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The observation in a ferroelectric material of "polar vortices" that appear to be the electrical cousins of magnetic skyrmions holds intriguing possibilities for advanced electronic devices. These polar vortices, which were theoretically predicted more than a decade ago, could also "rewrite our basic understanding of ferroelectrics" according to the researchers who observed them.

CORVALLIS, Ore. - The American pika is thought by many biologists to be a prime candidate for extirpation as the planet continues to warm, done in by temperatures too severe for this small mammal native to cold climates.

But a new study, published this week in the journal Global Change Biology, paints a different, more complex future for this rock-dwelling little lagomorph - the same order that includes rabbits and hares. Pikas may survive, even thrive, in some areas, the researchers say, while facing extirpation in others.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins say an online "pop quiz" they developed in 2009 shows promising accuracy in predicting sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in young women, although not, apparently, in young men.

An investigation into the molecular mechanisms responsible for the most common type of benign skin lesion may lead to the first nonsurgical treatment for the growths called seborrheic keratoses (SKs), which in addition to being cosmetically unattractive are often worrisome to patients. A paper by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers, published online in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, reports that blocking the action of a specific signaling enzyme leads to the death of cultured SK cells and the breakdown of SK lesions.

An international team of biologists has discovered how specialized enzymes remodel the extremely condensed genetic material in the nucleus of cells in order to control which genes can be used. The discovery will be published in the print edition of the journal Nature on Feb. 4, 2016.

Midlife crisis in the insect world: In a new study, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich researchers have detected age-dependent alterations in metabolism and gene regulation in middle-aged fruitflies, and show that these effects are linked to a reduction in lifespan.

January 29, 2016 - For women undergoing breast cancer surgery, a technique called lipofilling--using the patient's own fat cells to optimize the results of breast reconstruction--does not increase the risk of recurrent breast cancer, reports a study in the February issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

Jan. 29, 2016 - For patients with gender dysphoria undergoing male-to-female transformation, a stepwise approach to facial feminization surgery (FFS) leads to good cosmetic outcomes along with psychological, social, and functional benefits, according to a study in the February issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

Researchers of SECORE International (USA, Germany), the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands) and the Carmabi Marine Research Station (Curaçao) have for the first time successfully raised laboratory-bred colonies of a threatened Caribbean coral species to sexual maturity. These findings have been published in the latest issue of the scientific journal Bulletin of Marine Science.

A first-in-class sphingosine kinase 2 inhibitor slowed the growth of castration-resistant prostate cancer cells, in part by inhibiting the enzyme dihydroceramide desaturase (DEGS), but did not kill them, according to the results of preclinical in vitro and in vivo studies published in the December 2015 issue of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics by researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and others.

The Molecular Microbiology Research Group in the UAB's Department of Genetics and Microbiology describes for the first time, in a work published in PLOSone, a model of behaviour of a bacterial colony that shows how the colony protects itself against toxic substances, like antibiotics, during the colonisation process.

A research team led by scientists from UCL have found a way to assess the viability of 'manufactured' stem cells known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Published today in Nature Communications, the team's discovery offers a new way to fast-track screening methods used in stem cell research.

Ocean acidification may be impacting upon the population dynamics of marine species and hindering their ability to genetically adapt to future climate change.

These are the findings of a team of scientists, whose report is published in the journal Scientific Reports, following an investigation into how the gastropod Hexaplex trunculus has responded to ocean acidification over multiple generations.

While world health leaders race to contain the spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in the Americas, researchers at the University of Iowa are reminding doctors in the United States to be on the lookout for two other vector-borne and potentially life-threatening diseases that can be passed from mother to child through the placenta.

Health disparities are common in developed countries, including the U.S., but at what age those inequities take root and how they vary between countries is less clear.

New research from the University of Washington compares the link between income, education and low birth weight in the United States with those in three comparable countries: the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. Low birth weight is a primary risk factor for infant deaths and is considered a key predictor of health and socioeconomic status throughout life and across generations.