New patterns in Sun’s layers could help scientists solve solar mystery

In this image, the fine-structure of the quiet Sun is observed at its surface or photosphere.
Image Credit: NSF/AURA/NSO

Astronomers are one step closer to understanding one of the most enduring solar mysteries, having captured unprecedented data from the Sun’s magnetic field.

New research from an international team may explain one of the biggest conundrums in astrophysics – why the outermost layer of the Sun’s atmosphere is hotter than the surface

Groundbreaking data collected from the world's most powerful solar telescopes shows a snake-like pattern in the Sun’s magnetic fields that could contribute to the heating of the Sun’s outermost atmosphere

The project, which includes scientists across a wide range of institutions on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, has opened new avenues in solar physics

Astronomers are one step closer to understanding one of the most enduring solar mysteries, having captured unprecedented data from the Sun’s magnetic field.

New Research Suggests Why Males and Females Respond Differently to Social Stress

Emily Wright, researcher, in a UC Davis lab.
Photo Credit: Jerry Tsai

Women are nearly twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, but among boys and girls the likelihood is the same. New University of California, Davis, research has identified changes in the brain during puberty that may account for differences in how women and men respond to stress.

A team of psychologists has found that testosterone is the key hormone that drives gender-based differences in responses to social stress. The study encompassed six separate experiments with mice to isolate what changes in the brain drive these differences between males and females. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, or PNAS, today.

“This research shows how the body’s hormones shape the complex interplay between the brain’s circuitry and behavioral responses to stress,” said Brian Trainor, a professor of psychology in the College of Letters and Science at UC Davis and the study’s corresponding author.

Germicidal UV lights could be producing indoor air pollutants

Image Credit: José-Luis Olivares, MIT; iStock
(CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 DEED)

Many efforts to reduce transmission of diseases like Covid-19 and the flu have focused on measures such as masking and isolation, but another useful approach is reducing the load of airborne pathogens through filtration or germicidal ultraviolet light. Conventional UV sources can be harmful to eyes and skin, but newer sources that emit at a different wavelength, 222 nanometers, are considered safe.

However, new research from MIT shows that these UV lights can produce potentially harmful compounds in indoor spaces. While the researchers emphasize that this doesn’t mean the new UV lights should be avoided entirely, they do say the research suggests it is important that the lights have the right strength for a given indoor situation, and that they are used along with appropriate ventilation.

The findings are reported in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, in a paper by recent MIT postdoc Victoria Barber, doctoral student Matthew Goss, Professor Jesse Kroll, and six others at MIT, Aerodyne Research, and Harvard University.

While Kroll and his team usually work on issues of outdoor air pollution, during the pandemic they became increasingly interested in indoor air quality. Usually, little photochemical reactivity happens indoors, unlike outdoors, where the air is constantly exposed to sunlight. But with the use of devices to clean indoor air using chemical methods or UV light, “all of a sudden some of this oxidation is brought indoors,” triggering a potential cascade of reactions, Kroll says.

Large swings in past ocean oxygen revealed

GEOTRACES researchers prepare to sample cobalt and more.
Photo Credit: Bill Schmoker, PolarTREC

As the climate warms, there is major concern that Earth’s oceans will lose oxygen. A study published by oceanographers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa revealed that locked in ancient deep-sea sediments is evidence for oxygen loss in the world’s ocean during past glacial periods.

Scientists first measured oxygen in the oceans in the 1960s. Since then, they have observed decreasing levels in the mid-depths of the ocean—a phenomenon that can be explained in part by the fact that warmer waters hold less oxygen. Less oxygen in the water can lead to habitat loss for fish and other marine species that need oxygen to breathe. If the naturally-occurring low-oxygen regions in the Eastern Pacific expand in a warmer climate, Pacific Island fisheries could be significantly impacted.

The study also indicates that widespread oxygen loss with current climate change may not be permanent, if Pacific Ocean currents rearrange in the future.

AI Models Identify Biodiversity in Tropical Rainforests

The Banded Ground Cocoo (Neomorphus radiolosus, left) and the Purple Chested Hummingbird (Polyerata rosenbergi) are among the birds recorded in tropical reforestation plots in Ecuador.
Photo Credits: John Rogers / Martin Schaefer)

Animal sounds are a very good indicator of biodiversity in tropical reforestation areas. Researchers led by Würzburg Professor Jörg Müller demonstrate this by using sound recordings and AI models.

Tropical forests are among the most important habitats on our planet. They are characterized by extremely high species diversity and play an eminent role in the global carbon cycle and the world climate. However, many tropical forest areas have been deforested and overexploitation continues day by day.

Reforested areas in the tropics are therefore becoming increasingly important for the climate and biodiversity. How well biodiversity develops on such areas can be monitored very well with an automated analysis of animal sounds. This was reported by researchers in the journal Nature Communications.

The world may have crossed solar power ‘tipping point’

Photo Credit: American Public Power Association

The world may have crossed a “tipping point” that will inevitably make solar power our main source of energy, new research suggests.

The study, based on a data-driven model of technology and economics, finds that solar PV (photovoltaics) is likely to become the dominant power source before 2050 – even without support from more ambitious climate policies.

However, it warns four “barriers” could hamper this: creation of stable power grids, financing solar in developing economies, capacity of supply chains, and political resistance from regions that lose jobs.

The researchers say policies resolving these barriers may be more effective than price instruments such as carbon taxes in accelerating the clean energy transition.

The study, led by the University of Exeter and University College London, is part of the Economics of Energy Innovation and System Transition (EEIST) project, funded by the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF).

“The recent progress of renewables means that fossil fuel-dominated projections are no longer realistic,” Dr Femke Nijsse, from Exeter’s Global Systems Institute.

Unlocking the secrets of cell behavior on soft substrates: A paradigm shift in mechanobiology

Figure showing cancer cells (Osteosarcoma cells) on a printed protein spot. Scale bar: 50 μm.
Photo Credit: Turku Bioscience Centre / James Conway and Hellyeh Hamid

A research group from the University of Turku and Turku Bioscience Centre together with Misvik Biology Ltd in Finland have develop a new method for studying how cancer cells function in softer and stiffer tissue environments. This insight challenges the existing paradigm, opening up new possibilities for research in cancer biology and tissue engineering.

A longstanding belief has been that cells outside the body prefer to spread and grow on stiffer surfaces. This is similar to when we walk on a concrete sidewalk (very stiff) and find it preferable to walking in mud (very soft). For this reason, cells, including stem cells, are continuously cultured on very stiff plastic or glass for research purposes. This idea also resonates with cancer cells thriving within a hard lump they form in tissues. Usually, the stiffer the tumor, the poorer the patients’ prognosis. However, the stiffness of the tissues in our body (e.g., bone versus brain) is not the same. In fact, some cells like neurons and fat cells grow and function effectively in very soft surroundings.

The research group from the University of Turku and Turku Bioscience Centre collaborated with Misvik Biology Ltd, a biotechnology company based in Turku, Finland, to understand how cells function in softer environments and how these could be better modelled outside the human body. They used computational modelling and a large array of growth conditions to meticulously compare cell behavior on soft and stiff surfaces at an unprecedented resolution.

New Cancer Therapy Target Stops Tumor Cells From Sharing Resources

When missing a critical signaling enzyme, liver cells (blue) use vesicles (green) to communicate and share resources in order to multiply. Cancer cells may use the same process to resist therapy.
Image Credit: Courtesy of University of California San Diego

The body has many molecular processes in place to help control cell proliferation, turning it on and off as necessary in different circumstances and in different organs. This is well-exemplified by the liver, which has a high capacity for regeneration to support its important detoxification and metabolic functions.

“Cells in the liver multiply more quickly and effectively than any other cells in the body, which makes the liver the ideal place to study the biological processes that control cell division,” said Feng. “These are the same processes that go awry in cancer, and so one promising approach to treating cancer is targeting cell proliferation.”

In previous research, Feng and his team observed that a minority of liver cells in mice could still proliferate even when the cells were genetically engineered to lack a critical signaling enzyme required for cell proliferation. This enzyme, called Shp2, helps liver cells know when it’s time to divide during liver regeneration. Shp2 is also a known target for treating various cancers, and Shp2 inhibitors are involved in several ongoing clinical trials.

Decontamination method zaps pollutants from soil

Yi Cheng (from left), James Tour and Bing Deng
Photo Credit: Gustavo Raskosky/Rice University

Filtration systems are designed to capture multiple harmful substances from water or air simultaneously, but pollutants in soil can only be tackled individually or a few at a time ⎯ at least for now.

A method developed by Rice University scientists and collaborators at the United States Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) could help turn soil remediation processes from piecemeal to wholesale.

A team of Rice scientists led by chemist James Tour and researchers from the geotechnical structures and environmental engineering branches of the ERDC showed that mixing polluted soil with nontoxic, carbon-rich compounds that propel electrical current, such as biochar, then zapping the mix with short bursts of electricity flushes out both organic pollutants and heavy metals without using water or generating waste.

Amitriptyline helps relieve IBS symptoms

Generic image of amitriptyline tablets

A cheap and widely available prescription drug can improve symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome in patients seen in GP surgeries, new research presented at UEG Week 2023 has found.

Amitriptyline, which is commonly used at low doses for a range of health concerns, has been found to improve irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms too, according to the results of the ATLANTIS trial.

Led by researchers at the Universities of Leeds, Bristol and Southampton, and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the study was conducted in primary care. GPs prescribed the drug and patients managed their own dose based on the severity of their symptoms, using an adjustment document designed for the trial. Most people with IBS are seen and managed in primary care by their GP, which means that the results of this trial are likely to be applicable to many people with the condition.

The results showed that patients taking amitriptyline were almost twice as likely to report an overall improvement in symptoms as those taking a placebo.

Now the trial team is recommending that GPs support their patients with IBS to use amitriptyline to manage their symptoms – and has made the dose adjustment document available for clinicians and patients.