ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• First brain recordings from flying fruit flies
• Shifting cellular energy metabolism may help treat cardiovascular disease
• Mother bats expert at saving energy: Study shows wild female bats’ temperature regulation strategy is flexible
• Defective signaling pathway sheds light on cystic fibrosis
• Quantum entanglement used to stack light particles
• Drama or reality TV: Do medical shows depict proper first aid for seizures?
• 'Primitive' cancer gene discovered in ancestral metazoan
• Bacteria-killing proteins cover blood type blind spot
• A new 3-D map of the interstellar gas within 300 parsecs from the sun
• Master gene SRC-3 enables breast cancer growth, invasion
• Enzyme with industrial applications characterized
• Are bees addicted to caffeine and nicotine?
• Cameras of the future: Heart researchers create revolutionary photographic technique
• Switch that turns on the spread of cancer discovered
• Cone snails and spiders help neurobiologists investigate ion channels
• Less is more in cancer imaging
• Virtual museum guide
• Mexican-Americans come closest to meeting national physical activity goals
• Built-in amps: How subtle head motions, quiet sounds are reported to the brain
• Vaccine possible: Hypothesis on the mystery of dengue virus infection confirmed
• Urbanization, export crops drive deforestation
• Hospital uses device to revolutionize treatment of traumatic aortic injury
• Benefits of badger culling not long lasting for reducing cattle TB, says study
• Quitting smoking especially difficult for select groups
• Diamond nanowire device could lead to new class of diamond nanomaterials suitable for quantum cryptography, quantum computing, and magnetic field imaging
• Biologists image birth of blood-forming stem cells in embryo

First brain recordings from flying fruit flies Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST Researchers have obtained the first recordings of brain-cell activity in an actively flying fruit fly. The work suggests that at least part of the brain of the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) "is in a different and more sensitive state during flight than when the fly is quiescent," says a study author.

Shifting cellular energy metabolism may help treat cardiovascular disease Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST Drugs that target the way cells convert nutrients into energy could offer new approaches to treating a range of conditions including heart attack and stroke. Using a new way to screen for potential drugs, researchers have identified several FDA-approved agents, including an over-the-counter anti-nausea drug, that can shift cellular energy metabolism processes in animals.

Mother bats expert at saving energy: Study shows wild female bats’ temperature regulation strategy is flexible Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST In order to regulate their body temperature as efficiently as possible, wild female bats switch between two strategies depending on both the ambient temperature and their reproductive status.

Defective signaling pathway sheds light on cystic fibrosis Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST In a study that could lead to new therapeutic targets for patients with the cystic fibrosis, scientists have identified a defective signaling pathway that contributes to disease severity.

Quantum entanglement used to stack light particles Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST Physicists are now able to mount up to two photons on top of one another to construct a variety of quantum states of light.

Drama or reality TV: Do medical shows depict proper first aid for seizures? Posted: 15 Feb 2010 08:00 AM PST Watching TV medical shows might not be the best way to learn what to do when someone has a seizure. Researchers screened the most popular medical dramas and found that doctors and nurses on the shows responded inappropriately to seizures almost half the time, according to a new study.

'Primitive' cancer gene discovered in ancestral metazoan Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST To find the causes for cancer, biochemists and developmental biologists retraced the function of an important human cancer gene 600 million years back in time. For the first time, they have identified the oncogene myc in a fresh water polyp and they have shown that this oncogene has similar biochemical functions in ancestral metazoan and in humans.

Bacteria-killing proteins cover blood type blind spot Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST Galectin-4 and galectin-8, carbohydrate-binding proteins found in our intestines, can recognize and kill bacteria that have human blood type sugar molecules on their surfaces. This discovery explains why bacteria can't sneak past our immune systems by camouflaging themselves with blood type molecules. It may also explain why the human population has a diversity of blood types; galectin-4 and -8 create a "protected space" for the diversity.

A new 3-D map of the interstellar gas within 300 parsecs from the sun Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST Astronomy & Astrophysics is publishing new 3-D maps of the interstellar gas in the local area around our sun. A French-American team of astronomers presents new absorption measurements towards more than 1800 stars. They were able to characterize the properties of the interstellar gas within each sight line.

Master gene SRC-3 enables breast cancer growth, invasion Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST The master gene SRC-3 not only enhances estrogen-dependent growth of cancer cells, it also sends a signal to the cell membrane to promote cell movement -- a key element of cancer metastasis, said researchers. The finding not only uncovers a new activity for SRC-3, it also clears up a mystery about how the message that tells a cell to invade gets from the epidermal growth factor receptor to the activating enzyme.

Enzyme with industrial applications characterized Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST Microbial enzymes are commonly used to reduce the levels of contamination created by industrial processes. Researchers have now characterized xylan-degrading enzyme from the the bacteria Paenibacillus barcinonensis, an isolated microorganism found in the Ebro delta.

Are bees addicted to caffeine and nicotine? Posted: 15 Feb 2010 05:00 AM PST Bees prefer nectar with small amounts of nicotine and caffeine over nectar that does not comprise these substances at all, a new study reveals. "This could be an evolutionary development intended, as in humans, to make the bee addicted," states one of the researchers who conducted the study.

Cameras of the future: Heart researchers create revolutionary photographic technique Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST Scientists have developed a revolutionary way of capturing a high-resolution still image alongside very high-speed video -- a new technology that is attractive for science, industry and consumer sectors alike.

Switch that turns on the spread of cancer discovered Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST Researchers describe the discovery of a specific protein called disabled-2 (Dab2) that switches on the process that releases cancer cells from the original tumor and allows the cells to spread and develop into new tumors in other parts of the body.

Cone snails and spiders help neurobiologists investigate ion channels Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST Neurotoxins from cone snails and spiders help neurobiologists to investigate the function of ion channels in neurons. They have developed a system which for the first time allows the targeted, long-lasting investigation of ion channel function in mammals and also their blockade with neurotoxins. In transgenic mice they succeeded in blocking chronic pain by introducing a toxin gene into the organism.

Less is more in cancer imaging Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST Scientists have developed an amplitude gating technique that gives physicians a clearer picture of how tumors are responding to treatment.

Virtual museum guide Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST Archaeological treasures are being brought to life by new software. Real images are enriched with digital information on a virtual tour through ancient buildings, creating a more vivid experience for the museum visitor.

Mexican-Americans come closest to meeting national physical activity goals Posted: 15 Feb 2010 02:00 AM PST When it comes to meeting national health goals for physical activity, Mexican-Americans are the most active group in America and may benefit from exercise that researchers typically have not measured, according to a new study. The research, which used electronic devices to measure people's movement, challenges other studies based on self-reports that claimed non-Hispanic whites are most likely to be physically active.

Built-in amps: How subtle head motions, quiet sounds are reported to the brain Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST Subtle head motions are amplified by inner-ear hair cells before the signal is reported to the brain, report scientists. In both the auditory and the vestibular systems, hair cell response is nonlinear: the lower the strength of the stimulus, the more the hair cell amplifies the signal.

Vaccine possible: Hypothesis on the mystery of dengue virus infection confirmed Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST Scientists have now validated the long-held and controversial hypothesis that antibodies -- usually the "good guys" in the body's fight against viruses -- instead contribute to severe dengue virus-induced disease. The finding has major implications for the development of a first-ever vaccine against dengue virus, a growing public health threat which annually infects 50 to 100 million people worldwide, causing a half million cases of the severest form.

Urbanization, export crops drive deforestation Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST The drivers of tropical deforestation have shifted in the early 21st century to hinge on growth of cities and the globalized agricultural trade, a new large-scale study concludes. The observations starkly reverse assumptions by some scientists that fast-growing urbanization and the efficiencies of global trade might eventually slow or reverse tropical deforestation.

Hospital uses device to revolutionize treatment of traumatic aortic injury Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST Vascular surgeons performed one of the nation's first implants of a Next Generation Conformable GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis device for the treatment of a traumatic aortic transection as part of a national clinical trial. The goal of the trial is to gain insight into using thoracic endografts for patients with traumatic aortic transection (tear) as a less invasive alternative to major surgery.

Benefits of badger culling not long lasting for reducing cattle TB, says study Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST Badger culling is unlikely to be a cost-effective way of helping control cattle TB in Britain, according to new research. Study authors say their findings suggest that the benefits of repeated widespread badger culling, in terms of reducing the incidence of cattle TB, disappear within four years after the culling has ended.

Quitting smoking especially difficult for select groups Posted: 14 Feb 2010 11:00 PM PST With the national trend toward quitting smoking flat, psychologists are finding some success with treatments aimed at helping smokers from under-served groups, including racial and ethnic minorities and those with psychiatric disorders.

Diamond nanowire device could lead to new class of diamond nanomaterials suitable for quantum cryptography, quantum computing, and magnetic field imaging Posted: 13 Feb 2010 09:00 PM PST By creating diamond-based nanowire devices, scientists have taken another step towards making applications based on quantum science and technology possible. The new device offers a bright, stable source of single photons at room temperature, an essential element in making fast and secure computing with light practical.

Biologists image birth of blood-forming stem cells in embryo Posted: 13 Feb 2010 09:00 PM PST Biologists have identified the specific region in vertebrates where adult blood stem cells arise during embryonic development. The researchers say their time-lapse imaging of the process, by which primitive embryonic tissues first produce the parent stem cells that produce all adult blood cells over the life of an individual, should help guide future efforts to repair and replace this cell population for therapeutic purposes.

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