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Genetic treasure trove for malaria researchers

Eurekalert - May 30 2021 - 00:05
Detailed and extensive genome sequencing of a subspecies of rat-infecting malaria parasites should instruct human malaria research.
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Browning could make lakes less productive, affecting food webs and fish

Eurekalert - May 29 2021 - 00:05
As more dissolved organic matter enters lakes across the northeast United States, darkening the lakes in a phenomena called 'browning,' new research shows that these waters may be growing less productive and able to sustain less life.
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50 years of progress in women's health

Eurekalert - May 29 2021 - 00:05
Cynthia A. Stuenkel, MD, clinical professor of medicine at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, and JoAnn E. Manson, MD, DrPH, professor of epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School Of Public Health, review 50 years of progress in women's health in a perspective article publishing the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Less is more? New take on machine learning helps us "scale up" phase transitions

Eurekalert - May 29 2021 - 00:05
Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have enhanced "super-resolution" machine learning techniques to study phase transitions. They identified key features of how large arrays of interacting "particles" behave at different temperatures by simulating tiny arrays before using a convolutional neural network to generate a good estimate of what a larger array would look like using "correlation" configurations. The massive saving in computational cost may realize unique ways of understanding how materials behave.
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Being born very preterm or very low birthweight is associated with continued lower IQ performance into adulthood

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
The average IQ of adults who were born very preterm (VP) or at a very low birth weight (VLBW) has been compared to adults born full term by researchers from the Department of Psychology at the University of Warwick. Researchers have found VP/VLBW children may require special support in their education to boost their learning throughout childhood.
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Climate change-resistant corals could provide lifeline to battered reefs

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
Corals that withstood a severe bleaching event and were transplanted to a different reef maintained their resilient qualities, according to a new study led by Katie Barott of the University of Pennsylvania.
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Depressive symptoms linked to rapid kidney function decline

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
Among individuals with healthy kidneys, those with more frequent depressive symptoms were more likely to show signs of rapid kidney function decline over a median follow-up of 4 years.
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Baylor study uses candy-like models to make STEM accessible to visually impaired students

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A breakthrough study by Bryan Shaw, Ph.D., professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Baylor University, aims to make science more accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired through small, candy-like models.
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New GSA Bulletin articles published ahead of print in May

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
The Geological Society of America regularly publishes articles online ahead of print. For April, GSA Bulletin topics include multiple articles about the dynamics of China and Tibet; new insights into the Chicxulub impact structure; and the dynamic topography of the Cordilleran foreland basin. You can find these articles at https://bulletin.geoscienceworld.org/content/early/recent.
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New tool activates deep brain neurons by combining ultrasound, genetics

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A team at Washington University in St. Louis has developed a new brain stimulation technique using focused ultrasound that is able to turn specific types of neurons in the brain on and off and precisely control motor activity without surgical device implantation.
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Exoskeleton-assisted walking may improve bowel function in people with spinal cord injury

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
"Our results support the idea that walking may have a beneficial effect on bowel function," said Dr. Gorman at the University of Maryland. Subjects in the exoskeletal-assisted walking program saw some improvement in bowel function compared to a control group. "We saw a notable reduction in bowel evacuation time, with 24 percent of participants reporting an improved experience," said Dr. Forrest at Kessler Foundation. "Also, participants' stools trended toward better consistency, supporting our hypothesis that this intervention may improve several measures of bowel function."
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Same difference: Two halves of the hippocampus have different gene activity

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A study of gene activity in the brain's hippocampus, led by UT Southwestern researchers, has identified marked differences between the region's anterior and posterior portions. The findings, published today in Neuron, could shed light on a variety of brain disorders that involve the hippocampus and may eventually help lead to new, targeted treatments.
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Researchers create new CRISPR tools to help contain mosquito disease transmission

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
UC San Diego scientists have developed a genetics toolkit that helps pave the way to a gene drive designed to stop Culex mosquitoes from spreading disease. Much less studied than other genera, Culex mosquitoes spread devastating afflictions stemming from West Nile virus, Japanese encephalitis virus and the pathogen causing avian malaria.
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A fiery past sheds new light on the future of global climate change

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
Centuries-old smoke particles preserved in the ice reveal a fiery past in the Southern Hemisphere and shed new light on the future impacts of global climate change.
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Declining biodiversity in wild Amazon fisheries threatens human diet

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A new study of dozens of wild fish species commonly consumed in the Peruvian Amazon says that people there could suffer major nutritional shortages if ongoing losses in fish biodiversity continue. Furthermore, the increasing use of aquaculture and other substitutes may not compensate.
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Elucidating how the production of antibodies is regulated, one cell at a time

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A study coordinated by Luís Graça, principal investigator at the Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM; Portugal) used lymph nodes, tonsils and blood, to show how the cells that control production of antibodies are formed and act. The results published now in the scientific journal Science Immunology unveiled key aspects about the regulation of antibody production, with significant importance for diseases where antibody production is dysregulated such as autoimmune diseases or allergies.
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Lessening the cost of strategies to reach the Paris Agreement

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A team of researchers offer new insight on conversion factors of greenhouse gases into their CO2 equivalent. The publication in Science Advances puts forward the economic benefits of reassessing periodically conversion factors according to scenarios of global warming.
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Older adults with cerebral palsy need more, receive less physical therapy

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
Older adults with cerebral palsy are more likely to have debilitating musculoskeletal conditions, but our researchers found they receive significantly less physical therapy for those ailments. The lead author says the results, while staggering, support their hypothesis that people with CP receive inequitable health care.
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Exoskeleton therapy improves mobility, cognition and brain connectivity in people with MS

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
"This is particularly exciting because therapy using robotic exoskeletons shows such promise for improving the lives of people with co-occurring mobility and cognitive disability, a cohort that likely has the greatest potential to benefit from this new technology," said Dr. Androwis at Kessler Foundation. "We're eager to design a larger trial to further study these effects. Based on our initial results, we're optimistic that this approach may be superior to the current standard of care."
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Penn researchers discover drug that blocks multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants in mice

Eurekalert - May 28 2021 - 00:05
A small molecule STING agonist was highly protective against the virus that causes COVID-19 and likely other coronaviruses
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