Curated News: Scientific Reports

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at Tulane University School of Medicine identified a gene that causes an aggressive form of breast cancer to rapidly grow. More importantly, they have also discovered a way to “turn it off” and inhibit cancer from occurring. The animal study results have been so compelling that the team is now working on FDA approval to begin clinical trials and has published details in the journal Scientific Reports.

• share
• favorite_border

Warming ocean temperatures and acidification drastically reduce the skeletal strength and filter-feeding capacity of glass sponges, according to new UBC research.

• share
• favorite_border

Climate change has contributed to the increase in the number of wildfires in the Arctic where it can dramatically shift stream chemistry and potentially harm both ecosystems and humans. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have found that some aftereffects, like decreased carbon and increased nitrogen, can last up to five decades and could have major implications on vital waterways.

• share
• favorite_border

The great white shark is one of the most charismatic, but also one of the most infamous sharks.

• share
• favorite_border

An international research team led by Jaime A. Villafaña from the Institute of Palaeontology at the University of Vienna discovered the first fossil nursery area of the great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias in Chile. This discovery provides a better understanding of the evolutionary success of the largest top predator in today's oceans in the past and could contribute to the protection of these endangered animals. The study is published in the journal Scientific Reports.

• share
• favorite_border

Red blood cells sometimes rupture when blood is sent through faulty equipment, such as a dialysis machine. This is called hemolysis. Hemolysis also can occur during blood work when blood is drawn too quickly through a needle, leading to defective laboratory samples. University of Delaware mechanical engineer Tyler Van Buren and collaborating colleagues at Princeton University have developed a method to monitor blood damage in real-time.

• share
• favorite_border

Birth control pills are an effective and safe form of birth control; however, they are associated with a number of side effects, including mood alterations.

• share
• favorite_border

A major transformation in vertebrate evolution took place when breathing shifted from being driven by head and throat muscles—like in fish and frogs—to the torso—like in reptiles and mammals. But what caused the shift? A new study posits that the intermediate step was locomotion—the mechanics follow the same pattern as inhalation and exhalation.

• share
• favorite_border

As bad as things might seem here in 2020, they could be worse: we could be living 252 million years ago during the Permian mass extinction.

• share
• favorite_border

As interest in the application of plasma medicine — the use of low-temperature plasma (LTP) created by an electrical discharge to address medical problems — continues to grow, so does the need for research advancements proving its capabilities and potential impacts on the health care industry. Across the world, many research groups are investigating plasma medicine for applications including cancer treatment and the accelerated healing of chronic wounds, among others.

• share
• favorite_border

A team of scientists has taken steps to create a new form of digital data storage, a “Racetrack Memory,” which opens the possibility to both bolster computer power and lead to the creation of smaller, faster, and more energy efficient computer memory technologies.

• share
• favorite_border

Deforestation is not an issue dominating headlines in the U.S. right now, but perhaps it should be, according to UC San Diego research. Deforestation has been linked to both the spread of infectious disease and climate change, and what is most alarming, it’s happening at a rapid rate.

• share
• favorite_border

A new, free-to-use database of 14,000 known macrolactones fills a knowledge gap concerning these molecules and could serve as a useful tool for future drug discovery.

• share
• favorite_border

Extreme flooding events in some US coastal areas could double every five years if sea levels continue to rise as expected, a study published in Scientific Reports suggests. Today's 'once-in-a-lifetime' extreme water levels -- which are currently reached once every 50 years -- may be exceeded daily along most of the US coastline before the end of the 21st century.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers used microwave-plasma chemical vapor deposition to create thin crystal films of a novel boron-rich boron-carbide material that has 37 percent the hardness of cubic diamond and acts as an insulator. The new material’s properties were predicted from first-principles analysis.

• share
• favorite_border

Blood pressure readings taken from neuroscience intensive care unit (NSICU) patients had marked differences between opposite sides of the body and different anatomical sites in each individual

• share
• favorite_border

Scientists have developed a new minimally invasive technique that greatly enhances the ability to measure neonate turtle sex ratios. This is the first time that differences in sex-specific protein expression patterns have been identified in blood samples of hatchlings with temperature-dependent sex determination. The technique is a crucial step in assessing the impact of climate change on imperiled turtle species and will enable more accurate estimates of hatchling sex ratios at a population level and on a global scale.

• share
• favorite_border

Fearfulness is one of the most common behavioural disorders in dogs.

• share
• favorite_border

A new feathered dinosaur that lived in New Mexico 67 million years ago is one of the last known surviving raptor species, according to a new publication in the journal Scientific Reports.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center are trying to identify alternative strategies to treat non-small cell lung cancer. (NSCLC) In a new article published online in Scientific Reports, they highlight how targeting the histone deacetylase HDAC11 may be a novel therapeutic strategy for NSCLC.

• share
• favorite_border

Two Iowa State engineers, who announced the solution to a 50-year-old puzzle in signal processing last fall, have followed up with more research results. The engineers say their new algorithm is more useful and just as fast as the one previously used.

• share
• favorite_border

Since the discovery of penicillin in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming, antibiotics have saved millions of lives from fatal infections world-wide. However, with time bacteria have developed mechanisms to escape the effects of antibiotics - they have become resistant.

• share
• favorite_border

Teeth constitute a permanent and faithful biological archive of the entirety of the individual’s life, from tooth formation to death, a team of researchers has found. Its work provides new evidence of the impact that events, such as reproduction and imprisonment, have on an organism.

• share
• favorite_border

The first study looking at the effect of chlorhexidine mouthwash on the entire oral microbiome has found its use significantly increases the abundance of lactate-producing bacteria that lower saliva pH, and may increase the risk of tooth damage.

• share
• favorite_border

Since the late 19th century, scientists have understood that, when heated, all materials emit light in a predictable spectrum of wavelengths. Research published this week in Nature Scientific Reports presents a material that emits light when heated that appears to exceed the limits set by that natural law.

• share
• favorite_border

New research sheds light on how much tropical forests’ ability to take up and store carbon differ between forests with high versus low species richness, aiming to enhance our ability to predict tropical ecosystems’ strength as global carbon sinks.

• share
• favorite_border

High-resolution micro-CT scanning of the skull of the fossil specimen known as "Little Foot" has revealed some aspects of how this Australopithecus species used to live more than 3 million years ago.

• share
• favorite_border

Soft corals at three sites in the U.S. Virgin Islands were able to recover from the destructive effects of nearly back-to-back Category 5 storms in 2017, but research by a UB marine ecologist puts that seemingly good news in the context of an ecosystem that is dramatically changing.

• share
• favorite_border

Of 1,881 patients under age 19 diagnosed with cancers of the brain and central nervous system between 2000 and 2015, 52 percent of White patients lived five years from diagnosis, whereas only 44 percent of African American patients and 45 percent of Hispanic patients reached a similar milestone.

• share
• favorite_border

The language in Facebook posts becomes less formal and invokes family more often in the lead-up to an emergency room visit.

• share
• favorite_border

Cornell University researchers have found that squash and pumpkin pollen have physical, nutritional and chemical defense qualities that are harmful to bumblebees. The results of their recent study suggest that deterring bumblebees from collecting and eating pollen may provide an evolutionary benefit to cucurbit plants.

• share
• favorite_border

A team of researchers from the University of Georgia and San Diego State University has found that the practice of feeding wildlife could be more detrimental to animals than previously thought.

• share
• favorite_border

An AI analysis of photographs posted on social media revealed a positive association between nature and happiness globally

• share
• favorite_border

A new study says that hurricanes Irma and Maria combined in 2017 to knock down a quarter of the biomass contained in Puerto Rico's trees -- and that massive rainfall, more than wind, was a previously unsuspected key factor.

• share
• favorite_border

All dog breeds have unwanted behaviour, such as noise sensitivity, aggressiveness and separation anxiety, but differences in frequency between breeds are great.

• share
• favorite_border

Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers have created a computer program for scientists at no charge that lets users readily quantify the structural and functional changes in the blood flow networks feeding tumors.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at the University of Rhode Island (URI) used San Diego Supercomputer Center’s (SDSC) Comet supercomputer to show that high-performance computer modeling can accurately simulate tsunamis from volcanic events. Such models could lead to early-warning systems that could save lives and help minimize catastrophic property damage.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers have put a new technique based on machine learning to work uncovering the secrets of buried interfaces and edges in a material.

• share
• favorite_border

New research from the University of Washington finds that a natural aptitude for learning languages is a stronger predictor of learning to program than basic math knowledge.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have made significant progress toward development of a simple, noninvasive liquid biopsy test that detects prostate cancer from RNA and other specific metabolic chemicals in the urine.

• share
• favorite_border

Parkinson’s disease researchers have used gene-editing tools to introduce the disorder’s most common genetic mutation into marmoset monkey stem cells and to successfully tamp down cellular chemistry that often goes awry in Parkinson’s patients.

• share
• favorite_border

Research on novel nanoelectronics devices led by the University of Southampton enabled brain neurons and artificial neurons to communicate with each other.

• share
• favorite_border

The United States could generate 20% of its electricity from wind within 10 years, without requiring any additional land, according to Cornell University research published in Nature Scientific Reports.

• share
• favorite_border

Testing of small molecules in mouse models of Duchenne muscular dystrophy shows promise for restoration of muscle structure and function.

• share
• favorite_border

A Michigan State University researcher is adding new evidence to the argument that the fat around our arteries may play an important role in keeping those blood vessels healthy. The finding could affect how researchers test for treatments related to plaque buildup in our arteries, or atherosclerosis, an issue that can often lead to a heart attack, which is currently a leading cause of death in the United States.

• share
• favorite_border

Millions of people might eventually be spared the embarrassment and extreme isolation caused by wetting themselves, thanks to new research.

• share
• favorite_border

Ever wonder how mice talk to each other? We don’t have a dictionary quite yet, but UD neuroscientist Josh Neunuebel and his lab have linked the ultrasonic vocalizations made by mice with specific behaviors. It’s a significant advance of our understanding of communication science.

• share
• favorite_border

A new innovation makes it possible, for the first time, to quantitatively assess children's spontaneous movement in the natural environment.

• share
• favorite_border

Dinosaur blood vessels, giant viruses, and antibiotic-building enzymes

• share
• favorite_border

The fossilized tail of a young dinosaur that lived on a prairie in southern Alberta, Canada, is home to the remains of a 60-million-year-old tumor.