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Novel autoantibody adds fuel to COVID-19 'firestorm' of inflammation, blood clots
Researchers at Michigan Medicine have discovered another functional autoantibody in COVID-19 patients that contributes to the disease's development and the "firestorm" of blood clots and inflammation it induces. The autoantibody makes it much harder for the body to degrade neutrophil extracellular traps, the toxic webs of DNA and proteins produced by overactive immune cells at heightened levels in COVID patients.
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Of lives and life years: 1918 influenza vs COVID-19
We must not assume that we will be able to replicate a vaccine within 12 months during the next pandemic. Even if this was accomplished, other interventions would be required to control and mitigate well before the availability of a vaccine.
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Program seeks to reduce preventable cancers with free screening, same-day results
George Mason University's Dr. Michelle Williams shares program evaluation results determining the feasibility of offering free, same-day cancer screening and health education to reduce disparities. The program examined how access to free screenings affects participants' knowledge about cancer, self-efficacy for obtaining healthcare, and intentions to change health behaviors. The program had a positive effect on participant's knowledge of cancer screenings and self-efficacy for seeking regular check-ups.
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CNIO researchers clarify the role of the two isoforms of KRAS, the most common oncogene in humans
Even though KRAS4B is the dominant form in cancer, the KRAS4A mutant is also oncogenic, and it is even more active. In the words of the authors, "KRAS4AG12V alone, in the absence of KRAS4B, can induce lung cancer and metastasis in 20 percent of individuals. Our results suggest that for therapies to be effective, the two KRAS isoforms should be targeted."
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Seismic surveys have no significant impact on commercially valuable fish in NW Australia
New research has found marine seismic surveys used in oil and gas exploration are not impacting the abundance or behaviour of commercially valuable fishes in the tropical shelf environment in north-western Australia.
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Stanford researchers use high-speed cameras to reveal bubbles popping like blooming flowers
Researchers at Stanford and the University of Naples study how bubbles form and eventually burst using high-speed cameras and analytical modeling, revealing a new popping process.
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Epicentre of major Amazon droughts and fires saw 2.5 billion trees and vines killed
Triggered by the 2015-16 El Niño, extreme drought and associated mega-wildfires caused the death of around 2.5 billion trees and plants and emitted 495 million tonnes of CO2 from an area that makes up just 1.2 per cent of the entire Brazilian Amazon rainforest, and 0.01 per cent of the whole biome.
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Using archeology to better understand climate change
Led by Université de Montréal, an international team of anthropologists, geographers and earth scientists looks to the past to assess how different cultures have - and will - adapt to global warming.
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Global satellite data shows clouds will amplify global heating
A new approach to analyse satellite measurements of Earth's cloud cover reveals that clouds are very likely to enhance global heating.
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Researchers: HtrA1 augmentation is potential therapy for age-related macular degeneration
Research conducted at the Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine (SCTM) at the University of Utah's John A. Moran Eye Center explains why people carrying a block of genetic variants strongly associated with the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may develop the disease and identifies a potential therapeutic pathway for slowing or even reversing disease progression.
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The climate impact of wild pigs greater than a million cars
By uprooting carbon trapped in soil, wild pigs are releasing around 4.9 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide annually across the globe, the equivalent of 1.1 million cars.
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When money's tight, parents talk less to kids; could this explain the word gap?
Parenting deficiencies have long been blamed for the vocabulary gap between low-income children and their more affluent peers. But new research implicates the economic context in which parenting takes place -- in other words, the wealth gap.
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How cells control mitochondria
Freiburg researchers discover a signaling protein that controls the assembly of human cellular "power plants"
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Curtin study challenges recommended wait time between pregnancies
New Curtin University-led research has called into question existing health advice that mothers wait a minimum of two years after giving birth to become pregnant again, in order to reduce the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as preterm and small-for-gestational age births.
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Angry politicians make angry voters, new study finds
Political anger in the U.S. has reached a fever pitch in recent years. Now, new research shows that ordinary voters may begin to mirror the angry emotions of the politicians they read about in the news.
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Sleep twitches facilitate motor cortex development in rats
Electrical activity in the motor cortex of rats transforms from redundant to complex over the span of four days shortly after birth. Sleep twitches guide this metamorphosis, according to new research published in JNeurosci.
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Robotic neck brace can help analyze cancer treatment impacts
A new robotic neck brace from researchers at Columbia Engineering and their colleagues at Columbia's Department of Otolaryngology may help doctors analyze the impact of cancer treatments on the neck mobility of patients and may help guide their recovery.
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Ocean microbes team up brilliantly to gather food when it's scarce
What's a hungry marine microbe to do when the pickings are slim? It must capture nutrients - nitrogen, phosphorus, or iron - to survive, yet in vast expanses of the ocean, nutrients are extremely scarce. One ingenious solution to this challenge is reported this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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RNA modification may protect against liver disease
An RNA modification may offer protection against non-alcoholic fatty liver, a condition that results from a build-up of fat in the liver and can lead to advanced liver disease, according to a new study by UCLA researchers. The modification may also explain why females tend to have higher fat content in the liver.
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DNA duplication linked to the origin and evolution of pine trees and their relatives
A new study shows that DNA duplication has been vitally important throughout the evolutionary history of gymnosperms, a diverse group of seed plants that includes pines, cypresses, sequoias, ginkgos and cycads.
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