ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Contraceptive pill associated with increased prostate cancer risk worldwide, study finds
• High childhood IQ linked to subsequent illicit drug use, research suggests
• Even the cleanest wastewater contributes to more 'super bacteria'
• Evidence of ancient lake in California's Eel River emerges
• Enzyme boosts metabolism, prevents weight gain in mice
• Routine head hits in school sports may cause brain injury
• Bats show ability to instantly change their ear shapes, making their hearing more flexible
• Good preparation is key, even for plant cells and symbiotic fungi
• Potential new drug target in Lou Gehrig's disease
• Ancient bronze artifact from East Asia unearthed at Alaska archaeology site
• Hysterectomy increases risk for earlier menopause among younger women, study finds
• Stem cell study helps clarify the best time for therapy to aid heart attack survivors
• Protecting Houston from the next big hurricane
• Bats, dolphins, and mole rats inspire advances in ultrasound technology
• AMD-like lesions delayed in mice fed lower glycemic index diet
• Nature and nurture work together to shape the brain
• Risk of contracting diabetes to increase in world of 7 billion people
• Novel nanocrystals with advanced optical properties developed for use as luminescent biomarkers
• Archeologists discover huge ancient Greek commercial area on island of Sicily
• Every mouse is different: How mouse 'personality' sheds light on human depression
• Self-organized pituitary-like tissue from mouse ES cells

Contraceptive pill associated with increased prostate cancer risk worldwide, study finds Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:10 PM PST Use of the contraceptive pill is associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer around the globe, new research finds.

High childhood IQ linked to subsequent illicit drug use, research suggests Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:10 PM PST A high childhood IQ may be linked to subsequent illegal drug use, particularly among women, new research suggests.

Even the cleanest wastewater contributes to more 'super bacteria' Posted: 14 Nov 2011 12:25 PM PST A new study reveals that the release of treated municipal wastewater -- even wastewater treated by the highest-quality treatment technology -- can have a significant effect on the quantities of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, often referred to as "superbacteria," in surface waters.

Evidence of ancient lake in California's Eel River emerges Posted: 14 Nov 2011 12:24 PM PST A catastrophic landslide 22,500 years ago dammed the upper reaches of northern California's Eel River, forming a 30-mile-long lake, which has since disappeared, and leaving a living legacy found today in the genes of the region's steelhead trout, scientists report.

Enzyme boosts metabolism, prevents weight gain in mice Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:37 AM PST Male and female mice engineered to express the inflammatory enzyme IKKbeta in their fat tissue ate more but gained less weight. They burned sugar and fat more effectively than mice who were left unaltered. The research may shed light on how obesity and inflammation affect insulin resistance and sensitivity.

Routine head hits in school sports may cause brain injury Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:37 AM PST The brain scans of high school football and hockey players showed subtle injury -- even if they did not suffer a concussion -- after taking routine hits to the head during the normal course of play, according to a new study.

Bats show ability to instantly change their ear shapes, making their hearing more flexible Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:36 AM PST Within just one tenth of a second, certain bats are able to change the shape of their outer ear from one extreme configuration to another in order to change their hearing, researchers have discovered.

Good preparation is key, even for plant cells and symbiotic fungi Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:36 AM PST Laser capture microdissection provides an insight into the symbiotic program of root cells. The most prevalent plant symbiosis is that between root cells and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, called AM fungi. AM fungi make sure that plants can grow on nutrient-depleted soil -- unnoticed by most people.

Potential new drug target in Lou Gehrig's disease Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:36 AM PST Two proteins conspire to promote Lou Gehrig's disease, according to a new study.

Ancient bronze artifact from East Asia unearthed at Alaska archaeology site Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:23 AM PST Archeologists have discovered the first prehistoric bronze artifact made from a cast ever found in Alaska, a small, buckle-like object found in an ancient Eskimo dwelling and which likely originated in East Asia.

Hysterectomy increases risk for earlier menopause among younger women, study finds Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:23 AM PST In a finding that confirms what many obstetricians and gynecologists suspected, researchers report that younger women who undergo hysterectomies face a nearly two-fold increased risk for developing menopause early.

Stem cell study helps clarify the best time for therapy to aid heart attack survivors Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:22 AM PST Physicians have found that stem cells obtained from bone marrow delivered two to three weeks after a person has a heart attack did not improve heart function. This is the first study to systematically examine the timing and method of stem cell delivery and provides vital information for the field of cell therapy.

Protecting Houston from the next big hurricane Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:22 AM PST To protect Houston and Galveston from future hurricanes, experts recommends building a floodgate across the Houston Ship Channel, adding new levees to protect densely populated areas on east Galveston Island and west Galveston Bay and creating an 130-mile-long coastal recreation area to preserve wetlands that act as a natural flood barrier. The recommendations follow a two-year study by more than a dozen experts at universities in Texas and Louisiana.

Bats, dolphins, and mole rats inspire advances in ultrasound technology Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:22 AM PST Researchers are using a unique method to interpret and manipulate the pings and echoes that bats, dolphins, and mole rats use for learning about their environments and capturing their prey. With this knowledge, he's created mathematical models that may significantly improve the accuracy of existing medical and navigational technologies.

AMD-like lesions delayed in mice fed lower glycemic index diet Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:22 AM PST Feeding older mice a lower glycemic index diet delays the onset of age-related, sight-threatening retinal lesions. Mice put on a higher GI diet demonstrated elevated accumulations of debris known as advanced glycation end products in the whole retina, particularly in the cells of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). The RPE plays a crucial role in maintaining vision and its dysfunction results in the gradual vision loss that is the hallmark of age-related macular degeneration.

Nature and nurture work together to shape the brain Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:20 AM PST Scientists presented new research today demonstrating the impact life experiences can have on genes and behavior. The studies examine how such environmental information can be transmitted from one generation to the next -- a phenomenon known as epigenetics. This new knowledge could ultimately improve understanding of brain plasticity, the cognitive benefits of motherhood, and how a parent's exposure to drugs, alcohol, and stress can alter brain development and behavior in their offspring.

Risk of contracting diabetes to increase in world of 7 billion people Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:18 AM PST World citizen number seven billion is less likely to die from infectious diseases like measles or even AIDS, and more likely to contract diabetes or other non-communicable diseases, as they are now the leading causes of deaths globally.

Novel nanocrystals with advanced optical properties developed for use as luminescent biomarkers Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:34 AM PST Researchers have developed a synthesis that yields lanthanide-doped nanocrystals with advanced light-control properties, leading to potential applications in cancer diagnostics, medical imaging and therapeutic delivery.

Archeologists discover huge ancient Greek commercial area on island of Sicily Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:34 AM PST The Greeks were not always in such dire financial straits as today. German archeologists have discovered a very large commercial area from the ancient Greek era during excavations on Sicily.

Every mouse is different: How mouse 'personality' sheds light on human depression Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:34 AM PST Just as in humans, there are also the tough types or those with a more delicate personality among mice, researchers confirm. Some adopt an active strategy when faced with stressful situations and somehow try to tackle the problem, whereas others display a passive attitude. Those in the second group are more vulnerable: some of the physiological characteristics resemble those attributed to human depression.

Self-organized pituitary-like tissue from mouse ES cells Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:34 AM PST The possibility that functional, three-dimensional tissues and organs may be derived from pluripotent cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), represents one of the grand challenges of stem cell research, but is also one of the fundamental goals of the emerging field of regenerative medicine. New research has shown that when ES cells are cultured under the appropriate conditions, they can be driven to self-organize into complex, three-dimensional tissue-like structures that closely resemble their physiological counterparts, a remarkable advance for the field.

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