Regenerating heart muscle with gene therapy
Gene therapy can help regenerate heart muscle in pigs, a new study reports. CCNA2 is a gene that tells embryonic heart cells to divide and grow. Because this fetal gene pathway becomes dormant after...
View ArticleUT Dallas-led team makes powerful muscles from fishing line and sewing thread
An international team led by The University of Texas at Dallas has discovered that ordinary fishing line and sewing thread can be cheaply converted to powerful artificial muscles. The new muscles can...
View ArticleSpinning yarn into muscles with a twist
Imagine clothing that reacts to temperature, opening (or closing) its pores to keep its owner cool (or warm). Such technology is within reach -- and a new study describes a simple route to strong...
View ArticleWhen gels don’t swell, it’s swell
Hydrogels may find broader use in biomedical applications, thanks to a new study. Though hydrogels have been used for applications including sustained drug delivery at target locations in the body,...
View ArticleThe right view of the brain region that detects wrong
Scientists have to reconsider the part of the brain that first detects errors in our actions, a new study suggests. The ability to assess the outcomes of our actions – to recognize when they lead to...
View ArticleA warm but unstable interglacial in the Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean wasn’t as stable as researchers thought it was during some warm, interglacial periods of the past, according to a new study. In fact, production of North Atlantic Deep Water -- the...
View ArticleFor malaria parasite's transmission to mosquitos, a key protein is discovered...
Scientists studying the sexual transformation of the malaria parasite have solved a long-standing mystery in parasite biology. Two research teams have independently discovered that a single protein...
View ArticleEstimating cancer risk in unrestricted areas near Fukushima
Residents of communities bordering restricted areas around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant received a radiation dose of 0.89-2.51 millisieverts per year (mSv/yr) in 2012, a dose similar to...
View ArticleIntergroup contact can lead to exclusionary attitudes
A study in which members of one ethnic group were introduced into the daily routines of another group finds that intergroup contact results initially in attitudes favoring exclusion, and that repeated...
View ArticleEcotourism may reduce poverty near parks
Protected natural areas in Costa Rica reduced poverty in neighboring communities mainly by encouraging ecotourism, whereas the changes that these areas caused in infrastructure and land use had little...
View ArticleDiet, diabetes, and dementia
Compounds termed advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs), present in the Western diet and previously linked to diabetes and to neurodegenerative disease, may be one possible cause of the accumulation of...
View ArticleArousal-boosting brain system speeds recovery from anesthesia
A brain system that controls arousal and sleep-wake transitions regulates recovery from general anesthesia, according to a study. General anesthesia drugs induce a temporary coma-like state in...
View ArticleAlso of interest from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
The degree of physical contact between a celebrity and an object may influence the amount collectors are willing to pay for the item at an auction, according to a study.
View ArticleHow does Jiaolong’s brain work？
As the brain of the manned submersible “jiaolong”, its control system is of key value in the precise navigation, automatic control, and safety control function. The success of development and more...
View ArticleReceipt of live MMR vaccine associated with lower rate of infection-related...
In a nationwide group of Danish children, receipt of the live measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine vs inactivated diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, and Haemophilus influenzae type b as the...
View ArticleBlood transfusion for patients undergoing PCI associated with increased risk...
In an analysis that included more than two million patients who underwent a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI; procedures such as balloon angioplasty or stent placement used to open narrowed...
View ArticleBetter nurse staffing and education reduces patient deaths in European hospitals
The Lancet reported today the results of a study in 9 European countries documenting that hospital nurse staffing and the proportion of nurses with bachelor’s education are associated with...
View ArticleCompound found in Chinese medicinal herb zaps inflammation
Tanshinone IIA, a compound found in a Chinese medicinal herb known as “red sage”, may be a powerful weapon for combating inflammation, reports a new study in zebrafish. A hallmark of chronic...
View ArticleDonor’s gift sparks scholars program at the George Washington University
The parent of a George Washington University alumnus is working with the university to establish a scholars program that will bring honors students from the University of Macau, in China, to...
View ArticleA common chimera in a rare tumor
Scientists may be a step closer to understanding the molecular pathogenesis of a rare liver cancer that affects adolescents and young adults, a new report says. Fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma,...
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