Comment

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 15, 2024 at 11:01am

Chemicals in makeup, sunscreen may raise odds for dangerous pregnancy complication

Chemicals commonly found in sunscreen, makeup and other personal care products could be putting pregnancies at risk, a new study warns.

Phenols and parabens in these products increase a pregnant woman's risk of high blood pressure by 57%, particularly at 24 to 28 weeks of gestation, researchers reported Aug. 14 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Researchers found chemicals in everyday soaps, lotions, makeup, sunscreen and other personal care products and consumer products [that] increased risk of hypertension.

Phenols and parabens are used as UV filters in sunscreens, and to prevent the growth of harmful mold and bacteria in makeup and cosmetics, researchers said.

Parabens alone are used in about 80% of personal care products, the research team said in background notes.

Phenols' and parabens' link to hypertension in pregnancy is troubling. High blood pressure during pregnancy reduces blood flow to the placenta, so the fetus might wind up starved of oxygen and nutrients. As a result, the fetus might suffer from restricted growth, low birth weight and premature birth, the researchers explained.

It's dangerous for expecting moms as well, increasing their risk of complications like preeclampsia and stroke.

Both mother and child also have an increased likelihood that they will suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease long after pregnancy.

There are several reasons why the chemicals might be increasing blood pressure in pregnant women, the researchers said.

Phenols and parabens are known to increase inflammation and oxidative stress in humans, which has been linked to high blood pressure, researchers noted.

The chemicals also are known to disrupt hormones in humans, and these hormones also play a role in regulating blood pressure, they added.

ulia R. Varshavsky et al, Association of Phenols, Parabens, and Their Mixture with Maternal Blood Pressure Measurements in the PROTECT Cohort, Environmental Health Perspectives (2024). DOI: 10.1289/EHP14008

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 15, 2024 at 10:55am

Early life exposure to common chemical permanently disrupts gut microbiome, mouse study finds

Early life exposure to 'forever chemicals' in the environment permanently disrupts the gut microbiome in mice, contributing to the development of metabolic disease in later life, according to new research.

The results, published Aug. 14 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, suggest that human exposure to these chemicals during early childhood may be contributing to the recent epidemic of metabolic disorders, including obesity and type 2 diabetes among adults.

The researchers focused specifically on 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (TCDF), a widespread persistent organic pollutant (POP) that is a byproduct of waste incineration, metal production, and fossil-fuel and wood combustion.

TCDF accumulates in the food chain, and humans are primarily exposed through consumption of high-fat foods, such as meat, dairy products and some fish. Babies can be exposed through consumption of breast milk.

POPs are pervasive in the environment and nearly every living organism has been exposed

The negative health effects of these chemicals are well documented and include birth defects and cancer. This study is the first to suggest that early-life exposure to a certain POP, called TCDF, also disrupts the gut microbiome and is associated with metabolic disorders later in life.

Yuan Tian et al, Effects of Early Life Exposures to the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Ligand TCDF on Gut Microbiota and Host Metabolic Homeostasis in C57BL/6J Mice, Environmental Health Perspectives (2024). DOI: 10.1289/EHP13356

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 15, 2024 at 10:38am

Scientists discover method to activate dormant stem cells in the brain

Scientists have discovered a novel pathway to wake up dormant neural stem cells, offering potential new therapies for neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism, learning disabilities, and cerebral palsy.

In the mammalian adult brain, most neural stem cells, which originate from the nervous system and can grow into various types of brain cells, stay dormant until they receive specific signals that activate them. Once woken up, they produce new neurons, aiding in brain repair and growth.

Defects in neural stem cell activation are associated with aging-related cognitive decline and neurodevelopmental disorders such as microcephaly, a condition where a baby's head is much smaller than expected because its brain has not developed properly.

Neurodevelopmental disorders affect around five percent of children and adolescents worldwide and lead to impaired cognition, communication, adaptive behavior and psychomotor skills.

To study this activation, the scientists turned to Drosophila or fruit flies. Similar to mammals, the neural stem cells of fruit flies stay dormant till they are awakened. Their findings, published in Science Advances, showed that a type of glial cell named astrocytes—traditionally thought to provide structural and nutritional support—are important for waking up dormant neural stem cells in the brains of fruit flies.

Using super-resolution microscopy with 10-times magnifying power, the team of scientists examined the tiny fiber structures that are a hallmark of dormant neural stem cells of fruit flies.

These fine structures, around 1.5 µm in diameter (or 20 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair), are protrusions extending from the cell body, and are rich in actin or protein filaments. A specific type of Formin protein can activate these filaments and cause them to assemble.

Kun-Yang Lin et al, Astrocytes control quiescent NSC reactivation via GPCR signaling–mediated F-actin remodeling, Science Advances (2024). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl4694

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 15, 2024 at 9:15am

New brain-computer interface allows man with ALS to 'speak' again

A new brain-computer interface (BCI) developed at UC Davis Health translates brain signals into speech with up to 97% accuracy—the most accurate system of its kind.

The researchers implanted sensors in the brain of a man with severely impaired speech due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The man was able to communicate his intended speech within minutes of activating the system.

A study about this work was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, affects the nerve cells that control movement throughout the body. The disease leads to a gradual loss of the ability to stand, walk and use one's hands. It can also cause a person to lose control of the muscles used to speak, leading to a loss of understandable speech.

The new technology is being developed to restore communication for people who can't speak due to paralysis or neurological conditions like ALS. It can interpret brain signals when the user tries to speak and turns them into text that is 'spoken' aloud by the computer.

An Accurate and Rapidly Calibrating Speech Neuroprosthesis?, New England Journal of Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2314132

**

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 15, 2024 at 8:31am

Mice Pass Epigenetic Tweaks to Pups
An engineered methylation pattern persisted for four generations of mice, demonstrating transgenerational epigenetic inheritance can occur in mammals.
Transgenerational: Passed on from one generation to the next without direct genetic inheritance.
Epigenetic changes alter the way genes are expressed throughout an organism’s life. These tweaks are then wiped from the genomes of reproductive cells, giving offspring a clean start—or so it seemed. Now, new evidence has emerged that epigenetic changes can be transmitted across multiple generations, despite the wipe. In a study published February 7 in Cell, a group of scientists tracked an engineered epigenetic mutation across four generations of lab-bred mice, finding evidence of the alteration in each of the subsequent generations. These alterations seemingly resurfaced even after the epigenetic wipe. The authors claim it is the first experimental evidence for transgenerational epigenetic inheritance using methylation-edited mice.

https://www.cell.com/cell/pdf/S0092-8674(22)01630-0.pdf

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 14, 2024 at 11:07am

Staying safe as we age—understanding falls in older adults

Falls are particularly dangerous for the elderly due to their high frequency and severe consequences. The dangers of falling for older adults include serious injuries like hip and hand fractures, head trauma and even death.

The combined effects of loss of muscle, bone density, flexibility, and sensory and cognitive function pose a significant threat of falling for older adults. Specifically, the loss of balance due to a trip or slip can often be recovered by quick corrective actions that require fast and powerful muscle responses. However, weaker muscles make it harder to stay balanced and to perform these corrective actions in a timely manner.

Additionally, falls often lead to decreased mobility, loss of independence and a significant decline in the overall quality of life. The constant fear and risk of falling can also result in anxiety and reduced activity levels, impacting the well-being of even those who haven't experienced a fall or have recovered from one.

By comprehending the causes and mechanics of falls as they occur in everyday situations,  researchers plan to create more effective interventions to prevent injuries from falls in older and mobility-vulnerable populations.

http://www.fearlessfalling.com/FF-safe-falling-roll-fall.html#:~:te....

safe falling techniques vary depending on the direction of the fall:

• Backward Falls: If you are falling backward, tuck your chin to your chest to prevent hitting your head and roll along your back with the fall.
• Forward Falls: If you are falling forward, use your arms and knees to break the fall. Try to land on your hands and knees to distribute the impact and protect your face and head.
• Sideways Falls: If you are falling sideways, rotate your body to land on the back of your body and roll with the fall. Remember to tuck your chin in to protect your head.

https://news.syr.edu/blog/2024/08/12/staying-safe-as-we-age-underst....

---

I don't understand this. If you have time, you can do this. But very often old people don't even know or understand that they are falling. My mother used to fall just like that in zero seconds! Later she used to tell us that she didn't even know that she 's falling before falling to break it or make it safe!

Anyway I posted it here to help people who have enough time to understand that they are falling!

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 14, 2024 at 10:56am

How brain processes contribute to different types of delusions

Delusions—fixed false beliefs—can be tricky to study. And it's not yet clear how the brain gives rise to these departures from reality. Further, there are many types of delusions. Those with persecutory delusions or paranoia, for example, believe others have harmful intentions toward them, while individuals with delusions of control believe others have command over their thoughts.

In a study published in the journal Brain,  researchers began to tease apart how brain processes contribute to different types of delusions.

For the study, volunteers with either paranoid or non-paranoid delusion-like beliefs performed two computer tasks. In one, the rules for winning changed over time, requiring participants to update their beliefs. The second task evaluated to what extent established information blocked participants' learning of new information.

Essentially, the tasks were aimed at observing how people formed beliefs and how they changed them. 

The researchers found that people with delusion-like beliefs performed differently than healthy individuals. But they also found that people with paranoid and non-paranoid beliefs performed differently than each other, which hasn't been observed before.

The findings suggest that learning dynamics have a significant role in how different types of delusions arise, which could inform how to predict risk of psychosis across individuals. 

Rosa Rossi-Goldthorpe et al, Different learning aberrations relate to delusion-like beliefs with different contents, Brain (2024). DOI: 10.1093/brain/awae122

**

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 14, 2024 at 9:45am

Protein in mosquito saliva shown to inhibit host immune response

Mosquito saliva is known to play a significant role in the transmission of viruses such as yellow fever, Zika, dengue, and chikungunya, yet many of its functions have yet to be understood. In a new study, researchers revealed that a mosquito salivary protein binds to an immune molecule in humans, facilitating infection in human skin caused by the transmitted virus.

The findings are published in Science Immunology.

Ticks and mosquitoes don't just inject pathogens. Their saliva serves many purposes when it interacts with the human host. 

For the study, the team probed a curated yeast display library of human proteins with Nest1, a  protein in the Aedes aegypti mosquito saliva that they had identified as important in previous research.

The researchers demonstrated that Nest1 interacts with human CD47, an immune receptor found on the surface of many cells in the body. CD47 controls several immune processes, including those that protect certain cells and destroy others.

This interaction shows that the mosquito is trying to change the biological functions governed by CD47.  Nest1 is inhibiting some of these functions, like phagocytosis, the migration of immune cells, and the inflammatory response." These alterations help to enhance virus replication in the skin.

This discovery increases our knowledge of how disease vectors—like mosquitoes—and hosts—like humans—interact.

Alejandro Marin-Lopez et al, The human CD47 checkpoint is targeted by an immunosuppressive Aedes aegypti salivary factor to enhance arboviral skin infectivity, Science Immunology (2024). DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.adk9872

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 14, 2024 at 9:35am

Scientists achieve more than 98% efficiency in removing nanoplastics from water

 Scientists are battling against an emerging enemy of human health: nanoplastics. Much smaller in size than the diameter of an average human hair, nanoplastics are invisible to the naked eye.

Linked to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases in people, nanoplastics continue to build up, largely unnoticed, in the world's bodies of water. The challenge remains to develop a cost-effective solution to get rid of nanoplastics while leaving clean water behind.

 Recently, researchers created a new liquid-based solution that eliminates more than 98% of these microscopic plastic particles from water.

The innovative method—using water-repelling solvents made from natural ingredients—not only offers a practical solution to the pressing issue of nanoplastic pollution but also paves the way for further research and development in advanced water purification technologies.

The strategy uses a small amount of designer solvent to absorb plastic particles from a large volume of water.

Initially, the solvent sits on the water's surface the way oil floats on water. Once mixed with water and allowed to separate again, the solvent floats back to the surface, carrying the nanoplastics within its molecular structure.

In the lab, the researchers simply use a pipette to remove the nanoplastic-laden solvent, leaving behind clean, plastic-free water. The researchers  say future studies will work to scale up the entire process so that it can be applied to larger bodies of water like lakes and, eventually, oceans.

The solvents used are made from safe, non-toxic components, and their ability to repel water prevents additional contamination of water sources, making them a highly sustainable solution.

Piyuni Ishtaweera et al, Nanoplastics Extraction from Water by Hydrophobic Deep Eutectic Solvents, ACS Applied Engineering Materials (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acsaenm.4c00159

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 14, 2024 at 9:09am

Scientists never like uncertainty. In fact, much of their research tries to place bounds on certain parameters, like the rotational speed of galaxies or the distances between them. Unfortunately, despite their proximity, there are many uncertainties surrounding the four galaxies used in the study, and those uncertainties make precise calculations of the effects of their gravitational and rotational pull difficult.

Developing estimates rather than concrete numbers is one way scientists often deal with uncertainty, and in this case, that estimate fell right at the 50% mark in terms of whether or not the two galaxies would collide. However, there is still a lot of uncertainty in that estimate, and plenty more confounding factors, including the other galaxies in the local group, will influence the final outcome.

Ultimately, time will help solve the mystery, but that is a very long time on the scale of galaxy mergers. If it happens at all, a merger between the Milky Way and Andromeda will happen long after our own sun has burned out, and humans will either die out with it or find a way to expand to new stars. And if, at that point, we get easy access to an additional galaxy's worth of resources, it would be all the better for us.

Till Sawala et al, Apocalypse When? No Certainty of a Milky Way -- Andromeda Collision, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2408.00064

Part 2

**

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• …
• 200
• 201
• 202
• 203
• 204
• …
• 1110
• Next ›
• Page