A clinical trial of the malaria vaccine RTS,S has begun in Africa to assess its effectiveness when administered to newborn babies as part of national immunisation programmes. The study aims to improve the vaccine's performance by examining its impact at different stages between birth and nine months of age.
Researchers at the University of Melbourne have successfully tracked a quantum atom inside a living human cell, paving the way for new drug discovery methods. The sensor detects biological processes at a molecular level, providing critical information about drug delivery and uptake.
The discovery of blue stragglers in the Milky Way's hub suggests that the galaxy stopped making stars billions of years ago. The findings provide new constraints for models of the star-formation history of the bulge.
Researchers at the University of North Carolina discovered that the pelvis continues to widen as people age from 20-79, leading to an estimated three-inch increase in waist size. This finding suggests that pelvic growth contributes to increased body weight and body fat accumulation over time.
The €820,000 project aims to enhance the competitiveness of Austrian and Hungarian poultry industries by establishing a knowledge centre. The centre will foster industry activities, improve efficiency and ensure safe poultry production.
Researchers have discovered that proteins in Alzheimer's fibrils can recycle and detach, potentially leading to new therapeutic strategies. The study found that Aβ40 molecules recycle more frequently than Aβ42, suggesting a potential target for modulating recycling and treating the disease.
A gamma-ray burst, GRB 090429B, has been identified as a potential candidate for the most distant object in the universe at an estimated distance of 13.14 billion light years. The burst was detected by NASA's Swift satellite and is believed to be extremely likely, with a 99.3% chance, to be the most distant cosmic explosion.
Three teams of Tufts graduate students have won $10,000 from the Dow Sustainability Innovation Student Challenge Award program for their research on clean water, renewable energy, and green medical technologies. The winners will use their prize money to develop solutions to pressing global challenges.
A new study published in Nature suggests Mars developed rapidly into a small planet due to its rapid formation. Scientists used the radioactive decay of hafnium to tungsten in meteorites as a chronometer and found that Mars likely didn't collide with other embryos to form an Earth-like planet.
Vaccine development for 'big three' diseases is being accelerated by new approaches like systems biology and structure-based antigen design. Systems biology enables the capture of massive biological data to predict vaccine behavior.
The Milky Way belongs to a rare subset of galaxies with two satellites as bright and close by as the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. Researchers analyzed over 20,000 galaxies similar to the Milky Way using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data.
A meta-analysis of 32 sport psychological studies found that self-talk improves sport performance, but different types of self-talk work better for different tasks. Instructional self-talk is more effective for fine skills, while motivational self-talk boosts confidence for endurance tasks.
A new Canadian blood pressure education program has shown promising results in reducing stroke risk by up to 40%. The program, launched in 11 primary care sites across Ontario, achieved sustained average blood pressure reductions of 6.4/3.8 mmHg after three years.
A study involving 257 children aged 9-15 found that excessive gaming device use leads to increased wrist and finger pain. The length of time spent playing heightened the pain suffered, with each additional hour increasing the odds of reporting pain.
Three teams from Ben-Gurion University won the second annual Israeli Mobile Challenge, developing an Android-based application that enables users to simulcast music to nearby WiFi devices. The winning application, "Mobile Party," was developed by students from BGU's Department of Communications Systems Engineering.
A study of 1032 patients with early RA found that initial treatment with adalimumab plus methotrexate provided high levels of disease control, with 44% achieving sustained low disease activity. Patients who continued treatment maintained good clinical and radiographic responses, even after withdrawing treatment.
A MBL study found that warming causes more nitrogen to become available to trees, allowing them to grow faster and store more carbon. This is a positive effect on carbon storage, but the overall impact of global warming on forest ecosystems will also depend on other factors such as water availability and atmospheric CO2 concentration
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University are creating an iron-based flow battery to store energy from wind turbines and solar panels. The battery could supply electricity when demand is high, making it a useful alternative to pumped hydro and compressed air systems.
Researchers at NIST have identified a class of decorative defects in graphene that could alter its unique properties, including strength and conductivity. The discovery may lead to the development of more resilient materials.
Researchers have discovered a new protein that links nerve cell motors to their cargo, providing insights into neurotransmitter transport. This discovery could lead to new drug therapies for illnesses like Parkinson's disease and depression.
Researchers developed a mutant form of wheat called 'sweet wheat', which contains more sugars and healthful carbohydrates than regular wheat. The new flour may provide health benefits when used in foods like breads and cakes.
A new study by NIST and George Mason University researchers may have found the optimal characteristics for a type of computer memory based on nanowires. The technology has the potential to store information faster and at lower voltage, making it suitable for applications such as portable computers and cell phones.
A Phase III study presented at EULAR 2011 found that tofacitinib achieved significant improvements in symptoms and activity scores for patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA), including improved ACR20 responses in 58.3% of patients, and a higher proportion of patients achieving ACR50 and ACR70 responses compared to placebo
Astronomers have created an atlas of galactic 'train wrecks' to understand the collision process and form, growth, and evolution of galaxies. The study combines data from Spitzer Space Telescope and Galaxy Evolution Explorer to analyze areas where stars are forming rapidly.
Researchers have measured the electron's shape for the first time, finding it to be almost perfectly spherical. This breakthrough could help explain the universe's lack of antimatter and refine fundamental theories of physics.
A recent study analyzing over 14,000 young adults found that nearly 19% have high blood pressure. The analysis contradicts previous estimates from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which reported only 4% of adults in this age group having high blood pressure.
Typhoon Songda intensified into a major typhoon over the northern Philippines due to warm sea surface temperatures and low wind shear. The TRMM satellite provided detailed rainfall analysis using its Microwave Imager and Precipitation Radar instruments, showing well-organized bands of heavy rainfall converging into the storm.
The study, which compared two types of physical therapy, found that patients who received at-home strength and balance training made significant improvements in walking speed and mobility, with results lasting up to one year. The findings suggest that conventional wisdom about recovery being limited to six months may be incorrect.
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics will present technical achievement awards at a June conference in Honolulu. Notable recipients include Dr. Hans Hornung, Dr. Chul Park, Preston A. Henne, and Dr. Ramesh Agarwal for their contributions to fluid dynamics, aerodynamics, and thermophysics.
Researchers suggest 10 changes medical oncologists can make to flatten costs, maintain or improve care, and save money for future medical advances. The authors also emphasize the need for open communication between doctors and patients about end-of-life care.
A study found that 71% of elderly drivers supported mandatory retesting based on age, while 68% believed family members should decide if a license is revoked. The research aims to develop a screening test to identify higher-risk drivers and establish advance directives for driving decisions.
A study published in The Service Industries Journal found that public Spanish universities outperform private ones in providing internal research support services, including infrastructure and staff. This leads to improved research results and attracts top talent from around the world.
A recent study by Michigan State University found that many patients struggle to take oral chemotherapy properly, leading to complications and premature death. The study highlights the need for healthcare providers to monitor and facilitate adherence through identifying barriers and implementing strategies to overcome them.
A new tool, REMIT, has been developed to improve the measurement of primary care depression outcomes. The tool adds a patient's subjective sense of recovery to existing measurements, showing that about one-third of patients with mild depression were not in remission, as their PHQ score would indicate.
A new biomaterial more closely mimics native human tissue, exhibiting negative Poisson's ratio and maintaining its shape when stretched. The breakthrough enables the creation of biocompatible tissue patches for repairing damaged heart walls, blood vessels, and skin.
A University of Missouri study found that playing violent video games reduces brain response to violence and increases aggressive behavior in young adults. Participants who played violent games set louder noise blasts for their opponents during a competitive task, indicating increased aggression.
A study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that metyrapone, a stress hormone-reducing drug, can impair memory recall of negative events by manipulating cortisol levels close to formation. This could lead to a better understanding of how to treat post-traumatic stress disorder
A National Institutes of Health grant has been awarded to Nationwide Children's Hospital to develop a gene therapy for MPS IIIB, a fatal lysosomal storage disease. The therapy aims to deliver needed genes directly to the central nervous system by bypassing the blood-brain barrier.
A UCLA study has identified a common molecular signature in autistic brains, shedding light on the disorder's origins. Researchers found consistent differences in gene expression patterns between autistic and healthy brains, particularly in the cerebral cortex.
Researchers developed two new techniques to maximize multi-core chip performance by efficiently allocating bandwidth and prefetching data. These techniques improved chip performance by 40% compared to chips without prefetching and 10% over chips that always prefetch data.
A 3-year longitudinal study involving 200 middle school teachers and 20 H.I.S.D. schools investigates the impact of teacher stress on student behavior and achievement. The research team combines innovative multi-method approaches to assess stress and teacher effectiveness, using ecological momentary assessment, physiological measuremen...
The Ontario Genomics Institute has awarded fellowships to seven Ontario students to conduct original research projects in various fields of genomics. The fellows will gain a deeper understanding of the impact of genomics on human and animal health, agriculture, and sustainable energy.
A four-in-one combination pill, containing aspirin and agents to lower blood pressure and cholesterol, has been shown to halve the predicted risk of heart disease and stroke. The trial tested 378 people with raised cardiovascular risk against a placebo.
A new University of Illinois study published in the Journal of Physiology found that a high-fat diet during pregnancy programs a woman's baby for future diabetes. Exposure to such a diet modifies gene expression in the livers of offspring, increasing the likelihood of early insulin resistance and diabetes.
Hongwei Zhang aims to develop reliable wireless networks for vehicular control and other applications. He addresses challenges in scheduling transmissions and sensing information between devices.
A new study shows that abiraterone acetate, a life-extending pill for advanced prostate cancer, prolongs survival by about four months compared to placebo. The medication also reduces PSA blood levels in patients with the disease.
Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine found that a natural product called DLPC stimulates LRH-1 activity, improving regulation of glucose and fat within the liver. In mice with insulin resistance, DLPC decreased fatty livers and lowered glucose levels, suggesting it may provide a treatment for prediabetes.
The OSIRIS-REx mission aims to study the asteroid 1999 RQ36, a primitive near-Earth object that contains original material from the solar nebula. The mission will return samples to Earth in 2023, providing insights into the solar system's formation and potential biosignatures.
A recent study of decades of data from the US and eight other countries found significant funding disparities between over-represented and under-represented states. Over-represented provinces can expect to receive more than twice the federal funding per capita as under-represented ones.
Scientists analyzed over 650 influenza viruses from Hong Kong pigs, tracing the emergence of subtypes that can infect humans. The study highlights the potential for gene-swapping between viruses and recommends continued surveillance to understand how this process might lead to new variants with human flu epidemic risks.
The introduction of direct antiviral agents (DAA) has improved virus clearance rates, particularly in patients with genotype 1, but resource scarcity raises concerns about who to treat first. A proposed plan suggests triaging therapy to the neediest patients first.
The University of Arizona has been named a CUDA Teaching Center by NVIDIA, focusing on leveraging GPU power for scientific discovery and training the next wave of parallel programmers. Ali Akoglu, assistant professor, aims to integrate GPU computing into mainstream computer programming curriculum.
The Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission has awarded 36 new projects with funding from the state's $10.4 million budget for FY2011. The projects focus on advancing regenerative medicine and addressing various debilitating medical conditions, including cancer, diabetes, and traumatic brain injuries.
A new study published in Nature reveals that Mars developed in just two to four million years after the solar system's formation, significantly faster than Earth. This rapid formation helps explain why Mars is so small compared to our planet.
Researchers at Uppsala University have developed a new method to study signal systems in individual cells, revealing the molecular effect of drugs and facilitating the discovery of targeted pharmaceuticals for cancer treatment. This tool provides insight into how cancer cells communicate with normal cells and exploit their functions.
A new drug, terutroban, was found not to prevent second strokes or TIAs as effectively as aspirin in the PERFORM study. Aspirin's efficacy and cost-effectiveness make it the gold standard for secondary stroke prevention worldwide. The trial stopped early due to lack of evidence for terutroban's benefits.
A study by Caroline Karlsson found that rats fed a specific lactic acid bacteria HEAL19 had significantly less weight and inflammation compared to those without the bacteria. Additionally, babies born vaginally have lactobacilli in their gut flora as early as two days after birth.
A new study from MIT neuroscientists shows that the most memorable photos are those containing people, followed by static indoor scenes and human-scale objects. The researchers developed a computer algorithm to rank images based on memorability, which could be useful for graphic designers and photo editors.
A recent study by an international team of researchers found that the processes of extinction and speciation are linked in plants, with young species often appearing at high risk of extinction. This challenges the application of the same threat criteria across living organisms and regions.
The study compares three popular ranking methods, finding that the Colley and Massey methods are insensitive to small changes, while the Markov method is highly sensitive, leading to anomalies in rankings. The authors conclude that these methods can be effective for other applications, such as social networks.