Although the basic outlines of human hearing have been known for years – sensory cells in the inner ear turn sound waves into the electrical signals that the brain understands as sound – the molecular details have remained elusive. Now, new research has identified a crucial protein in this translation process.
Adding the equivalent of a miniature tornado to the interface between electrospray ionization (ESI) and a mass spectrometer (MS) has allowed researchers to improve the sensitivity and detection capability of the widely-used ESI-MS analytical technique.
It turns out your skin is crawling with single-celled microorganisms – ¬and they’re not just bacteria. A study by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the Medical University of Graz has found that the skin microbiome also contains archaea, a type of extreme-loving microbe, and that the amount of it varies with age.
Preterm birth is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality.Now, NIBIB-funded researchers have developed a system to capture and identify a scarce blood peptide called P1 that can predict increased risk of preterm birth, offering the opportunity to delay birth or increase fetus viability to save lives and reduce lifelong disabilities.
The connection between slowed walking speed and declining mental acuity appears to arise in the right hippocampus, a finger-shaped region buried deep in the brain at ear-level, according to a 14-year study conducted by scientists at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
The incidence of sudden cardiac arrest, a sudden and usually deadly loss of heart function, declined significantly among previously uninsured adults who acquired health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, also known as “Obamacare,” according to a study published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
A team led by UC San Diego researchers has identified, for the first time, the myriad structural changes that activate and drive CRISPR-Cas9, the innovative gene-splicing technology that’s transforming the field of genetic engineering.
When a woman walks into the oncologist’s office, she’s usually not alone. In fact, a new study finds that half of women have at least three people standing behind them, sitting next to them or waiting at home to help.
People who survive a major heart attack often do better in the years afterward if they’re mildly obese, a study by UT Southwestern Medical Center cardiologists showed.
Cornell University materials scientists and bioelectrochemical engineers may have created an innovative, cost-competitive electrode material for cleaning pollutants in wastewater.
While there is solid evidence that adolescent overweight and obesity are associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, less is known about the association between body mass index (BMI) and rarer cardiovascular diseases. A new large-scale, 45-year Israeli study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that higher BMI as well as BMI in the accepted normal range in late adolescence may be related to a higher risk of death in mid-adulthood from non-coronary non-stroke cardiovascular diseases such as fatal arrhythmia, hypertensive heart disease, cardiomyopathy, arterial disease, heart failure and pulmonary embolism.
Adding an investigational antibody to the chemotherapy rituximab appears to restore its cancer-killing properties in certain leukemia patients with a natural resistance to the drug, according to a small, proof-of-concept study by Duke Cancer Institute researchers.
Scientists have had limited success at identifying specific inherited genes associated with prostate cancer. Researchers at University of Utah Health studied prostate cancer patients with multiple cancer diagnoses to identify genetic mutations that may influence cancer treatment and cancer risk.
Leukemia researchers led by Dr. John Dick have traced the origins of relapse in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) to rare therapy-resistant leukemia stem cells that are already present at diagnosis and before chemotherapy begins.
Researchers use equations and on-the-ground analyses to the follow water held in the soil versus fresh rainfalls. This can improve water management in drought- and flood-affected areas.
Researchers have developed micro-cubes that can sponge up a hydrophobic anti-cancer drug and deliver it to cancer cells. Tissue culture tests show these tiny, porous cubes, loaded with the hydrophobic drug, are more potent against liver cancer cells and less harmful to normal liver cells.
Mitochondrial diseases are a diverse group of disorders caused by mutated genes that impair energy production in a patient’s cells, often with severe effects. Patients incur high medical costs when hospitalized, and suffer higher-than-typical rates of comorbid diseases and in-hospital mortality. Researchers who analyzed those costs in national databases say their findings underscore the importance of developing preventive strategies and therapies for these illnesses.
Inequity is evident globally, with less than 1 percent of households in Ethiopia and 96.4 percent in Serbia having access to soap and water for handwashing.
Psychological support and new coping skills are helping patients at high risk of developing chronic pain and long-term, high-dose opioid use taper their opioids.
A new study out of Florida State University shows that individuals more socially proximate to electoral candidates turn out at a higher rate and individuals more socially proximate to a given political party’s candidates vote disproportionately for that party.
A new study reinforces long-held suspicions that the brain chemical serotonin, a molecule usually associated with mood, appetite and libido, makes a direct contribution to the actions of cocaine. Scientists can now clearly see details of how the brain uses serotonin not just to regulate mood, but also to drive both rapid and long-lasting changes in the brain. They suspect these changes may contribute to the brain modifications that ultimately trap users in an addicted state.
Imagine being able to see the entire Statue of Liberty and a small ant on its nose simultaneously. The drastic difference in size between the two objects would seem to render this task impossible. On a molecular level, this is exactly what a team led by Sandia National Laboratories chemists David Osborn and Carl Hayden accomplished with a special, custom-made instrument that has enhanced the power of a method called photoelectron photoion coincidence, or PEPICO, spectroscopy. This enhanced method could yield new insights into chemical reactions in the troposphere (the lowest layer of the Earth’s atmosphere) and in low-temperature combustion.
Unaccompanied homeless youth, especially females, have high rates of sexual and physical victimization – both before and after leaving home. These findings and others will be shared at the 40th annual scientific meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) in Denver June 24-28.
By comparing variations in protein expression in tumor samples from a single melanoma patient, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center say their findings have the potential to reveal some of the mechanisms underlying response or resistance to immunotherapy drugs. The “proof of concept” findings, published online Feb. 13, 2017, in Clinical Cancer Research, point to distinct variations not in the genetic code of each tumor sample, but in the expression levels of certain proteins encoded by normal genes.
Religious participation is linked to lower suicide rates in many parts of the world, including the United States and Russia, but does not protect against the risk of suicide in sections of Europe and Asia, finds new research by a Michigan State University scholar.
The researchers discovered injecting potato virus particles into melanoma tumor sites activates an anti-tumor immune system response. And simultaneously injecting the nanoscale plant virus particles and a chemotherapy drug—doxorubicin—into tumor sites further helps halt tumor progression in mice.
Patients with common widespread forms of cancer will enjoy longer life expectancy and reduced risk of recurrence thanks to a multimodal optical spectroscopy probe developed by ingeneer Frédéric Leblond and neurosurgical oncology specialist Dr. Kevin Petrecca.
A National Institutes of Health-funded study led by a team at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University has shown that an influenza vaccine can produce robust immune responses and be administered safely with an experimental patch of dissolving microneedles.
A Stony Brook University-led team of researchers has determined the structure of a key enzyme involved with cell growth regulation in cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease.
Producing biofuels like ethanol from plant materials requires various enzymes to break down the cellulosic fibers. Researchers from ORNL and NC State used neutrons to identify the specifics of an enzyme-catalyzed reaction that could significantly reduce the total amount of enzymes used, improving production processes and lowering costs.
In a new study, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues in Xijing Hospital and Sun Yat-sen Cancer Center in China, report that DNA methylation can provide effective markers for at least four major cancers, not only correctly differentiating malignant tissues from normal, but also providing information on prognosis and survival.
Using VLBA telescope, astronomers have made the first detection of orbital motion in a pair of supermassive black holes in a galaxy some 750 million light-years from Earth.
In a first, UW researchers have delivered targeted treatment for essential tremor - the world's most common neurological movement disorder - by decoding brain signals to sense when patients limbs are shaking.
Researchers have identified a network of neurons that plays a vital role in learning vocalizations by aiding communication between motor and auditory regions of the brain.
Moderate-intensity exercise can help even extremely obese older adults improve their ability to perform common daily activities and remain independent, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
It’s possible to alter the wettability of your skin using an ingredient commonly found in cosmetic cleaners, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.
The American Institute of Physics and AIP Publishing are pleased to announce the launch of Scilight -- brief written summaries of research articles emphasizing the significance of a contribution to a field of science. Scilight benefits both journal authors and the scientific community by giving authors another way to promote their research and a place for scientists and science enthusiasts to quickly and easily scan the latest, important breakthroughs in the world of physics.
Acupuncture, alone or with the medication clomiphene, does not appear to be effective in treating infertility in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), according to a new international study including Penn State College of Medicine.
Noninvasive brain stimulation and physical therapy—alone or in combination—improve some measures of walking ability in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), concludes a clinical trial in the American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, the official journal of the Association of Academic Physiatrists. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
Wolters Kluwer, a leading global provider of information and point of care solutions for the healthcare industry, today announced that Lippincott PassPoint was named a 2017 SIIA CODiE Award finalist in the Best Student Assessment Solution category. Finalists represent applications, products and services from providers of educational software, digital content, online learning services and related technologies encompassing pre-K through post-secondary sectors. Lippincott PassPoint is part of a suite of comprehensive digital nursing education solutions.
Dinosaurs' faces might have been much more sensitive than previously thought, and crucial to tasks from precision eating and testing nest temperature to combat and mating rituals, according to a University of Southampton study.
Immigration has no effect on crime, according to a University of California, Irvine professor’s comprehensive examination of 51 studies on the topic published between 1994 and 2014.
Acute and chronic infections in a person’s upper gastrointestinal tract appear to be linked to Parkinson’s disease, say scientists at Georgetown University Medical Center and their collaborators at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.
University of Iowa researchers have identified a brain region involved in cocaine addiction. The findings could lead to targeted drugs or improved behavioral treatments for substance addiction, including opioid dependency. Findings published in the Journal of Neuroscience.