200 articles from FRIDAY 15.5.2020

Shrub encroachment on grasslands can increase groundwater recharge

A new study led by Adam Schreiner-McGraw, a postdoctoral hydrology researcher at the University of California, Riverside, modeled shrub encroachment on a sloping landscape and reached a startling conclusion: Shrub encroachment on slopes can increase the amount of water that goes into groundwater storage. The effect of shrubs is so powerful that it even counterbalances the lower annual rainfall...

Ten-year results display strong safety and efficacy profile for TPV device

Ten-year follow-up results of the US Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) Trial of the Melody transcatheter pulmonary valve (TPV) were presented today during the SCAI 2020 Scientific Sessions Virtual Conference. Findings showed favorable outcomes for long-term function, safety, and efficacy for congenital patients who underwent Melody valve implantation within an existing dysfunctional right...

The dreaming brain tunes out the outside world

Scientists from the CNRS and the ENS-PSL in France and Monash University in Australia have shown that the brain suppresses information from the outside world, such as the sound of a conversation, during the sleep phase linked to dreaming. This ability could be one of the protective mechanisms of dreams. The study was carried out in collaboration with the Centre du Sommeil et de la Vigilance,...

The Lancet Infectious Diseases: Sociodemographic factors associated with a positive test for COVID-19 in primary care

Older age, being male, deprivation, living in a densely populated area, ethnicity, obesity, and chronic kidney disease are associated with a positive test for COVID-19, according to results from 3,802 people tested for SARS-CoV-2 (including 587 positive tests) in the UK. The observational study was conducted in between Jan 28 and April 4 using routine electronic health records data from GP...

Tiny particle, big payoff

UC Riverside scientists have solved a 20-year-old genetics puzzle that could result in ways to protect wheat, barley, and other crops from a devastating infection.

Treatment guidance for lung cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

To help oncologists address the many challenges COVID-19-positive lung cancer patients present, a team of global lung cancer specialists this week published a review of lung cancer treatments for patients with COVID-19 in the current issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, the official journal of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Using big data to design gas separation membranes

Researchers at Columbia Engineering and the University of South Carolina have developed a method that combines big data and machine learning to selectively design gas-filtering polymer membranes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Their study, published today in Science Advances, is the first to apply an experimentally validated machine learning method to rapidly design and develop advanced gas...

Voluntary collective isolation is best response to COVID-19 for indigenous populations

A team of anthropologists, physicians, tribal leaders and local government authorities developed and implemented a multi-phase COVID-19 prevention and containment plan among the Tsimane, an indigenous group in the Bolivian Amazon. The researchers believe that their approach with the Tsimane can be adapted to tribal and aboriginal populations throughout the world to prevent widespread mortality....

Worldwide IOF-ISCD survey of bone densitometry units published

A landmark global study of fracture liaison services carried out at the Medical Research Council Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit at University of Southampton in collaboration with the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) and the International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD), 25% of DXA facilities report not being accredited by professional or government organizations. The survey...

UW Medicine ramps up study of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for COVID-19 treatment

One of the treatments touted by President Donald Trump for COVID-19, a combination of the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine and the antiviral drug azithromycin, is the subject of a nationwide study with UW Medicine playing a role. The Phase 2b clinical trial, sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease at the National Institutes of Health, will involve 2,000...

Coronavirus live news: Trump says he could cut China ties as global deaths pass 300,000

36m Americans unemployed; Brazil cases hit 200,000; EU insists vaccine must be available to all countries. Follow the latest updatesTrump suggests he could ‘cut off whole relationship’ with ChinaLeaders urge free vaccines as France allows staycationsDonald Trump goes maskless to tour medical equipment facilityAustralia coronavirus updates - liveCoronavirus latest: at a glance 2.20am BST This...

Reunions, eating out and a lot of haircuts: New Zealand embraces relaxation of lockdown

Children can return to playgrounds, families can meet and restaurants can seat groups of 10 under new rulesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageJoshua Young was raring to get to the Tahunanui Beach playground on Friday morning.For almost two months, the seven-year-old Nelson resident has had to see one of his favourite play spots wrapped up in caution tape, while New...