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A form of gene therapy protects optic nerve cells and preserves vision in mouse models of glaucoma, according to research supported by NIH's National Eye Institute. The findings suggest a way forward for developing neuroprotective therapies for glaucoma, a leading cause of visual impairment and blindness.

Geneticists from Trinity College Dublin have discovered how a specific genetic mutation (H3K27M) causes a devastating, incurable childhood cancer, known as diffuse midline glioma (DMG), and - in lab studies working with model cell types - successfully reverse its effects to slow cancer cell growth with a targeted drug. Their landmark work - just published in leading international journal, Nature Genetics - translates crucial new understanding of the genetics of DMG progression into a highly promising, targeted therapeutic approach and offers significant hope of improved treatments in the future.

Mount Sinai researchers uncover a potential pathway for treatment that can prevent blindness.

Newly-hatched pterosaurs may have been able to fly but their flying abilities may have been different from adult pterosaurs, according to a study published in Scientific Reports.

The discovery of a Roman road submerged in the Venice Lagoon is reported in Scientific Reports this week.

Disagreement seems to spread online posts faster and further than agreement, according to a new study from the University of Central Florida.The finding comes from an examination of posts labeled controversial on social news aggregation site Reddit. To perform the study, the researchers analyzed a Reddit dataset that was collected by DARPA.

Scientists from Goethe University Frankfurt, University of Warsaw, State Authority for Mining, Energy and Geology in Hanover, and from other institutions have found in Salzgitter-Salder what researchers have been searching for for more than 20 years: A geological formation that perfectly represents the transition from the Cretaceous Turonian to the Coniacian Age. The former limestone quarry is now considered a global reference point (GSSP) for the turn of the ages 89.4 million years ago.

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering and the Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation used the City of Pittsburgh to create a model built upon the design, materials and purpose of commercial buildings to estimate their energy usage and emissions.

With the application of a novel three-dimensional imaging technology, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered that one portion of the autonomic nervous system in the liver undergoes severe degeneration in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The study, which is conducted in mice and human liver tissue, shows that the degeneration of nerves is correlated with the severity of liver pathology. The results are being published in the journal Science Advances.

Researchers from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore), in collaboration with French specialty materials leader Arkema, have developed a tougher, safer bicycle helmet using a combination of materials. The new helmet prototype has higher energy absorption, reducing the amount of energy transferred to a cyclist's head in the event of an accident and lowering the chances of serious injury.

A joint research team from the University of Hong Kong reported the development of a transferrable and integrative type I CRISPR-based platform that can efficiently edit the diverse clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a superbug capable of infecting various tissues and organs and a major source of nosocomial infections. The technique can accelerate the identification of resistance determinants of multidrug resistant (MDR) pathogens and the development of novel anti-resistance strategies.

A research team led by Wim Annaert (VIB-KU Leuven) uncovered the early assembly of gamma-secretase, a protein complex linked to numerous cellular processes including the development of Alzheimer's disease. In a first step, two dimeric subcomplexes are formed, which independently exit the ER and only afterwards assemble into a four-subunit complex. This 'buckle up' mechanism is thought to prevent premature assembly and activity.

Many applications, from fiber-optic telecommunications to biomedical imaging processes require substances that emit light in the near-infrared range (NIR). A research team in Switzerland has now developed the first chromium complex that emits light in the coveted, longer wavelength NIR-II range. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, the team has introduced the underlying concept: a drastic change in the electronic structure of the chromium caused by the specially tailored ligands that envelop it.

An international research team has come up with an innovative method for metal recovery from industrial waste. The new method allows the simultaneous recovery of multiple metals from waste oxides in a single process. This novel route will lower the burden on waste storage facilities with significant contributions to the economic and environmental sustainability of industrial waste management. The study was published in Journal of Environmental Management.

Titanium dioxide, promising anode materials for sodium ion batteries, nonetheless, suffers from its inferior charge transfer kinetics owing to low diffusion coefficient and electronic conductivity, which will result in unsatisfactory high-rate capability. Here, an oxygen vacancy (OV) engineering assisted in high-content anion (S/Se/P) doping strategy to enhance its charge transfer kinetics for ultrafast sodium-storage performance is proposed to address these issues and expectative results have been obtained.

Scientists have developed a 'nanobody' - a small fragment of a llama antibody - that is capable of chasing out human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) as it hides away from the immune system. This then enables immune cells to seek out and destroy this potentially deadly virus.

Researchers from the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences at King's College London have automated brain MRI image labelling, needed to teach machine learning image recognition models, by deriving important labels from radiology reports and accurately assigning them to the corresponding MRI examinations. Now, more than 100,00 MRI examinations can be labelled in less than half an hour.

A new quantitative study suggests people seeking asylum are more likely to experience mental health deterioration as they spend more time living in refugee camps, backing up qualitative evidence from aid organisations.

Persistence may be the key when quitting smoking using an electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS), commonly known as vaping, a University of Otago study found.

In one out of every six local authorities, rates of hunger are more than 150 per cent the national average. Shockingly, in one in 10 local authorities, the rate is almost double, according to new research by the University of Sheffield.