Culture
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Trees, shrubs and woody vines are among the top food sources for honey bees in urban environments, according to an international team of researchers. By using honey bees housed in rooftop apiaries in Philadelphia, the researchers identified the plant species from which the honey bees collected most of their food, and tracked how these food resources changed from spring to fall. The findings may be useful to homeowners, beekeepers and urban land managers who wish to sustain honey bees and other bee and pollinator species.
These two Hubble Space Telescope images of comet C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS), taken on April 20 and 23, 2020, provide the sharpest views yet of the breakup of the fragile comet.
WASHINGTON--Short-term cold exposure may help people with brown fat burn 15 percent more calories than those without, according to a small study published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Unlike white fat, brown fat burns calories through fatty acid oxidation and heat production and is considered a promising target in the fight against the obesity epidemic. The biggest activator of brown fat is moderate cold exposure.
Bethesda, Maryland (April 28, 2020) -- Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the esophagus triggered by allergens that causes difficulty with swallowing in adults, which grows more frequent and intense over time, affecting patients' quality of life. Children experience varied symptoms that include feeding difficulty, pain, vomiting, as well as dysphagia. EoE affects an estimated one in 2,000 people.
What The Viewpoint Says: The importance of minimizing COVID-19 transmission in prisons and jails is described and policies and programs for doing so are detailed.
Authors: Laura Hawks, M.D., Cambridge Health Alliance in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.1856)
WASHINGTON, Tuesday, April 28, 2020 -- Biological robots, or biobots, draw inspiration from natural systems to mimic the motions of organisms, such as swimming or jumping. Improvements to biobots to better replicate complex motor behaviors can lead to exciting biorobotic engineering applications to help solve real world challenges. However, this requires the creation of biohybrid robots -- biobots made up of both organic and artificial materials -- which is a challenge.
What The Viewpoint Says: This Viewpoint describes the relevance of a palliative care approach to surgery during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
Authors: Zara Cooper, M.D., M.Sc., of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2020.1698)
Australian researchers have revealed for the first time that males infected with the Toxoplasma parasite can impact their offspring's brain health and behaviour.
Studying mice infected with the common parasite Toxoplasma, the team discovered that sperm of infected fathers carried an altered 'epigenetic' signature which impacted the brains of resulting offspring. Molecules in the sperm called 'small RNA' appeared to influence the offspring's brain development and behaviour.
New Rochelle, NY, April 27, 2020--A mobile telehealth system (MTS) has been used in a hospital in China where COVID-19 patients were treated in isolation wards set off from other healthcare providers. Click here to read the article free in the peer-reviewed journal Telemedicine and e-Health. This just-published paper provides a full description of the MTS, its components, and how it maintains the security of patient information.
A link has been discovered between a common gene defect and eczema, nasal blockage and wheeze among babies as young as six months, according to a new study at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS). The research raises new questions about how soon in life these defects could start affecting babies, resulting in serious health problems, and suggests treatment targeted towards children carrying these genetic defects started soon after birth could improve their lives.
A large study in adolescents and children, some as young as 3 years of age, shows a link between obesity, high blood pressure, and later damage to blood vessels. The research is presented today on EAPC Essentials 4 You, a scientific platform of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).
"The results of this study highlight the need to adopt healthy lifestyles from an early age," said study author Ms. Julia Bueschges, a PhD student at the Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.1
With the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in lockdowns in different parts of the world, from the US to many European nations, there have been intense debates on when and how we can safely reopen the economy.
New research led by Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) computer scientists has used a data-driven modelling approach to answer the time-critical question of when the stringent social distancing and quarantine measures against COVID-19 can be loosened so that normal life and economic activities can be restored in a safe manner.
Scientists are one step closer to understanding how the cancer-fighting drug Taxol is produced by trees.
In a recent paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, a group of researchers led by Washington State University's Mark Lange, has found candidate genes that could eventually be used to manufacture Taxol more quickly and efficiently.
Since MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) started the OpenCourseWare movement, by publishing its course materials as open educational resources, many types of initiatives have been developed to open access to education via the use of digital technologies. Among other resources, the MOOCs have proliferated. These offer specialised online courses (frequently free) to an unlimited number of students.
A drug that has life-extending effects on mice also reverses age-related dental problems in the animals, according to a new study published today in eLife.
Periodontal disease, also known as gum disease, is a common problem in older adults that causes painful inflammation, bone loss and changes in the good bacteria that live in the mouth. Yet there are no treatments available beyond tooth removal and/or having good oral hygiene. The findings suggest that treatments targeting the aging process in the mouth might help.