Scientists discovered the underlying process in tumor formation is the same as for life itself — evolution. This suggests a molecular “survival of the fittest” scenario plays out in every living creature as gene mutations strive for ultimate survival through cancerous tumors. This finding improves our understanding of how evolution shapes life in all forms, while laying a foundation for new cancer drugs and treatments.
- Article Source

Aeroecology is the emerging discipline for studying how airborne organisms — birds, bats, arthropods and microbes — depend on the support of the lower atmosphere that is closest to the Earth’s surface. Called the aerosphere, it influences the daily and seasonal movements, development traits, such as size and shape, and evolution of behavioral, sensory, metabolic and respiratory functions of airborne organisms. Understanding how they respond to altered landscapes and atmospheric conditions can also help mitigate adverse effects.
- Article Source

A growing number of the world’s children are mildly to severely nearsighted (myopic), with rates especially high among urbanized East Asians. In addition to coping with poor distance vision, children with severe myopia are more prone to visual impairment and blindness later in life.
- Article Source

AMD erodes and can eventually destroy the central vision needed for reading, driving, and other daily tasks. When AMD risk levels among racial and ethnic groups are compared, Caucasians are usually identified as at highest risk.
- Article Source

Scientists have studied superconductors and superfluids for decades. Now researchers have drawn the first detailed picture of the way a superfluid influences the behavior of a superconductor. In addition to describing previously unknown superconductor behavior, these calculations could change scientists’ understanding of the motion of neutron stars.
- Article Source

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected soon to increase the estimate of new HIV infections in the United States by 40 percent. This highlights the need to make HIV testing a routine part of medical care and provide better funding to care for those who test positive, according to the HIV Medicine Association.
- Article Source

Certain sizes of nanostructures may be more susceptible to failure by fracture than others. As the size of a structure gets to the nanoscale, atomic vibrations (also known as phonons) begin to feel its size and shape in an effect called phonon confinement.
- Article Source

Quality of care varies greatly for the treatment of men with early-stage prostate cancer by region of the country and category of health care facility, suggesting the potential for improved patient outcomes with more standard treatment protocols, according to a new study.
- Article Source

A major question surrounding Alzheimer’s disease — whether and how amyloid plaques found in the brains of patients actually damage neurons — may be closer to an answer. Using an advanced imaging technique, researchers from the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease found that levels of intracellular calcium are significantly elevated in neurons close to Alzheimer’s plaques in a mouse model and showed how excess calcium may interfere with neuronal signals and cause cell death.
- Article Source

In the latest chapter in a 40-year scientific quest to unravel the flavor and aroma secrets of the world’s whiskeys, scientists in Germany are reporting discovery of key substances responsible for the distinctive bouquet of American bourbon whiskey.
- Article Source