210 articles from FRIDAY 7.8.2020

Renewables in Europe: Land requirements can be reduced at low cost

Transitioning our energy supply from coal, oil and gas to wind and solar power is feasible. However, renewables require more land than conventional forms of energy generation. A new study explores the options to reduce the land requirements of a fully renewable energy supply in Europe and their possible impact on the cost of electricity.

Researchers discover how plants distinguish beneficial from harmful microbes

Plants recognize beneficial microbes and keep harmful ones out, which is important for healthy plants production and global food security. Scientists have now discovered how legumes use small, well-defined motifs in receptor proteins to read molecular signals produced by both pathogenic and symbiotic microbes. These remarkable findings have enabled the researchers to reprogram immune receptors...

Russian developers created a platform for self-testing of AI medical services

Experts from the Center for Diagnostics and Telemedicine have developed a platform for self-testing services which is based on artificial intelligence and designed for medical tasks, such as for analyzing diagnostic images. The first working prototype of the platform is hosted on the popular GitHub service, and developers from all over the world can take part in its improvement by adding...

Scientists discover curious clues in the war between cf bacteria

Several different kinds of bacteria can cause lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can cause pneumonia, typically infects infants or young children and persists for life, while Burkholderia cepacia complex species only infect teenagers and adults. Although Burkholderia infections are rare, when they do take hold, they are deadly. Now, UNC School of Medicine...

Scientists introduce FlowRACS for high-throughput discovery of enzymes

Researchers from the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have now developed a flow mode Raman-activated cell sorter (RACS), called FlowRACS, to support high-throughput discovery of enzymes and their cell factories, at the precision of just one microbial cell.

Skoltech supercomputer helps scientists reveal most influential parameters for crop

Skoltech researchers have used the supercomputer to perform a very precise sensitivity analysis to reveal crucial parameters for different crop yields in the chernozem region of Russia, famous for its high-quality, fertile soil. Agricultural lands occupy 13 percent of the territory of Russia, droughts, dryness, humus reserves exhaustion are the major negative factor for national agriculture. Being...

Smartwatch tracks medication levels to personalize treatments

Engineers at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering and their colleagues at Stanford School of Medicine have demonstrated that drug levels inside the body can be tracked in real time using a custom smartwatch that analyzes the chemicals found in sweat. This wearable technology could be incorporated into a more personalized approach to medicine -- where an ideal drug and dosages can be tailored to...

Stellar egg hunt with ALMA

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) took a census of stellar eggs in the constellation Taurus and revealed their evolution state. This census helps researchers understand how and when a stellar embryo transforms to a baby star deep inside a gaseous egg. In addition, the team found a bipolar outflow, a pair of gas streams, that could be telltale evidence of a...

Strong link found between abnormal liver tests and poor COVID-19 outcomes

New Haven, Conn. -- Researchers at the Yale Liver Center found that patients with COVID-19 presented with abnormal liver tests at much higher rates than suggested by earlier studies. They also discovered that higher levels of liver enzymes -- proteins released when the liver is damaged -- were associated with poorer outcomes for these patients, including ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, and...

Success in promoting plant growth for biodiesel

Scientists of Waseda University in Japan succeeded in promoting plant growth and increasing seed yield by heterologous expression of protein from Arabidopsis (artificially modified high-speed motor protein) in Camelina sativa, which is expected as a useful plant for biodiesel. The study is expected to apply to other plant resources for biodiesel, such as corn, rice, and sugar cane.