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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 9:36am

EEE, West Nile, malaria: Know the difference between these mosquito-borne diseases

The world's deadliest animal can be squashed flat with a quick slap: It's the mosquito.

The buzzing insects are more than annoying—they spread disease. When they bite and drink blood from a person or animal they can pick up viruses or germs too. If they can go on to bite someone or something else, they deposit the germ right under the skin.

The best way to avoid getting sick is of course to avoid getting bitten, which means taking steps like using repellent, wearing clothing with long sleeves and long pants and staying indoors when the mosquitoes are out. Local health departments also work to reduce mosquito numbers, including spraying neighborhoods with insecticide.

Here's a look at some common—and not so common—mosquito-borne diseases.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 9:29am

Menopause potentially linked to adverse cardiovascular health through blood fat profile changes

New research presented at the ESC Congress 2024 in London, UK (30 August—2 September) shows that women in the menopause transition period show changes in their blood cholesterol profiles which could have an adverse impact on their cardiovascular health.

There is an increase in 'bad' low-density type lipoprotein (LDL) particles and a decrease in 'good' high-density lipoprotein particles (HDL) that takes place during and after the menopause transition. Taken together, these changes suggest that menopause is associated with a transition to a higher-risk lipoprotein profile that could be more likely to cause cardiovascular disease, such as coronary artery disease.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the biggest killer of women, despite the misconception that CVD is a "man's disease"—40% of all deaths in women are from CVD. While women develop cardiovascular disease (CVD) approximately ten years later than men, risk of CVD in women rises after menopause.

In the present study, the researchers found that found that menopause is associated with adverse changes in lipoprotein profiles, with the most pronounced changes found to be in increases in 'bad' LDL-particles and subfractions observed for peri-menopausal women. When looked at together, these changes could help explain the increase of cardiovascular disease in post-menopausal women and help determine if earlier interventions are warranted.

 esc365.escardio.org/ESC-Congress/sessions/11918

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 9:22am

Pregnancy after sterilization turns out to be surprisingly common

Tubal sterilization is thought to be a permanent form of birth control and is the most common method of contraception in several parts of the world. But a new study reports that tubal surgery fails often enough that some other forms of birth control are usually more effective.

The authors found that 3–5% of women in the  US who had their tubes tied later reported an unplanned pregnancy. This failure rate led the authors to suggest that patients who really want to avoid future pregnancy should instead use a contraceptive arm implant or intrauterine device (IUD).

The paper appears August 27 in NEJM Evidence.

Schwarz, E. B. et al. Pregnancy after Tubal Sterilization in the United States, 2002 to 2015, NEJM Evidence (2024). DOI: 10.1056/EVIDoa2400023. evidence.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/EVIDoa2400023

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 9:14am

Bees are generally considered the most effective pollinators because Rutgers scientists identified that blueberry, coffee and apple crops were most frequently affected by pollinator limitations. They visit more flowers and carry more pollen than other insects.

Researchers found yield deficits for 25 unique crops and in 85% of the countries evaluated.

On the bright side, scientists think current yield deficits could be remediated with realistic increases in pollinator visitation across individual crop fields. The study revealed in some cases an adequate number of bees were already visiting some fields.

If field managers could improve consistency across high- and low-yield fields, much of the observed yield problems could be addressed.
The findings are significant because crop yields, which measure the amount of crops grown per unit area of land, are relevant to assessing the adequacy of the world's food supply relative to its population.

Katherine J. Turo et al, Insufficient pollinator visitation often limits yield in crop systems worldwide, Nature Ecology & Evolution (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-024-02460-2

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 9:12am

Lack of pollinators limits worldwide food production

A team of researchers  has analyzed crop yields of more than 1,500 fields on six continents, and found that production worldwide of important, nutritionally dense foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes is being limited by a lack of pollinators.

The results, detailed in Nature Ecology & Evolution, showed that across diverse crops and locations, one-third to two-thirds of farms contain fields that aren't producing at the levels they should be due to a lack of pollinators. The phenomenon of a low crop yield because of insufficient visits by insects is known as 'pollinator limitation'.

The study is especially timely given recent concern about global declines in insect abundance.

The scientists reached their conclusions by conducting a statistical analysis of more than 200,000 "bee visitations" to crop flowers, contained within one of the most comprehensive databases on crop pollination in the world.

The open-source database incorporates three decades of field observations of bees and other pollinators visiting plants.

The recent  study doesn't apply to major food crops, such as rice and wheat, which don't require pollinators to reproduce. But pollination by bees and other animals is critical to the proliferation of what Scientists describe as "nutrient-dense and interesting foods that we like and are culturally relevant," such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes.

Pollination is the process of transferring pollen from the male part of a flower to the female part, which allows a plant to become fertilized and produce seeds, fruits and young plants. Pollen can be moved by wind, water or pollinators such as honeybees and wild bees and other insects and other animals, such as bats.

Pollinators support the reproduction of about 88% of the world's flowering plants and 76% of the leading global food crops, according to previous research by this group and also other scientists.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 8:59am

Anthropocene: Why it matters even without a formal geological definition

For the last seven decades, Earth has been operating in unprecedented ways, leading many researchers to argue that we have entered a new geological epoch known as the Anthropocene.

While it may not have been formally accepted onto the geological time scale, the Anthropocene is real and its effects have drastically and irrevocably changed the living conditions on our planet. It should therefore be treated as a de facto new epoch of Earth's history, say some experts.

That argument is at the crux of an article published in the journal Nature .

The article was also co-signed by more than 50 other researchers representing many different disciplines and institutes from around the world. It summarizes the evidence of massive physical, chemical and biological change on the planet, including the rapidly warming climate.

For many thousands of years, large human populations coexisted with relatively stable planetary conditions and left abundant traces of their existence and their environmental impacts.

But the planet is now sharply different, and the significance of these changes extends far beyond the Earth sciences to affect the social sciences, the humanities and arts—and to form a now-permanent context for the work of planners and decision-makers.

The authors emphasize that it makes sense to precisely delimit the beginning of the Anthropocene at 1952. That year not only marks the prominent upturn of artificial radionuclide fallout around the Earth from hydrogen bomb tests, they note, but closely coincides with many other changes, such as the appearance of plastics and many other novel compounds and the rapid growth of greenhouse gases, as well as widespread social, economic and political changes as the postwar world entered a period of unprecedented growth.

Wide acceptance of such a definition would make for more precise analysis of the many phenomena associated with the Anthropocene, and allow us to communicate clearly, say these experts.

The Anthropocene may have been rejected by the International Commission on Stratigraphy—for now. But it is all too alive in the real world, and we should recognize that.

Jan Zalasiewicz et al, The meaning of the Anthropocene: why it matters even without a formal geological definition, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/d41586-024-02712-y

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 8:13am

'Alarming' rise in deadly lightning strikes in India: scientists

Climate change is fueling an alarming increase in deadly lightning strikes in India, killing nearly 1,900 people a year in the world's most populous country, scientists warn.

Lightning caused a staggering 101,309 deaths between 1967 and 2020, with a sharp increase between 2010 and 2020, a team of researchers say.

The results indicate a steady increase in lightning activity in India, positioning it as a major killer among climate change-induced natural disasters.

While the report looked at data on deaths, not the number of strikes, it said "lightning activity in India is becoming increasingly unpredictable".

Data showed that the average annual fatalities per Indian state rose from 38 in the period 1967 to 2002, to 61 from 2003 to 2020 -- a period when the country's population has also rapidly grown to 1.4 billion people.

Lightning strikes are common in India during the June-September monsoon rains, which is crucial to replenishing regional water supplies.

But scientists say their frequency is increasing due to rising global temperatures, unleashing a cascade of extreme weather events. Higher air temperatures create more water vapour, which after it cools at altitude, creates electric charges that spark lightning.

The high number of fatalities in India is also due to ineffective early warning systems and a lack of awareness of how to reduce the risk, the report added, published in the international journal of Environment, Development and Sustainability.

Mass fatalities from a single strike are common, such as when farmers shelter in groups from lashing rain under a tree.

The report said the data on recorded deaths from lightning indicates "an increasing trend, with the last two decades showing the highest increase", calling it "an alarming development". The "rising trend of extreme climate conditions is likely to exacerbate the situation", it added, with a "pressing need" for policy changes to mitigate the impact.

Source: Various news agencies

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 8:07am

How much microplastic are you drinking? New tool can tell you in minutes

Micro- and nanoplastics are in our food, water and the air we breathe. They are showing up in our bodies, from testicles to brain matter. Now,  researchers have developed a low-cost, portable tool to accurately measure plastic released from everyday sources like disposable cups and water bottles.

The device, paired with an app, uses fluorescent labeling to detect plastic particles ranging from 50 nanometers to 10 microns in size—too small to be detected by the naked eye—and delivers results in minutes.

The method and findings are detailed in ACS Sensors.

The breakdown of larger plastic pieces into microplastics and nanoplastics presents significant threats to food systems, ecosystems, and human health.

This new technique allows quick, cheap detection of these plastics, which could help protect our health and ecosystems.

Nano and microplastics are byproducts of degrading plastic materials such as lunchboxes, cups and utensils. As very small particles with a large surface area, nanoplastics are particularly concerning to human health due to their increased ability to absorb toxins and penetrate biological barriers within the human body.

Detecting these plastics typically requires skilled personnel and expensive equipment.

They created a small, biodegradable, 3D-printed box containing a wireless digital microscope, green LED light and an excitation filter. To measure the plastics, they customized MATLAB software with machine-learning algorithms and combined it with image capture software.

The result is a portable tool that works with a smartphone or other mobile device to reveal the number of plastic particles in a sample. The tool only needs a tiny liquid sample—less than a drop of water—and makes the plastic particles glow under the green LED light in the microscope to visualize and measure them. The results are easy to understand, whether by a technician in a food processing lab or just someone curious about their morning cup of coffee.

To reduce plastic ingestion, it is important to consider avoiding petroleum-based plastic products by opting for alternatives like glass or stainless steel for food containers. The development of biodegradable packaging materials is also important for replacing traditional plastics and moving towards a more sustainable world, say the researchers.

Haoxin Ye et al, Cost-Effective and Wireless Portable Device for Rapid and Sensitive Quantification of Micro/Nanoplastics, ACS Sensors (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acssensors.4c00957

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 7:55am

The physics of paper cuts. Credit: Physical Review E (2024). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.110.025003

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2024 at 7:53am

Paper types ranked by likelihood of paper cuts

Via testing with a skin stand-in, a trio of physicists has ranked the types of paper that are the most likely to cause a paper cut. In an article published in Physical Review E, they tested the cutting ability and circumstances involved in paper cuts to compile their rankings.

Paper cuts occur through the handling of paper products. In addition to the nuisance factor due to the sudden flow of blood, there is also often a great deal of pain involved. In this new effort, the researchers noted that most research done on the topic revolves around infection factors. They chose instead to focus on the types of paper most likely to cause a cut, thereby allowing paper users a means to reduce their chances of an injury.

To test the cutting ability of different types of paper, the researchers used ballistics gelatin as a stand-in for skin. They then attempted to cut the gelatin using multiple types of paper. They noted the sturdiness and thickness of the paper, and the angles that were involved when cutting occurred.

The research team found that paper that was the most thin was unlikely to cause a cut because it tended to buckle instead. Also, thick paper rarely led to a cut because its surface was spread over too large an area. That left paper that is neither too thick nor too thin, like the kind that is used in newspapers or dot-matrix printers—the two types tied for the title "Most likely to cut skin."

Other culprits were Post-It notes, printed magazines and office paper. Some that were less likely to cut include tissue and photo paper. They noted that to cause cuts, the paper had to be angled slightly.

The researchers also noted that some papers, such as those used in dot-matrix printers, are exceptionally good at cutting. They proved this to be the case by connecting a small piece of it to a scalpel and using the results as a "papermachete." They found their little knife was capable of slicing through vegetable skin and even some meats.

 Sif Fink Arnbjerg-Nielsen et al, Competition between slicing and buckling underlies the erratic nature of paper cuts, Physical Review E (2024). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.110.025003

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