News Roundup

Take a look at what’s happening in science, health, medicine and technology all in one place!

NANOTECHNOLOGY

• Plastic nanoparticles affect behavior and fat metabolism in fish - (Public Library of Science) Nanoparticles have many useful applications, but also raise some potential health and ecological concerns. Now, new research shows that plastic nanoparticles are transported through the aquatic food chain and affect fish metabolism and behavior.
• Controlling protein function with nanotechnology - (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) A new study is providing important details on how proteins in our bodies interact with nanomaterials. In their new study, published in the Feb. 2 online edition of the journal Nano Letters, the researchers developed a new tool to determine the orientation of proteins on different nanostructures. The discovery is a key step in the effort to control the orientation, structure, and function of proteins in the body using nanomaterials.
• Design eye for the science guy: Drop-in clinic helps scientists communicate data - (University of Washington) The Design Help Desk offers scientists a chance to meet with a student who can help them create more effective figures, tables and graphs. This visual equivalent of a writing help desk is also a study on how to teach data visualization.

• Should patent and commercialization activities by faculty count toward tenure and promotion? - (University of South Florida (USF Health)) A report published in Technology and Innovation, Proceedings of the National Academy of Inventors finds that 75 percent of institutions surveyed do not include patent and commercialization considerations in their tenure and promotion criteria. Adding patents and commercialization considerations will inspire innovative activities and encourage creative and productive ideas that will increase university research dollars, say report authors.
• A faster way to catch cells - (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) A new microfluidic device could be used to diagnose and monitor cancer and other diseases.
• Academic inventors critical to American innovation - (University of South Florida (USF Health)) In a paper published in Technology and Innovation, Proceedings of the National Academy of Inventors, Richard Malsby, associate commissioner for innovation and development for the USPTO, advocates for promoting American academic innovation and favors building a close relationship with the National Academy of Inventors for educational outreach concerning the value of recognizing and supporting academic inventors.

• ACGME announces plan to transform graduate medical education - (Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education) Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education today announced major changes in how the nation's medical residency programs will be accredited in the years ahead, putting in place an outcomes-based evaluation system where the doctors of tomorrow will be measured for their competency in performing the essential tasks necessary for clinical practice in the 21st century.
• New melanoma drug nearly doubles survival in majority of patients - (Vanderbilt University Medical Center) Investigators from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) and 12 other centers in the United States and Australia have found that a new drug for patients with metastatic melanoma nearly doubled median overall survival.
• Researchers confirm WIC breastfeeding rate data - (SAGE Publications) While medical professionals have long known breastfeeding positively impacts infant and maternal health, few effective tools are available to measure breastfeeding practices nationally. According to a new study, one preexisting government-funded program is a potential wealth of accurate data about the breastfeeding practices of low-income mothers. This study was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Human Lactation, published by SAGE.

• How cells brace themselves for starvation - (Weizmann Institute of Science) Cells that repress their "bad time" pumps when a nutrient is abundant were much more efficient at preparing for starvation and at recovering afterward than the cells that had been genetically engineered to avoid this repression.
• A unique on-off switch for hormone production - (Weizmann Institute of Science) Weizmann scientists have revealed a new kind of on-off switch in the brain for regulating the production of a main biochemical signal from the brain that stimulates cortisol release in the body.
• 'Miracle material' graphene is thinnest known anti-corrosion coating - (American Chemical Society) New research has established the "miracle material" called graphene as the world's thinnest known coating for protecting metals against corrosion. Their study on this potential new use of graphene appears in ACS Nano.

• Explore the solar system with Peter Bond - (Wiley-Blackwell) Throughout history our species has been fascinated with the stars, the planets and the vastness of outer space. The five short decades since the Space Age began has seen spacecraft travel to the furthest reaches of our solar system. Now in "Exploring the Solar System" award-winning author Peter Bond presents an authoritative and up-to-date account of the results of this golden age of discovery.
• UNH scientists launch NASA rocket into Aurora - (University of New Hampshire) With the full sky shimmering in green aurora, Saturday night (Feb. 18, 2012) a team of scientists, including space physicist Marc Lessard and graduate students from the University of New Hampshire's Space Science Center, launched an instrument-laden, two-stage sounding rocket from the Poker Flat Research Range in Fairbanks, Alaska. The precision measurements from the rocket's instruments will shed new light on the physical processes that create the northern lights.
• Hubble reveals a new type of planet - (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics) Our solar system contains three types of planets: rocky, terrestrial worlds (Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars), gas giants (Jupiter and Saturn), and ice giants (Uranus and Neptune). Planets orbiting distant stars come in an even wider variety, including lava worlds and "hot Jupiters." Observations by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have added a new type of planet to the mix -- a water world surrounded by a thick, steamy atmosphere.