Body

Taking clear pictures of megaenzymes isn't easy. But it's definitely worth it. These proteins play an active role in creating many common antibiotics. They are in constant motion, with sections that flip around acrobatically to carry out necessary tasks. Now, for the first time, McGill researchers have been able to take a series of 3D images of a large section from one of these medicine-synthesizing enzymes in action.

We've come a long way from the days of hunting and gathering. With advancements in science and technology, we're now a society that hunts for the best price and gathers coupons. Since less of our energy is going to finding and killing our next meal, we have time to be more discerning about the ingredients used in our food.

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Jan. 13, 2016 -- The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) has identified a protein called SGEF that promotes the survival of glioblastoma tumor cells and helps the cancer invade brain tissue.

TGen researchers identified SGEF as a target for new brain cancer therapies in a study published today by Molecular Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, the world's largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research.

Gut microbes are well known to contribute to health and disease, but what has been less clear is how the host controls gut microbes. A study published January 13 in Cell Host & Microbe now reveals that mice and humans produce small molecules (microRNAs) from their GI tract, which are shed in feces, to regulate the composition of gut microbes and thereby protect against intestinal diseases such as colitis.

In the wake of the recent Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa, a reevaluation of the ways plague spreads through prairie dog colonies in the western United States has yielded insights that could help explain outbreaks of plague, Ebola, and other diseases that can be transmitted by animals to humans. These include West Nile Virus disease and MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome).

WASHINGTON, DC, January 13, 2016 -- New research released today shows that workers at a Fortune 500 company who participated in a pilot work flexibility program voiced higher levels of job satisfaction and reduced levels of burnout and psychological stress than employees within the same company who did not participate.

This is the first time a randomized controlled trial has been used to measure the effects of workplace flexibility in a U.S. firm.

A nature-inspired method to model the reflection of light from the skin of silvery fish and other organisms may be possible, according to Penn State researchers.

Such a technique may be applicable to developing better broadband reflectors and custom multi-spectral filters for a wide variety of applications, including advanced optical coatings for glass, laser protection, infrared imaging systems, optical communication systems and photovoltaics, according to Douglas Werner, John L. and Genevieve H. McCain Chair Professor in Electrical Engineering, Penn State.

WASHINGTON - Infectious disease outbreaks that turn into epidemics or pandemics can kill millions of people and cause trillions of dollars of damage to economic activity, says a new report from the international, independent Commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future. Few other risks pose such a threat to human lives, and few other events can damage the economy so much. The Commission estimated the global expected economic loss from potential pandemics could average more than $60 billion per year.

Many shore residents and beach-goers are already familiar with the health risks of "red tide," algal blooms along coastlines that can trigger respiratory illness and other effects in people who inhale the toxins the algae release. Now in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology, scientists report new evidence that similar effects can occur on a much smaller scale among home aquaria owners.

Doping in the horseracing industry has spurred regulations banning performance-enhancing drugs, as well as calls for an anti-doping agency in the U.S. But as in human sports, testing for certain kinds of prohibited substances has been a challenge. Now scientists report in ACS' journal Analytical Chemistry a new detection method that could help anti-doping enforcers determine whether a horse has received certain substances.

Most frequent fliers are familiar with long lines at airports: at the check-in counter, the departure gate, and in boarding a booked flight.

But even after passengers are buckled in, the waiting may continue -- when a plane leaves the gate, only to sit on the tarmac, joining a long queue of flights awaiting takeoff. Such runway congestion can keep a plane idling for an hour or more, burning unnecessary fuel.

For anyone struggling to keep the New Year Resolution to 'Do More Exercise' science shows a solution could be found in a simple cup of coffee.

In a paper published this month in the scientific journal Sports Medicine, Professor Samuele Marcora, a University of Kent endurance expert, suggests the use of caffeine could help people stick to their fitness plans.

January 13, 2016 - Trauma team members are at risk of compassion fatigue and burnout syndrome, as supported by the new research by Gina M. Berg, PhD, MBA, of University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita and colleagues. Authors identify some "stress triggers" contributing to these risks, and make recommendations to help trauma teams cope with secondary traumatic stress, reports a study in the January issue of Journal of Trauma Nursing.

Sperm that don't swim well rank high among the main causes of infertility. To give these cells a boost, women trying to conceive can turn to artificial insemination or other assisted reproduction techniques, but success can be elusive. In an attempt to improve these odds, scientists have developed motorized "spermbots" that can deliver poor swimmers -- that are otherwise healthy -- to an egg. Their report appears in ACS' journal Nano Letters.

Environmental changes can elicit fast changes in pathogens:Meat beats the veggie menu in bacterial virulence

Changes in environmental conditions may affect epidemics not only by altering the number of free-living pathogens but also by directly increasing pathogen virulence with immediate changes in the physiological status of infecting bacteria.