ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

With one in five people experiencing ongoing pain long after knee replacement surgery, new research has shown a way to help reduce people's continuing pain that could also save time and money too.

Illegal gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon is causing exceptionally high levels of atmospheric mercury pollution in a nearby patch of pristine rainforest. One stand of old-growth pristine forest had the highest levels of mercury ever recorded, rivaling industrial areas where mercury is mined. Birds from this area have up to twelve times more mercury in their system than birds from less polluted areas, a level of poisoning that should harm their reproduction.

A new study has found that the true burden of RSV infant mortality is substantially higher than what was previously believed. The study used systematic surveillance to measure the presence of RSV among infants who died in medical facilities or in the community and found that the virus was present in 7 to 9 percent of infants under 6 months old and was primarily concentrated in infants under 3 months old. Two-thirds of these deaths occurred in the community -- i.e., among infants who never received medical care in a hospital and were overlooked in previous facility-based surveillance.

In the age of large-scale fires, forest-wide beetle invasions, and frequent drought, maintaining 'ideal' historical conditions is becoming increasingly unrealistic. Novel conditions require different strategies; lower crowding for trees can increase chances of survival after fire. Results from two long-term studies show that chances for long-term tree survival increased when trees had more space, by reducing competition and helping trees recover from fire more quickly.

Researchers show how a DNA-binding protein can search the entire genome for its target sequence without getting held up on the way. The result contradicts our current understanding of gene regulation - the genetic code affects how often the proteins bind, but not for how long.