|  Most clinical studies on vitamins flawed by poor methodology  | Most large, clinical trials of vitamin supplements, including some that have concluded they are of no value or even harmful, have a flawed methodology that renders them largely useless in determining the real value of these micronutrients, a new analysis suggests. These flawed findings will persist until the approach to studying micronutrients is changed. | Read More » Toward molecular explanation for schizophrenia  | Schizophrenia was only recognized as a medical condition in the past few decades, and its exact causes remain unclear. Now a researcher has discovered that an important cell-maintenance process called autophagy is reduced in the brains of schizophrenic patients. The findings advance the understanding of schizophrenia and could enable the development of new diagnostic tests and drug treatments for the disease. | Read More » Testosterone in male songbirds may enhance desire to sing, but not song quality  | Introducing testosterone in select areas of a male canary's brain can affect its ability to successfully attract and mate with a female through birdsong. These findings could shed light on how testosterone acts in the human brain to regulate speech or help explain how anabolic steroids affect human behaviors. | Read More » Potential new strategy to improve corneal transplant acceptance  | For the estimated 10 percent of patients whose bodies reject a corneal transplant, the odds of a second transplant succeeding are poor. All that could change, however, based on a study that has found a way to boost the corneal transplant acceptance rate. | Read More » Secret to fewer doctor office visits after 70: Play high school sports  | Seventy year olds who don't frequently visit the doctor have something unexpected in common -- most played high school sports. They were active on a team over 50 years ago and are more likely to be active into their late 70s. | Read More » Earth's crust was unstable in Archean eon; dripped down into mantle  | Earth's mantle temperatures during the Archean eon, which commenced some 4 billion years ago, were significantly higher than they are today. According to recent model calculations, the Archean crust that formed under these conditions was so dense that large portions of it were recycled back into the mantle. | Read More » Intuition, analytical skills matter most in crisis  | People who prefer to combine quick, intuitive decisions with analysis, make the best decisions in a crisis situation, a new study shows. | Read More » Greater dietary fiber intake associated with lower risk of heart disease  | Greater dietary fiber intake is associated with a lower risk of both cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease. | Read More » Rheumatoid arthritis research shows potential of large-scale genetic studies for drug discovery  | The results of the largest international study to date into the genetic basis of rheumatoid arthritis have shed light on the biology of the disease and provide evidence that large-scale genetic studies can assist in the identification of new drugs for complex disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis. | Read More » Rock and rho: Proteins that help cancer cells groove  | Biologists have discovered that low oxygen conditions, which often persist inside tumors, are sufficient to initiate a molecular chain of events that transforms breast cancer cells from being rigid and stationery to mobile and invasive. Their evidence underlines the importance of hypoxia-inducible factors in promoting breast cancer metastasis. | Read More » Mongooses synchronize births to escape despotic females  | Some mammals may have evolved to synchronize births as a way of evading the threat of infanticide, according to a study. | Read More » Even or odd: No easy feat for the mind  | Even scientists are fond of thinking of the human brain as a computer, following sets of rules to communicate, make decisions and find a meal. But if the brain is like a computer, why do brains make mistakes that computers don't? | Read More » Cloudy weather revealed on alien world  | Scientists have definitively characterized the atmosphere of a super-Earth class planet orbiting another star for the first time. | Read More » DNA barcodes made of 147 bird species from The Netherlands  | An Iranian ornithologist used a "ready for use" museum collection to DNA barcode 147 bird species from The Netherlands. While fast and accurate identifications could be confirmed for most species, gulls and skuas showed fuzzy boundaries and, in contrast, Lesser Whitethroats diversified in more than one species. | Read More » DNA barcoding to monitor marine mammal genetic diversity  | Marine mammals are flagship and charismatic species. Attractive for the general public, nowadays, they are also considered as highly relevant sentinel of the marine realm as indicator for environmental change. A recent article suggests that the use of DNA barcoding in conjunction with a stranding network will clearly increase the accuracy of the monitoring of marine mammal biodiversity. | Read More » The value of museum collections for development of DNA barcode libraries  | The ability to sequence the DNA of plants and animals has revolutionized many areas of biology, but the unstable character of DNA poses difficulties for sequencing specimens in museum collection over time. In an attempt to answer these issues, a recent study of 31 target spider species discovers that both time and body size are significant factors in determining which specimens can produce DNA sequences. | Read More » Meloidogyne mali: A new invasive plant parasitic nematode in Europe  | A recent study shows that a root-knot nematode species previously considered indigenous to Europe was actually introduced from Asia, and that its host range is wider than previously thought. | Read More » | |
