ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Compared with apes, people's gut bacteria lack diversity, study finds
• Astronomers solve puzzle about bizarre object at center of our galaxy: Enormous black hole drove two binary stars to merge
• Why anesthetics cause prolonged memory loss
• Higher risk of bleeding in atrial fibrillation patients taking blood thinner dabigatran
• How bile acids could fight diabetes
• Swallowing sponge on a string could replace endoscopy as pre-cancer test
• Election day: The saddest day of the year?
• NSAIDs prevent colon cancer by inducing death of intestinal stem cells that have mutation
• Groundwater patches play important role in forest health, water quality
• How a giant impact formed asteroid Vesta's 'belt'
• Arctic Warming: Scientists Identify New Driver
• Synthetic biology: 'Telomerator' reshapes synthetic yeast chromosome into more flexible, realistic form, redefining what geneticists can build
• Putting batteries in a kidsafe coat of armor
• Variations in ice sheet height influence global climate
• Neuroscientists offer novel insight on brain networks
• From HIV to cancer, IL-37 regulates immune system
• String field theory could be the foundation of quantum mechanics: Connection could be huge boost to string theory
• 'Mild' control of systolic blood pressure in older adults is adequate: 150 is good enough
• Smoking is a pain in the back
• Thirdhand smoke: Toxic airborne pollutants linger long after smoke clears
• Inexpensive, easy way to filter arsenic from water
• New test shows promise in identifying new drugs to treat lyme disease
• Most mental health disorders not increasing in children, youth: Large Canadian study
• Investigating a triple star system in formation
• Coenzyme Q10 helps veterans battle gulf war illness symptoms
• Even when you're older, you need chaperones: protective genes reduce as we age
• Dance choreography improves girls' computational skills
• Pain, depression place older adults at risk of delirium following surgery
• Women with bipolar disorder at 50 percent greater risk of delivering preterm babies
• Beliefs about soul, afterlife that we acquire as children stick with us
• Nasal spray vaccine has potential for long-lasting protection from Ebola virus
• Biological fat with a sugar attached essential to maintaining brain's supply of stem cells
• More than half of obese patients opt out of bariatric surgical procedure process
• Clear new evidence for mind-body connection demonstrated in study
• A future of power outages; what happens when the lights go out?
• New technology allows medical professionals to step into their patients' shoes
• Migraine linked to defective 'insulation' around nerve fibers, suggests study
• Wrangling data flood to manage health of streams
• Diet affects pesticide resistance in honey bees
• Effects of poor eating habits persist even after diet is improved
• Lung cancer diagnosed before it is detected by imaging
• Countries with poor marine safety records linked to oil spill vessels
• Gender fairness prevails in most fields of academic science
• Nanotubes could serve as 'universal scaffolding' for cell membrane channels
• New process transforms wood, crop waste into valuable chemicals
• Sixty-five percent of american adults are recommended behavioral weight-loss treatment, study shows
• MRSA bugs linked to livestock found in hospitals, study finds
• Flu infection has long-ranging effects
• Obesity a factor in immunotherapy toxicity
• New classification improves risk prediction in chronic lymphocytic leukemia
• First Immature form of HIV seen at high resolution surprises researchers
• Keeping good company on Facebook
• VLTI Detects Exozodiacal Light: New challenge for direct imaging of exo-Earths
• Startling decline in European birds: Majority of losses from most common species
• Weight loss surgery substantially reduces risk of developing type 2 diabetes
• Sea sponge drug could boost advanced breast cancer survival by five extra months

Compared with apes, people's gut bacteria lack diversity, study finds Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:21 PM PST The microbes living in people's guts are much less diverse than those in humans' closest relatives, the African apes, an apparently long evolutionary trend that appears to be speeding up in more modern societies, with possible implications for human health, according to a new study.

Astronomers solve puzzle about bizarre object at center of our galaxy: Enormous black hole drove two binary stars to merge Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:21 PM PST The mystery about a thin, bizarre object in the center of the Milky Way that some astronomers believe to be a hydrogen gas cloud headed toward our galaxy's enormous black hole has been solved by astronomers.

Why anesthetics cause prolonged memory loss Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:21 PM PST Researchers have shown why anesthetics can cause long-term memory loss, a discovery that can have serious implications for post-operative patients.

Higher risk of bleeding in atrial fibrillation patients taking blood thinner dabigatran Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:20 PM PST Patients with atrial fibrillation who take the blood thinner dabigatran are at greater risk for major bleeding and gastrointestinal bleeding than those who take warfarin, according to a new study. The findings, based on Medicare claims data, indicate greater caution is needed when prescribing dabigatran to certain high-risk patients.

How bile acids could fight diabetes Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:20 PM PST A receptor activated by bile acids can reduce fat-tissue inflammation and insulin resistance in obesity-linked diabetes, research has shown. Diabetes develops when the body has problems with insulin, a hormone that regulates sugar levels in the blood. This results either because the pancreas cannot produce enough insulin or when the body cannot use insulin efficiently.

Swallowing sponge on a string could replace endoscopy as pre-cancer test Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:19 PM PST Swallowing a sponge on a string could replace traditional endoscopy as an equally effective but less invasive way of diagnosing a condition that can be a forerunner of esophageal cancer. Barrett's Esophagus is usually diagnosed by having a biopsy during an endoscopy. This can be uncomfortable and carries some risks -- and it's not always practical for everyone who has symptoms like reflux and heartburn.

Election day: The saddest day of the year? Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:10 PM PST Election Day is difficult for many political candidates. But it's no picnic for their supporters either. A new study shows just how tough election days can be. The study finds that winning elections barely improves the happiness of those from the winning political party.

NSAIDs prevent colon cancer by inducing death of intestinal stem cells that have mutation Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) protect against the development of colorectal cancer by inducing cell suicide pathways in intestinal stem cells that carry a certain mutated and dysfunctional gene, according to a new study.

Groundwater patches play important role in forest health, water quality Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Patches of soaked soil act as hot spots for microbes removing nitrogen from groundwater and returning it to the atmosphere. The discovery provides insight into forest health and water quality.

How a giant impact formed asteroid Vesta's 'belt' Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Collisions of heavenly bodies generate almost unimaginable levels of energy. Researchers used NASA's ultra-high-speed cannon and computer models to simulate such a collision on Vesta, the second-largest object in the asteroid belt. Their analysis of the images -- taken at a million frames per second -- shows how Vesta may have gotten the deep grooves that encircle its midsection.

Arctic Warming: Scientists Identify New Driver Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST A mechanism that could turn out to be a big contributor to warming in the Arctic region and melting sea ice has been identified by scientists. They found that open oceans are much less efficient than sea ice when it comes to emitting in the far-infrared region of the spectrum, a previously unknown phenomenon that is likely contributing to the warming of the polar climate.

Synthetic biology: 'Telomerator' reshapes synthetic yeast chromosome into more flexible, realistic form, redefining what geneticists can build Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Yeast geneticists report they have developed a novel tool -- dubbed 'the telomerator' -- that could redefine the limits of synthetic biology and advance how successfully living things can be engineered or constructed in the laboratory based on an organism's genetic, chemical base-pair structure.

Putting batteries in a kidsafe coat of armor Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Researchers have developed a simple 'coat of armor' to encase small batteries, rendering them harmless if they are ever swallowed.

Variations in ice sheet height influence global climate Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Heinrich events, in which large masses of icebergs rapidly broke free from ice sheets during the last ice age, are thought to have influenced global climate by interrupting ocean circulation patterns with a large influx of freshwater. However, new research suggests the variations in the height of the ice sheet that happen in these events might also influence global climate.

Neuroscientists offer novel insight on brain networks Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST New research offers a different approach for looking at the way the brain operates on a network level, and could eventually lead to new clinical diagnostic criteria for age-related memory disorders.

From HIV to cancer, IL-37 regulates immune system Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:23 AM PST Medical researchers have described the activity of a recently discovered communication molecule of the body's immune system, Interleukin 37 or IL-37. It has been known to limit inflammation and the current study reports its activity in the adaptive immune system: IL-37 inhibits the ability of the immune system to recognize and target new antigens.

String field theory could be the foundation of quantum mechanics: Connection could be huge boost to string theory Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:23 AM PST Scientists propose a link between string field theory and quantum mechanics that could open the door to using string field theory as the basis of all physics.

'Mild' control of systolic blood pressure in older adults is adequate: 150 is good enough Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:23 AM PST A broad review of the use of medications to reduce blood pressure has confirmed that 'mild' control of systolic pressure is adequate for adults age 65 or older -- in the elderly, there's no clear benefit to more aggressive use of medications to achieve a lower pressure.

Smoking is a pain in the back Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:23 AM PST Smokers are three times more likely than nonsmokers to develop chronic back pain, and dropping the habit may cut their chances of developing this often debilitating condition, researchers report.

Thirdhand smoke: Toxic airborne pollutants linger long after smoke clears Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:23 AM PST A new study assessing the health effects of thirdhand smoke constituents present in indoor air. Looking at levels of more than 50 volatile organic compounds and airborne particles for 18 hours after smoking had taken place, they found that thirdhand smoke continues to have harmful health impacts for many hours after a cigarette has been extinguished.

Inexpensive, easy way to filter arsenic from water Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:22 AM PST A quick, cheap and easy way has been developed to filter from water one of the world's most common pollutants: arsenic. Arsenic is one of the most common environmental pollutants, finding its way into drinking water supplies through natural or humanmade sources and affecting millions of people worldwide. It has been shown to cause cancer and new methods to remove arsenic from drinking water and wastewater are urgently needed.

New test shows promise in identifying new drugs to treat lyme disease Posted: 03 Nov 2014 11:22 AM PST A test has been developed by researchers which they say will allow them to test thousands of FDA-approved drugs to see if they will work against the bacteria that causes tick-borne Lyme disease.

Most mental health disorders not increasing in children, youth: Large Canadian study Posted: 03 Nov 2014 09:11 AM PST Symptoms of mental illness in children and adolescents do not appear to be increasing, according to a large study of Canadian youth. "Popular media tends to perpetuate the idea that the prevalence of mental disorders is increasing," write the authors of a new report. "However, research supporting this position has been inconsistent."

Investigating a triple star system in formation Posted: 03 Nov 2014 09:10 AM PST Astronomers have carried out the most accurate study so far of the cocoon of gas and dust surrounding the GG Tau A system. By combining complementary observations at submillimeter (ALMA and IRAM) wavelengths with those at infrared (VLTI/ESO) wavelengths, the researchers were able to identify the complex dynamics at work in GG Tau. For the first time, they detected motion of matter showing that exoplanets can form not only around one of the members of this trio of young stars, but also much further out in the disc surrounding the three stars.

Coenzyme Q10 helps veterans battle gulf war illness symptoms Posted: 03 Nov 2014 09:10 AM PST A high quality brand of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) – a compound commonly sold as a dietary supplement – provides health benefits to persons suffering from Gulf War illness symptoms, researchers report.

Even when you're older, you need chaperones: protective genes reduce as we age Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:42 AM PST Aging is the most significant risk factor for developing neurodegenerative diseases, and the risk increases disproportionately with age. Now a team of scientists has uncovered some clues as to why. The researchers are the first to find that the quality of protective genes called molecular chaperones declines dramatically in the brains of older humans, both healthy and not, and that the decline is accelerated even more in humans with neurodegenerative disease.

Dance choreography improves girls' computational skills Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:42 AM PST Blending movement and computer programming supports girls in building computational thinking skills, according to an ongoing study. This is important research, as even with increasing demands for computationally savvy workers, there is a lack of representation among women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields (STEM), the researchers say.

Pain, depression place older adults at risk of delirium following surgery Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST Preoperative pain and depressive symptoms in older adults place them at greater risk of delirium following surgery, new research shows. According to the findings, both pain and depression are independent and interactive risk factors for delirium, suggesting a cumulative effect.

Women with bipolar disorder at 50 percent greater risk of delivering preterm babies Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST Women who have been previously hospitalized for bipolar disorder are nearly twice as likely to have premature babies compared to women without a history of mental illness, according to a new study.

Beliefs about soul, afterlife that we acquire as children stick with us Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST Beliefs about the soul and afterlife, acquired in childhood, tend to stick with us. In a study, 348 undergraduate psychology students were asked about their beliefs concerning the soul and afterlife when they were 10 years old, and now. Their answers gave her the students' explicit beliefs -- that is, what the students said they believed now, and what they remembered believing when they were 10.

Nasal spray vaccine has potential for long-lasting protection from Ebola virus Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST A nasal vaccine in development has been shown to provide long-term protection for non-human primates against the deadly Ebola virus. The Ebola virus is an often fatal illness that is spread among the human population via direct contact with blood or bodily fluids from an infected individual. The current Ebola outbreak in Western Africa is the largest and most complex epidemic since the virus was first discovered in 1976. With a fatality rate currently as high as 70%, officials are declaring this outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

Biological fat with a sugar attached essential to maintaining brain's supply of stem cells Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST Fat and sugar aren't usually considered healthy staples, but scientists have found that a biological fat with a sugar attached is essential for maintaining the brain's store of stem cells.

More than half of obese patients opt out of bariatric surgical procedure process Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST Researchers are trying to determine why many patients who are referred for a bariatric operation do not ultimately have the procedure performed, despite being in a publicly funded health care program.

Clear new evidence for mind-body connection demonstrated in study Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:41 AM PST For the first time, researchers have shown that practising mindfulness meditation or being involved in a support group has a positive physical impact at the cellular level in breast cancer survivors.

A future of power outages; what happens when the lights go out? Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:40 AM PST It is impossible to imagine the modern world without electricity. We are dependent on an uninterrupted source of power and when it fails the consequences are devastating. Over the past decade there have been 50 significant power-outage events occurring in 26 countries, and the demand for electricity continues to grow stronger with rapid population growth, compact urban areas and an 'addiction' to electric appliances.

New technology allows medical professionals to step into their patients' shoes Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:40 AM PST A pioneering piece of technology will allow users to experience the world through the eyes of a person with Young-Onset Parkinson's disease- which could revolutionize the way carers and medical staff treat people with the degenerative condition.

Migraine linked to defective 'insulation' around nerve fibers, suggests study Posted: 03 Nov 2014 08:35 AM PST A new study shows cellular-level changes in nerve structure and function that may contribute to the development of migraine headaches, reports a new study. The findings help to explain why a plastic surgery procedure provides effective pain relief for migraine patients -- and may provide useful clues for developing new approaches to migraine treatment.

Wrangling data flood to manage health of streams Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:24 AM PST Today's natural resource manager tending to the health of a stream in Louisiana needs to look upstream. Way upstream -- like Montana. Scientists have invented a way to more easily manage the extensive nature of streams.

Diet affects pesticide resistance in honey bees Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:24 AM PST Feeding honey bees a natural diet of pollen makes them significantly more resistant to pesticides than feeding them an artificial diet, according to a team of researchers, who also found that pesticide exposure causes changes in expression of genes that are sensitive to diet and nutrition.

Effects of poor eating habits persist even after diet is improved Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:23 AM PST Scientists use mice to show that even after successful treatment of atherosclerosis, including lowering of blood cholesterol and a change in dietary habits, the effects of an unhealthy lifestyle still affect the way the immune system functions.

Lung cancer diagnosed before it is detected by imaging Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:23 AM PST It is possible to detect, in patients at risk of developing lung cancer, early signs of the disease in the form of circulating cancer cells, several months, and in some cases several years, before the cancer becomes detectable by CT scanning, researchers report. This warning could play a key role in early surgical intervention, thereby making it possible to attempt the early eradication of the primary cancer site.

Countries with poor marine safety records linked to oil spill vessels Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:23 AM PST More than half of ships involved in the 100 largest oil spills of the past three decades were registered in states that consistently fail to comply with international safety and environmental standards, researchers have determined.

Gender fairness prevails in most fields of academic science Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:23 AM PST A comprehensive new report investigating women's underrepresentation in science, technology, math, and engineering (STEM) fields reveals that, despite many differences between the sexes prior to college -- reflected in occupational preferences, math ability, cultural attitudes, and amount of AP coursework taken, for example -- the playing field eventually levels for women who continue in most of these fields once they earn their PhD.

Nanotubes could serve as 'universal scaffolding' for cell membrane channels Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:23 AM PST A study suggests that single-wall carbon nanotubes could be used as universal scaffolding to help to replicate the properties of cell membrane channels, scientists report. Biological membranes define the functional architecture of living systems: they are selectively permeable, maintain the chemical identity of the cells and intracellular organelles, and regulate the exchange of material between them.

New process transforms wood, crop waste into valuable chemicals Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:22 AM PST Scientists have disclosed a new method to convert lignin, a biomass waste product, into simple chemicals. The innovation is an important step toward replacing petroleum-based fuels and chemicals with biorenewable materials, says an expert in "green chemistry."

Sixty-five percent of american adults are recommended behavioral weight-loss treatment, study shows Posted: 03 Nov 2014 07:22 AM PST Researchers used data from the 2007 - 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to estimate the proportion of adults in the United States recommended for treatment. Data show 131 million American adults – about 65 percent – are recommended for behavioral weight-loss treatment, with 83% of those (or 116 million) also recommended for pharmacotherapy. Another 25% (or 32 million) of adults recommended for both pharmacotherapy and behavioral treatment are also potential candidates for bariatric surgery.

MRSA bugs linked to livestock found in hospitals, study finds Posted: 03 Nov 2014 06:16 AM PST Some methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bugs in UK hospitals can be traced back to a type of bacteria found in farm animals, a study suggests. A strain of drug-resistant bacteria carried by some livestock -- the MRSA strain Staphylococcus aureus CC398 -- has also been found in patients, researchers say.

Flu infection has long-ranging effects Posted: 03 Nov 2014 06:16 AM PST Flu infection has long-ranging effects beyond the lung that can wreak havoc in the gut and cause gastrointestinal symptoms, according to new research. The study suggests ways to relieve these symptoms without interfering with the body's ability to fight the flu virus in the lung.

Obesity a factor in immunotherapy toxicity Posted: 03 Nov 2014 06:16 AM PST Immunotherapy that can be effective against tumors in young, thin mice can be lethal to obese ones, a new study has found. The findings suggest a possible link between body fat and the risk of toxicity from some types of immunotherapy.

New classification improves risk prediction in chronic lymphocytic leukemia Posted: 03 Nov 2014 05:25 AM PST If chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients with a good or poor prognosis could be identified already at the time of diagnosis, physicians would have better possibilities to adjust their therapeutic and follow-up strategies. Now researchers have discovered a new correlation between specific molecular features of the disease and subgroups of patients with different prognosis.

First Immature form of HIV seen at high resolution surprises researchers Posted: 03 Nov 2014 05:25 AM PST The first structure of the immature form of HIV at a high enough resolution has been obtained by researchers, allowing them to pinpoint exactly where each building block sits in the virus. The study reveals that the building blocks of the immature form of HIV are arranged in a surprising way.

Keeping good company on Facebook Posted: 03 Nov 2014 05:25 AM PST It seems that no company can afford not to engage with its customers and potential clients via online social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, these days. The likes of Facebook have become hubs for such direct company to customer interactions where queries can be quickly answered, grievances addressed and products and services promoted through a marketing model that simply did not exist when the web first went commercial long before the web 2.0 concept was realized. What companies would like to know for sure, however, is whether or not their online networking efforts offer a good return on investment in terms of the bottom line regardless of whether they improve customer relations.

VLTI Detects Exozodiacal Light: New challenge for direct imaging of exo-Earths Posted: 03 Nov 2014 05:25 AM PST Astronomers have discovered exozodiacal light close to the habitable zones around nine nearby stars. This light is starlight reflected from dust created as the result of collisions between asteroids, and the evaporation of comets. The presence of such large amounts of dust in the inner regions around some stars may pose an obstacle to the direct imaging of Earth-like planets in the future.

Startling decline in European birds: Majority of losses from most common species Posted: 02 Nov 2014 06:21 PM PST Bird populations across Europe have experienced sharp declines over the past 30 years, with the majority of losses from the most common species, according to a new study. However numbers of some less common birds have risen.

Weight loss surgery substantially reduces risk of developing type 2 diabetes Posted: 02 Nov 2014 06:21 PM PST Bariatric surgery, such as gastric bypass or gastric banding, could reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by around 80 percent in obese people, compared with standard care, new research suggests.

Sea sponge drug could boost advanced breast cancer survival by five extra months Posted: 02 Nov 2014 06:20 PM PST The cancer drug eribulin, originally developed from sea sponges, could give women with advanced triple negative breast cancer an average of five extra months of life, according to research.

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