Category: Science

Liquid droplets shape how cells respond to change

Liquid droplets shape how cells respond to change

New research has shown that cells regulate cAMP/PKA signaling by forming liquid droplets that segregate excess PKA catalytic subunits where they can do no harm. Some cancers may block the formation of liquid droplets, leading to hyperactive signaling and tumor formation. …read more

New copper-catalyzed C-H activation strategy

New copper-catalyzed C-H activation strategy

Inspired by what human liver enzymes can do, chemists have developed a new set of copper-catalyzed organic synthesis reactions for building and modifying pharmaceuticals and other molecules. The new reactions are expected to be widely used in drug discovery and optimization, as well as in other chemistry-based industries. …read more

First evidence of human occupation in lava tube cave in Saudi Arabia

First evidence of human occupation in lava tube cave in Saudi Arabia

New research has highlighted an area in Arabia that once acted as a key point for cultural exchanges and trades amongst ancient people — and it all took place in vast caves and lava tubes that have remained largely untapped reservoirs of archaeological abundance in Arabia. Through meticulous excavation and analysis, the international team uncovered a wealth of evidence at Umm Jirsan, spanning from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age periods (~10,000-3,500 years ago). …read more

Paleontologists unearth what may be the largest known marine reptile

Paleontologists unearth what may be the largest known marine reptile

The fossilized remains of a second gigantic jawbone measuring more than two meters long has been found on a beach in Somerset, UK. …read more

Take it from the rats:  A junk food diet can cause long-term damage to adolescent brains

Take it from the rats: A junk food diet can cause long-term damage to adolescent brains

A study on the effects of a junk food diet on rats reinforces scientific understanding about the gut-brain connection. …read more

Family and media pressure to lose weight in adolescence linked to how people value themselves almost two decades later

Family and media pressure to lose weight in adolescence linked to how people value themselves almost two decades later

People who as teenagers felt pressure to lose weight from family or from the media, females, people who are not heterosexual, and people experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage, are most at risk of ‘internalized’ weight stigma, new research has found. …read more

Beautiful nebula, violent history: Clash of stars solves stellar mystery

Beautiful nebula, violent history: Clash of stars solves stellar mystery

When astronomers looked at a stellar pair at the heart of a stunning cloud of gas and dust, they were in for a surprise. Star pairs are typically very similar, like twins, but in HD 148937, one star appears younger and, unlike the other, is magnetic. New data suggest there were originally three stars in the system, until two of them clashed and merged. This violent event created the surrounding cloud and forever altered the system’s fate. …read more

Beating back bitter taste in medicine

Beating back bitter taste in medicine

The bitter taste of certain drugs is a barrier to taking some medications as prescribed, especially for people who are particularly sensitive to bitter taste. A team found that the diabetes drug rosiglitazone could partially block the bitter taste of some especially bad-tasting medications. The hope is that repurposed drugs could be added in small doses to other medicines to make them less bitter and taste better, thereby encouraging compliance with bitter drug regimens. …read more