In this issue, find research on school shootings and long gun age restrictions, Russian anti-vaccine trolls, smoke-free colleges and more.
Researchers found a new cell surface marker on stem cells induced to become dopamine neurons, which allow isolation of a more beneficial population of induced neurons for cell replacement therapy. Animals that received a transplant sorted using the new marker fared better than their counterparts with a typical transplant.
As the Hawaiian Islands brace for Hurricane Lane, a category 4 hurricane that could potentially impact Hawaii between Thursday and Friday, the diabetes community is rallying to make sure that people living with diabetes that use insulin are taking special precautions. The Diabetes Disaster Response Coalition (DDRC) which is comprised of the Endocrine Society and several other leading diabetes organizations is urging all people with diabetes and their caregivers in Hawaii to act now to prepare for Hurricane Lane by putting together a diabetes kit and making a plan to stay healthy and safe during the storm and in its aftermath.
WASHINGTON – The American Psychological Association called on Congress and the administration to back away from a reported plan to allow states to use federal funding to purchase guns for educators.
The American Midwest’s Great Prairie is one of the country’s most important ecological systems and its soil microbes are essential to the carbon cycle. The Great Prairie Metagenome Grand Challenge is sequencing the genes of microbial communities to better understand their ecological role.
Epithelial cells grown on a plastic dish are worse at segregating their chromosomes than epithelial cells growing in mice, a new study shows. The results may help explain why chromosomes go awry in cancer.
A team at the George Washington University Cancer Center received more than $1.8 million from the National Institutes of Health to develop genetically engineered models to comprehensively study the role of COMPASS, a protein complex that epigenetically regulates cell fate decisions that drive the initiation and progression of pancreatic cancer.
Individual variations in genetic makeup and gut bacteria may explain the different effects of antibiotics on blood pressure, a new rat study suggests. The findings are published ahead of print in Physiological Genomics.
In magnetic confinement fusion devices known as tokamaks, the maximum operational density limits the efficiency and now we know how this limit may be overcome.
The Department of Energy (DOE) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs issued its first Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for Fiscal Year 2019.
Enabling beams to respond to plasma conditions in real time allows scientists to avoid instabilities and raise performance.
AMP has announced the recipients of this year’s Award for Excellence in Molecular Diagnostics, Jeffrey A. Kant Leadership Award and Meritorious Service Award. These prestigious accolades will be presented in November during the AMP 2018 Annual Meeting & Expo in San Antonio, Texas.
The American Psychological Association has produced a video entitled “Racism in America” aimed at promoting dialogue on the complex issues associated with race-related stress.
Attend press conferences live – online at http://bit.ly/ACSLive_Boston2018 or in person -- at the 256th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS). Press conferences will be held Monday, Aug. 20, through Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018. Below is the schedule, which will be updated as needed.
Lithium-ion batteries commonly used in consumer electronics are notorious for bursting into flame when damaged or improperly packaged. These incidents occasionally have grave consequences, including burns, house fires and at least one plane crash. Inspired by the weird behavior of some liquids that solidify on impact, researchers have developed a practical and inexpensive way to help prevent these fires.
A root canal ranks high on most people’s list of dreaded dental procedures. Although the lengthy and sometimes painful surgery relieves the agony of an infection, a root canal results in a dead tooth with no living soft tissue, or dental pulp, inside. Today, scientists report development of a peptide hydrogel designed to stimulate the growth of new blood vessels and dental pulp within a tooth after the procedure.
S&T recently demonstrated a new Federated Command and Control (FC2) infrastructure with the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) that can protect a multitude of organizations at once—a federation—from potential threats using a variety of preventative measures and automated responses where malicious activity is detected, shared and mitigated.
AMP has published consensus, evidence-based recommendations to aid clinical laboratory professionals with the management of most Chronic Myeloid Neoplasms (CMNs) and development of high-throughput pan-myeloid sequencing testing panels.
New technique allows the spatiotemporal control of laser intensity, potentially changing the way laser-based accelerators are optimized.
Ceramic materials are used in nuclear, chemical and electrical power generation industries because of their ability to withstand extreme environments. However, at high temperatures, ceramics are susceptible to thermal-shock fractures caused by rapid temperature-changing events, such as cold water droplet contact with hot surfaces. In a novel interdisciplinary approach, engineers at the University of New Mexico report in AIP Advances the use of a cheap, simple, water-repelling coating to prevent thermal shock in ceramics.
The Endocrine Society has selected five new recipients for its Early Investigators Awards.
Once in the territory of science fiction, “nanobots” are closer than ever to becoming a reality, with possible applications in medicine, manufacturing, robotics and fluidics. Today, scientists report progress in developing the tiny machines: They have made nanobot pumps that destroy nerve agents, while simultaneously administering an antidote.
Thousands of shipwrecks litter the seafloor all over the world, preserved in sediments and cold water. But when one of these ships is brought up from the depths, the wood quickly starts deteriorating. Today, scientists report a new way to use “smart” nanocomposites to conserve a 16th-century British warship, the Mary Rose, and its artifacts. The new approach could help preserve other salvaged ships by eliminating harmful acids without damaging the wooden structures themselves.
For thousands of years, people in the Middle East and South America have extracted water from the air to help sustain their populations. Drawing inspiration from those examples, researchers are now developing a lightweight, battery-powered freshwater harvester that could someday take as much as 10 gallons per hour from the air, even in arid locations. They say their nanofiber-based method could help address modern water shortages due to climate change, industrial pollution, droughts and groundwater depletion.
In January, raging storms caused medical emergencies along the U.S. East Coast, prompting the Red Cross to issue an urgent call for blood donations. The nation’s blood supply was especially in need of O-type blood that can be universally administered in an emergency. Now, scientists say they have identified enzymes — from the human gut — that can turn type A and B blood into O, as much as 30 times more efficiently than previously studied enzymes.
Soldiers on the battlefield or at remote bases often have to wait weeks for vital replacement parts. Now scientists report they have found a way to fabricate many of these parts within hours under combat conditions using water bottles, cardboard and other recyclable materials found on base as starting materials for 3D printing. They say this ‘game-changing’ advance could improve operational readiness, reduce dependence on outside supply chains and enhance safety.
Scientists funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) report a novel gene therapy that halts vision loss in a canine model of a blinding condition called autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa (adRP). The strategy could one day be used to slow or prevent vision loss in people with the disease.
NIBIB-funded researchers at Stanford University used dual PET and MRI technology to detect increased bone remodeling in the injured knees of patients likely to get osteoarthritis. This increased bone activity was often seen next to areas of early cartilage tissue degradation, suggesting an important link between degenerative changes in neighboring tissues in the disease.
The Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate announced that DataRobot, Inc. of Tysons Corner, Virginia has received $200,000 to begin testing a prototype of a machine learning platform for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Global Travel Assessment System.
Researchers recently discovered that the strength of the magnetic field required to elicit a particular quantum mechanical process corresponds to the temperature of the material. Based on this finding, scientists can determine a sample’s temperature to a resolution of one cubic micron by measuring the field strength at which this effect occurs. Temperature sensing is integral in most industrial, electronic and chemical processes, so greater spatial resolution could benefit commercial and scientific pursuits. The team reports their findings in AIP Advances.
Participants are now being sought for a new study, Stepping Forward in Grief, which was motivated by key findings from USU’s National Military Family Bereavement Study (NMFBS), the first large scientific study on the impact of U.S. service member death on surviving family members. NMFBS findings suggest that surviving family members who have experienced the loss of a service member may benefit from help managing their loss and grief with programs that recognize their unique experience as military family members.
If you can’t remember the last time you saw a teenager reading a book, newspaper or magazine, you’re not alone. In recent years, less than 20 percent of U.S. teens report reading a book, magazine or newspaper daily for pleasure, while more than 80 percent say they use social media every day, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.
Nearly 700 million people suffer from mosquito-borne diseases — such as malaria, West Nile, Zika and dengue fever — each year, resulting in more than 1 million deaths. Increasingly, many species of mosquitoes have become resistant to the popular pyrethroid-based insecticides. Today, researchers report a new class of mosquito repellents based on naturally occurring compounds that are effective in repelling mosquitoes with potentially fewer environmental side effects than existing repellents.
The popularity of electronic cigarettes continues to grow worldwide, as many people view them as a safer alternative to smoking. But the long-term effects of e-cigarette usage, commonly called “vaping,” are unknown. Today, researchers report that vaping may modify the genetic material, or DNA, in the oral cells of users, which could increase their cancer risk.
America’s drug problem may be even worse than officials realize. And illicit drugs are consumed at a higher rate during celebratory events. Those are just two of the conclusions scientists have drawn from recent studies of drug residues in sewage.
Saliva is crucial for tasting and digesting food, but scientists have now found that it may have another, more subtle role. Salivary proteins could be part of a feedback loop that influences how food tastes to people — and by extension, what foods they’re willing to eat. The researchers hope that, one day, their findings could help consumers stick to a healthier diet.
About 50,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed annually with head, neck, nasal and oral cancers. Most are treated with radiation, and of those, 70-80 percent develop a painful and debilitating side effect called severe oral mucositis (SOM).
Scientists report they have successfully developed and tested the world’s first ultrathin artificial retina that could vastly improve on existing implantable visualization technology for the blind. The flexible device, based on very thin 2D materials, could someday restore sight to the millions of people with retinal diseases. And with a few modifications, the device could be used to track heart and brain activity.
Maple trees are best known for their maple syrup and lovely fall foliage. But it turns out that the beauty of those leaves could be skin-deep — and that’s a good thing. Today, scientists report that an extract from the leaves may prevent wrinkles.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a set of painful conditions that can cause severe diarrhea and fatigue. Treatments can include medications and surgery. But now researchers report that a simple dietary intervention could mitigate colonic inflammation and improve gut health. In this case, a strawberry — or rather, less than a cupful of strawberries — a day could help keep the doctor away.
Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society (ACS), is today unveiling its annual “Talented 12” list. This award program, now in its fourth year, and for the first time sponsored by Thermo Fisher Scientific, recognizes young global stars in the chemical sciences that are working to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems. These up-and-coming innovators in chemistry will be debuted at an event today at ACS’ 256th National Meeting & Exposition. They are also featured in this week’s issue of C&EN.
Many people rely on contact lenses to improve their vision. But these sight-correcting devices don’t last forever — some are intended for a single day’s use — and they are eventually disposed of in various ways. Now, scientists are reporting that throwing these lenses down the drain at the end of their use could be contributing to microplastic pollution in waterways.
The life-threatening bacteria called MRSA can cripple a hospital since it spreads quickly and is resistant to treatment. But scientists report that they are now making advances in a new technique that avoids antibiotics. Instead, they are using light to activate oxygen, which then wipes out antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The method also could be used to treat other microbial infections, and possibly even cancer.
Georgetown Breast Cancer Advocates (GBCA), a volunteer group of survivors and other advocates who support and promote cancer research at Georgetown University, have published an article that underscores ways in which both the scientific and advocacy communities can foster a mutually beneficial collaboration.
Researchers from the George Washington University published an article in Trends in Parasitology outlining their lessons learned while creating vaccine candidates for hookworm and schistosomiasis.
Researchers studying infertility in obese mice have identified a protein suppressed in the egg cell precursors of obese mice that controls antioxidant production and may regulate egg cell maturation.
Increasing the amount of protein in the diet may reduce the liver’s fat content and lower the risk of diabetes in people with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The study is published ahead of print in the American Journal of Physiology—Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Clinicians most often monitor antibodies because these small proteins attach to antigens, or foreign substances, we face every day. Most biomolecules, however, have complicated charge characteristics, and the sensor response from conventional carbon nanotube systems can be erratic. A team in Japan recently revealed how these systems work and proposed changes to dramatically improve biomolecule detection. They report their findings in the Journal of Applied Physics.
Discoveries by two HHMI investigators show how proteins that organize into liquid droplets inside cells make certain biological functions possible.
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