Earth
People born small for gestational age (SGA) have a lower IQ throughout development, however the differences in IQ to those born appropriate for gestational age (AGA) reduce by adulthood. The effects of SGA on IQ are nearly as large as being born into lower socio-economic status or receiving poor parenting in infancy.
There is a clear link between improved gut microbiota and one of our most common cholesterol-lowering drug groups: statins. This is evident from a European study involving researchers from the University of Gothenburg.
Scientists have previously found an association between the gut microbiota and various metabolism-related and cardiovascular diseases. Now the current study, published in the journal Nature, shows improvement in gut microbiota in the participant group who were taking statins.
Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have found two genes that regulate the differentiation of stem cells in the small intestine, offering valuable insight into how the body develops and maintains a healthy gut.
Cells in the lining of the small intestine are replaced around every five days, the quickest rate for any organ in the body. This fast replacement helps the lining cope with the damage it suffers as a result of breaking down food and absorbing nutrients.
The discovery of a tiny insect fossil is unearthing big questions about the global movement of animals and the connection to changes in climate and shifting continents across deep time. The fossil, estimated to be 50 million years old, was found in rocks near the city of Kamloops, British Columbia, but today its relatives live exclusively in Australia.
Widespread hot extremes are seen across the world in recent years, causing heat-related mortality and harmed crops and livestock. In summer 2018, a record-breaking heat wave swept large areas of Northeast Asia. The China Meteorological Administration issued high-temperature warnings for 33 consecutive days. In Japan, at least 71,266 required hospitalization for heat stroke.
To make it worse, 2018 heat wave was probably not a random or an individual case according to a new study published in Environmental Research Letters.
Hartford, CT - 91% of LGBTQ adolescents in a US survey report at least one experience of bias-based bullying, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine by researchers at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut. This number is more than double estimates from previous studies with predominantly heterosexual youth.
In an opinion piece, authors say that adolescents could be more susceptible to negative effects of physical distancing during COIVD-19 as they are in a period of vulnerability where peer interaction is a vital aspect of their social development.
They call for policymakers to give urgent consideration to young people when considering easing of physical distancing measures, and that reopening schools and other social environments for young people should be a priority when it is considered safe to do so.
The origins of human innovation have traditionally been sought in the grasslands and coasts of Africa or the temperate environments of Europe. More extreme environments, such as the tropical rainforests of Asia, have been largely overlooked, despite their deep history of human occupation. A new study provides the earliest evidence for bow-and-arrow use, and perhaps the making of clothes, outside of Africa ~48-45,000 years ago -in the tropics of Sri Lanka.
In order to reveal the population interactions that gave rise to Africa's enormous linguistic, cultural, and economic diversity, an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Africa, Europe, and North America sampled key regions in which current models predict a legacy of significant population interactions. The collaborative study between researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History (MPI-SHH), the National Museums of Kenya and other partners was led by archaeogeneticist Ke Wang and archaeologist Steven Goldstein of MPI-SHH.
Blood vessels are the body's transportation system, carrying oxygen and nutrients to cells and whisking away waste. But this vital mission can also be co-opted by tumors or break down as a result of disease, and this process has been poorly understood. An international collaborative team led by a scientist at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT) in Japan has discovered a mechanism by which the growth of these vessels' inner liner is stimulated, which may lead to therapeutics that could cut vessels off from tumors or help rebuild vessels in degenerative diseases.
Tsukuba Japan -- In Sci-Fi movies, astronauts often enter an inactive state in "hibernation chambers" to cross the vastness of space. This could cut down on the required amount of food and oxygen and to prevent serious side effects from low gravity, such as muscle wasting in zero-G condition. A state of unconsciousness could also potentially minimize psychological challenges in space. Could humans hibernate in the future?
A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that female birds benefit more from extra food in the winter. If females receive additional food, they do not need to reduce their body temperature as much as they would have otherwise, and the chances of surviving cold nights increase.
A billion people rely on rainfall from the Indian summer monsoon (ISM). Its variability may produce impacts both locally and globally. Understanding the variability is essential to make effective adaptation planning for future events.
The variability manifested itself in a decline in monsoon rainfall over north central India starting in the 1950s, which persisted for as long as five decades before a reversal from 1999 onwards. Nailing down the predominant reasons for the decline and recovery has been vexing scientists ever since.
Together with colleagues from the University of Palermo, KFU employees offer a nano preparation based on biocompatible halloysite nanotubes and bacterial pigment prodigiosin; the latter is known to selectively disrupt cancer cells without damaging the healthy ones.
For many years, the world's oceans have suffered from absorbing human-made carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which has led to the decreasing pH of saltwater, known as ocean acidification, and threatened the health of marine organisms and ecosystems. While this process has been well documented, the acidification process is complicated and poorly understood in coastal waters.