Culture
Researchers at the Center for Cognition and Sociality, within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS, South Korea), have developed a new optogenetic tool to visualize and control the position of specific messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules inside living cells. Using this approach, published in Nature Cell Biology and the research highlights section of Nature Reviews Genetics, the authors revealed something new about cell migration that could not have been discovered with previously available methods.
An arsenal of advanced microscopy tools is now available to provide high-quality visualization of cells and organisms in 3D and has thus substantiated our understanding the complex biological systems and functions.
Scientists have taken a major step toward a circular carbon economy by developing a long-lasting, economical catalyst that recycles greenhouse gases into ingredients that can be used in fuel, hydrogen gas, and other chemicals. The results could be revolutionary in the effort to reverse global warming, according to the researchers. The study was published on February 14 in Science.
In early December, a few people in the city of Wuhan in the Hubei province of China began falling sick after going to a local seafood market. They experienced symptoms like cough, fever, and shortness of breath, and even complications related to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The immediate diagnosis was pneumonia, but the exact cause was unexplained. What caused this new outbreak? Is it the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV? Is it the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS)-CoV?
In many industrial and environmental applications, determining the size and distribution of microscopic particles is essential. For example, in the pharmaceutical industry, inline measurement and control of particles containing various chemical ingredients (before consolidation in tablets) may critically enhance the yield and quality of the final medical product. Also, the air we breathe, water we drink and food we eat can also contain many types of unhealthy particulates, which is then crucial to detect for our health and wellbeing.
Scientists from Trinity College Dublin and the University of Pittsburgh have discovered that de novo genes - genes that have evolved from scratch - are both more common and more important than previously believed.
Their findings appear in two studies, one which will appear in eLife tomorrow [Tuesday 18th February 2020], and one which was published earlier this month in Nature Communications.
DNA, genes, and de novo orphans
Good news from the Kenyan Taita Hills: the Taita mountain dwarf galago still survives. This was confirmed by researchers working at the University of Helsinki Taita Research Station.
The tiny nocturnal prosimian, weighing only 100-180 grams, was first reported in 2002, but no sightings had been made since.
The biggest systematic act of mass violence brought about by a state, the Holocaust, has recently caught the interest of political scientists regarding long-term effects on political attitudes and behaviour. To date, analyses had focused on the impact of this proximity regarding the redistribution of wealth and property, but not in terms of voting behaviour.
In a healthy cell, there is a fine balance between the protrusive structures that make the cell more migratory and the contractile structures that maintain the cell's shape and its association with the environment. A disturbance in this balance leads to several diseases, such as invasive cancers.
The wiring network of the brain is made up of billions of nerve fibers called axons. The thickness of axons - together with other properties - significantly impacts the way in which they conduct neural signals, and therefore the overall processing speed of connected neurons and brain areas. In addition, many neurodegenerative conditions, such as Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer's Disease, as well as conditions such as cancer, brain injury, and stroke, are known to exhibit axonal damage.
For the first time, scientists have found a way to reveal the mechanics of the human body's 'steering wheel' - the subtalar joint.
The bones of the foot are unique in that they need to be both be extremely flexible allowing the foot to point, twist and flex, but in other positions they need to be absolutely rigid, such as pushing off or jumping so the person doesn't sprain their ankle.
The key to this ability is the subtalar joint, below the ankle, which until now, doctors couldn't see rotating while standing.
For humans, trade is second nature and civilizations have flourished and fallen with the fate of their trade. In fact, the mutual scratching of backs is a cornerstone of many animal societies. On the other hand, deep and sustained mutualisms across species were long thought to be quirks of evolution, where radically different players managed to stick together and trade for mutual benefit. Famous examples include mitochondria (ex-bacterial cells), which are embedded in and power animal and plant cells.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 17, 2020) -- New University of Kentucky research shows that the immune system may target other remote areas of the brain to improve recovery after a stroke.
The study in mice, published in PNAS by researchers from UK's College of Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and University of Pennsylvania reveals that after a stroke, B cells migrate to remote regions of the brain that are known to generate new neuronal cells as well as regulate cognitive and motor functions.
Researchers from the University of Sydney have conducted the first global review of herbal medicines for weight loss in 19 years, finding insufficient evidence to recommend any current treatments.
Senior author Dr Nick Fuller said with overweight and obesity rates reaching epidemic proportions worldwide, many people are turning to herbal supplements as an alternative approach to maintain or lose weight.
Research by Cass Business School academics has presented a methodology for identifying how winter tourism operators can protect themselves against the risk of decreasing visitor numbers to ski destinations and lost revenues.
Due to the effects of climate change, ski tourism in the Alps is becoming endangered by decreasing levels of snow caused by rising winter temperatures.