Culture
Demystifying traditional Chinese medicine for conservationists could be the key to better protecting endangered species like pangolins, tigers and rhino, according to University of Queensland-led researchers.
UQ PhD candidate Hubert Cheung said efforts to shift entrenched values and beliefs about Chinese medicine are not achieving conservation gains in the short term.
He said a better understanding of traditional practices was critical for conservationists to form more effective strategies.
University of Copenhagen researchers have been following vegetation trends across the planet's driest areas using satellite imagery from recent decades. They have identified a troubling trend: Too little vegetation is sprouting up from rainwater in developing nations, whereas things are headed in the opposite direction in wealthier ones. As a result, the future could see food shortages and growing numbers of climate refugees.
Twice as much freshwater is stored offshore of Hawai'i Island than was previously thought, according to a University of Hawai'i study with important implications for volcanic islands around the world. An extensive reservoir of freshwater within the submarine southern flank of the Hualālai aquifer has been mapped by UH researchers with the Hawai'i EPSCoR 'Ike Wai project. The groundbreaking findings, published in Science Advances, reveal a novel way in which substantial volumes of freshwater are transported from onshore to offshore submarine aquifers along the coast of Hawai'i Island.
SASKATOON - In a landmark discovery for global wheat production, a University of Saskatchewan-led international team has sequenced the genomes for 15 wheat varieties representing breeding programs around the world, enabling scientists and breeders to much more quickly identify influential genes for improved yield, pest resistance and other important crop traits.
The historic NASA Twins Study investigated identical twin astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly and provided new information on the health effects of spending time in space.
Colorado State University Professor Susan Bailey was one of more than 80 scientists across 12 universities who conducted research on the textbook experiment; Mark remained on Earth while Scott orbited high above for nearly one year. The massive effort was coordinated by NASA's Human Research Program.
Being born early (before 37 weeks' gestation) is associated with a higher risk of hospital admission throughout childhood than being born at full term (40 weeks' gestation), finds a study published by The BMJ today.
Although the risk declined as the children grew up, particularly after age 2, an excess risk remained up to age 10, even for children born at 38 and 39 weeks' gestation, representing many potentially vulnerable children, say the researchers.
Aim to exceed weekly recommended physical activity level to offset health harms of prolonged sitting
New additional research shows that increasing physical activity can counter early death risk linked to long periods of sedentary time
The health harms associated with prolonged sitting can be offset by exceeding weekly recommended physical activity levels, says the World Health Organization (WHO) in new global guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour [1], published in a special dedicated issue of the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
But all physical activity counts and is good for long term health, say the new guidelines.
NEW YORK, NY (Nov. 25, 2020)--Decades before the first symptoms of Alzheimer's appear, the brain's neurons start secreting tau proteins, one of the first changes known to occur in the course of the disease.
High levels of secreted forms of tau--which can be detected in spinal fluid and, as recently reported, in blood--are known to be the most reliable predictor of who will eventually develop Alzheimer's disease.
But a critical question about tau has remained unanswered: Why are neurons secreting tau in Alzheimer's disease?
The water-to-land transition is one of the most important and inspiring major transitions in vertebrate evolution. And the question of how and when tetrapods transitioned from water to land has long been a source of wonder and scientific debate.
A phase 1 trial involving 12 children with relapsed neuroblastoma - a hard-to-treat pediatric cancer - shows that anticancer CAR T cells displayed signs of efficacy against these tumors while avoiding damage to nerve tissue. The results suggest that CAR T cells should be further evaluated as treatments for neuroblastoma and other solid tumors, which have typically been difficult to target with T cell therapies. CAR T cells are immune cells from patients that have been engineered to hunt down cancer cells, and have shown great promise against blood cancers such as leukemia.
Pointing toward a much-needed future reservoir of freshwater for the island of Hawai'i in the face of climate-driven drought, electromagnetic images of the island have revealed multilayered basalt, ash and soil formations that serve as a previously unknown conduit to move freshwater offshore to the submarine flank of the island. According to the study by Eric Attias and colleagues, these freshwater-saturated layers may extend as much as 4 kilometers offshore. Attias et al.
Research indicates that starting school later in the morning yields health and academic benefits for high schoolers, whose natural body clock tends toward late-to-bed, late-to-rise habits. While parents raise concerns about drowsy driving, irritation and impaired school performance, a new study led by researchers at UC San Francisco suggests another reason to push back the start time.
Among patients reporting to hospital emergency departments (EDs) with suspected COVID-19 infection, important differences in symptoms and outcome exist based on age, sex and ethnicity, according to a new study published this week in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Steve Goodacre of the University of Sheffield, UK, and colleagues.
An international research collaboration, including scientists from the University of Adelaide's Waite Research Institute, has unlocked new genetic variation in wheat and barley - a major boost for the global effort in breeding higher-yielding wheat and barley varieties.
A variety of bread wheat that flourishes across Switzerland would remain just a poorly growing grass in India. This ability to adapt to regional climate conditions and environmental factors makes bread wheat the most commonly grown crop around the world. Its cultivation dates back around 8,000 years. Over time, more than 560,000 different varieties have developed. Seeds of each variety are stored in international seed vaults. Until now, however, the genetic factors responsible for the diversity and adaptability of wheat were largely unknown.