ScienceDaily: Top News

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• How the brain controls sleep
• TAK-733 shows challenge of using a promising drug in the human body
• Schizophrenia symptoms linked to features of brain's anatomy?
• Plant hormone 'switch' unravels chromatin to form flowers, biologists find
• Boosting the brain's waste disposal system
• Antiviral favipiravir successfully treats Lassa virus in guinea pigs
• Patients using nurse practitioners are less likely to have avoidable hospital admissions
• Toward clearer, cheaper imaging of ultrafast phenomena
• Anticancer effects of drugs overestimated by as much as 45 percent in animal models
• Building a better liposome
• Use of e-cigarettes, alternative tobacco products may lead to increased tobacco use
• Study underscores need to assess behavioral sequelae of TBI
• Research shows diversity can improve stores' sales performance
• Relaxation response-based program may reduce participants' future use of health services
• Sitting for long periods not bad for health, suggest researchers
• Possible new treatment for neurodegenerative diseases found
• New study has important implications for the design of a protective HIV vaccine
• Noninvasive imaging method looks deeper inside the body to study living brain
• Malaria vaccine provides hope for a general cure for cancer
• Sun-warmed dinosaurs may have been surprisingly good sprinters
• Sweden is on track to becoming the first cashless nation
• Data storage of the future: Scientists crack secret of making stable, dynamic skyrmions
• Sight set on tracking threatened species
• Sixth sense: How do we sense electric fields?
• Health care, research failing to adapt to US's growing multiracial population
• Climate models used to explain formation of Mars valley networks
• Ancient human ear-orienting system could yield clues to hearing deficits in infants
• Video conferencing could increase shared decision-making in hospice care
• Marine mathematics helps to map undiscovered deep-water coral reefs
• Africa's urban waste: A valuable source of electricity
• Billions of juvenile fish under the Arctic sea ice
• 'I am right for your child!' The key to winning over your future in-laws
• New tool: How to get meaningful information out of big data
• Scientists find external environment, oxidation greatest threats to DNA
• Local government supervisor training can be more efficient
• Study finds glyphosate, acetamiprid to have relatively low toxicity for honey bees
• Bacterium that causes Q fever linked to non-Hodgkin lymphoma
• Listeria can grow on unrefrigerated caramel apples
• Social media content may hold keys to important health information
• Novel imaging study demonstrates how the 'social brain' is functionally impaired in autism spectrum disorder
• Calcium supplements may increase the risk of kidney stone recurrence
• Obesity surgery normalizes brain opioids
• Type 2 diabetes screening needs 'reviewing'
• Re-thinking plant and insect diversity
• Young stars’ flickering light reveals remarkable link with matter-eating black holes
• Feasts and food choices: Culinary habits of the Stonehenge builders
• Honey bee queens highly vulnerable to two neonicotinoid insecticides
• New field of application for versatile helper
• Smoking habits found to change blood serum concentration of aging-related molecules
• New research sees zebrafish earn their stripes in the fight against Muscular Dystrophy
• No proof that 85 percent of depression treatment apps accredited by NHS actually work
• Advanced care, increased risk
• Farmers' responses to crises key to informing effective food security policy
• Extreme weight loss tactics among UK cage fighters prompt alarm and call for action
• Vaccinating children may be cost-effective for tackling flu
• Obesity doesn't protect patients with cardiovascular disease
• What happens when your brain can't tell which way is up?
• Breast cancer drug beats superbug
• Just a touch of skyrmions
• Disparities in breast cancer persist across all subtypes, stages

How the brain controls sleep Posted: 13 Oct 2015 03:27 PM PDT Neuroscientists have discovered a brain circuit that can trigger small regions of the brain to fall asleep or become less alert, while the rest of the brain remains awake. The researchers believe this may help the brain consolidate new memories by coordinating slow waves between different parts of the brain, allowing them to share information more easily.

TAK-733 shows challenge of using a promising drug in the human body Posted: 13 Oct 2015 02:59 PM PDT A new study shows, on one hand, strong activity, and on the other hand, challenging pharmacokinetics of new drug TAK-733 against colorectal cancer.

Schizophrenia symptoms linked to features of brain's anatomy? Posted: 13 Oct 2015 02:59 PM PDT Using advanced brain imaging, researchers have matched certain behavioral symptoms of schizophrenia to features of the brain's anatomy. The findings could be a step toward improving diagnosis and treatment of schizophrenia.

Plant hormone 'switch' unravels chromatin to form flowers, biologists find Posted: 13 Oct 2015 01:57 PM PDT A hormone-mediated 'chromatin switch' has been identified that directs a plant to form flowers. In the absence of auxin, genes that initiate flower formation are tucked away in tangled chromatin, a tightly packed bundle of DNA. But, in the hormone's presence, proteins are recruited to unravel chromatin and make the genes responsible for flower formation more accessible.

Boosting the brain's waste disposal system Posted: 13 Oct 2015 01:57 PM PDT Researchers have been investigating the extent to which macrophages, a type of phagocytic immune cell, might be used to eliminate the abnormal protein deposits typically found in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Antiviral favipiravir successfully treats Lassa virus in guinea pigs Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Favipiravir, an investigational antiviral drug currently being tested in West Africa as a treatment for Ebola virus disease, effectively treated Lassa virus infection in guinea pigs, according to a new study.

Patients using nurse practitioners are less likely to have avoidable hospital admissions Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Diabetic patients who got their primary care from nurse practitioners did not have an increase in potentially preventable hospital admissions, new research concludes.

Toward clearer, cheaper imaging of ultrafast phenomena Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Many mysteries of nature are locked up in the world of the very small and the very fast. Chemical reactions and material phase transitions, for example, happen on the scale of atoms -- which are about one tenth of one billionth of a meter across -- and attoseconds -- which are one quintillionth (10^-18) of a second long. A new technique that may help record better images of such ultrafast phenomena has been proposed by researchers.

Anticancer effects of drugs overestimated by as much as 45 percent in animal models Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Failure to eliminate bias can skew what we think we know about a drug, waste time and money on trials that prove 'futile' and drive up the price of medications. Only 5 percent of agents that show anticancer activity in preclinical development are eventually licensed while in cardiovascular disease, for example, the rate is 20 percent, say experts.

Building a better liposome Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT Using computational modeling, researchers have come up with a design for a sturdier liposome. Their findings, while theoretical, could provide the basis for efficiently constructing new vehicles for nanodrug delivery.

Use of e-cigarettes, alternative tobacco products may lead to increased tobacco use Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:38 PM PDT The increasing use of alternative tobacco products, such as water pipes and e-cigarettes, by children under the age of 18 is a burgeoning public health crisis, researchers write in a new commentary.

Study underscores need to assess behavioral sequelae of TBI Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:38 PM PDT Rsearchers assessed moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) for frontal behavioral syndromes and cognitive function. Their finding suggest that adding the Frontal Systems Behavior Scale to neuropsychological assessment may yield useful information about the behavioral sequelae of TBI.

Research shows diversity can improve stores' sales performance Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:38 PM PDT Matching levels of racial diversity between store employees and the surrounding community impacts the store unit's sales performance, according to a new study.

Relaxation response-based program may reduce participants' future use of health services Posted: 13 Oct 2015 12:37 PM PDT A new study finds that individuals participating in a relaxation-response-focused training program used fewer health care services in the year after their participation than in the preceding year.

Sitting for long periods not bad for health, suggest researchers Posted: 13 Oct 2015 11:40 AM PDT New research has challenged claims that sitting for long periods increases the risk of an early death even if you are otherwise physically active. The study followed more than 5000 participants for 16 years (making it one of the longest follow-up studies in this area of research) and found that sitting, either at home or at work, is not associated with an increased risk of dying.

Possible new treatment for neurodegenerative diseases found Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:58 AM PDT A well-established anti-epileptic drug could also be used as a treatment for neurodegenerative diseases, report scientists investigating the topic.

New study has important implications for the design of a protective HIV vaccine Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:58 AM PDT A study describes how the changing viral swarm in an HIV infected person can drive the generation of antibodies able to neutralize HIV strains from across the world. This work has important implications for the design of a protective HIV vaccine, say the researchers.

Noninvasive imaging method looks deeper inside the body to study living brain Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:55 AM PDT Researchers have demonstrated a noninvasive light-based imaging technology enabling study of the living brain and providing a new tool to study how diseases like dementia, Alzheimer's, and brain tumors change brain tissue over time.

Malaria vaccine provides hope for a general cure for cancer Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:55 AM PDT The hunt for a vaccine against malaria in pregnant women has provided an unexpected side benefit for researchers, namely what appears to be an effective weapon against cancer. The scientists behind the vaccine aim for tests on humans within four years.

Sun-warmed dinosaurs may have been surprisingly good sprinters Posted: 13 Oct 2015 10:55 AM PDT Were dinosaurs really fast, aggressive hunters like the ones depicted in the movie 'Jurassic World'? Or did they have lower metabolic rates that made them move more like today's alligators and crocodiles? New research indicates that some dinosaurs, at least, had the capacity to elevate their body temperature using heat sources in the environment, such as the sun.

Sweden is on track to becoming the first cashless nation Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:24 AM PDT Sweden is on its way to becoming the world's first cashless society, thanks to the country's embrace of IT, as well as a crackdown on organized crime and terror, according to a new study.

Data storage of the future: Scientists crack secret of making stable, dynamic skyrmions Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:23 AM PDT Scientists have unlocked the secret to creating stable dynamic skyrmions – the nanoscale magnetic whirls that promise to meet our insatiable appetite for data storage.

Sight set on tracking threatened species Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:22 AM PDT An expert statistics researcher is helping conservation efforts for endangered animals utilizing science and statistics with virtual reality.

Sixth sense: How do we sense electric fields? Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT A variety of animals are able to sense and react to electric fields, and living human cells will move along an electric field, for example in wound healing. Now researchers have found the first actual 'sensor mechanism' that allows a living cell detect an electric field.

Health care, research failing to adapt to US's growing multiracial population Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT Health care and research are failing to adapt data collection methods to the growing multiracial population in the US, an author suggests in a new report.

Climate models used to explain formation of Mars valley networks Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT The extensive valley networks on the surface of Mars were probably created by running water billions of years ago, but the source of that water is unknown. Now, researchers are using climate models to predict how greenhouse warming could be the source of the water.

Ancient human ear-orienting system could yield clues to hearing deficits in infants Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT Vestigial organs, such as the wisdom teeth in humans, are those that have become functionless through the course of evolution. Now, a psychologist studying vestigial muscles behind the ears in humans has determined that ancient neural circuits responsible for moving the ears, still may be responsive to sounds that attract our attention. Neuroscientists studying auditory function could use these ancient muscles to study positive emotions and infant hearing deficits.

Video conferencing could increase shared decision-making in hospice care Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT Shared decision-making, although beneficial, could be enhanced in hospice care, say authors of a new report. The researchers recommend that health care workers employ measures such as video conferencing to help increase the likelihood of shared decision-making between patients and family caregivers.

Marine mathematics helps to map undiscovered deep-water coral reefs Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT A team of marine scientists has discovered four new deep-water coral reefs in the Atlantic Ocean using the power of predictive mathematical models. Located at depths of up to 1.2km, in seas west of Ireland, the reefs were identified by a modelling system that predicts occurrence according to conditions favourable to coral.

Africa's urban waste: A valuable source of electricity Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT Estimated electricity production from the total waste generated in Africa could reach 122.2 TWh in 2025, or more than 20 percent of the electricity consumed in 2010 at continental level (661.5TWh), according to a study that analyzed the potential of urban solid waste for Africa's electricity needs.

Billions of juvenile fish under the Arctic sea ice Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT Using a new net, marine biologists have, for the first time, been able to catch polar cod directly beneath the Arctic sea ice with a trawl, allowing them to determine their large-scale distribution and origin. This information is of fundamental importance, as polar cod are a major source of food for seals, whales and seabirds in the Arctic.

'I am right for your child!' The key to winning over your future in-laws Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT The key to dealing with future in-laws who disapprove of your relationship may involve showing them what a good influence you are on their child, rather than manipulating them with gifts. An author shares the results of interviews with Greek-Cypriot children and parents and also finds that mothers may be more easily won over than fathers.

New tool: How to get meaningful information out of big data Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT Every second trillions of data bits are accumulated and stored. All these data bits make no sense if you don't know how to sort them. Now researchers present a tool that helps researchers sort data and retrieve meaningful knowledge from the data jungle.

Scientists find external environment, oxidation greatest threats to DNA Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT Forces in the external environmental and oxidation are the greatest threats to an organism's ability to repair damage to its own DNA, new research indicates.

Local government supervisor training can be more efficient Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:19 AM PDT City department supervisors would benefit from training roughly every eight to nine months on conceptual leadership skills, like strategic planning and conflict resolution, according to a study. Those supervisors, however, need less frequent training on interpersonal skills, such as team collaboration, accepting and providing feedback and understanding citizens' needs.

Study finds glyphosate, acetamiprid to have relatively low toxicity for honey bees Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:09 AM PDT The herbicide glyphosate and the neonicotinoid acetamiprid to have low toxicity levels for honey bees under actual field conditions, researchers have discovered. They also found sulfoxaflor to be near the middle in terms of toxicity when compared to other chemicals.

Bacterium that causes Q fever linked to non-Hodgkin lymphoma Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:09 AM PDT The bacterium that causes Q fever, an infectious disease that humans contract from animals, is associated with an increased risk of lymphoma, according to a study.

Listeria can grow on unrefrigerated caramel apples Posted: 13 Oct 2015 08:08 AM PDT Caramel apples punctured with dipping sticks and left unrefrigerated over the course of a couple of weeks may harbor a bacterium called Listeria monocytogenes, according to a study.

Social media content may hold keys to important health information Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:38 AM PDT Language used in everyday social media posts may have a strong connection to an individual's health. In the first study of its kind, the new results suggest that not only are many adult Facebook and Twitter users willing to share their social media data and medical data for research purposes, but that by building a language databank, it may be possible to link social media content to health outcomes.

Novel imaging study demonstrates how the 'social brain' is functionally impaired in autism spectrum disorder Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:37 AM PDT Brain areas linked to social behaviors are both underdeveloped and insufficiently networked in youths with high functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to study participants without ASD, a team of scientists has found.

Calcium supplements may increase the risk of kidney stone recurrence Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:36 AM PDT Calcium supplements may increase the risk of kidney stone recurrence, according to a new study.

Obesity surgery normalizes brain opioids Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:32 AM PDT Researchers have revealed how obesity surgery recovers opioid neurotransmission in the brain. Obesity surgery provides an effective means for rapid weight loss, and the research also shows that obesity surgery also normalizes brain circuits triggering pleasurable sensations when eating.

Type 2 diabetes screening needs 'reviewing' Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:32 AM PDT 'Multi-step' programs in diabetes screening lead to more people responding to screening invitations and the number of those needing a final test for a definite diagnosis being reduced, suggest authors of a new report.

Re-thinking plant and insect diversity Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:32 AM PDT Biologists have shown that plant and insect diversity is more loosely linked than scientists previously believed.

Young stars’ flickering light reveals remarkable link with matter-eating black holes Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:32 AM PDT Astronomers have discovered a previously unknown link between the way young stars grow and the way black holes and other exotic space objects feed from their surroundings.

Feasts and food choices: Culinary habits of the Stonehenge builders Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:32 AM PDT Archaeologists have revealed new insights into cuisine choices and eating habits at Durrington Walls -- a Late Neolithic monument and settlement site thought to be the residence for the builders of nearby Stonehenge during the 25th century BC.

Honey bee queens highly vulnerable to two neonicotinoid insecticides Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:31 AM PDT Throughout the northern hemisphere, beekeepers have struggled to maintain adequate numbers of honey bee colonies for crop pollination and honey production due to dramatic increases in colony deaths each year. Recent surveys of beekeepers suggest that poor queen health is an important reason for these losses, but why queen health is now being affected is not understood.

New field of application for versatile helper Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:31 AM PDT In Alzheimer's disease proteins clump together to long fibrils causing the death of nerve cells. Small heat shock proteins can counteract this effect. Scientists, therefore, hope to deploy them as agents in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Using the example of a small heat shock protein, researchers have now uncovered how the protein interacts with other proteins.

Smoking habits found to change blood serum concentration of aging-related molecules Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:31 AM PDT The average life span of smokers is more than 10 years shorter than that of non-smoker, and it is said that smoking is a factor which accelerates aging. However, the details of the mechanism which accelerates aging due to smoking has not, to date, been clear.

New research sees zebrafish earn their stripes in the fight against Muscular Dystrophy Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:31 AM PDT New research has demonstrated a new method for observing the behavior of the protein Dystrophin in a living animal cell, in real-time. This breakthrough may provide a key to understanding how to treat the genetic disease, Muscular Dystrophy.

No proof that 85 percent of depression treatment apps accredited by NHS actually work Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:25 AM PDT There is no proof that 85 percent of the depression apps currently recommended by the NHS for patients to manage their condition actually work, say experts.

Advanced care, increased risk Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:24 AM PDT Patients with trauma, stroke, heart attack and respiratory failure who were transported by basic life support ambulances had lower mortality than patients who were transported by advanced life support ambulances, shows a new study.

Farmers' responses to crises key to informing effective food security policy Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:24 AM PDT A better understanding of how farmers in developing countries cope in times of stress is needed if funding to support food security is to be used effectively, according to an English academic.

Extreme weight loss tactics among UK cage fighters prompt alarm and call for action Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:24 AM PDT UK cage fighters are indulging in potentially dangerous behaviors in a bid to lose large amounts of weight in the shortest possible time before a fight, reveal doctors in a snapshot survey of preferred slimming tactics.

Vaccinating children may be cost-effective for tackling flu Posted: 13 Oct 2015 07:24 AM PDT Extending flu vaccine administration to UK children may be a cost-effective way to reduce disease burden in the general population, according to research. The study, which was part of the evidence used by the UK to add a pediatric component to its influenza immunization program, finds that the most cost-effective option is extending the vaccination program covering high risk and elderly individuals, to 5- to 16-year-old children.

Obesity doesn't protect patients with cardiovascular disease Posted: 13 Oct 2015 06:54 AM PDT Why is it that study after study shows obese or overweight people with cardiovascular disease outliving their normal weight counterparts? Would this phenomenon, referred to as the obesity paradox, hold up when approached within different parameters? Now researchers say no: obesity is harmful, not helpful, to someone with cardiovascular disease, according to new research.

What happens when your brain can't tell which way is up? Posted: 13 Oct 2015 06:54 AM PDT The Spaceflight Effects on Neurocognitive Performance: Extent, Longevity, and Neural Bases (NeuroMapping) study is examining changes in both brain structure and function and determining how long it takes to recover after returning from space.

Breast cancer drug beats superbug Posted: 13 Oct 2015 06:54 AM PDT Researchers have found that the breast cancer drug tamoxifen gives white blood cells a boost, better enabling them to respond to, ensnare and kill bacteria in laboratory experiments. Tamoxifen treatment in mice also enhances clearance of the antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogen MRSA and reduces mortality.

Just a touch of skyrmions Posted: 13 Oct 2015 06:54 AM PDT Scientists have found a way to manipulate skyrmions -- tiny nanometer-sized magnetic vortices found at the surface of magnetic materials -- using mechanical energy.

Disparities in breast cancer persist across all subtypes, stages Posted: 13 Oct 2015 06:53 AM PDT Minority women were more likely to have aggressive subtypes of breast cancer and were more likely to receive non-guideline concordant treatment when compared with non-Hispanic white women, says a new report.

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