Curated News: PLOS

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24-Jan-2023 2:20 PM EST
Β-blocker use associated with lower rates of violence
PLOS

Reductions in violence are seen in individuals using Beta adrenergic-blocking agents (β-blockers) compared with periods that they are not taking the medication, in a study published January 31st in the open access journal PLOS Medicine. If the findings are confirmed by other studies, β-blockers could be considered as a way to manage aggression and hostility in individuals with psychiatric conditions.

   
Released: 30-Jan-2023 3:55 PM EST
New mathematical model shows how the body regulates potassium
University of Waterloo

Having levels of potassium that are too high or too low can be fatal. A new mathematical model sheds light on the often mysterious ways the body regulates this important electrolyte.

   
27-Jan-2023 9:45 AM EST
Clemson scientists identify enzyme that reduces diet-induced obesity in humans
Clemson University

Clemson University researchers have identified an enzyme and its products in humans that reduce diet-induced obesity.

Newswise: 52-million-year-old fossils show near-primates were cool with colder climate
Released: 25-Jan-2023 6:40 PM EST
52-million-year-old fossils show near-primates were cool with colder climate
University of Kansas

Two sister species of near-primate, called “primatomorphans,” dating back about 52 million years have been identified by researchers at the University of Kansas as the oldest to have dwelled north of the Arctic Circle.

Released: 25-Jan-2023 5:10 PM EST
Study uncovers widespread unethical practice for assigning authorships
University of Copenhagen, Faculty of Science

A recently published survey study of PhD students reveals that an ethically questionable culture for assigning authorships to research papers is widespread within the medical and natural sciences across Europe.

Released: 25-Jan-2023 3:00 PM EST
GW Study Links Offline Events to Spikes in Online Hate Speech
George Washington University

A new George Washington University study reveals that real world events are often followed by surges in several types of online hate speech on both fringe and mainstream social platforms.

Released: 25-Jan-2023 6:05 AM EST
How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected immigration?
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

New research finds a high variation between how pandemic mitigation measures affected immigration to different destination countries, from a slight increase to huge reductions.

23-Jan-2023 2:05 PM EST
It isn’t what you know, it’s what you think you know
PLOS

A survey of over 2,000 adults in the UK identifies potential pitfalls of science communication.

   
Newswise: WCS Investigations of Online Trade in Jaguar Parts Show Threat is Widespread
Released: 24-Jan-2023 11:05 AM EST
WCS Investigations of Online Trade in Jaguar Parts Show Threat is Widespread
Wildlife Conservation Society

Researchers with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) published the results of an international investigation finding that online trade of jaguar parts are openly detectable on multiple online platforms, representing an emerging and serious threat to jaguar populations across its range.

Newswise: Finding a new way: Orienteering can train the brain, may help fight cognitive decline
18-Jan-2023 3:10 PM EST
Finding a new way: Orienteering can train the brain, may help fight cognitive decline
McMaster University

The sport of orienteering, which draws on athleticism, navigational skills and memory, could be useful as an intervention or preventive measure to fight cognitive decline related to dementia, according to new research from McMaster University.

Newswise: 
DNA from domesticated chickens is tainting genomes of wild red junglefowl
12-Jan-2023 11:20 AM EST
DNA from domesticated chickens is tainting genomes of wild red junglefowl
PLOS

The red junglefowl – the wild ancestor of the chicken – is losing its genetic diversity by interbreeding with domesticated birds, according to a new study led by Frank Rheindt of the National University of Singapore published January 19 in the journal PLOS Genetics.

Newswise: In the Wake of a Wildfire, Embers of Change in Cognition and Brain Function Linger
Released: 18-Jan-2023 4:35 PM EST
In the Wake of a Wildfire, Embers of Change in Cognition and Brain Function Linger
University of California San Diego

Five years after the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history, UC San Diego researchers document persistent differences in cognitive function among survivors.

Released: 17-Jan-2023 6:50 PM EST
COVID is changing how we are exposed to household health risks
Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health

COVID-19 is changing household behaviors related to how we are exposed to various household chemicals linked to poor health outcomes.

12-Jan-2023 12:30 PM EST
Nitrite additives associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes
PLOS

Nitrites and nitrates occur naturally in water and soil and are commonly ingested from drinking water and dietary sources. They are also used as food additives to increase shelf life. A study published on January 17th in PLOS Medicine suggests an association between dietary exposure to nitrites and risk of type 2 diabetes.

Newswise: Combining multiple maps reveal new genetic risk factors for blindness
10-Jan-2023 2:05 PM EST
Combining multiple maps reveal new genetic risk factors for blindness
PLOS

Researchers discover new clues for causes of adult-onset macular degeneration.

Newswise: Faster knee for better walking
Released: 12-Jan-2023 3:05 PM EST
Faster knee for better walking
Osaka Metropolitan University

Speed or strength, which is more important?” may be a critical question for not only athletes but also knee surgery patients.

Newswise: Realtime monitoring with a wearable device reveals IBS-related changes
Released: 12-Jan-2023 2:40 PM EST
Realtime monitoring with a wearable device reveals IBS-related changes
Osaka Metropolitan University

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a difficult disease to treat, characterized by chronic abdominal pain related to bowel movements, of which there are four types: diarrheal, constipation, mixed, and unclassifiable.

   
Newswise: Research sheds light on how countries responded to the COVID-19 pandemic
Released: 11-Jan-2023 11:45 AM EST
Research sheds light on how countries responded to the COVID-19 pandemic
Los Alamos National Laboratory

A new paper by a team at Los Alamos National Laboratory is giving researchers new insight into how countries respond to systemic shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Newswise: Aware or not aware: you are affected by food cues either way
Released: 10-Jan-2023 2:25 PM EST
Aware or not aware: you are affected by food cues either way
Osaka Metropolitan University

Controlling your food intake can be even more difficult than you think. Osaka Metropolitan University scientists show that visual food cues can affect your eating behavior even when you are not aware of them.

   
Released: 9-Jan-2023 3:50 PM EST
Consumers care more about taste than gene editing for table grapes
Washington State University

Despite some hesitation about gene-edited foods, taste trumps everything, according to a Washington State University-led survey of U.S. consumers.

Released: 6-Jan-2023 5:30 PM EST
Beyond the average cell
Washington University in St. Louis

Models based on an average cell are useful, but they may not accurately describe how individual cells really work. New possibilities opened up with the advent of single-cell live imaging technologies. Now it is possible to peer into the lives of individual cells. In a new paper in PLOS Genetics, a team of biologists and physicists from Washington University in St. Louis and Purdue University used actual single-cell data to create an updated framework for understanding the relationship between cell growth, DNA replication and division in a bacterial system.

   
Newswise: New approach to epidemic modeling could speed up pandemic simulations
Released: 5-Jan-2023 6:00 PM EST
New approach to epidemic modeling could speed up pandemic simulations
Santa Fe Institute

Simulations that help determine how a large-scale pandemic will spread can take weeks or even months to run. A recent study in PLOS Computational Biology offers a new approach to epidemic modeling that could drastically speed up the process.

   
Newswise: Holding information in mind may mean storing it among synapses
Released: 29-Dec-2022 12:15 PM EST
Holding information in mind may mean storing it among synapses
Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT

Between the time you read the Wi-Fi password off the café’s menu board and the time you can get back to your laptop to enter it, you have to hold it in mind.

15-Dec-2022 4:00 PM EST
Current Antarctic conservation efforts are insufficient to avoid biodiversity declines
PLOS

Existing conservation efforts are insufficient to protect Antarctic ecosystems, and population declines are likely for 65% of the continent’s plants and wildlife by the year 2100, according to a study publishing December 22nd in the open access journal PLOS Biology.

14-Dec-2022 4:05 PM EST
Characters’ actions in movie scripts reflect gender stereotypes
PLOS

Researchers have developed a novel machine-learning framework that uses scene descriptions in movie scripts to automatically recognize different characters’ actions. Applying the framework to hundreds of movie scripts showed that these actions tend to reflect widespread gender stereotypes, some of which are found to be consistent across time.

Released: 14-Dec-2022 12:05 PM EST
Religion is not the factor that most influences rejection of evolutionary theory in schools, study says
Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)

Religion influences secondary school students’ understanding and acceptance of evolutionary theory, but social and cultural factors such as nationality, perceptions of science and household income are more influential, according to a study involving 5,500 Brazilian and Italian students aged 14-16. An article on the study is published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Released: 14-Dec-2022 10:45 AM EST
Precision insights can be found in wastewater
Washington University in St. Louis

Research from the lab of Fangqiong Ling at Washington University in St. Louis showed earlier this year that the amount of SARS-CoV-2 in a wastewater system was correlated with the burden of disease — COVID-19 — in the region it served.

Released: 13-Dec-2022 7:35 PM EST
Social media engagement style may be linked with perceived social connectedness – new research
Aston University

Researchers at Aston University have developed anew experimental task, involving a mock social networking site, which grouped people into three distinct styles of social media use—passive, reactive and interactive.

Newswise: Mapping E. coli to overcome antibiotic resistance
Released: 13-Dec-2022 3:55 PM EST
Mapping E. coli to overcome antibiotic resistance
University of Tokyo

Antibiotic resistance, when infection-causing bacteria evolve so they are no longer affected by typical antibiotics, is a global concern.

   
Released: 13-Dec-2022 2:00 PM EST
Services must adopt anti-racist and holistic models of care to reduce ethnic inequalities in mental healthcare
University of Bristol

The experiences of people from ethnic minority groups with NHS mental healthcare are being seriously undermined by failures to consider the everyday realities of people’s lives in services in the UK, reports a new study led by researchers at the University of Bristol and Keele University.

Newswise: New index shows regions in the north have higher risk of food insecurity
Released: 12-Dec-2022 3:20 PM EST
New index shows regions in the north have higher risk of food insecurity
University of Southampton

A new index developed by researchers at the University of Southampton reveals neighbourhoods in the north of England have the highest risk of food insecurity.

Newswise: Small studies of 40Hz sensory stimulation confirm safety, suggest Alzheimer’s benefits
Released: 2-Dec-2022 10:40 AM EST
Small studies of 40Hz sensory stimulation confirm safety, suggest Alzheimer’s benefits
Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT

A pair of early stage clinical studies testing the safety and efficacy of 40Hz sensory stimulation to treat Alzheimer’s disease has found that the potential therapy was well tolerated, produced no serious adverse effects and was associated with some significant neurological and behavioral benefits among a small cohort of participants.

   
Newswise: LLNL Forensic Science Center scientists develop
new technique to analyze fentanyl in blood and urine
Released: 1-Dec-2022 9:00 AM EST
LLNL Forensic Science Center scientists develop new technique to analyze fentanyl in blood and urine
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

A team of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists has developed a new technique to analyze fentanyl in human blood and urine samples that could aid work in the fields of medicine and chemical forensics.

Released: 30-Nov-2022 6:45 PM EST
Overweight women most likely to suffer long Covid
University of East Anglia

Overweight women are more likely to experience symptoms of long Covid according to new research from the University of East Anglia.

28-Nov-2022 11:00 AM EST
Five precepts of Buddhism may be linked to lower depression risk
PLOS

Study suggests the moral practice may buffer known links between high stress levels and depression.

   
Newswise: Bats use death metal “growls” to make social calls
22-Nov-2022 12:15 PM EST
Bats use death metal “growls” to make social calls
PLOS

Bats use distinct structures in the larynx to produce high-frequency echolocation calls and lower-frequency social calls, according to a study.

Released: 28-Nov-2022 12:00 PM EST
A deep learning model for detection of Alzheimer's disease
Cornell University

A Cornell-led collaboration used machine learning to pinpoint the most accurate means, and timelines, for anticipating the advancement of Alzheimer’s disease in people who are either cognitively normal or experiencing mild cognitive impairment.

Released: 24-Nov-2022 11:45 AM EST
How COVID-19 school closures will affect inequalities in adult skills
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

School closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic affected learning to varying degrees in different countries. A new study sheds light on what this learning loss will mean for countries' human capital in the decades to come.

18-Nov-2022 12:40 PM EST
Witchcraft beliefs are widespread, highly variable around the world
PLOS

A newly compiled dataset quantitatively captures witchcraft beliefs in countries around the world, enabling investigation of key factors associated with such beliefs. Boris Gershman of American University in Washington, D.C., presents these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on November 23, 2022.

Released: 23-Nov-2022 10:25 AM EST
What was the true human cost of the pandemic in Russia?
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

A new study assesses the number of lives lost to the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia and introduces a novel methodology that will help to get a clearer view of pandemics in the future.

   
21-Nov-2022 10:05 AM EST
COVID-19 vaccine gives substantial protection against reinfection
PLOS

Individuals previously infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, still benefit from vaccination, gaining 60% to 94% protection against reinfection, depending on the variant. A new study led by Katrine Finderup Nielsen at Statens Serum Institut, Denmark, reports these findings November 22nd in the open access journal PLOS Medicine.

Released: 22-Nov-2022 12:05 PM EST
Psychology: What gazes reveal about us
Technische Universität Dresden

We constantly move our eyes to obtain important information from the environment. Measuring eye movements allows to understand how information is processed.

Released: 21-Nov-2022 5:00 PM EST
Science in motion: A qualitative analysis of journalists’ use and perception of preprints
Simon Fraser University

This qualitative study explores how and why journalists use preprints—unreviewed research papers—in their reporting.

Newswise: What Darwin would discover today
Released: 18-Nov-2022 4:55 PM EST
What Darwin would discover today
University of Konstanz

"If Charles Darwin had had the opportunity to dive off the Cape Verde Islands, he would have been completely thrilled", Eduardo Sampaio is convinced, because Darwin would have seen a fascinating, species-rich landscape.

Released: 18-Nov-2022 4:35 PM EST
Moral behavior pays off
Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft)

Selfless behaviour and cooperation cannot be taken for granted.

Newswise: Artificial Neural Networks Learn Better When They Spend Time Not Learning at All
Released: 18-Nov-2022 3:30 PM EST
Artificial Neural Networks Learn Better When They Spend Time Not Learning at All
University of California San Diego

UC San Diego researchers discuss how mimicking sleep patterns of the human brain in artificial neural networks may help mitigate the threat of catastrophic forgetting in the latter, boosting their utility across a spectrum of research interests.

   
Newswise: Is ayahuasca safe? New study tallies adverse events
Released: 16-Nov-2022 7:40 PM EST
Is ayahuasca safe? New study tallies adverse events
PLOS

There is a high rate of adverse physical effects and challenging psychological effects from using the plant-based psychoactive ayahuasca, though they are generally not severe, according to a new study published this week in the open-access journal PLOS Global Public Health by Daniel Perkins of University of Melbourne, Australia, and colleagues.

1-Nov-2022 4:55 PM EDT
Global COVID-19 infection rates may be higher than previously reported
PLOS

Study suggests two-thirds of the global population may have antibodies from vaccination or infection.

1-Nov-2022 5:00 PM EDT
Long-term physical and mental health outcomes after COVID-19 occur in all ages
PLOS

Following COVID-19 infection, there is significant new onset morbidity in children, adolescents and adults across 13 distinct diagnosis and symptom complexes, according to a new study.



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