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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...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 7:10am

Bacteria can defuse dangerous chemical in Rassaic River

Study suggests pollutant's toxicity could be decreased

Bacteria that can help defuse highly toxic dioxin in sediments in the Passaic River - a Superfund hazardous waste site - could eventually aid cleanup efforts at other dioxin-contaminated sites around the world, according to scientists.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200819110915.htm

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Scaling Up Spider Silk Production Researchers in Japan have produced artificial spider silk using photosynthetic bacteria, opening the possibility of mass produced spider silk.

https://www.asianscientist.com/2020/08/in-the-lab/spider-silk-photo...

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How Organelles Talk To Each Other Using a new technique to observe inter-organelle communication in live cells, researchers have identified the proteins that form signaling hubs known as mitochondria-associated membranes.

Yes MAM: How Organelles Talk To Each Other

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** A Closer Look Into Viral Dark Matter Taking a metagenomics approach, researchers in Japan have identified phage-derived enzymes that could potentially treat an imbalance of gut bacteria.

https://www.asianscientist.com/2020/08/in-the-lab/phage-derived-dys...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 6:44am

Doctors Used a Poop Transplant to Cure a Man Whose Gut Was Making Him Drunk

A rare syndrome in which the human gut brews its own alcohol has been successfully treated with a poop transplant when nothing else was working, marking the first such case in medical literature.

Known as auto-brewery syndrome (ABS), this extraordinary condition can leave patients feeling downright intoxicated, even if they haven't had a single thing to drink.

ABS is caused by microorganisms - usually fungi - in the gut feasting on recently-eaten carbohydrates to produce their own brew of alcohol.

Most of us have these fermenting microbes in small quantities, but in ABS the microbe populations and therefore the fermentation can grow out of control. This can sometimes occur after a course of antibiotics throws the gut balance off.

Initially, this is what brought a 47-year-old man to the hospital in Belgium. Since finishing a dose of antibiotics, he had been experiencing unexplained moments of inebriation. And it had been going on for two months. 

The patient told doctors he hadn't consumed a drink in four days, and yet upon further testing, his blood ethanol levels were more than 17 times what's considered normal, or twice the legal limit in the United States.

Doctors diagnosed him with gut fermentation syndrome, or ABS, and prescribed oral anti-fungals and a low-carb diet. But it only helped a little. Even an increased dose of the high-potency anti-fungal medication amphotericin taken for four weeks appeared unsuccessful: The patient still felt inebriated and his wife reported she could smell the alcohol on his breath.

In recent years, poop transplants have been proposed as a promising new way to re-balance gut microbiota among certain groups of people. That said, they appear to only work against some infections, and there are potentially life-threatening risks that need to be taken into consideration.

However, the man was willing to try it, and the sample was voluntarily donated by his 22-year-old daughter. Luckily, the poop transplant worked wonderfully. Nearly three years later, the patient still remains free of ABS symptoms, and his blood ethanol levels have returned to normal.

https://www.sciencealert.com/a-poop-transplant-fixed-a-particularly...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 6:39am

Newly Identified Social Trait Could Explain Why Some People Are Particularly Tribal

Having strong, biased opinions may say more about your own individual way of behaving in group situations than it does about your level of identification with the values or ideals of any particular group, new research suggests.

This behavioural trait – which researchers call 'groupiness' – could mean that individuals will consistently demonstrate 'groupy' behaviour across different kinds of social situations, with their thoughts and actions influenced by simply being in a group setting, whereas 'non-groupy' people aren't affected in the same way.

"It's not the political group that matters, it's whether an individual just generally seems to like being in a group," says economist and lead researcher Rachel Kranton from Duke University.

"Some people are 'groupy' – they join a political party, for example. And if you put those people in any arbitrary setting, they'll act in a more biased way than somebody who has the same political opinions, but doesn't join a political party."

https://www.sciencealert.com/experiment-identifies-new-kind-of-soci...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 6:09am

Tech news:

Forget credit cards—now you can pay with your face

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-08-credit-cardsnow.html?utm_source...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 6:02am

**Pumice arrives delivering 'vitamin boost' to the reef

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-pumice-vitamin-boost-reef.html?utm_so...

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Viral scents? Dogs sniff out coronavirus in human sweat

Science News for Students

Starting in March, these researchers collected sweat samples from the armpits of ... A few dogs around the world have become infected with the virus. ... The new study used samples from people who tested positive for the virus and ...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 20, 2020 at 5:53am

Zebra stripes and their role in dazzling flies

The mystery of why zebras have their characteristic stripes has perplexed researchers for several years. many popular theories such as their use as camouflage from predators, a cooling mechanism through the formation of convection currents and a role in social interactions have been discredited. Stripes acting to confuse predators is another common explanation, but it too is flawed when looking at the scientific data. Instead, mounting evidence suggests that it is parasitic flies that are confounded by the zebra's distinctive patterning.

scientists have now provided significant depth to this hypothesis by narrowing down the possible mechanism.

Previously, the same researchers had shown that blood-sucking horseflies would approach horses in striped rugs as often as plain rugs, but then failed to land or slow down when they got close.

Essentially, stripes dazzled the flies, forcing them to collide with the skin or fly away altogether. In their new study they explored a potential mechanism explaining how the stripes lead to this outcome: the aperture effect.

"The aperture effect is a well-known optical illusion that, in human vision, is also known as the barber-pole effect. Moving stripes, such as those on the rotating barber-pole signs outside barbershops, appear to move at right angles to the stripe, rather than in their true direction, so the pole appears to move upwards, rather than around its axle.

"We set out to see if this illusion also takes place in the eyes of biting flies as they come to land on striped hosts.

"As any fly approaches a landing surface, it will adjust its speed according to how quickly the surface expands across its vision, enabling a slowed and controlled landing.

"Stripes however could disrupt this 'optic flow' through the aperture effect, leading the fly to believe the landing surface is further away than reality. Thus, the fly fails to slow down or land successfully."

Despite its appeal to visual ecologists, this research found that the aperture effect is not the mechanism behind fly confusion through comparing fly landings on horses wearing striped versus checked rugs.

Since checked rugs provide visual input free from the aperture effect, one would expect flies to land on them without difficulty. Yet flies had real difficulties with this pattern—hardly landing on checked or striped rugs at all. Thus, stripes themselves are not unique to deterring tabanid horseflies, other patterns can be effective too.

Zebra stripes, tabanid biting flies, and the aperture effect, Proceedings of the Royal Society B (2020). rspb.royalsocietypublishing.or … .1098/rspb.2020.1521

https://phys.org/news/2020-08-zebra-stripes-role-dazzling-flies.htm...

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