Tech
New research uncovers substantial differences in rates of childhood cancers when considering single year of age rather than grouping several years together. The study published by Wiley early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, also found that minority children have different risks than white children for many types of cancer.
BOSTON - Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have discovered a biological mechanism that transforms cells exposed to carcinogens from environmental factors like smoking and ultraviolet light into immunogenic cells that can be harnessed therapeutically to fight treatment-resistant cancers.
Highlights
Primary nephrotic syndrome is characterized by high urinary excretion of protein, low protein in the blood, high cholesterol, and swelling in the arms and legs.
A new analysis highlights the high risk of kidney failure and different cardiovascular complications in patients with primary nephrotic syndrome.
Tokyo, Japan - In Japan, thousands of homes and businesses and hundreds of lives have been lost to typhoons. But now, researchers have revealed that a new flood forecasting system could provide earlier flood warnings, giving people more time to prepare or evacuate, and potentially saving lives.
Germany is a hotspot for dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata) species in Europe, owing to the range of habitats and climates that it provides. While many recent and mostly small-scale studies suggest long-term declines of insect populations in different parts of Europe, studies of freshwater insects - including dragonflies and damselflies - suggest that some species have increased in occurrence. Researchers of iDiv, FSU and UFZ have now provided a nationwide analysis of the occurrence and distribution of dragonflies and damselflies in Germany between 1980 and 2016.
TheMUC5Bgene codes for mucin - a protein that is normally found in mucus secretions, and which is part of the body'snaturaldefence against infection. The promoter variantcalledrs35705950is a common variantin theMUC5Bgene, with anallele frequency of 0.1 in the Finnish population.Overexpression ofMUC5Bin lungs influences the development of pulmonary fibrosis.The promoter variant rs35705950 inMUC5Bis the strongest known genetic risk factor for rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD).
Massive heavy-lift crane vessels, capable of hauling thousands of tons, navigate the rough waves and strong winds offshore to construct wind turbines and oil fields in the ocean. An international team of researchers has developed a new modeling system to help improve the control, and ultimately the safety, of such vessels. They published their approach in the April issue in IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica.
Sweet sorghum can be used to produce biogas, biofuels, and novel polymers. In addition, it can help replace phosphate fertilizers. A new sweet sorghum variety developed at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) accumulates particularly high amounts of sugar and thrives under local conditions. As the scientists reported in the Industrial Crops & Products journal, sugar transport and sugar accumulation are related to the structure of the plants' vessels. This was the result of a comparison between sweet and grain sorghums. (DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2021.113550)
Various automobile companies are preparing to shift from internal combustion (IC) engine vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs). However, due to higher cost, EVs are not as easily accessible to consumers; hence, several governments are subsidizing EVs to promote sales. For EV costs to compete with those of IC engine vehicles, their batteries, which account for about 30% of their cost, must be more economical than that of IC-based vehicles.
Karin Hellgren and colleagues examined pregnancy outcomes in relation to disease activity and antirheumatic treatment strategies in women with RA. This matched cohort study from Sweden and Denmark explored the associations between maternal RA and pre-term birth (PTB), or delivering babies small for gestational age (SGA)in relation to the mother's disease activity and use of antirheumatic treatment before and during pregnancy.
RA is an inflammatory autoimmune disease that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints. It can also cause fatigue, and the underlying inflammation may affect other body systems. It is more common in women than in men. To date, active smoking has been the most reproducibly reported risk factor for a type of RA called anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA) positive RA-particularly in people who carry the HLA-DRB1-shared epitope alleles.
At the 2021 EULAR congress, Brkic and colleagues presented data from people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)treated at Norwegian rheumatology outpatient clinics between 2010 and 2019.
Murat Torgutalp and colleagues investigated the longitudinal association between radiographic sacroiliitis progression and treatment with TNFi in patients with early axSpA in a long-term inception cohort. The results were shared in an oral session at the 2021 EULAR congress.
Arani Vivekanantham and colleagues investigated the association between RA and the risk of COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalization with COVID-19,and COVID-19-related death. This population-based cohort study including all individuals registered in the Information System for Research in Primary Care (SIDIAP)- which covers over80% of the population of Catalonia, Spain. This information was linked to region-wide SARS-CoV-2 testing, hospital and mortality records. Outpatient diagnoses of COVID-19, hospitalizations and deaths with COVID-19 were identified between 1st March and 6th May 2020.
An international team led by researchers at Princeton University has uncovered a new pattern of ordering of electric charge in a novel superconducting material.