ScienceDaily: Latest Science News


Biomarker could provide early warning of kidney disease in cats

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:34 AM PST

A new biomarker called 'SDMA' has been developed that can provide earlier identification of chronic kidney disease in cats, which is one of the leading causes of their death. When a test is commercialized, it could help pet owners add months or years to the life of their cat.

It's filamentary: How galaxies evolve in the cosmic web

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:34 AM PST

How do galaxies like our Milky Way form, and just how do they evolve? Are galaxies affected by their surrounding environment? Astronomers now proposes some answers. The researchers highlight the role of the 'cosmic web' -- a large-scale web-like structure comprised of galaxies -- on the evolution of galaxies that took place in the distant universe, a few billion years after the Big Bang.

Salinity counts when it comes to sea level

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:34 AM PST

Using ocean observations and a large suite of climate models, scientists have found that long-term salinity changes have a stronger influence on regional sea level changes than previously thought.

Quantum mechanical calculations reveal the hidden states of enzyme active sites

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 10:34 AM PST

Enzymes carry out fundamental biological processes such as photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation and respiration, with the help of clusters of metal atoms as 'active' sites. But scientists lack basic information about their function because the states thought to be critical to their chemical abilities cannot be experimentally observed. Now, researchers have reported the first direct observation of the electronic states of iron-sulfur clusters, common to many enzyme active sites.

Darwin 2.0: New theory on speciation, diversity

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:32 AM PST

It has long been thought that dramatic changes in a landscape like the formation of the Andes Mountain range or the Amazon River is the main driver that initiates species to diverge. However, a recent study shows that speciation occurred much later than these dramatic geographical changes. Researchers have found that time and a species' ability to move play greater parts in the process of speciation.

Research finds tooth enamel fast-track in humans

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:32 AM PST

Researchers have discovered a link between prenatal enamel growth rates in teeth and weaning in human babies. The research found that incisor teeth grow quickly in the early stages of the second trimester of a baby's development, while molars grow at a slower rate in the third trimester. This is so incisors are ready to erupt after birth, at approximately six months of age, when a baby makes the transition from breast-feeding to weaning.

Pluripotent cells created by nuclear transfer can prompt immune reaction, researchers find

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:32 AM PST

Mouse cells and tissues created through nuclear transfer can be rejected by the body because of a previously unknown immune response to the cell's mitochondria, according to a study in mice.

Derivative of vitamin B3 prevents liver cancer in mice

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:32 AM PST

The first mouse model that faithfully reproduces the steps of human HCC development has been developed by researchers. The results of the study indicate that diets rich in nicotinamide riboside, a derivative of vitamin B3, protect these mice from developing HCC in its most initial stage, when genotoxic stress is damaging cellular DNA. They also show a curative effect of the diet in those mice that had previously developed the disease.

Cellular origin of fibrosis found

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST

The cellular origin of the tissue scarring caused by organ damage associated with diabetes, lung disease, high blood pressure, kidney disease, and other conditions has been found by researchers. The buildup of scar tissue is known as fibrosis.

Signaling molecule crucial to stem cell reprogramming

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST

While investigating a rare genetic disorder, researchers have discovered that a ubiquitous signaling molecule is crucial to cellular reprogramming, a finding with significant implications for stem cell-based regenerative medicine, wound repair therapies and potential cancer treatments.

Brain training using sounds can help aging brain ignore distractions

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST

As we age, we have an increasingly harder time ignoring distractions. But new research reveals that by learning to make discriminations of a sound amidst progressively more disruptive distractions, we can diminish our distractibility. A similar strategy might also help children with attention deficits or individuals with other mental challenges.

Reprogramming 'support cells' into neurons could repair injured adult brains

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST

The cerebral cortex lacks the ability to replace neurons that die as a result of Alzheimer's, stroke, and other devastating diseases. A new study shows that a Sox2 protein, alone or in combination with another protein, Ascl1, can cause nonneuronal cells, called NG2 glia, to turn into neurons in the injured cerebral cortex of adult mice. The findings reveal that NG2 glia represent a promising target for neuronal cell replacement strategies to treat brain injury.

Nitrogen sensor widespread in the plant kingdom

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:30 AM PST

Quantitatively, nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients for the growth of plant organisms – from simple green algae to highly developed flowering plants. Nitrogen supply is essential for the development of all cell components, and as a good supply results in faster plant growth, it is commonly used as a fertiliser in agriculture.

Dominant people can be surprisingly social

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 09:30 AM PST

In contrast to the lay stereotype, dominant people prove to be avid social learners, just like dominant individuals in the animal kingdom. Neuroscientists show this with a complex decision-making task. They offer a more subtle perspective on the lay view wherein dominant individuals ignore others' views and advice.

Gene therapy provides safe, long-term relief for patients with severe hemophilia B

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:35 AM PST

Gene therapy has transformed life for men with a severe form of hemophilia B by providing a safe, reliable source of the blood clotting protein Factor IX that has allowed some to adopt a more active lifestyle, researchers report.

Unstable child care can affect children by age 4

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:34 AM PST

Disruptions in child care negatively affect children's social development as early as age 4. However, the study also shows that the effects of child care instability are not unduly large -- and some types of instability appear to have no negative impact on children.

The American athletics track is still a man's world

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:34 AM PST

The limited coverage that American female athletes get in the media is one of many subtle forms of gender biases they have to cope with. The little exposure they do get often focuses more on their attire, or how attractive, sexy or ladylike they are than on their actual athletic prowess. In the long run, this influences their performance in sports. So say the authors of a new review.

New technique allows ultrasound to penetrate bone, metal

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:34 AM PST

Researchers have developed a technique that allows ultrasound to penetrate bone or metal, using customized structures that offset the distortion usually caused by these so-called 'aberrating layers.'

Scientists discover novel metamaterial properties within hexagonal boron nitride

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:32 AM PST

Researchers have demonstrated that confined surface phonon polaritons within hexagonal boron nitride exhibit unique metamaterial properties that enable novel nanoscale optical devices.

Versatile bonding for lightweight components

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:32 AM PST

New materials are making cars, planes and all sorts of other things lighter. The catch is that many of these materials can't be welded. Now there's an alternative joining method available -- gradient adhesives provide an extremely good way of ensuring joined parts stay joined for their entire service life and hold up well in the event of a crash.

Riddle of the missing stars: Hubble observations cast further doubt on how globular clusters formed

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:32 AM PST

Thanks to the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, some of the most mysterious cosmic residents have just become even more puzzling. New observations of globular clusters in a small galaxy show they are very similar to those found in the Milky Way, and so must have formed in a similar way.

Mediterranean meteorological tide has increased by over a millimeter a year since 1989

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:26 AM PST

A new database provides data on sea level variation due to atmospheric changes in the south of Europe between 1948 and 2009. Over the last two decades sea levels have increased in the Mediterranean basin.

Scientists study effects of sunlight to reduce number of nearsighted kids

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:23 AM PST

Kids who spend more time outside are less likely to need glasses for nearsightedness – but scientists don't know why. Researchers are now looking more closely at physical changes in the eye influenced by outdoor light exposure in the hopes of reducing cases of myopia, which affects one-third of the American population.

Contact lens discomfort linked to changes in lipid layer of tear film

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 08:22 AM PST

Changes in the lipid layer of the eyes' natural tear film may contribute to the common problem of contact lens discomfort.

A path to brighter images and more efficient LCD displays

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 06:16 AM PST

Engineers have developed a polarizing filter that allows in more light, leading the way for mobile device displays that last much longer on a single battery charge and cameras that can shoot in dim light.

Permafrost soil: Possible source of abrupt rise in greenhouse gases at end of last ice age

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:23 AM PST

Scientists have identified a possible source of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that were abruptly released to the atmosphere in large quantities around 14,600 years ago.

Identifying onset of local influenza outbreaks: New Tool

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:23 AM PST

Hospital epidemiologists and others responsible for public health decisions do not declare the start of flu season lightly. All the extra precautions cost time and money, so they do not want to declare flu season too early. For hospitals, there is a strong incentive to define a really clear period as flu season. Now, just in time for flu season, researchers have devised a simple yet accurate method for hospitals and public health departments to determine the onset of elevated influenza activity at the community level.

Weight, eating habits in Parkinson's disease

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

A review of the scientific literature on Parkinson's disease shows that even the non-motor symptoms associated with the disease can contribute to the changes in body weight seen in patients (including those subjected to deep brain stimulation). Among the factors affecting eating habits and body weight there could be, for example, an impaired ability to derive pleasure from food and changes in motivation. These are important findings which can help to understand how to reduce these effects of Parkinson's that exacerbate an already negative clinical situation.

Hand dryers can spread bacteria in public toilets, research finds

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

Modern hand dryers are much worse than paper towels when it comes to spreading germs, according to new research. Airborne germ counts were 27 times higher around jet air dryers in comparison with the air around paper towel dispensers.

Laser from a plane discovers Roman goldmines in Spain

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

Hidden under the vegetation and crops of the Eria Valley, in León (Spain), there is a gold mining network created by the Romans two thousand years ago, as well as complex hydraulic works, such as river diversions, to divert water to the mines of the precious metal. Researchers made the discovery from the air with an airborne laser teledetection system.

How do teenage boys perceive their weight?

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

Almost one third of male adolescents inaccurately perceive their weight. This can influence their eating habits and, consequently, their health, according to a study conducted with 600 teenage boys from Barcelona and surrounding areas. Up to 25% of the boys reported trying to lose or control their weight in the past year.

Key factor discovered in progression of liver cancer

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

One of the most aggressive and common forms of liver cancer is hepatocellular carcinoma. A team of researchers has now identified the crucial key factor involved in the development and progression of this malignant type of tumour: the AXL receptor supports cancer-promoting processes and slows down cancer-inhibiting factors. This finding could make a targeted therapeutic approach possible in future.

Flu virus key machine: First complete view of structure revealed

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:21 AM PST

Scientists looking to understand – and potentially thwart – the influenza virus now have a much more encompassing view, thanks to the first complete structure of one of the flu virus' key machines. Knowing the structure allows researchers to finally understand how the machine works as a whole, and could prove instrumental in designing new drugs to treat serious flu infections and combat flu pandemics.

What's behind our music tastes? Some common perceptions

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

Metal heads, jazz purists and folkies may have more in common musically than you imagined. A new study sheds light on the shared ways in which humans perceive music.

Oat oil preparation makes you feel fuller

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

Oats contain more fat than other cereals, and oat oil has a unique composition. Researchers have now outlined why oat oil supplement makes you feel fuller.

Snus use in Norway has tripled in five years

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

The increase in Scandinavian snus consumption in Norway is highest among young people, according to a new report. Scandinavian snus is a smokeless, ground tobacco product that is held between the lip and gum. It is sold as a loose product or as portions supplied in small pouches. The sale of snus is illegal in the European Union, but some countries are exempt.

With immunotherapy, physicians avoid diabetes complications

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

What is the difference between the treatment of diabetes under an immune scheme compared to the traditional one? The patient gets a diagnosis and receives attention, but is also checked for a systemic immune problem and thereby prevent possible consequences as diabetic foot, glaucoma, nephropathy and retinopathy, experts say.

Only half of patients take their medications as prescribed: Are there interventions that will help them?

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

The cost of patients not taking their medications as prescribed can be substantial in terms of their health. Although a large amount of research evidence has tried to address this problem, there are no well-established approaches to help them.

Unravelling the mystery of gamma-ray bursts with kilometer-scale microphones

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:19 AM PST

A team of scientists hopes to trace the origins of gamma-ray bursts with the aid of giant space 'microphones'. It's hoped the kilometer-scale microphones will detect gravitational waves created by black holes, and shed light on the origins of the Universe.

Job authority increases depression symptoms in women, decreases them in men

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

Having job authority increases symptoms of depression among women, but decreases them among men, a new study has found.

Fat a culprit in fibrotic lung damage

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

Researchers debate whether the lung tissue in pulmonary fibrosis is directly damaged, or whether immune cells initiate the scarring process – an important distinction when trying to find new ways to battle the disease. Now research shows that both processes may be important, and suggest a new direction for developing novel therapies.

New computer model predicts gut metabolites to better understand gastrointestinal disease

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

The first research to use computational modeling to predict and identify the metabolic products of gastrointestinal (GI) tract microorganisms has been published by researchers. Understanding these metabolic products, or metabolites, could influence how clinicians diagnose and treat GI diseases, as well as many other metabolic and neurological diseases increasingly associated with compromised GI function.

Out of india: Finding the origins of horses, rhinos

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

Working at the edge of a coal mine in India, a team of researchers has filled in a major gap in science's understanding of the evolution of a group of animals that includes horses and rhinos. That group likely originated on the subcontinent when it was still an island headed swiftly for collision with Asia, the researchers report.

New approach for treating ALS: Re-evaluation of older drugs?

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

Blocking molecules involved in ALS-drug resistance may improve how well ALS therapeutics work, suggesting that re-evaluation of drugs that appeared to have failed might be appropriate.

Bacterial slime: It's what's for dinner

Posted: 20 Nov 2014 05:17 AM PST

If natural or humanmade disaster strikes, causing global crop failures, the world won't starve -- providing they are willing to eat bacterial slime and bugs. "People have been doing catastrophic risk research for a while. But most of what's been done is dark, apocalyptic and dismal. It hasn't provided any real solutions," says the author of a new book that provides a more optimistic outlook.

Bad marriage, broken heart?

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 05:48 PM PST

Older couples in a bad marriage -- particularly female spouses -- have a higher risk for heart disease than those in a good marriage, finds the first nationally representative study of its kind.

Terrorist attacks decrease fertility levels, says new research

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 05:48 PM PST

On average, terrorist attacks decrease fertility, reducing both the expected number of children a woman has over her lifetime and the number of live births occurring during each year, a new study has found.

Wild weather in the Arctic causes problems for people and wildlife

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 05:45 PM PST

The residents of Longyearbyen, the largest town on the Norwegian arctic island archipelago of Svalbard, remember it as the week that the weather gods caused trouble.  Temperatures were ridiculously warm – and reached a maximum of nearly +8 degrees C in one location at a time when mean temperatures are normally -15 degrees C. It rained in record amounts.

Little Ice Age was global: Implications for current global warming

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 05:45 PM PST

Researchers have shed new light on the climate of the Little Ice Age, and rekindled debate over the role of the sun in climate change. The new study, which involved detailed scientific examination of a peat bog in southern South America, indicates that the most extreme climate episodes of the Little Ice Age were felt not just in Europe and North America, which is well known, but apparently globally. The research has implications for current concerns over 'Global Warming'.

Digging for answers: Gender inequality in archeology?

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 02:50 PM PST

On an archaeology field trip in New Mexico an undergraduate noticed something that struck her as an odd gender imbalance: The professor leading the dig was a man, while the graduate assistant and all but two of the 14 undergrads were women.

NASA's Swift mission probes an exotic object: 'Kicked' black hole or mega star?

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 02:50 PM PST

Astronomers have discovered an unusual source of light in a galaxy some 90 million light-years away. The dwarf galaxy Markarian 177 (center) and its unusual source SDSS1133 (blue) lie 90 million light-years away. The galaxies are located in the bowl of the Big Dipper, a well-known star pattern in the constellation Ursa Major.

Spiraling Light, Nanoparticles and Insights Into Life’s Structure

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 02:48 PM PST

As hands come in left and right versions that are mirror images of each other, so do the amino acids and sugars within us. But unlike hands, only the left-oriented amino acids and the right-oriented sugars ever make into life as we know it.

From architect to social worker: Complex jobs may protect memory and thinking later in life

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 02:47 PM PST

People whose jobs require more complex work with other people, such as social workers and lawyers, or with data, like architects or graphic designers, may end up having longer-lasting memory and thinking abilities compared to people who do less complex work, according to new research.

Delivery of stem cells into heart muscle after heart attack may enhance cardiac repair and reverse injury

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 02:47 PM PST

Delivering stem cell factor directly into damaged heart muscle after a heart attack may help repair and regenerate injured tissue. A novel SCF gene transfer delivery system induced the recruitment and expansion of adult c-Kit positive (cKit+) cardiac stem cells to injury sites that reversed heart attack damage in a pre-clinical model. In addition, the gene therapy improved cardiac function, decreased heart muscle cell death, increased regeneration of heart tissue blood vessels, and reduced the formation of heart tissue scarring.

Physicists discover new subatomic particles

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 01:09 PM PST

Physicists have discovered two never-before-seen baryonic particles. The finding is expected to have a major impact on the study of quark dynamics.

Social sensing game detects classroom bullies

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 12:17 PM PST

Researchers have developed a computer game that can detect classroom bullies, victims and bystanders. The game's behavior analyses effectively identify classroom bullies, even revealing peer aggression that goes undetected by traditional research methods, the researchers say.

Unique sense of 'touch' gives a prolific bacterium its ability to infect anything

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 12:17 PM PST

One of the world's most prolific bacteria, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, manages to afflict humans, animals and even plants by way of a mechanism not before seen in any infectious microorganism -- a sense of touch.

Environmental bleaching impairs long-term coral reproduction

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 12:15 PM PST

Bleaching -- a process where high water temperatures or UV light stresses the coral to the point where it loses its symbiotic algal partner that provides the coral with color -- is also affecting the long-term fertility of the coral.

Boosts in productivity of corn and other crops modify Northern Hemisphere carbon dioxide cycle

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 11:22 AM PST

In the Northern Hemisphere, there's a strong seasonal cycle of vegetation. Each year in the Northern Hemisphere, levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide drop in the summer as plants "inhale," then climb again as they exhale after the growing season. During the last 50 years, the size of this seasonal swing has increased by as much as half, for reasons that aren't fully understood. Now a team of researchers has shown that agricultural production may generate up to a quarter of the increase in this seasonal carbon cycle, with corn playing a leading role.

New view of mouse genome finds many similarities, striking differences with human genome

Posted: 19 Nov 2014 10:27 AM PST

Looking across the genomes of humans and mice, scientists have found that, in general, the systems that are used to control gene activity in both species have many similarities, along with crucial differences. The results may offer insights into gene regulation and other systems important to mammalian biology, and provide new information to determine when the mouse is an appropriate model to study human biology and disease. They may also help explain its limitations.