During the Ordovician period, the concentration of CO2 in the earth's atmosphere was about eight times higher than today. It has been hard to explain why the climate cooled and why the Ordovician glaciations took place. A new study, published in Nature Communications, shows that the weathering of rock caused by early non-vascular plants had the potential to cause such a global cooling effect.
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PHILADELPHIA) - Researchers collected and re-examined clinical trial data on exercise during pregnancy and whether it plays a role in preterm birth, and found that exercise is safe and does not increase the risk of preterm birth. In addition, women who exercised were less likely to have a C-section than those who did not. The study was published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
The Neanderthals displayed great variability in their behaviour and one of the aspects in which this becomes clear is their relationship with the dead. There is evidence on different sites (e.g. Chapelle-aux-Saints in France, and Sima de las Palomas on the Iberian Peninsula) that the Neanderthals buried the dead. Yet other sites show that the Neanderthals ate the meat and broke the bones of their fellow Neanderthals for food.
"About 80% of newly licensed nurses find their first work in hospitals," says New York University Rory Meyers College of Nursing (NYU Meyers) Professor Christine T. Kovner, PhD, RN, FAAN. "Turnovers are one of the costliest expenditures in our profession. In fact, costs are estimated at $62,000 to $67,000 per departure, amounting to $1.4 to 2.1 billion in expenses for new nurses who leave their first jobs within three years of starting."
The cholesterol medicine simvastatin, which is one of the most commonly used pharmaceuticals in the world, also has a beneficial effect on the immune defence system with regard to diseases such as type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Danish researchers have now explored why this is so, and their findings may result in improved treatment.
Sometimes, the silencing of a gene is as important as its activation. Nonetheless, up to now, most studies on hormone-mediated gene regulation have focused on researching the factors that influence the activation of certain genes. Little attention has been paid to gene silencing.
But researchers at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) have discovered that there is a mechanism of active repression in hormone-dependent breast cancer cells that acts on genes related with cell proliferation and death.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES), along with local partners, released the Colombian Orinoco River Basin Report Card -- the first of its kind in of South America -- to track progress against global water management goals. With a B- for the Orinoco river basin, the report card serves as a model for building comprehensive, community-driven, scientifically credible basin assessments that can work anywhere in the world.
Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have demonstrated doping-induced tunable wetting and adhesion of graphene, revealing new and unique opportunities for advanced coating materials and transducers.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (July 7, 2016) -- Lesbian and bisexual women have higher rates of obesity, smoking and stress when compared to their heterosexual counterparts, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health.
Because of their low weight and premature birth, very low birth weight (VLBW) pre-term infants have lower bone mineral mass and a greater need for bone nutrients compared to most new-born infants. This places them at greater risk of osteopenia (low bone density) and fractures in later life.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - A Michigan State University researcher is using his mapping expertise to help a farmers market and other local food sources go mobile in Flint, bringing healthier options closer to those most in need.
Rick Sadler, who earlier this year published a study showing the positive effects of moving the Flint Farmers' Market downtown, is now helping the market, along with a mom-and-pop grocery store and other organic farms, identify the best locations to serve in order to take their fruits and veggies on the road.
Ulaanbataar, Mongolia (July 7, 2016) - A new study by WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) says that breeding populations of white-naped cranes have decreased by 60 percent in Ulz River basin - an important stronghold for the species in Eastern Mongolia.
Survey data from 2000-2001 recorded 42 territorial pairs while the most recent data by WCS documented only 17 pairs.
LUGANO, 7 July 2016 - Details of the first study by one of Europe's largest cancer centres, the Medical University of Vienna (MUV), assessing the clinical impact and feasibility of the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale (MCBS) in a real-life context are now available on ESMO Open(1).
A new University of Colorado Boulder study shows that using an electrically-powered bicycle on a regular basis can provide riders with an effective workout while improving some aspects of cardiovascular health, especially for riders who previously had been sedentary.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The creation of memories in the brain involves addition or removal of methyl groups at precise spots on chromosomal DNA. But what controls the careful targeting of these neuronal DNA methylation dynamics?