An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Johns Hopkins University discovered that 3D models of patients’ hearts could help doctors assess a person’s risk of developing life-threatening arrhythmias. Sudden cardiac death from arrhythmias is a leading cause of mortality, and for high-risk patients, insertion of implantable defibrillators can help reduce mortality. Researchers created personalized computer models […]
Posts by SMCCadmin (SMCCadmin)
Applying a “second skin” for a more youthful appearance
A new material could serve as a less obvious wound-dressing, protect skin, help deliver medication and sunscreen. But it could also fulfill more cosmetic roles, like helping reduce wrinkles and under-eye bags. Researchers say this newly developed wearable silicon-based polymer material is breathable, elastic, invisible, moisturizing, and is both durable and removable. According to the […]
The genetic history of Ice Age Europe 
Migration has been playing a role in European population dynamics since before the last Ice Age, according to what researchers believe is the most comprehensive genetic analysis of Upper Paleolithic Europeans to date. The team found that all the individuals between ~37,000 and ~14,000 years ago descended from a single founding population, which forms part […]
Could those genes be making you look old?
A gene may be partially responsible for how old you look, according to a new study. The gene, MC1R, is known for producing red hair and pale skin, as well as playing a role in repair to damaged DNA and other biological processes. Researchers found people carrying the gene typically look almost two years older […]
Peacock courtship is all in the shake of a tail feather
It takes more than flashing that beautiful tail to get a mate in the peacock world, according to new research. Researchers noticed the way the peacocks raise and vibrate their tail feathers makes it appear as if the eyespots hover motionless against an iridescent background. The research team captured 14 peacocks on video to analyze […]
Growing rare stem cells in a lab to treat blood diseases
Stem cells from umbilical cord blood can be used to help treat adult blood cancers, but few individual cord blood samples contain enough of the cells for a transplant. Now new research provides strategies for controlling and enhancing the growth of these stem cells, which means that more donated samples can be used for transplants, […]
Mapping the meaning of words in the brain
Researchers have mapped out how meanings of words are represented in the human brain. Researchers collected MRI data from seven participants while they listened to over 2 hours of stories on a radio show called The Moth Radio Hour. They found that information about the meaning of language is distributed broadly across over 100 distinct […]
High death rate among previously incarcerated Canadians
Individuals who have been incarcerated have an overall shorter life expectancy than the average Canadian, as well as a far greater likelihood of dying due to an overdose. Authors of a new Canadian study believe the consistently high death rate, both while in custody and after release, suggests this is not simply a result of […]
The use and abuse of Accutane among pregnant Canadians
The potent acne medication Accutane, also known as isotretinoin, is being used by pregnant women despite the risks the drug poses to a developing fetus as well as increasing the likelihood of miscarriage. The authors of a new study believe this shows Canada’s program that aims to prevent pregnancy in women using Accutane is not effective. […]
Expanding Canadian HPV vaccination program to boys
Expanding human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programs to include males in Canada will help protect them against HPV-related cancers. Authors of a new Canadian analysis explain that it’s important for policy-makers to recognize that HPV can cause cancer in males as well as females, but current vaccination programs in Canada don’t address these risks. HPV is […]
Mysteries of the chameleon’s amazing tongue, revealed
The chameleon’s tongue is one of nature’s wonders – it relies on a highly specialised structure that allows it to extend to twice the length of its owner’s body while unravelling telescopically, all rapidly enough to catch passing insects. Now, US and UK scientists have built a mathematical model that explains the mechanics of the […]
The global health map of Indigenous communities
The health of about half of the world’s Indigenous peoples – 28 populations in 23 countries from the Arctic through to Oceania – have been mapped out in a recent study out of Australia. This global health map includes Indigenous peoples from Africa, Pakistan, India, Nepal, China, Thailand, Myanmar, the Americas, Scandinavia, Circumpolar Russia, Greenland, […]
This is why you feel groggy after sleeping in a new place
When sleeping in an unfamiliar environment, half of your brain doesn’t really sleep. Instead, that hemisphere stays awake to “guard” against potential threats. In a new study, researchers from Brown University monitored the brain activity of 35 people in a sleep lab over the course of two nights. The first night sleeping in the new […]
Tweet louder, I can’t hear you: Highway noise disrupts information transfer between bird species
Communication between birds is disrupted near major roadways, where the noise levels are unnaturally high. According to new research from University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, this avian communication breakdown may help explain the pattern of reduced biodiversity near highways. Authors of the new study were curious about how building homes in […]
Dinosaur population doomed millions of years before the asteroid
The dinosaurs were on their way out before the asteroid hit, researchers say. It seems the big lizards’ numbers were gradually declining for at least 40 million years before the final extinction event. This decrease in dinosaur population likely favoured the rise of mammals, which began flourishing in ecological niches previously occupied by dinosaurs. Using […]
Warmer labs for mice make for more accurate cancer research results
New research shows that keeping laboratory mice warmer could mean more realistic results in cancer research studies. Lab temperatures are often 4-10 degrees colder that the toasty 30 degrees Celsius preferred by mice. Authors of a new study out of Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, suggest the mice use more energy to […]
