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- What triggers mass extinctions? Study shows how invasive species stop new life
- Alzheimer's: Therapy for brain disease could target blood
- New cognitive robotics lab tests theories of human thought
- Strict heart rate control provides no advantage over lenient approach, study finds
- Demise of large satellite may have led to the formation of Saturn’s rings and inner moons
- Lower levels of education are associated with increased risks of heart failure
- Was Israel the birthplace of modern humans?
- Consistent exercise associated with lower risk of colon cancer death
- New technology to speed cleanup of nuclear contaminated sites
- Key role for a protein in cell division described
- System for detecting noise pollution in the sea and its impact on cetaceans
- Home health care could help sustain health care systems, study finds
- What makes a face look alive? Study says it's in the eyes
- Risk for alcoholism linked to risk for obesity
- When their tools get dull, leaf-cutters switch jobs
- Expansion of HIV screening cost-effective in reducing spread of AIDS, study shows
- Study classifies and uses artificial proteins to analyze protein-protein interfaces
- George Clooney Effect? High-earning women want older, more attractive partners, research finds
- Your genome in minutes: New technology could slash sequencing time
- New test for major killer of lung transplant patients: High stem cell count after transplant predicts debilitating syndrome
- Evolutionary arms race between smut fungi and maize plants
- Why does dialysis fail?
- Crops: Improving nitrogen use efficiency lessens environmental impact
- Depressed smokers less likely to stay tobacco free
| What triggers mass extinctions? Study shows how invasive species stop new life Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST An influx of invasive species can stop the dominant natural process of new species formation and trigger mass extinction events, according to new research. The study of the collapse of Earth's marine life 378 to 375 million years ago suggests that the planet's current ecosystems, which are struggling with biodiversity loss, could meet a similar fate. |
| Alzheimer's: Therapy for brain disease could target blood Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST The aggregated proteins strewn about the brain are the hallmark of one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders: Alzheimer's disease. But while these irregular, gunky proteins, called amyloid-beta, are believed to contribute to the deterioration of memory and cognitive ability in Alzheimer's patients, no one knows how they lead to these symptoms. New experiments show how amyloid-beta interacts with a clotting agent in the blood, increasing blood clots that are harder than usual to break down and starving neurons of their regular supply of oxygen. The research suggests that the effects of amyloid-beta on the blood vessels feeding the brain could be an important aspect of the havoc they wreak on the brain. |
| New cognitive robotics lab tests theories of human thought Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST Researchers are exploring how human thought outwits brute force computing in the real world. Twenty programmable robots allow students to test the real-world performance of computer models that mimic human thought. |
| Strict heart rate control provides no advantage over lenient approach, study finds Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST Strict heart rate control in atrial fibrillation patients is not beneficial over lenient control, according to new research. The antiplatelet drug clopidogrel, plus aspirin, might be considered to reduce the risk of major vascular events, including stroke in patients who are poor candidates for the anticoagulant drug warfarin. Catheter ablation is useful to maintain normal sinus rhythm in patients with atrial fibrillation. |
| Demise of large satellite may have led to the formation of Saturn’s rings and inner moons Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST Simulations may explain how Saturn's majestic rings and icy inner moons formed following the collision of a Titan-sized satellite with the planet, according to a new article. |
| Lower levels of education are associated with increased risks of heart failure Posted: 31 Dec 2010 08:00 AM PST Results from a large European study suggest that poorly educated people are more likely to be admitted to hospital with chronic heart failure than the better educated, even after differences in lifestyle have been taken into account. |
| Was Israel the birthplace of modern humans? Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Archaeologists have discovered evidence that places Homo sapiens in Israel as early as 400,000 years ago -- the earliest evidence for the existence of modern humans anywhere in the world. |
| Consistent exercise associated with lower risk of colon cancer death Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Consistent exercise is associated with a lower risk of dying from colon cancer, according to a new study. The study is among the first to show that physical activity can make the disease less deadly. |
| New technology to speed cleanup of nuclear contaminated sites Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Engineers have invented a new type of radiation detection and measurement device that will be particularly useful for cleanup of sites with radioactive contamination, making the process faster, more accurate and less expensive. |
| Key role for a protein in cell division described Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Just before a cell divides into two -- the basic act of reproducing life -- the cellular environment must be exquisitely prepared. The exact timing and localization of the vast array of molecules and processes involved in duplicating chromosomes and separating the offspring from the parent is one of the basic wonders of biology and is at the core of both healthy living and diseases such as cancer, which arise when the process goes awry. Now scientists have detailed the role of one protein, PRC1, that acts in the penultimate stage of cell division, helping to form the architectural structures, called central spindles, needed before the cell splits in two. |
| System for detecting noise pollution in the sea and its impact on cetaceans Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Researchers have developed the first system equipped with hydrophones able to record sounds on the seafloor in real time over the Internet. The system detects the presence of cetaceans and makes it possible to analyze how noise caused by human activity can affect the natural habitat of these animals and the natural balance of oceans. A new EU directive on the sea has ruled that all member states must comply with a set of indicators for measuring marine noise pollution before 2012. |
| Home health care could help sustain health care systems, study finds Posted: 31 Dec 2010 05:00 AM PST Home health care technology may provide one important solution to global concerns about how to sustain health care systems threatened by rising costs and manpower shortages, but such a change faces multiple obstacles to adoption, according to a new study. |
| What makes a face look alive? Study says it's in the eyes Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST The face of a doll is clearly not human; the face of a human clearly is. Telling the difference allows us to pay attention to living things, which are capable of interacting with us. But where is the line at which a face appears to be alive? A new study finds that a face has to be quite similar to a human face to appear alive, and that the cues are mainly in the eyes. |
| Risk for alcoholism linked to risk for obesity Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST Addiction researchers have found that a risk for alcoholism also may put individuals at risk for obesity, and the association between a family history of alcoholism and obesity risk has become more pronounced in recent years. |
| When their tools get dull, leaf-cutters switch jobs Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST When their razor-sharp mandibles wear out, leaf-cutter ants change jobs, remaining productive while letting their more efficient sisters take over cutting, say researchers. Their study provides a glimpse of nature's way of providing for its displaced workers. |
| Expansion of HIV screening cost-effective in reducing spread of AIDS, study shows Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST An expanded US program of HIV screening and treatment could prevent as many as 212,000 new infections over the next 20 years and prove to be very cost-effective, according to a new study. |
| Study classifies and uses artificial proteins to analyze protein-protein interfaces Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST A new study suggests that there may be roughly a thousand structurally distinct protein-protein interfaces -- and that their structures depend largely on the simple physics of the proteins. |
| George Clooney Effect? High-earning women want older, more attractive partners, research finds Posted: 31 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST Psychologists have found that George Clooney may be even luckier than previously thought. New research has discovered that as women become more financially independent, they want an older, more attractive male partner. |
| Your genome in minutes: New technology could slash sequencing time Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST Scientists are developing technology that could ultimately sequence a person's genome in mere minutes, at a fraction of the cost of current commercial techniques. |
| Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST A lung transplant can mean a new chance at life. But many who receive one develop a debilitating, fatal condition that causes scar tissue to build up in the lungs and chokes off the ability to breathe. Researchers hope a new diagnostic tool they developed to predict bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome will allow doctors to intervene earlier and, ultimately, to provide life-saving treatments. |
| Evolutionary arms race between smut fungi and maize plants Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST Fungi are a major cause of plant diseases and are responsible for large-scale harvest failure in crops like maize and other cereals all over the world. Scientists have now analyzed the genetic make-up of Sporisorium reilianum, an important maize parasite. |
| Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST A protein implicated in the development of vascular diseases may also contribute to the failure of arteriovenous (AV) fistulas created for vascular access in dialysis patients, according to a new study. |
| Crops: Improving nitrogen use efficiency lessens environmental impact Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST Most agricultural crops require large quantities of nitrate-rich fertilizer to realize optimal yields. Increased interest in environmentally beneficial "low-input" approaches is challenging researchers to identify genotypes that have a characteristic called "high nutrient use efficiency", or NUE. Using vegetable types with high NUE could help growers lessen environmental impacts while maintaining high crop yields. A new study reported on improved NUE traits that resulted from grafting melon plants onto commercial rootstocks. |
| Depressed smokers less likely to stay tobacco free Posted: 30 Dec 2010 11:00 PM PST Depressed smokers want to quit the nicotine habit just as much as non-depressed smokers, but a new study suggests that depression can put a kink in their success. |
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