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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 7:00am

Firefighters exposed to more potentially harmful chemicals than previously thought

Study suggests that firefighters are more likely to be exposed to potentially harmful chemicals while on duty compared to off duty. The on-duty firefighters experienced higher exposures of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, which are a family of chemicals that are known to have the potential to cause cancer. They were also exposed to 18 PAHs that have not been previously reported as firefighting exposures in earlier research.

The results are important because previous studies have shown that firefighters have an increased risk of developing cancer and other damaging health effects.

PAHs are a large group of chemical compounds that contain carbon and other elements. They form naturally after almost any type of combustion, both natural and human-created. In addition to burning wood, plants and tobacco, PAHs are also in fossil fuels.

Carolyn M. Poutasse et al, Discovery of firefighter chemical exposures using military-style silicone dog tags, Environment International (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2020.105818

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-firefighters-exposed-potentially-chem...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:51am

Plants take in less carbon in a warming world

As world temperatures rise, the rate at which plants in certain regions can absorb carbon dioxide is declining, according to research. Plants' optimum temperature range for photosynthesis in our study area is between 24.1 and 27.4 degrees Celsius.

But due to anthropogenic climate change, temperatures—particularly in warmer months—often go well beyond this 'healthy' range for carbon absorption. It was eye opening—temperatures exceeded this range between 14 and 59.2 percent of the time, depending on which site you were looking at. Plants in these regions simply aren't able to absorb carbon like they used to, which is seriously concerning.

The research team also measured the rate at which photosynthesis was occurring, with alarming results. Once this temperature range is exceeded, the ability for plants to appropriate carbon falls off a cliff.

Hamish A. McGowan et al. Identification of Optimum Temperatures for Photosynthetic Production in Subtropical Coastal Ecosystems: Implications for CO 2 Sequestration in a Warming World, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (2020). DOI: 10.1029/2020JG005678

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-carbon-world.html?utm_source=nwletter...

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Humans overshoot 2020 planetary 'budget' on August 22: report

Humanity will have burned through all the natural resources that the planet can replenish for 2020 by Saturday, according to researchers who said the grim milestone is slightly later than last year after the pandemic slowed runaway overconsumption.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:43am

Researchers create nanoclusters that mimic biomolecules

Biological systems come in all shapes, sizes and structures. Some of these structures, such as those found in DNA, RNA and proteins, are formed through complex molecular interactions that are not easily duplicated by inorganic materials.

A research team has discovered a way to bind and stack nanoscale clusters of copper molecules that can self-assemble and mimic these complex biosystem structures at different length scales. The clusters provide a platform for developing new catalytic properties that extend beyond what traditional materials can offer.

The nanocluster core connects to two copper caps fitted with special binding molecules, known as ligands, that are angled like propeller blades.

This work could provide a fundamental understanding of how biosystems like proteins assemble themselves to create secondary structural organization, and it gives us an opportunity to start creating something that could imitate a natural living system.

Haixiang Han et al. Tertiary Hierarchical Complexity in Assemblies of Sulfur-Bridged Metal Chiral Clusters, Journal of the American Chemical Society (2020). DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c04764

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-nanoclusters-mimic-biomolecules.html?...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:32am

Genetic background may affect adaptions to aging

How we adapt to aging late in life may be genetically influenced, according to a study led by a psychologist  

 The research, published in Aging Cell, has implications for how epigenetic factors relate to aging. Epigenesis is a process in which chemicals attached to DNA control its activity. Epigenetic changes, which can be passed on to offspring, may be critical to accelerated aging as well as declines in cognitive and physical functioning that often accompany aging. Epigenetic modifications resulting in altered gene expression may occur due to a number of biological processes, including one the researchers focused on: DNA methylation.

In DNA methylation, methyl groups are added to the DNA molecule. DNA has four different types of nucleotides: A, T, G, and C. DNA methylation occurs at the C bases of eukaryotic DNA. Changes in DNA methylation correlate strongly with aging.

considered DNA methylation across a 10-year span in 96 pairs of same-sex aging Swedish and Danish twins—the first longitudinal twin study to establish the extent to which genetic and environmental influences contribute to site-specific DNA methylation across time.

They found individual differences in blood DNA methylation measured at more than 350,000 sites in the aging twins across the epigenome are partly heritable in late life and longitudinally across a decade—ages 69 to 79. These findings can help scientists better understand the genetic and environmental contributions to the stability and dynamics of methylation in aging and sets a stage for future work in diverse populations.

"We also found methylation sites previously associated with age and included in methylation 'clocks' are more heritable than the other remaining sites

Chandra A. Reynolds et al, A decade of epigenetic change in aging twins: Genetic and environmental contributions to longitudinal DNA methylation, Aging Cell (2020). DOI: 10.1111/acel.13197  

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-genetic-background-affect-ag...  

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:24am

Quick fixes won't stop sexual harassment in academia, experts say

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-quick-wont-sexual-academia-experts.ht...

Kathryn B. H. Clancy et al, Opinion: Use science to stop sexual harassment in higher education, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2016164117

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A quantum thermometer to measure the coldest temperatures in the universe

Physicists from Trinity College Dublin have proposed a thermometer based on quantum entanglement that can accurately measure temperatures a billion times colder than those in outer space.

These ultra-cold temperatures arise in clouds of atoms, known as Fermi gasses, which are created by scientists to study how matter behaves in extreme quantum states.

Mark T. Mitchison et al. In Situ Thermometry of a Cold Fermi Gas via Dephasing Impurities, Physical Review Letters (2020). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.080402

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-quantum-thermometer-coldest-temperatu...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:21am

Researchers show children are silent spreaders of SARS-CoV-2

In the most comprehensive study of COVID-19 pediatric patients to date, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Mass General Hospital for Children (MGHfC) researchers provide critical data showing that children play a larger role in the community spread of COVID-19 than previously thought. In a study of 192 children ages 0-22, 49 children tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and an additional 18 children had late-onset, COVID-19-related illness. The infected children were shown to have a significantly higher level of virus in their airways than hospitalized adults in ICUs for COVID-19 treatment.

Journal of Pediatrics (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2020.08.037

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-children-silent-spreaders-sa...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:15am

Ancient gene family protects algae from salt and cold in an Antarctic lake

Glycerol, used in the past as antifreeze for cars, is produced by a range of organisms from yeasts to vertebrates, some of which use it as an osmoprotectant—a molecule that prevents dangerous water loss in salty environments—while others use it as an antifreeze. Here, scientists from the University of Nevada and Miami University in Ohio show that two species of the single-celled green algae Chlamydomonas from Antarctica, called UWO241 and ICE-MDV, produce high levels of glycerol to protect them from osmotic water loss, and possibly also from freezing injury. Presently, only one other organism, an Arctic fish, is known to use glycerol for both purposes. Both species synthesize glycerol with enzymes encoded by multiple copies of a recently discovered ancient gene family. These results, published today in the open-access journal Frontiers in Plant Science, illustrate the importance of adaptations that allow life to not only survive but to thrive in extreme habitats.

Frontiers in Plant Science, DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.01259 , www.frontiersin.org/articles/1 … fpls.2020.01259/full

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-ancient-gene-family-algae-salt.html?u...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 6:10am

Dynamic kirigami shoe grip designed to reduce risks of slips and falls

The slip resistance of your shoes can determine how well you walk on different surfaces without losing balance. Shoe grips increase friction by engaging with the walking surface, helping to increase stability. In a recently published study, investigators  presented a bioinspired assistive shoe grip based on kirigami, the Japanese art of paper cutting.

Kirigami can be used to create highly flexible surfaces that buckle from a flat sheet to a three-dimensional textured surface. The new kirigami-based shoe sole is intended to reduce the risks of slips and falls by adjusting as a person steps, increasing friction with pop-up spikes as necessary. In Nature Biomedical Engineering, the team reports the results of friction testing on a range of surfaces, including ice, finding that the kirigami shoe soles increased friction with the ground to get a better grip on slippery surfaces.

Sahab Babaee et al, Bioinspired kirigami metasurfaces as assistive shoe grips, Nature Biomedical Engineering (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41551-020-0564-3

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-08-dynamic-kirigami-falls.html?utm...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 5:54am

Animal mummies unwrapped with hi-res 3-D X-rays
Three mummified animals - a snake, a bird and a cat - from ancient Egypt have been digitally unwrapped and dissected by researchers, using high-resolution 3-D scans that give unprecedented detail about the animals' lives—and deaths—over 2000 years ago.
By using X-ray micro CT scanning, which generates 3-D images with a resolution 100 times greater than a medical CT scan, the animals' remains have been analyzed in extraordinary detail, right down to their smallest bones and teeth.
Source: Evidence of diet, deification, and death within ancient Egyptian mummified animals, Scientific Reports (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-69726-0 , www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-69726-0

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-animal-mummies-unwrapped-hi-res-d.htm...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=InUVf_VmFo8&am...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=KZGR6QVGH4U&am...

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Romantic relationship dynamics may be in our genes

Variations in a gene called CD38, which is involved in attachment behavior in non-human animals, may be associated with human romantic relationship dynamics in daily life, according to a study

CD38 is associated with communal behavior, partner perceptions, affect and relationship adjustment in romantic relationships, Scientific Reports (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-69520-y

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-romantic-relationship-dynami...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 21, 2020 at 5:41am

Scientists invent new sensing eye mask: a new, lightweight eye mask that can unobtrusively capture pulse, eye movement and sleep signals when worn in an everyday environment.

being able to track pulse and eye movement in a single wearable device will enable a host of sleep and psycho-social studies, in addition to improving the accuracy and usability of gaming and virtual reality headsets.

You will find the full research paper here: Matter (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.matt.2020.07.030

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-scientists-eye-mask.html?utm_source=n...

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Study of ancient Mayan facial expressions suggests some are universal

Researchers have found evidence that suggests some human facial expressions are universal across cultures. In this new effort, the researchers sought to get around the problem of biases and other problems with an experiment in which modern-day English-speaking people identified the emotions being expressed by people in ancient Mayan art.

The researchers found that MTurk workers were mostly in agreement regarding which facial expressions correlated to which labels, which they claim shows that such facial expressions are universal across cultures—and in this case, across time.

Research paper: Alan S. Cowen et al. Universal facial expressions uncovered in art of the ancient Americas: A computational approach, Science Advances (2020). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abb1005

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-ancient-mayan-facial-universal.html?u...

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