Getting out of hot water -- does mobile DNA help?
Many researchers assume the first life on Earth evolved in hot springs. A new study provides insights into how one type of extremophile microbe may have moved from hot springs to conquer more moderate environments across the globe. The first-ever analysis of DNA of one ammonia-oxidizing hot-spring microbe living today reveals that evolution of the necessary adaptations may have been helped by highly mobile genetic elements and DNA exchange with a variety of other organisms.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/f-goo012518.php
Obese men may have higher chance of recurrence following radical prostatectomy
Among men with prostate cancer who underwent radical prostatectomy (RP), those who were obese had a higher risk of biochemical recurrence, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes, held Jan. 27-30.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/aafc-omm012318.php
High body fat levels associated with increased breast cancer risk in women with normal BMI
Among postmenopausal women with normal body mass index (BMI), those with higher body fat levels had an increased risk for invasive breast cancer, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes, held Jan. 27-30.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/aafc-hbf012318.php
Quality of children's sleep may affect eating habits and weight
Several measures of poor sleep quality were associated with higher body mass index (BMI) in children, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes, held Jan. 27-30.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/aafc-qoc012318.php
Predicted rise in Canadian obesity rate may lead to higher cancer burden
Reducing the number of overweight and obese Canadians by 50 percent could potentially prevent a cumulative 59,829 cases of cancer by 2042, according to estimates presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes, held Jan. 27-30.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/aafc-pri012318.php
MIND diet may slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors
A diet created by researchers at Rush University Medical Center may help substantially slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors, according to preliminary research presented on Jan. 25, at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2018 in Los Angeles. The finding are significant because stroke survivors are twice as likely to develop dementia compared to the general population.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/rumc-mdm012418.php
Tactic for controlling motor symptoms of advanced Parkinson's disease
Standard drug treatment for Parkinson's disease can over time induce motor complications that reduce the effectiveness of restoring mobility. These complications include abnormal involuntary movements known as dyskinesias. In a nonhuman primate model of Parkinson's, scientists have been probing the origin of these abnormal responses to treatment, particularly dyskinesias, and have successfully tested a tactic for controlling them.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/ehs-tfc012518.php
Study sheds light on alternative, more convenient method of cell preservation
Researchers have taken an important step toward a more convenient, less expensive means of preserving mammalian cells for in vitro fertilization, species conservation, cell therapy and other purposes.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/osu-ssl012518.php
Pennsylvania deer, like mammals worldwide, move less in human-modified landscapes
In the big woods of Pennsylvania's Northern Tier, the home range of the average white-tailed deer is more than twice as large as that of a deer in urban or agricultural areas of the state. Penn State researcher Duane Diefenbach documented that phenomenon early on in his work, but it did not occur to him it might be representative of many different mammal species around the globe.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/ps-pdl012518.php
Microbes may help astronauts transform human waste into food
Human waste may one day be a valuable resource for astronauts on deep-space missions. Now, a Penn State research team has shown that it is possible to rapidly break down solid and liquid waste to grow food with a series of microbial reactors, while simultaneously minimizing pathogen growth.
Source: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-01/ps-mmh012518.php
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/