Eurekalert

Women who were highly exposed to ultra-fine particles in air pollution during their pregnancy were more likely to have children who developed asthma, according to a study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine in May. This is the first time asthma has been linked with prenatal exposure to this type of air pollution, which is named for its tiny size and which is not regulated or routinely monitored in the United States.

Scientists at EPFL discover that laser-driven rearrangement of just a few gold atoms inside nanoscale antennas can be observed by the naked eye.

Scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) have designed a versatile sensing platform with a compact source-camera module that enables 3D feature extraction of curved objects at multiple frequencies ranging from terahertz to infrared light. In their paper, they demonstrate rapid, omnidirectional photo-monitoring performance after integrating their platform to a robot-assisted movable arm, offering a way to realize an Internet of Things system of sensor network.

A new study shows that the current rate of biodiversity decline in freshwater ecosystems outcompetes that at the end-Cretaceous extinction that killed the dinosaurs: damage now being done in decades to centuries may take millions of years to undo.

More than 100 kg of highly toxic uranium (U) and plutonium (Pu) was dispersed in the form of tiny 'hot' radioactive particles after the British detonated nine atomic bombs in remote areas of South Australia, including Maralinga.

Single-cell gene studies are clarifying the roles of the brain's specialised immune cell in Alzheimer's disease and offer new avenues for treatment of this incurable condition.

Plant researchers found that the herb Aristolochia microstoma from Greece has evolved a novel strategy, unknown in any other plant species, to attract pollinating Megaselia 'coffin flies' to its trap flowers: it produces a unique mix of volatiles that resembles the smell of dead and decomposing insects. The new study is published by the open access publisher Frontiers.

A new study examined whether the intermittent nature of gang membership affects offending. The study found that first-time membership was associated with increases in criminal behavior from when gang members were not in gangs, and that joining for a second time significantly raised the likelihood of offending, including more violent behavior.

A five-year community outreach and engagement effort by the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania to increase enrollment of Black patients into cancer clinical trials more than doubled the percentage of participants, improving access and treatment for a group with historically low representation in cancer research.

New study shows how face masks reduce the effective reproduction number of COVID-19, and why their efficacy varies between different environments under virus-limited and virus-rich conditions.

Type 2 diabetes patients who also have asthma are benefitting from a diabetes medication, typically given to help the pancreas produce more insulin, that also improves asthma symptoms and may reduce lung and airway inflammation.

Chirality, the lack of symmetry in matter, is an important issue in a myriad of scientific fields, ranging from high-energy physics to biology. Using magnets, a collaborative research group have furthered our understanding of how chiral information is transferred and memorized.

Scientists of Tomsk Polytechnic University have developed a nanosensor-based hardware and software complex for measurement of cardiac micropotential energies without filtering and averaging-out cardiac cycles in real time. The device allows registering early abnormalities in the function of cardiac muscle cells, which otherwise can be recorded only during open-heart surgery or by inserting an electrode in a cardiac cavity through a vein. Such changes can lead to sudden cardiac death (SCD).

UK doctors have nothing to fear from the introduction of a central register listing money or benefits they receive in addition to their NHS salary, say experts today ahead of a public meeting on the issue hosted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for First Do No Harm and The BMJ.

Fast-spreading variants of the COVID-19-causing coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, carry mutations that enable the virus to escape some of the immune response created naturally or by vaccination. A new study from scientists at Scripps Research, along with collaborators in Germany and the Netherlands, has revealed key details of how these escape mutations work.

Within the next decade, the novel coronavirus responsible for COVID-19 could become little more than a nuisance, causing no more than common cold-like coughs and sniffles. That possible future is predicted by mathematical models that incorporate lessons learned from the current pandemic on how our body's immunity changes over time. Scientists at the University of Utah carried out the research, now published in the journal Viruses.

Dr. Laijun Lai, a research professor in the Department of Allied Health Sciences in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, has used bioinformatics and gene engineering techniques to develop a series of recombinant proteins and antibodies for a novel set of checkpoint molecules for potential cancer and autoimmune disease treatment.

New research in flies indicates that prediction may be a universal principle among animal nervous systems to enable rapid behavioral changes.

Countries and US states more predisposed to collectivist behavior have more people following mask guidelines during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a study co-authored by MIT Sloan Assistant Professor Jackson Lu.

Environmental quality is associated with advanced-stage prostate cancer at diagnosis, according to a new study by University of Illinois Chicago researchers.