Researchers examined mortality rates and federal and state election data for all counties in the U.S. from 2001 to 2019. The team found what they call a 'mortality gap' -- a widening difference between age-adjusted death rates in counties that had voted for a Democrat or a Republican in previous presidential and governor elections.

A new molecule synthesized by a University of Texas at Dallas researcher kills a broad spectrum of hard-to-treat cancers, including triple-negative breast cancer, by exploiting a weakness in cells not previously targeted by other drugs.

Researchers examining the brain at a single-neuron level found that computation happens not just in the interaction between neurons, but within each individual neuron. Each of these cells, it turns out, is not a simple switch, but a complicated calculating machine. This discovery promises changes not only to our understanding of how the brain works, but better understanding of conditions ranging...

A pioneering study has shed new light on how subcellular organelles divide and multiply.

An inhaled immunotherapy successfully treated cancer in some companion dogs as part of a clinical trial conducted by oncology and veterinary researchers. Results show potential for fighting cancer in humans as well.

A drug currently used in just 1% of cancers has significant potential against the remaining 99%, according to a new study. Ivosidenib, or AG-120, is currently used against cancers that have a mutation in the IDH1 gene. However, study results show that Ivosidenib is also effective against unmutated, or 'wild-type' IDH1. The protein coded by the IDH1 gene in cancers helps cancer cells survive in a...

While much of public attention on Yellowstone focuses on its potential to produce large supereruptions, the hazards that are much more likely to occur are smaller, violent hydrothermal explosions. Hydrothermal explosions occur when near-boiling water suddenly flashes into steam, releasing large amounts of energy. The energy release fractures the rock downward, often leaving behind a crater. The...

A deep dive into the 5,500 marine RNA virus species scientists recently identified has found that several may help drive carbon absorbed from the atmosphere to permanent storage on the ocean floor.

A hotter ocean is a hungrier ocean -- at least as far as fish predators are concerned. Scientists have discovered predator impacts in the Atlantic and Pacific peak at higher temperatures. The effects cascade down to transform other life in the ocean, potentially disrupting balances that have existed for millennia.

A new study characterizes the role of fire refugia -- the green islands of live trees that remain after forest fires -- in forest regeneration following large and severe fires in the High Cascade mountains of Oregon and Washington. The results of this study can help determine when human intervention in the form of tree replanting is warranted, when it isn't, where replanting efforts should be...

Researchers have found a species of worm with an appetite for polystyrene could be the key to plastic recycling on a mass scale.

Researchers have identified the role of transcription factors Runx1 and Runx2 in the inhibition of fibrosis, the abnormal build-up of connective tissue with severe hematopoietic defects, in the bone marrow. Mice lacking both Runx1 and Runx2 in CAR cells, a major component of the hematopoietic stem cell niche, demonstrated severe myelofibrosis and defects in the production of blood cells. Runx1 and...

People who systematically underestimate themselves and their own performance suffer from so-called Impostor Phenomenon. They think that any success is due to external circumstances or just luck and chance. Those people live in constant fear that their 'deception' will be exposed. Psychologists now show that even under real-life conditions the phenomenon can appear regardless of age, gender, and...

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an important chemical, with a wide variety of applications. However, the current method used to manufacture H2O2 is expensive and generates a considerable amount of waste, making it an unsustainable approach. In this study, a group of researchers produced H2O2 from waste coffee grounds and tea leaves, and then demonstrated its industrial use. Their novel method proved...

A new study combining archaeological, historical and bioarchaeological data provides new insights into the early Islamic period in modern-day Syria. The research team was planning to focus on a much older time period but came across what they believe to be remains of early Muslims in the Syrian countryside.

Intestinal flora plays an important role in health -- including mental health. Researchers have shown that probiotics can support the effect of antidepressants and help to alleviate depression.

The makers of climate policy should rethink how people think: Researchers show that abiding by climate-friendly policies actually changes the way people think about what they do. People's preferences are more dynamic than textbook economics often assumes. The researchers' advice to policy makers is to take changing preferences into account when tailoring policies like carbon taxes or building...

When a plant community is exposed to drought, the different species undergo evolutionary changes. An international study with UZH participation now shows that this leads to improved resilience to future drought stress over time.

Why are we so sure that the way we see people, situations and politics is accurate, and the way other people see them is foolishly wrong? The answer, according to new research lies in a region of the brain he calls the 'gestalt cortex,' which helps people make sense of information that is ambiguous or incomplete -- and dismiss alternative interpretations.

A new study links SARS-CoV-2 specific T cells to lung function and those who suffer from long-term COVID symptoms (PASC).

Researchers have developed a tiny, flexible neural probe that can be implanted for longer time periods to record and stimulate neural activity, while minimizing injury to the surrounding tissue. The probe would be ideal for studying small and dynamic areas of the nervous system like peripheral nerves or the spinal cord.

Scientists have refined the use of magnetic fields to improve the performance of doughnut-shaped fusion facilities known as tokamaks. The improved technique protects internal parts from damage by instabilities and allows tokamaks to operate for longer without pausing.

Brown dwarfs, mysterious objects that straddle the line between stars and planets, are essential to our understanding of both stellar and planetary populations. However, only 40 brown dwarfs could be imaged around stars in almost three decades of searches. An international team has directly imaged a remarkable four new brown dwarfs thanks to a new innovative search method.

Extensively used grassland is host to a high degree of biodiversity, and performs an important climate protection function as a carbon sink and also serves for fodder and food production. However, these ecosystem services are jeopardized if productivity on these lands is maximized and their use therefore intensified. Researchers have now described how satellite data and machine learning methods...