ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Cell-free protein synthesis is potential lifesaver
• Breast cancer detection rate using ultrasound is shown to be comparable to mammography
• Undiagnosed Diseases Program gives answers where there were none
• Scientists detect inherited traits tied to sleep, wake, and activity cycles
• New method for analyzing synaptic density
• Hypnosis may provide new option for 'awake surgery' for brain cancer
• New acoustic technique reveals structural information in nanoscale materials
• Myopia-related differences in eye structure may help in developing 'customized' intraocular lenses
• Study opens new door for ALS drug discovery
• Preferences for changing landscape color, complexity determined
• New metamateria will speed up computers
• To bolster a new year's resolution, ask, don't tell
• Nanoworld 'snow blowers' carve straight channels in semiconductor surfaces
• Lifestyle switching: Bacillus cereus is able to resist certain antibiotic therapies
• Efficacy of major chlamydia drug confirmed
• Ecologist finds another cause of antibiotic resistance
• Two Alzheimer's risk genes linked to brain atrophy, promise future blood markers

Cell-free protein synthesis is potential lifesaver Posted: 29 Dec 2015 05:41 PM PST Lives of soldiers and others injured in remote locations could be saved with a cell-free protein synthesis system, say scientists. The device uses microfabricated bioreactors to facilitate the on-demand production of therapeutic proteins for medicines and biopharmaceuticals. Making these miniature factories cell-free, which eliminates the maintenance of a living system, simplifies the process and lowers cost.

Breast cancer detection rate using ultrasound is shown to be comparable to mammography Posted: 28 Dec 2015 02:44 PM PST The use of ultrasound in detecting breast cancer has been shown to be comparable in its sensitivity to that of mammography and should be considered when testing for the disease according to a new study.

Undiagnosed Diseases Program gives answers where there were none Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:17 PM PST An Undiagnosed Diseases Program provides an ending for one family's 24 year search for answers to their children's health issues.

Scientists detect inherited traits tied to sleep, wake, and activity cycles Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:14 PM PST A dozen inherited traits related to sleep, wake, and activity cycles that are associated with severe bipolar disorder have been identified by an international team of researchers.

New method for analyzing synaptic density Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:14 PM PST A new approach has been developed that allows researchers to broadly survey learning-related changes in synapse properties. The researchers used machine-learning algorithms to analyze thousands of images from the cerebral cortex. This allowed them to identify synapses from an entire cortical region, revealing unanticipated information about how synaptic properties change during development and learning.

Hypnosis may provide new option for 'awake surgery' for brain cancer Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:14 PM PST Could hypnosis help to reduce the psychological trauma associated with 'awake craniotomy' for brain cancers? A new 'hypnosedation' technique offers a new alternative for patients undergoing awake surgery for gliomas, suggests a study.

New acoustic technique reveals structural information in nanoscale materials Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:13 PM PST A new nondestructive technique has been developed for investigating phase transitions in materials by examining the acoustic response at the nanoscale. Information obtained from this technique -- which uses electrically-conductive atomic force microscope (AFM) probes -- could guide efforts to design materials with enhanced properties at small size scales.

Myopia-related differences in eye structure may help in developing 'customized' intraocular lenses Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:13 PM PST The presence of myopia, or nearsightedness, significantly affects the muscles used in focusing the lens of the eye -- a finding with important implications for the development of 'accommodating' implanted intraocular lenses (IOLs) that can adjust to different visual distances, reports a new study.

Study opens new door for ALS drug discovery Posted: 28 Dec 2015 01:12 PM PST Researchers have discovered the first-ever evidence-based description of the neuronal protein clumps thought to be important in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, a fatal neurodegenerative condition. This research development could be a crucial step toward developing drugs to stop the creation of the clumps and stem the progression of the disease, they say.

Preferences for changing landscape color, complexity determined Posted: 28 Dec 2015 09:47 AM PST The relationship between landscape color changes, landscape complexity, and peoples' visual preference ratings were studied using photographs of landscapes captured during four seasons. Results indicated significant and strong effects on preference ratings, showing that people's perceptions may be affected by plant and vegetative visual changes. Results also suggested that participants preferred depictions of foliated landscapes to those showing winter dormancy and senescence. The study contains recommendations for creating and extending landscapes favored by consumers.

New metamateria will speed up computers Posted: 28 Dec 2015 09:47 AM PST A two-dimensional metamaterial composed of silver elements, that refracts light in an unusual way, has been proposed by researchers who say that these structures will be able to be used to develop compact optical devices, as well as to create an 'invisibility cloak.'

To bolster a new year's resolution, ask, don't tell Posted: 28 Dec 2015 09:47 AM PST ''Will you exercise this year?' That simple question can be a game-changing technique for people who want to influence their own or others' behavior, according to a recent study spanning 40 years of research.

Nanoworld 'snow blowers' carve straight channels in semiconductor surfaces Posted: 28 Dec 2015 09:47 AM PST Easy to control, new gold-nanoparticle-catalyzed process for creating patterns of channels with nanoscale dimensions could help to spawn entirely new technologies fashioned from ensembles of ultra-small structures.

Lifestyle switching: Bacillus cereus is able to resist certain antibiotic therapies Posted: 28 Dec 2015 09:47 AM PST The pathogenic bacterium Bacillus cereus causes vomiting and diarrhea as well as systemic and local infections. A team of researchers has reported for the first time that B. cereus, following contact with certain antibiotics, can switch into a special slowed-down mode. The bacteria then form small colony variants (SVCs) that are difficult to diagnose and almost impossible to treat with certain antibiotics. This discovered mechanism may provide an alternative explanation for antibiotic resistance.

Efficacy of major chlamydia drug confirmed Posted: 23 Dec 2015 07:18 PM PST In one of the most tightly controlled trials ever conducted of drugs used to treat sexually transmitted infections, researchers have confirmed that azithromycin remains effective in the treatment of urogenital chlamydia.

Ecologist finds another cause of antibiotic resistance Posted: 23 Dec 2015 07:16 PM PST One researcher is concerned that there's more to the problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria than the misuse of common medications. A senior research ecologist, this scientist believes environmental contaminants may be partly to blame for the rise in bacterial resistance, and he tested this hypothesis in streams on the US Department of Energy's Savannah River Site.

Two Alzheimer's risk genes linked to brain atrophy, promise future blood markers Posted: 23 Dec 2015 07:16 PM PST Two genetic variants previously linked to Alzheimer's disease have been more specifically tied to brain atrophy that is characteristic of the disease. Alzheimer's disease is a progressive illness that is the leading cause of dementia and the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. There is no cure for the disease and currently available treatments can slow, but cannot stop, the deterioration.

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