Body

COLUMBIA, Mo. - As a part of the human immune system, white blood cells create a number of enzymes that help fight disease. Sometimes, these enzymes can malfunction, causing damage to the body or increasing cancer growth. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have determined a detailed structural view of one of these enzymes, called MMP7, as it binds to the membranes, or surfaces, of cancer cells.

ANN ARBOR -- Serious flaws have been found in a decade's worth of studies about the best way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stabilize the climate.

The findings, from the University of Michigan, are released as world leaders at COP21 attempt to negotiate the globe's first internationally binding climate agreement.

New findings from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston revealed that teens who are involved in dating abuse -- as either the perpetrator or the victim -- are more likely to also be involved in cyberdating abuse. Further, teens who commit cyberdating violence against their partners are more likely to later be victimized by it and cyberviolence victims are more likely to later perpetrate this act. The findings are currently available online at the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

DUARTE, Calif. -- Clinical trials that lay the groundwork for novel leukemia and lymphoma treatments will be among the highlights of the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) getting under way this week in Orlando. The trials, presented by researchers and physicians from City of Hope, could ultimately lead to innovative therapeutic approaches that improve survival and quality of life for patients with those and other diseases.

Adult stem cells ensure continuous regeneration of tissues throughout our entire life. But the activity of these stem cells has to be carefully controlled in order to support regeneration without cancer. How this balanced control is achieved and maintained as the organism ages remains a critical question in stem cell biology. Publishing in Nature, researchers at the Buck Institute have identified a new mode of stem cell regulation.

Wine, beer and yogurt are produced when microorganisms convert sugar into alcohol, gases or acids. But this process of fermentation--which is used by bacteria, fungi and other fast-growing cells to generate energy in the absence of oxygen--is a much less efficient way of generating energy for cells than aerobic respiration.

So why do many organisms use this seemingly wasteful strategy to generate energy instead of aerobic respiration, even when oxygen is readily available?

Intestinal bacteria change their composition and function when diabetic patients are treated with the drug metformin.

Scientists have previously established that many types of cancer cells are squishier and more pliable than normal, healthy cells. Now, researchers led by UCLA's Amy Rowat have developed a screening method that utilizes this information to classify many more different types of cancer cells and that could ultimately lead to better treatments for cancer, diabetes, malaria and other diseases.

Biologists know that climate change is causing southern species' ranges to move northward in the Northern Hemisphere. But little research has been done on the indirect ways climate change is influencing biodiversity, such as the poleward migration's impact on the ranges of species already residing in the north. What will the distribution of species look like across North America in the year 2050?

Although several studies suggest that women with denser breast tissue have an increased risk of breast cancer, a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers discredits breast density as a risk factor in and of itself, instead concluding that age and body fat, especially in the upper belly, contribute to the breast cancer seen in many patients.

A study that included more than 20,000 women with stage IV breast cancer finds that survival has improved and is increasingly of prolonged duration, particularly for some women undergoing initial breast surgery, according to the report published online by JAMA Surgery.

Amsterdam, December 2, 2015 - It's time for us to get on our bikes if we want cycling to make an impact as a sustainable mode of transport. New research published in the Journal of Transport & Health shows that the proportion of households that own bikes has declined globally, with the average over 148 countries falling by half in the last few decades.

The authors of the study, from Johns Hopkins University in the US, say their analysis could give policy makers good examples from where ownership is highest, helping them boost cycling as a sustainable mode of transport.

Humans might know them as vicious stingers, but yellow jacket wasps also impress with their vigorous protection over their young. To resolve the mystery around their complex defensive behavior, a Canadian research team, led by Dr. Sean McCann, Simon Fraser University, have used simple components to develop and construct a device that consequently helped them to locate the species-specific alarm pheromones in three wasp groups.

As talks of global warming are once again making headlines, scientists have renewed their efforts to understand how to best limit its effects. For example, sequestrating short-lived climate pollutants, such as methane and black carbon, yields much faster reductions in global warming compared to reductions in CO2. To do so, it is essential to have a better grasp of the nature of physico-chemical properties of gases interacting with porous carbon.

Much to coffee lovers' delight, drinking three to four cups of coffee per day has been shown to decrease the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Now, scientists report in ACS' Journal of Natural Products that they have identified two compounds that contribute to this health benefit. Researchers say that this knowledge could someday help them develop new medications to better prevent and treat the disease.