ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Snowball Earth: New evidence hints at global glaciation 716.5 million years ago
• Offering hope for tissue regeneration
• Women more affected than men by air pollution when running marathons
• Therapeutic effect of worm-derived proteins on experimental colitis
• Popular nanoparticle causes toxicity in fish, study shows
• No consensus in definitions of 'had sex,' study finds
• Trapping sunlight with silicon nanowires
• Experimental vaccine protects monkeys against mosquito-borne chikungunya virus
• Computing: Heat helps in low power data storage scheme
• Theory of single stem cell for blood components challenged
• Scientists expand potential uses for glass by studying how atoms vibrate
• Only the beautiful need apply: Study flags damaging effect of joining a sorority on body image and eating behaviors
• Protein shown to be natural inhibitor of aging in fruit fly model
• Further evidence links Epstein-Barr virus and risk of multiple sclerosis
• New technique allows study of protein folding, dynamics in living cells
• More effective method of predicting lead-poisoning risk
• Engineering team developing helicopter that would investigate nuclear disasters
• Stress: Don't let it grind you down
• Oldest measurement of Earth's magnetic field reveals battle between sun and Earth for our atmosphere
• New form of prion disease damages brain arteries
• Newly engineered enzyme is a powerful staph antibiotic
• Study identifies key cause of chronic leukemia progression
• Radar map of buried Martian ice adds to climate record
• Well-being is related to having less small talk and more substantive conversations
• Methane releases from Arctic shelf may be much larger and faster than anticipated
• Link between vitamin D and basal cell carcinoma probed: Study sheds light on development of most common form of skin cancer
• Root or shoot: Power struggle between genetic master switches decides stem cell fate, growth orientation in plants
• SIBLING proteins may predict oral cancer
• Dirty air in California causes millions worth of medical care each year, study finds
• Acupuncture may relieve joint pain caused by some breast cancer treatments
• Precursors of life-enabling organic molecules in Orion Nebula unveiled by Herschel Space Observatory
• Extremes of sleep related to increased fat around organs
• For California vintners, it's not easy being green
• Breaching the barrier: Too much of the protein ELA2 impairs skin barrier function
• NASA's Kepler Mission Celebrates One Year in Space
• People sometimes less trusting when in a good mood
• Plodding amoeba flips into free-swimming flagellate: Naegleria genome sheds light on transition from prokaryotes to eukaryotes
• Combination therapy more effective for enlarged prostate
• NASA Mars Orbiter Speeds Past Data Milestone
• Nephrology: New gene linked to kidney disease
• Waste could generate up to 7 percent of electricity in Spain
• Even the boss doesn't follow the doctor's orders
• Asteroid killed off the dinosaurs, says international scientific panel
• Possible vaccine for mesothelioma proven safe
• Warming coastal water, thinning marine populations: Tracking of 2010 El Niño reveals marine life reductions
• Beta blocker therapy underused in heart failure patients, study finds
• Mercurial tuna: Study explores sources of mercury to ocean fish
• 'Match' Madness: Picking upsets a losing strategy

Snowball Earth: New evidence hints at global glaciation 716.5 million years ago Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST Geologists have found evidence that sea ice extended to the equator 716.5 million years ago, bringing new precision to a "snowball Earth" event long suspected to have taken place around that time. The new findings -- based on an analysis of ancient tropical rocks that are now found in remote northwestern Canada -- bolster the theory that our planet has, at times in the past, been ice-covered at all latitudes.

Offering hope for tissue regeneration Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST Researchers have discovered how cells communicate with each other during times of cellular injury. The findings shed new light on how the body repairs itself when organs become diseased, through small particles known as microvesicles, and offers hope for tissue regeneration.

Women more affected than men by air pollution when running marathons Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST Findings come from a comprehensive study that evaluated marathon race results, weather data, and air pollutant concentrations in seven marathons over a period of 8 to 28 years. The top three male and female finishing times were compared with the course record and contrasted with air pollutant levels, taking high temperatures that were detrimental to performance into consideration.

Therapeutic effect of worm-derived proteins on experimental colitis Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST Worms are important source of immunomodulatory proteins that could be used in the development of new drugs for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). A research group in Belgium investigated the therapeutic effect of worm-derived proteins on experimental colitis in mice. Treatment with worm proteins ameliorated motility disturbances during murine experimental colitis. This suggests that worm proteins have great potential to be used as therapeutic agents in IBD.

Popular nanoparticle causes toxicity in fish, study shows Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST A nanoparticle growing in popularity as a bactericidal agent has been shown to be toxic to fish, according to a new study.

No consensus in definitions of 'had sex,' study finds Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 PM PST When people say they "had sex," what transpired is anyone's guess. A new study found that no uniform consensus existed when a representative sample of 18- to 96-year-olds was asked what the term meant to them. More than idle gossip, the answers to questions about sex can inform -- or misinform -- research, medical advice and health education efforts.

Trapping sunlight with silicon nanowires Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Researchers have found a better way to trap light in photovoltaic cells through the use of vertical arrays of silicon nanowires. This could substantially cut the costs of solar electric power by reducing the quantity and quality of silicon needed for efficient solar panels.

Experimental vaccine protects monkeys against mosquito-borne chikungunya virus Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Researchers have developed an experimental vaccine for chikungunya virus and successfully tested it in monkeys.

Computing: Heat helps in low power data storage scheme Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Heat is often the enemy of computing and data storage, but a new experiment shows it could help reduce the amount of power needed to store data in magnetic memory.

Theory of single stem cell for blood components challenged Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Components of the blood or hematopoietic system derive from stem cell subtypes rather than one single stem cell that gives rise to all the different kinds of blood cells equally, say scientists in a new report.

Scientists expand potential uses for glass by studying how atoms vibrate Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Scientists have expanded the potential uses of glass by developing an experimental technique that reveals more clearly how atoms in glass vibrate.

Only the beautiful need apply: Study flags damaging effect of joining a sorority on body image and eating behaviors Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 PM PST Undergraduate women who join a sorority are more likely to judge their own bodies from an outsider's perspective and display higher levels of bulimic behaviors than those who do not take part in the sorority's recruitment process. Over time, women who join the group also show higher levels of body shame, according to findings of a new study.

Protein shown to be natural inhibitor of aging in fruit fly model Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST Scientists have identified a protein called Sestrin that serves as a natural inhibitor of aging and age-related pathologies in fruit flies. They also showed that Sestrin, whose structure and biochemical function are conserved between flies and humans, is needed for regulation of a signaling pathway that is the central controller of aging and metabolism.

Further evidence links Epstein-Barr virus and risk of multiple sclerosis Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, and a team of collaborators have observed for the first time that the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) increases by many folds following infection with the Epstein-Barr virus.

New technique allows study of protein folding, dynamics in living cells Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST A new technique to study protein dynamics in living cells has been created by a team of scientists, and evidence yielded from the new method indicates that an in vivo environment strongly modulates a protein's stability and folding rate.

More effective method of predicting lead-poisoning risk Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST As health departments across the United States seek a better way to determine which children should be tested for lead poisoning, a new method has proven to be more accurate and cost-effective than current strategies.

Engineering team developing helicopter that would investigate nuclear disasters Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST Students are perfecting an autonomous helicopter they hope will never be used for its intended purpose. The helicopter's main mission would be to assist military investigators in the unthinkable: enter an American city after a nuclear attack in order to detect radiation levels, map and photograph damage.

Stress: Don't let it grind you down Posted: 05 Mar 2010 11:00 AM PST People who are stressed by daily problems or trouble at work seem to be more likely to grind their teeth at night. Researchers studied the causes of "sleep bruxism," gnashing teeth during the night, finding that it was especially common in those who try to cope with stress by escaping from difficult situations.

Oldest measurement of Earth's magnetic field reveals battle between sun and Earth for our atmosphere Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST Scientists have discovered that the Earth's magnetic field 3.5 billion years ago was only half as strong as it is today, and that this weakness, coupled with a strong wind of energetic particles from the young Sun, likely stripped water from the early Earth's atmosphere.

New form of prion disease damages brain arteries Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST Scientists investigating how prion diseases destroy the brain have observed a new form of the disease in mice that does not cause the sponge-like brain deterioration typically seen in prion diseases. Instead, it resembles a form of human Alzheimer's disease, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, that damages brain arteries.

Newly engineered enzyme is a powerful staph antibiotic Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST With their best chemical antibiotics slowly failing, scientists are increasingly looking to nature for a way to control deadly staph bacteria -- the culprit behind most hospital infections. Naturally toxic for bacteria, enzymes called lysins have the promising ability to obliterate staph, but the problem is producing large enough quantities of them to study how they work. Scientists have now overcome this barrier by engineering a lysin that not only kills multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in mice, but also works synergistically with traditional antibiotics that have long been shelved due to resistance.

Study identifies key cause of chronic leukemia progression Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST Researchers have discovered a key reason why chronic myeloid leukemia progresses from its more-treatable chronic phase to a life-threatening phase called blast crisis. The study indicates that CML progresses when immature white blood cells lose a molecule called miR-328 and this traps the cells in a rapidly growing, immature state. The research should provide a better understanding of the blast-crisis stage of CML, and it suggests a possible new treatment strategy for the disease.

Radar map of buried Martian ice adds to climate record Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST Extensive radar mapping of the middle-latitude region of northern Mars shows that thick masses of buried ice are quite common beneath protective coverings of rubble.

Well-being is related to having less small talk and more substantive conversations Posted: 05 Mar 2010 08:00 AM PST Is a happy life filled with trivial chatter or reflective and profound conversations? In a new study, the happiest participants had twice as many substantive conversations and one third as much small talk as the unhappiest participants. In addition, the happiest participants spent 25 percent less time alone and 70 percent more time talking than the unhappiest participants, suggesting that the happy life is social and conversationally deep rather than solitary and superficial.

Methane releases from Arctic shelf may be much larger and faster than anticipated Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST A section of the Arctic Ocean seafloor that holds vast stores of frozen methane is showing signs of instability and widespread venting of the powerful greenhouse gas, according to new research.

Link between vitamin D and basal cell carcinoma probed: Study sheds light on development of most common form of skin cancer Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST A new has shown a link between Vitamin D levels and basal cell carcinoma, a finding that could lead researchers to better understand the development of the most common form of skin cancer. In a small study, researchers found elevated levels of Vitamin D enzymes and proteins in cancerous tissue taken from 10 patients compared to normal skin tissue taken from them.

Root or shoot: Power struggle between genetic master switches decides stem cell fate, growth orientation in plants Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST The first order of business for any fledgling plant embryo is to determine which end grows the shoot and which end puts down roots. Now, researchers expose the turf wars between two groups of antagonistic genetic master switches that set up a plant's polar axis with a root on one end and a shoot on the other.

SIBLING proteins may predict oral cancer Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST The presence of certain proteins in premalignant oral lesions may predict oral cancer development, researchers report. SIBLINGs, or Small Integrin-Binding Ligand N-linked Glycoproteins, are a family of five proteins that help mineralize bone but can also spread cancer. SIBLINGs have been found in cancers including breast, lung, colon and prostate.

Dirty air in California causes millions worth of medical care each year, study finds Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST California's dirty air caused more than $193 million in hospital-based medical care from 2005 to 2007 as people sought help for problems such as asthma and pneumonia triggered by elevated pollution levels, according to a new study. While much work has been done previously to catalog the economic impact of air pollution across California, the study is the first to quantify the cost of hospital-based medical care caused by the dirty air.

Acupuncture may relieve joint pain caused by some breast cancer treatments Posted: 05 Mar 2010 05:00 AM PST A new study demonstrates that acupuncture may be an effective therapy for joint pain and stiffness in breast cancer patients who are being treated with commonly used hormonal therapies.

Precursors of life-enabling organic molecules in Orion Nebula unveiled by Herschel Space Observatory Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST ESA's Herschel Space Observatory has revealed the chemical fingerprints of potential life-enabling organic molecules in the Orion Nebula, a nearby stellar nursery in our Milky Way galaxy.

Extremes of sleep related to increased fat around organs Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST Not getting enough sleep does more damage than just leaving you with puffy eyes. It can cause fat to accumulate around your organs -- more dangerous, researchers say, than those pesky love handles and jiggly thighs.

For California vintners, it's not easy being green Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST California wine is like Kermit the Frog, suggests a new study. It isn't easy being green. Wine made with organically grown grapes enjoy higher ratings than conventionally produced wines. So long as "organic" doesn't appear on the label, they also command a considerably higher price. But once vintners slap an eco-label on certified wines, the price premium evaporates. They sell for 7 percent less than their conventionally produced counterparts.

Breaching the barrier: Too much of the protein ELA2 impairs skin barrier function Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST Our skin has two crucial barrier functions: it protects against water loss and it prevents penetration of infectious agents and allergens. By studying mice and humans, a team of researchers in France has now generated data that indicate an important role for the protein elastase 2 (ELA2) in maintaining skin barrier function and suggest that ELA2 might have a role in the development of the rare genetic skin disease Netherton syndrome.

NASA's Kepler Mission Celebrates One Year in Space Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST One year ago this week, NASA's Kepler mission soared into the dark night sky, leaving a bright glow in its wake as it began to search for other worlds like Earth.

People sometimes less trusting when in a good mood Posted: 05 Mar 2010 02:00 AM PST It seems to make perfect sense: happy people are trusting people. But a new study suggests that, in some instances, people may actually be less trusting of others when they are in a pleasant mood. "A person's mood may determine how much they rely on subtle -- or not so subtle -- cues when evaluating whether to trust someone," researchers say.

Plodding amoeba flips into free-swimming flagellate: Naegleria genome sheds light on transition from prokaryotes to eukaryotes Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST Scientists have sequenced the genome of a weird creature that exists as an amoeba until the food runs out, then turns into a two-tailed swimmer to find new hunting grounds. The organism, Naegleria, is an early eukaryote -- a cell with a nucleus and internal organs -- and could shed light on the origin of complex cells like those in humans, according to an analysis.

Combination therapy more effective for enlarged prostate Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST Like any successful team effort, the best qualities of two drugs commonly prescribed for enlarged prostate yielded better results than either of the medicines alone, according to a new study.

NASA Mars Orbiter Speeds Past Data Milestone Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST NASA's newest Mars orbiter, completing its fourth year at the Red Planet next week, has just passed a data-volume milestone unimaginable a generation ago and still difficult to fathom: 100 terabits.

Nephrology: New gene linked to kidney disease Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST Nephronophthisis (NPHP) is the most common genetic cause of kidney failure in children. Ten causative genes (NPHP1-NPHP9 and NPHP11), all of which generate proteins that localize to a cellular complex known as the primary cilia-centrosome complex, have been identified previously. A team of researchers has now identified an association between mutations in the XPNPEP3 gene and an NPHP-like nephropathy in two consanguineous families, one in northern Finland and one in Turkey.

Waste could generate up to 7 percent of electricity in Spain Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST Researchers have calculated the energy and economic potential of urban solid waste, sludge from water treatment plants and livestock slurry for generating electricity in Spain. These residues are alternative sources of renewable energy, which are more environmentally friendly and, in the case of solid urban waste, more cost effective.

Even the boss doesn't follow the doctor's orders Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:00 PM PST Only 68 percent of corporate executives took their cholesterol lowering medication as prescribed by a doctor, a new study shows.

Asteroid killed off the dinosaurs, says international scientific panel Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST The Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction, which wiped out the dinosaurs and more than half of species on Earth, was caused by an asteroid colliding with Earth and not massive volcanic activity, according to a comprehensive review of all the available evidence.

Possible vaccine for mesothelioma proven safe Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST Researchers have demonstrated the safety of a potential vaccine against mesothelioma, a rare cancer associated primarily with asbestos exposure. The vaccine, which infuses uses a patient's own dendritic cells with antigen from the patient's tumor, was able to induce a T-cell response against mesothelioma tumors.

Warming coastal water, thinning marine populations: Tracking of 2010 El Niño reveals marine life reductions Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST The ongoing El Niño of 2010 is affecting north Pacific Ocean ecosystems in ways that could affect the West Coast fishing industry, according to scientists. Researchers report a stronger than normal northward movement of warm water up the Southern California coast, a high sea-level event in January and low abundances of plankton and pelagic fish -- all conditions consistent with El Niño.

Beta blocker therapy underused in heart failure patients, study finds Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST New research has found that beta blockers, a class of drugs used to prevent the progression of heart failure and manage arrhythmias (irregular heart beat) and hypertension (high blood pressure), are underused in heart failure patients who receive implantable cardiac devices. Failure to take beta blockers prior to implanting a cardiac device can affect the patient's overall outcome and survival rate.

Mercurial tuna: Study explores sources of mercury to ocean fish Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST With concern over mercury contamination of tuna on the rise and growing information about the health effects of eating contaminated fish, scientists would like to know exactly where the pollutant is coming from and how it's getting into open-ocean fish species.

'Match' Madness: Picking upsets a losing strategy Posted: 04 Mar 2010 08:00 PM PST Soon Americans nationwide will begin poring over NCAA men's basketball tournament brackets in their annual attempt at glory -- and maybe even a little cash -- in winning the ubiquitous, albeit illegal, office pool. New research has found that strategists, regardless of their sports expertise, would be better off sticking with the numbers even when upsets are likely. Probability matching, say the researchers, might be tempting but is a losing bet.

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