USA Archives

Family dog bites are preventable

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Be Bitesmart education about dogs for families

Family dogs are our best friends but can bite when feeling imposed upon, threatened, or afraid. By learning and respecting what dogs do and do not like and how they communicate their concerns, we can avoid triggering a reactionary bite. Led by world-renowned veterinarian Dr. Nicholas H. Dodman, Professor Emeritus, Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, USA, Be BiteSmart aims […]

Teacher embeddedness: Turning the tables for turnover contagion

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Much is known about the impact of teacher turnover on schools and students – but how does it affect teachers themselves? In his research, Dr Matthew McCluskey at the University of Vermont, USA, has found that turnover causes considerable strain on teachers’ work lives and has a contagion effect. In short, turnover begets turnover. McCluskey has identified key factors that […]

Establishing the first set of guidelines for breast cancer management in Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide. Specialised centres that monitor breast cancer patients can help improve disease outcomes by recording patient information and by helping to implement centralised guidelines for disease management. In Bosnia and Herzegovina there is no accurate data on breast cancer patients, nor any centralised guidelines. Dr Lejla Hadžikadić-Gušić, a breast surgical oncologist, […]

Neuromodulation – the future of diabetes treatments

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The researchers discovered a novel bioelectric modulation technique for improving blood sugar control.

The treatments for type 2 diabetes are limited in breadth and effectiveness. Medications have side effects, and many patients forget to take their medications regularly. An alternative treatment option that does not require daily compliance could provide better outcomes and is more likely to be used by patients. Dr Jonathan Waataja of ReShape Lifesciences in California, USA and colleagues have […]

Rethinking a tenet of cancer risk assessment for low radiation doses

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The LNT model is fundamental to radiation risk assessment.

Science isn’t perfect, but it does theoretically correct itself, and in the process even overturns keystones to fields of knowledge. However, such shifts don’t occur without pushback, especially from individuals and organisations with something to protect. The Health Physics Society, which is dedicated to radiation safety, produced a documentary that exposes a history of scientific errors, profound bias, professional self-interest, […]

How we experience pain may unlock the mystery of consciousness

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Professor Ambron examines the neurological systems involved in pain.

In a recent publication, Professor Richard Ambron of Columbia University in New York, USA, addresses the fascinating topic of consciousness. He reasons that if we can understand the consciousness of pain, we might better understand consciousness in general. He outlines the neurological systems involved in pain and theorises that the consciousness of pain arises through non-physical ‘waves’ known as local […]

Building acoustic computers with tuneable phononic crystals

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Dr Banerjee and colleagues have developed a deaf band-based model to use in building acoustic computers, using tuneable phononic crystals.

For more than two decades, physicists have been investigating wave propagation in phononic crystals, a metamaterial designed to control sound waves. A recent consideration involves using phononic crystals in acoustic computing. Acoustic computers execute basic Boolean algebra computations using acoustic waves. Dirac cones make this possible but achieving them is both very difficult and rare. Professor Sourav Banerjee and his […]

How oxidative stress contributes to neurodegenerative diseases

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Hyslop and Chaney use biochemical and computer molecular modelling to probe interaction between H2O2 and GAPDH to identify new molecular targets for treating neurodegeneration and neurodegenerative diseases.

The human brain relies on a constant energy supply that when compromised, neurodegenerative disease ensues, initially disrupting nerve cell communication followed by nerve cell death. Paul Hyslop and Michael Chaney investigate fundamental mechanisms driving neurodegenerative disease, to identify therapeutic interventions. They focus on how an enzyme integral to energy supply to nerve cells, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) – is inhibited and […]

From friend to foe: Food strains share their toxic genes in E. coli

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The team investigates plasmid content in food isolates of E. coli and its role as a reservoir for the horizontal transfer of virulence and antibiotic resistance genes to clinical isolates.

Food-borne bacteria can cause life-threatening disease, yet it is still unclear why some strains are tolerated by the host. To find an answer, a project led by Professor Rosa del Carmen Rocha-Gracia (Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Mexico) and Professor Manel Camps (University of California Santa Cruz, USA) analysed the genetic diversity of Escherichia coli populations, comparing isolates from food […]

From mice to men: Will we soon be able to restore hearing loss?

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Brandon Cox investigates regenerated hair cells in the neonatal cochlea of mice.

Globally, hearing impairment is a common disability – especially among elderly adults. Hearing loss caused by damaged sensory receptor cells (hair cells) inside the ear cannot be reversed – and regeneration of this type of cell does not occur in humans. Associate Professor Brandon Cox and colleagues at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, USA, have been studying the regeneration […]