Earth

Researchers at the University of Waterloo may have discovered a new, pesticide-free way to limit mosquito populations in some area and reduce the spread of the West Nile virus.

Waterloo researcher Brad Fedy discovered that introducing hungry minnows into bodies of water where mosquitoes breed results in the minnows feeding on mosquito larvae, which dramatically decreases the number of adult mosquitoes capable of carrying the disease.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (June 18, 2018) - It's the comparative silence between the firing spikes of neurons that tells what they are really up to, scientists report.

"The brain appears to use these durations of silence to encrypt information," Dr. Joe Z. Tsien, neuroscientist at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University says of his new Neural Self-Information Theory.

Tropical Depression Gaemi moved through Taiwan and was tracking to the northeast in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean on June 15. NASA's Aqua satellite provided a visible image of the storm that showed it as an elongated system.

HOUSTON - Using a targeted therapy to block a protein that suppresses T cell activity could improve cancer treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

The team showed that EZH2 is elevated in immune T cells in patients after treatment with ipilimumab, a drug that unleashes an immune response by blocking the activity of CTLA-4 on T cells, white blood cells that serve as the targeted warriors of the adaptive immune system.

The results of a study presented at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR 2018) demonstrates increased levels of gum disease, and disease-causing bacteria, in individuals at risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).1

Stress in early childhood leads to faster maturation of certain brain regions during adolescence. In contrast, stress experienced later in life leads to slower maturation of the adolescent brain. This is the outcome of a long-term study conducted by researchers of Radboud University in which 37 subjects have been monitored for almost 20 years. The findings will be published in Scientific Reports on 15 June.

Every cell in the body contains thousands of different protein molecules and they can change this composition whenever they are induced to perform a particular task or convert into a different cell type. Understanding how cells function depends on proteomics, the ability to measure all of the changes in a cell's protein components.

Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm - swelling of the major artery in the abdomen, which can cause sudden death if it ruptures - may not substantially reduce deaths from the condition, according to a Swedish cohort study of more than 130000 men published in The Lancet. The findings question the need for the screening, which is also conducted in the UK and USA.

In recent years, the number of cases of abdominal aortic aneurysm have decreased significantly, which may alter the benefits and harms of the screening.

ANN ARBOR--Umpteen books and programs are available to help new moms before and after their child is born, but the same can't be said for fathers, a new University of Michigan study found.

Research suggests that men typically rely on women for parenting knowledge and thus could benefit from encouragement to participate directly in programs and health care visits, said Joyce Lee, the study's lead author.

The world produces more corn by weight than any other cereal crop. Corn, also known as maize, is a staple food in many countries. But farmers growing corn face many challenges, such as drought, diseases, and pests.

For example, in sub-Saharan Africa, 20 to 80% of corn yields may be lost because of a semi-parasitic plant, Striga. In areas infested with Striga, farmers may even lose their entire crops.

PHILADELPHIA -- (June 13, 2018) -- Patient age correlates with response to immunotherapy in melanoma and depleting regulatory T cells in young patients may have a therapeutic potential to enhance response in younger patients, according to research from The Wistar Institute. Study results were published online in Clinical Cancer Research.

Irvine, Calif., June 13, 2018 - El Niño was long considered a reliable tool for predicting future precipitation in the southwestern United States, but its forecasting power has diminished in recent cycles, possibly due to global climate change. In a study published today in Nature Communications, scientists and engineers at the University of California, Irvine demonstrate a new method for projecting wet or dry weather in the winter ahead.

CHICAGO--With aging comes deteriorating vision. At SIGGRAPH 2018, attendees will have the chance to test a new computational system that effectively mimics the natural way the human eye corrects focus, specifically while viewing objects that are closer rather than farther away.

A theorized but never-before detected property of quantum matter has now been spotted in the lab, a team of scientists reports.

The team proved that a particular quantum material can demonstrate electrical dipole fluctuations - irregular oscillations of tiny charged poles on the material - even in extremely cold conditions, in the neighborhood of minus 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

The material, first synthesized 20 years ago, is called k-(BEDT-TTF)2Hg(SCN)2 Br. It is derived from organic compounds, but behaves like a metal.

Boston (June 10, 2018) - Results from a new clinical study have confirmed the safety and tolerability of using bacteria-specific viruses known as bacteriophages to eliminate disease-causing bacteria in the gut. The new treatment could be used in place of antibiotics to rid the gut of harmful bacteria and promote the growth of beneficial bacteria that are known to enhance gastrointestinal health, immune function and anti-inflammatory processes.