Feature Channels: All Journal News

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UPTON, NY—If you want to understand how a material changes from one atomic-level configuration to another, it’s not enough to capture snapshots of before-and-after structures. It’d be better to track details of the transition as it happens. Same goes for studying catalysts, materials that speed up chemical reactions by bringing key ingredients together; the crucial action is often triggered by subtle atomic-scale shifts at intermediate stages.

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A new study led by David Broniatowski, an assistant professor in the George Washington University’s department of engineering management and systems engineering, finds the “Why not take a risk?” mentality is widespread among patients and medical care providers.

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New research from the University of Georgia suggests that fun can motivate kids to try new foods at lunchtime and ultimately eat more fruits and vegetables.

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Menopause symptoms are not just for midlife anymore, according to a new Mayo Clinic study published this month in the Journal of the North American Menopause Society.

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Persistent pain and recurrent episodes of pain are common for those who are living with cancer, or for those undergoing cancer treatment. When used properly, prescription opioids have long been known to help combat pain experienced by people with cancer.

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A new approach pioneered at the University of Pennsylvania’s Abramson Cancer Center may provide a new path towards treating Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) with CAR T cells.

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A Ludwig Cancer Research study has uncovered an entirely novel mechanism by which cells enter a state of dormancy as tissues starved of oxygen become increasingly acidic. The study, led by Chi Van Dang, scientific director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, has potentially significant implications for cancer therapy: Large swaths of solid tumors are often deprived of oxygen, and cells in such patches are thought to be a major source of drug resistance and disease relapses.

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Researchers funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) have identified 133 genetic variants that predict with 75-percent accuracy a person’s risk for developing glaucoma related to elevated pressure within the eye. Future genetic tests could identify high-risk individuals who would benefit from early interventions aimed at preventing vision loss from glaucoma, a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in the United States.

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A research team from the National University of Singapore discovered that nanoplastics can accumulate in marine organisms over time. This could pose harm to aquatic food chains.

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Recently published research from Iowa State University plant scientists maps the stress response detected by the endoplasmic reticulum, an organelle in cells of corn seedlings. The study shows how cells transition from adaptation to death when faced with persistent stress and could help plant breeders develop stress-resistant crop varieties.

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State laws that require gun purchasers to obtain a license contingent on passing a background check performed by state or local law enforcement are associated with a 14 percent reduction in firearm homicides in large, urban counties, a new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found.

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From Facebook and Twitter, to Instagram and Snapchat, it's no secret social media has become a common form of communication, but have you ever left your feeds feeling bad about yourself? If so, you’re not alone, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the University of Kentucky.

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The rates of infection following colonoscopies and upper-GI endoscopies performed at U.S. outpatient specialty centers are far higher than previously believed, according to a Johns Hopkins study published online this month in the journal Gut.

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New research suggests that changes in the eye that occur during spaceflight may be related to how much an astronaut weighs. The study is published ahead of print in the American Journal of Physiology—Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology.

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A new study shows that people who take drugs that suppress the immune system are less likely to develop Parkinson's disease, which is characterized by difficulty with movement.

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Forward-thinking scientists in the 1970s suggested that circuits could be built using molecules instead of wires, and over the past decades that technology has become reality. The trouble is, some molecules have particularly complex interactions that make it hard to predict which of them might be good at serving as miniature circuits. But a new paper by two University of Chicago chemists presents an innovative method that cuts computational costs and improves accuracy by calculating interactions between pairs of electrons and extrapolating those to the rest of the molecule.

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A strong social network could be the key to preserving memory. New research from The Ohio State University found that mice housed in groups had better memories and healthier brains than animals that lived in pairs.

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Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed tiny ultrasound-powered robots that can swim through blood, removing harmful bacteria along with the toxins they produce. These proof-of-concept nanorobots could one day offer a safe and efficient way to detoxify and decontaminate biological fluids.

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Researchers from three universities have found that extreme price competition in the generic pharmaceutical market -- designed to make medications more affordable -- may be putting more patients at serious health risk, as evidenced by a higher number of product recalls caused by manufacturing-related problems.

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A newly developed nanosystem significantly improves the effectiveness of anti-cancer drugs and reduces the required dosage by about 90%. The system could offer a glimpse of developments to come in the treatment of pediatric cancers, which differ from adult cancers in aspects that include genetic characteristics, growth patterns and developmental pathways.

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Water changes how cobalt-based molecule turns carbon dioxide into chemical feedstock.

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New research conducted by the American Society of Anesthesiologists confirms the quality and safety of anesthesia provided by CRNAs. The research also calls into question the safety of Anesthesiologist Assistants who are not allowed to administer anesthesia without an anesthesiologist.

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Scientists use ion beams to write high-purity metal structures, enabling nanofabrication opportunities.

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We know that exercise may help improve thinking skills. But how much exercise? And for how long? To find the answers, researchers reviewed all of the studies where older adults were asked to exercise for at least four weeks and their tests of thinking and memory skills were compared to those of people who did not start a new exercise routine. The review is published in the May 30, 2018, online issue of Neurology® Clinical Practice, an official journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Building on two decades of research, investigators at UT Southwestern have determined that “cellular housekeeping” can extend the lifespan and healthspan of mammals.

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Uniform powders produced at Sandia National Laboratories don’t just look nice, they outperform commercial varieties used to kick-start chemical reactions in solar cells and could be used to produce clean-burning hydrogen fuel. Their key ingredient: detergent.

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New Cleveland Clinic research shows for the first time that ibrutinib, an FDA-approved drug for lymphoma and leukemia, may also help treat the most common – and deadliest – type of brain tumor. The findings, published in Science Translational Medicine, offer hope that the drug may one day be used in patients with glioblastoma and improve poor survival rates.

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Using evidence found in baby teeth, researchers from the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai report that cycles involved in zinc and copper metabolism are dysregulated in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and can be used to predict who will later develop the disease. The researchers used the teeth to reconstruct prenatal and early-life exposures to nutrient and toxic elements in healthy and autistic children.

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An international study led by researchers at UCLA has found that a personalized vaccine targeting glioblastoma, the deadliest form of brain cancer, may help people live longer. Nearly 30 percent of people in the current trial have now survived for at least three years after receiving the vaccine.

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Routine tests couldn't diagnose an Israeli infant's developmental disorder. Until they completed whole-exome sequencing, his doctors were stumped. After finding a homozygous rare allele, they teamed up with Japanese experts on the affected enzyme to describe its role in myelination in a paper in the June issue of the Journal of Lipid Research.

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In a paper to be published in the June 1 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis provide the first report of an enzyme that breaks down plasmalogens, a breakthrough in understanding the molecular processes that occur during Alzheimer’s and other diseases.

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Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s Abramson Cancer Center say a patient treated for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in 2013 went into remission because of a single CAR T cell and the cells it produced as it multiplied, and has stayed cancer free in the five years since, with CAR T cells still present in his immune system.

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St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital researchers have used systems biology approaches to reveal key details about regulation of immune function, including T cells that are central to cancer immunotherapy

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A team led by Berkeley Lab researchers has enlisted powerful supercomputers to calculate a quantity, known as the “nucleon axial coupling” or gA, that is central to our understanding of a neutron’s lifetime.

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Children who undergo surgery for congenital heart disease have lower survival rates by three years of age if there are specific problems during fetal development, such as hypertension in the mother or the newborn being born preterm or small for gestational age. These problems are considered markers of an impaired maternal-fetal environment.

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Dubbed “T-cell engaging bi-specific antibodies,” these cancer combatants attack malignant cells but leave healthy cells untouched.

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Study published today the journal Cancer recommends colorectal cancer screening start at age 45, five years younger than currently recommended for both men and women of all races and ethnicities.

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University of Delaware researchers have identified a metal that may be just what the doctor ordered for Planet Earth. The colorful metal, known as bismuth, could help reduce rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and provide sustainable routes to making fuels.

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Nanoscientists at Northwestern University have developed a blueprint to fabricate new heterostructures from different types of 2-D materials, single atom layers that can be stacked together like “nano-interlocking building blocks.” Materials scientists and physicists are excited about the properties of 2-D materials and their potential applications. The researchers describe their blueprint for nanoheterostructures in the Journal of Applied Physics.

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The race is on for companies to present their driverless cars to the public, but recent collisions involving autonomous vehicles developed by Uber Technologies Inc. and Tesla Inc. have led consumers to questions whether these vehicles can alleviate traffic issues and increase safety. A new study published in Risk Analysis examined the question “How safe is safe enough for self-driving vehicles (SDVs)?”

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An “alcopop” is a bottled alcoholic beverage that masks the taste of alcohol with flavors such as soda or lemonade. Originally marketed in Australia during the mid-1990s, alcopop brands such as Smirnoff Ice and Mike’s Hard Lemonade soon became popular in the U.S. Supersized alcopops, such as Four Loko, contain large quantities of alcohol and are reportedly popular among underage drinkers. This study examined the extent to which young adults recognize how intoxicated they would become from drinking supersized alcopops.

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A new Columbia Engineering study shows that photosynthesis in tall Amazonian forests--forests above 30m--is 3x less sensitive to precipitation variability than in shorter forests of less than 20m. Taller Amazonian forests were also found to be older, have more biomass and deeper rooting systems that enable them to access deeper soil moisture, making them more resilient to drought. The findings suggest that forest height + age are an important regulator of photosynthesis in response to droughts.

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New research supports the use of radish as a cover crop as a trap crop for fall nitrogen. However, what happens to that nitrogen afterward remains unknown.

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A new poll suggests that many older adults still aren’t using online systems to communicate with the doctors and other health care providers they rely on – despite the widespread availability of such systems. Only about half of people aged 50 to 80 have set up an account on a secure online access site, or “patient portal.” The likelihood was higher among those who were younger, more educated or had higher incomes.

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For many, the lack of latitude in decision-making leads to burnout, a study by UdeM researchers finds.

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New research highlights a diversity of approaches that an automated high-throughput flow cytometry has enabled for phenotypic drug discovery.

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The hand-held device RETeval may prove to be a more accessible way to diagnose schizophrenia, predict relapse and symptom severity, and assess treatment effectiveness.

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Researchers discovered that honey bees alter their diet by the season. A spike in calcium consumption in the fall, and high intake of potassium, help prepare the bees for colder months when they likely need those minerals to generate warmth. Limitations in nutrient availability can have implications for the health of both managed and wild colonies.

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Scientists from the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed a way to use machine learning to dramatically accelerate the design of microbes that produce biofuel.

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When scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) applied a chemical found in soybeans to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), they increased its anticancer properties and reduced its side effects. Findings of the preclinical study of phosphatidylcholine, also called lecithin, appear in the journal Oncology Letters.