Decoding The Dictionary: Lexicon Evolved To Fit In The Brain, Study Suggests

The latest edition of the Oxford English Dictionary boasts 22,000 pages of definitions. While that may seem far from succinct, new research suggests the reference manual is meticulously organized to be as concise as possible -- a format that mirrors the way our brains make sense of and categorize the countless words in our vast vocabulary.

How To Measure A Carbon Nanotube

NIST, in collaboration with NASA, has published detailed guidelines for making essential measurements on samples of single-walled carbon nanotubes. The new guide constitutes the current "best practices" for characterizing one of the most promising and heavily studied of the new generation of nanoscale materials.

Cancer Could Return Unless Stored Ovarian Tissue Undergoes Adequate Testing Before Re-implantation

Cancer patients who have been successfully treated for their disease face the prospect of its return if stored ovarian (or testicular) tissue is transplanted back into their bodies without adequate checks, according to researchers at two university hospitals. And few fertility centers have skills and technology needed to check for residual cancer cells.

Drug Target For The Most Potent Botulinum Neurotoxin Determined

Botulinum neurotoxin -- responsible for the deadly food poisoning disease botulism and for the beneficial effects of smoothing out facial wrinkles - can also be used as a dreaded biological weapon. When ingested or inhaled, less than a billionth of an ounce can cause muscle paralysis and eventual death. Although experimental vaccines administered prior to exposure can inhibit the destructive action of this neurotoxin - the most deadly protein known to humans -- no effective pharmacological treatment exists. Scientists have now taken the first step toward designing an effective antidote to the most potent form of botulinum neurotoxin.

'Destruct' Triggers May Be Jammed In Tumor Cells, Geneticists Say

By monitoring gene activity levels and changes in chromatin -- the protein spools that the genes wrap around -- researchers were able to detect epigenetic factors that make fruit fly cells resistant to radiation. The discovery suggests that tumor cells may have similar protection from radiotherapy or chemotherapy, an insight that may lead to more effective cancer treatments.

Ancient Ecosystems Organized Much Like Our Own

Similarities between half-billion-year-old and recent food webs point to deep principles underpinning the structure of ecological relationships, as shown by researchers from the Santa Fe Institute, Microsoft Research Cambridge and elsewhere. Analyses of food-web data suggest that most, but not all, aspects of the trophic structure of modern ecosystems were in place over a half-billion years ago.

Absinthe Uncorked: The 'Green Fairy' Was Boozy -- But Not Psychedelic

A new study may end the century-old controversy over what ingredient in absinthe caused the exotic green aperitif's supposed mind-altering effects and toxic side-effects when consumed to excess. The report is the most comprehensive analysis of authentic 19th century absinthe to date.

Engineers Harness Cell Phone Technology For Use In Medical Imaging

With an innovative concept developed by UC Berkeley engineers, the ubiquitous cell phone could one day be used to make medical imaging accessible to billions of people around the world. Using off-the-shelf components, the researchers demonstrated the feasibility of using a mobile phone to transmit raw data from a medical scan to a central server for processing, and then receiving the final image for display on its screen.

Immune System Kick-started In Moist Nasal Lining In Sinusitis, Asthma And Colds

Scientists have outlined a new path for potential therapies to combat inflammation associated with sinusitis and asthma based on a new understanding of the body's earliest immune response in the nose and sinus cavities.

Turning On Cell-cell Communication Wipes Out Staph Biofilms

Researchers have succeeded in wiping out established biofilms of Staphylococcus aureus by hijacking one of the bacteria's own regulatory systems. Although the discovery is not ready for clinical application, the findings offer insight into a dispersal mechanism for staph biofilms and might help identify therapeutic targets.

Scientists Provide Explanation For How Cancer Spreads

Metastasis, the spread of cancer throughout the body, can be explained by the fusion of a cancer cell with a white blood cell in the original tumor, according to Yale School of Medicine researchers, who say that this single event can set the stage for cancer's migration to other parts of the body.

Jupiter's Rings Are Shaped By Interplay Of Sunlight And Shadow

Astronomers appear to have solved a long-standing mystery about the cause of anomalies in Jupiter's gossamer rings. A faint extension of the outermost ring beyond the orbit of Jupiter's moon Thebe, and other observed deviations from an accepted model of ring formation, result from the interplay of shadow and sunlight on dust particles that make up the rings.

You Just Move Like A Mouse, Or Do So Abnormally Like A Mutant Mouse

A new holistic approach to assess model behavior has been proposed and evaluated by researchers at the University of Tokyo and Osaka Bioscience Institute. The lifestyle of the mouse has been monitored in a way comparable with that of monitoring humans. The animal's every move is recorded by pressure sensors under the cage, and this information is collected for more than 24 hours.

New Model For Embryonic Limb Development Revealed

Researchers have found a new model to explain how signals between cells in the embryo control limb development. They discovered that secreted growth factors at the distal tip of the embryonic limb act as instructive molecules that control the pattern of bones along the length of the limb in an animal model.

New Arenavirus Associated With Hemorrhagic Fever Discovered

Scientists have characterized "Chapare arenavirus," a previously unrecognized arenavirus, discovered in serum samples from a patient in rural Bolivia who eventually died of the infection. Named after the Chapare River in the eastern foothills of the Andes, the new Chapare arenavirus produces clinical hemorrhagic symptoms similar to those associated with other New World arenaviruses, such as the Junin, Machupo, Guanarito, and Sabia viruses. Genetically, however, Chapare is different from each.

Scientists Head To Warming Alaska On Ice Core Expedition

The state of Alaska has the dubious distinction of leading the lower 48 in the effects of a warming climate. Small villages are slipping into the sea due to coastal erosion, soggy permafrost is cracking buildings and trapping trucks. In an effort to better understand how the Pacific Northwest fits into the larger climate-change picture, scientists are heading to Denali National Park on the second leg of a multi-year mission to recover ice cores from glaciers in the Alaska wilderness.

Getting To The Roots Of Breast Cancer

The lesson learned in eradicating dandelions from your yard could apply in treating breast cancer as well, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine. "It's not enough to kill the dandelion blossom and stalk that appear above ground," said the molecular and cellular biology expert. "You have to kill the root beneath the soil as well."

Double Life Of Proteins Discovered

Scientists are a step closer to understanding the rare Hartnup disorder after discovering a surprising link between blood pressure regulation and nutrition that could also help to shed light on intestinal and kidney function.

Down's Syndrome Children May Only Need BiFocals For Two Years, Study Suggests

Nearly one third of Down's syndrome children who wear bifocal lenses to help them focus accurately may only need to wear them for two years, according to new research.

Artificial Intelligence Boosts Science From Mars

Artificial intelligence being used at the European Space Operations Center is giving a powerful boost to ESA's Mars Express as it searches for signs of past or present life on the Red Planet.

Genome Analysis Reveals New Protein Associated With Breast Cancer Progression

A novel systems-based approach that combines comprehensive gene expression profiling with genome-wide transcription factor analysis and protein-protein interaction has led researchers to an important genetic marker that can help physicians know which breast cancer patients are at highest risk and will require more aggressive treatment.

Biomarkers Identified For Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Researchers report the first evidence of a distinctive protein signature that could help to transform the diagnosis and improve the monitoring of the devastating lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in PLoS Medicine. Scientists describe a unique combination of blood proteins that appears to distinguish IPF patients from normal controls with extraordinary sensitivity and precision.

'Emotional Inflation' Leads To Stock Market Meltdown

Investors get carried away with excitement and wishful 'fantasies' as the stock market soars, suppressing negative emotions warning them of high risks, according to a new study led by UCL. Economic models fail to factor in the emotions and unconscious mental life that drive human behavior says the study, which argues that banks and financial institutions should be as wary of 'emotional inflation' as they are fiscal inflation.

Before Fossil Fuels, Earth's Minerals Kept Carbon Dioxide In Check

Over millions of years carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have been moderated by a finely-tuned natural feedback system -- a system that human emissions have recently overwhelmed. Scientists have now linked the pre-human stability to connections between carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the breakdown of minerals in the Earth's crust.

Promising Early Evidence Of The Superior Benefits Of Drug Therapy For Diabetic Eye Disease

A drug for the treatment of diabetic eye disease has performed better in clinical trials than the current standard treatment using laser surgery. "These are very encouraging results, showing that drugs we have been testing in human clinical trials can be effective in slowing or stopping the effects of eye disease brought on by diabetes," said one of the scientists.

Life-Probing Instrument Preparing For Mission To Mars

A new life-detecting instrument is preparing for a mission to the Red Planet. The Urey: Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector instrument, developed by a scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, received approximately $2 million in NASA funding to further refine the design and technology for the European Space Agency's (ESA) 2013 ExoMars Rover Mission.

Moral Philosopher Questions Memory Manipulation

Is medicated memory manipulation ethically sound? And perhaps more importantly, who should be charged with the decision to deliver such a treatment: patient or physician? A philosophy professor, is seeking answers to these questions in her new research.

How Birds Navigate: Research Team Is First To Model Photochemical Compass

Scientists from Arizona State University and the University of Oxford, whose work appears in the April 30 advanced online publication of the journal Nature, have synthesized and studied a sophisticated molecule that, under illumination, is sensitive to both the magnitude and the direction of magnetic fields as tiny as the Earth's, which is, on average, one-twenty thousandth as strong as a refrigerator magnet.

'New' Ancient Antarctic Sediment Reveals Climate Change History

Recent additions to the premier collection of Southern Ocean sediment cores at Florida State University's Antarctic Marine Geology Research Facility will give international scientists a close-up look at fluctuations that occurred in Antarctica's ice sheet and marine and terrestrial life as the climate cooled considerably between 20 and 14 million years ago.

Consistencies Found In Synaesthesia: Letter 'A' Is Red For Many; 'V' Is Purple

New research adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that commonalities do indeed exists across synesthaetes. In their own study of 70 synesthaetes, and a reanalysis of 19 more in previously published data, psychologists have found that synesthaetes share certain grapheme-color combinations.

Targeted Combination Therapy Triggers Cell Death in Mouse Models of Metastatic Cancer

A combination of two targeted drugs--one that blocks protein breakdown and one that activates the programmed cell death pathway--reduces the number of tumor metastases in mouse models of kidney and breast cancer. The combination also prolonged overall survival in mice with kidney cancer. Bortezomib blocks the activity of the proteasome, an enzyme complex which degrades misfolded or unwanted proteins. Bortezomib has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of multiple myeloma, but its activity against solid tumors is still being tested.

Virtual World Therapeautic For Addicts: Study Shows Impact Of Environment To Addiction Cravings

Patients in therapy to overcome addictions have a new arena to test their coping skills -- the virtual world. A new study found that a virtual reality environment can provide the climate necessary to spark an alcohol craving so that patients can practice how to say "no" in a realistic and safe setting.

Pesticide Metabolites Associated With Increased Risk Of Testicular Cancers, Study Shows

Men exposed to organochlorine pesticide metabolites, such as DDE, had an increased risk of testicular germ cell tumors. Previous research suggested that persistent exposure to organochlorine pesticides may increase the risk for some types of testicular cancer, but that observation had not been replicated in an independent data set.

NASA Satellite Pins Down Timer In Stellar Ticking Time Bomb

Astronomers have discovered a timing mechanism that allows them to predict exactly when a superdense star will unleash incredibly powerful explosions. The explosions occur on a neutron star, which is a city-sized remnant of a giant star that exploded in a supernova. But despite the neutron star’s small size, it contains more material than our sun.

Why People Engage In Risky Behavior While Intoxicated: Imaging Study Provides Glimpse Of Alcohol's Effect On Brain

New brain imaging research published this week shows that, after consuming alcohol, social drinkers had decreased sensitivity in brain regions involved in detecting threats, and increased activity in brain regions involved in reward. The study, in the April 30 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, is the first human brain imaging study of alcohol's effect on the response of neuronal circuits to threatening stimuli.

Epilepsy Drug Causes Bone Loss In Young Women, Study Shows

Young women who took the commonly used epilepsy drug phenytoin for one year showed significant bone loss compared to women taking other epilepsy drugs, according to a new study in Neurology.

Single-celled Bacterium Works 24/7

Researchers have gained the first detailed insight into the way circadian rhythms govern global gene expression in Cyanothece, a type of cyanobacterium (blue-green alga) known to cycle between photosynthesis during the day and nitrogen fixation at night.

Hydrogen Sulphide, The Smell Of Sewage And Rotten Eggs, May Be Involved In Regulating Blood Pressure

Hydrogen sulphide is a gas most commonly associated with the smell of stink bombs, sewage and rotten eggs, but researchers have now identified a role for this gas in regulating blood pressure.

High-flying Electrons May Provide New Test Of Quantum Theory

Researchers believe they can achieve a significant increase in the accuracy of one of the fundamental constants of nature by boosting an electron to an orbit as far as possible from the atomic nucleus that binds it. The experiment could put the modern theory of the atom to the most stringent tests yet.

New Findings Challenge Conventional Ideas On Evolution Of Human Diet, Natural Selection

New findings suggest that the ancient human "cousin" known as the "Nutcracker Man" wasn't regularly eating anything like nuts after all. Researchers used a combination of microscopy and fractal analysis to examine marks on the teeth of members of an ancient human ancestor species and found that what it actually ate does not correspond with the size and shape of its teeth. This finding suggests that structure alone is not enough to predict dietary preferences and that evolutionary adaptation for eating may have been based on scarcity rather than on an animal's regular diet.

Silver Nanoparticles May Be Killing Beneficial Bacteria In Wastewater Treatment

For years, scientists have known about silver's ability to kill harmful bacteria. Now, researchers have found that silver nanoparticles also may destroy benign bacteria that are used to remove ammonia from wastewater treatment systems.

Copper Nanowires Grown By New Process Create Long-lasting Displays

A new low-temperature, catalyst-free technique for growing copper nanowires has been developed. The copper nanowires could serve as interconnects in electronic device fabrication and as electron emitters in a television-like, very thin flat-panel display known as a field-emission display.

Stem Cell-Like Cancer Cells Resistant To Standard Therapy, Responsive To Targeted Therapy

A comparison of breast cancer biopsies before and after treatment show that a subset of cells, which have stem cell-like properties, are resistant to standard chemotherapy. Tumors treated with lapatinib, which inhibits a pathway important for self-renewal, retained a smaller fraction of these tumorigenic cells after therapy.

First Nanoscale Image Of Soil Reveals An 'Incredible' Variety, Rich With Patterns

Soil "unearthed" at the nanoscale: Soil scientists have seen -- for the first time -- seen soil at a scale of 50 nanometers. This view provided a beautiful glimpse of patterns, how carbon sequestration works, and what happens when soils get wet, warm and cool.

Osteoporosis Drug Fosamax Linked To Heart Problem, Study Suggests

Women who have used fosamax are nearly twice as likely to develop the most common kind of chronically irregular heartbeat (atrial fibrillation) than are those who have never used it, according to new research.

Micro-origami: Micrometer-scale 'Voxels' Folded Up For Drug Delivery

Researchers have demonstrated a way to manufacture minuscule closed containers that might be used to deliver precise micro- or even nano-quantities of drugs. First the scientists create flat patterns, origami, of exactly the fold up shapes familiar to kindergarten children making paper pyramids, cubes or other solids, except that these are as small as 30 micrometers on a side. (1 inch = 25,400 micrometers)

Online Intervention Paramount For Reducing HIV In High-risk Population

Young Internet-using men who have sex with men AND who meet their sexual partners both online and offline have greater numbers of partners, appear more likely to contract HIV, and report higher substance use rates than those who meet their partners exclusively online or offline, according to new research.

Inexpensive Roof Vent Could Prevent Billions Of Dollars In Wind Damage

Hurricanes often lift the roofs off buildings and expose them to havoc and damaging conditions, even after the worst of the wind has passed. A local roofer, Virginia Tech faculty members from architecture and engineering, and a graduate student have devised an inexpensive vent that can reduce roof uplift on buildings during high winds, even a hurricane.

Cancer Treatment: Selecting Patients Based On Genotype May Increase Efficacy Of Tamoxifen, Study Suggests

Breast cancer patients who carry the wild-type gene required for tamoxifen metabolism may have comparable risk of recurrence when taking tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor, according to modeling data. Cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) converts tamoxifen into its metabolically active form called endoxifen.

Restoration Of A Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem Successful On Small-scale

Half a century after most of Costa Rica's rain forests were cut down, researchers are attempting what many thought was impossible -- restoring a tropical rain forest ecosystem. When the researchers planted worn-out cattle pastures in Costa Rica with a sampling of local trees in the early 1990s, native species of plants began to move in and flourish, raising the hope that destroyed rain forests could one day be replaced. Ten years after the tree plantings, researchers counted the species of plants that took up residence in the shade of the new planted areas. They found remarkably high numbers of species -- more than 100 in each plot. And many of the new arrivals were also to be found in nearby remnants of the original forests.