science newsletter: Science News SciGuru.com

Πέμπτη 24 Απριλίου 2014

Science News SciGuru.com

Workout ‘cyber-buddy’ better than no buddy at all
Bionic ear technology used for gene therapy
High Charge State Iron Ions Detected Among Impulsive Solar Energetic Particle Emission
Novel compound halts cocaine addiction and relapse behaviors
Scientists Identify Critical New Protein Complex Involved in Learning and Memory
“Citizen scientists” effective in monitoring shark numbers
Brain size matters in evolution of self-control

Workout ‘cyber-buddy’ better than no buddy at all

Posted: 24 Apr 2014 02:53 AM PDT

Use of virtual ‘cyber-buddies’ may help people’s motivation and persistence during exercise according to a new study from researchers in Michigan State University in the USA and the University of Kent in the UK. The study is published in the Games for Health Journal.

Bionic ear technology used for gene therapy

Posted: 24 Apr 2014 02:46 AM PDT

Researchers at UNSW have for the first time used electrical pulses delivered from a cochlear implant to deliver gene therapy, thereby successfully regrowing auditory nerves.

The research also heralds a possible new way of treating a range of neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s disease, and psychiatric conditions such as depression through this novel way of delivering gene therapy.

The research is published today in the prestigious journal Science Translational Medicine.

High Charge State Iron Ions Detected Among Impulsive Solar Energetic Particle Emission

Posted: 23 Apr 2014 03:23 PM PDT

Studies have shown that impulsive Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) events emit Fe ions with QFe < 14 at the lowest energies (E ≤ 0.1 MeV/nuc) that are consistent with typical corona source material (DiFabio et al., ApJ, 687, 623, 2008).

Novel compound halts cocaine addiction and relapse behaviors

Posted: 23 Apr 2014 09:15 AM PDT

A novel compound that targets an important brain receptor has a dramatic effect against a host of cocaine addiction behaviors, including relapse behavior, a University at Buffalo animal study has found.

The research provides strong evidence that this may be a novel lead compound for treating cocaine addiction, for which no effective medications exist.

The UB research was published as an online preview article in Neuropsychopharmacology last week.

Scientists Identify Critical New Protein Complex Involved in Learning and Memory

Posted: 23 Apr 2014 09:06 AM PDT

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a protein complex that plays a critical but previously unknown role in learning and memory formation.

The study, which showed a novel role for a protein known as RGS7, was published April 22, 2014 in the journal eLife, a publisher supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Max Planck Society and the Wellcome Trust.

“Citizen scientists” effective in monitoring shark numbers

Posted: 23 Apr 2014 08:50 AM PDT

Use of ‘citizen scientists’ in monitoring populations of marine wildlife is an approach that often meets with scepticism in the scientific community. However, a new study published in the journal PLoS One shows that such citizen scientists, in this case experienced dive guides, can match an automated tracking tool in monitoring numbers of shark species. The study was carried out by researchers in the University of Western Australia, the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the Micronesian Shark Foundation.

Brain size matters in evolution of self-control

Posted: 23 Apr 2014 08:42 AM PDT

A new study from a large multi-national group of scientists suggests that absolute brain size is key in evolution of cognition and self-control. The study, published in early edition in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences examined 36 animal species in two problem-solving tasks measuring self-control. It found that absolute (not body size- relative) brain size and dietary breadth were the major predictors of species differences in self-control.