Body

Loud noise, trauma, infections, plain old aging--many things can destroy hair cells, the delicate sensors of balance and sound within the inner ear. And once these sensors are gone, that's it; the delicate hair cells don't grow back in humans, leading to hearing loss and problems with balance.

Fast Facts:

PULLMAN, Wash. - Washington State University researchers have developed a unique, tiny protein cage to deliver nasty chemotherapy chemicals directly to cancer cells. Direct delivery could improve treatment and lessen what can be horrendous side effects from toxic drugs.

Four tiny segments of RNA appear to play critical roles in controlling cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism. In their report receiving advance online publication in Nature Medicine, a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)-based research team describes finding how these microRNAs could reduce the expression of proteins playing key roles in the generation of beneficial HDL cholesterol, the disposal of artery-clogging LDL cholesterol, control of triglyceride levels and other risk factors of cardiovascular disease.

While there is no doubt that climate change is affecting many organisms, some species might be more sensitive than others. Reptiles, whose body temperature depends directly on environmental temperature, may be particularly vulnerable. Scientists have now shown experimentally that lizards cope very poorly with the climate predicted for the year 2100.

Maintaining a normal body mass index (BMI) is important for good cardiovascular health and blood sugar control, but maintaining it after pregnancy can also be key to preventing pelvic organ prolapse, according to a new study by Yale School of Medicine researchers.

The findings are published in the journal Reproductive Sciences.

Time, money, and tens of thousands of animals could be saved if researchers replace animal-derived antibodies with modern technologies, according to a review by the PETA International Science Consortium Ltd. published today in Biotechnology Advances, a peer-reviewed journal covering developments and trends in biotechnology principles and applications.

Tempe, Ariz., (October 26, 2015) - Anyone who knows the history of the jury trial or has seen "12 Angry Men" is aware that U.S. juries were originally exclusively white and male. There have been many efforts toward making juries more diverse and representative of the population. Now that we have more women and racial minorities represented on juries the question becomes: Do they have the same opportunity to exert influence over jury decisions as do white men.

In a word, no.

Controversy exists about how to manage patients with low testosterone, and many health care professionals are reluctant to treat testosterone deficiency, but a new guideline aims to provide a road map to help diagnose and treat this health condition.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Immunotherapy treatments have proven wildly successful in treating some patients with cancer. But despite this success, the majority of patients do not respond to the treatments.

A new study from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center reveals molecular changes within the tumor that are preventing the immunotherapy drugs from killing off the cancer.

Though most countries around the globe agree that warming must be limited to 2 degrees Celsius to avoid the raft of climate risks, they clash about who should do what to reach this target. Hence the issue of allocating greenhouse-gas emissions reductions will be key for the outcome of the world climate summit COP21 in Paris. Scientists now found what amount of emissions reductions it takes for a major economy to lead out of the climate gridlock.

Scientists have created a highly specific and well-characterised chemical probe which can switch off two important proteins implicated in cancer -- shedding new light on the role these proteins play in driving cancer cell proliferation.

A major new study, published in Nature Chemical Biology today (Monday), announces the discovery of the first highly selective modulator of two proteins called CDK8 and CDK19 -- members of an important family known as kinases -- whose function is to regulate gene activation.

They study conclude sthat effectively limiting climate change is possible if a major economy acts as a forerunner, while other nations follow -- and, importantly, by doing so they do not have to agree on common criteria for fairness.

An international team, led by the University of Melbourne, has devised a method allowing countries to choose their own method of 'fair' emissions cuts, effectively creating a roadmap out of the climate negotiation gridlock.

It requires one major economic power - such as the United States, China or the European Union - to set a benchmark emissions reduction target for others to follow, thereby capping global warming to within 2°C.

The work is published today in the journal Nature Climate Change and is the first to propose this method of 'diversity-aware leadership'.

Collections of ants have a remarkable ability to change shapes and tasks based on the demands of their environment. When floodwaters hit, they self-assemble and form rafts to stay alive. They can also use their bodies to build bridges and span gaps. What are the properties of these ant aggregations that allow for this wide range of abilities? New research from the Georgia Institute of Technology says it's because the insects are actually liquid-like and solid-like simultaneously. The study is currently published in Nature Materials.