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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2024 at 8:32am

Extraterrestrial chemistry with earthbound possibilities

Who are we? Why are we here? We are stardust, the result of chemistry occurring throughout vast clouds of interstellar gas and dust. To better understand how that chemistry could create prebiotic molecules—the seeds of life on Earth and possibly elsewhere—researchers have investigated the role of low-energy electrons created as cosmic radiation traverses through ice particles. Their findings may also inform medical and environmental applications on our home planet.

The first detection of molecules in space was made by Wellesley College alum Annie Jump Cannon more than a hundred years ago. Since Cannon's discovery, scientists have been interested in finding out how extraterrestrial molecules form.

A new work's   goal is to explore the relative importance of low-energy electrons versus photons in instigating the chemical reactions responsible for the extraterrestrial synthesis of these prebiotic molecules. 

The few studies that previously probed this question suggested that both electrons and photons can catalyze the same reactions. Recent Studies , however, hint that the prebiotic molecule yield from low-energy electrons and photons could be significantly different in space.

Their calculations suggest that the number of cosmic-ray-induced electrons within cosmic ice could be much greater than the number of photons striking the ice. Therefore, electrons likely play a more significant role than photons in the extraterrestrial synthesis of prebiotic molecules

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2024 at 8:19am

When a foe turns a friend: Deadly sea snail toxin could be key to making better medicines

Scientists are finding clues on how to treat diabetes and hormone disorders in an unexpected place: a toxin from one of the most venomous animals on the planet.

A multinational research team led by University of Utah scientists has identified a component within the venom of a deadly marine cone snail, the geography cone, that mimics a human hormone called somatostatin, which regulates the levels of blood sugar and various hormones in the body. The hormone-like toxin's specific, long-lasting effects, which help the snail hunt its prey, could also help scientists design better drugs for people with diabetes or hormone disorders, conditions that can be serious and sometimes fatal.

The somatostatin-like toxin the researchers characterized could hold the key to improving medications for people with diabetes and hormone disorders. Somatostatin acts like a brake pedal for many processes in the human body, preventing the levels of blood sugar, various hormones, and many other important molecules from rising dangerously high.

The cone snail toxin, called consomatin, works similarly, the researchers found—but consomatin is more stable and specific than the human hormone, which makes it a promising blueprint for drug design.

By measuring how consomatin interacts with somatostatin's targets in human cells in a dish, the researchers found that consomatin interacts with one of the same proteins that somatostatin does. But while somatostatin directly interacts with several proteins, consomatin only interacts with one. This fine-tuned targeting means that the cone snail toxin affects hormone levels and blood sugar levels but not the levels of many other molecules.

In fact, the cone snail toxin is more precisely targeted than the most specific synthetic drugs designed to regulate hormone levels, such as drugs that regulate growth hormone. Such drugs are an important therapy for people whose bodies overproduce growth hormone. Consomatin's effects on blood sugar could make it dangerous to use as a therapeutic, but by studying its structure, researchers could start to design drugs for endocrine disorders that have fewer side effects.

Consomatin is more specific than top-of-the-line synthetic drugs—and it also lasts far longer in the body than the human hormone, thanks to the inclusion of an unusual amino acid that makes it difficult to break down. This is a useful feature for pharmaceutical researchers looking for ways to make drugs that will have long-lasting benefits.

 Disruption of Glucose Homeostasis in Prey: Combinatorial Use of Weaponized Mimetics of Somatostatin and Insulin by a Fish-Hunting Cone Snail, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50470-2. www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-50470-2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2024 at 8:09am

Blood platelet score detects previously unmeasured risk of heart attack and stroke

Platelets are circulating cell fragments known to clump up and form blood clots that stop bleeding in injured vessels. Researchers and cardiologists have long known that platelets can become "hyperreactive" to cause abnormal clotting that blocks arteries and contributes to heart attack, stroke, and poor blood flow (peripheral artery disease) in the legs.

Despite this major contribution to cardiovascular risk, routine measurement of whether each patient's platelets clump (aggregate) too much has been infeasible to date. This is because results delivered by the method typically used to determine platelet activity, called platelet aggregometry, vary too much from lab to lab.

To address this challenge, a new study  by researchers has precisely identified a group of patients with platelet hyperreactivity, and then surveyed them to reveal 451 genes, the activity of which differed significantly in those with hyperreactive platelets versus those without. Publishing in Nature Communications, the research team then used bioinformatics to assign a weight to each genetic difference and generate each patient's Platelet Reactivity ExpresSion Score (PRESS).

The researchers found that their new score can detect platelet hyperreactivity, both in patients at imminent risk of heart attack, and in healthy patients whose future risk may otherwise remain unknown.

Physicians currently prescribe aspirin, a medication that counters platelet activity, to patients based on available risk factors, including high cholesterol or high blood pressure, which are not directly related to platelet function.

PRESS promises to help physicians confine anti-platelet treatment to the people most likely to benefit: those with platelet hyperreactivity.

By acting on platelets, aspirin is known to protect against abnormal clotting, but in doing so, increases risk of bleeding, said the study authors. The field needs a reliable way to identify patients for whom protection against heart attack outweighs bleeding risk. This work helps with that.

A Platelet Reactivity ExpreSsion Score Predicts 1 Cardiovascular Risk, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50994-7

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 12:05pm

Why laws are written in an incomprehensible style

Legal documents are notoriously difficult to understand, even for lawyers. This raises the question: Why are these documents written in a style that makes them so impenetrable?

MIT cognitive scientists think they have uncovered the answer to that question. Just as "magic spells" use special rhymes and archaic terms to signal their power, the convoluted language of legalese acts to convey a sense of authority, they conclude.

In a study appearing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers found that even non-lawyers use this type of language when asked to write laws.

People seem to understand that there's an implicit rule that this is how laws should sound, and they write them that way.

The analysis revealed that legal documents frequently have long definitions inserted in the middle of sentences—a feature known as "center-embedding." Linguists have previously found that this kind of structure can make text much more difficult to understand.

Legalese somehow has developed this tendency to put structures inside other structures, in a way which is not typical of human languages.

 Lawyers don't like it, laypeople don't like it, so the point of this current paper was to try and figure out why they write documents this way.

The researchers had a couple of hypotheses for why legalese is so prevalent. One was the "copy and edit hypothesis," which suggests that legal documents begin with a simple premise, and then additional information and definitions are inserted into already existing sentences, creating complex center-embedded clauses.

Researchers  thought it was plausible that what happens is you start with an initial draft that's simple, and then later you think of all these other conditions that you want to include. And the idea is that once you've started, it's much easier to center-embed that into the existing provision.

Martínez, Eric, Even laypeople use legalese, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2024). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2405564121. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2405564121

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 11:59am

In addition to these epidemiological findings, the study also explored the genetic links between constipation and cardiovascular disease.

Positive genetic correlations were identified between constipation and various forms of MACE, indicating that shared genetic factors may underlie both conditions. This discovery opens new avenues for research into the underlying mechanisms that connect gut health and heart health.

 Tenghao Zheng et al, Constipation is associated with an increased risk of major adverse cardiac events in a UK population, American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology (2024). DOI: 10.1152/ajpheart.00519.2024

Part 2 

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 11:58am

Study finds constipation is a significant risk factor for major cardiac events

An international study led by Monash University researchers has found a surprising connection between constipation and an increased risk of major adverse cardiac events (MACE), including heart attacks, strokes and heart failure.

The study, led by Professor Francine Marques from the School of Biological Sciences and published in the American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology analyzed data from over 400,000 participants in the UK Biobank.

The study suggests that constipation, a common yet often overlooked health issue, may be a significant contributor to cardiovascular disease .

 Traditional cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, obesity and smoking have long been recognized as key drivers of heart disease.

However, these factors alone do not fully explain the occurrence of major cardiac events. This study explored the potential role of constipation as an additional risk factor, revealing concerning results.

The research team analyzed data from 408,354 individuals, identifying 23,814 cases of constipation.

The findings showed that individuals suffering from constipation were more than twice as likely to suffer from a major cardiac event as those without constipation.

Moreover, the study highlighted a particularly concerning link between constipation and hypertension.

Hypertensive individuals who also suffered from constipation were found to have a 34% increased risk of subsequent cardiac events compared to those with hypertension alone.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 11:48am

Researchers discover new way to control the sense of touch

Researchers have found a new way to manage the receptors that control the sense of touch, which could lead to treating chronic pain more effectively.

Identifying a natural molecule that specifically reduces pain sensitivity offers hope for new therapeutic strategies in the management of pain.

A natural molecule called phosphatidic acid can reduce the activity of certain touch-sensing ion channels in the body, according to the study published in Nature Communications.

Researchers found that increasing the levels of phosphatidic acid in cells makes them less sensitive to touch. This finding was confirmed through experiments on sensory neurons and tests in mice, where the animals became more sensitive to touch when the formation of phosphatidic acid was inhibited.

This finding adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that lipids are key regulators of somatosensation (the body's ability to perceive sensations such as touch, temperature and pain).

By targeting the natural pathways that regulate these channels, we can develop more targeted and effective pain treatments that could be especially useful for conditions involving inflammatory pain, where current pain relief options are often inadequate.

Matthew Gabrielle et al, Phosphatidic acid is an endogenous negative regulator of PIEZO2 channels and mechanical sensitivity, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51181-4

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 11:31am

Animals with higher body temperatures are more likely to evolve into herbivores, study finds

A new study has uncovered a surprising relationship between an animal's body temperature and its likelihood of evolving into an herbivore. The study, published in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography, offers fresh insights into the evolution of plant-based diets across tetrapods, which include the land vertebrates—amphibians, birds, reptiles and mammals. The findings could reshape scientists' understanding of the evolution of animal diets.

The study, which analyzed data from 1,712 species, found a consistent pattern: Animals with higher body temperatures are more likely to evolve into herbivores. This relationship holds true across the major land vertebrate groups.

The relationship between body temperature and herbivory is linked to the unique digestive challenges posed by a plant-based diet.

Higher body temperatures may be necessary to support the gut bacteria that break down cellulose, the primary component of plant cell walls. The relationship between an animal's body temperature and its gut microbiome could be key to understanding why certain species are better equipped to adopt and maintain herbivorous diets.

The research team conducted extensive analyses, examining various other factors that might influence the evolution of diet, including body size and day or night activity patterns. Body temperature ultimately emerged as the most crucial factor in predicting the evolution of an herbivorous diet.

The researchers really didn't see any herbivores that don't have a high body temperature. Typically, the body temperature was more than 86 degrees Fahrenheit.

 Kristen E. Saban et al, Diet Evolution and Body Temperature in Tetrapods: Cool Old Carnivores and Hot Young Herbivores, Global Ecology and Biogeography (2024). DOI: 10.1111/geb.13900

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 11:26am

Spider exploits firefly's flashing signals to lure more prey

Fireflies rely on flashing signals to communicate to other fireflies using light-emitting lanterns on their abdomens. In fireflies of the species Abscondita terminalis, males make multi-pulse flashes with two lanterns to attract females, while females make single-pulse flashes with their one lantern to attract males.

Now researchers reporting in the journal Current Biology on August 19 have evidence that an orb-weaving spider (Araneus ventricosus) manipulates the flashing signals of male fireflies ensnared in its web such that they mimic the typical flashes of a female firefly, thereby luring other males to serve as their next meal.

Araneus ventricosus practices deceptive interspecific communication by first ensnaring firefly males in its web and then predisposing the entrapped male fireflies to broadcast bioluminescent signals that deviate from female-attracting signals typically made by A. terminalis males and instead mimic the male-attracting signals typically made by females," the researchers wrote.

The outcome is that the entrapped male fireflies broadcast false signals that lure more male fireflies into the web.

The findings show that animals can use indirect yet dynamic signaling to target an exceptionally specific category of prey in nature.

Spiders manipulate and exploit bioluminescent signals of male fireflies, Current Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.07.011. www.cell.com/current-biology/f … 0960-9822(24)00914-X

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2024 at 10:59am

New statistical mechanics formula suggests urban street networks and building density shape severity of floods

Cities around the globe are experiencing increased flooding due to the compounding effects of stronger storms in a warming climate and urban growth. New research  suggests that urban form, specifically the building density and street network of a neighborhood, is also affecting the intensity of flooding.

For a paper published recently in Nature Communications, researchers  turned to statistical mechanics to generate a new formula allowing urban planners to more easily assess flood risks presented by land development changes.

 Sarah K. Balaian et al, How urban form impacts flooding, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50347-4 www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-50347-4

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