171 articles from THURSDAY 16.3.2023

Scientists discover giant insect genome

The largest genome of any insect, seven times the size of the human genome, was recently discovered in a grasshopper. In a study published in PLOS ONE, researchers from the German Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change (LIB) and the Czech Academy of Sciences prove wrong the idea of insect genomes being comparatively small and less complex.

Dual immunotherapy plus chemotherapy before surgery improves patient outcomes in operable lung cancer

In a Phase II trial, adding ipilimumab to a neoadjuvant, or pre-surgical, combination of nivolumab plus platinum-based chemotherapy, resulted in a major pathologic response (MPR) in half of all treated patients with early-stage, resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). New findings from the NEOSTAR trial, published today in Nature Medicine, provide further support for neoadjuvant...

How fishermen benefit from reversing evolution of cod

Intense fishing and over-exploitation have led to evolutionary changes in fish stocks like cod, reducing both their productivity and value on the market. These changes can be reversed by more sustainable and far-sighted fisheries management. A new study shows that reversal of evolutionary change would only slightly reduce the profit of fishing, but would help regain and conserve natural genetic...

Activity deep in Earth affects the global magnetic field

Compass readings that do not show the direction of true north and interference with the operations of satellites are a few of the problems caused by peculiarities of the Earth's magnetic field. The magnetic field radiates around the world and far into space, but it is set by processes that happen deep within the Earth's core, where temperatures exceed 5,000-degrees C. New research from...

Breakthrough in the understanding of quantum turbulence

Researchers have shown how energy disappears in quantum turbulence, paving the way for a better understanding of turbulence in scales ranging from the microscopic to the planetary. The team's findings demonstrate a new understanding of how wave-like motion transfers energy from macroscopic to microscopic length scales, and their results confirm a theoretical prediction about how the energy is...

'Terminator zones' on distant planets could harbor life

In a new study, astronomers describe how extraterrestrial life has the potential to exist on distant exoplanets inside a special area called the 'terminator zone,' which is a ring on planets that have one side that always faces its star and one side that is always dark.

Perovskite solar cells from the slot die coater -- a step towards industrial production

Solar cells made from metal halide perovskites achieve high efficiencies and their production from liquid inks requires only a small amount of energy. Scientists are investigating the production process. At the X-ray source BESSY II, the group has analyzed the optimal composition of precursor inks for the production of high-quality FAPbI3 perovskite thin films by slot-die coating. The solar cells...

Genetic causes of three previously unexplained rare diseases identified

Using a new computational approach they developed to analyze large genetic datasets from rare disease cohorts, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and colleagues have discovered previously unknown genetic causes of three rare conditions: primary lymphedema (characterized by tissue swelling), thoracic aortic aneurysm disease, and congenital deafness.

Jurassic bark? Raffle the dog’s rare fossil find goes on display in Dorset

Public finally able to see 3D remains of plesiosaur discovered on Lyme Regis beach 16 years agoAt first when Raffle the dog began scratching at something on the beach at Lyme Regis, Tracey Barclay thought he had probably found a boring old stick or stone.But when she looked closer, Barclay realised Raffle had happened upon something much more interesting – the remains of a plesiosaur, a marine...

Are kids ready to eat insects?

Producing meat pollutes and requires a lot of space and resources (water, grains…). To protect the planet, we must therefore find new sources of protein. One of the solutions is to replace, at least partially, meat by insects.