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A DNA analysis of living and extinct species of mysterious New Zealand wrens may change theories around the country's geological and evolutionary past.

A University of Adelaide study into New Zealand's acanthisittid wrens has provided compelling evidence that, contrary to some suggestions, New Zealand was not completely submerged under the ocean around 21 to 25 million years ago.

In biological terms, a cell is the smallest functional entity of living organisms. The human body contains an enormous number of cells: somewhere in the region of 10 to 100 trillion, depending on a person's size and weight. Most of these cells perform specific functions in the body and are called differentiated cells. Stem cells, on the other hand, are able to continuously divide to produce more stem cells and differentiated cells, thereby providing an endless supply of differentiated cells. Certain cells in the body have a relatively short life span.

Livestock medications can impair beneficial organisms that break down dung. Too high a dosage of ivermectin, a common drug against parasites, harms coprophilous organisms, for instance. The toxicity of new livestock medications therefore needs to be verified in ecotoxicological tests with individual animal species such as the common yellow dung fly, the barn fly or a dung beetle. This involves determining the lethal dose leading to the death of half the maggots (LD50 test).

The study of the mechanism of reactivation of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibited by organophosphates (OP) is still a challenge for theoretical chemists since mechanistic studies, involve electronic transfer and breaking and formation of chemical bonds. The solution for this is the Quantum Mechanics/Molecular Mechanics (QM/MM) approach. The QM/MM approach has been implemented with docking, Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics methods. As many configurations are generated in the MM step, the number of QM calculations required in a hybrid QM/MM simulation is too high.

With the aid of platinum catalysts, it is possible to efficiently produce hydrogen. However, this metal is rare and expensive. Researchers have discovered an alternative that is just as good, but less costly.

The mineral pentlandite is a potential new catalyst for hydrogen production. As described in the journal Nature Communications, it works just as efficient as the platinum electrodes commonly used today. In contrast to platinum, pentlandite is affordable and found frequently on Earth.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A study conducted at Nationwide Children's Hospital has found that a new chemotherapy is effective against both pediatric and adult cancers, and that it allows other chemotherapies to more readily reach their targets. The study published online Monday, July 25, in the journal Pharmaceutical Research describes a novel class of antitumor amphiphilic amines (RCn) based on a tricyclic amine hydrophilic head and a hydrophobic linear alkyl tail of variable length.

Researchers at Osaka University, Japan uncovered the mechanisms that suppress the propagation of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) with the potential of improving pathological liver conditions. Using model mice, they confirmed that when a certain enzyme is inhibited, HCV particle production is reduced leading to an improvement of pathological liver conditions. They thereby identified a new drug target for the development of new HCV drugs.

Research into Africa's first 'screen-and-treat' programme for hepatitis B suggests the initiative may reduce deadly complications of the virus.

The new findings, from researchers at a number of international institutions including Imperial College London and the Medical Research Council Unit The Gambia, also suggest the initiative is feasible and cost-effective.

Thursday 28 July marks World Hepatitis Day.

Earlier this year, France passed a labor reform law that banned checking emails on weekends. New research--to be presented next week at the annual meeting of the Academy of Management--suggests other countries might do well to follow suit, for the sake of employee health and productivity.

New York, NY, July 27, 2016 - Although active surveillance, or watchful waiting, for patients with low risk prostate cancer has become an increasingly acceptable strategy for disease management, many men opt for definitive therapies such as radical prostatectomy or radiation therapy. A new study of more than 2,200 patients with low risk prostate cancer in an ethnically and economically diverse population revealed that ethnicity influences this decision.

ST. LOUIS - In research featured in the August edition of Obesity, Saint Louis University investigator Andrew Butler, Ph.D., and his team report that levels of the peptide hormone adropin vary based on carbohydrate consumption and appear to be linked to lipid metabolism.

Butler, who is professor of pharmacology and physiology at SLU, discovered adropin several years ago. Data from previous studies in mice suggest it plays a role in metabolic diseases of obesity; however, the function of the hormone in humans remains unclear.

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Changes to HER2 testing guidelines for breast cancer in 2013 significantly increased the number of patients who test HER2-positive, according to a new study by Mayo Clinic researchers published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Cancers that have an excess of HER2 protein or extra copies of the HER2 gene are called HER2-positive and can be treated with drugs like Herceptin that target HER2. HER2 stands for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.

The Journal of Pain Research has published the review "Effectiveness of the World Health Organization Cancer Pain Relief Guidelines: An Integrative Review".

Pneumonia is the most prevalent infection after open-heart surgery, leading to longer hospital stays and lower odds of survival.

But a new analysis of data from thousands of patients who had coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery at Michigan hospitals revealed ways people can prepare their bodies to reduce the risk of postoperative pneumonia -- a complication that occurred in 3.3 percent of patients in the observational review.

Researchers at The University of Queensland have contributed to the discovery of three new genes which increase the risk of motor neuron disease (MND), opening the door for targeted treatments.

Professor Naomi Wray from UQ's Queensland Brain Institute was involved in the data analysis as a part of an international study of more than 30,000 people.

"These three new genes open new opportunities for research to understand a complex and debilitating disease which currently has no effective treatments," Professor Wray said.