Science

Unexpectedly, scientists have now discovered a true counterpart of the cerebral cortex in an invertebrate, a marine worm. Their findings give an idea of what the most ancient higher brain centers looked like, and what our distant ancestors used them for.

New research links capsaicin, a component of chili peppers, to skin cancer. While the molecular mechanisms of the cancer-promoting effects of capsaicin are not clear and remain controversial, the new research has shown a definite connection to formation of skin cancer through various laboratory studies.

Expanding their scope of study on the mechanisms of bacterial infection, researchers have reported the surprise finding from a small clinical study that cranberry juice cocktail blocked a strain of Staphylococcus aureus from beginning the process of infection.

A research team has shown for the first time that a gene called Myc, which is traditionally thought of as a cancer-causing gene, may be far more important in the development and persistence of stem cells than was known before.

Thousands of people who are partially sighted following stroke or brain injury could gain greater independence from a simple, cheap and accessible training course which could eventually be delivered from their mobile phones or hand-held games consoles, according to a new study.

More people are likely to believe scientific studies claiming that oil drilling is riskier, not safer, than was previously thought, according to a new study of attitudes in California. What's more the findings show that scientists' efforts to influence public opinion have a limited effect.

Engineers have created a millionth-scale automobile differential to govern the flight of minuscule aerial robots that could someday be used to probe environmental hazards, forest fires, and other places too perilous for people. Their new approach is the first to passively balance the aerodynamic forces encountered by these miniature flying devices, letting their wings flap asymmetrically in response to gusts of wind, wing damage, and other real-world impediments.

School children who consume foods purchased in vending machines are more likely to develop poor diet quality -- and that may be associated with being overweight, obese or at risk for chronic health problems such as diabetes and coronary artery disease, according to new research.

To watch a magician transform a vase of flowers into a rabbit, it's best to have a front-row seat. Likewise, for chemical transformations in solution, the best view belongs to the molecular spectators closest to the action. Those special molecules comprise the "first solvation shell," and although it has been known for decades that they can sense and dictate the fate of nearly every chemical reaction, it has been virtually impossible to watch them respond -- until now.

Humans -- males in particular -- with a variant form of the immune receptor gene "Toll Like Receptor 7" are at increased risk of developing the autoimmune disease lupus. This finding offers renewed hope for developing more targeted treatments.

Protecting helicopters in combat from heat-seeking missiles is the goal of new laser technology.

Individuals are more likely to acquire new health practices while living in networks with dense clusters of connections -- that is, when in close contact with people they already know well.

Researchers have found two genes in mice which might help identify why some people are more susceptible than others to potentially deadly staph infections.

Biophysicists in Germany have discovered a diode for protons: just like the electronic component determines the direction of flow of electric current, the “proton diode” ensures that protons can only pass through a cell membrane in one direction. Water molecules play an important role here as active components of the diode. The researchers were able to observe this through a combination of molecular biology, X-ray crystallography, time-resolved FTIR spectroscopy and biomolecular simulations.

Counterfeiting of drugs is a huge industry. In Africa the situation is extremely serious. Half of the malaria medication sold there could be ineffective or even harmful. There is currently no good way to identify counterfeit drugs. However, researchers in Sweden and the UK have now developed a technique that could resolve the situation.

Researchers have devised a new technique -- using a sheet of carbon just one atom thick -- to visualize the structure of molecules. The technique, which was used to obtain the first direct images of how water coats surfaces at room temperature, can also be used to image a potentially unlimited number of other molecules, including antibodies and other biomolecules.

Cigarette smoke shuts off a key enzyme in airways that regulates the body's response to inflammation, according to new findings. Researchers say smoke inhibits the enzyme, called Leukotriene A4 Hydrolase (LTA4H), causing it to fail in its job of shutting down white blood cells following a successful response to inflammation.

Scientists are using atomic force microscopy to record sounds emanating from inside living insects like flies, mosquitoes and ladybugs.

The VeraSun plant in Central City. It also had plants in Ord and Albion. WORLD-HERALD NEWS SERVICE VeraSun to farmers: Pay us back Nebraska farmers who sold corn to the former VeraSun Energy Corp.

Scientists have identified two proteins with potential to be important targets for research into a wide range of health problems, including pain, deafness, and cardiac and kidney dysfunction.

Millions of patients with advanced disease in palliative care settings receive oxygen therapy to help them breathe more easily. But a new study says roughly half of them don't benefit from the intervention, and among those who do benefit, it doesn't make a bit of difference whether they get pure oxygen or just plain old room air -- both offer equal benefit.

When given a choice, organisms will choose a diet that maintains a nutritional balance in tune with their needs. That choice, studied in fruit flies for the first time, is regulated by activity in a molecular pathway involved in aging, cancer and diabetes. Humans share the same molecular pathway. The study, the first to be done in a genetically tractable lab animal, could lead to treatments that would "reboot" metabolic pathways in individuals who are obese or suffer from diabetes.

Kidney transplants that show a combination of fibrosis (scarring) and inflammation after one year are at higher risk of long-term transplant failure, according to a new study.

Researchers have developed a simple process for producing near-perfect nanocrystals that will enable studies of physical and chemical properties that affect how nanoparticles interact with the world around them.

A survey of emergency medical services agencies from across the country found wide variation in perceptions of workplace safety culture -- providing a tool that might point to potential patient safety threats, according to researchers.

Researchers have unveiled a prototype model of the first implantable artificial kidney, in a development that one day could eliminate the need for dialysis.

Scientists have discovered a promising new drug candidate that represents a new class of drug to treat malaria. Clinical trials for the compound are planned for later this year.

Some female zebra finches foist a part of their eggs on their neighbors. Scientists in Germany have discovered that in every fifth nest there is one egg that is not produced by its social parents. The female birds act in a very well-targeted way: eggs are being placed in “foster-care” shortly before the hosts commence their own egg laying.

People who take oral bisphosphonates for bone disease over five years may be doubling their risk of developing esophageal cancer (cancer of the gullet), according to a new study.