FAU’s Art of Science photo contest is designed to engage and educate the public in the unique study, scholarship and creative activities taking place in all of the University’s labs, out in the fields and across all of its disciplines.
“There’s no place like home,” has its roots deep in the brain. Using fiber photometry, scientists are the first to show that home evokes a surge of dopamine in mice that mimics the response to a dose of cocaine. The study demonstrates how dopamine rises rapidly in mice moved from a simple recording chamber to their home cage, but less so when they return to a cage not quite like the one they knew.
Many people reuse masks and other face coverings many times without sanitizing them. That is likely because current sanitization methods can be cumbersome. A new device using a hanging rack and UV-C light can sterilize up to six masks and other items simultaneously and quickly, killing bacteria, yeasts, mold spores, and viruses. This device has shown its efficacy against pathogens including the highly-contagious E-coli, which was eradicated in about one minute.
A study of the relationships between cognition and the gut microbiome of captive zebra finches showed that their gut microbiome characteristics were related to performance on a cognitive assay where they learned a novel foraging technique. Researchers also identified potentially critical bacteria that were relatively more abundant in birds that performed better on this assay. This correlation provides some of the first evidence of a relationship between a bird's gut microbiome and its brain.
FAU's Herbert Weissbach, Ph.D., recently received BioFlorida’s “Lifetime Achievement Award,” reserved to recognize outstanding leadership in the industry throughout an individual’s career and for significant contributions to industry growth.
In a review of evidence from the most reliable data from randomized trials to find likely small-to-moderate effects of remdesivir, researchers say that totality of evidence compiled before the WHO trial results justifies compassionate use of remdesivir for severely ill patients. A smaller trial in China showed significantly decreased mean recovery time but no suggestion of a mortality benefit. ACTT-1 found the same mean recovery time and a suggestion of a mortality benefit that did not achieve statistical significance.
When startled, do all fish respond the same way? A few fish, like Mexican cavefish, have evolved in unique environments without any predators. To see how this lack of predation impacts escape responses that are highly stereotyped across fish species, scientists explored this tiny fish to determine if there are evolved differences in them. Findings reveal that the dramatic ecological differences between cave and river environments contribute to differences in escape behavior in blind cavefish and river-dwelling surface cavefish.
The nation faces physician shortages in primary care and other specialties, including a projected inadequate supply of dermatologists to meet the demand for service. This innovative program will help to address these gaps and will equip advanced-practice nurses with the tools required to provide high-quality, holistic care for their patients with dermatological conditions.
Researchers will develop new theory and methods to curate training data sets for artificial intelligence (AI) learning and screen real-time operational data for AI field deployment. They will develop technology to identify faulty, unusual and irregular information for AI learning and operations that rely on data, and will provide critical alerts to troubleshoot a problem before it occurs. This data-quality evaluation technology is being developed for a number of industries ranging from the military to cybersecurity to medical diagnostics.
A new study suggests that patients with opioid use disorder may be identified using information available in electronic health records, even when diagnostic codes do not reflect this diagnosis. The study demonstrates the utility of proxies coding for DSM-5 criteria from medical records to generate a quantitative DSM-5 score that is associated with opioid use disorder severity. The study methods are unique in deriving a severity score that aims to mirror severity scores from more traditional interview-based diagnostic procedures.
FAU's A.D. Henderson University School has been ranked the No. 2 Best Public Elementary School and the No. 11 Best Public Middle School in America by Niche, the largest website for researching public and private K-12 schools.
Fossil records of bonefish go back 138 million years, but large gaps about their biology remain. In just four years, scientists have successfully spawned bonefish in captivity and have figured out their life cycle to help inform management and conservation of this revered fishery. In the Florida keys alone, the annual economic impacts exceed $465 million. Florida’s recreational and commercial fishing industries and associated businesses account for billions of dollars that drive the economic engine for the state each year and contribute to hundreds of thousands of jobs.
The NIH grant will enable FAU scientists to identify the gene regulation pathways activated to program immature stem-like cells of the eye lens to attain their mature form and transparent function. The research team plans to explore the genetic and cellular mechanisms controlling developmental DNA conformational changes and will identify the transcription factors needed for eye lens formation.
Scientists examined cell abundances, size, cellular carbon mass, and how photosynthetic cells differ on polymeric and glass substrates over time, exploring nanoparticle generation from plastic like polystyrene and how this might disrupt microalgae. Conservative estimates suggest that about 1 percent of microbial cells in the ocean surface microlayer inhabit plastic debris globally. This mass of cells would not exist without plastic debris in the ocean, and thus, represents a disruption of the proportions of native flora in that habitat.
In early 2016, the U.S. was judged to have been best prepared for the existential threat of a pandemic, but turned out to be the least prepared for the actual threat. In a commentary, researchers say that “pandemic politics” is causing assaults on science, the FDA and CDC. They say that politicization of the FDA and CDC is creating continued losses of trust by the U.S. public and continued harm to their longstanding reputations of respect and admiration worldwide.
Terry Adirim, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., in FAU’s Schmidt College of Medicine, provides answers to some of the most frequently asked questions and offers helpful tips regarding COVID-19 and “trick-or-treating” during the pandemic.
A survey of 1,034 tweens found that one in five (21%) tweens have experienced cyberbullying in some way: either by witnessing cyberbullying (15%), having been cyberbullied themselves (15%), or by cyberbullying others (3%). The survey also found that during the coronavirus pandemic, 90% of all 9- to 12-year-olds are using social apps, such as connected games and video-sharing sites in which they interact with others online.
Testing a readily and rapidly available, discreet in-vehicle sensing system could provide the first step toward future widespread, low-cost early warnings of cognitive change in older drivers. The use of an advanced, multimodal approach involves the development of novel driving sensors and integration of data from a battery of cognitive function tests, eye tracking and driving behaviors and factors. These in-vehicle technologies could help detect abnormal driving behavior that may be attributed to cognitive impairment.
Scientists recently got a unique glimpse into the “Green Banana” Blue Hole thanks to gutsy divers and a 500-pound autonomous, benthic lander. Together with hand-picked, elite scuba divers, the research team is unraveling the structure and behavior of these marine environments by examining geochemistry, hydrodynamics, and biology. Findings from this exploration also may have important implications for phytoplankton in the Gulf of Mexico, including blooms of the Florida Red-tide species Karenia brevis.
The accelerated five-year bachelor’s degree in science and master’s degree in AI program is designed to adapt curricular and co-curricular support to enable students to complete their degrees in AI, autonomous systems or machine learning, which are critically important to advance America’s global competitiveness and national security. With this grant, FAU will recruit and train talented and diverse students who are economically disadvantaged and provide them with a unique opportunity to pursue graduate education in a burgeoning field.
While studied for nearly a century, little is known about how cavefish brains differ. A study is the first to look inside their brains with millimeter resolution to start to understand how the individual neurons and brain regions that drive complex behaviors, including sleep and feeding have evolved. This work has broad implications for the understanding of how brains evolve in many different animal models and is hoped to be widely used by the scientific community.
FAU’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute has landed an $11,179,001 four-year contract from the U.S. Office of Naval Research to develop a next-generation, high-intake, compact, bathyphotometer sensor for natural oceanic bioluminescence assessments. Bioluminescent creatures are found throughout marine habitats and their “glowing” energy released from chemical reactions is used to warn or evade predators, lure or detect prey and communicate with the same species. Research surrounding bioluminescence will soon serve as an important tool to protect U.S. coastlines.
Many clinicians rely on self-reports from their high-risk patients about their need and proper interval for repeat surveillance colonoscopy. Researchers analyzed data over four years to explore the knowledge of these high-risk patients. Twenty-eight percent were unaware of either the need for a repeat colonoscopy or the proper surveillance interval. Of these, 16.6 percent were unaware of the proper three-year interval to obtain a follow-up surveillance colonoscopy. Also, 12 percent were not even aware that they required a follow-up surveillance colonoscopy.
Scientists and engineers are well trained in their own areas of specialty, yet there’s a lack of integrative knowledge needed for new scientific discoveries and industry applications made possible by data science and analytics. Effective data scientists need to work in interdisciplinary teams and to use data visualization and communication skills to communicate their findings to individuals not trained in data science. This program will produce graduates with technical depth and knowledge of data science technologies and applications.
Now more than ever, Americans and people all over the world are under increased stress, which may adversely affect their health and well-being. Researchers explore the possibility that mindfulness with paced breathing reduces blood pressure. One of the most plausible mechanisms is that paced breathing stimulates the vagus nerve and parasympathetic nervous system, which reduce stress chemicals in the brain and increase vascular relaxation that may lead to lowering of blood pressure.
A study on serotonin, a mood-regulating molecule in the brain that regulates many brain synapses, is helping to unravel the puzzle surrounding its role in autism. The activity and regulation of the serotonin transporter (SERT), protein is critically dependent on a number of other proteins that tell the protein where to locate on nerve cells and how to act. Shifts in the transporter’s activity can significantly impact the ability of serotonin to act in the brain.
If CDC guidelines aren’t enough to convince you that face shields alone shouldn’t be used to stop the spread of COVID-19, then maybe a new visualization study will. Researchers simulated coughing and sneezing from a mannequin’s mouth using a laser light to visualize droplets expelled. They tested a plastic face shield and found that they block the initial forward motion of the exhaled jet, however, aerosolized droplets are able to move around the visor with relative ease.
Using the Wood Stork, researchers compared city storks with natural wetland storks to gauge their success in urban environments based on their diet and food opportunities. Results provide evidence of how a wetland species persists and even thrives in an urban environment by switching to human foods like chicken wings and hots dogs when natural marshes are in bad shape. These findings indicate that urban areas can buffer a species from the unpredictability of natural food sources.
A study is the first long-term, in-depth analysis of the elasmobranch community in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon and develops capacity to understand how these species may respond to further environmental changes. From 2016 to 2018, researchers caught 630 individuals of 16 species, including two critically endangered smalltooth sawfish. Results showed that many elasmobranchs use the southern Indian River Lagoon throughout their life histories and the area may serve as an important nursery habitat for multiple species.
In a commentary, researchers demonstrate the stark differences in public health strategies from two democratic republics: South Korea and the United States, which have led to alarming differences in cases and deaths from COVID-19. After adjusting for the 6.5 fold differences in populations, the U.S. has suffered 47 times more cases and 79 times more deaths than South Korea.
Researchers will study areas that include counties in south and central Florida and the Panhandle, which are still recovering from Hurricanes Michael and Irma, and which saw an influx of displaced individuals from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. They will examine resilience of individuals and households, including their coping and adaptive capacities during a busy hurricane season in the midst of pandemic. The research will advance knowledge on several topics related to housing, health and hazards.
Researchers are developing a comprehensive sensing and information visualization package that will augment Florida’s existing monitoring programs for Lake Okeechobee, the second largest lake within the contiguous U.S. It will expand water, sediment, and biological measurements using innovative harmful algal bloom detection and environmental characterization technologies to allow pinpointing problem areas prior to or early on when harmful algal blooms are emerging in Lake Okeechobee. These harmful blooms are annual occurrences due to favorable environmental conditions.
Researchers examined toxins in tissue concentrations and pathology data from 83 stranded dolphins and whales from 2012 to 2018. They looked at 11 different animal species to test for 17 different substances. The study is the first to report on concentrations in blubber tissues of stranded cetaceans of atrazine, DEP, NPE and triclosan. It also is the first to report concentrations of toxicants in a white-beaked dolphin and in Gervais’ beaked whales.
Four FAU researchers have received the coveted NSF Early Career (CAREER) award for research to develop a low-cost, disposable point-of-care platform to detect current and emerging infectious diseases; for a cognitive screening tool for the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease using wearables and a smartphone; for mathematical tools and new ways of coding to enhance cybersecurity; and to better understand how marine animals tune, or dynamically adjust their movements using their skin and skeletons.
Researchers examined the outcome of an entangled bottlenose dolphin calf with monofilament fishing line wrapped tightly around its upper jaw. It was successfully disentangled and immediately released it back into its natural habitat. Surviving only two years, results showed long-term severe damage due to this entanglement including emaciation. There are about 1,000 bottlenose dolphins that live in the Indian River Lagoon, which also is a very popular location for recreational fishing.
Scientists suggest that the initial impact of environmental toxins inhaled through the nose may induce inflammation in the brain, triggering the production of Lewy bodies that can then be spread to other brain regions. However, the relationship linking olfactory dysfunction and Parkinson’s disease development remains unclear. New findings from a study add weight to this theory and identify a critical signaling molecule that may be key to the domino effect kicked off by nasal inflammation.
A new study reveals that urgent action is needed to protect billions of dollars in real estate investment across South Florida due to impacts of sea level rise over the next several decades. The report casts light on the issues and clarifies the alternatives available to South Florida, which embraces the four counties of Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach. Together, these counties generate more than $337 billion in personal income annually with a combined real property value assessed at more than $833 billion.
Using uniquely coded transmitters and acoustic telemetry, a study is the first to characterize the ecology and fine-scale habitat use of whitespotted rays in Florida while also identifying areas of potential interactions between this species and multiple environmental threats. Biotelemetry provided unique insights into this species’ occupancy, which is not apparent at the landscape-scale. Prolonged observations showed affinities for habitats of considerable recreational and commercial importance, like inlets, channels, and clam aquaculture lease sites close to shore.
Dr. Terry Adirim provides answers to some of the most frequently asked questions regarding COVID-19 and return to school for school-age children. Adirim is a physician executive with senior leadership and executive experience in academic medicine and the federal government. Her expertise includes pandemic planning and response, health care quality improvement and patient safety, and health policy and management.
In the last several decades, more than half of the deaths associated with tropical cyclones in the U.S. were due to inland flooding. Unfortunately, current forecasting capabilities are limited. Researchers are developing a warning system for more accurate and timely detection and forecasting of inland and coastal floods, under a variety of precipitation regimes. The technology will enable local and state governments to more effectively plan and respond to tropical storms.
Using sophisticated satellite telemetry, a study is the first to provide unique insights into how tiger sharks move and use habitats in the Gulf of Mexico across life-stages. Data provide an important baseline for comparison against, and/or predicting their vulnerability to future environmental change such as climate variability or oil spills.
Researchers will use big data analytics techniques to develop computational models to predict the spread of COVID-19. They will utilize forward simulation from a given patient and the propagation of the infection into the community; and backward simulation tracing a number of verified infections to a possible patient “zero.” The project also will provide quick and automatic contact tracing and leverages the researchers’ prior experience in modeling Ebola spread.
A groundbreaking study is the first to analyze the relationship between group behaviors, group type, group dynamics, and kinship of beluga whales in 10 locations across the Arctic. Results show that not only do beluga whales regularly interact with close kin, including close maternal kin, they also frequently associate with more distantly related and unrelated individuals. Findings will improve the understanding of why some species are social, how individuals learn from group members and how animal cultures emerge.
A study using same-day traffic volumes for March 2019 and March 2020 across Florida examined the chronological relationship of key governmental requests for public isolation and travel limitations. Results show the drastic changes in human behavior during the onset of the pandemic. Traffic volumes by March 22, 2020, dropped by 47.5 percent compared to that same point in 2019. Moreover, traffic declined in March 2020 corresponding with the governor’s state of emergency declaration and school, restaurant, and bar closures.
A study of 3,268 hospitals in the U.S. shows that rural hospitals are more likely than urban facilities to have access to telehealth, a once-underused service that now is playing a key role in treating coronavirus patients. The research can help U.S. hospitals understand the extent to which they are prepared for another wave of the pandemic.
Using flow visualization of emulated coughs and sneezes, researchers assessed the efficacy of facemasks in obstructing droplets. Loosely folded facemasks and bandana-style coverings provide minimal stopping-capability for the smallest aerosolized respiratory droplets. Well-fitted homemade masks with multiple layers of quilting fabric, and off-the-shelf cone style masks, proved to be the most effective in reducing droplet dispersal. Importantly, uncovered coughs were able to travel noticeably farther than the currently recommended 6-foot distancing guideline. Without a mask, droplets traveled more than 8 feet.
The third Florida Climate Resilience Survey by FAU's Center for Environmental Studies and the Business and Economics Polling Initiative quarterly statewide survey shows that 89 percent of respondents believe climate change is happening, up from 86 percent in January and 88 percent in October 2019.
With the Association of American Medical Colleges estimating a shortage of up to nearly 122,000 physicians in the U.S. by 2032, and demand for physicians growing faster than supply, FAU’s resident physicians are creating a critical pipeline for South Florida’s healthcare workforce.
Researchers are creating a knowledge base that includes information for modeling outbreak and mutation of COVID-19, which will serve as a benchmark for better understanding the spread of the virus. They also are developing a multi-source deep neural network-based predictive tool to combine demographics, policies, regional infections, and individual information for risk evaluation using graph/network to represent entities and their relationships. The entities are fully compatible to the Unified Medical Language System standard for convenient knowledge sharing.
About 6 to 8 million dogs end up in shelters in the U.S. each year. Researchers worked with two no-kill shelters on a study examining the effects of walking with a shelter dog on psychological and physiological stress indicators in military veterans. Results confirm the importance of the human-animal bond and provide evidence that walking with a shelter dog may affect psychological and physiological stress indicators in veterans – with particular potential benefits for those with an increase in PTSD symptom severity.
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