Fwd: Science X Newsletter Wednesday, Jan 6

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Newsletter for January 5, 2016:

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From: Newsletter Phys.org <not-for-reply@physorg.com>
Date: Thu, Jan 7, 2016 at 3:59 AM
Subject: Science X Newsletter Wednesday, Jan 6
To: Pascal Alter <pascal.alter@gmail.com>

Over 700 technical papers and presentations featuring ground-breaking applications from research, engineering, and industry are now available online. Get instant access here: http://goo.gl/ohhzRn
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Dear Pascal Alter,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for January 6, 2016:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Evidence for new state of hydrogen: Discovery gives glimpse of conditions found on other planets
- Team reports that black hole activity can be observed via visible rays
- Spitzer, Hubble find 'twins' of superstar Eta Carinae in other galaxies
- Drought, heat take toll on global crops
- Hand in glove, you tell the robot where to move
- Sexual rebellion and murder among the bees
- Loss of cells in brain's memory center linked to schizophrenia
- Aluminum nanoparticles could improve electronic displays
- Generous mothers are nagged less
- Biological 'clock' discovered in sea turtle shells
- Nanowalls for smartphones
- Flu virus hijacking tactics revealed by scientists, paving way for new treatments
- Humans adding less nitrogen to oceans than models predict
- High-fidelity CRISPR-Cas9 nucleases have no detectable off-target mutations
- Statins may lower risk of heart disease in people with sleep apnea

Nanotechnology news

	Nanowalls for smartphones Researchers at ETH Zurich have manufactured transparent electrodes for use in touchscreens using a novel nanoprinting process. The new electrodes are some of the most transparent and conductive that have ever been developed.
	Aluminum nanoparticles could improve electronic displays Whether showing off family photos on smartphones or watching TV shows on laptops, many people look at liquid crystal displays (LCDs) every day. LCDs are continually being improved, but almost all currently use color technology that fades over time. Now, a team reports in ACS Nano that using aluminum nanostructures could provide a vivid, low-cost alternative for producing digital color.
	Scientists call for new tools to explore the world's microbiomes In October, an interdisciplinary group of scientists proposed forming a Unified Microbiome Initiative (UMI) to explore the world of microorganisms that are central to life on Earth and yet largely remain a mystery. An article in the journal ACS Nano describes the tools scientists will need to understand how microbes interact with each other and with us.
	Using nanoparticles to combat arteriosclerosis In industrialized countries, a particularly high number of people suffer from arteriosclerosis—with fatal consequences: Deposits in the arteries lead to strokes and heart attacks. A team of researchers under the leadership of the University of Bonn has now developed a method for guiding replacement cells to diseased vascular segments using nanoparticles. The scientists demonstrated in mice that the fresh cells actually exert their curative effect in these segments. However, much research remains to be done prior to use in humans. The results are now being published in the renowned journal ACS Nano.

Physics news

	Evidence for new state of hydrogen: Discovery gives glimpse of conditions found on other planets Scientists have recreated an elusive form of the material that makes up much of the giant planets in our solar system, and the sun.
	Researchers discover new fundamental quantum mechanical property Nanotechnologists at the University of Twente research institute MESA+ have discovered a new fundamental property of electrical currents in very small metal circuits. They show how electrons can spread out over the circuit like waves and cause interference effects at places where no electrical current is driven. The geometry of the circuit plays a key role in this so called nonlocal effect. The interference is a direct consequence of the quantum mechanical wave character of electrons and the specific geometry of the circuit. For designers of quantum computers it is an effect to take account of. The results are published in the British journal Scientific Reports.
Grant targets quantum computing's error control challenge A team of researchers led by Duke University and the University of Maryland has been tapped by the nation's "Q Branch" to take quantum computing efforts to the next level using one of the field's leading technologies—ion traps.

Earth news

	Assessing nature's carbon sinks Protected areas such as rainforests occupy more than one-tenth of the Earth's landscape, and provide invaluable ecosystem services, from erosion control to pollination to biodiversity preservation. They also draw heat-trapping carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and store it in plants and soil through photosynthesis, yielding a net cooling effect on the planet.
	Drought, heat take toll on global crops Drought and extreme heat slashed global cereal harvests between 1964 and 2007 - and the impact of these weather disasters was greatest in North America, Europe and Australasia, according to a new study published in Nature led by UBC and McGill University researchers.
	'Underground battery' could store energy, CO2 Meeting the Paris Climate Agreement goal of limiting the increase in the global average temperature to well below two degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels will require increased use of renewable energy and reducing the CO2 intensity of fossil energy use.
	Humans adding less nitrogen to oceans than models predict A new study finds that human activities are likely contributing far less nitrogen to the open ocean than many atmospheric models suggest. That's generally good news, but it also nullifies a potential side benefit to additional nitrogen, says Meredith Hastings, associate professor of Earth, environmental and planetary sciences at Brown University and one of the study's co-authors.
Did famine worsen the Black Death? When the Black Death swept through Europe in 1347, it was one of the deadliest disease outbreaks in human history, eventually killing between a third and half of Europeans.
	Peering into the secret world of life beneath winter snows Snow covers some 40 percent of Earth's land masses year in and year out. And, as scientists are discovering, snow is critical to animals and plants that live in northern latitudes, as well as those in far southern latitudes like Patagonia at the tip of South America. It ensures their—and our—survival.
	Deep-water ocean circulation may have awakened marine biodiversity climate change In a new study, a research team headed from the Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, has shown a direct link between the greatest increase in Phanerozoic marine biodiversity and the onset of a sudden icehouse.
	Human activities trigger hypoxia in freshwaters around the globe A new study shows that the increase in human activities and nutrient release have led to the current rise in the number of hypoxic lakes worldwide.
	Redirected flood waters lead to unintended consequences An intricate system of basins, channels, and levees called the Headwaters Diversion carries water from the eastern Missouri Ozark Plateau to the Mississippi River south of Cape Girardeau. The system protects 1.2 million acres of agricultural lands in southeast Missouri from both overflow from the Mississippi River during flooding events and from Ozark Plateau runoff. Historical and more recent extensive rainfall and subsequent flooding prompted University of Illinois researcher Ken Olson to look more closely at where the excess or diverted water goes.
	How to stop a castle falling into a river Fierce storms and floods have made this a very difficult winter for many parts of the UK, not least the owners of a historic castle in Aberdeenshire, close to the Queen's residence at Balmoral. Some 20 metres of land behind the 450-year-old Abergeldie castle has collapsed into the River Dee, leaving its rear wall just feet from the bank.
	NASA sees Tropical Cyclone Ula weakening Tropical Cyclone Ula continued to move west, passing south of Fiji when NASA's Aqua satellite passed overhead and captured an image of the weakening storm.
	One crop, two ways, multiple benefits Nitrogen fixation is one of the best examples of cooperation in nature. Soil microbes - naturally occurring bacteria in the soil - work with plants to pull nitrogen from the air. They turn the nitrogen into a form the plant is able to use. In return, the plant lets the microbes eat some of the sugars it makes.

Astronomy & Space news

	Team reports that black hole activity can be observed via visible rays All you need is a 20 cm telescope to observe a nearby, active black hole.
	Spitzer, Hubble find 'twins' of superstar Eta Carinae in other galaxies Eta Carinae, the most luminous and massive stellar system within 10,000 light-years, is best known for an enormous eruption seen in the mid-19th century that hurled at least 10 times the sun's mass into space. This expanding veil of gas and dust, which still shrouds Eta Carinae, makes it the only object of its kind known in our galaxy. Now a study using archival data from NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes has found five objects with similar properties in other galaxies for the first time.
	New method solves 40 year-old mystery on the size of shadowy galaxies Using the world's largest telescopes, researchers have discovered ancient cold gas clouds larger than galaxies in the early Universe. The discovery was announced today at a press conference at the 227th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Orlando, Florida.
	Globular clusters could host interstellar civilizations Globular star clusters are extraordinary in almost every way. They're densely packed, holding a million stars in a ball only about 100 light-years across on average. They're old, dating back almost to the birth of the Milky Way. And according to new research, they also could be extraordinarily good places to look for space-faring civilizations.
	Testing the James Webb Space Telescope with radio waves The instruments that will fly aboard NASA's James Webb Space Telescope not only have to be tough enough to survive in the cold of space, but they also have to work properly in the electromagnetic environment on the spacecraft, so they're tested for both. Recently, they passed a test for the latter in a very unique room.
	Image: The ExoMars 2016 Schiaparelli module in Baikonur On 14 March, the launch window opens for ExoMars 2016, ESA's next mission to Mars, composed of the Trace Gas Orbiter and Schiaparelli.
	Image: Taurid meteor captured against Northern lights ESA organises regular rocket launches together with the Swedish Space Corporation from northern Sweden in Esrange, Kiruna. The 13th Maser campaign saw experiments being carried 270 km up for six minutes of weightlessness.
	Solar analemma 2015 If you took a picture of the Sun every day, always at the same hour and from the same location, would the Sun appear in the same spot in the sky? A very fine image, compiled by astrophotographer Giuseppe Petricca from Italy, proves the answer is no.

Technology news

	Kia sees autonomous cars by 2030 South Korean automaker Kia said it envisions introducing an autonomous car using its own technology by 2030 under a new initiative dubbed "drive wise."
	Volkswagen launches BUDD-e, 'smart' electric revamp of minivan Meet the revamped Volkswagen Kombi—once a hippie favorite, the minivan has been transformed into an electric, connected vehicle of the future.
	App that rates drivers' behavior yields promising safety results on the road Mobile-based telematics—apps and hardware that measure driving behaviors—may be the future of safer roads. Increasingly, people are using these technologies to improve their own driving habits, while insurance companies use the data to offer rewards and discounts to safe drivers.
	New ways your smartwatch (and phone) may be spying on you A computer science Masters student Tony Beltramelli at the IT University of Copenhagen has demonstrated that software running on a smartwatch could be used to record a user's passwords and PINs. He managed this by using the smartwatch's motion sensors and analysing the patterns of data from the sensors when tapping a keypad to enter a PIN.
	Harnessing the energy of small bending motions For many applications such as biomedical, mechanical, or environmental monitoring devices, harnessing the energy of small motions could provide a small but virtually unlimited power supply. While a number of approaches have been attempted, researchers at MIT have now developed a completely new method based on electrochemical principles, which could be capable of harvesting energy from a broader range of natural motions and activities, including walking.
	Levl device helps dieters gauge how much fat they are burning with breath sample Seattle based Levl is demoing a device at CES: 2016 that is supposed to allow people to see how much fat their body is burning—all they have to do is breathe into a "breath pod," plug the pod into a base and then wait a moment to see a number that is supposed to represent the fat burning rate of their body.
	Ransomware ported to web languages poses serious threat Security experts around the world have been reporting that there is a new type of ransomware threat on the Internet—one that has been written using HTML, CSS and Javascript—the programming languages of web pages. The threat is perceived by many in the field as an ominous sign of things to come because the code has been placed on dark web sites that are accessible to anyone willing to share the proceeds of an attack with the developers.
	New efficiency record set with dual-junction solar cell Scientists at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and at the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) have jointly set a new world record for converting non-concentrated (1-sun) sunlight into electricity using a dual-junction III-V/Si solar cell.
	Hand in glove, you tell the robot where to move CES in Las Vegas is one event that clearly proves there is a thin line between adulthood and childhood when it comes to curiosity, fun and, in 2016, interest in controlling robots. One of the stands that many found impossible to ignore was ZeroUI's demo of its Ziro hand gesture controlled robotics kit.
	Windows 10 keeps growing, now running on 200M devices Microsoft's Windows 10 is running on 200 million personal computers and other devices, the company says.
Under Armour launches brand's first suite of fitness-tracking products Under Armour has unveiled its first collection of fitness-tracking products to go with the brand's UA Record health and fitness app - including a smart shoe and a system to track activity, sleep and nutrition.
	VW exec sees US fixes soon in emissions test cheating The top executive of the Volkswagen brand worldwide says he's optimistic that U.S. environmental regulators will approve fixes within the coming weeks or months for diesel engines that cheat on emissions tests.
	Huawei wants to be world leader in smartphones in 'three or four years' Chinese electronics giant Huawei hopes to overtake US rival Apple and Korea's Samsung to become the world's leading maker of smartphones in "three or four years," a top executive said in a newspaper interview on Wednesday.
	Zero emission cars in Norway win world's biggest market share Zero emission cars accounted for 17.1 percent of new car registrations last year in Norway, the industry said on Wednesday, the highest market share for clean vehicles anywhere in the world.
	Intelligent machine tool prototype operates like a 3D printer A research group led by Professor Shirase Keiichi of the Kobe University Graduate School of Engineering has developed a prototype machine tool that can manufacture metal components and operates like a 3D printer. The prototype was exhibited at Emo Milano 2015, one of the three largest international machine tool trade shows. This development could speed up the manufacture of custom-made products such as dental implants and artificial bones, potentially shortening production times and reducing costs.
	What powers Facebook and Google's AI – and how computers could mimic brains Google and Facebook have open sourced the designs for the computing hardware that powers the artificial intelligence logic used in their products. These intelligent algorithms power Google's search and recommendation functions, Facebook's Messenger digital assistant, M – and of course both firms' use of targeted advertising.
	Wi-Fi devices goldmine for investigators Timely access to Wi-Fi devices at crime scenes could provide police with vital evidence, including placing suspects at the location.
	Polymers render concrete fire-resistant Self-compacting high-performance concrete (SCHPC) has till now suffered from one weakness – when exposed to fire it flakes and splits, which reduces its loadbearing capacity. Empa scientists have now developed a method of manufacturing fire-resistant self-compacting high-performance concrete which maintains its mechanical integrity under these conditions.
	How 3-D printing threatens our patent system Remember Napster or Grokster? Both services allowed users to share computer files – usually digital music – that infringed the copyrights for those songs.
	Starboard seeks change in Yahoo leadership, strategy A big Yahoo investor is asking for a leadership change at the beleaguered company and pushing for the spinoff of its core Internet business.
	Renewable energy for state renewable portfolio standards yielded sizable benefits A new study estimates that $2.2 billion in benefits came from reduced greenhouse gas emissions and $5.2 billion from reductions in other air pollution for state renewable portfolio standard (RPS) policies operating in 2013. The report also shows national water withdrawals and consumption were reduced by 830 billion gallons and 27 billion gallons in 2013, respectively. The report, entitled A Retrospective Analysis of the Benefits and Impacts of U.S. Renewable Portfolio Standards, was conducted by researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and evaluates the benefits and other impacts of RPS policies.
App-y holidays: Apple says Jan. 1 biggest day for app store Apple had an app-y holiday season.
The latest in gadgets: Sony shows off a new color TV (Update) The latest developments surrounding the consumer-electronics show in Las Vegas known as CES (all times local):
	Imec and Cloudtag collaborate on high quality frictionless wearables for lifestyle coaching Cloudtag, the company that brings accurate data and personalization to the health, wellbeing and fitness markets, and imec, the world-leading nanoelectronics research center, today presented the first results of their collaboration on accurate frictionless wearable health solutions. Cloudtag Track, a new wearable fitness tracker, that was launched today at CES 2016, combines fitness and health monitoring with design, to pave the way to innovation in fitness wearables as well as in the care, cure and prevention cycle by providing immediate access to accurate medical data and personalized feedback.
	NRL tests cooperative soaring concept for sustained flight of UAV sailplanes The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), in collaboration with the Air Vehicle Intelligence and Autonomy (AVIA) Lab at Pennsylvania State University (PSU), completed testing of cooperative autonomous soaring algorithms used to keep unmanned sailplanes aloft for sustained flight durations—demonstrating the concept of shared soaring data between two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in flight.

Chemistry news

	Cleaning wastewater with pond scum A blob of algae scooped from a fountain on South Street almost two years ago, has seeded a crop of the green stuff that Drexel University researchers claim is more effective at treating wastewater than many of the processes employed in municipal facilities today. The algae is a functional ingredient of a bioreactor system designed by Drexel environmental engineers to remove several chemicals from wastewater at once—shortcutting a process that normally takes multiple steps, expensive ingredients, and a great deal of time.
	Research might lead to a cheaper, more efficient, hydrogen economy Researchers have worked out how some bacteria rip hydrogen apart to produce energy, just like a biological fuel cell. In the process they question the current ideas of how this happens and possibly move one step closer to a cheaper, more efficient, hydrogen economy. The research is published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology.
	Insulin on demand: A biochemical explanation for the success of billion-dollar diabetes drugs The protein targets of a class of 'blockbuster' diabetes drugs have been identified by A*STAR researchers and may help explain varying type-2 patient responses to the drugs.
	Plastics of the future may be made from sulfur, not oil, putting waste to good use What has chemistry ever done for me, you might ask? Just as Dustin Hoffman was told by one of his would-be mentors in The Graduate, one answer is plastics – one of the greatest chemical innovations of the 20th century.
	Leaf-mimicking device harnesses light to purify water For years, scientists have been pursuing ways to imitate a leaf's photosynthetic power to make hydrogen fuel from water and sunlight. In a new twist, a team has come up with another kind of device that mimics two of a leaf's processes—photosynthesis and transpiration—to harness solar energy to purify water. Their development, reported in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, could help address issues of water scarcity.
Grad students honored for their research at Materials Research Society meeting MIT graduate students Kelsey Stoerzinger, Scott Grindy, and Ritchie Chen won Silver Awards at the Materials Research Society (MRS) 2015 Fall Meeting in Boston. They were among 29 Gold or Silver Award winners who were recognized for exceptional ability and a promising future in materials research based on oral presentations given on Dec. 1, 2015.
Wrapping up a year of landmark chemistry news From a critical international climate pact to corporate mega mergers, 2015 was packed with history-making events in the chemistry world sure to have an impact far into the future. Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, highlights the year's biggest moments in chemistry research, policy and business

Biology news

	People face subconscious urges to over-eat in winter, research shows People have evolved to have subconscious urges to over-eat, and limited ability to avoid becoming obese, especially in winter, a University of Exeter study has found.
	Monitoring chicken flock behaviour could help combat leading cause of food poisoning A new technique that monitors the movement of chickens can be used to predict which flocks are at risk of becoming infected with Campylobacter - the most common bacterial source of food poisoning in humans in the UK.
	Researchers discover link between stress and unhealthy microbiomes Red squirrels living in a low-stress environment harbour healthier communities of micro-organisms, a result that might hold implications for human health, according to a new University of Guelph-led study.
	Australian giant monitor lizards trained to avoid eating toxic toads Australian scientists Wednesday said they had devised an "innovative method of conservation" through feeding giant monitor lizards small cane toads so they won't be killed by larger-sized amphibians.
	How two-tone cats get their patches comes to light in cell study Scientists have discovered how the distinctive piebald patches seen in black and white cats and some horses are formed in the womb.
	New technique allows tracking of gene expression over generations of cells as they specialize By combining sophisticated RNA sequencing technology with a new device that isolates single cells and their progeny, MIT researchers can now trace detailed family histories for several generations of cells descended from one "ancestor."
	Selective expression of genes through epigenetics can regulate the social status of african cichlid fish For a small African fish species, a colorful dominant male does better in life, winning access to food and females. New research by Stanford biologists suggests that this lucky outcome is regulated at a genetic level, by turning genes on and off.
	Heart is fishy defence against ocean's dead zones New research has revealed how the heart is one of the major factors which determine whether a fish lives or dies in oceanic dead zones.
	Leopard sharks navigate with their nose Olfaction may contribute to shark ocean navigation, likely based on their ability to sense chemical changes in the water as they swim, according to a study published January 6, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Andrew Nosal from UC San Diego and colleagues.
	Study links life's milestones to a non-circadian biological rhythm in teeth The circadian rhythm, or 'daily biological clock,' controls much of an organism's regular pace of development, and this growth paradigm has been the focus of intense molecular, cellular, pharmacological, and behavioral, research for decades. But then, why do rats mature faster than humans?
	High-fidelity CRISPR-Cas9 nucleases have no detectable off-target mutations A new engineered version of the gene-editing CRISPR-Cas9 nuclease appears to robustly abolish the unwanted, off-target DNA breaks that are a significant current limitation of the technology, reducing them to undetectable levels. In their report receiving advance online publication in Nature, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers describe how altering the Cas9 enzyme to reduce non-specific interactions with the target DNA may greatly expand applications of the gene-editing technology.
	Biological 'clock' discovered in sea turtle shells Radiocarbon dating of atomic bomb fallout found in sea turtle shells can be used to reliably estimate the ages, growth rates and reproductive maturity of sea turtle populations in the wild, a new study led by Duke University and NOAA researchers finds.
	Flu virus hijacking tactics revealed by scientists, paving way for new treatments Scientists at Imperial College London have discovered how flu viruses 'hijack' cell machinery when they infect the body. The findings, published in the journal Nature, may pave the way for more effective antiviral treatments for pandemics and for seasonal flu, which infects over 800 million people worldwide every year.
	Generous mothers are nagged less If a mother is already a generous provider, her offspring will nag her less, according to new research in mice by University of Manchester scientists.
	Sexual rebellion and murder among the bees Scientists revealed Wednesday the trigger that can plunge a colony of obedient and sterile worker bees dutifully serving their queen into a chaotic swarm of sexual rebellion and regicide.
	Bacteria attack lignin with enzymatic tag team The molecules that impart strength to paper, bamboo and wood-frame buildings—lignin and cellulose—have long stymied biofuels researchers by locking away more than half of a plant's energy-yielding sugar. In a study that could point the way to biofuels processes of the future, scientists from Rice University, the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Joint BioEnergy Institute at Emeryville, Calif., have discovered how two bacterial enzymes work as a team to break apart lignin.
	Ancient protein flexibility can drive 'new' functions A mechanism by which stress hormones inhibit the immune system, which appeared to be relatively new in evolution, may actually be hundreds of millions of years old.
	New methods help advance infectious disease forecasting While tremendous progress has been made to eliminate malaria worldwide, about 3.2 billion people—nearly half the world's population—are at risk of the disease, according to the World Health Organization. New tools to help advance infectious disease forecasting are needed.
	EPA says pesticide harms bees in some cases A major pesticide harms honeybees when used on cotton and citrus but not on other big crops like corn, berries and tobacco, the Environmental Protection Agency found.
	A high quality bread wheat reference sequence will be available in less than two years The International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC) announced today the production of a whole genome assembly of bread wheat, the most widely grown cereal in the world, significantly accelerating global research into crop improvement. The project consisted of producing a whole genome assembly of the bread wheat variety Chinese Spring based on Illumina short sequence reads assembled with NRGene's DeNovoMAGICTM software.
Integrin clusters are the universal units of cell adhesion Scientists from the Mechanobiology Institute, Singapore (MBI) at the National University of Singapore have discovered the universal building blocks that cells use to form initial connections with the surrounding environment. These early adhesions have a consistent size of 100 nanometres, are made up of a cluster of around 50 integrin proteins and are the same even when the surrounding surface is hard or soft. Deciphering the universal nature of adhesion formation may reveal how tumour cells sense and migrate on surfaces of different rigidity, which is a hallmark of metastasis, the devastating ability of cancer to spread throughout the body. This study was published in the 7 December 2015 issue of Developmental Cell.
	Noninvasive solution to wombat conservation Australia's critically endangered northern hairy-nosed wombats might not know it yet, but researchers from The University of Queensland are working on a wee solution to their population problems.
	Chickadees perceive acoustic differences based on geography and sex Not all birdsong is created equal. Though the melodies of many songbird species vary geographically, the songs of black-capped chickadees show remarkable consistency across most of the species' North American range.
	Genetics discovery sheds new light on function of Y chromosome gene Scientists from UH Mānoa have uncovered substantial new knowledge about the function of the Y chromosome gene.
	A protein biomarker confirms the presence of stem cells that maintain ovaries Stem cell activity in the outer lining of the ovary, now identified in mice by A*STAR researchers, will elucidate normal ovarian activity and offer insights into the origins of disease.
	Receptors may be able to turn genes on and off by taking a newly-discovered route to the heart of the cell A new route has been identified, through which cell surface receptors can reach the cell nucleus and potentially control gene expression. The discovery by A*STAR researchers could open the door to a new class of drugs to fight cancer and other diseases.
	Fish ladders promote genetic exchange Hydroelectric power plants, weirs and waterfalls are often insurmountable barricades for fish. This can have a significant impact on the genetic structure of the separate populations. Whether and to what extent fish ladders mitigate this negative effect is now being investigated for the first time. An Eawag research team studying the chub species has been able to show that fish ladders do indeed promote genetic exchange between different populations. The effects of the barriers cannot, however, be completely negated.
	Killer whales feast on salmon in summer Salmon are the primary summer food source for an endangered population of killer whales in the Pacific Northwest, according to an analysis of fish DNA in killer whale poop published Jan. 6, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Michael Ford from the National Marine Fisheries Service and colleagues.
	Twenty new freshwater fish species uncovered in Australia Researchers have discovered a record 20 new fish species while conducting fieldwork in the remote Kimberley, unveiling it as Australia's most biodiverse region for freshwater fish.
	Fish-flavored cat food could contribute to feline hyperthyroidism Over the past three decades, the number of cats diagnosed with hyperthyroidism has increased. According to research reports, many factors such as exposure to flame retardants could be responsible, and now a new study in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology points in another direction. It suggests that fish-flavored cat food could be among the culprits.
	Forensic entomologists mite start looking at acarids for clues In 1879, long before TV shows like CSI and Bones created a generation of armchair forensic entomologists, Jean Pierre Mégnin, one of the first scientists to use insect evidence to aid death investigations, examined the desiccated body of a female infant found in a vacant lot in Paris.
	Researchers develop technology to determine animal male sex selection Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) researchers have developed a low cost technology related to sex select semen that can be used with artificial insemination in animals.
	Measuring Africa's unsustainable hunting on land—by sea Scientists hoping to help stem the rate of unsustainable hunting in West and Central Africa have developed two monitoring indicators based in part on methods used to track populations trends of organisms in an entirely different ecosystem: the sea.
	Latent effects of blizzard a concern for cow-calf producers As the snow melts away from Winter Storm Goliath and cattle are gathered back into pens and pastures, cow-calf producers should continue to watch their animals for lingering after-effects, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service specialist.
New app to assess powdery mildew on grapes Visual assessment of the grape and wine sector's most costly disease, powdery mildew, will be easier with a new, free smart-phone app developed by University of Adelaide researchers and collaborators.
	One, two, four, eight – lessons from dividing cells The IMCB was established in 1987 at the National University of Singapore before becoming an autonomous research institute of A*STAR and moving to Biopolis in 2004. The IMCB strives to maintain the scientific excellence of principal investigator-driven research and at the same time aims to promote collaborative team-based projects of medical and industrial relevance. Funded primarily by the A*STAR Biomedical Research Council, the IMCB's research activities focus on four major fields: animal models of development and disease, cancer genetics and therapeutics, cell biology in health and disease, and structural biology and drug discovery.
	NREL's Min Zhang keeps her 'hugs' happy, leading to biofuel breakthroughs National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Senior Scientist Min Zhang has a special relationship with Zymomonas mobilis, a rod-shaped bacterium that has bioethanol-producing capabilities. Of her 80 peer-reviewed papers and 21 U.S. patents in the field of biochemistry and biofuels, many reference this sugar-eating 'bug.'
	Science-driven strategies for more effective endangered species recovery The Endangered Species Act (ESA), which quietly passed its 42nd birthday last week, has shielded hundreds of species in the United States from extinction and dramatically achieved full recovery for a celebrated few. Flexibility of implementation is one of the ESA's great strengths, allowing for adaptation in response to new knowledge and changing social and environmental conditions.

Medicine & Health news

	Exercise could work as treatment for prostate cancer A newly-launched Cancer Research UK study could be the first step towards exercise training being introduced as a new NHS treatment for prostate cancer.
Insulin-producing pancreatic cells created from human skin cells Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) have successfully converted human skin cells into fully-functional pancreatic cells. The new cells produced insulin in response to changes in glucose levels, and, when transplanted into mice, the cells protected the animals from developing diabetes in a mouse model of the disease.
	Researchers coax human stem cells to form complex tissues A new technique for programming human stem cells to produce different types of tissue on demand may ultimately allow personalized organs to be grown for transplant patients.
	Early trial shows injectable agent illuminates cancer during surgery Doctors at the Duke University School of Medicine have tested a new injectable agent that causes cancer cells in a tumor to fluoresce, potentially increasing a surgeon's ability to locate and remove all of a cancerous tumor on the first attempt. The imaging technology was developed through collaboration with scientists at Duke, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Lumicell Inc.
	Loss of cells in brain's memory center linked to schizophrenia Scientists at Columbia University's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC), and the Université Paris Descartes have found that deficits in social memory—a crucial yet poorly understood feature of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia—may be due to a decrease in the number of a particular class of brain cells, called inhibitory neurons, in a little-explored region within the brain's memory center.
	New drug may overcome treatment resistance in a high-risk children's cancer Pediatric oncologists from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have reported their latest results in devising new treatments for stubbornly deadly forms of the childhood cancer neuroblastoma.
	Statins may lower risk of heart disease in people with sleep apnea A new study conducted at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) has revealed some of the underlying mechanisms that may increase the risk of heart disease in people with sleep apnea. The study also found that statins—the cholesterol-lowering medications commonly prescribed to combat heart disease—may help reverse this process.
New strategy aims to enhance efficacy and safety of bone repair treatment Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP2) is used clinically to promote bone repair. However, the high BMP2 concentrations required to stimulate bone growth in humans may produce life-threatening adverse effects such as cervical swelling in spinal fusion procedures, a problem that prompted an FDA warning in 2008. Now, a team of clinicians and engineers has shown that adding the protein kinase C-binding protein NELL-1 (Nel-like molecule-1) to BMP2 therapy may allow clinicians to achieve better results at lower - and safer - BMP2 doses. Their findings are reported in The American Journal of Pathology.
	Heavy waiters mean heavier meals Whether you order a dessert or a drink might depend on your waiter. It's not what they say; it's how much they weigh.
How you manage your emails may be bad for your health New research suggests that it's not just the volume of emails that causes stress; it's our well-intentioned habits and our need to feel in control that backfires on us.
Skin bacteria help cancer cells grow Our skin is covered in millions of bacteria and most of them help keep us healthy. However, for patients with lymphoma, it may be a rather different story, as new research from the University of Copenhagen shows that toxins in the staphylococcus bacteria help cancer cells gain control over healthy cells. The Danish Cancer Society's Break Cancer Collection contributed DKK 3 million (US$0.5 million) to the research project.
	Antibiotics pave way for C. diff infections by killing bile acid-altering bacteria New research from North Carolina State University and the University of Michigan finds that bile acids which are altered by bacteria normally living in the large intestine inhibit the growth of Clostridium difficile, or C. diff. C. diff is a harmful bacterium that can cause painful and sometimes fatal infections. The work sheds light on the ways in which some commonly used antibiotics can promote C. diff infections by killing off the bile acid-altering microbes.
	Researchers see potential role for dance in treating neurodegenerative disorders Millions of Americans dance, recreationally or professionally. How many of those who ballroom dance, foxtrot, break dance, or line dance realize that they are doing something positive for their brains?
	Sounding the alarm on a future Alzheimer's disease epidemic We're living longer. The number of U.S. adults 65 and older—roughly 40 million as of the 2010 census—is expected to nearly double to 71 million by 2030 and to reach 98 million by 2060. In much of the rest of the world, the story is the same. But if the aging trend illustrates the success of public health strategies, it also raises the specter of a major public health crisis—a sharp rise in the number of people living with Alzheimer's disease.
	Researchers identify DNA repair enzyme as a potential brain cancer drug target Rapidly dividing cells rely on an enzyme called Dicer to help them repair the DNA damage that occurs as they make mistakes in copying their genetic material over and over for new cells. UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers have built on the discovery of Dicer's role in fixing DNA damage to uncover a new potential strategy to kill rapidly dividing, cancerous cells in the brain.
Children of murdered women run higher risk of mental disorder Research from Karolinska Institutet shows that the offspring of women murdered by their partners run an elevated risk of mental disorder, substance abuse and criminal behaviour.
	Tiny mesh tube devices to treat brain aneurysms An Oxford spin-out is developing advanced tiny metallic mesh tube devices invented by engineers and clinicians at the University to treat patients suffering from brain aneurysms.
	Study finds cognitive function improved in football players who drank new chocolate milk Fifth Quarter Fresh, a new, high-protein chocolate milk, helped high school football players improve their cognitive and motor function over the course of a season, even after experiencing concussions, a new preliminary University of Maryland study shows.
Men over 60 who pay for sex use less protection and purchase more sex as they age A new study published today in the American Journal of Men's Health surveyed American men between the ages of 60 and 84 who pay for sex and found that the older they were, the more frequently they paid for sex and the more likely they were to have experienced unprotected sexual intercourse multiple times with their favorite commercial sex providers.
	Does urban living make us gain (or lose) weight? The citizens of Lausanne may provide some insight into the causes of obesity. The extra weight carried by people living in the working-class neighborhoods of the western side of the city defies the usual explanations, and urbanism may have something to do with it.
	Study shows how alcohol effects food consumption A researcher from the University's Institute of Psychology, Health and Society has published a paper in Health Psychology about the adverse effect alcohol has on a person's inhibitory control when it comes to food.
	Disease-causing regions of the genome that affect gene expression levels are mapped with a new method A new technique for pinpointing the exact DNA regions that impact gene regulation lays the groundwork for identifying new drug targets and for developing diagnostics to predict disease risk, A*STAR scientists report.
	Sharp images of moving tumors By cleverly combining two medical imaging techniques, A*STAR scientists have found a way to produce high-resolution images of the lungs that is both high resolution and accounts for lung movement due to breathing1. The method is expected to greatly assist clinicians when they target tumors in the lungs during radiotherapy.
	The age at which eczema appears in young children may indicate its cause A*STAR researchers have shown that eczema has different risk factors depending on its age of onset, after evaluating more than 1,000 Asian newborns over in an 18-month study.
	Measuring the mechanical forces of disease "All these complicated diseases that we don't have a good handle on—they all have this mechanical component. Well why is that?"
	Student develops technique to diagnose cancer from a single drop of blood What if a physician could effectively diagnose cancer from one drop of a patient's blood?
	A fighting chance of survival—life-saving stents for heart attacks A study of 300,000 heart attack patients, led by the University of Leeds, has found rapid rates in the uptake of a treatment which improves a patient's chances of survival after a major heart attack.
	Is your toddler ready for reading lessons? Even before they can read, children as young as 3 years of age are beginning to understand how a written word is different than a simple drawing—a nuance that could provide an important early indicator for children who may need extra help with reading lessons, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.
Is there a connection between your age at menopause and later depression? A review of medical literature suggests older age at menopause was associated with a lower risk of depression for women in later life. Eleni Th Petridou, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece, and coauthors included 14 studies in a meta-analysis that represented nearly 68,000 women.
High rate of symptoms, hospitalization following gastric bypass surgery for obesity Although the vast majority of patients reported improved well-being after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery, the prevalence of symptoms such as abdominal pain and fatigue were high and nearly one-third of patients were hospitalized, according to a study published online by JAMA Surgery.
	Toenail trim saves lab mice from common, life-threatening skin condition In a new study, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers report finding an easy method to cure laboratory mice of a common, life-threatening skin disease: A pedicure.
	Researchers identify cause of heart failure in pregnant women Each year approximately 1 in 1,000 pregnant women will experience peripartum cardiomyopathy, an uncommon form of often severe heart failure that occurs in the final month of pregnancy or up to five months following delivery. But the cause of peripartum cardiomyopathy has been largely unknown - until now. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania analyzed the genetic variants that have been associated with another form of inherited cardiomyopathy, and determined that peripartum cardiomyopathy is often the result of a genetic mutation. The findings of this study are detailed in this week's New England Journal of Medicine.
ALS protein dynamics highlight delicate balance between self-association and aggregation The ALS-related protein TDP-43 takes the first steps toward pathologic aggregation as part of its normal function, according to a new study publishing in the Open Access journal PLOS Biology on Jan. 6, 2016. The study, by Liangzhong Lim, Jianxing Song, and colleagues at the National University of Singapore, supports the emerging idea that protein aggregation in neurologic disease may be an exaggeration of the normal functions of the aggregating proteins.
	First clinical practice guidelines call for lifelong maintenance of restored teeth UConn School of Dental Medicine's Dr. Avinash Bidra is the lead author of the first national clinical practice guidelines for caring for patients with teeth restorations such as crowns, bridges, veneers and implants.
Cancer drug shows promise for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy A drug commonly used to treat leukaemia is showing potential as a treatment that could slow the progression of the muscle-wasting condition, Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
	Study ties autism risk to prenatal exposure to asthma drugs (HealthDay)—Children whose mothers took certain asthma drugs during pregnancy may have a slightly increased risk of autism, a new study suggests.
	Pesticide in milk years ago may be linked to signs of Parkinson's (HealthDay)—Men who drank milk that may have been tainted with a pesticide when they were young might be more likely to develop signs of Parkinson's disease, according to a study published online Dec. 9 in Neurology.
	For HIV-infected, number of daily pills decreasing (HealthDay)—For HIV-infected patients, the number of pills and doses of antiretrovirals has decreased over the past seven years, according to a study published online Dec. 30 in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics.
	Many patients using e-mail as first method of provider contact (HealthDay)—For patients with chronic conditions, the ability to communicate with their doctor via e-mail may help improve their health, according to a study published online Dec. 21 in the American Journal of Managed Care.
	Less prostate cancer screening may delay treatment for earlier onset cancers The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation against regular prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer (PCa) has been in place for two and a half years. Although the number of prostate needle biopsies (PNB) has been reduced, patients who undergo PNB are significantly more likely to be diagnosed with high risk disease, and detection of intermediate risk, potentially curable PCa has likely decreased. While "over diagnosis" and "overtreatment" may have been impacted, there is concern that diagnosis of treatable cancers will be delayed, according to investigators reporting in The Journal of Urology.
Winship multiple myeloma study in The Lancet A landmark Phase II study led by Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University and instrumental in the recent approval of a new multiple myeloma treatment was published online today in The Lancet, one of the oldest and most prestigious medical journals in the world.
Buprenorphine found superior to Methadone in treating infants born in drug withdrawal A study of two opioids used to wean babies born in withdrawal from drugs their mothers have taken shows that buprenorphine is superior to methadone in reducing duration of treatment and length of hospital stay.
Why low oxygen levels soon after birth may raise risk for learning and behavioral disorders New research published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, shows that the development of white matter in the mouse brains is delayed when they are exposed to chronic low oxygen levels shortly after birth. If true in humans, this may help explain why infants born with cyanotic heart disease, prematurity and/or severe lung disease often exhibit developmental disabilities that effect learning during childhood, years after the low-oxygen exposure. This knowledge may inform future studies focused on the development of effective treatment strategies.
	Researchers uncover new details linking stress, fat metabolism If you're under constant stress and can't lose weight, there might be a protein to blame.
	Walter Reed Army Institute of Research begins phase 2 clinical trial of Ebola vaccine The Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of a prime-boost Ebola vaccine regimen in both healthy and HIV-infected study volunteers.
	Researchers link higher risk of leukemia to low sunlight and vitamin D Epidemiologists at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that persons residing at higher latitudes, with lower sunlight/ultraviolet B (UVB) exposure and greater prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, are at least two times at greater risk of developing leukemia than equatorial populations.
Study shows statins could be effective against small cell lung cancer In a recent study, researchers at Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) at Western Regional Medical Center (Western), in collaboration with international colleagues, found that statins could be an effective therapeutic against metastatic small cell lung cancer (SCLC).
New study suggests benefits of regular mammography extend to the elderly Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women after skin cancer and occurred in 230,000 women in the United States in 2015. Breast cancer afflicts 1 in 8 women in their lifetime and 1 in 25 die from this disease. Although a number of randomized trials demonstrate the clear benefits of mammography screening in women up to age 74 on reducing mortality, data are sparse in women over the age of 74, especially minorities. In 2010, 41 percent of breast cancer deaths occurred in the more than 19 million women who are between the ages of 65 to 84 years.
	Half of primary care doctors provide unnecessary specialty referrals upon patient request A study recently published in the American Journal of Managed Care found that more than half of primary care providers reported that they made what they considered unnecessary referrals to a specialist because patients requested it. Many physicians said they yielded to patient requests for brand-name drug prescriptions when cheaper generics were available. This study was conducted by Sapna Kaul, assistant professor of health economics in The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston department of preventive medicine and community health, in collaboration with researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.
'Dry eye' linked to chronic pain syndromes Physician-researchers with Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, part of UHealth—the University of Miami Health System, have found a link between "dry eye" and chronic pain syndromes—a finding that suggests that a new paradigm is needed for diagnosis and treatment to improve patient outcomes.
	Scientists root out the 'bad seeds' of liver cancer Researchers have found the 'bad seeds' of liver cancer and believe they could one day reprogram them to remain responsive to cancer treatment, a new study has found.
AH1N1 death of Cuban migrant alarms Panama A Cuban migrant's death from the AH1N1 influenza virus has alarmed authorities in Panama, where nearly 1,000 other Cubans are stranded near the border with Costa Rica, according to an official on Tuesday.
	Why isn't learning about public health a larger part of becoming a doctor? Chronic conditions, such as Type II diabetes and hypertension, account for seven in 10 deaths in the United States each year. And by some estimates, public health factors, such as the physical environment we live in, socioeconomic status and ability to access health services, determine 90% of our health. Biomedical sciences and actual medical care – the stuff doctors do – determine the remaining 10%.
Five health insurance resolutions to consider for 2016 Health insurance may not be the sexiest New Year's resolutions subject, but thinking about it could be just as important as vowing to drop a few pounds or quit smoking.
	Proposed link between liver cancer and adeno-associated virus challenged in human gene therapy The conclusion drawn from a recent study that insertion of adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2) into human DNA causes mutations leading to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was resoundingly rejected by leading researchers in the fields of gene therapy and molecular genetics. Calling the conclusions of the study authors "an enormous leap from their data," the team of researchers challenge details of the experimental methods, interpretation of the findings, and limitations of the study design in an Editorial published in Human Gene Therapy.
	Transgender veterans diagnosed with significantly more mental and medical health disorders The first large, controlled study of health disparities between clinically diagnosed transgender and non-transgender patients—based on the medical records of more than 5,000 patients treated in the Veterans Health Administration—showed that transgender veterans had a significantly greater prevalence of numerous psychiatric and medical conditions. The specific disorders examined and the implications of the study findings are discussed in detail in an article published in LGBT Health.
	Harnessing the body's immune system to heal wounds naturally In what could be a pivotal step toward repairing non-healing wounds and damaged organs, a Drexel University biomedical engineer has identified an immune cell as a potential strategy for growing blood vessels.
Lung cancer clinical trial finds lung function without additional imaging A newly NIH funded clinical trial (NCT02528942) by University of Colorado Cancer Center investigators and collaborators at Beaumont Health in Michigan and the University of Texas Medical Branch is evaluating a new method for pinpointing and sparing healthy lung tissue during lung cancer radiotherapy. The group is applying advanced image analysis techniques to 4D CT scans already performed as a standard step in targeting lung cancer radiotherapy, to map areas of lung function without additional testing.
Factors in the blood during dieting may have anti-diabetes properties Factors in the blood from calorie-restricted rats can modify energy-producing mitochondria within the insulin-producing cells that regulate blood sugar levels, new research shows. This has a positive impact on glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and protects cells from fatty acid and glucose toxicity.

Other Sciences news

	Last meal reflects spiral-shaped intestine A last meal provides new insights: The fossilized food remains of the extinct predatory fish Saurichthys reflect its spiral-shaped intestine. The spiral valve in fossils from Southern Switzerland is similar to that of sharks and rays. Paleontologists from the University of Zurich have thus closed a gap in the knowledge concerning the evolution of the gastrointestinal tract in vertebrates.
Ambitious women must use their social capital to reach top jobs Aspirational professional women would benefit from a better understanding of how to build, maintain and use their social capital to succeed in reaching the top.
	Businesses break the law to stay competitive Companies may strategically use corruption to gain a competitive advantage against rivals, according to a new study of formally registered Indian technology firms from the University at Buffalo School of Management.
	Can charitable giving improve your health? Research by University at Albany economics professor Baris Yörük may provide additional motivation for those resolving to become more charitable in 2016.
	Is it all just a myth—does working too much actually affect your relationship? Traditionally we have been told that the longer you work, the harder it is to maintain romantic relations. However, a new study from the journal Human Relations, published by SAGE in partnership with The Tavistock Institute, has found the opposite: that there is in fact no negative association between the hours worked and relationship satisfaction.
	Archaeological discovery yields surprising revelations about Europe's oldest city Recent fieldwork at the ancient city of Knossos on the Greek island of Crete finds that during the early Iron Age (1100 to 600 BC), the city was rich in imports and was nearly three times larger than what was believed from earlier excavations.
	Is there a bubble in the art market? Researchers at the University of Luxembourg are warning of an overheating art market, one of the fastest-growing investment sectors of the past decade, after applying a new bubble detection method analysing millions of auction records.
	What motivates people to walk and bike? It varies by income Lower- and middle-income King County residents who live in denser neighborhoods—with stores, libraries and other destinations within easy reach—are more likely to walk or bike, according to new University of Washington research.
Male workers in typically female jobs are not motivated by money Men in typically female-dominated occupations tend to value the social aspects of their career over financial rewards.
	Negative news about Muslims fuels public policy support against them News stories depicting Muslims as terrorists have fueled racism and anger among many non-Muslim Americans, who support civil restrictions and military action in Muslim countries, according to a new University of Michigan study.
	Reshaping accounting systems for women's empowerment Accounting and feminism are not academic disciplines that often go together but their convergence is exactly the area that Victoria University of Wellington graduate Farzana Tanima wanted to explore in her doctoral research.

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