This week in science

[Sherbang]

Astronomers find a new type of planet: The 'mega-Earth'

Astronomers find a new type of planet: The 'mega-Earth'

Astronomers have discovered a new type of planet -- a rocky world weighing 17 times as much as Earth. Theorists believed such a world couldn't form because anything so hefty would grab hydrogen gas as it grew and become a Jupiter-like gas giant. This planet, though, is all solids and much bigger than previously discovered 'super-Earths,' making it a 'mega-Earth.'

The newfound mega-Earth, Kepler-10c, circles a sunlike star once every 45 days. It is located about 560 light-years from Earth in the constellation Draco. The system also hosts a 3-Earth-mass "lava world," Kepler-10b, in a remarkably fast, 20-hour orbit.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140602115837.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Spiders know the meaning of web music

Spider silk transmits vibrations across a wide range of frequencies so that, when plucked like a guitar string, its sound carries information about prey, mates, and even the structural integrity of a web. The discovery was made when researchers fired bullets and lasers at spider silk to study how it vibrates.

"Most spiders have poor eyesight and rely almost exclusively on the vibration of the silk in their web for sensory information," said Beth Mortimer of the Oxford Silk Group at Oxford University, who led the research. "The sound of silk can tell them what type of meal is entangled in their net and about the intentions and quality of a prospective mate. By plucking the silk like a guitar string and listening to the 'echoes' the spider can also assess the condition of its web."
This quality is used by the spider in its web by 'tuning' the silk: controlling and adjusting both the inherent properties of the silk, and the tensions and interconnectivities of the silk threads that make up the web.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140603092533.htm

 

[Indigogirl]

Cortex exoskeletal casts

Not a brand new discovery - but new to me - love this idea.

After many centuries of splints and cumbersome plaster casts that have been the itchy and smelly bane of millions of children, adults and the aged alike, the world over, we at last bring fracture support into the 21st century. The Cortex exoskeletal cast provides a highly technical and trauma zone localized support system that is fully ventilated, super light, shower friendly, hygienic, recyclable and stylish.

The cortex cast utilizes the x-ray and 3d scan of a patient with a fracture and generates a 3d model in relation to the point of fracture.

More...

 

[Sherbang]

Earth is around 60 million years older than previously thought

Earth is around 60 million years older than previously thought -- and so is the moon, new research finds

Geochemists from the University of Lorraine in Nancy, France have discovered an isotopic signal which indicates that previous age estimates for both the Earth and the Moon are underestimates. Looking back into "deep time" it becomes more difficult to put a date on early Earth events. In part this is because there is little "classical geology" dating from the time of the formation of the Earth -- no rock layers, etc. So geochemists have had to rely on other methods to estimate early Earth events. One of the standard methods is measuring the changes in the proportions of different gases (isotopes) which survive from the early Earth.
Guillaume Avice and Bernard Marty analysed xenon gas found in South African and Australian quartz, which had been dated to 3.4 and 2.7 billion years respectively. The gas sealed in this quartz is preserved as in a "time capsule," allowing Avice and Marty to compare the current isotopic ratios of xenon, with those which existed billions of years ago. Recalibrating dating techniques using the ancient gas allowed them to refine the estimate of when the Earth began to form. This allows them to calculate that the Moon-forming impact is around 60 million years (+/- 20 m. y.) older than had been thought.
Previously, the time of formation of the Earth' s atmosphere had been estimated at around 100 million years after the solar system formation. As the atmosphere would not have survived the Moon-forming impact, this revision puts the age up to 40 million years after the solar sytem formation (so around 60 million years older than previously thought).

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140610144654.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Cell phones negatively affect male fertility, new study suggests

Cell phones negatively affect male fertility, new study suggests

In control groups, 50-85% of sperm have normal movement. The researchers found this proportion fell by an average of 8 percentage points when there was exposure to mobile phones. Similar effects were seen for sperm viability. The effects on sperm concentration were less clear.
Dr Mathews said: "Given the enormous scale of mobile phone use around the world, the potential role of this environmental exposure needs to be clarified. This study strongly suggests that being exposed to radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation from carrying mobiles in trouser pockets negatively affects sperm quality. This could be particularly important for men already on the borderline of infertility, and further research is required to determine the full clinical implications for the general population."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140609205658.htm

 

[Picard]

This study strongly suggests that being exposed to radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation from carrying mobiles in trouser pockets negatively affects sperm quality.

Oh sh%t!!!

 

[Sherbang]

Single dose of century-old drug reverses autism-like symptoms in mice...

Single dose of century-old drug approved for sleeping sickness reverses autism-like symptoms in mice.

Naviaux said these and earlier findings are sufficiently encouraging to soon launch a small phase 1 clinical trial with children who have ASD. He expects the trial to begin later this year.
"Obviously correcting abnormalities in a mouse is a long way from a cure in humans, but we think this approach -- antipurinergic therapy -- is a new and fresh way to think about and address the challenge of autism.
"Our work doesn't contradict what others have discovered or done. It's another perspective. Our idea is that this kind of treatment -- eliminating a basic, underlying metabolic dysfunction -- removes a hurdle that might make other non-drug behavioral and developmental therapies of autism more effective. The discovery that a single dose of medicine can fundamentally reset metabolism for weeks means that newer and safer drugs might not need to be given chronically. Members of this new class of medicines might need to be given only intermittently during sensitive developmental windows to unblock metabolism and permit improved development in response to many kinds of behavioral and occupational therapies, and to natural play."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140617102457.htm

 

[Indigogirl]

Single dose of century-old drug approved for sleeping sickness reverses autism-like symptoms in mice.


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140617102457.htm

This is FASCINATING! Wonder what else will transpire from this...

 

[Sherbang]

Exposure to TV violence related to irregular attention and brain structure

Exposure to TV violence related to irregular attention and brain structure

The researchers used psychological testing and MRI scans to measure mental abilities and volume of brain regions in 65 healthy males with normal IQ between the age of 18 and 29, specifically chosen because they were not frequent video game players.
Lead author Tom A. Hummer, Ph.D., assistant research professor in the IU Department of Psychiatry, said the young men provided estimates of their television viewing over the past year and then kept a detailed diary of their TV viewing for a week. Participants also completed a series of psychological tests measuring inhibitory control, attention and memory. At the conclusion, MRI scans were used to measure brain structure.
Executive function is the broad ability to formulate plans, make decisions, reason and problem-solve, regulate attention, and inhibit behavior in order to achieve goals.
"We found that the more violent TV viewing a participant reported, the worse they performed on tasks of attention and cognitive control," Dr. Hummer said. "On the other hand, the overall amount of TV watched was not related to performance on any executive function tests."
Dr. Hummer noted that these executive functioning abilities can be important for controlling impulsive behaviors, including aggression. "The worry is that more impulsivity does not mix well with the behaviors modeled in violent programming."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140618100507.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Blocking brain's 'internal marijuana' may trigger early Alzheimer's deficits

Blocking brain's 'internal marijuana' may trigger early Alzheimer's deficits, study shows

A substance called A-beta -- strongly suspected to play a key role in Alzheimer's because it's the chief constituent of the hallmark clumps dotting the brains of people with Alzheimer's -- may, in the disease's earliest stages, impair learning and memory by blocking the natural, beneficial action of endocannabinoids in the brain, the study demonstrates. The Stanford group is now trying to figure out the molecular details of how and where this interference occurs. Pinning down those details could pave the path to new drugs to stave off the defects in learning ability and memory that characterize Alzheimer's.

Madison said it would be wildly off the mark to assume that, just because A-beta interferes with a valuable neurophysiological process mediated by endocannabinoids, smoking pot would be a great way to counter or prevent A-beta's nefarious effects on memory and learning ability. Smoking or ingesting marijuana results in long-acting inhibition of interneurons by the herb's active chemical, tetrahydrocannabinol. That is vastly different from short-acting endocannabinoid bursts precisely timed to occur only when a signal is truly worthy of attention.
"Endocannabinoids in the brain are very transient and act only when important inputs come in," said Madison, who is also a member of the interdisciplinary Stanford Bio-X institute. "Exposure to marijuana over minutes or hours is different: more like enhancing everything indiscriminately, so you lose the filtering effect. It's like listening to five radio stations at once."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140618131955.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Achilles' heel in antibiotic-resistant bacteria discovered

This is good news...

Achilles' heel in antibiotic-resistant bacteria discovered

A breakthrough in the race to solve antibiotic resistance has been made by scientists. New research reveals an Achilles' heel in the defensive barrier that surrounds drug-resistant bacterial cells. The findings pave the way for a new wave of drugs that kill superbugs by bringing down their defensive walls rather than attacking the bacteria itself. It means that in future, bacteria may not develop drug-resistance at all.

Lead author PhD student Haohao Dong said: "The really exciting thing about this research is that new drugs will specifically target the protective barrier around the bacteria, rather than the bacteria itself.
"Because new drugs will not need to enter the bacteria itself, we hope that the bacteria will not be able to develop drug resistance in future."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140618140014.htm

 

[OrbitalDawn]

^That is good news, indeed.

 

[Space_Chief]

This is good news...

Achilles' heel in antibiotic-resistant bacteria discovered



http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140618140014.htm

So it's very much like penicillin which blocks cell membrane synthesis. But if it's a substance not derived from fungi, like most antibiotics then resistance may not develop or in the very least take millions of years if not longer.

 

[Sherbang]

Schizophrenia and cannabis use may share common genes

Schizophrenia and cannabis use may share common genes

Genes that increase the risk of developing schizophrenia may also increase the likelihood of using cannabis, according to a new study. Previous studies have identified a link between cannabis use and schizophrenia, but it has remained unclear whether this association is due to cannabis directly increasing the risk of the disorder. The new results suggest that part of this association is due to common genes

The new study included 2,082 healthy individuals of whom 1,011 had used cannabis. Each individual's 'genetic risk profile' was measured -- that is, the number of genes related to schizophrenia each individual carried.
The researchers found that people genetically pre-disposed to schizophrenia were more likely to use cannabis, and use it in greater quantities than those who did not possess schizophrenia risk genes.
Power says: "We know that cannabis increases the risk of schizophrenia. Our study certainly does not rule this out, but it suggests that there is likely to be an association in the other direction as well -- that a pre-disposition to schizophrenia also increases your likelihood of cannabis use."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140624093320.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Cancer 'as old as multi-cellular life on Earth'

Cancer 'as old as multi-cellular life on Earth': Researchers discover a primordial cancer in a primitive animal

Can cancer ever be completely defeated? Researchers have now reached a sobering conclusion: "cancer is as old as multi-cellular life on Earth and will probably never be completely eradicated," says one expert, following his latest research results. The researchers have now achieved an impressive understanding of the roots of cancer, providing proof that tumors indeed exist in primitive and evolutionary old animals.

The causes of tumors are the so-called cancer genes. As from when evolution started producing tumors is an issue that the scientists Tomislav Domazet-Lošo and Diethard Tautz from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön have been investigating for several years, using bio-informational methods and databases that they have developed in-house. "During the search for the origin of the cancer gene, we unexpectedly made a discovery in the ancient group of animals," explains Domazet-Lošo. He is one of the authors of the present study and is currently working at the Ruder Bošković Institute and the Catholic University of Croatia in Zagreb. "Our data predicted that the first multi-cellular animals already had most of the genes which can cause cancer in humans." What was missing until now was, on the one hand, evidence that these animals can actually suffer from tumors and, on the other, the molecular understanding of the mechanisms of tumor formation in these simple animals.

According to the research team led by Bosch, the findings of primordial tumors in Hydra are a breakthrough step in that direction: "Our research reconfirms that primordial animals such as Hydra polyps provide an enormous amount of information to help us understand such complex problems as 'cancer'. Our study also makes it unlikely that the 'War on Cancer' proclaimed in the 1970s can ever be won. However, knowing your enemy from it origins is the best way to fight it, and win many battles," says Bosch.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140624092530.htm

 

[Sherbang]

Should the Higgs boson have caused our universe to collapse?

Should the Higgs boson have caused our universe to collapse? Findings puzzle cosmologists

British cosmologists are puzzled: they predict that the universe should not have lasted for more than a second. This startling conclusion is the result of combining the latest observations of the sky with the recent discovery of the Higgs boson.

The problem is that the BICEP2 results predict that the universe would have received large 'kicks' during the cosmic inflation phase, pushing it into the other valley of the Higgs field within a fraction of a second. If that had happened, the universe would have quickly collapsed in a Big Crunch.
"This is an unacceptable prediction of the theory because if this had happened we wouldn't be around to discuss it" said Hogan, who is a PhD student at KCL and led the study.
Perhaps the BICEP2 results contain an error. If not, there must be some other -- as yet unknown -- process which prevented the universe from collapsing.
"If BICEP2 is shown to be correct, it tells us that there has to be interesting new particle physics beyond the standard model" Hogan said.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140624093246.htm

 

[porchrat]

^That is good news, indeed.

The article treats that discovery like it is the silver bullet to prevent bacterial resistance. The bacteria could evolve to prevent the disturbance of the channels.

 

[Sherbang]

The article treats that discovery like it is the silver bullet to prevent bacterial resistance. The bacteria could evolve to prevent the disturbance of the channels.

They specifically said they "hope that the bacteria will not be able to develop drug resistance in future" due to this discovery.
Can you explain more what you mean by they could evolve to prevent the disturbance of the channels?

 

[Techne]

Cancer 'as old as multi-cellular life on Earth': Researchers discover a primordial cancer in a primitive animal




http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140624092530.htm

Interesting article thanks. Cancer can be argued to be a species on its own. Some cancers e.g. in Tasmanian devils are even contagious.

I don't think there are "cancer genes" as this article suggests since there is not a subset of genes that are deferentially expressed in all cancers. Sure, each kind of cancer can perhaps be characterized by a few oncogenes, the methylation and/or acetylation status of the particular cancer, metabolic alterations, mutations etc. But the only universal feature of cancer is that well... it is malignant. Non-malignant tumours are not cancers.

The way forward is not to try and find a silver bullet to treat all cancers but instead to try and find a way to make it viable for cancer treatment to become even more personalized.

 

[Space_Chief]

The article treats that discovery like it is the silver bullet to prevent bacterial resistance. The bacteria could evolve to prevent the disturbance of the channels.

Article is for lay science fetishists. People in the business are more cool headed, except when punting ideas to get grants.