Brain
Flying birds moult their feathers when they are old and worn because they inhibit flight performance, and the moult strategy is typically a sequential molt. Moulting is thought to be unorganised in the first feathered dinosaurs because they had yet to evolve flight, so determining how moulting evolved can lead to better understanding of flight origins.
How do molecular catalysts - molecules which, like enzymes, can trigger or accelerate certain chemical reactions - function, and what effects do they have? A team of chemists at the University of Oldenburg has come closer to the answers using a model molecule that functions like a molecular nanobattery. It consists of several titanium centres linked to each other by a single layer of interconnected carbon and nitrogen atoms. The seven-member research team recently published its findings, which combine the results of three multi-year PhD research projects, in "ChemPhysChem".
Researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine have discovered a treatment combination that significantly reduces tumor growth and extends the life span of mice with liver cancer. This discovery provides a potentially new therapeutic approach to treating one of the leading causes of cancer-related death worldwide.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Cells require a balance among oxidation-reduction reactions, or redox homeostasis. Loss of that balance to create oxidative stress is often associated with neurodegeneration. Less is known about how loss of that balance at the other end of the spectrum -- reductive stress, or RS -- may affect neurons.
A "nanoPCR" technology was developed for the point-of-care (POC) diagnosis of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). This new technology can diagnose the infection within ~20 minutes while retaining the accuracy of conventional reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technology.
Since 2018, Danish university students have had to report the annual number of hours they spend in lectures, at study and preparing for exams to the Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science.
When determining whether a university should receive its entire subsidy or whether to shave up to five per cent off of its appropriation, the weekly number of study hours is one of the parameters weighed.
The reporting of study hours stems from the Ministry of Higher Education and Science's aim to ensure for high quality education.
There are diverse methods for producing numerous inorganic nanomaterials involving many experimental variables. Among the numerous possible matches, finding the best pair for synthesizing in an environmentally friendly way has been a longstanding challenge for researchers and industries.
A recent study highlights two of the reasons that misinformation about COVID-19 is so difficult to tackle on social media: most people think they're above average at spotting misinformation; and misinformation often triggers negative emotions that resonate with people. The findings may help communicators share accurate information more effectively.
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (12/07/2020) -- In groundbreaking new research, an international team of researchers led by the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has developed a unique process for producing a quantum state that is part light and part matter.
The discovery provides fundamental new insights for more efficiently developing the next generation of quantum-based optical and electronic devices. The research could also have an impact on increasing efficiency of nanoscale chemical reactions.
In a search to discover the genetic factors underlying diabetic retinopathy, University of Illinois Chicago researchers also have identified a new approach that can be used as a template to study other diseases.
In the paper, "Integration of genomics and transcriptomics predicts diabetic retinopathy susceptibility genes," published in eLife, researchers identified genes that respond differently in response to high glucose in individuals with and without diabetic retinopathy.
Columbia researchers have created a new technology using synthetic llama antibodies to prevent specific proteins from being destroyed inside cells. The approach could be used to treat dozens of diseases, including cystic fibrosis, that arise from the destruction of imperfect but still perfectly functional proteins.
In many genetic diseases, including cystic fibrosis, mutated proteins are capable of performing their jobs but are tagged for destruction by the cell's quality control mechanisms.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the world, testing remains a key strategy for tracking and containing the virus. Bioengineering graduate student, Maha Alafeef, has co-developed a rapid, ultrasensitive test using a paper-based electrochemical sensor that can detect the presence of the virus in less than five minutes. The team led by professor Dipanjan Pan reported their findings in ACS Nano.
A new study published in The Career Development Quarterly looked for potential links between negative or dysfunctional career thoughts and the quality of parental relationships in high school students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Only one in five social studies teachers in U.S. public schools report feeling very well prepared to support students' civic learning, saying they need additional aid with instructional materials, professional development and training, according to a RAND Corporation survey.
PHILADELPHIA-- Knocking out a protein known to stifle T cell activation on CAR T cells using the CRISPR/Cas9 technology enhanced the engineered T cells' ability to eliminate blood cancers, according to new preclinical data from researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and Penn's Abramson Cancer Center.
The findings will be presented as an oral presentation at the 62nd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting & Exposition on Dec. 7 (abstract #554).