99 articles from TUESDAY 8.10.2019

'Big Bang Theory' gets shout out to Nobel Prize announcement

Life imitated art Tuesday when "The Big Bang Theory" — the American TV sitcom, not the scientific explanation for how the universe began — entered the annals of Nobel Prize history. The announcement of the winners of this year's Nobel in physics began with a nod to an unlikely cultural reference: the opening lyrics to the show's theme song. "The Big Bang Theory" had its finale in May. In the...

Innovative pancreatic cancer treatment may rev up immune system

A research team reports that combining a type of radiation therapy with immunotherapy not only cures pancreatic cancer in mice, but appears to reprogram the immune system to create an 'immune memory' in the same way that a vaccine keeps the flu away. The result is that the combination treatment also destroyed pancreatic cells that had spread to the liver, a common site for metastatic disease.

New capsule can orally deliver drugs that usually have to be injected

MIT engineers designed a drug capsule that can carry insulin or other protein drugs and protect them from the harsh environment of the gastrointestinal tract. When the capsule reaches the small intestine, it breaks down to reveal dissolvable microneedles that attach to the intestinal wall and release drug for uptake into the bloodstream.

Why we crave junk food after a sleepless night

When you're sleep deprived, you reach for doughnuts and pizza. A new study has figured out why you crave more calorie-dense, high-fat foods after a sleepless night. Blame it on your sleepy nose -- or olfactory system. First, it goes into hyperdrive, sharpening the food odors for the brain. But then there is a breakdown in communication with brain areas that receive food signals. Then decisions...

Scientists identify molecule that could have helped cells thrive on early Earth

A new study offers an explanation for how ''protocells'' could have emerged on early Earth, eventually leading to the cells we know today. The work suggests that molecules called cyclophospholipids may have been the ingredient necessary for protocells to form important internal structures called vesicles, which likely kicked off the evolutionary process.

Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior

Border collies are highly trainable, greyhounds love to chase, and German shepherds make good guard dogs. While the environment plays a role, traits like these are highly heritable, according to a study of 101 dog breeds. The work identifies 131 genetic variants associated with breed differences in behavior.

Climate Activists Block Central London Streets as Boris Johnson Derides Them as ‘Uncooperative Crusties’

(LONDON) — Hundreds of climate change activists camped out in central London on Tuesday during a second day of world protests by the Extinction Rebellion movement to demand more urgent actions to counter global warming. Determined activists glued themselves to the British government’s Department of Transport building as police working to keep streets clear appealed to protesters to...

Who is telling the truth about their health?

When researchers or policymakers ask health related questions -- which they do a lot -- they often rely on self-reported rather than tested health data. Researchers looked into how reliable this type of data is for research and found that, depending on country or age, self-reported data could be highly biased.

Research maps key signaling pathways linking calcium entry and exit in activated T cells

Like entrance and exit doors on a building, a cell's outer surface has doors -- channels, pumps, and transporters that selectively control what molecules enter or exit. In the immune system, T cells possess unique sets of 'doors', including ones that specialize in calcium ion movement. Now, researchers describe a unique mechanism for coordinating these calcium entrance and exit 'doors' on T cells...

DNA metabarcoding useful for analyzing human diet

A new study demonstrates that DNA metabarcoding provides a promising new method for tracking human plant intake, suggesting that similar approaches could be used to characterize the animal and fungal components of human diets. The study demonstrated that dietary plant DNA can be amplified and sequenced from human stool using methods commonly applied to wildlife studies.