ScienceDaily: Top News

Monkeys, like people, can 'choke under pressure'

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 11:33 AM PST

Being stressed about doing well on a test might not be limited to humans, according to a new study.

Hidden magnitude-8.2 earthquake source of mysterious 2021 global tsunami

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 09:44 AM PST

Scientists have uncovered the source of a mysterious 2021 tsunami that sent waves around the globe. In August 2021, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit near the South Sandwich Islands, creating a tsunami that rippled around the globe. The epicenter was 47 kilometers below the Earth's surface -- too deep to initiate a tsunami -- and the rupture was nearly 400 kilometers long, which should have generated a much larger earthquake.

Giant sponge gardens discovered on seamounts in the Arctic deep sea

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 08:39 AM PST

Massive sponge gardens thrive on top of seamounts in the Central Arctic Ocean, one of the most oligotrophic seas on Earth. They appear to feed on the remnants of an extinct fauna. Microorganisms support the sponges in exploiting this fluffy material as a source of food and energy.

Predicting the efficiency of oxygen-evolving electrolysis on the Moon and Mars

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 08:39 AM PST

Scientists have today provided more insight into the possibility of establishing a pathway to generate oxygen for humans to potentially call the Moon or Mars 'home' for extended periods of time.

How Mars lost its oceans

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:53 AM PST

It has long been known that Mars once had oceans due in part to a protective magnetic field similar to Earth's. However, the magnetic field disappeared, and new research may finally be able to explain why. Researchers recreated conditions expected in the core of Mars billions of years ago and found that the behavior of the molten metal thought to be present likely gave rise to a brief magnetic field that was destined to fade away.

A new multipurpose on-off switch for inhibiting bacterial growth

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Researchers have discovered an antitoxin mechanism that seems to be able to neutralize hundreds of different toxins and may protect bacteria against virus attacks. The mechanism has been named Panacea, after the Greek goddess of medicine whose name has become synonymous with universal cure. The understanding of bacterial toxin and antitoxin mechanisms will be crucial for the future success of so-called phage therapy for the treatment of antibiotic resistance infections, the researchers say.

Root symbiosis is regulated through nutrient status of plants

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Phosphorus is one of the most important nutrients for plants. Among other functions, it is needed to create substances for the plant's immune system, for the healthy development of seeds and for root growth. Researchers have now demonstrated how a root symbiosis with fungi is driven at the molecular level by the plant's phosphate status.

Golfing cockatoos reveal ability to use combined tools

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Cockatoos have shown an extraordinary ability to complete a task by combining simple tools, demonstrating that this cognitive ability is not found only in primates.

Arctic winter warming causes cold damage in the subtropics of East Asia

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Due to climate change, Arctic winters are getting warmer. An international study shows that Arctic warming causes temperature anomalies and cold damage thousands of kilometers away in East Asia. This in turn leads to reduced vegetation growth, later blossoming, smaller harvests and reduced CO2 absorption by the forests in the region.

Gabon provides blueprint for protecting oceans

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Gabon's network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) provides a blueprint that could be used in many other countries, experts say. Since announcing a new MPA network in 2014, Gabon has created 20 protected areas -- increasing protection of Gabonese waters from less than 1% to 26%.

Genome of Steller’s sea cow decoded

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

During the Ice Age, giant mammals such as mammoths, sabre-toothed cats and woolly rhinoceroses once roamed Northern Europe and America. The cold oceans of the northern hemisphere were also home to giants like Steller's sea cow, which grew up to eight meters long and weighed up to ten tons, and has been extinct for around 250 years. Now an international research team has succeeded in deciphering the genome of this ice-age species from fossil bones. They also found an answer to the question of what the genome of this extinct species of sea cow reveals about present-day skin diseases.

Important step towards fasting-based therapies

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Voluntary fasting, for example interval fasting, is beneficial to health for many people, depending on their individual condition. For example, controlled periods of starvation can prevent and improve diseases such as diabetes and obesity. Researchers have now found that the immune system plays an important role in ensuring the positive effects of fasting on our bodies. The new findings will help develop more effective therapies based on fasting.

Unique seagrass nursery aims to help Florida's starving manatees

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

More than 1,000 manatees died in 2021, due mostly to starvation. They consume about 100 pounds of seagrass a day, and this staple food is now scarce in Florida's Indian River Lagoon (IRL). A new study shows that about 7,400 acres of seagrasses were lost in the IRL between 1943 and 1994. Between 2011 and 2019, about 58 percent of seagrasses were lost. To help with recovery efforts, researchers are experimenting with growing seagrass in large tanks and then transplanting it into the IRL to try to restore some of the lost seagrass beds.

Lotus effect: Self-cleaning bioplastics repel liquid and dirt

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Inspired by the always immaculate lotus leaf, researchers have developed a self-cleaning bioplastic that is sturdy, sustainable and compostable.

Using the universe’s coldest material to measure the world’s tiniest magnetic fields

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:52 AM PST

Using atoms only a few billionths of a degree above absolute zero, a team of researchers has detected magnetic signals undetectable by any other existing sensor technology.

Novel structural mechanism of membrane remodelling caused by the protein MakA from Vibrio cholerae

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:49 AM PST

New research has led to the discovery of a pH-induced structural mechanism of membrane remodeling caused by the protein MakA, a subunit of the recently described alpha-pore-forming toxin from the pathogenic bacterium Vibrio cholerae.

Self-assembling and complex, nanoscale mesocrystals can be tuned for a variety of uses

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 07:46 AM PST

A research team has found the key to controlled fabrication of cerium oxide mesocrystals, according to a recent report. The research is a step forward in tuning nanomaterials that can serve a wide range of uses --including solar cells, fuel catalysts and even medicine.

The perilous migratory journey of the eastern whip-poor-will

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

Using GPS tags attached to the birds, researchers discovered some surprising facts about the long migrations that eastern whip-poor-wills make from their Midwest breeding grounds to where they winter in Mexico and Central America.

Who’s responsible for roadside rubbish?

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

New research reveals that items in litter typically originate less than two miles from where they're found -- and unless humans remove them, most of these items will never leave the environment.

Saturn’s high-altitude winds generate an extraordinary aurorae, study finds

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

Space scientists have discovered a never-before-seen mechanism fueling huge planetary aurorae at Saturn.

Towards self-sensing soft robots with electrochemically driven pumps

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

Soft robots have received much attention recently due to their adaptability and safety. However, the fluidic systems used in these robots continue to use pumps that are large, heavy, and noisy. Now, researchers report a fluid pump driven by electrochemical reactions that are simple, lightweight, silent, and enable self-sensing actuation, with potential applications in wearable technology and touch display devices.

Suppressing the spread of tumors

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

When tumors spread, cancer cells migrate to other parts of the body through the blood or lymphatic vessels. Scientists have now found a new protein that prevents cancer cells from doing so by making them stick more tightly to their surroundings. Their findings could in the future help doctors determine the aggressiveness of a tumor and fine-tune the therapy.

Simulation training helps hone advanced surgical skills, international trial finds

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

A large-scale study has found that simulation-based surgical training produced an increase of surgeons' skills for more complex surgeries.

Newly discovered effect of toxic goiter on brain

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

Toxic goiter affects the brain more than was previously known, a new study shows, and involves volume changes occurring in central parts of the brain. These findings are described as a key advance for a vulnerable group of patients.

Anti-odor coating is no washout

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

For the first time, researchers have found a cost-effective and convenient way to apply a silver-based antimicrobial clear coating to new or existing textiles. Their method uses polyphenols, commonly found in food items notorious for staining clothes such as wine and chocolate. A range of textile types can be treated by the researchers' method, and items can be washed multiple times without losing the antimicrobial and therefore anti-odor property.

Study in mice shows potential for gene-editing to tackle mitochondrial disorders

Posted: 08 Feb 2022 05:50 AM PST

Defective mitochondria -- the 'batteries' that power the cells of our bodies -- could in future be repaired using gene-editing techniques. Scientists have now shown that it is possible to modify the mitochondrial genome in live mice, paving the way for new treatments for incurable mitochondrial disorders.

'Bionic' pacemaker reverses heart failure

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 02:29 PM PST

A revolutionary pacemaker that re-establishes the heart's naturally irregular beat is set to be trialled in New Zealand heart patients this year.

Beyond sci-fi: Manipulating liquid metals without contact

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 02:29 PM PST

Research inspired by Terminator 2's shape-shifting, liquid metal robot sees liquid-metal electrical conductors manipulated in mid-air without contact. The liquid wires can be controlled to move in any direction, and manipulated into unique, levitated shapes such as loops and squares using a small 'triggering' voltage and a magnet. The new technology has potential application in advanced manufacturing and dynamic electronic structures, augmenting other non-contact manipulation technologies such as acoustics or optical tweezers.

New 'vertical map' of airborne microorganisms indicates how global warming will impact global ecosystems

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:57 PM PST

In a landmark study of airborne microorganisms from ground level up to 3,500 meters, scientists have found that bacteria and fungi populate the planet's lower atmosphere in very specific ways, and if changed, may negatively impact human health and food supply.

Genetically informed atlases reveal new landscapes in brain structure

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:57 PM PST

Scientists have used atlases of the human brain informed by genetics to identify hundreds of genomic loci. The findings illuminate how genes impact the brain and diseases.

Research team's mask strategy passes muster

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:57 PM PST

During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, a research team went looking for and found a way to make standard surgical masks better at keeping out small airborne droplets that might contain the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

'Double-hazard' zones for wildfire in the West

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

Rapidly growing communities in the American West's forests and shrublands are nestled in zones where local soil and plant traits amplify the effect of climate change on wildfire hazards and lead to bigger burns.

Mechanical hearts can regenerate some heart tissue

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

Mechanical hearts spur some regeneration in dormant parts of failing hearts, according to a pilot study that shows promise for developing regenerative heart therapies.

Researchers discover repair properties of a protein critical for wound-healing in gut diseases

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

An international team has discovered novel properties of the protein Gasdermin B that promotes repair of cells lining the gastrointestinal tract in people with chronic inflammatory disorders like Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Wastewater monitoring for public health

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

Researchers have been monitoring wastewater on the UC Davis campus and in the city of Davis for COVID-19 through the Healthy Davis Together program. A new article reviews their experiences and the advantages and limitations of wastewater testing as a public health tool in the COVID-19 pandemic.

New radar technology records Antarctic glaciers losing ice faster than ever documented before

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

Unprecedented mass loss from three Antarctic glaciers could signal global climate trouble ahead, a researcher warns. A multinational collaboration is using an advanced remote imaging system to document the Pope, Smith and Kohler glaciers with clarity and completeness never achieved before.

As tectonic plates pull apart, what drives the formation of rifts?

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

At the boundaries between tectonic plates, narrow rifts can form as Earth's crust slowly pulls apart. But how, exactly, does this rifting happen? Does pressure from magma rising from belowground force the land apart? Or is a rift just a rip, created mainly by the pulling motion of tectonic plates that are drifting away from each other? A study explores these questions and sheds new light on how this process works.

Poor sleep can triple risk for heart disease

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

Individual aspects of poor sleep can be detrimental to heart health. But if you combine them, the risk of heart disease can increase by as much as 141 percent.

Where mental health help is scarce, telehealth makes a big difference

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

People with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and/or bipolar disorder living in rural areas engaged well with telehealth-based telepsychiatry, though the ones who received local psychotherapy completed more sessions.

Bronze Age women altered genetic landscape of Orkney, study finds

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

An international team has used ancient DNA to rewrite the history of the Scottish Orkney islands to show that Orkney actually experienced large-scale immigration during the Early Bronze Age, which replaced much of the local population.

Fear of predators in free-living wildlife reduces population growth over generations

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:54 PM PST

The fear predators inspire can itself reduce prey population growth rates; thereby conclusively establishing that focusing solely on the number of prey predators directly kill and failing to additionally consider fear, as conventionally done, risks dramatically underestimating the total impact predators have on prey population size.

Survivors of weather-related disasters may have accelerated aging

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 12:54 PM PST

When Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico in September 2017 as a high-end category 4 storm, it left in its wake the largest catastrophe in the history of the island. Along with the human toll, the devastation impacted all the island's wildlife, including a group of free-ranging rhesus macaques living on the isolated Cayo Santiago island near Puerto Rico. Now, a team of scientists has published one of the first results that shows the effects of natural disasters may have molecularly accelerated aging in the monkeys' immune systems.

How do pathogens learn to be pathogens? Partnerships between microbes leading to human disease

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 10:58 AM PST

New research discovered that the fungus Rhizopus fights back against soil predators and human immune cells by partnering with a bacteria called Ralstonia in a two-way partnership.

Chemists develop radical way to make it easier, more profitable to recycle plastic

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 10:58 AM PST

Very little of the plastic water bottles, milk jugs and yogurt cups we use gets recycled. But chemists now describe a radical method they used to transform tossed out plastic into a tougher, stronger material commonly used for food packaging. Through 'upcycling,' the method may make plastic easier -- and more profitable -- to recycle.

Gene regulation in mammals offers clues connecting pregnancy and cancer metastasis

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 10:58 AM PST

In many mammals including humans, the placenta invades the wall of the uterus during pregnancy in the same way that cancer cells invade surrounding tissues. Using genomic sequences and gene expression information, researchers were able to predict specific signaling proteins that drive the expression of genes that decrease the susceptibility of invasion in human cells. Using a custom fabricated bio chip, the researchers confirmed that these predicted proteins did in fact decrease the invasion of both cancer and placental cells.

Metabolism of COVID-19 antibodies from convalescent plasma suggests possible safe treatment for high risk children

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Researchers report that a prospective study of 14 infants and children demonstrated that convalescent plasma -- a blood product collected from patients recovered from infections with the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19 -- was safe in high risk children infected with or exposed to the virus.

In mice, mothers with metabolic syndrome can 'turn on' offspring’s liver disease

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

An imprinted gene associated with development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is switched on in mice who nurse from mothers with metabolic syndrome, even when those mice are not biologically related.

The frogs of Baja California: Scientists assess amphibian disease

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Biologists from Southern and Baja California have published the first major account of the amphibian disease chytridiomycosis in the Mediterranean region of Baja California. Their results indicate that the disease is more prevalent on the peninsula than in similar areas of Southern California.

Study shows life-saving benefit of baricitinib for ventilated COVID patients

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Critically ill COVID-19 patients on a mechanical ventilator or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) lived more often when randomized to receive baricitinib. Doctors call this drug 'bari,' and receiving the pill once a day for up to 14 days yielded one of the largest a survival advantages seen yet in the COVID pandemic, according to a new study.

New personalized test for an earlier and more accurate prediction of cancer relapse

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Researchers have developed a new protocol for monitoring acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common cancer in children, to inform more effective treatment strategies and detect disease recurrence. The personalized mediator probe PCR (MP PCR) uses multiple genomic cancer cell markers in a single assay and is simpler than current techniques. It improves monitoring clonal tumor evolution to detect a relapse sooner and avoid false negative results.

COVID-19 infections increase risk of heart conditions up to a year later, study finds

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

An analysis of federal health data indicates that people who have had COVID-19 are at increased risk of developing cardiovascular complications within the first month to a year after infection, according to researchers.

Researchers use tiny magnetic swirls to generate true random numbers

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Skyrmions, tiny magnetic anomalies that arise in two-dimensional materials, can be used to generate true random numbers useful in cryptography and probabilistic computing.

Large new titanosaurian dinosaur from the Pyrenees

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Researchers have described the new species of titanosaur dinosaur Abditosaurus kuehnei from the remains excavated at the Orcau-1 site, in the southern Pyrenees (Catalonia, Spain). The semiarticulated 70.5-million-year-old skeleton is the most complete specimen of this herbivorous group of dinosaurs discovered so far in Europe.

Big data imaging shows rock's big role in channeling earthquakes in Japan

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

Thanks to 20 years of seismic data processed through one of the world's most powerful supercomputers, scientists have created the first complete, 3D visualization of a mountain-size rock called the Kumano Pluton buried miles beneath the coast of southern Japan. They now see the rock could be acting like a lightning rod for the region's megaquakes, diverting tectonic energy into points along its sides where several of the region's largest earthquakes have happened.

Jet stream models help inform US offshore wind development

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:48 AM PST

With the federal government planning to hold the largest sale of offshore wind farm leases in the nation's history, a new study could help inform the development of offshore wind farms by providing detailed models characterizing the frequency, intensity and height of low-level jet streams over the U.S. Atlantic coastal zone.

New fossil reveals origin of arthropod breathing system

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 09:46 AM PST

Scientists have discovered a new fossil that reveals the origin of gills in arthropods.

Columns designed from nanographenes

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 08:27 AM PST

Several layers of nanographenes stacked on top of each other: such functional elements could one day be used in solar cells. Chemists have now paved the way for this.

COVID-19 increases risk of pregnancy complications, study suggests

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 08:27 AM PST

Pregnant women with COVID-19 appear to be at greater risk for common pregnancy complications -- in addition to health risks from the virus -- than pregnant women without COVID-19, suggests a new study.

Nanowires under tension create the basis for ultrafast transistors

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 08:26 AM PST

Nanowires have a unique property: These ultra-thin wires can sustain very high elastic strains without damaging the crystal structure of the material. A team of researchers has now succeeded in experimentally demonstrating that electron mobility in nanowires is remarkably enhanced when the shell places the wire core under tensile strain.

Genetic remodeling in tumor formation

Posted: 07 Feb 2022 08:26 AM PST

A new study demonstrates the ability of the mutant Kras oncogene to use genetic reprogramming to make cells more stem-like and plastic; it resolves the long-standing debate over why Kras is so special in tumor formation. They were also able to identify an effector complex that can be targeted for therapeutic treatment against mutant Kras.