Science news

• Canada introduces new asbestos rules

  09-01-2018 23:39 via cbc.ca
  Canada is moving ahead with its promised asbestos ban with newly proposed, federal rules to prohibit the use, sale, import and export of asbestos, along with products containing the hazardous material.
  
  Read more

• General anesthetics do more than put you to sleep

  09-01-2018 21:34
  A new understanding of the complex ways in which general anesthetics act on the brain could eventually lead to improved drugs for surgery. It remains unclear how general anesthesia works, even though it is one of the most common medical procedures worldwide. University of Queensland researcher, Associate Professor Bruno van Swinderen, said his team had overturned previous understanding of what general anaesthetics do to the brain, finding the drugs did much more than induce sleep.
  
  Read more

• Climate change is turning some sea turtle populations 99% female

  09-01-2018 21:33 via cbc.ca
  About 99 per cent of newly hatched turtles are now female at one of the biggest green sea turtle nesting areas in the world. Scientists say warming temperatures are to blame.
  
  Read more

• How North Carolina's alligators are surviving the cold snap

  09-01-2018 21:16 via bbc.co.uk
  The reptiles employ a clever trick when the water they live in freezes over
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Back to Black: How Birds-of-Paradise Get Their Midnight Feathers

  09-01-2018 21:15 via rss.sciam.com
  Tiny microstructures on the animals’ plumes absorb most of the incoming light-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
  Read more

• Climate change drives collapse in marine food webs

  09-01-2018 21:09
  A new study has found that levels of commercial fish stocks could be harmed as rising sea temperatures affect their source of food.
  
  Read more

• Older PC? Expect a decrease in performance after CPU flaw patch, Microsoft warns

  09-01-2018 20:32 via cbc.ca
  Patches to guard against the Meltdown and Spectre security threats could slow down older PCs, Microsoft says. Most users running Windows 10 on computers from 2016 onward will notice little difference.
  
  Read more

• SpaceX defends rocket performance after loss of U.S. spy satellite

  09-01-2018 20:19
  (Reuters) - SpaceX on Tuesday defended the performance of one of its rockets used to launch a U.S. spy satellite that is believed to have been lost after failing to reach orbit, adding that no changes were anticipated to its upcoming launch schedule.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Dual migration created genetic 'melting pot' of the first Scandinavians

  09-01-2018 20:18
  New genomic data suggest that the first human settlers on the Scandinavian peninsula followed two distinct migration routes. The study also indicates that the resulting mixed population genetically adapted to the extreme environmental conditions.
  
  Read more

• Hormone replacement makes sense for some menopausal women

  09-01-2018 20:00
  
  For healthy women within 10 years of menopause, the benefits of hormone therapy for relief of hot flashes or other symptoms may outweigh the risks.
  
  Read more

• Ca2+-dependent demethylation of phosphatase PP2Ac promotes glucose deprivation-induced cell death independently of inhibiting glycolysis

  09-01-2018 19:50 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Cancer cells increase glucose metabolism to support aerobic glycolysis. However, only some cancer cells are acutely sensitive to glucose withdrawal, and the underlying mechanism of this selective sensitivity is unclear. We showed that glucose deprivation initiates a cell death pathway in cancer cells that is dependent on the kinase RIPK1. Glucose withdrawal triggered rapid plasma membrane depolarization and an influx of extracellular calcium into the cell through the L-type calcium channel Cav1.
  
  Read more

• {beta}-Arrestin-biased {beta}-adrenergic signaling promotes extinction learning of cocaine reward memory

  09-01-2018 19:50 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Extinction learning of cocaine-associated contextual cues can help prevent cocaine addicts from relapsing. Pharmacological manipulation of β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) during extinction learning is being developed as a potential strategy to treat drug addiction. We demonstrated that the extinction learning of cocaine-associated memory was mediated by β-arrestin2–biased but not heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide–binding protein (G protein)–dependent β-adrenerg
  
  Read more

• ATM directs DNA damage responses and proteostasis via genetically separable pathways

  09-01-2018 19:50 via stke.sciencemag.org
  The protein kinase ATM is a master regulator of the DNA damage response but also responds directly to oxidative stress. Loss of ATM causes ataxia telangiectasia, a neurodegenerative disorder with pleiotropic symptoms that include cerebellar dysfunction, cancer, diabetes, and premature aging. We genetically separated the activation of ATM by DNA damage from that by oxidative stress using separation-of-function mutations. We found that deficient activation of ATM by the Mre11-Rad50-Nbs1 complex an
  
  Read more

• Antibiotics directly affect host cell metabolism

  09-01-2018 19:50 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Antibiotic treatment alters host cell metabolism in a manner that affects both the efficacy of the drug and the immune response to infection.
  
  Read more

• Magnets with a single pole are still giving physicists the slip

  09-01-2018 19:00
  
  Using data from particle accelerators and dead stars, scientists eliminate some possible masses for magnetic monopoles.
  
  Read more

• World's smallest wearable device measures UV exposure

  09-01-2018 18:53
  Researchers have developed the smallest wearable device in the world. The wafer-thin, feather-light sensor can fit on a fingernail and precisely measures a person's exposure to UV light from the sun.
  
  Read more

• Proteomics analyses could present new opportunities to diagnose and treat dementias

  09-01-2018 18:52
  One of the most intriguing properties of the brain is its means to undergo synaptic plasticity which represents the basis for learning and memory, abilities that severely decline in the case of a dementia. New research suggests that particular proteins important in the communication between neurons could be targets for early interventions in patients with different types of dementias.
  
  Read more

• Targeting breast cancer through precision medicine

  09-01-2018 18:49
  Researchers have discovered a mechanism that may make cancer cells more susceptible to treatment. The research team found that the protein RYBP prevents DNA repair in cancer cells, including breast cancer.
  
  Read more

• New skin barrier product reduces costs for ostomy care

  09-01-2018 18:49
  Ostomy patients using a new type of skin barrier product -- infused with ceramides that play an essential role in the normal barrier function of the skin--experience lower costs of care, according to a randomized trial.
  
  Read more

• Mass extinctions remove species but not ecological variety

  09-01-2018 18:49
  Though mass extinctions wiped out staggeringly high numbers of species, they barely touched the overall 'functional' diversity -- how each species makes a living, be it filtering phytoplankton or eating small crustaceans, burrowing or clamping onto rocks.
  
  Read more

• Heart health at risk for Latinas over worries about deportation

  09-01-2018 18:49
  A recent study has found that worry about deportations was associated with multiple cardiovascular health risk factors in Latinas from California's Salinas Valley, an area with a large immigrant community.
  
  Read more

• Grocery store program improves farmers' adoption of environmental practices

  09-01-2018 18:49
  In one of the first analyses of a company-led sustainability program in the food and agriculture space, researchers found a major grocery chain fostered increased adoption of environmental practices at the farm level.
  
  Read more

• Most patients with unknown spinal cord disease later given specific diagnosis, study shows

  09-01-2018 18:46
  A study found that most patients with suspected spinal cord inflammation of unknown cause have an alternative, specific diagnosis.
  
  Read more

• Sam Gyimah is new science minister

  09-01-2018 18:32 via bbc.co.uk
  Who is the new man in charge of higher education in England?
  
  Read more

• Why some birds of paradise have ultrablack feathers

  09-01-2018 17:44
  
  Birds of paradise have superblack feathers because of tilted, spiky microscopic features in their feathers.
  
  Read more

• Deadly disinfection in ant colonies

  09-01-2018 17:32
  Ants kill colony mates infected with deadly diseases when they are unable to prevent them from falling sick in the first place. In doing so, the ants protect their colony from the outbreak of an epidemic.
  
  Read more

• Meltdown and Spectre Expose the Dark Side of Superfast Computers

  09-01-2018 17:30 via rss.sciam.com
  As CES gets into full swing in Las Vegas, one of the researchers responsible for part of last week’s security bombshell weighs in on the possible consequences-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
  Read more

• Smoke from wildfires can tip air quality to unhealthy levels

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Smoke plumes emanating from wildfires are swept high up into the air and spread over thousands of kilometers even days after a fire has been put out. The fine particles and harmful ozone contained in these plumes often have devastating effects on the air quality of US cities and consequently the health of their inhabitants.
  
  Read more

• Potentially life-saving health monitor technology

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Sick babies in remote parts of the world could be monitored from afar thanks to new wearable technology. And parents at home, concerned about the risk of cot death, could keep track of their new babies' heart and breathing rates with automatic updates to their smart phones, using 'fitness tracker'-style technology built into baby sleep suits.
  
  Read more

• Noise from oil and gas operations stresses birds, hinders reproduction

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Birds exposed to constant noise from oil and gas operations show physiological signs of chronic stress, have chicks whose growth is stunted, and -- in some cases -- lay fewer eggs that hatch, according to a new study.
  
  Read more

• Extra-terrestrial Hypatia stone rattles solar system status quo

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Analyses on a small pebble found in south-west Egypt cast significant questions on a widely-held view about the primitive pre-solar dust cloud which our Sun, Earth and other planets were formed from. Researchers found exotic micro-mineral compounds in the 'Hypatia' stone that are not known to occur on Earth, elsewhere in our solar system, or in known meteorites or comets.
  
  Read more

• Dead trees are alive with fungi

  09-01-2018 17:24
  So far, little research has been conducted on fungi that live on dead trees, although they are vital to the forest ecology by breaking down dead wood and completing the element cycle between plants and soil. Soil biologists have now discovered that the number of fungus species inhabiting dead trees is 12 times higher than previously thought. Once trees die they are also colonized by different fungal communities depending on their species.
  
  Read more

• Cluster of resistant tuberculosis pathogen discovered

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Between February and November 2016, researchers discovered a multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in eight refugees arriving in Europe from the Horn of Africa. The analyses provided an impulse for launching a transnational investigation and developing a pan-European alerting system.
  
  Read more

• Cancer targeted with reusable 'stinging nettle' treatment

  09-01-2018 17:24
  Cancer cells can be destroyed more effectively and selectively with a unique new reusable treatment, activated with a substance found in stinging nettles and ants.
  
  Read more

• One-step production of aromatic polyesters by E. coli strains

  09-01-2018 16:47
  Systems metabolic engineers defined a novel strategy for microbial aromatic polyesters production fused with synthetic biology from renewable biomass. The team produced aromatic polyesters from Escherichia coli (E. coli) strains by applying microbial fermentation, employing direct microbial fermentation from renewable feedstock carbohydrates.
  
  Read more

• In urban streams, pharmaceutical pollution is driving microbial resistance

  09-01-2018 16:47
  In urban streams, persistent pharmaceutical pollution can cause aquatic microbial communities to become resistant to drugs.
  
  Read more

• How do we taste sugar, bacon and coffee? Science finds a surprising answer

  09-01-2018 16:47
  Until now, many scientists believed that a single protein -- TRPM5 -- acted as a gatekeeper for tasting sweet, bitter and savory foods. Remove TRPM5 from a person's taste cells, and they would no longer be able to identify sweet, bitter or savory (also called umami) foods. A new study challenges this thinking.
  
  Read more

• Great Barrier Reef: Warmer seas 'turning turtles female'

  09-01-2018 16:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Green sea turtles' gender is temperature dependent and there are now too many females.
  
  Read more

• Uneasiness in observers of unnatural android movements explained

  09-01-2018 16:28
  When the human-likeness of androids exceeds a certain threshold, the human's affinity for them decreases and an uncanny feeling about them increases. This effect, however, has been relatively unexplored. Osaka University-centered researchers recently found the visual observation of the android, compared with that of the human model, caused greater activation in the subthalamic nucleus, a brain region also involved in the pathology of Parkinson's disease. The findings further contribute to the kn
  
  Read more

• Sun, wind, and power trading

  09-01-2018 16:28
  The use of renewables like the sun and wind can cause fluctuations in power grids. But what impact do these fluctuations have on security of supply? To answer this question, scientists analyzed different types of fluctuations in several power grids in Europe, Japan, and the USA -- and came to surprising conclusions.
  
  Read more

• Rapid authentication method of Chinese medicines

  09-01-2018 16:28
  Scientists have developed a new method for rapid authentication of Chinese herbal medicines, including Ganoderma (known as Lingzhi in Chinese), and Gastrodiae Rhizoma (known as Tianma in Chinese).
  
  Read more

• Moms of obese children use different words to restrict eating

  09-01-2018 16:28
  Mothers of children with obesity may be more likely to use direct statements to restrict a child's eating.
  
  Read more

• Genetic alteration can cause obesity among Greenlanders

  09-01-2018 16:28
  Four per cent of the Greenlandic population are, due to a specific genetic alteration, in the risk of developing obesity and diabetes, a new study concludes. The gene represent a possible treatment target, the researchers argue.
  
  Read more

• The bright side of an infectious protein

  09-01-2018 16:27
  Prions are self-propagating protein aggregates that can be transmitted between cells. The aggregates are associated with human diseases. Indeed, pathological prions cause mad cow disease and in humans Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The aggregation of prion-like proteins is also associated with neurodegeneration as in ALS.
  
  Read more

• How good bacteria control your genes

  09-01-2018 16:27
  Scientists have discovered a way that bacteria in the gut can control genes in our cells. Their work shows that chemical messages from bacteria can alter chemical markers throughout the human genome. The signal chemicals are made when bacteria digest fruits and vegetables. By communicating in this way, the bacteria may help to fight infections and to prevent cancer.
  
  Read more

• Prolonged periods of sedentary time strongly associated with amount of fat around internal organs

  09-01-2018 15:18
  Researchers have found new evidence to suggest that longer periods of sedentary time (defined as any sitting/reclining activity with low energy expenditure) are more strongly associated with the amount of fat deposited around internal organs.
  
  Read more

• Evolution of Alpine landscape recorded by sedimentary rocks

  09-01-2018 15:18
  Rock avalanches and torrents started to form V-shaped valleys in the Swiss Alps approximately 25 million years ago. This landscape contrasts to the flat and hilly scenery, which characterized the Alps a few millions of years before. Geologists applied digital technologies to unravel these changes in landscape evolution. They analyzed 30 to 25 million-year old lithified rivers in Central Switzerland and came out with a detailed picture of how the Alps evolved within a short time interval.
  
  Read more

• A water-based, rechargeable battery

  09-01-2018 15:17
  In the quest to find safe, low-cost batteries for the future, eventually we have to ask ourselves a question: Why not simply use water as an electrolyte? Water is cheap, in abundant supply, doesn’t burn and can conduct ions. But it has one major drawback: It is only chemically stable up to a voltage of 1.23 volts. In other words, a water cell provides three times less voltage than a customary lithium ion cell with 3.7 volts, which makes it poorly suited for applications in an electric car.
  
  Read more

• Alzheimer’s drug turns back clock in powerhouse of cell

  09-01-2018 15:09
  The experimental drug J147 is something of a modern elixir of life; it's been shown to treat Alzheimer's disease and reverse aging in mice and is almost ready for clinical trials in humans. Now scientists have solved the puzzle of what, exactly, J147 does. They report that the drug binds to a protein found in mitochondria, the energy-generating powerhouses of cells. In turn, they showed, it makes aging cells, mice and flies appear more youthful.
  
  Read more

• Study finds source of toxic green algal blooms and the results stink

  09-01-2018 15:02
  Florida's St. Lucie Estuary received national attention in 2016 as toxic green algal blooms wreaked havoc on this vital ecosystem. A new study contradicts the widespread misconception that periodic discharges from Lake Okeechobee were responsible. Water samples gathered and tested in the year-long study provide multiple lines of evidence that human wastewater nitrogen from septic systems was a major contributor to the high nitrogen concentrations in the estuary and downstream coastal reefs.
  
  Read more

Follow @ScienceUKnews on Twitter!