. To overcome these gaps in care, the American Heart Association, celebrating a century of lifesaving service in 2024, has launched a new three-year initiative to ...

Scattered across the United States are remnants from almost 170 years of commercial drilling: hundreds of thousands of forgotten oil and gas wells. These undocumented orphaned wells (UOWs) are not listed in formal records, and they have no known (or financially solvent) operators. They are often out of sight and out of mind – a hazardous combination.  If the wells weren’t properly plugged, they can potentially leak oil and chemicals into nearby water sources or send toxic substances like benzene and hydrogen sulfide into the air. They can also contribute ...

PULLMAN, Wash. — Teens who think their parents use cannabis are more likely to hold favorable attitudes toward the drug and to consider trying it themselves, according to a new Washington State University study. The research, published in the Journal of Child and Family Studies, also reveals that parental monitoring and the closeness of parent-child relationships play crucial roles in adolescents’ views about cannabis, often with distinct effects based on the parent’s gender. The ...

Mill Valley, CA – December 4, 2024 – The SynGAP Research Fund (SRF) has awarded a $230,000 grant to The Jackson Laboratory Rare Disease Translational Center to characterize a mouse model for SYNGAP1-Related Disorders, (SRD), a severe neurodevelopmental disorder marked by seizures, intellectual disabilities, and motor and behavioral challenges.  This work, under Matthew Simon Ph.D., senior study director and lead scientist at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX), will focus on the characteristics of the SYNGAP1-Q503X mouse model, which mirrors a specific patient variant of SRD.  A key SRF partner, Tevard Biosciences, will use the SYNGAP1-Q503X ...

Predicting Diabetes via Clinical and Genetic Data Research Team  Registered Patent for Diabetes Prediction System - Predicting 5-year risk of type 2 diabetes with deep learning algorithms  -Anticipating benefits of personalized early diagnosis and prevention strategies   A research team led by professor Nan-Hee Kim from Korea University's College of Medicine (Nan-Hee Kim and So-Young Park of Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism; Min-Hee Kim and Jae-Young Kim of Health Science Research Center) recently developed ...

Large-scale production of organic solar cells with high efficiency and minimal environmental impact. This can now be made possible through a new design principle developed at Linköping University, Sweden. In the study, published in the journal Nature Energy, the researchers have studied molecule shape and interaction in organic solar cells. “With electrification and the development of AI, we will probably see a significant increase in the world’s energy needs. That electricity needs to come from environmentally sustainable sources if we are to slow down climate change at the same time,” says Feng Gao, professor of optoelectronics at LiU. One green ...

CHICAGO – A diet high in ultra-processed foods is associated with higher amounts of fat stored inside thigh muscles, regardless of the amount of calories consumed or level of physical activity, according to a study being presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Higher amounts of intramuscular fat in the thigh could also increase the risk for knee osteoarthritis. The use of natural and minimally processed ingredients in many modern diets has decreased, more often being replaced with ingredients that have been industrially processed, artificially flavored, colored or chemically altered. Foods ...

CHICAGO – A new study found that injury rates among transgender women are significantly higher than injuries among cisgender women, based on radiological imaging. The findings will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). ‘Cisgender’ is a term used to describe people whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth, while ‘transgender’ describes people whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned ...

Two massive asteroids hit Earth around 35.65 million years ago, but did not lead to any lasting changes in the Earth’s climate, according to a new study by UCL researchers. The rocks, both several miles wide, hit Earth about 25,000 years apart, leaving the 60-mile (100km) Popigai crater in Siberia, Russia, and the 25-55 mile (40-85km) crater in the Chesapeake Bay, in the United States - the fourth and fifth largest known asteroid craters on Earth. The new study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, found no evidence of a lasting shift in climate in the 150,000 years that followed the impacts. The researchers inferred the past climate ...

The precise measurement of electrical resistance is essential in industrial production or electronics – for example, in the manufacture of high-tech sensors, microchips and flight controls. “Very precise measurements are essential here, as even the smallest deviations can significantly affect these complex systems”, explains Professor Charles Gould, a physicist at the Institute for Topological Insulators at the University of Würzburg (JMU).  The scientist now for the first time have experimentally implemented a so-called quantum resistance standard that can operate without an externally applied magnetic field. “In physics, ...

Most young people who were confirmed to have long Covid three months after a positive PCR test had recovered within 24 months, finds a new study led by UCL researchers. The Children and young people with Long Covid (CLoCK) study, published in Nature Communications Medicine and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is the world’s largest longitudinal cohort study on long Covid in children. The researchers, led by Professor Sir Terence Stephenson and Professor Roz Shafran (both UCL Great Ormond Street ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Although it is less abundant than carbon dioxide, methane gas contributes disproportionately to global warming because it traps more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, due to its molecular structure. MIT chemical engineers have now designed a new catalyst that can convert methane into useful polymers, which could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “What to do with methane has been a longstanding problem,” says Michael Strano, the Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT and the senior author of the study. “It’s a source of carbon, and we want to keep it out ...

A team from the University of Illinois has engineered potato to be more resilient to global warming showing 30% increases in tuber mass under heatwave conditions. This adaptation may provide greater food security for families dependent on potatoes, as these are often the same areas where the changing climate has already affected multiple crop seasons. “We need to produce crops that can withstand more frequent and intense heatwave events if we are going to meet the population’s need for food in regions most at ...

New research from Karolinska Institutet and Columbia University shows that the heart has a mini-brain – its own nervous system that controls the heartbeat. A better understanding of this system, which is much more diverse and complex than previously thought, could lead to new treatments for heart diseases. The study, conducted on zebrafish, is published in Nature Communications.  The heart has long been thought to be controlled solely by the autonomic nervous system, which transmits signals from the brain. The heart’s neural network, which is embedded in the superficial layers of the heart wall, has been considered a simple structure that relays the signals from the ...

Research Highlights: An analysis of more than 1,300 stroke survivors found that women were less likely than their male counterparts to take medications, such as cholesterol-lowering statins and blood thinning medications to prevent blood clots, to prevent recurrent strokes, as prescribed. Mexican American women were three times more likely to report not taking cholesterol-lowering medications as prescribed than Mexican American men in the study. Women who were older or married were also more likely to miss taking prescribed doses. Researchers suggest ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- In 1923, lead was first added to gasoline to help keep car engines healthy. However, automotive health came at the great expense of our own well-being. A new study calculates that exposure to car exhaust from leaded gas during childhood altered the balance of mental health in the U.S. population, making generations of Americans more depressed, anxious and inattentive or hyperactive. The research estimates that 151 million cases of psychiatric disorder over the past 75 years have resulted from American children’s exposure to lead. The findings, from Aaron Reuben, a postdoctoral scholar in neuropsychology ...

New research published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry indicates that childhood lead exposure, which peaked from 1960 through 1990 in most industrialized countries due to the use of lead in gasoline, has negatively impacted mental health and likely caused many cases of mental illness and altered personality. For the study, investigators combined blood–lead level data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys with historic leaded gasoline data. (Leaded gas was phased out in United States by 1996.) They estimated US childhood blood–lead levels from 1940 to 2015 and assessed ...

Though African Americans have higher death rates before their 80s, after about age 85, their age-specific death rate falls below that of the white population, a phenomenon known as the "Black-White mortality crossover." New research published in the Journal of Internal Medicine reveals that this lower mortality among African Americans persists to age 100+ years. The study relied on data adjusted for potential misreporting of age, race, and ethnicity from the US National Center for Health Statistics to obtain life expectancy ...

New research reveals that certain soil microbes can help plants grow bigger flowers, therefore attracting more bees. The findings, which are published in New Phytologist, suggest that studying roots’ relationships with microbes can help scientists predict floral trait variations and plant-pollinator interactions. The research focused on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which form a symbiotic relationship with plant roots, providing the plant with nutrients and water in exchange for carbon. AMF associations with plants’ roots enhanced flower size, resulting in more visitations ...

Gender gaps are known to persist in social and economic outcomes in most countries, but less well known is how women and men perceive their economic security and their benefits from social programs. New research published in the International Social Security Review investigated this topic through surveys completed by individuals in 27 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an intergovernmental organization that was founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. Survey responses indicated that, compared with men, women are more concerned about economic security and less confident that their country’s social protection ...