Tropical Parasite May Be Endemic in Texas
A parasitic disease that can cause skin ulcers and is usually spread by the tiny sandfly may now be endemic to the U.S., preliminary findings from CDC researchers suggested. Genetic sequencing of 2,235 U.S. cutaneous leishmaniasis samples submitted from 2005 to 2019 confirmed the presence of a potentially distinct genotype of the Leishmania mexicana species […]
Lumpers vs Splitters: Categorizing Prostate Cancer
In December 2010, I was diagnosed with a tiny bit — less than 1 mm — of Gleason 6 (now Grade Group 1) prostate cancer. In six biopsies with more than 80 cores over nearly 13 years, that speck of cancer is all that has been found. I have seen two urologists while on Active […]
Microprotein increases appetite in mice: Scientists discovered more than 3,800 small proteins involved in metabolism and found that one microprotein, Gm8773, increases feeding activity in mice–providing a potential new approach to encourage weight gain in people with cancer and other diseases
Obesity and metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, are extremely common in the United States. Tiny proteins called microproteins have long been overlooked in research, but new evidence demonstrates that they have an important role in metabolism. Salk scientists have discovered that both brown and white fat is filled with thousands of previously unknown microproteins, and […]
Creating The Birth Control Pill
This tiny Pill has changed the lives of women across the world – and it all started with a nurse named Margaret Sanger. #NationalNursesWeek
Nanoparticles control flow of light like road signs direct traffic
Physicists at The Australian National University (ANU) have developed tiny translucent slides capable of producing two very different images by manipulating the direction in which light travels through them. As light passes through the slide, an image of Australia can be seen, but when you flip the slide and look again, an image of the […]
Opinion | A Small Intern in a Big Hospital
I am a gopher. See my tiny paws. See them furiously digging and digging and digging. Little puffs of dirt and soil are thrown haphazardly over my little shoulders. My tiny brain was completely absorbed in the digging of that very inconsequential, very little, very specific hole. Tail in the air, head down, no breaks. […]
Discovered: 150-year-old platypus and echidna specimens that proved some mammals lay eggs
Jars of tiny platypus and echidna specimens, collected in the late 1800s by the scientist William Caldwell, have been discovered in the stores of Cambridge’s University Museum of Zoology. At the time of their collection, these specimens were key to proving that some mammals lay eggs — a fact that changed the course of scientific […]
Self-propelled, endlessly programmable artificial cilia: Simple microstructures that bend, twist and perform stroke-like motions could be used for soft robotics, medical devices and more
For years, scientists have been attempting to engineer tiny, artificial cilia for miniature robotic systems that can perform complex motions, including bending, twisting, and reversing. Building these smaller-than-a-human-hair microstructures typically requires multi-step fabrication processes and varying stimuli to create the complex movements, limiting their wide-scale applications. Now, researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School […]
Strobe light for 5G: Imaging system spotlights the tiny mechanical hearts at the core of every cellphone: Movies of minuscule vibrations reveal how well 5G and other mobile networks are operating
Inside every cellphone lies a tiny mechanical heart, beating several billion times a second. These micromechanical resonators play an essential role in cellphone communication. Buffeted by the cacophony of radio frequencies in the airwaves, these resonators select just the right frequencies for transmitting and receiving signals between mobile devices. With the growing importance of these […]
Scientists discover how oxygen loss saps a lithium-ion battery’s voltage: Measuring the process in unprecedented detail gives them clues to how to minimize the problem and protect battery performance
When lithium ions flow in and out of a battery electrode during charging and discharging, a tiny bit of oxygen seeps out and the battery’s voltage — a measure of how much energy it delivers — fades an equally tiny bit. The losses mount over time, and can eventually sap the battery’s energy storage capacity […]