Curated News: Top Clipped Stories

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For patients with solitary metastases from prostate cancer, an approach called metastasis-directed therapy (MDT) – focused treatment using surgery or radiation therapy, without androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) – can slow the time to cancer progression, reports a study in The Journal of Urology®, an Official Journal of the American Urological Association (AUA). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

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A new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care system shows the health consequences of COVID-19 reinfection. The researchers found that repeat SARS-CoV-2 infections contribute significant additional risk of adverse health conditions in multiple organ systems. Such outcomes include hospitalization; disorders affecting the lungs, heart, brain, and the body’s blood, musculoskeletal and gastrointestinal systems; and even death. Reinfection also contributes to diabetes, kidney disease and mental health issues.

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For the first time, scientists have used CRISPR technology to insert genes that allow immune cells to focus their attack on cancer cells, potentially leaving normal cells unharmed and increasing the effectiveness of immunotherapy.

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Two habits are riskier than one when it comes to surgery-related problems, according to a new study of cigarette and alcohol use before an operation. A second study shows coaching about drinking-related surgical risks in the weeks before their operation helped patients cut their drinking in half on average.

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As the United States shifts away from fossil-fuel-burning cars and trucks, scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge and Argonne national laboratories are exploring options for another form of transportation: trains. The research focuses on zero-carbon hydrogen and other low-carbon fuels as viable alternatives to diesel for the rail industry.

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A year of aerobic exercise training reduced impedance (effective resistance to blood flow) in the brain blood vessels of older adults, according to a new study.

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De acuerdo a un nuevo análisis dirigido por investigadores de Cedars-Sinai y llevado a cabo en tres grandes sistemas de salud, el control y manejo de la hipertensión empeoraron durante los primeros meses de la pandemia de COVID-19.

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Light from a star that exploded over 11 billion years ago was captured by Hubble Space Telescope not just as one postcard from the remote past but three messages that chronicle the fading fireball over a period of one week.

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An international research team led by the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has measured the size of a star dating back more than 11 billion years ago using images that show the evolution of the star exploding and cooling. The research could help scientists learn more about the early Universe.

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The United Nations is being urged to make a bold pledge and set a target of zero for new plastic pollution by 2040 in its upcoming Global Treaty to End Plastic Pollution. Plastic production and subsequent pollution are key drivers of climate change, the focus of discussion at COP27 in Egypt this week.

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Researchers from Queen’s University Belfast have found that Northern Ireland is the poorest performing UK region for productivity, with a productivity gap of 17% to the UK level.

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As low Earth orbit becomes more cluttered, it becomes increasingly necessary to use middle Earth orbits, and radiation-tolerant cell designs will be needed. Making photovoltaics thinner should increase their longevity because the charge carriers have less far to go during their shortened lifetimes. In Journal of Applied Physics, scientists propose a radiation-tolerant photovoltaic cell design that features an ultrathin layer of light-absorbing material. Compared to thicker cells, nearly 3.5 times less cover glass is needed for the ultra-thin cells to deliver the same amount of power after 20 years of operation.

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Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s (UMSOM) Center for Precision Disease Modeling identified how a specific protein in SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, damages heart tissue. They then used a drug to reverse the toxic effects of that protein on the heart.

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Daniel Warnell Lee didn’t complain about the severe wounds he suffered in battle during World War II. He also didn’t boast about receiving the nation’s highest military distinction – commonly called the Congressional Medal of Honor – for his acts of valor during that battle.

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AT&T, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory are announcing the launch of a portal to advance the climate science needed to improve America’s preparedness for future climate extremes.

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During 4 waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the risk of severe COVID-19 was associated with pre-existing chronic kidney disease, as well as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension.

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In clinical trials of patients with chronic kidney disease, combining information from the treatment effects on two markers of kidney disease progression—urinary albumin:creatinine ratio change and glomerular filtration rate slope—improves predictions of treatment effects on clinical endpoints.

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Among US veterans with chronic kidney disease (CKD), Black individuals had a higher risk of developing kidney failure compared with White veterans, and their risk was more pronounced in the early years after kidney disease onset.

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Among adults with normal kidney function, exposure to higher concentrations of components of air pollution was linked with higher risks of later developing chronic kidney disease.

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Scientists have generated a polygenic risk score for pediatric steroid sensitive nephrotic syndrome, a kidney disease in children.

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Researchers’ recent observations of a stellar-mass black hole called Cygnus X-1 reveal new details about the configuration of extremely hot matter in the region immediately surrounding the black hole. Matter is heated to millions of degrees as it is pulled toward a black hole. This hot matter glows in X-rays. Researchers are using measurements of the polarization of these X-rays to test and refine models that describe how black holes swallow matter, becoming some of the most luminous sources of light — including X-rays — in the universe.

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More than half of people over 50 say they’ve helped at least one person over 65 take care of their health, personal hygiene, home or finances in the past two years. Nearly all say they get something positive out of the experience.

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People in their 20s and 30s who drink moderate to heavy amounts of alcohol may be more likely to have a stroke as young adults than people who drink low amounts or no alcohol, according to a study published in the November 2, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The risk of stroke increased the more years people reported moderate or heavy drinking

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The new study finds brain-wide changes in virtually all of the 11 cortical regions analyzed, regardless of whether they are higher critical association regions – those involved in functions such as reasoning, language, social cognition and mental flexibility – or primary sensory regions.

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Adopting permanent DST in the United States would reduce deer-vehicle collisions and likely prevent an estimated 36,550 deer deaths, 33 human deaths, 2,054 human injuries and $1.19 billion in costs each year. Deer-vehicle collisions would decrease under permanent DST because skies would be brighter later in the evening

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Hypertension control and management worsened during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new analysis conducted at three large health systems, led by Cedars-Sinai investigators.

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Using data from the newly released Uniform Appraisal Dataset, which includes 47.3 million home appraisals, WashU’s Elizabeth Korver-Glenn and Junia Howell of the University of Illinois Chicago demonstrate stark inequalities in appraisal values between homes in white neighborhoods and communities of color.

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In mid-infrared light, the Pillars of Creation appear otherworldly. NASA’S James Webb Space Telescope has delivered a scene that is large and lofty – and appears lit by flickering lanterns.

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Nuclear fission and fusion reactors use carbon and silicon in shielding, structural materials, fuel, and neutron moderators. Neutrons are the drivers of the nuclear energy production processes. This makes understanding how neutrons scatter from all reactor materials critical for nuclear plant design and other applications. In this research, scientists investigated the interaction of neutrons with silicon and carbon.

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New research from the lab of Kimberly Parker at the McKelvey School of Engineering shows that amines, sometimes used as an additive in herbicides, can enter the atmosphere, where they pose risks for human health and alter the atmosphere.

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Using a new stem-cell based model made from skin cells, scientists found the first direct evidence that Stargardt-related ABCA4 gene mutations affect a layer of cells in the eye called the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE).

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The Veterinary Medical Aquatic Animal Research Center of Excellence (VMARCE), Chulalongkorn University has created Innovareef—lifelike cement-based structures, convenient for planula settlement and growth, accelerating recovery of the coral reef ecosystem, promoting eco-tourism as well as functioning as smart stations for marine environmental monitoring.

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The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) will hold Kidney Week, the world’s premier kidney meeting, in Orlando, FL, November 3–6, 2022. The results of scientific studies and high-impact clinical trials that will advance kidney-related research and medical care will be presented in-person and online.

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New research led by researchers at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and published in the Journal of Hepatology, suggests that getting a third dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine could overcome the decreased vaccine respons in cirrhosis patients and offer strong protection against the virus, severe illness, and death from COVID-19.

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A team of researchers led by the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has released four more years of high-resolution imagery data, which has been added to eight years of previous data, to create the most detailed polar region terrain maps ever created.

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Support among voters in Northern Ireland for the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland remains steady, a new opinion poll conducted by Lucid Talk on behalf of Queen’s University Belfast, has revealed.

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Rates of one type of stroke called subarachnoid hemorrhage have increased in older people and men in recent years, and such strokes occur in Black people at a disproportionately higher rate compared to people of other races and ethnicities, according to a study published in the October 26, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Higher exposure to a certain type of traffic-related air pollution called particulate matter may be linked to an increased risk of dementia, according to a meta-analysis published in the October 26, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers specifically looked at fine particulate matter, PM2.5, which consists of pollutant particles of less than 2.5 microns in diameter suspended in air. The meta-analysis included all available studies on air pollution and risk of dementia.

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Scientists have discovered a mechanism by which an area of a protein shape-shifts to convert vitamin A into a form usable by the eye’s light-sensing photoreceptor cells.

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Controlling gene activity is important for engineering plants for improved bioenergy crops and other applications. This research developed synthetic genes that use Boolean logic gates to achieve specific patterns of gene expression within a plant. The researchers used these gene circuits to redesign the root architecture by tuning the number of root branches.

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New study published in Nature quantifies for the first time the historical and future cost savings to the solar industry from globalized supply chains

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The world will need to deploy renewable energy at an unprecedented speed and scale to reduce carbon emissions that are drive climate change. The option of solar energy promises to play a crucial role especially if the price of production continues to decline. A study published in Nature supports this concept.

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Giving the combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors relatlimab and nivolumab to patients with stage III melanoma before surgery was safe and completely cleared all viable tumor in 57% of patients in a Phase II study, researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported in Nature.

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Patients with early-stage breast cancer who had a pathologic complete response (pCR) to neoadjuvant chemotherapy may be able to skip surgery and receive standard radiation treatment with a low chance of disease recurrence, according to a new study from researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The Phase II trial results, published today in Lancet Oncology, evaluated the likelihood of breast cancer returning in patients who are in complete remission after receiving chemotherapy and radiation without surgery.

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Telehealth follow-up consultations following an emergency department visit were associated with 28 more repeat ED encounters and nearly 11 more return hospital admissions per 1000 patients compared with in-person follow-ups,

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If in fact there is or has been life on Mars, it would likely still be there today, billions of years later, according to a new study published Oct. 25 in Astrobiology led by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU).

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Many children live in homes with unused prescription drugs and expired medications, a new national poll suggests.

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Wearing special green eyeglasses for several hours a day reduces pain-related anxiety and may help decrease the need for opioids to manage severe pain in fibromyalgia patients and possibly others who experience chronic pain, according to a study being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2022 annual meeting.

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Adults who use cannabis have more pain after surgery than those who don’t use cannabis, according to a study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2022 annual meeting.