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MALDI tissue imaging spots early renal lipid changes in acute kidney injury

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have made a microscopic snapshot of the early renal lipid changes in acute kidney injury, using the laser-scanning method called MALDI tissue imaging to localize the changes.

24 Mar 2016

New research shows bacterial biofilms are stronger than single-celled bacteria

New research from the University of Copenhagen reveals that bacteria which agglutinate before entering the body are far more resistant than single-celled bacteria. This may be the cause of chronic infections.

24 Mar 2016

Engineered vaginal Lactobacilli could reduce heterosexual HIV-1 transmission in women

A normal, predominant bacterial species of the healthy vaginal microbiota can be engineered for potential use as a novel protective agent against HIV-1 transmission in women, according to a new publication from scientists at Osel, Inc. and their collaborators.

24 Mar 2016

Defective PTCHD1 gene in brain creates symptoms associated with autism and ADHD

Evidence is mounting that a gene called PTCHD1 helps the brain sort between important sights and sounds — and distractions. This gene is active in a brain region that attaches more attention to a conversation with your boss, for instance, than to an air conditioner buzzing in the background.

24 Mar 2016

Anatomy researchers find evidence that CFC enhances fertilisation success, embryo survival.

Researchers from New Zealand's University of Otago studying chinook salmon have provided the first evidence that "cryptic female choice" (CFC) enhances fertilisation success and embryo survival.

24 Mar 2016

Wide-field imaging approach can help study underlying mechanisms of brain function

University of Oregon scientists have looked into the brains of living mice to see in real time the processing of sensory information and generation of behavioral responses.

24 Mar 2016

Study reveals malaria has its roots in bird hosts

Malaria affects close to 500 million people every year, but we're not the only ones--different species of malaria parasite can infect birds, bats, and other mammals too. A Field Museum study published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution reveals a new take on the evolution of different malaria species and contributes to the ongoing search for the origins of malaria in humans.

24 Mar 2016

Exercise slows down cognitive decline in older adults

Exercise in older people is associated with a slower rate of decline in thinking skills that occurs with aging. People who reported light to no exercise experienced a decline equal to 10 more years of aging as compared to people who reported moderate to intense exercise, according to a population-based observational study published in the March 23, 2016, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 Mar 2016

Diet and lifestyle may play greater role than genetics in cataract development, severity

A diet rich in vitamin C could cut risk of cataract progression by a third, suggests a study being published online today in Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. The research is also the first to show that diet and lifestyle may play a greater role than genetics in cataract development and severity.

24 Mar 2016

Novel mechanism can suppress blood vessel leakage, reduce tumour spread in mice

Cancer therapy is often hampered by the accumulation of fluids in and around the tumour, which is caused by leakage from the blood vessels in the tumour. Researchers at Uppsala University now show how leakage from blood vessels is regulated.

24 Mar 2016

Researchers elucidate how cells are blind to chromosome cohesion defects

Research led by Raquel Oliveira, group leader at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, has elucidated how cells are almost blind to chromosome cohesion defects.

24 Mar 2016

German scientists analyse LOV proteins using neutron scattering

The internal movements of proteins can be important for their functionality; researchers are discovering more and more examples of this. Now, with the aid of neutron spectroscopy, dynamic processes have also been detected in so-called "LOV photoreceptors" by scientists from Jülich, Aachen, Dusseldorf and Garching near Munich.

24 Mar 2016

Research shows tumor suppressor protein regulates polarity genes

What does Brad Pitt have in common with a fruit fly? His Hollywood hairstyles cover a prominent cowlick - the swirl of hair that that is caused by a patterning mechanism also active in our two-winged friends -- that similarly feature "polarized" hair patterns.

24 Mar 2016

Research: X and Y DNA swapping may occur more often than previously thought

It turns out that the rigid "line in the sand" over which the human sex chromosomes---the Y and X--- go to avoid crossing over is a bit blurrier than previously thought. Contrary to the current scientific consensus, Arizona State University assistant professor Melissa Wilson Sayres has led a research team that has shown that X and Y DNA swapping may occur much more often.

24 Mar 2016

Transcranial magnetic stimulation of STS can change behaviour of gaze

A study financed by the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris has been conducted under the direction of Monica Zilbovicius in the Inserm Unit 1000 on a particular region of the brain, the superior temporal sulcus (STS), influencing perception and behaviour of the gaze.

24 Mar 2016

Austrian scientists detect new membrane-bound arsenic substances in herring caviar

Seafish are known for their capability to accumulate toxic trace elements like mercury or arsenic. These elements are metabolized and end up chemically bound to organic compounds found in cell constituents like the membranes.

24 Mar 2016

Penn neurologists uncover new genetic cause of Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease

Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease (CMT) is a family of inherited disorders of the peripheral nervous system, affecting approximately one in 2,500 Americans. Its most common iteration, CMT1, comes in many forms, most of which have to date been linked to a small set of causative genes.

23 Mar 2016