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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 12, 2021 at 10:41am

Galaxy mergers could limit star formation

Astronomers have looked nine billion years into the past to find evidence that galaxy mergers in the early universe could shut down star formation and affect galaxy growth.

New research  shows that a huge amount of star-forming gas was ejected into the intergalactic medium by the coming together of two galaxies.

The researchers say that this event, together with a large amount of star formation in the nuclear regions of the galaxy, would eventually deprive the merged galaxy—called ID2299—of fuel for new stars. This would stop star formation for several hundred million years, effectively halting the galaxy's development.

Astronomers observe many massive, dead galaxies containing very old stars in the nearby Universe and don't exactly know how these galaxies have been formed.

Simulations suggest that winds generated by active black holes as they feed, or those created by intense star formation, are responsible for such deaths by expelling the gas from galaxies.

Now this  study offers galaxy mergers as another way of shutting down star formation and altering galaxy growth.

 A titanic interstellar medium ejection from a massive starburst galaxy at redshift 1.4, Nature Astronomy (2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41550-020-01268-x , www.nature.com/articles/s41550-020-01268-x

https://phys.org/news/2021-01-galaxy-mergers-limit-star-formation.h...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 12, 2021 at 10:07am

Scientists discover bizarre new mode of snake locomotion

A team of researchers from Colorado State University and the University of Cincinnati have discovered a new mode of snake locomotion that allows the brown tree snake to ascend much larger smooth cylinders than any previously known behaviour.

This lasso locomotion, named because of a lasso-like body posture, may contribute to the success and impact of this highly invasive species. It allows these animals to access potential prey that might otherwise be unobtainable and may also explain how this species could climb power poles, leading to electrical outages.

Researchers said they hope the findings will help people protect endangered birds from the snakes.

For nearly 100 years, all snake locomotion has been traditionally categorized into four modes: rectilinear, lateral undulation, sidewinding and concertina.

This new discovery of a fifth mode of locomotion was the unexpected result . Even though they can climb using this mode, it is pushing them to the limits. The snakes pause for prolonged periods to rest.

Current Biology, Savidge et al.: "A novel mode of locomotion expands the climbing abilities of snakes"
www.cell.com/current-biology/f … 0960-9822(20)31763-2 , DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.11.050

https://phys.org/news/2021-01-scientists-bizarre-mode-snake-locomot...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 12:04pm

Scientists developing new solutions for honeybee colony collapse

Scientists at four University of California campuses, including UC San Diego, are leading a new effort to stop and reverse a worldwide decline in honeybees, which threatens food security and prices. Honeybees pollinate more than 80 agricultural crops, which account for about a third of what we eat. Several factors, including pesticide exposure and the spread of parasites and environmental changes, are to blame for the widespread collapse of bee colonies over the past decade. To boost dwindling honeybee populations.

Researchers  will be testing how nutritional supplements may help bees that have been exposed to pesticides and on how to harness the natural honey bee microbiome against a very common bee gut disease.

Researchers have also focused a great deal on the harms caused by pesticides and this has helped improve some aspects of regulation.

Research is also aimed at understanding the complex genomes of feral honey bees. These bees have genomes that are a complex mixture of genomes of honey bee varieties from Africa, Europe and the Middle East. They are highly genetically diverse and ecologically successful. Their genomes likely hold variation useful to breeding domesticated honey bees with increased levels of resistance to the common diseases that currently plague the honey bee industry. They seek to identify and breed bees that are better able to cope with environmental stress

A second goal of the new network is to develop medications and treatments for sick bees. Certain types of honeybees generate molecules that make them more tolerant of pesticides and parasites. New technology will enable the scientists to isolate those molecules and use them as a basis for drugs.

Finally, the group is looking to give beekeepers tools to better monitor bees’ health. Small devices will be able to “listen” and “smell” inside hives to give beekeepers indications about the health of the hive.

“We know bee queens have a special pheromone they give off when they’re hungry or dying, and these can be traced,” Baer said. “We are essentially building ‘electronic veterinarians.’”

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https://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/scientists-developing-new-so...

https://researchnews.cc/news/4531/Scientists-developing-new-solutio...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 11:31am

Unravelling the mystery that makes viruses infectious

Researchers have for the first time identified the way viruses like the poliovirus and the common cold virus 'package up' their genetic code, allowing them to infect cells.

The findings open up the possibility that drugs or anti-viral agents can be developed that would stop such infections.

Once a cell is infected, a virus needs to spread its genetic material to other cells. This is a complex process involving the creation of what are known as virions—newly-formed infectious copies of the virus. Each virion is a protein shell containing a complete copy of the virus's genetic code. The virions can then infect other cells and cause disease.

What has been a mystery until now is a detailed understanding of the way the virus assembles these daughter virions. If we can disrupt the mechanism of virion formation, then there is the potential to stop an infection in its tracks.

The analysis suggests that the molecular features that control the process of virion formation are genetically conserved, meaning they do not mutate easily—reducing the risk that the virus could change and make any new drugs ineffective.

The study published today details the role of what are called RNA packaging signals, short regions of the RNA molecule which together with proteins from the virus's casing ensure accurate and efficient formation of an infectious virion.

Using a combination of molecular and mathematical biology, the researchers were able to identify possible sites on the RNA molecule that could act as packaging signals. Using advanced electron microscopes at the Astbury Biostructure Laboratory at the University of Leeds, scientists were able to directly visualise this process—the first time that has been possible with any virus of this type.

 Rebecca Chandler-Bostock et al, Assembly of infectious enteroviruses depends on multiple, conserved genomic RNA-coat protein contacts, PLOS Pathogens (2020). DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009146

https://phys.org/news/2021-01-unravelling-mystery-viruses-infectiou...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 10:43am

Researchers report new state of matter described as 'liquid glass'

Discovery of liquid glass sheds light on the old scientific problem of the glass transition: An interdisciplinary team of researchers from the University of Konstanz has uncovered a new state of matter, liquid glass, with previously unknown structural elements—new insights into the nature of glass and its transitions.

 Using a model system involving suspensions of tailor-made ellipsoidal colloids, the researchers uncovered a new state of matter, liquid glass, where individual particles are able to move yet unable to rotate—complex behavior that has not previously been observed in bulk glasses. The results are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Jörg Roller et al. Observation of liquid glass in suspensions of ellipsoidal colloids, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2021). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2018072118

https://phys.org/news/2021-01-state-liquid-glass.html?utm_source=nw...

While glass is a truly ubiquitous material that we use on a daily basis, it also represents a major scientific conundrum. Contrary to what one might expect, the true nature of glass remains something of a mystery, with scientific inquiry into its chemical and physical properties still underway. In chemistry and physics, the term glass itself is a mutable concept: It includes the substance we know as window glass, but it may also refer to a range of other materials with properties that can be explained by reference to glass-like behavior, including, for instance, metals, plastics, proteins, and even biological cells.

While it may give the impression, glass is anything but conventionally solid. Typically, when a material transitions from a liquid to a solid state the molecules line up to form a crystal pattern. In glass, this does not happen. Instead, the molecules are effectively frozen in place before crystallization happens. This strange and disordered state is characteristic of glasses across different systems and scientists are still trying to understand how exactly this metastable state forms.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 9:46am

Where antibiotic resistance comes from

By comparing thousands of bacterial genomes, scientists in Gothenburg, Sweden have traced back the evolutionary history of antibiotic resistance genes. In almost all cases where an origin could be determined, the gene started to spread from bacteria that, themselves, can cause disease.

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Keeping sperm cells on track

An essential component of every eukaryotic cell is the cytoskeleton. Microtubules, tiny tubes consisting of a protein called tubulin, are part of this skeleton of cells. Cilia and flagella, which are antenna-like structures that protrude from most of the cells in our body, contain many microtubules. An example of flagell is the sperm tail, which is essential for male fertility and thus for sexual reproduction. The flagellum has to beat in a very precise and coordinated manner to allow progressive swimming of the sperm. Failure to do so can lead to male infertility.

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Researchers turn coal powder into graphite in microwave oven

Using copper foil, glass containers and a conventional household microwave oven, University of Wyoming researchers have demonstrated that pulverized coal powder can be converted into higher-value nano-graphite.

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Including unhealthy foods may diminish positive effects of an other...

Eating a healthy diet, such as the Mediterranean diet, has a positive impact on health, but little is known about the effects of including unhealthy foods in an otherwise healthy diet. Now researchers at Rush University Medical Center have reported diminished benefits of a Mediterranean diet among those with high frequency of eating unhealthy foods. The results of their study were published in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association on Jan. 7.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 9:43am

Noncognitive or “soft skills” are related to motivation, integrity, and interpersonal interaction. They may also involve intellect, but more indirectly and less consciously than cognitive skills. Soft skills are associated with an individual's personality, temperament, and attitudes.

Cognitive and noncognitive skills - ACT

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 9:42am

Noncognitive skills—distinct from cognitive abilities—are important to success across the life

Noncognitive skills and cognitive abilities are both important contributors to educational attainment—the number of years of formal schooling that a person completes—and lead to success across the life course, according to a new study.

 The research provides evidence for the idea that inheriting genes that affect things other than cognitive ability are important for understanding differences in people's life outcomes. Until now there had been questions about what these noncognitive skills are and how much they really matter for life outcomes. The new findings are published in the journal Nature Genetics.

"Genetic studies of educational attainment were initiated with the goal of identifying genes that influenced cognitive abilities. They've had some success in doing that. But it turns out they've also identified genetics that influence a range of other skills and characteristics. What was most surprising about the results was that these noncognitive skills contributed just as much to the heritability of educational attainment as cognitive ability. Of the total genetic influence on educational attainment, referred to as the heritability, cognitive abilities accounted for 43 percent and noncognitive skills accounted for 57 percent.

Similar to the genetics of cognitive abilities, the genetics of noncognitive skills were related to achievements outside of schooling, including holding more prestigious jobs, earning higher incomes, and living longer. And, genes associated with noncognitive skills showed relationships with these other life outcomes that were as strong or stronger than the relationships seen with cognitive genetics. These results were important proof of concept. They showed us that noncognitive skills genetics have implications for economics and public health similar to the genetics of cognitive abilities.

Overall, the genetics of noncognitive skills were associated with higher tolerance of risks, greater willingness to forego immediate gratification, less health-risk behavior, and delayed fertility. Researchers also observed that noncognitive skill genetics were associated with a constellation of personality traits linked with success in relationships and at work, such as being curious and eager to learn, being more emotionally stable, and being more industrious and orderly.

Nature Genetics (2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41588-020-00754-2

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-01-noncognitive-skillsdistinct-...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 8:46am

Biotin, mitochondria, and dementia: Research reveals a connection

By any measure, carbon-based life originates from carboxylation. That is to say, the coupling of atmospheric carbon dioxide to sugar. Carboxylation is also critical for mitochondria to function. There are five carboxylation enzymes in mitochondria, and they share one thing in common—they are all operated by a covalently linked biotin cofactor.

Biotin is also known as vitamin H, named for the German words "Haar" and "Haut," which mean hair and skin. This was due to the fact that even slight deficiencies cause hair thinning, skin rash or brittle fingernails. New research, just published in PNAS, now shows that some forms of severe neurodegeneration, like the frontotemporal dementia seen in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, can directly result from lack of sufficient biotin.

Biotin comes to us in the form of biocytin, which is simply a biotin linked to a lysine. Btnd cleaves off the biotin from biocytin, or from its attachment to lysine in carboxylases. When Btnd was also crippled in the flies, their dementia got worse. Furthermore, their mitochondria also became deformed and elongated. The researchers were able to remedy all of these effects by simply giving supplementary biotin, suggesting that some humans with dementia could similarly benefit. They were also able to piece together a mechanism that functionally links tau and Btnd.

 Kelly M. Lohr et al. Biotin rescues mitochondrial dysfunction and neurotoxicity in a tauopathy model, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1922392117

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-01-biotin-mitochondria-dementia...

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on January 11, 2021 at 7:50am

Quantum Locking Will Blow Your Mind—How Does it Work?

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