ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

Lymphatics help 'seed' early brain cells in zebrafish

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 01:21 PM PDT

A recent article demonstrated how lymphatics -- which remove waste from the rest of the body -- are also associated with microglia and brain development in zebrafish.

New model predicts how temperature affects life from quantum to classical scales

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 01:20 PM PDT

A new theory explains how every process depends on temperature. This theory could help researchers make accurate predictions in a range of areas, including biological responses to climate change, the spread of infectious diseases, and food production.

Go with the flow: New findings about moving electricity could improve fusion devices

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 01:19 PM PDT

Researchers have found that updating a mathematical model to include a physical property known as resistivity could lead to the improved design of doughnut-shaped fusion facilities known as tokamaks.

COVID-19 patients more likely to develop cardiovascular diseases and diabetes soon after infection

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 12:06 PM PDT

Patients who contract COVID-19 face a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, particularly in the three months following infection, according to a new study.

Influenza surveillance system may have shown early signs of COVID-19 pandemic

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 12:05 PM PDT

A new study finds that the WHO Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System had outliers to typical influenza-like illness in 16 countries an average of 13 weeks before the first reported COVID-19 peak.

New genomic research shows why testing malaria vaccines in the clinic is as rigorous as natural exposure in the field

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 10:02 AM PDT

Scientists report a new way to test vaccines that may be as rigorous and stringent as exposure to field strains of malaria.

New database to support conservation

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 10:02 AM PDT

Scientists have created a new tool to fill the large gaps in our understanding of where and how human activities threaten wild species around the world.

Three new species of black-bellied salamander found in southern Appalachian Mountains

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 10:02 AM PDT

Three new species of black-bellied salamander have been discovered. The new salamanders, which are found in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States, stem from black-bellied populations that were long considered to be a single species.

Novel HIV combination therapies could prevent viral escape and rebound

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 08:34 AM PDT

Carefully designed cocktails of broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) could help treat HIV while minimizing the risk of the virus escaping treatment, suggests a new study.

Toward manufacturing semitransparent solar cells the size of windows

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 08:34 AM PDT

In an important step toward bringing transparent solar cells to home windows, researchers have developed a way to manufacture their highly efficient and semitransparent solar cells.

Arctic shrub expansion limited by seed dispersal and wildfire

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 07:23 AM PDT

Scientists investigating the growth of Arctic vegetation have found that seed dispersal and fire will slow its land expansion in the long term, despite more favorable conditions from a warming planet.

AI tech to automate process of denture design and enhance treatment efficiency without compromising accuracy

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:12 AM PDT

Researchers developed a new approach using artificial intelligence to automate the design of individualised dentures, in order to enhance the treatment efficiency and improve patient experience.

Vitamin B6 supplements could reduce anxiety and depression

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:12 AM PDT

Trial participants reported feeling less anxious or depressed after taking high doses of Vitamin B6 for a month. The trial provides evidence that the calming effect B6 has on the brain could make it effective in preventing or treating mood disorders.

New approach to exposing illegal and informal mercury trading

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:12 AM PDT

The Minamata Convention (MC) aims to restrict and limit the trading of mercury, a highly toxic pollutant. While most countries involved in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM), the biggest source of mercury pollution, are MC parties, its efficacy has remained unclear. Researchers have now developed a new method of examining global mercury trade data inconsistencies based on estimating and comparing the mercury input of ASGM activities to the total mercury available domestically.

'Junk' DNA could lead to cancer by stopping copying of DNA

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

Scientists have found that non-coding 'junk' DNA, far from being harmless and inert, could potentially contribute to the development of cancer.

Diverse nurse workforce linked to better maternal health outcomes in childbirth

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

A new study provides robust evidence to support diversifying the healthcare workforce as a remedy for addressing racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes, and a call to action to improve maternal health. The researchers focused on registered nurses in particular because they are critical for comprehensive maternal healthcare, and are the frontline healthcare providers involved in the early recognition of warning signs for maternal complications. Delayed recognition of these warning signs has been repeatedly identified as a major contributor to preventable maternal deaths.

Invasive fish: Sperm hijacking as success strategy

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

The Prussian carp is considered one of the most successful invasive fish species in Europe. Its ability to reproduce asexually gives it a major advantage over competing fish. An international research team has now managed to describe the complete genome of the Prussian carp for the first time. This also provides a much better understanding of its peculiar reproductive method.

Climate warming, water management impacts on West Florida's continental shelf

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

Scientists conducted a study that provides an assessment of the potential effects of climate warming and water management of the West Florida Shelf dynamics during two particular events that affect its hydrology through the lens of a very high-resolution model.

New study finds environmental injustice is key to decoding climate change debate

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

A new study found that Miami's history of environmental injustice was the key to understanding why different groups were often talking at cross-purposes, leading to misunderstandings and disagreements about climate change and what they believe should be done about it.

New key protection against COVID-19 found in saliva

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

Saliva and oral cells are important routes for transmission and infection by the novel coronavirus COVID-19. Researchers hypothesized that the body's innate immune system may protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection. The onset and severity of COVID-19 are age-dependent, as are parts of the innate immune system like saliva production and quality, which are significantly reduced in the elderly. They found that saliva from healthy individuals prevented the binding of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein S1 on the viral envelope to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor present on the plasma membrane of human cells in a concentration-dependent manner.

Mother's immune cells appear to exacerbate complications of preeclampsia

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

T-cells, immune cells that normally protect us, appear to play a key role in the development of preeclampsia, says a young scientist who wants to find a better way to intervene in the syndrome that can have lifelong consequences for mother and child.

Carbon captured and stored since 1996 is significant but overestimated by up to 30 per cent

Posted: 19 Jul 2022 06:11 AM PDT

Although a significant amount of carbon has been caught and stored so far, governments should curb overestimation.

Lakes in hot water, climate change creating a cauldron of issues

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 03:10 PM PDT

As intense heatwaves grip the United Kingdom, Spain, France and Portugal, at times exceeding temperatures 40C, as well as parts of North America and Asia, lakes around the world are feeling the heat from climate change, which is creating a cascade of ecological and environmental issues. Northern-most lakes are considered the bellwethers of environmental change, but research shows consequences of climate change can affect any of the more than 100 million lakes in the world.

Discovery advancing epilepsy research

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 03:10 PM PDT

A team of researchers has found a link between a specific protein in the brain and increased vulnerability to neurodegeneration for individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE).

New links found between dogs' smell and vision

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 03:10 PM PDT

Researchers have provided the first documentation that dogs' sense of smell is integrated with their vision and other unique parts of the brain, shedding new light on how dogs experience and navigate the world.

Discovery of molecular signatures of immature neurons in human brain throughout life provide insights into brain plasticity

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 03:10 PM PDT

Researchers have used advanced techniques to show that, in a key memory region of the brain called the hippocampus, immature, plastic neurons are present in significant numbers throughout the human lifespan. The findings may resolve a long-running controversy over the existence of 'adult neurogenesis'-- the production of new immature neurons in the mature human brain. The discovery also paves the way for the deeper study of adult neurogenesis and its roles in memory, mood, behavior, and brain disorders.

Loss of 'youth' protein may drive aging in the eye

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 03:09 PM PDT

Loss of the protein pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF), which protects retinal support cells, may drive age-related changes in the retina, according to a new study.

Researcher uses graphene for same-time, same-position biomolecule isolation and sensing

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 12:43 PM PDT

New research has overcome a major challenge to isolating and detecting molecules at the same time and at the same location in a microdevice. The work demonstrates an important advance in using graphene for electrokinetic biosample processing and analysis and could allow lab-on-a-chip devices to become smaller and achieve results faster.

Scientists reveal new evidence of key mechanism in Alzheimer's

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 06:45 AM PDT

Rutgers scientists have found more clear-cut evidence of how the destructive proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease attack human brain cells and destroy surrounding tissue.

Air pollution caused 2,780 deaths, illnesses, and IQ loss in children in Massachusetts in 2019

Posted: 18 Jul 2022 06:44 AM PDT

Air pollution, climate change, and public health are closely linked, as a new study shows. The report details on a town-by-town basis the deaths and illnesses caused by air pollution in Massachusetts, and also outlines steps to curb fine particulate pollutants. Nationally, the study offers a model that can be followed by other states using public data and open-source software, according to a public health expert and practitioner.