Add BrightSurf on Google Email

Science News for December 27, 2021


Challenging ‘rule breakers’ – children will confront their peers, but how they do so varies across cultures

A new study reveals that children globally will confront peers when rules are broken, but their approach differs across cultures. Children from rural areas tend to use verbal protests more than urban kids, who may rely on indirect methods like reputation to enforce compliance.

SourceUniversity of Plymouth·JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences·TypeObservational study·DateDec 27, 2021

Penn Medicine awarded $14 million NIH grant to apply CAR T immunotherapies to match more patients in need of kidney transplants

A clinical trial will harness synthetic chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells to deplete immune B cells and plasma cells producing donor-specific antibodies, aiming to achieve a compatible kidney match for patients with pre-existing antibodies. The NIH-funded study, led by Penn Medicine, intends to begin enrolling patients in 2022.

Antarctic oceanographers use seals to do research where ships fear to go

Oceanographers replaced ship-based studies with sensors attached to seals to navigate icy waters, revealing seasonally varying water flows and their impact on biological production. The study found that warm, low-salinity water appears during autumn, positively affecting seal foraging behavior and potentially enhancing prey availability.

SourceResearch Organization of Information and Systems·JournalLimnology and Oceanography·DateDec 27, 2021

Stopping dementia at the nose with combination of rifampicin and resveratrol

A new combination therapy using rifampicin and resveratrol administered intranasally has shown to improve cognitive function in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, and Lewy bodies. The treatment effectively reduces oligomer accumulation and restores brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression.

SourceOsaka City University·JournalFrontiers in Neuroscience·TypeExperimental study·DateDec 27, 2021

Sleeping mice show busy brains

A new study reveals that the superior colliculus, a lesser-studied region responsible for saccades and facial recognition, dynamically changes its clustering of neurons depending on the mouse's conscious state. This finding suggests that the brain optimizes visual information processing based on its awake or anesthetized state.

SourceKyoto University·TypeExperimental study·DateDec 27, 2021

When a kidney transplant fails, retransplantation may offer better survival over dialysis

A recent study published in CJASN found that patients who undergo retransplantation after a failed first kidney transplant have a longer average survival time compared to those on dialysis. The study analyzed data from 2,346 adults and showed that retransplantation resulted in an additional 5.8 months of life expectancy.

SourceAmerican Society of Nephrology·JournalClinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology·DateDec 27, 2021

Penn Medicine researchers develop structural blueprint of nanoparticles to target white blood cells responsible for acute lung inflammation

Researchers at Penn Medicine have developed a structural blueprint for nanoparticles that can target and deliver treatment to white blood cells, such as neutrophils, that contribute to acute lung inflammation. The findings represent a significant step in understanding the condition and function of the immune system.

SourceUniversity of Pennsylvania School of Medicine·JournalNature Nanotechnology·DateDec 27, 2021

Biomolecular explosion

Scientists have observed that ionizing radiation can cause intermolecular Coulombic decay in organic molecules, leading to damage in DNA and proteins. This new understanding could lead to the development of more effective substances for radiation therapy and improve knowledge of how radiation damages healthy tissue.

SourceMax-Planck-Gesellschaft·JournalNature Chemistry·DateDec 27, 2021

Opioid prescribing declines, but cuts are not uniform

Per capita morphine milligram equivalents (MME) volume declined most in metropolitan counties and counties with higher fatal opioid overdoses. Clinical specialties showed significant declines, except for some states' counties with both increases and decreases.

SourceRAND Corporation·JournalAnnals of Internal Medicine·TypeData/statistical analysis·DateDec 27, 2021