Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Life
H9N2 avian flu strain has pandemic potential
Just one change in a strain of avian flu virus makes it transmissible by direct contact in ferrets, but the virus still lacks the ability to spread by airborne particles.
- Health & Medicine
Running interference on cholesterol
Injected RNA molecule lowers LDL in rats and monkeys.
- Health & Medicine
Never bet against a pro
Players run a simulation of a throw in their own brains and muscles and are more accurate at predicting whether a shot will go in the basket than coaches, sports journalists or novice watchers.
- Health & Medicine
Perfumed mother’s milk
New study shows synthetic musks are passed on to babies through mother’s milk, but how these artificial compounds act in the body still unclear.
- Life
Making T cells tougher against HIV
Delivering small interfering RNAs, or siRNAs, to human immune cells in mice protects the cells from HIV and suggests future therapy for patients.
- Humans
Neandertal mitochondrial DNA deciphered
Researchers have completed a mitochondrial genome sequence from a Neandertal. DNA taken from a 38,000-year-old bone indicates that humans and Neandertals diverged 660,000 years ago and are distinct groups.
- Life
Eat less, weigh more
Separate neurons in the nematode brain control eating and fat-building. The discovery may help explain some mysteries of obesity.
- Health & Medicine
Nanomagnets tackle cancer
Under the influence of an external magnetic field, tiny magnets act as highly localized space heaters, warming to temperatures that kill adjacent cancer cells.
- Earth
TV Take-Backs
Here's one solution for all of the conventional TVs that will be cast off during the imminent digital-TV transition.
- Climate
A Fairy Tale: Cheap Gas
Lawmakers are looking for an answer on how to lower the price of gasoline: That's the wrong question.
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- Health & Medicine
Neuron Killers
Misfolded, clumping proteins evade conviction, but they remain prime suspects in neurodegenerative diseases.
