Black patients are less likely to receive heart transplants

Black patients with advanced heart failure are more likely to receive a left ventricular assist device later in their disease progression compared to white patients, according to a new study. That can ultimately result in worse health outcomes. Adrianne Frech, an associate professor in the University of Missouri School of Health Professions, is a...

13h

No, floods didn’t bring down ancient city of Cahokia

Physical evidence contradicts a theory that people fled the pre-Columbian Native American city of Cahokia due to a self-imposed environmental mistake. Whatever ultimately caused inhabitants to abandon Cahokia, it wasn’t because they cut down too many trees, according to the research. Archaeologists excavated around earthen mounds and analyzed sediment...

14h

Robotic ankle restores abilities for people with prostheses

A new study shows that, with training, neural control of a powered prosthetic ankle can restore a wide range of abilities, including standing on challenging surfaces and squatting. The researchers are currently working with a larger group of study participants to see how broadly applicable the findings may be. “This case study shows that it is possible...

15h

‘Fishing’ for protein changes could signal cancer early

A new method can detect changes in proteins that may signal the early stages of cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and other major diseases, researchers report. The results offer a novel strategy for studying links between unique protein modifications and various pathologies. “The knowledge we gain using our new, chemical method holds the potential to...

16h

‘Thermal corridor’ clarifies loggerhead turtle migration mystery

A new study illuminates the secrets of the North Pacific loggerhead turtles’ epic migration between their birthplace on the beaches of Japan and reemergence years later in foraging grounds off the coast of Baja California. The study in Frontiers in Marine Science provides evidence for intermittent passages of warm water that allow sea turtles to cross...

16h

Can reflecting the sun’s heat cool the warming Earth?

Researchers are bringing science to bear on the question and consequences of humans using technology to put the brakes on global warming. Nine of the hottest years in human history have occurred in the past decade. Without a major shift in this climate trajectory, the future of life on Earth is in question, but is geoengineering a cooler Earth the...

17h

Therapeutic food boosts growth for malnourished children

A new type of therapeutic food specifically designed to repair the gut microbiomes of malnourished children is superior to standard therapy in promoting growth, according to a clinical trial conducted in Bangladesh. Researchers designed the study to supplement the diet of malnourished children with a formulation that contains locally available, culturally...

19h

Gut immune system may play a role in nutrition

The gut’s immune system not only defends against pathogens but also regulates the intake of nutrients, research in mice finds. The small intestine is ground zero for survival of animals. It is responsible for absorbing the nutrients crucial to life, and it wards off toxic chemicals and life-threatening bacteria. In a new study in the journal Science,...

20h

What will life look like after most people get the vaccine?

Since the COVID-19 virus was discovered, the world has waited for a vaccine that would help our lives return to some level of normalcy. Now that vaccine distribution has begun, what will this “new normal” look like? Here, University of Chicago experts explore what the vaccine rollout has revealed about our cities, and how it will impact our lives within...

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Team pinpoints when the modern human brain evolved

The human brain as we know it evolved about 1.7 million years ago when the culture of stone tools in Africa became increasingly complex, researchers report. A short time later, the new Homo populations spread to Southeast Asia, researchers have now shown using computed tomography analyses of fossilized skulls. Modern humans are fundamentally different...

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