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32 articles from ScienceDaily
Optical imager poised to improve diagnosis and treatment of dry eye disease
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 21:52
Researchers have developed a new non-invasive optical imaging system that promises to improve diagnosis and treatments for dry eye disease. Dry eye, which often causes irritation and blurred vision, occurs when there is instability in the inner layer of the tear film that protects the outside of the eye.
Household bleach inactivates chronic wasting disease prions
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 21:52
A 5-minute soak in a 40% solution of household bleach decontaminated stainless steel wires coated with chronic wasting disease (CWD) prions, according to a new study. The scientists used the wires to model knives and saws that hunters and meat processors use when handling deer, elk and moose - all of which are susceptible to CWD.
Scientists find timekeepers of gut's immune system
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 20:38
Shift work and jet lag disrupt not just sleep cycles, but feeding and digestive cycles as well. Such disruptions have been linked to risk of obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, infection, and other conditions. Now, researchers have identified an immune cell that helps set the daily rhythms of the gut. The findings open the door to new treatments for digestive ailments targeting such cells.
New metasurface design can control optical fields in three dimensions
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 20:38
A team led by scientists has designed and tested a 3D-printed metamaterial that can manipulate light with nanoscale precision. Their designed optical element focuses light to discrete points in a 3D helical pattern.
Aggressive breast cancers store large amounts of energy, which enables it to spread
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 19:23
Researchers found that aggressive breast cancers store glycogen in very large amounts, offering an explanation of how cells can change their function to evade treatment, grow and spread. Targeting an enzyme involved in this process could potentially treat or prevent metastases.
Rare view into the formation of viruses
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 19:23
For the first time, researchers have captured images of the formation of individual viruses, offering a real-time view into the kinetics of viral assembly. The research provides new insights into how to fight viruses and engineer self-assembling particles.
Scientist designs 'express courier service' for immune cells
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 17:52
A researcher who is currently doing his post-doctoral training at Stanford University, has successfully invented a novel transfection method to deliver DNA into immune cells with minimal stress on these cells. This new technique is expected to boost DNA-based cancer immunotherapy by significantly improving the process of generating high-quality genetically modified immune cells.
The 'Goldilocks' principle for curing brain cancer
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 17:52
Researchers found that a stable body temperature holds the key to awakening the body's immune response to fight off brain cancer.
Dust in ice cores leads to new knowledge on the advancement of the ice before the ice age
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Working with the ice core ReCap, drilled close to the coast in East Greenland, researchers wondered why the dust particles from the interglacial period -- the warmer period of time between the ice ages -- were several times bigger than the dust particles from the ice age. The research led to the invention of a method able to map the advancement of the glaciers in cold periods and the melting in...
Weak spot in pathogenic bacteria
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Antibiotics are still the most important weapon for combatting bacterial infections. But medical science is running out of ''ammunition'' because of more and more frequently occurring resistances. Research teams have now elucidated the structure of the proteolytic complex ClpX-ClpP. This is a key to development of innovative antibiotics which target the degradation process of defective proteins in...
A breath test for opioids
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
A test to detect opioid drugs in exhaled breath has been developed by engineers and physicians. A breath test could be useful in caring for chronic pain patients as well as for checking for illegal drug use.
Scientists uncover genetic similarities among species that use sound to navigate
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Insect-eating bats navigate effortlessly in the dark and dolphins and killer whales gobble up prey in murky waters thanks in part to specific changes in a set of 18 genes involved in the development of the cochlear ganglion -- a group of nerves that transmit sound from the ear to the brain, according to a new study.
People eat more when dining with friends and family
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
People eat more with friends and family than when dining alone -- a possible throwback to our early ancestors' approach to survival, according to a new study. This phenomenon is known as 'social facilitation'.
New defensive mechanism against bacterial wound infections
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Wound inflammation which results in impaired wound healing can have serious consequences for patients. Researchers have discovered a new defensive mechanism which enables our skin to actively kill bacteria. Central to this mechanism is a cellular messenger molecule known as 'interleukin 6', whose mode of action may be used in the future to prevent wound infections.
Researchers unlock potential to use CRISPR to alter the microbiome
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Researchers have developed a new way to deliver the DNA-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 into microorganisms in the lab, providing a way to efficiently launch a targeted attack on specific bacteria.
The fast dance of electron spins
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Metal complexes show a fascinating behavior in their interactions with light, which for example is utilized in organic light emitting diodes, solar cells, quantum computers, or even in cancer therapy. In many of these applications, the electron spin, a kind of inherent rotation of the electrons, plays an important role. Researchers succeeded in simulating the extremely fast spin flip processes...
Antibiotic resistant genes prevalent in groundwater
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
The spread of antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) through the water system could put public safety at-risk. Researchers studied and compared samples from an advanced groundwater treatment facility in California and groundwater aquifers to detect differences in ARG concentrations. They found that the advanced groundwater treatment facility reduced nearly all targeted ARGs to below detection limits,...
Graphene turns 15 on track to deliver on its promises
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Scientists analyze the current graphene landscape and market forecast for graphene over the following decade.
Targeting certain rogue T cells prevents and reverses multiple sclerosis in mice
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disorder, is known to be driven by 'helper' T cells, white blood cells that mount an inflammatory attack on the brain and spinal cord. A new study pinpoints the specific subgroup of helper T cells that cause MS, as well as a protein on their surface, called CXCR6, that marks them. An antibody targeting CXCR6 both prevented and reversed MS in a mouse model, the...
Sinking groundwater levels threaten the vitality of riverine ecosystems
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Groundwater is the world's largest source of freshwater and it is of vital importance for food production. Increasing extraction of groundwater in recent decades has resulted in sinking water tables worldwide. A study by a hydrologist shows that almost 20 percent of the catchments areas where groundwater is pumped suffer from a flow that is too low to sustain freshwater ecosystems. This number is...
Determining the activity of noble-metal-free catalyst particles
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Chemists have developed a new method with which they can characterize individual noble-metal-free nanoparticle catalysts. The particles could be a cheap alternative to precious metal catalysts for obtaining hydrogen from water by means of electrolysis.
Early menopause predictor of heart disease
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Women who reach menopause before the age of 50 have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, according to researchers.
Analysis of HIV-1B in Indonesia illuminates transmission dynamics of the virus
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Research into the molecular phylogeny (evolutionary history) of the HIV-1B virus in Indonesia has succeeded in illuminating the transmission period and routes for three clades (main branches of the virus). This includes a clade thought to be unique to Indonesia, as well as clades that spread from Thailand, Europe and America in the 1970s and 1980s.
New fluorescence method reveals signatures of individual microbes
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Researchers have developed a new method that reveals the unique fluorescence patterns produced by individual cells in mixtures of bacteria, yeast and fungi. They combined confocal microscopy with micro-spectroscopy to determine the fluorescence signatures from different types of microbes. They trained machine learning systems to analyze the images and identify different individual cells and...
Smart insole can double as lifesaving technology for diabetic patients
- ScienceDaily
- 19/10/4 16:56
Researchers are developing a graphene sensing system that detects early signs of foot ulcers before they form so people living with diabetes can access preventative healthcare and confidently manage their health.