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Saturday, April 20, 2013

ScienceDaily: Top News

ScienceDaily: Top News


Muscle repair after injury helped by fat-forming cells

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 02:16 PM PDT

Scientists have discovered that muscle repair requires the action of two types of cells better known for causing inflammation and forming fat. 

Genome study suggests new strategies for understanding and treating pulmonary fibrosis

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 02:16 PM PDT

A new genome-wide association study of more than 6,000 people has identified seven new genetic regions associated with pulmonary fibrosis. Researchers have found a number of genes associated with host defense, cell-cell adhesion and DNA repair, which provide clues to possible mechanisms underlying this currently untreatable disease.

Freedom of assembly: Scientists see nanoparticles form larger structures in real time

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 02:16 PM PDT

Scientists have, for the first time, captured movies of nanoparticle self-assembly, giving researchers a new glimpse of an unusual material property.

Same protein that fires up cancer-promoting erk also blocks its activation

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 02:16 PM PDT

A protein which is intimately involved in cancer-promoting cell signaling also keeps a key component of the signaling pathway tied down and inactive, scientists report. Union with Shc keeps a potential troublemaker away from bad company and out of the nucleus.

New potential target for cancer therapy identified

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 01:07 PM PDT

Researchers have found that alternative splicing -- a process that allows a single gene to code for multiple proteins -- appears to be a new potential target for anti-telomerase cancer therapy.

Nitrogen has key role in estimating carbon dioxide emissions from land use change

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 01:07 PM PDT

A new global-scale modeling study that takes into account nitrogen -- a key nutrient for plants -- estimates that carbon emissions from human activities on land were 40 percent higher in the 1990s than in studies that did not account for nitrogen. Plant regrowth -- and therefore carbon assimilation by plants -- is limited by nitrogen availability, causing other studies to overestimate regrowth and underestimate net emissions from the harvest-regrowth cycle.

Scientific basis for cognitive complaints of breast cancer patients

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:26 AM PDT

Researchers have shown a statistically significant association between neuropsychological (NP) test performance and memory complaints in post-treatment, early stage breast cancer patients. Patient-reported memory difficulties were also associated with having received chemotherapy and radiation and depressive symptoms in one of the first studies to show patient complaints of cognitive problems after breast cancer treatment (chemo brain) associates with NP test performance.

Insight into osteoarthritis

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:26 AM PDT

To better understand the onset and progression of osteoarthritis, scientists looked at cells from articular cartilage using atomic force microscopy.

Something's fishy in the tree of life: Largests and most comprehensive studies of fish phylogeny

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:26 AM PDT

A team of scientists has dramatically increased our understanding of fish evolution and their relationships. The group integrated extensive genetic and physical information about specimens to create a new "tree of life" for fishes. The vast amount of data generated through large-scale DNA sequencing required supercomputing resources for analysis. The result is the largest and most comprehensive studies of fish phylogeny to date.

Quest for edible malarial vaccine leads to other potential medical uses for algae

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:26 AM PDT

Can scientists rid malaria from the Third World by simply feeding algae genetically engineered with a vaccine? That's the question biologists sought to answer after they demonstrated last May that algae can be engineered to produce a vaccine that blocks malaria transmission. In a follow up study, they got their answer: Not yet, although the same method may work as a vaccine against a wide variety of viral and bacterial infections.

After major earthquake: A global murmur, then unusual silence

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:26 AM PDT

In the global aftershock zone that followed the major April 2012 Indian Ocean earthquake, seismologists noticed an unusual pattern -- period of quiet, without a large quake. Why did this period of quiet occur?

Novel monoclonal antibody inhibits tumor growth in breast cancer and angiosarcoma

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:25 AM PDT

A monoclonal antibody targeting a protein known as SFPR2 has been shown to inhibit tumor growth in pre-clinical models of breast cancer and angiosarcoma.

Intense, specialized training in young athletes linked to serious overuse injuries

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:25 AM PDT

Young athletes who specialize in one sport and train intensively have a significantly higher risk of stress fractures and other severe overuse injuries, according to the largest clinical study of its kind.

Revolutionary new device joins world of smart electronics: New flexible, transparent, photosensitive device

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 09:11 AM PDT

Smart electronics are taking the world by storm. From techno-textiles to transparent electronic displays, the world of intelligent technology is growing fast and a revolutionary new device has just been added to its ranks. Researchers have developed a new photoelectric device that is both flexible and transparent.

Alternative medicine use by MS patients now mapped

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 09:11 AM PDT

A major Nordic research project has, for the first time ever, mapped the use of alternative treatment among multiple sclerosis patients -- knowledge which is important for patients with chronic disease and the way in which society meets them.

Research harnesses solar-powered proteins to filter harmful antibiotics from water

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 09:11 AM PDT

New research details how solar-powered proteins can be used to filter antibiotics and other harmful compounds from rivers and lakes at a significantly higher rate than present treatment standards.

Technique unlocks design principles of quantum biology

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 09:09 AM PDT

Researchers have created a synthetic compound that mimics the complex quantum dynamics observed in photosynthesis and may enable fundamentally new routes to creating solar-energy technologies.

Random walks on DNA: Bacterial enzyme has evolved an energy-efficient method to move long distances along DNA

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 07:52 AM PDT

Scientists have revealed how a bacterial enzyme has evolved an energy-efficient method to move long distances along DNA. The findings present further insight into the coupling of chemical and mechanical energy by a class of enzymes called helicases, a widely-distributed group of proteins, which in human cells are implicated in some cancers.

Mine disaster: Hundreds of aftershocks

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 07:51 AM PDT

A new study has identified hundreds of previously unrecognized small aftershocks that happened after Utah's deadly Crandall Canyon mine collapse in 2007. The aftershocks suggest the collapse was as big -- and perhaps bigger -- than shown in another study by the university in 2008.

Hubble sees a unique cluster: One of the hidden 15

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Palomar 2 is part of a group of 15 globulars known as the Palomar clusters. These clusters, as the name suggests, were discovered in survey plates from the first Palomar Observatory Sky Survey in the 1950s, a project that involved some of the most well-known astronomers of the day, including Edwin Hubble. They were discovered quite late because they are so faint -- each is either extremely remote, very heavily hidden behind blankets of dust, or has a very small number of remaining stars.

Device to mitigate power outages, prevent equipment damage

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:41 AM PDT

Engineering researchers have developed equipment that will prevent rolling power outages by regulating or limiting the amount of excess current that moves through the power grid when a surge occurs.

NASA's Hubble sees a horsehead of a different color

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:41 AM PDT

Astronomers have used NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to photograph the iconic Horsehead Nebula in a new, infrared light.

Ocean acidification as a hearing aid for fish?

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:00 AM PDT

Scientists report stunning new insight into the potential effects of acidification on the sensory function of larval cobia. The study is the first to use micro-CT technology to examine otoliths while still inside the heads of the larval fish.

Mammogram rate did not decline in U.S. after controversial recommendations

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:00 AM PDT

More than three years after the United States Preventive Services Task Force recommended against routine mammogram screening for women between the ages of 40 and 49, a new study finds that mammogram rates in the United States have not declined in that age group, or any other.

Early cognitive behavioural therapy reduces risk of psychosis

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

Young people seeking help who are at high risk of developing psychosis could significantly reduce their chances of going on to develop a full-blown psychotic illness by getting early access to cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), new research shows.

Global warming: 'Black carbon' flowing from soil to oceans

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

A smaller proportion of black carbon created during combustion will remain in soil than have been estimated before. Contrary to previous understanding, burying black carbon in the ground in order to restrain climate change will not create a permanent carbon reserve. Instead, a part of black carbon will dissolve from soil to rivers.

Understanding and prevention of side effects caused by drugs

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

Yellow vision, pseudo-pulmonary obstruction, involuntary body movements, respiratory paralysis. These are some of the 1,600 known side effects (SEs) produced by drugs. Adverse effects are one of the main causes of hospital admission in the west. These effects are difficult to predict, and in practice specific assays are required to test the safety of agents in pre-clinical phases, thus these effects are often not discovered until the drug has been launched. A new study seeks to fill this information gap.

Richard III may have gone through painful medical treatments to 'cure' his scoliosis

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

Richard III may have undergone painful medical treatments for his spinal curvature, according to new research.

Surprising new function for small RNAs in evolution

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

Scientists have discovered a completely new mechanism by which evolution can change the appearance of an organism. The researchers found that the number of hairs on flies' legs varies according to the level of activity of a so-called microRNA. The results shed a completely new light on the molecular mechanisms of evolution.

Risk of dementia declined over past 20 years

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 04:59 AM PDT

The risk of developing dementia may have declined over the past 20 years, in direct contrast to what many previously assumed. The decrease in dementia risk coincides with the general reduction in cardiovascular disease over recent decades, researchers said.

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