Knowledge Update

​Canberra, June 15 (IANS) Australia's Parkes Observatory telescope has discovered a molecule which displays key attributes associated with life, in a breakthrough set to help scientists solve the mystery of biology in space.

Chirality, or "handedness" is a key attribute related closely with life, but homochirality, or being exclusively either "left or right handed", has never been discovered outside of Earth, until the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation's (CSIRO's) Parkes telescope found the 'handed' molecule propylene oxide.

Dr John Reynolds, Director of Operations at CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science, said the discovery will give scientists the chance to further research how the Universe can contribute to sustaining life, Xinhua reported.

"This discovery gives us a window into how an incredibly important type of molecule is made in space, and gives us the chance to understand the impact that process may have on life in the universe," Reynolds said in a statement on Wednesday.

Typically, many molecules exist in forms that are mirror images of each other, but molecules associated with life, such as proteins, enzymes, amino acids and sugars are found to be made up of a single handedness.

Propylene oxide is a common homochiral compound used in making polyurethane plastics, and was discovered by the radio telescope in an interstellar cloud near the center of the Milky Way.

The cloud, known as Sagittarius B2, is actively forming stars, and Reynolds said scientists would follow the developments in the region to see if the Universe divulges any further secrets about the potential of life in outer space.

"Understanding how this came about is a major puzzle in biology, " he said.​

​Washington, June 15 (IANS) For the first time, an instrument onboard an orbiting NASA spacecraft has measured the methane emissions from a single, specific leaking facility on the Earth’s surface, the US space agency has said.

The observation -- by the Hyperion spectrometer on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) -- is an important breakthrough in our ability to eventually measure and monitor emissions of this potent greenhouse gas from space.

"This is the first time the methane emissions from a single facility have been observed from space,” said one of the researchers, David Thompson from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.

In a new paper accepted for publication in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, a research team detailed the observation, which occurred over Aliso Canyon, near Porter Ranch, California. 

The Hyperion instrument successfully detected the methane leak on three separate overpasses during the winter of 2015-16. 

The research was part of an investigation of the large accidental Aliso Canyon methane release last fall and winter.

The orbital observations from Hyperion were consistent with airborne measurements made by NASA’s Airborne/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) imager flying onboard a NASA ER-2 aircraft.​

Canberra/Washington, June 15 (IANS) In a first, a team of scientists using highly sensitive radio telescopes has discovered the first complex organic “chiral” molecule in interstellar space near the centre of our galaxy.

Like a pair of human hands, certain organic molecules have mirror-image versions of themselves, a chemical property known as chirality.

These so-called "handed" molecules are essential for biology and have intriguingly been found in meteorites that have hit the Earth and comets in our solar system.

The molecule, propylene oxide (CH3CHOCH2), was found in an enormous star-forming cloud of dust and gas known as Sagittarius B2 (Sgr B2).

“This is the first molecule detected in interstellar space that has the property of chirality, making it a pioneering leap forward in our understanding of how prebiotic molecules are made in the universe and the effects they may have on the origins of life," explained Brett McGuire, Jansky post-doctoral Fellow with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Charlottesville, Virginia.

"Propylene oxide is among the most complex and structurally intricate molecules detected so far in space," added Brandon Carroll, chemistry graduate student at the California Institute of Technology.

Detecting this molecule opens the door for further experiments determining how and where molecular handedness emerges and why one form may be slightly more abundant than the other.

Complex organic molecules form in interstellar clouds like Sgr B2 in several ways.

The most basic pathway is through gas-phase chemistry, in which particles collide and merge to produce ever more complex molecules.

To form more complex molecules like propylene oxide, astronomers believe thin mantles of ice on dust grains help link small molecules into longer and larger structures.

These molecules can then evaporate from the surface of the grains and further react in the gas of the surrounding cloud.

To date, more than 180 smaller molecules have been detected in space.

“Meteorites in our solar system contain chiral molecules that predate the Earth itself, and chiral molecules have recently been discovered in comets," noted Carroll. "Such small bodies may be what pushed life to the handedness we see today."

"By discovering a chiral molecule in space, we finally have a way to study where and how these molecules form before they find their way into meteorites and comets, and to understand the role they play in the origins of homochirality and life," McGuire said in a paper published in the journal Science.

The research was undertaken with the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope (GBT) in West Virginia as part of the Prebiotic Interstellar Molecular Survey. Additional supporting observations were taken with the Parkes radio telescope in Australia.​

London, June 13 (IANS) A combination of text messages and individual counselling sessions help motivate patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), resulting in improved patient-reported clinical outcomes, finds a study.

"The findings support the introduction of behavioural approaches as an effective way to improve the health of rheumatoid arthritis patients which may also be applicable in other populations with chronic disease and limited mobility," said Tanja Thomsen from the Copenhagen Centre for Arthritis Research in Denmark. 

According to the researchers, RA patients tend to be more sedentary than the general population that can have serious health consequences, including an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death. 

In the study, 75 adult RA patients underwent a 16-week intervention that included three individual motivational counselling sessions with a health professional and regular text messages aimed at improving motivation to reduce daily sitting time and replacing it with light intensity physical activity.

A control group of 75 healthy adult patients matched for other characteristics was encouraged to maintain their usual lifestyle. Daily sitting time was recorded using a wearable activity monitor.

The researchers found that after 16 weeks, there was a significant between-group difference in average daily sitting time in favour of the intervention group. 

Secondary outcomes that were also in favour of the intervention group included self-assessment scores of pain, fatigue, physical function and blood measurements of total cholesterol. 

The study was recently presented at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress 2016 in London.​

New York, June 14 (IANS) Physical activity builds stronger bones in children, even for those who carry genetic variants that predispose them to bone weakness, new research has found.

"While we have known for decades that physical activity during childhood builds up bone and confers lifelong benefits, we did not know whether the effects of activity depend on genetic risks for bone fragility," said study first author Jonathan Mitchell from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) in the US.

The study, published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, showed that physical activity can counteract the negative effects of genetic variants that associate with bone fragility in childhood.

For the study, the researchers analysed a cohort of 918 children and adolescents, from five to 19 years old.

The researchers used questionnaires in which study participants estimated their amount and type of physical activity during childhood. 

The study team also measured the participants' bone density and genotyped their DNA for over 60 genetic variants known to be associated with bone density.

The researchers found that across the board, children had higher bone density scores if they had higher levels of physical activity. 

This even applied to those with a higher genetic risk for bone fragility. Importantly, the benefits of activity were driven entirely by high-impact, weight-bearing activity, such as gymnastics and soccer, which involve sprinting, turning or jumping actions.

Their findings underscore that genetics does not necessarily equate to destiny, and reinforce the importance of physical activity as a key factor to improve the bone health of children in the present and into later life.​

London, June 14 (IANS) Consuming peanuts products during early infancy can have zero effect on the growth of a child and on his or her nutrition, confirms a study.

The findings showed that peanut consumption in infancy can have no negative effect on a child's growth as well as nutrition.

"The results reassured that peanut consumption did not affect the duration of breastfeeding, thus countering concerns that introduction of solid foods before six months of age could reduce breastfeeding duration," said led author Mary Feeney from King's College London.

The research, published online in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, aimed at determining the adverse effects on child growth and nutrition as a result of taking high peanut products during early infancy along with the ones who avoid it. 

"These findings indicate that early-life introduction of peanut-containing foods as a strategy to prevent the subsequent development of peanut allergy is both feasible and nutritionally safe, even at high levels of peanut consumption," said Marshall Plaut from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) in the US.

The results of an earlier clinical trial showed that introducing peanut products as a part of the dietary foods for infants lead to an 81 per cent relative reduction of allergies in comparison to products that avoided peanut altogether.

For the study, the investigators randomly assigned 640 infants aged four to 11 months, which continued till the age of five, to either consume at least two grams of peanut protein three times a week or to avoid peanut entirely.​

​New York, June 14 (IANS) In 2015, charitable giving among Americans hit a record $373.3 billion with individuals donating over two-thirds of the amount, according to the annual report by the Giving USA Foundation.

Donations from foundations, corporations, estates and individuals rose four per cent last year, that was “record-setting whether measured in current or inflation-adjusted dollars,” the report says.

The figure was lower than the 6.1 per cent inflation-adjusted growth reported in 2014, but the unceasing climb indicates philanthropic giving especially by individuals is growing.

“It's heartening that people really do want to make a difference, and they're supporting the causes that matter to them,” said W. Keith Curtis, chairman of the Giving USA Foundation, adding that Americans are embracing philanthropy at a higher level than ever before.

According to the report, $264.6 billion came from individuals, 3.8 per cent more compared to 2014. Foundations donated $58.6 billion, up 6.5 percent. Corporate giving was $18.45 billion up 3.9 percent, with charitable bequests lifted 2.1 per cent to $31.76 billion.

The largest share of the donations - $119.3 billion went to religious organisations, with education and human services receiving $57.48 and $45.21 billion, according to the report.

The least was contributed to the environment and animals - $10.68 billion, as well as international affairs - $15.75 billion.

The only segment that suffered a decline last year was giving to foundations, which fell by four percent when inflation-adjusted, to $42.3 billion.

The data revealed in the report was researched by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.​

Beijing, June 14 (IANS) If you are less than attractive, it is likely that a child may not trust you, says a new study, suggesting that for kids an individual's trustworthiness is linked to how attractive they find him or her.

The findings showed that the ability to make the judgement about one's trustworthiness develops as one grows older. 

Also, girls proved to be better at trustworthiness judgement than boys.

In addition, the children were also found to look to a person's attractiveness as an indication of their character.

People use facial cues to make judgements on a person's character -- and this ability to infer social traits is a crucial part of social functioning and development, the researchers said. 

Although well researched in babies and adults, the development of this ability in children was not previously known, they added.

The study adds to a growing body of work showing that attractiveness is a universal language when it comes to that all-important first impression, said Fengling Ma from Zhejiang Sci-Tech University in China. 

For the study, the team assessed 138 participants -- groups of children aged eight, 10 and 12 years old and compared them to a group of adults. 

They used a face generation programme (FaceGen) to produce 200 images of male faces -- all with a neutral expression and direct gaze. 

In the first of two sessions, each participant was shown each face, and asked to rate how trustworthy they thought that person was. 

A second session followed a month later where participants repeated the exercise, this time rating the attractiveness of the same faces. 

The researchers looked first at the ratings of trustworthiness, and level of agreement of the ratings within and between the groups. Next, they looked at the ratings of trustworthiness and attractiveness given to each face. 

They found a strong, direct relationship between the two traits -- the faces deemed more trustworthy were also considered to be more attractive. 

This relationship also strengthened with age, and shows that like adults, children also look to a person's attractiveness as an indication of their character. ​

​Washington, June 14 (IANS) In less than five decades, summers across most of the globe could be hotter than any summer experienced by people to date, researchers have estimated.

If climate change continues on its current trajectory, the probability that summers between 2061 and 2080 will be warmer than the hottest on record stands at 80 per cent across the world's land areas, excluding Antarctica, which was not studied, the researchers said.

If greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, however, that probability drops to 41 per cent.

"Extremely hot summers always pose a challenge to society," said lead author of the study Flavio Lehner, scientist at the US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).

"They can increase the risk for health issues, and can also damage crops and deepen droughts. Such summers are a true test of our adaptability to rising temperatures," Lehner noted.

The research team used two existing sets of model simulations to investigate what future summers might look like.

They created both by running the NCAR-based Community Earth System Model 15 times, with one simulation assuming that greenhouse gas emissions remain unabated and the other assuming that society reduces emissions.

By using simulations created by running the same model multiple times, with only tiny differences in the initial starting conditions, the scientists could examine the range of expected summertime temperatures for future "business-as-usual" and reduced-emissions scenarios.

The results showed that between 2061 and 2080, summers in large parts of North and South America, central Europe, Asia, and Africa have a greater than 90 per cent chance of being warmer than any summer in the historic record if emissions continue unabated.

That means virtually every summer would be as warm as the hottest to date.

The findings will be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Climatic Change.

In some regions, the likelihood of summers being warmer than any in the historical record remained less than 50 percent, but in those places -- including Alaska, the central US, Scandinavia, Siberia and continental Australia -- summer temperatures naturally vary greatly, making it more difficult to detect effects of climate change, the researchers said.

Reducing emissions would lower the global probability of future summers that are hotter than any in the past, but would not result in uniformly spread benefits. 

In some regions, including the US East Coast and large parts of the tropics, the probability would remain above 90 percent, even if emissions were reduced, the findings showed.

But reduced emissions would result in a sizable boon for other regions of the world.​

​Toronto, June 14 (IANS) In addition to combatting pests, covering soil with wood mulch can actually help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, says a study.

Using mulch in agriculture can cut nitrous oxide emissions up to 28 per cent, the findings showed.

"In addition to saving water, improving soil, combatting pests and stopping weeds, wood mulch actually reduces the release of a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide," said Craig Nichol from the University of British Columbia's Okanagan campus in Canada. 

"Provided you are not driving great distances to obtain the mulch, it would appear that mulch could be a powerful tool in helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, particularly if used in these agricultural systems," Nichol said.

Nichol's research was part of a two-year study in which small emissions-recording chambers were placed on top of bare soil as well as soil covered by mulch.

In addition to reduced levels of nitrous oxide emissions, mulched areas also showed a 74 per cent reduction in soil nitrates. The nitrates are the source material for nitrous oxide emissions and can also leach into groundwater.

The study recently published in the journal Agricultural Water Management.

Nitrous oxide emitted from soil accounts for one half of agriculture emissions that contribute to global warming, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.​