An international team of scientists, led by SFU health sciences professor Scott Lear, has found that physical activity of any kind—from gym workouts to housecleaning —can help prevent heart disease and even death.
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New Report on Channel Bed Erosion Helps Assess Bridge Stability in St. Louis
A new assessment of channel bed erosion near 13 highway bridges in the greater St. Louis, Missouri, area is now available in an online report from the U.S. Geological Survey, produced in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Transportation.
New Study Analyses Volcanic Fatalities in More Detail Than Ever Before
It is hoped the findings, published recently in the Journal of Applied Volcanology, will help increase our understanding of volcanic hazards and the subsequent threat to life.
Microbes Dictate Regime Shifts Causing Anoxia in Lakes and Seas
Gradual environmental changes due to eutrophication and global warming can cause a rapid depletion of oxygen levels in lakes and coastal waters. A new study led by professors Jef Huisman and Gerard Muyzer of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) shows that microorganisms play a key role in these disastrous regime shifts. The researchers’ findings were published in the journal Nature Communications on 6 October.
Ammonia Emissions Unlikely To Be Causing Extreme China Haze
As China struggles to find ways to remedy the noxious haze that lingers over Beijing and other cities in the winter, researchers from Georgia Institute of Technology have cast serious doubt on one proposed cause: high levels of ammonia in the air.
The wintertime air pollution has gained attention in the scientific community in recent years, prompting some scientists to propose that ammonia, emitted into the air from agricultural activities and automobiles, could be a precursor that strongly promotes the formation of the haze.
Georgia Tech researchers countered that theory in a study published September 21 in the journal Scientific Reports. The study was sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
Plant Cells Survive But Stop Dividing Upon DNA Damage
The cell cycle is the system through which a cell grows and divides. It is also how a cell passes its DNA to its progeny and is why the cell cycle ceases if the DNA is damaged, as otherwise it risks passing this damage to daughter cells. Scientists at the Nara Institute of Science and Technology (NAIST) have reported a new molecular mechanism that explains how this cessation occurs. The study, which can be read in Nature Communications, shows the transcription factor family MYB3R prevents progression to the division stage (M phase) of the cell cycle in Arabidopsis, a small flowering plant that is a member of the mustard family.