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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 4, 2021 at 12:06pm

Animals fake death for long periods to escape predators

Many animals feign death to try to escape their predators, with some individuals in prey species remaining motionless, if in danger, for extended lengths of time.

Charles Darwin recorded a beetle that remained stationary for 23 minutes—however the University of Bristol has documented an individual antlion larvae pretending to be dead for an astonishing 61 minutes. Of equal importance, the amount of time that an individual remains motionless is not only long but unpredictable. This means that a predator will be unable to predict when a potential prey item will move again, attract attention, and become a meal.

Predators are hungry and cannot wait indefinitely. Similarly, prey may be losing opportunities to get on with their lives if they remain motionless for too long. Thus, death-feigning might best be thought of as part of a deadly game of hide and seek in which prey might gain most by feigning death if alternative victims are readily available.

The study, published today in science journal Biology Letters, involved evaluating the benefits of death-feigning in terms of a predator visiting small populations of conspicuous prey. Researchers used computer simulations that utilise the marginal value theorem, a classical model in optimization.

 Hide-and-seek strategies and post-contact immobility, Biology Letters (2021). royalsocietypublishing.org/doi … .1098/rsbl.2020.0892

https://phys.org/news/2021-03-animals-fake-death-periods-predators....

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 4, 2021 at 8:23am

Structure and dynamics of key receptor in migraine pain determined, paving way for better treatment options

A research team determined the shape and kinetics of an important cell surface (membrane) receptor called calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), which has long been implicated in migraine. The researchers  determined the structure of the receptor alone and in combination with its natural target molecule (CGRP). This gives us a clear understanding of how the receptor works during its normal function in the body. The work has been published in the journal Science.

Future studies will expand the investigations towards potential drug targets.

Tracy M. Josephs et al. Structure and dynamics of the CGRP receptor in apo and peptide-bound forms, Science (2021). DOI: 10.1126/science.abf7258

Migraine is more than a simple headache; more than 3 million migraineurs—more than 60% of whom are women—have at least one attack per year. A smaller subset experience chronic migraine, defined by migraine pain that occurs 15 days or more per month, for three or months in a row. While sufferers experience many different symptoms of varying intensity—usually nausea, dizziness, sensitivity to light and sound, and intense pain on one or both sides of the head—the physiological process of migraine onset and pain is different from other types of headache, such as muscle tension or sinus pain. While migraine was long believed to be a neurovascular disorder that involved dilation of vessels in the skull, face and cerebral membrane, research has excluded vasodilation as a factor in this type of pain. More recent work has identified increased CGRP in the trigeminal se... that results in headache.

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-03-dynamics-key-receptor-migrai...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 3, 2021 at 12:46pm

People Are Accidentally Poisoning Themselves Trying to Treat COVID With a Horse Drug

People are trying to treat and prevent COVID-19 by taking ivermectin, a medication commonly used to de-worm horses – and they are poisoning themselves in the process.

The buzz around ivermectin has been generated by the FLCCC, the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), which formed at the start of the pandemic. It comprises critical care workers who previously bonded over the controversial use of vitamin C for sepsis, MedPage Today reported.

US regulators say there is not enough robust evidence or safety data to recommend ivermectin as a cure, treatment, or preventative medicine for COVID-19.

While the FLCCC has held press conferences saying studies show the drug could fight against the novel coronavirus, public health agencies and many experts say the research is lacking. 

Ivermectin can be tolerated in small doses but can poison an adult in large quantities 

https://www.businessinsider.com.au/coronavirus-people-are-accidenta...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 3, 2021 at 12:36pm

The Oldest Known Mummification 'Recipe' Has Been Unearthed, And It's Intense

In an exciting discovery, researchers have discovered an original 'how to' manual, hidden inside an ancient text, which explains the crucial steps to embalming and creating a mummy.

The guide to mummification has been found on a 3,500-year-old piece of papyrus called the Papyrus Louvre-Carlsberg manuscript, so called because half of it, primarily containing medical information.

Among the details that Schiødt has teased out of the document is a list of instructions for embalming the face of the deceased person, which was done with a piece of red linen coated in a special plant-based solution.

The solution included aromatic substances as well as binders for holding the mixture together, and the saturated cloth was intended to keep the face protected from insects and bacteria while also smelling sweet. This process hasn't been documented before, but does match up with some of the mummified remains that have been found.

This manuscript also lays out the full 70-day schedule for embalming, split into two halves: a 35-day drying period and a 35-day wrapping period, which were themselves divided into four-day intervals. Common treatments to the body included applying a mixture called natron, after the removal of the organs and the brain. 

https://news.ku.dk/all_news/2021/02/ancient-egyptian-manual-reveals...

https://www.sciencealert.com/the-oldest-known-mummification-recipe-...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 3, 2021 at 12:02pm

Biomass-based plastics

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 2, 2021 at 12:34pm

Huge, Global Study of Plastic Toys Finds Over 100 Substances That May Harm Children

The potential health risks of chemicals used in plastic toys have had scientists concerned for years, but new research reveals just how widespread the risk of harm to children remains.

In an international study, researchers assessed the chemical compositions of toys and estimated levels of human exposure to the substances, ultimately finding over 100 "Chemicals of Concern" in plastic toy materials that could pose a non-negligible health risk to children.

Out of 419 chemicals found in hard, soft, and foam plastic materials used in children toys, researchers identified 126 substances that can potentially harm children's health either via cancer or non-cancer effects, including 31 plasticisers, 18 flame retardants, and 8 fragrances.

According to the researchers, while laws in many countries regulate the use of certain potentially toxic chemicals in plastic toys, there is no consistent approach internationally, and current protections don't adequately prohibit the vast extent of potentially harmful substances that toys are made from

In addition, some toxic and banned additives are still found in plastic toys also on regulated markets, for example in case of recycling contaminated plastics, unawareness by producers, or absence of regulations in the producing country.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412020321498

https://www.sciencealert.com/plastic-toy-study-finds-over-100-subst...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 2, 2021 at 12:30pm

Carbon Capture Research 

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 2, 2021 at 11:37am

Coronavirus transmission through the placenta: Baby infected with coronavirus in the womb

A pregnant woman with suspected COVID-19 was rushed by ambulance to Skåne University Hospital, in Malmo, Sweden, suffering from sudden severe abdominal pain. The doctors noticed that the unborn infant had an abnormally low heart rate, which can be a sign that the baby is not getting enough oxygen.

The doctors performed an emergency caesarean section and delivered the baby within minutes. Blood tests from the baby confirmed it had severely low oxygen, and throat swabs showed that both mother and baby were suffering from COVID.

Using throat swabs from the mother and the newborn, the genome of the virus was sequenced to confirm the possibility that the infant had been infected with COVID while still in the womb.

 a few days later, new genetic sequencing showed that the baby’s virus population had changed and contained a mutated version of the virus along with the original virus strain from the mother. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of a genetic change of the coronavirus in the unique setting of mother-to-foetus transmission before birth.

Although it is common for viruses to mutate, this mutation (called A107G) happened just five days after the baby was delivered. The genetic changes may have been stimulated by the baby coming in contact with the external environment outside the mother’s womb. However, it was surprising how quickly this single mutation occurred.

The most important findings were the changes seen in the placenta. The placenta takes blood and nutrients to the foetus and takes away waste and is critical for the growth and wellbeing of the foetus. Half the tissue was damaged. There was widespread inflammation, and  coronavirus protein was found on both the mother’s and foetus’s side of the placenta. Also found was coronavirus protein in all areas that were damaged by inflammation.

 with thousands of pregnant women infected worldwide, mother-to-baby transmission in the womb seems to be a rare complication of COVID during pregnancy.

Scientists think that this is because of the placental barrier that protects the baby in the womb from most infections. Also, the vital receptor needed for coronavirus entry into cells, called an ACE-2 receptor, only exists in low levels in the placenta.

In rare cases, coronavirus can damage the placenta – leading to a lack of oxygen in the unborn child – even if the mother has a mild case of COVID in late pregnancy. 

we should rethink how we monitor pregnant women who have COVID, and they should be considered a more important risk group than we do today.

https://theconversation.com/baby-infected-with-coronavirus-in-the-w...

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 1, 2021 at 12:53pm

https://fb.watch/3Yp8kldIDt/

A single male lyrebird can mimic the sound of an entire flock

The masters of imitation appear to have vocal talents more profound than previously appreciated

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 1, 2021 at 10:49am

Swift Links Neutrino to Star-destroying Black Hole

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