158 articles from FRIDAY 2.4.2021

Scientists discover new genetic disease that delays brain development in children

Scientists have discovered a new genetic disease, which causes some children's brains to develop abnormally, resulting in delayed intellectual development and often early onset cataracts. The majority of patients with the condition, which is so new it doesn't have a name yet, were also microcephalic, a birth defect where a baby's head is smaller than expected when compared to babies of the same...

Image: Hubble revisits the Veil Nebula

This image taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope revisits the Veil Nebula, which was featured in a previous Hubble image release. In this image, new processing techniques have been applied, bringing out fine details of the nebula's delicate threads and filaments of ionized gas.

Unravelling the secret of a critical immune cell for cancer immunity

Researchers have discovered a key differentiation process that provides an essential immune function in helping to control cancer and infectious diseases. The research shows that a new factor - DC-SCRIPT - is required for the function a particular type of dendritic cell - called cDC1 - that is essential in controlling the immune response to infection.

Science has not kept pace with aquaculture

Aquaculture—the farming of fish, shellfish, and other aquatic animals for food—has reached unprecedented levels of growth in recent years, but largely without consideration of its impact on individual animals, finds a new analysis by a team of researchers.

Space Can Take a Nasty Toll On An Astronaut’s Heart, Study Finds

It’s perfectly fine that human beings want to travel in space. But we have to reckon with the fact that space doesn’t want anything to do with us. The exterior environment of space, of course, represents instantaneous death, what with the killing cold and the absence of any atmosphere. But even inside a spacecraft or a space station—cozy, pressurized, temperature-controlled,...

How pathogenic bacteria weather the slings and arrows of infection

Infectious diseases are a leading cause of global mortality. During an infection, bacteria experience many different stresses—some from the host itself, some from co-colonizing microbes and others from therapies employed to treat the infection. In this arms race to outwit their competition, bacteria have evolved mechanisms to stay alive in the face of adversities. One such mechanism is the...