Earth
STONY BROOK, NY, April 23, 2020 - In a Policy Forum, "Dissolved oxygen and pH criteria leave fisheries at risk" published in the April 24 issue of the journal Science, Stony Brook University's Dr. Christopher J. Gobler, Endowed Chair of Coastal Ecology and Conservation, and Stephen J.
A new blood test for Alzheimer's disease has been developed under the leadership of researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The method is based on measuring a specific variant of tau protein in ordinary blood samples, which makes the test relatively simple and cheap to perform.
The research behind the test was headed by Kaj Blennow, Professor of Clinical Neurochemistry, and Henrik Zetterberg, Professor of Neurochemistry, at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg. The results are published in an article in The Lancet Neurology.
The widely reported "insect apocalypse" is far more nuanced than previous studies have suggested, according to a new study, which reports the findings of a meta-analysis featuring data from 166 long-term surveys across 1,676 sites worldwide. The results demonstrate that global insect population trends are highly spatially variable and reflect both decline and growth. Insects are among the most abundant and diverse animals on the planet and serve a critical role for ecosystem services and in the food web.
The discovery of the earliest known modern amphibians in Antarctica provides further evidence of a warm and temperate climate in the Antarctic Peninsula before its separation from the southern supercontinent, Gondwana. The fossils, which belong to the family of helmeted frogs, are described in Scientific Reports this week.
A new way of looking at marine evolution over the past 540 million years has shown that levels of biodiversity in our oceans have remained fairly constant, rather than increasing continuously over the last 200 million years, as scientists previously thought.
A team led by researchers from the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham have used a big data approach to study this question, which has been disputed by palaeobiologists in recent years.
Researchers have unveiled the precise shape of a key player in human metabolism, which could open the door to better treatments for obesity and other metabolic disorders.
The research, scheduled to publish April 24 in the journal Science, centered on a protein in the brain called the melanocortin 4 receptor, or MC4R. This receptor plays a crucial role in regulating the body's energy balance by controlling how much energy is stored as fat.
There has been a dramatic decrease in cold-water plankton during the 20th century, in contrast to thousands of years of stability, according to a new UCL-led study.
The research, published in Geophysical Research Letters, analysed the fossilised remains of plankton, sampled from the Northeast Atlantic Ocean, south of Iceland. The scientists uncovered a striking change in the types of species that inhabit these waters.
Forestation is one of the main strategies recommended by the scientific community for climate change mitigation. But, would a European continent completely covered in forests be any cooler than one without forests?
In the 21st century, the search for methods of treating noncommunicable diseases, such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes are among the top priorities. Prevention and treatment of these diseases include changing and controlling lifestyle, diet, and the use of pharmaceuticals.
Despite the progress in medicine and pharmacology (developing new solutions for correcting metabolism) and biotechnologies, new effective approaches are still on demand in treating obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes.
The abundance of large orb web spiders in the Swiss midland has declined drastically over the last 40 years. The main reason for this is the shrinking food supply available to these insectivorous animals. This is demonstrated in a study conducted by researchers from the University of Basel and Ghent University (Belgium), as reported in the scientific journal Insects.
"Three" kinds of regalia such as crown, orb, and sward are often necessary to be a high king for conquering the world. For fighting off cancerous diseases, what do we need? This "triple" chemical modified nanomaterial might be save the patient.
Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. Under this situation, a successful tumor selective drug targeting and minimized toxicity of cancer drug are urgently necessary.
CAMBRIDGE, MA -- MIT researchers have developed a way to incorporate electronic sensors into stretchy fabrics, allowing them to create shirts or other garments that could be used to monitor vital signs such as temperature, respiration, and heart rate.
The sensor-embedded garments, which are machine washable, can be customized to fit close to the body of the person wearing them. The researchers envision that this type of sensing could be used for monitoring people who are ill, either at home or in the hospital, as well as athletes or astronauts.
A receptor in the cell layer that lines the blood vessels from the inside stimulates both the formation of new blood vessels in tumors and metastasis. Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg (DKFZ) and the Mannheim Medical Faculty of the University of Heidelberg have succeeded in blocking this receptor with an antibody to thus prevent the growth of metastases in mice with breast or lung cancer. In animal experiments, they have thus shown a new principle for slowing down the metastatic dissemination of cancer cells.
A USC-led international team of scientists has found the precise shape of a key player in human metabolism, which could lead the way to better treatments for obesity and other metabolic disease.
For the study, the scientists focused on a protein in the brain, the melanocortin 4 receptor (or MC4R). This receptor helps with regulating the body's energy balance by controlling how much energy is stored as fat. Mutations in the gene that encodes the MC4R protein are linked to severe childhood obesity and other forms.
With services overburdened, healthcare professionals are having to decide who should receive treatment. But is it wrong to prioritise younger patients with COVID-19?
Two experts debate the issue in The BMJ this week.
There are three reasons why age should not be used to decide who should and who should not receive potentially life saving treatment, argues Dave Archard, Emeritus Professor at Queen's University in Belfast.