Earth
(Carlisle, Pa.) - Researchers studying lead white pigments on Andean ceremonial drinking vessels known as qeros have found new similarities among these artifacts that could help museums, conservators, historians and scholars better understand the timeline and production of these culturally significant items during the colonial period (1532-1821). In a study published in the journal Heritage Science, researchers used isotope measurements of lead white pigments in the decorative patterns on 20 colonial qeros to reveal linkages among vessels that were unknown previously.
BOSTON - Older adults with dementia tend to be hospitalized more often than those without cognitive impairment. Now a team of investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has found that in recent years, increasing numbers of these hospitalizations were for conditions for which hospitalization can often be avoided with improvements in outpatient care.
What The Study Did: This is a survey study that examined the knowledge, concerns and behaviors of people living in different COVID-19 exposure zones during the first week of the pandemic in Italy.
Authors: Francesco Pagnini, Psy.D., Ph.D., of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.15821)
LA JOLLA--High cholesterol kills. In fact, one in four Americans will die from the consequences of atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaques of fat and cholesterol in the arteries. Statins have helped reduce mortality, but millions are still at risk.
Scientists from the University of Sheffield have found that genetic mutations in MRSA allow it to evolve and become more resistant to antibiotics such as penicillin.
The research, published in PLOS Pathogens, found that genetic mutations in MRSA are allowing the bacteria to become highly resistant to antibiotics without reducing the bacteria's ability to cause disease.
The climate represents the set of atmospheric conditions that characterize a region. Yet these conditions are the result of global interaction between dry land, vegetation, ice, atmosphere and ocean. "Bearing in mind that the oceans cover 75% of the earth's surface, the influence they exert on the climate is very strong, and conversely, the oceans are strongly influenced by climate changes. In our group we are involved in the study of palaeoceanography in which we seek and analyse evidence on how the ocean has changed during various climatic periods or intervals.
An optical fiber made of agar has been produced at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. This device is edible, biocompatible and biodegradable. It can be used in vivo for body structure imaging, localized light delivery in phototherapy or optogenetics (e.g., stimulating neurons with light to study neural circuits in a living brain), and localized drug delivery.
Another possible application is the detection of
microorganisms in specific organs, in which case the probe would be completely absorbed by the body after performing its function.
Consuming a plant-based diet can lower blood pressure even if small amounts of meat and dairy are consumed too, according to new research from the University of Warwick.
Quantum information is a field where the information is encoded into quantum states. Taking advantage of the "quantumness" of these states, we can perform more efficient computations and more secure cryptography compared to their classical counterparts.
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- When our neurons -- the principal cells of the brain -- die, so do we.
Most neurons are created during embryonic development and have no "backup" after birth. Researchers have generally believed that their survival is determined nearly extrinsically, or by outside forces, such as the tissues and cells that neurons supply with nerve cells.
Alaska is getting wetter. A new study spells out what that means for the permafrost that underlies about 85% of the state, and the consequences for Earth's global climate.
The study, published today in Nature Publishing Group journal Climate and Atmospheric Science, is the first to compare how rainfall is affecting permafrost thaw across time, space, and a variety of ecosystems. It shows that increased summer rainfall is degrading permafrost across the state.
A big advance in carbon capture technology could provide an efficient and inexpensive way for natural gas power plants to remove carbon dioxide from their flue emissions, a necessary step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions to slow global warming and climate change.
What The Study Did: Researchers compared long-term risk of death from a solid cancer in patients treated with radioactive iodine, anti-thyroid drugs or surgery for hyperthyroidism.
Authors: Cari M. Kitahara, Ph.D., M.H.S., of the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.9660)
CAMBRIDGE, MA -- As cancer cells evolve, many of their genes become overactive while others are turned down. These genetic changes can help tumors grow out of control and become more aggressive, adapt to changing conditions, and eventually lead the tumor to metastasize and spread elsewhere in the body.
PHILADELPHIA--The self-eating process in embryonic stem cells known as chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA) and a related metabolite may serve as promising new therapeutic targets to repair or regenerate damaged cells and organs, Penn Medicine researchers show in a new study published online in Science.