ScienceDaily: Top News

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• The microbiome and disease: Gut bacteria influence the severity of heart attacks in rats
• No link found between prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke and autism, Swedish study finds
• Novel approach to view inner workings of viruses
• Active compounds against Alzheimer's disease: New insights thanks to simulations
• Chlorophyll can help prevent cancer -- but study raises other questions
• Breakthrough model reveals evolution of ancient nervous systems through seashell colors
• How the brain routes traffic for maximum alertness
• Wandering albatross alters its foraging due to climate change
• Electron's negativity cut in half by supercomputer: Simulations slice electron in half -- a physical process that cannot be done in nature
• Offsetting global warming: Molecule in Earth's atmosphere could 'cool the planet'
• Graphene quantum dots: The next big small thing
• Blame your taste buds for liking fat: Receptor for tasting fat identified in humans
• Optical nanoantennas enable efficient multipurpose particle manipulation
• New 'smart' nanotherapeutics can deliver drugs directly to the pancreas
• Magnetic actuation enables nanoscale thermal analysis
• New insights into an ancient mechanism of mammalian evolution
• Honeybee deaths linked to seed insecticide exposure
• First detailed data of risk of using Rasilez with certain blood pressure-lowering drugs
• Hydrogen advances graphene use
• Astronomers release unprecedented data set on celestial objects that brighten and dim
• Explosives and fish are traced with chemical tags
• Bacterial infections: New laboratory method uses mass spectrometry to rapidly detect staph infections
• New culprit discovered in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia
• Nano research could impact flexible electronic devices
• Worm seeks worm: Chemical cues drive aggregation in nematodes
• Gene crucial to normal development of lungs and brain: Discovery may lead to new ways to replace damaged lung tissues with stem cells
• Inflammation may link obesity and adverse pregnancy outcomes

The microbiome and disease: Gut bacteria influence the severity of heart attacks in rats Posted: 12 Jan 2012 04:34 PM PST New research suggests the types and levels of intestinal bacteria may be used to predict a person's likelihood of having a heart attack, and manipulating these organisms may help reduce risk. This discovery may lead to new tests and therapies that physicians use to prevent and treat heart attacks. In addition, this research suggests probiotics may be able to protect the heart in patients undergoing heart surgery and angioplasty.

No link found between prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke and autism, Swedish study finds Posted: 12 Jan 2012 04:32 PM PST A large population-based study in Sweden indicates that there is no link between smoking during pregnancy and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children.

Novel approach to view inner workings of viruses Posted: 12 Jan 2012 12:16 PM PST Researchers have developed a new way to see structures within viruses that were not clearly seen before.

Active compounds against Alzheimer's disease: New insights thanks to simulations Posted: 12 Jan 2012 12:16 PM PST Various molecules have been synthesized that inhibit self-assembly of the amyloid beta peptide in vitro. This peptide is strongly linked to Alzheimer's disease. Based on computer simulations, biochemists have recently shown how the active compounds and fragments of this disease-causing peptide interact with each other: it is the disordered structure of the peptide that determines the interactions with active compounds.

Chlorophyll can help prevent cancer -- but study raises other questions Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:23 AM PST A recent study found that the chlorophyll in green vegetables offers protection against cancer when tested against the modest carcinogen exposure levels most likely to be found in the environment. However, chlorophyll actually increases the number of tumors at very high carcinogen exposure levels. The research raises serious questions about whether traditional lab studies done with mice and high levels of toxic exposure are providing accurate answers to what is a real health risk, what isn't, and what dietary or pharmaceutical approaches are useful.

Breakthrough model reveals evolution of ancient nervous systems through seashell colors Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:23 AM PST Determining the evolution of pigmentation patterns on mollusk seashells -- which could aid in the understanding of ancient nervous systems -- has proved to be a challenging feat for researchers. Now, however, through mathematical equations and simulations, researchers have used 19 different species of the predatory sea snail Conus to generate a model of the pigmentation patterns of mollusk shells.

How the brain routes traffic for maximum alertness Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:22 AM PST A new study shows how the brain reconfigures its connections to minimize distractions and take best advantage of our knowledge of situations.

Wandering albatross alters its foraging due to climate change Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:22 AM PST Wandering albatrosses have altered their foraging due to changes in wind fields in the southern hemisphere during the last decades. Since winds have increased in intensity and moved to the south, the flight speed of albatrosses increased and they spend less time foraging. As a consequence, breeding success has improved and birds have gained 1 kilogram.

Electron's negativity cut in half by supercomputer: Simulations slice electron in half -- a physical process that cannot be done in nature Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:22 AM PST Using several massive supercomputers, a team of physicists has split a simulated electron perfectly in half. The results are another example of how tabletop experiments on ultra-cold atoms and other condensed-matter materials can provide clues about the behavior of fundamental particles.

Offsetting global warming: Molecule in Earth's atmosphere could 'cool the planet' Posted: 12 Jan 2012 11:22 AM PST Scientists have shown that a newly discovered molecule in Earth's atmosphere has the potential to play a significant role in offsetting global warming by cooling the planet.

Graphene quantum dots: The next big small thing Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST Scientists have found a way to turn common carbon fiber into graphene quantum dots, tiny specks of matter with properties expected to prove useful in electronic, optical and biomedical applications.

Blame your taste buds for liking fat: Receptor for tasting fat identified in humans Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST Why do we like fatty foods so much? We can blame our taste buds. In the first study to identify a human receptor that can taste fat, researchers report that our tongues recognize and have an affinity for fat and that variations in a gene can make people more or less sensitive to the taste of fat in foods.

Optical nanoantennas enable efficient multipurpose particle manipulation Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST Researchers have shown that by tuning the properties of laser light illuminating arrays of metal nanoantennas, these nano-scale structures allow for dexterous optical tweezing as well as size-sorting of particles.

New 'smart' nanotherapeutics can deliver drugs directly to the pancreas Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST Scientists have developed "smart" nanotherapeutics that can be programmed to selectively deliver drugs to the cells of the pancreas. The approach was found to increase drug efficacy by 200-fold in in vitro studies based on the ability of these nanomaterials to both protect the drug from degradation and concentrate it at key target sites, such as regions of the pancreas that contain the insulin-producing cells.

Magnetic actuation enables nanoscale thermal analysis Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST In recent years an atomic force microscope-based technique called nanoscale thermal analysis has been employed to reveal the temperature-dependent properties of materials at the sub-100 nm scale. Typically, nanothermal analysis works best for soft polymers. Researchers have now shown that they can perform nanoscale thermal analysis on stiff materials like epoxies and filled composites.

New insights into an ancient mechanism of mammalian evolution Posted: 12 Jan 2012 10:43 AM PST A team of geneticists and computational biologists have reveal how an ancient mechanism is involved in gene control and continues to drive genome evolution.

Honeybee deaths linked to seed insecticide exposure Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:27 AM PST Honeybee populations have been in serious decline for years, and scientists may have identified one of the factors that cause bee deaths around agricultural fields.

First detailed data of risk of using Rasilez with certain blood pressure-lowering drugs Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:27 AM PST Researchers have published the first detailed figures showing the risk of using the prescription drug Rasilez in combination with certain other blood pressure-lowering medications.

Hydrogen advances graphene use Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:26 AM PST A dose of hydrogen or helium can render the "super material" graphene even more useful, as shown by physicists.

Astronomers release unprecedented data set on celestial objects that brighten and dim Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:26 AM PST Astronomers have released the largest data set ever collected that documents the brightening and dimming of stars and other celestial objects -- two hundred million in total.

Explosives and fish are traced with chemical tags Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:26 AM PST Researchers have come up with a way of tagging gunpowder which allows its illegal use to be detected even after it has been detonated. Based on the addition of isotopes, the technique can also be used to track and differentiate between wild fish and those from a fish farm, such as trout and salmon.

Bacterial infections: New laboratory method uses mass spectrometry to rapidly detect staph infections Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:19 AM PST Researchers have developed a new laboratory test that can rapidly identify the bacterium responsible for staph infections. The test uses mass spectrometry to quantify the number of Staphylococcus aureus organisms in a large number of samples in just a few hours.

New culprit discovered in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:19 AM PST A new study shows how the cancer causing gene Notch, in combination with a mutated Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) protein complex, work together to cause T- cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL).

Nano research could impact flexible electronic devices Posted: 12 Jan 2012 08:19 AM PST A new discovery shows that the flexibility and durability of carbon nanotube films and coatings are intimately linked to their electronic properties and could impact flexible electronic devices such as solar cells and wearable sensors.

Worm seeks worm: Chemical cues drive aggregation in nematodes Posted: 12 Jan 2012 07:06 AM PST Scientists have long seen evidence of social behavior among many species of animals. Dolphins frolic together and lions live in packs. And, right under our feet, it appears that nematodes are having their own little gatherings in the soil. Until recently, it was unknown how the worms communicate to one another when it's time to come together. Now, researchers have identified, for the first time, the chemical signals that promote aggregation.

Gene crucial to normal development of lungs and brain: Discovery may lead to new ways to replace damaged lung tissues with stem cells Posted: 12 Jan 2012 06:59 AM PST Scientists have identified a gene that tells cells to develop multiple cilia, tiny hair-like structures that move fluids through the lungs and brain. The finding may help scientists generate new therapies that use stem cells to replace damaged tissues in the lung and other organs.

Inflammation may link obesity and adverse pregnancy outcomes Posted: 10 Jan 2012 01:34 PM PST A number of different immunological mechanisms ensure the successful establishment and maintenance of pregnancy. Imbalance in these mechanisms is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Researchers have now examined the impact of maternal obesity on the inflammatory responses in tissues of both the mother and the child.

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