Culture
Scientists have shed light on how immune cells navigate to the lymph nodes, where they help to fight off harmful bacteria and viruses.
The study, led by scientists at the University of York, reveals how B-cells - crucial agents of the immune response - are faced with a perilous path, swimming through a dense network of other cells, blood and lymphatic vessels, to reach the follicles of the lymph nodes.
Employees of the Department of Physical Chemistry of Kazan Federal University have found out that the mechanisms of polymerization of aryl cyanates in the solid state and in the melt differ in the number of broken multiple bonds of the monomer at the stage that determines the rate of the process.
Whether white blood cells can be found in the brain has been controversial, and what they might be doing used to be complete mystery. In a seminal study published in Cell, an international team of scientists led by Prof. Adrian Liston (VIB-KU Leuven, Belgium & Babraham Institute, UK) describe a population of specialized brain-resident immune cells discovered in the mouse and human brain, and show that the presence of white blood cells is essential for normal brain development in mice.
In human reproduction, the genes of the mother and father are combined and mixed in countless variations. Their offspring can differ significantly from one another. However, bacteria multiply by simple cell division, so that the two daughter cells carry the same genetic material as the mother cell. A research team led by Dr. Simon Heilbronner from the Interfaculty Institute for Microbiology and Infection Medicine at the University of Tübingen and the German Center for Infection Research has recently discovered how infectious bacteria can produce genetic variants among sibling cells.
Our planet's climate system is complex. Different components, like atmosphere, ocean, sea and land ice influence each other and cause natural climate variations on a range of timescales from months to decades. Particularly for the long timescales, the ocean plays an essential role. In a new study published today, a research team led by GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel investigates the possibility of utilizing the wind field to predict the North Atlantic surface temperature variations several years into the future.
The brains of people living with Alzheimer's are riddled with plaques: protein aggregates consisting mainly of amyloid beta. Despite decades of research, the real contribution of these plaques to the disease process is still not clear. A research team led by Bart De Strooper and Mark Fiers at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research in Leuven, Belgium used pioneering technologies to study in detail what happens in brain cells in the direct vicinity of plaques.
More than 600,000 people worldwide have fallen victim to the lung disease COVID-19 so far, which is caused by the SARS coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). In order to obtain an effective therapy for COVID-19 as quickly as possible, drugs that are being used to treat other diseases are currently being repurposed for COVID-19 treatment.
University of Virginia School of Medicine scientists are harnessing the mind-bending potential of quantum computers to help us understand genetic diseases - even before quantum computers are a thing.
UVA's Stefan Bekiranov, PhD, and colleagues have developed an algorithm to allow researchers to study genetic diseases using quantum computers, once there are much more powerful quantum computers to run it. The algorithm, a complex set of operating instructions, will help advance quantum computing algorithm development and could advance the field of genetic research one day.
One in every 500 babies is born with a condition called ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO), an obstruction of the ureter that prevents urine from flowing from one or both of the kidneys into the bladder. Usually diagnosed prenatally, UPJO can cause urinary tract infections and poor growth for infants; it can also result in chronic kidney disease and an increased risk for cardiovascular disease in later life.
Tel Aviv University researchers have found that the short time period around tumor removal surgery (the weeks before and after surgery) is critical for the prevention of metastases development, which develop when the body is under stress.
According to the researchers, patients require immunotherapeutic treatment as well as treatment to reduce inflammation and physical and psychological stress. The research was conducted by Prof. Shamgar Ben-Eliyahu of TAU's School of Psychological Sciences and Sagol School of Neuroscience and Prof. Oded Zmora from Assaf Harofe Medical Center.
KAIST researchers used atomic force microscopy to quantitatively evaluate how acidic and sugary drinks affect human tooth enamel at the nanoscale level. This novel approach is useful for measuring mechanical and morphological changes that occur over time during enamel erosion induced by beverages.
The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an important part of eukaryotic cells (the type of cells that make up every living thing other than bacteria or viruses, including humans). They are a mass of tubes connected to the nucleus of the cell; the production of both proteins and lipids occur in the networks of the ER. For this organelle to properly function, cells routinely degrade portions of the ER so that it can be renewed.
The aberrant buildup of misfolded proteins is a hallmark of a host of disorders, including neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Aggregates of these toxic proteins wreak havoc on the function of cells, tissues, and organs, and despite intensive research over many decades, there are still no effective means to remove or to prevent their accumulation in humans.
One promising strategy to achieve this may someday come from an unexpected source--a common class of drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction.
Stone tools move back the arrival of humans in America thousands of years
Findings of stone tools move back the first immigration of humans to America at least 15,000 years. This is revealed in a new international study from the University of Copenhagen, where researchers have analysed ancient material from a Mexican mountain cave.
The first humans arrived in America at least 30,000 years ago, approximately 15,000 before science was hitherto able to render it probable. This is the conclusion in new study published in the scientific journal, Nature.
CORVALLIS, Ore. - The discovery of the first active methane seep in Antarctica is providing scientists new understanding of the methane cycle and the role methane found in this region may play in warming the planet.
A methane seep is a location where methane gas escapes from an underground reservoir and into the ocean. Methane seeps have been found throughout the world's oceans, but the one discovered in the Ross Sea was the first active seep found in Antarctica, said Andrew Thurber, a marine ecologist at Oregon State University.