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A study led by scientists from the Polytechnic University of Marche (Ancona, Italy) involving researchers from the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM, CSIC) and the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), has determined that fishing trawling causes intensive, long-term biological desertification of the sedimentary seabed ecosystems, diminishing their content in organic carbon and threatening their biodiversity.

Scientists have discovered that the earliest living organisms on Earth were capable of making a mineral that may be found on Mars.

The clay-mineral stevensite has been used since ancient times and was used by Nubian women as a beauty treatment, but scientists had believed deposits could only be formed in harsh conditions like volcanic lava and hot alkali lakes.

Volunteer lay leaders serve as political opinion leaders within churches, with considerable power to deepen — or bridge — gaps between religion and politics, according to a Baylor University study.

The study — "Sunday School Teacher, Culture Warrior: The Politics of Lay Leaders in Three Religious Traditions" — is published in Social Science Quarterly.

People attempting to quit smoking without professional help are approximately 60% more likely to report succeeding if they use e-cigarettes than if they use willpower alone or over-the-counter nicotine replacement therapies such as patches or gum, finds a large UCL (University College London) survey of smokers in England. (1) The results were adjusted for a wide range of factors that might influence success at quitting, including age, nicotine dependence, previous quit attempts, and whether quitting was gradual or abrupt.

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, May 20, 2014 – Myriad Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: MYGN) today presented new data from a clinical validation study of Prolaris at the 2014 American Urological Association (AUA) Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla. The study is the largest validation study to date of any gene-based prognostic test in patients with prostate cancer who were diagnosed by needle biopsy.

A major new Series of papers, published today [Tuesday 20 May] in The Lancet, presents the clearest picture to date of progress and challenges in improving newborn survival around the world, and sets targets that must be achieved by 2030 in order to ensure every newborn has a healthy start.

A major new Series of papers, published today [Tuesday 20 May] in The Lancet, presents the clearest picture to date of progress and challenges in improving newborn survival around the world, and sets targets that must be achieved by 2030 in order to ensure every newborn has a healthy start.

A major new Series of papers, published today [Tuesday 20 May] in The Lancet, presents the clearest picture to date of progress and challenges in improving newborn survival around the world, and sets targets that must be achieved by 2030 in order to ensure every newborn has a healthy start.

A major new Series of papers, published today [Tuesday 20 May] in The Lancet, presents the clearest picture to date of progress and challenges in improving newborn survival around the world, and sets targets that must be achieved by 2030 in order to ensure every newborn has a healthy start.

A major new Series of papers, published today [Tuesday 20 May] in The Lancet, presents the clearest picture to date of progress and challenges in improving newborn survival around the world, and sets targets that must be achieved by 2030 in order to ensure every newborn has a healthy start.

By comparing how gut microbes from human vegetarians and grass-grazing baboons digest different diets, researchers have shown that ancestral human diets, so called "paleo" diets, did not necessarily result in better appetite suppression. The study, published in mBio® the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology, reveals surprising relationships between diet and the release of hormones that suppress eating.

ATS 2014, SAN DIEGO ─ Home testing of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) followed by initiation of home treatment with an auto-titrating continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device reduced costs compared with in-laboratory testing and titration without negatively impacting clinical outcomes, researchers have shown in a new study presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.

ATS 2014, SAN DIEGO ─ In patients with congestive heart failure, obesity and a larger waist size have paradoxically been associated with a better prognosis in the prior investigations. This effect, known as the obesity paradox phenomenon, is now being demonstrated in patients with severe pulmonary hypertension.

ATS 2014, SAN DIEGO ─ Maternal intake of dietary methyl donors during the first trimester of pregnancy modulates the risk of developing childhood asthma at age 7, according to a new study presented at the 2014 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

BOSTON (May 20, 2014)—One of the first studies to analyze the effectiveness of screening survivors of childhood cancer for early signs of impending congestive heart failure (CHF) finds improved health outcomes but suggests that less frequent screening than currently recommended may yield similar clinical benefit. The researchers, in a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, utilized a simulation-based model to estimate the long-term benefits associated with routine screening.