ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Measuring global photosynthesis rate: Earth's plant life 'recycles' carbon dioxide faster than previously estimated
• Pre-clinical research proves promising for the treatment of blood cancer
• Matter shows abrupt escape from flatness: Lead made to undergo a rapid transition from 'pancake' to hemisphere
• Spontaneous combustion in nanobubbles inspires compact ultrasonic loudspeaker
• Unexpected role of noise in spine formation
• Commonly used supplement may improve recovery from spinal cord injuries
• Key to survival of brain cells discovered
• Easily embarrassed? Study finds people will trust you more
• Correcting sickle cell disease with stem cells
• Even high-but-normal blood pressure elevates stroke risk
• The level and nature of autistic intelligence II: What about Asperger Syndrome?
• How normal cells become brain cancers
• Study uncovers a predictable sequence toward coral reef collapse
• Dyslexia isn't a matter of IQ, brain imaging study shows
• Teenage mind: First time evidence links over interpretation of social situations to personality disorder
• New stem cell activity identified in human brain
• Big Tobacco knew radioactive particles in cigarettes posed cancer risk but kept quiet, study suggests
• Instead of defibrillator's painful jolt, there may be a gentler way to prevent sudden death
• Saving heart attack victims with computer science
• Major HIV prevention trial in women to drop oral tenofovir arm
• Managing future forests for water
• Vital protein complex and therapeutic possibilities revealed
• Millesecond memory: 'Teleportation' of rats sheds light on how the memory is organized
• Light from galaxy clusters confirms general theory of relativity
• Loss of 'lake lawnmowers' leads to algae blooms
• Children with autism benefit from early, intensive therapy
• Additives meant to protect vitamin C actually cause more harm, study suggests
• Fish uses tool to dig up and crush clams
• Gene may be good target for tough-to-kill prostate cancer cells
• Control gene for developmental timing discovered
• Genetic variant linked to blocked heart arteries in patients with diabetes
• Female mate searching evolves when mating gifts are important, katydid study finds
• Branding or microchip implant for identification: Tradition or stress?
• Scientists reveal molecular sculptor of memories
• Worm 'cell death' discovery could lead to new drugs for deadly parasite
• Self-cleaning cotton breaks down pesticides, bacteria
• Assessing California earthquake forecasts
• Killing crop-eating pests: Compounds work by disrupting bugs' winter sleep
• Scientists shut down pump action to break breast cancer cells' drug resistance
• Method for creating tiny diamond machines improved
• Popular colorectal cancer drug may cause permanent nerve damage, study suggests
• Hide-and-seek: Altered HIV can't evade immune system
• First detection of pregnancy protein in older people destined for Alzheimer's disease
• Feast your eyes on the Fried Egg Nebula
• Prescribed stimulant use for ADHD continues to rise steadily
• Tendons absorb shocks muscles won't handle

Measuring global photosynthesis rate: Earth's plant life 'recycles' carbon dioxide faster than previously estimated Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:20 PM PDT A research team followed the path of oxygen atoms on carbon dioxide molecules during photosynthesis to create a new way of measuring the efficiency of the world's plant life. The authors of the study said the new estimate of the rate of global photosynthesis enabled by their method will in turn help guide other estimates of plant activity such as the capacity of forests and crops to grow.

Pre-clinical research proves promising for the treatment of blood cancer Posted: 28 Sep 2011 04:01 PM PDT Pre-clinical research has generated some very promising findings about a prototype drug for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Matter shows abrupt escape from flatness: Lead made to undergo a rapid transition from 'pancake' to hemisphere Posted: 28 Sep 2011 04:01 PM PDT At first glance, it seems as if billions of lead atoms have mysteriously disappeared. When exposed to heat, a layer of lead coated onto a nickel surface becomes almost invisible from one moment to the next. In reality, the slightest disturbance causes these atoms to suddenly switch from a broad "flat pancake" shape to a compact hemisphere. Interestingly, this all takes place at a temperature below the melting point of lead. The hemispheres, too, consist of solid lead. So no mass has been lost, the material has simply taken on a different spatial configuration.

Spontaneous combustion in nanobubbles inspires compact ultrasonic loudspeaker Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:59 PM PDT Nanometer-sized bubbles containing the gases hydrogen and oxygen can apparently combust spontaneously, although nothing happens in larger bubbles. For the first time, researchers have demonstrated this spontaneous combustion. They intend to use the phenomenon to construct a compact ultrasonic loudspeaker.

Unexpected role of noise in spine formation Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:56 PM PDT The development of periodic structures in embryos giving rise to the formation of, e.g., spine segments, is controlled not by genes but by simple physical and chemical phenomena. Researchers have now proposed a straightforward theoretical model to describe the process, and studied how the segmentation is affected by internal, thermodynamic noise of the system. The results turned out to be counterintuitive.

Commonly used supplement may improve recovery from spinal cord injuries Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:50 PM PDT A commonly used supplement is likely to improve outcomes and recovery for individuals who sustain a spinal cord injury, according to new research.

Key to survival of brain cells discovered Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:50 PM PDT Scientists have discovered how a key chemical neurotransmitter that interacts with two receptors in the brain promotes either normal function or a disease process -- determining whether brain cells live or die.

Easily embarrassed? Study finds people will trust you more Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:04 PM PDT If tripping in public or mistaking an overweight woman for a mother-to-be leaves you red-faced, don't feel bad. A new study suggests that people who are easily embarrassed are also more trustworthy, and more generous.

Correcting sickle cell disease with stem cells Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:04 PM PDT Using a patient's own stem cells, researchers have corrected the genetic alteration that causes sickle cell disease, a painful, disabling inherited blood disorder that affects mostly African-Americans. The corrected stem cells were coaxed into immature red blood cells in a test tube that then turned on a normal version of the gene.

Even high-but-normal blood pressure elevates stroke risk Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:04 PM PDT People with prehypertension have a 55 percent higher risk of experiencing a future stroke than people without prehypertension, report researchers in a new meta-analysis of scientific literature.

The level and nature of autistic intelligence II: What about Asperger Syndrome? Posted: 28 Sep 2011 03:04 PM PDT Autism spectrum disorders, including Asperger syndrome, have generally been associated with uneven intellectual profiles and impairment, but according to a new study of Asperger individuals, this may not be the case -- as long as intelligence is evaluated by the right test.

How normal cells become brain cancers Posted: 28 Sep 2011 12:21 PM PDT Brain tumor specimens taken from neurosurgery cases have given scientists a new window on the transformation that occurs as healthy brain cells begin to form tumors.

Study uncovers a predictable sequence toward coral reef collapse Posted: 28 Sep 2011 12:21 PM PDT Coral reefs that have lots of corals and appear healthy may, in fact, be heading toward collapse, according to a new study.

Dyslexia isn't a matter of IQ, brain imaging study shows Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT About 5 to 10 percent of American children are diagnosed as dyslexic. Historically, the label has been assigned to kids who are bright, even verbally articulate, but who struggle with reading -- in short, whose high IQs mismatch their low reading scores. When children are not as bright, however, their reading troubles have been chalked up to their general intellectual limitations.

Teenage mind: First time evidence links over interpretation of social situations to personality disorder Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT Researchers have became interested in the way people think, how they organize thoughts, execute a decision, then determine whether a decision is good or bad.

New stem cell activity identified in human brain Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT Researchers have identified a new pathway of stem cell activity in the brain that represents potential targets of brain injuries affecting newborns. The recent study raises new questions of how the brain evolves.

Big Tobacco knew radioactive particles in cigarettes posed cancer risk but kept quiet, study suggests Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT Tobacco companies knew that cigarette smoke contained radioactive alpha particles for more than four decades and developed "deep and intimate" knowledge of these particles' cancer-causing potential, but they deliberately kept their findings from the public, according to a new study.

Instead of defibrillator's painful jolt, there may be a gentler way to prevent sudden death Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT Each year in the United States, more than 200,000 people have a cardiac defibrillator implanted in their chest to deliver a high-voltage shock to prevent sudden cardiac death from a life-threatening arrhythmia. While it's a necessary and effective preventive therapy, those who've experienced a defibrillator shock say it's painful, and some studies suggest that the shock can damage heart muscle.

Saving heart attack victims with computer science Posted: 28 Sep 2011 11:24 AM PDT Newly discovered subtle markers of heart damage hidden in plain sight among hours of EKG recordings could help doctors identify which heart attack patients are at high risk of dying soon.

Major HIV prevention trial in women to drop oral tenofovir arm Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:18 AM PDT A large-scale clinical trial evaluating whether daily use of an oral tablet or vaginal gel containing antiretroviral drugs can prevent HIV infection in women is being modified because an interim review found that the study cannot show that one of the study products, oral tenofovir, marketed under the trade name Viread, is effective.

Managing future forests for water Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:18 AM PDT Scientists recently used long-term data to examine the feasibility of managing forests for water supply under the changing weather conditions forecast for the future.

Vital protein complex and therapeutic possibilities revealed Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:18 AM PDT Scientists have detailed the structure and workings of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), a large family of human proteins that are the target of one-third to one-half of modern drugs.

Millesecond memory: 'Teleportation' of rats sheds light on how the memory is organized Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:18 AM PDT An experiment in which rats are "teleported" shows how memory is organized into discrete 125 millisecond-long packets, enabling a smooth transition between one memory and the next.

Light from galaxy clusters confirms general theory of relativity Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:17 AM PDT All observations in astronomy are based on light (electromagnetic radiation) emitted from stars and galaxies and, according to the general theory of relativity, the light will be affected by gravity. At the same time all interpretations in astronomy are based on the correctness of the theory of relatively, but it has been difficult to accurately test Einstein's theory of gravity on scales larger than the solar system. Now astrophysicists in Denmark have managed to measure how the light is affected by gravity on its way out of galaxy clusters. The observations confirm the theoretical predictions.

Loss of 'lake lawnmowers' leads to algae blooms Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT Unprecedented algae growth in some lakes could be linked to the decline of water calcium levels and the subsequent loss of an important algae-grazing organism that helps keep blooms at bay.

Children with autism benefit from early, intensive therapy Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT Researchers have found that children with autism spectrum disorders who receive more intensive therapy to combat social-communication impairments, especially at early ages, achieve the best outcomes.

Additives meant to protect vitamin C actually cause more harm, study suggests Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT Anti-caking agents in powdered products may hasten degradation of vitamin C instead of doing what they are supposed to do: protect the nutrient from moisture.

Fish uses tool to dig up and crush clams Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT The first video of tool use by a fish has now been published. In the video, an orange-dotted tuskfish digs a clam out of the sand, carries it over to a rock, and repeatedly throws the clam against the rock to crush it.

Gene may be good target for tough-to-kill prostate cancer cells Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT Scientists believe they have found an effective target for killing late-stage, metastatic prostate cancer cells. They are focusing on the function of a gene called Polo-like kinase (Plk1), a critical regulator of the cell cycle. Plk1 is also an oncogene, which tends to mutate and can cause cancer.

Control gene for developmental timing discovered Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:54 AM PDT Researchers have identified a key regulator that controls the speed of development in the fruit fly. When the researchers blocked the function of this regulator, animals sped up their rate of development and reached maturity much faster than normal.

Genetic variant linked to blocked heart arteries in patients with diabetes Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:53 AM PDT Researchers have identified the first genetic variant associated with severity of coronary artery disease in patients with type 2 diabetes. Though this variant is not likely the cause of more severe coronary disease, the researchers say, it implicates a gene that could be. Such a gene has promise as a future target for treating coronary artery disease in diabetic patients.

Female mate searching evolves when mating gifts are important, katydid study finds Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:53 AM PDT In the animal world, males typically search for their female partners. The mystery is that in some species, you get a reversal -- the females search for males. A new study of katydids supports a theory that females will search if males offer a lot more than just sperm.

Branding or microchip implant for identification: Tradition or stress? Posted: 28 Sep 2011 09:53 AM PDT For animal welfare reasons, many veterinarians are currently promoting the method of implanting a microchip over the traditional practice of branding. However, officials of major sport horse breed registries deny that branding really causes pain or stress to foals. The new results show that tissue damage caused by branding in foals is far more pronounced than expected.

Scientists reveal molecular sculptor of memories Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Researchers working with adult mice have discovered that learning and memory were profoundly affected when they altered the amounts of a certain protein in specific parts of the mammals' brains.

Worm 'cell death' discovery could lead to new drugs for deadly parasite Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Researchers have for the first time identified a "programmed cell death" pathway in parasitic worms that could one day lead to new treatments for one of the world's most serious and prevalent diseases.

Self-cleaning cotton breaks down pesticides, bacteria Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Scientists have developed a self-cleaning cotton fabric that can kill bacteria and break down toxic chemicals such as pesticide residues when exposed to light.

Assessing California earthquake forecasts Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Earthquake prediction remains an imperfect science, but the best forecasts are about 10 times more accurate than a random prediction, according to a new study.

Killing crop-eating pests: Compounds work by disrupting bugs' winter sleep Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT The creation of compounds that disrupt a worldwide pest's winter sleep hints at the potential to develop natural and targeted controls against crop-eating insects, new research suggests. Scientists have designed agents that interfere with the protective dormancy period of the corn earworm, a species that infests more than 100 types of plants and costs American farmers an estimated $2 billion a year in losses and control costs.

Scientists shut down pump action to break breast cancer cells' drug resistance Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Breast cancer cells that mutate to resist drug treatment survive by establishing tiny pumps on their surface that reject the drugs as they penetrate the cell membrane -- making the cancer insensitive to chemotherapy drugs even after repeated use. Researchers have found a new way to break that resistance and shut off the pumps by genetically altering those breast cancer cells to forcibly activate a heat-shock protein called Hsp27.

Method for creating tiny diamond machines improved Posted: 28 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Diamonds may be best known as a symbol of long-lasting love, but semiconductor makers are also hoping they'll pan out as key components of long-lasting micromachines if a new method for carving these tough, capable crystals proves its worth.

Popular colorectal cancer drug may cause permanent nerve damage, study suggests Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:59 AM PDT Oxaliplatin, a platinum-based anticancer drug that's made enormous headway in recent years against colorectal cancer, appears to cause nerve damage that may be permanent and worsens even months after treatment ends, according to a new study.

Hide-and-seek: Altered HIV can't evade immune system Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:59 AM PDT Researchers have modified HIV in a way that makes it no longer able to suppress the immune system. Their work could remove a major hurdle in HIV vaccine development and lead to new treatments.

First detection of pregnancy protein in older people destined for Alzheimer's disease Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:59 AM PDT In an advance toward a much-needed early diagnostic test for Alzheimer's disease (AD), scientists have discovered that older women destined to develop AD have high blood levels of a protein linked to pregnancy years before showing symptoms.

Feast your eyes on the Fried Egg Nebula Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:57 AM PDT Astronomers have used ESO's Very Large Telescope to image a colossal star that belongs to one of the rarest classes of stars in the Universe, the yellow hypergiants. The new picture is the best ever taken of a star in this class and shows for the first time a huge dusty double shell surrounding the central hypergiant. The star and its shells resemble an egg white around a yolky center, leading the astronomers to nickname the object the Fried Egg Nebula.

Prescribed stimulant use for ADHD continues to rise steadily Posted: 28 Sep 2011 07:57 AM PDT The prescribed use of stimulant medications to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) rose slowly but steadily from 1996 to 2008, according to a new study.

Tendons absorb shocks muscles won't handle Posted: 27 Sep 2011 06:18 PM PDT Researchers have learned how muscles and tendons in the legs deal with sudden impacts. Experiments showed that tendons absorb the initial burst of energy from impact before the leg muscles react. The tendons act as shock absorbers, protecting the leg muscle from damage at the moment of impact.

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