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279,032 articles from PhysOrg
Feeling Stressed? So is the Poplar -- But Hormone Suppression Could Help the Tree
(PhysOrg.com) -- People aren't the only living things that suffer from stress. Trees must deal with stress too. It can come from a lack of water or too much water, from scarcity of a needed nutrient, from pollution or a changing climate. Helping trees and crops adapt to stress quickly and efficiently is a pressing goal of plant biologists worldwide.
New genes involved in human eye color identified
Three new genetic loci have been identified with involvement in subtle and quantitative variation of human eye colour. The study, led by Manfred Kayser of the Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam, The Netherlands, is published May 6 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.
Obesity epidemic may be flattening out - but no time for complacency say experts
(PhysOrg.com) -- The prevalence of childhood obesity might be stabilising in developed countries, but there is still much to be done to combat this major threat to health, according to a Seminar co-authored by Professor Debbie Lawlor of the Department of Social Medicine in an upcoming issue of The Lancet.
ONR scientist generates 'mud power' for NPR radio audience
Dr. Linda Chrisey, a leading scientist at the Office of Naval Research, discussed how researchers are generating electricity from bacteria found in mud and wastewater during National Public Radio's recent "Science Friday" segment.
Researchers find candidate gene culprits for chronic pain
Chronic pain severely limits patients' quality of life and is among the cost drivers in U.S. health care. Patients can suffer pain without an apparent cause and often fail to respond to available treatments. Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators now report that chronic pain may be caused by the inadvertent reprogramming of more than 2,000 genes in the peripheral nervous system. The research...
Young people with inflammatory bowel diseases are at increased risk of fracture
A team of scientists from the University Hospitals of Geneva and Lausanne have shown that young people with inflammatory bowel diseases have low bone mass and poor bone architecture compared to healthy people of the same age, placing them at increased risk of fracture.
Age, ethnicity and environment impact on risk of falls in elderly men
Falls and fall prevention are a major concern for the elderly and people with osteoporosis, a common chronic disease which causes weak and fragile bones. People with osteoporosis are at increased risk of fracture, even after a minor fall from standing height. A study presented today at the World Congress on Osteoporosis 2010 (IOF WCO-ECCEO10) shows that among elderly men the risk of falling, and...
Endometrial stem cells restore brain dopamine levels
Endometrial stem cells injected into the brains of mice with a laboratory-induced form of Parkinson's disease appeared to take over the functioning of brain cells eradicated by the disease.
Genes as fossils: Researchers discover the DNA responsible for creating fossil-like molecules found in ancient rocks
When exactly did oxygen first appear in Earth's atmosphere? Although many physical and chemical processes are thought to be responsible for that profound transformation, scientists have tried to answer at least part of that question by looking for the origin of oxygenic photosynthesis -- the process that organisms use to split water to make oxygen -- in rocks that are billions of years old.
Highly Sensitive Dark Matter Experiment Disproves Earlier Findings
(PhysOrg.com) -- Early data from a Columbia-led dark matter experiment rule out recent hints by other scientists who say they have found the elusive particle that holds the universe together. The findings show that dark matter, which is believed to make up 83 percent of the matter in the universe, is more elusive than many had hoped.
Scientists Discover New Molecular Scissors That Cut the Tiniest Genes
(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of Yale University scientists has discovered a previously unknown type of molecular scissors that can tailor micro-RNAs, tiny snippets of genetic material that play a key role in regulating many of life's functions.
Simple reduction technique decreases radiation dose associated with CT scans of the head
Z-axis modulation can significantly reduce the radiation dose associated with unenhanced computed tomography (CT) scans of the head, according to a study to be presented at the ARRS 2010 Annual Meeting in San Diego, CA. Z-axis modulation is a simple technique that radiologists can use to adjust the radiation dose and obtain optimal image quality during CT scans.
Statistcal Physics Offers Insight Into Moral Behavior
(PhysOrg.com) -- It seems a little strange for statistical physicists to consider questions of morality in behavior. However, that is is just what a study at ETH in Zurich, Switzeralnd, is doing. Led by Dirk Helbing, the study used game theory to consider how moral behavior arises from interactions with neighbors. Instead of moral behavior developing from an individual's interactions with society...
Violent teenage girls fail to spot anger or disgust in others' faces
(PhysOrg.com) -- Girls appear to be "protected" from showing antisocial behaviour until their teenage years, new research from the University of Cambridge has found.
World record in current intensity achieved with distribution cables
Researchers at Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Spain, and the firms Labein Tecnalia and Nexans, coordinated by the electrical company Endesa, have constructed a 30m cable and the terminals needed to connect it to the network using the high-temperature superconducting material BSCCO. This is the most advanced cable in terms of distribution (24 kV), since its current value is higher than that...
First non-Latin Internet domain names activated
(AP) -- Three Mideast countries have become the first to get Internet addresses entirely in non-Latin characters.
Nationwide study: 1 in 4 women show ambivalence toward pregnancy
For years, a widely held assumption was that women of childbearing age fell neatly into two camps: those trying to have children, and those not trying to have children.
Recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma 12 years after the initial diagnosis
A research team from Hong Kong presented an unusual patient with a solitary recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the right kidney 12 years after the initial diagnosis. They illustrated the importance of considering late recurrence in patients with a history of HCC and the management of these metastases.
Red crabs lead the way in endurance running
(PhysOrg.com) -- Not even professional athletes would consider running a marathon without any training, but this is essentially what Christmas Island red crabs do every year, according to new research from the University of Bristol.
Sequencing of first frog genome sheds light on treating disease
A pair of University of Houston researchers contributed to the assembly of the first comprehensive DNA sequence of an amphibian genome, which will shed light on the study of embryonic development, with implications for preventing birth defects and more effectively treating many human diseases.
Social context may be a better indicator of obesity disparities than race
When analyzing obesity disparities among women, socioeconomic status and social context may be more important than race, according to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions. The authors examined race disparities in obesity among black and white women living in the same social context with similar income and...
Study looks at gorillas, elephants and logging in Congo
The Wildlife Conservation Society announced the results of the first-ever evaluation of a large, "landscape-wide" conservation approach to protect globally important populations of elephants and great apes.
Study reveals neighborhood asthma risks
Mayo Clinic researchers recently released study data showing children who lived near major highway or railroad intersections have higher diagnoses of asthma. The researchers used this study to show how neighborhood environment is a risk factor in understanding the development of pediatric asthma. The study appears in a recent addition of The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
The LifeGene project provides unique insight into the causes of disease
The unique resources available in the Nordic region, such as civic registration numbers and the registries of genetically informative populations and health outcomes, make it an epidemiological goldmine. The LifeGene project is being coordinated by the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet to take advantage of Sweden's competitive edge in this field. Today, LifeGene is being launched...
Trapping giant Rydberg atoms for faster quantum computers
In an achievement that could help enable fast quantum computers, University of Michigan physicists have built a better Rydberg atom trap. Rydberg atoms are highly excited, nearly-ionized giants that can be thousands of times larger than their ground-state counterparts.