Feature Channels: All Journal News

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Researchers develop a method of identifying gene expression patterns in drought-resistant plants.

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A massive decade-long study of Western Equatorial Africa’s gorillas and chimpanzees has revealed that there are one third more western lowland gorillas and one tenth more central chimpanzees than previously thought. The bad news: the vast majority of these great apes (80 percent) exist outside of protected areas, and gorilla populations are declining by 2.7 percent annually.

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An innovative, eel-like robot developed by engineers and marine biologists at the University of California can swim silently in salt water without an electric motor. Instead, the robot uses artificial muscles filled with water to propel itself. The foot-long robot, which is connected to an electronics board that remains on the surface, is also virtually transparent. The team, which includes researchers from UC San Diego and UC Berkeley, details their work in the April 25 issue of Science Robotics.

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The past quarter century has brought a striking decline in earlier-than-expected deaths among blacks in the U.S., according to a first-of-its-kind analysis performed using an extensive death records database maintained by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

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University at Buffalo researchers have developed 3-D printed dentures filled with antifungal medication to better treat oral fungal infections.

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Ice mass loss in the Russian Arctic has nearly doubled over the last decade according to Cornell University research published in the journal Remote Sensing of Environment.

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Argonne researchers explore the benefits of adjusting the output of nuclear power plants according to the changing supply of renewable energy such as wind and solar power.

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Astronomers have witnessed the beginnings of a gargantuan cosmic pileup, the impending collision of 14 young, starbursting galaxies. This ancient megamerger is destined to evolve into one of the most massive structures in the known universe: a cluster of galaxies, gravitationally bound by dark matter and swimming in a sea of hot, ionized gas.

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Researchers at the University of Washington, working with researchers from the ETH-Zurich, Purdue University and Virginia Commonwealth University, have achieved an optical communications breakthrough that could revolutionize information technology. They created a tiny device, smaller than a human hair, that translates electrical bits (0 and 1 of the digital language) into light, or photonic bits, at speeds 10s of times faster than current technologies.

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Bacteria traveling along "fungal highways" on cheese rinds can spread more quickly and ruin quality or cause foodborne illnesses, but cheesemakers could manipulate the same highways to help cheese mature faster and taste better, according to new research from Tufts University.

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A Northwestern University and Argonne National Laboratory research team has developed an exceptional next-generation material for nuclear radiation detection that could provide a significantly less expensive alternative to detectors now in commercial use. Specifically, the high-performance material is used in a device that can detect gamma rays, weak signals given off by nuclear materials, and can easily identify individual radioactive isotopes. Potential uses include more widespread detectors for nuclear weapons and materials as well as applications in biomedical imaging, astronomy and spectroscopy.

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It's important for everyone to perform regular skin self-exams to detect skin cancer early, when it's most treatable.

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Here’s another reason to eat a Mediterranean-type diet: It’s good for your gut.

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A team from Northwestern University and the University of Florida has developed a new type of electron microscope that takes dynamic, multi-frame videos of nanoparticles as they form, allowing researchers to view how specimens change in space and time.

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Previous research showed that the combination of two risk factors – parental separation/ divorce and family history of alcoholism (FH+) – can have negative effects on offspring, including an earlier onset of substance use among adolescents and young adults, lower educational attainment in adulthood, and a greater risk of alcohol dependence. This study looked at the impact of parental divorce and FH+ on offspring’s alcohol problems, marijuana use, and interpersonal relationships with parents.

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One of the key science goals of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is to learn about “first light,” the moment when the first stars and galaxies lit the universe. While the first galaxies will be within Webb’s reach, individual stars shine so faintly that Webb would not be able to detect them without help. That help could come in the form of natural magnification from gravitational lensing, according to a new theoretical paper.

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A research team including U of A faculty has developed a method of detecting single photons using quantum dots. Single photon detection using quantum dots is an important element of new technology that could lead to faster and more secure data transfer.

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Scientists from Rutgers, Harvard and Yale universities say new diagnostic methods offer a better chance for more accurate detection of the infection from the Lyme bacteria.Improved tests will allow for earlier diagnosis, which should improve patient outcomes.

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Parents and adults spend a lot of time worrying about the influence of peers when it comes to teen substance use. Using a unique sample of 476 twin pairs who have been followed since birth, a new study examines if there is a genetic component that drives teens’ desire for risk taking and novelty.

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How do you boost soil water content and soil health without irrigating? Best cover it with a layer of straw, a new study concludes.

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In an experiment that mimics astrophysical conditions, with cryogenic temperatures in an ultrahigh vacuum, scientists used an electron gun to irradiate thin sheets of ice covered in basic molecules of methane, ammonia and carbon dioxide, the building blocks of life. The experiment tested how the combination of electrons and basic matter leads to more complex biomolecule forms -- and perhaps eventually to life forms. The researchers discuss their work in The Journal of Chemical Physics.

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A new analysis by Johns Hopkins researchers of national data gathered from physical activity monitors concludes that most Americans hit the sack later on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. Delayed bedtimes are especially pronounced for teens and young adults.

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In a groundbreaking new study, researchers at the University of Minnesota used a customized, low-cost 3D printer to print electronics on a real hand for the first time.

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A research team from Queen’s University Belfast, in collaboration with an international team of experts, have made ground-breaking insights into how inflammatory diseases work.

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Study of Mendelian randomization results detects factor called horizontal pleiotropy in close to 50 percent of significant causal relationships, a finding of great importance for detecting biomarkers for drug development and disease management

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Scientists identified light-induced electrical activity as the brain mechanism controlling chemical code switching related to stress. While studying neurotransmitter switching in rats, they found that specific neurons were responsible, with implications for imbalances underlying mental illness.

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Case Western Reserve University ‘groundbreaking’ study shows exposure to domestic violence carries long-term consequences for both children and society

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Researchers identify needs and work alongside designers to develop a toolkit to support safe transition to college for students with food allergy

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Doctors at the University of Illinois Hospital have cured seven adult patients of sickle cell disease, an inherited blood disorder primarily affecting the black community, using stem cells from donors previously thought to be incompatible, thanks to a new transplant treatment protocol.

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A new Baylor study published in the Journal of Business Ethics suggests that feelings of ethical superiority can cause a chain reaction that is detrimental to you, your coworkers and your organization.

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A new study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows an investigational drug prevents graft-versus-host disease, a dangerous side effect of stem cell transplantation.

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About 2.6 million American children and adolescents had diagnosed anxiety and/or depression in 2011-12, reports an analysis of nationwide data in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, the official journal of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

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Investigators at the Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles provide preclinical evidence that the presence of tumor-associated macrophages—a type of immune cell—can negatively affect the response to chemotherapy against neuroblastoma.

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Bariatric surgery has long yielded almost immediate health benefits for patients with type 2 diabetes, and new findings from Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine may be the key to developing drug alternatives to surgery.

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Bovine mastitis is typically treated with antibiotics, but with the potential threat of antimicrobial resistance and the disease’s long-term harm to the animal’s teat, researchers at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine are laying the foundation for alternative therapies derived from stem cells.

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A program designed to help coaches learn to identify and report suspected child abuse and neglect among their players has measurable impact 10 months later, a new study shows.

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Researchers investigating a key signaling protein in Huntington’s disease describe deleterious effects on heart function, going beyond the disease’s devastating neurological impact. By adjusting protein levels affecting an important biological pathway, the researchers improved heart function in mice, shedding light on the biology of this fatal disease.

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Ever wonder why intense exercise temporarily curbs your appetite? In research described in today’s issue of PLOS Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine researchers reveal that the answer is all in your head—more specifically, your arcuate nucleus.

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Girls diagnosed with type 2 diabetes have a high frequency of menstrual irregularities, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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New algorithm lets biologists harness massively parallel supercomputers to make sense of a protein “data deluge.”

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A genomic analysis of a large study population has identified uncommon gene variants involved in responses to dietary fats and medicine. Although these variants are rare, they may play a large role in a carrier's risk of heart disease.

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For athletes and weekend warriors alike, returning from a tendon injury too soon often ensures a trip right back to physical therapy. However, a new technology developed by University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers could one day help tell whether your tendons are ready for action.

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Updated expectations are vital for making decisions Your midbrain encodes the expectation error and relays it to the frontal lobe to revise Dopamine neurons are likely involved in encoding identity errors and new expectations in brain

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UAH Ph.D. student Shristi Shrestha is honing her skills in single-cell gene expression as a graduate research assistant at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. She recently served as first co-author of a paper that was published in the journal "Cell Reports."

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A new study by Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP) researchers helps explain the connection between a tumor suppressor called protein kinase C zeta (PKC zeta) and metastatic colorectal cancer.

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An estimated 10 percent of couples in the U.S. struggle with infertility. While a variety of factors can make it difficult for some people to get pregnant, ovulation disorders are a leading cause of female infertility. Now, researchers at Pennsylvania State University have found that zinc deficiency can negatively affect the early stages of egg development, reducing the ability of the egg cells to divide and be fertilized. This may affect fertility months in the future. The researchers will present their results at the American Physiological Society annual meeting at Experimental Biology 2018 in San Diego.

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A major issue that limits modeling to predict cardiac arrhythmia is that it is impossible to measure and monitor all the variables that make our hearts tick, but researchers have now developed an algorithm that uses artificial intelligence to model the electrical excitations in heart muscle. Their work, appearing in Chaos, draws on partial differential equations describing excitable media and echo state networks to cross-predict variables about chaotic electrical wave propagations in cardiac tissue.

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In new experiments reported in Applied Physics Letters, researchers have shown that a wide-bandgap semiconductor called gallium oxide can be engineered into nanometer-scale structures that allow electrons to move much faster within the crystal structure. With electrons that move with such ease, Ga2O3 could be a promising material for applications such as high-frequency communication systems and energy-efficient power electronics.

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Trans 1,3-butadiene, the smallest polyene, has challenged researchers over the past 40 years because of its complex excited-state electronic structure and its ultrafast dynamics. Butadiene remains the “missing link” between ethylene, which has only one double bond, and longer linear polyenes with three or more double bonds. Now, an experimental team has solved trans 1,3-butadiene’s electronic-structural dynamics. The researchers recently reported their findings in The Journal of Chemical Physics.

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People who are 30 pounds or more overweight may want to slim down a bit even if they don’t have high blood pressure or any other heart disease risk, according to scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.