Culture
Gen Z are the new kids on the block. As a cohort of 5 million people born between 1995-2015 encompassing 20 percent of the Australian population and 2 billion people globally -- they're consumers to be reckoned with.
Stop scratching: rubbing skin activates an anti-itch pathway in the spinal cord, according to research in mice recently published in JNeurosci.
It can be hard to resist the relief of scratching an itch, even though scratching damages skin, especially in sensitive areas like the eyes. But stroking can relieve an itch, too. Sakai et al. investigated the neural pathway behind this less-damaging form of itch relief.
Stone forests--pointed rock formations resembling trees that populate regions of China, Madagascar, and many other locations worldwide--are as majestic as they are mysterious, created by uncertain forces that give them their shape.
Free, circulating vitamin D levels in the blood may be a better predictor of future health risks in aging men, according to a study being presented at e-ECE 2020. These data suggest the free, precursor form of vitamin D found circulating in the bloodstream is a more accurate predictor of future health and disease risk, than the often measured total vitamin D.
Japan and the U.S. have seen an increase in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures, which is driven primarily by a rise in elective PCIs in Japan compared to non-elective in the U.S., according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Since adoption of large-scale PCI trial results vary internationally, the study sought to analyze large national registries in both countries to illuminate international variation in PCI practice as a foundation for further quality improvement.
Plant protein foods--like lentils, beans, and nuts--can provide vital nutrients using a small fraction of the land required to produce meat and dairy. By shifting to these foods, much of the remaining land could support ecosystems that absorb CO2, according to a new study appearing in the journal Nature Sustainability.
In their study, the researchers analyzed and mapped areas where extensive production of animal-sourced food, which requires 83 percent of Earth's agricultural land, suppresses native vegetation, including forests.
When historian Frederick Jackson Turner presented his famous thesis on the US frontier in 1893, he described the "coarseness and strength combined with acuteness and acquisitiveness" it had forged in the American character.
In a significant advance, UC San Francisco Weill Institute for Neurosciences researchers working towards a brain-controlled prosthetic limb have shown that machine learning techniques helped an individual with paralysis learn to control a computer cursor using their brain activity without requiring extensive daily retraining, which has been a requirement of all past brain-computer interface (BCI) efforts.
Sharks' non-bony skeletons were thought to be the template before bony internal skeletons evolved, but a new fossil discovery suggests otherwise.
The discovery of a 410-million-year-old fish fossil with a bony skull suggests the lighter skeletons of sharks may have evolved from bony ancestors, rather than the other way around.
Hundreds of innovators, research pioneers, clinicians, industry leaders and policy makers from all around Europe are united by a vision of how to revolutionize healthcare. In two publications - a perspective article in the journal Nature and the LifeTime Strategic Research Agenda - they now present a detailed roadmap of how to leverage the latest scientific breakthroughs and technologies over the next decade, to track, understand and treat human cells throughout an individual's lifetime.
CINCINNATI - As the world scrambles to control the growing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, new research in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology shows viruses also play a key evolutionary role in mammals' ability to reproduce and survive.
Scientists in the Cincinnati Children's Perinatal Institute and at Azabu University in Japan obtained their data by studying laboratory mice and human germline cells.
In rodents with type 2 diabetes, a single surgical injection of a protein called fibroblast growth factor 1 can restore blood sugar levels to normal for weeks or months. Yet how this growth factor acts in the brain to generate this lasting benefit has been poorly understood.
Clarifying how this occurs might lead to more effective diabetes treatments that tap into the brain's inherent potential to ameliorate the condition.
Spending long periods of time in space can wreak havoc on space traveler health, including negative effects on metabolism, bone and muscle health, gastrointestinal health, immunity and mental health. This could prevent us pursuing long-distance missions, such as a Mars landing. However, a new review in open-access journal Frontiers in Physiology highlights that promoting a healthy gut microbiome could protect space travelers from the rigors of space travel.
New research provides insights on the potential causes of racial disparities in deaths following prostate cancer surgery. The findings are published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society (ACS).
The hormone, ghrelin, may help protect the elderly population from muscle loss, according to a study being presented at e-ECE 2020. The study found that administering a particular form of ghrelin to older mice helped to restore muscle mass and strength. As muscle-related diseases are a serious health concern in the elderly population, these findings suggest a potential new treatment strategy for muscle loss to enable the aging population to remain fit and healthy.