Knowledge Update

​New York, Nov 8 (IANS) Researchers have identified a new way to block the action of genetic mutations found in nearly 30 per cent of all cancers.

Mutations in genes for the RAS family of proteins are present in nearly 90 per cent of pancreatic cancers and are also highly prevalent in colon cancer, lung cancer and melanoma, the most dangerous kind of skin cancer.

"We did not look for a drug or specifically for an inhibitor," said John O'Bryan, Associate Professor at University of Illinois College of Medicine in the US.

"We used monobody technology, a type of protein-engineering technology, to identify regions of RAS that are critical for its function," O'Bryan said.

Unlike conventional antibodies, monobodies are not dependent on their environment and can be readily used as genetically encoded inhibitors, O'Bryan said.

"The beauty of the technology is that when a monobody binds a protein, it usually works as an inhibitor of that protein," he said.

The prevalence of RAS mutations in human cancers and the dependence of tumors on RAS for survival has made a RAS a prime target for cancer research and drug discovery. 

Scientists and drug developers have long studied RAS oncogenes hoping to find a new treatment for cancer, but they have not yet been able to identify drugs that safely inhibit the oncogene's activity.

The researchers discovered that a synthetic binding protein they call "NS1 monobody," which they created in the lab, can block the activity of the RAS proteins.

The findings, published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology, provide important insight into long-standing questions about how RAS proteins function in cells. 

"Development of effective RAS inhibitors represents a 'holy grail' in cancer biology," O'Bryan said. 

"We now have a powerful tool we can use to further probe RAS function. While future studies and trials are needed before these findings can be leveraged outside the lab, this study provides new insight into how we can potentially inhibit RAS to slow tumour growth," he added.

​Sydney, Nov 7 (IANS) The year 2015, which is on record the hottest year globally, could become the new normal by 2040 if carbon emissions continue to rise at their current rate, researchers have warned.

However, with immediate and strong action on carbon emissions, it is still possible to prevent record-breaking seasons from becoming the new average -- at least at regional levels, the study said.

Only days ago, the historic Paris Agreement came into force, which aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius and as close to 1.5 degrees Celsius as possible to prevent dangerous tipping points in the climate system.

As of now, the Paris Climate Change Agreement has been joined by only 97 countries, including India, accounting for just over two-thirds of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.

According to lead author Sophie Lewis from the Australian National University (ANU), no matter what action we take, human activities have already locked in a "new normal" for global average temperatures that would occur not later than 2040.

"If we continue with business-as-usual emissions, extreme seasons will inevitably become the norm within decades and Australia will be the canary in the coal mine that will experience this change first," Lewis added.

For the study, using the National Computational Infrastructure supercomputer at ANU to run climate models, the researchers explored when new normal states would appear under the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change's four emissions pathways.

The ANU study coincides with the UN climate change conference in Marrakech, the first meeting of the Paris Agreement's governing body.

The Marrakech conference gives developed countries the opportunity to present their roadmap to mobilise the pledged $100 billion in annual support to developing countries by 2020.

The team of researchers also examined seasonal temperatures from December to February across Australia, Europe, Asia and North America.

The results revealed that while global average temperatures would inevitably enter a new normal under all emissions scenarios, this was not the case at seasonal and regional levels.

"It gives us hope to know that if we act quickly to reduce greenhouse gases, seasonal extremes might never enter a new normal state in the 21st Century at regional levels for the Southern Hemisphere summer and Northern Hemisphere winter," Lewis said, in the paper published in the Bulletin of American Meteorological Society.

New York, Nov 7 (IANS) Children born to mothers who were undernourished during pregnancy are more likely to suffer early ageing of the heart, a research has showed.

The animal study found that moderately reducing a mother's food intake can make it more likely that the baby's organs will show increased disease susceptibility and early ageing. 

These changes in the heart could contribute to decreased quality of life, decreased exercise capability, and increased vulnerability to other diseases such as diabetes and hypertension -- major risk factor for heart disease and stroke, the study said. 

Understanding the effect of maternal nutritional stress on ageing of the offspring will allow for interventions early in life, to prevent later-life heart problems, said a team of researchers led by Geoffrey Clarke from the University of Texas at San Antonio, US.

For the study, the team used MRI scanning to analyse the hearts of male and female baboons whose mothers ate 30 per cent less than the normally fed baboons. 

They found that the offspring of baboons, which ate less, showed signs of reduced heart function that comes with age. 

By five years of life, equivalent to 20 human years, the structure and function of the heart were already impaired.

"Women's health during pregnancy is of fundamental importance to the lifetime health of their babies. Society must pay attention to improving women's nutrition before and during pregnancy to prevent these adverse outcomes in babies," said Peter Nathanielsz, Director at the University of Wyoming in the US.

The study was published in The Journal of Physiology.

​London, Nov 6 (IANS) Music therapy may help to reduce depression in children and adolescents with behavioural and emotional problems, finds a study.

The researchers involved 251 children and young people for the study and found that children and young persons, aged 8-16 years, who received music therapy had significantly improved self-esteem and significantly reduced depression compared with those who received treatment without music therapy.

The study published in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry also found that young people aged 13 and over who received music therapy had improved communicative and interactive skills, compared to those who received usual care options alone. Music therapy also improved social functioning over time in all age groups.

For the study, the children were divided into two groups -- 128 underwent the usual care options, while 123 were assigned to music therapy in addition to usual care. All were being treated for emotional, developmental or behavioural problems.

"This study is hugely significant in terms of determining effective treatments for children and young people with behavioural problems and mental health needs," said Sam Porter, Professor at the Bournemouth University, Britain.

"The findings contained in our report should be considered by healthcare providers and commissioners when making decisions about the sort of care for young people that they wish to support," he said. 

"Music therapy has often been used with children and young people with particular mental health needs, but this is the first time its effectiveness has been shown by a definitive randomised controlled trail in a clinical setting," said Ciara Reilly, Chief Executive of Every Day Harmony.

​Washington, Nov 5 (IANS) NASA has said its Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, or MMS -- that is giving scientists new insight into Earths magnetosphere -- now holds the Guinness World Record for highest altitude fix of a GPS signal.

Operating in a highly elliptical orbit around Earth, the MMS satellites set the record at 70,006.4 kilometres above the surface, the US space agency said on Friday.

The four MMS spacecraft incorporate GPS measurements into their precise tracking systems, which require extremely sensitive position and orbit calculations to guide tight flying formations.

Earlier this year, MMS achieved the closest flying separation of a multi-spacecraft formation with only about seven kilometres between the four satellites. 

When MMS is not breaking records, it conducts ground-breaking science, NASA said.

Still in the first year of its prime mission, MMS is giving scientists new insight into Earth's magnetosphere. 

The mission uses four individual satellites that fly in a pyramid formation to map magnetic reconnection - a process that occurs as the sun and Earth's magnetic fields interact. 

Precise GPS tracking allows the satellites to maintain a tight formation and obtain high resolution three-dimensional observations.

Understanding the causes of magnetic reconnection is important for understanding phenomena around the universe from auroras on Earth, to flares on the surface of the sun, and even to areas surrounding black holes. 

Shanghai, Nov 5 (IANS) With the internet taking on an industrial dimension whereby new equipment and other technologies are transforming the way goods are produced, industrial innovation must integrate multiple digital concepts to revolutionise existing processes, top executives of 3D software major Dassault Systemes said here at an event.

Digital technology can drive the industrial (r)evolution 4.0 -- innovation programmes to reduce manufacturing costs, increase efficiencies and sustainability, inspire creativity and generate new business models, the French technology company demonstrated at its two-day "Manufacturing in the Age of Experience" event that concluded on Friday.

"Digital's most visible value is to increase productivity and competitiveness, but its true power is the imagination. Manufacturers that succeed will be those that will create a world which does not yet exist," said Pascal Daloz, Executive Vice President, Brands and Corporate Development, Dassault Systemes. 

"The digital factory is not only virtual, connected and automated, but is above all an execution system, where men's skills are turned to innovation, performance, quality and continuous change," Daloz said.

"The virtual becomes constitutive of the products themselves. As a consequence, the value is migrating to the cloud services where data are a strategic asset for the industry to reinvent itself," Daloz noted.

The event highlighted how the digital makeover of the manufacturing sector is essential for creating a dynamic, holistic and more sustainable production model that results in a better consumer experience.

Dassault Systemes provides "3DEXPERIENCE" universes for collaboration and innovation to implement innovative strategies in supply and demand.

The 3DEXPERIENCE platform features virtual design, simulation, manufacturing and collaboration applications in a digital environment that integrate products, processes and supply chains, and offer a federated view of a manufacturer's business in real time.

During the plenary session of the even, top brand leaders of the compnay gave presentations on virtualising the industry value chain 

Top officials from Airbus Helicopters, Doosan Infracore and Honda Motor also shared customer case stories on manufacturing transformation and success.

Dassault Systemes is focused on developing technologies and solutions that propel digital transformation in industries ranging from aerospace to life sciences.

​Shanghai, Nov 5 (IANS) With the internet taking on an industrial dimension whereby new equipment and other technologies are transforming the way goods are produced, industrial innovation must integrate multiple digital concepts to revolutionise existing processes, top executives of 3D software major Dassault Systemes said here at an event.

Digital technology can drive the industrial (r)evolution 4.0 -- innovation programmes to reduce manufacturing costs, increase efficiencies and sustainability, inspire creativity and generate new business models, the French technology company demonstrated at its two-day "Manufacturing in the Age of Experience" event that concluded on Friday.

"Digital's most visible value is to increase productivity and competitiveness, but its true power is the imagination. Manufacturers that succeed will be those that will create a world which does not yet exist," said Pascal Daloz, Executive Vice President, Brands and Corporate Development, Dassault Systemes. 

"The digital factory is not only virtual, connected and automated, but is above all an execution system, where men's skills are turned to innovation, performance, quality and continuous change," Daloz said.

"The virtual becomes constitutive of the products themselves. As a consequence, the value is migrating to the cloud services where data are a strategic asset for the industry to reinvent itself," Daloz noted.

The event highlighted how the digital makeover of the manufacturing sector is essential for creating a dynamic, holistic and more sustainable production model that results in a better consumer experience.

Dassault Systemes provides "3DEXPERIENCE" universes for collaboration and innovation to implement innovative strategies in supply and demand.

The 3DEXPERIENCE platform features virtual design, simulation, manufacturing and collaboration applications in a digital environment that integrate products, processes and supply chains, and offer a federated view of a manufacturer's business in real time.

During the plenary session of the even, top brand leaders of the compnay gave presentations on virtualising the industry value chain 

Top officials from Airbus Helicopters, Doosan Infracore and Honda Motor also shared customer case stories on manufacturing transformation and success.

Dassault Systemes is focused on developing technologies and solutions that propel digital transformation in industries ranging from aerospace to life sciences.

Washington, Nov 5 (IANS) Thirteen individuals have become ill from a serious and sometimes fatal fungal infection previously unseen in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday.

The fungus, Candida auris, is known to occur in healthcare settings such as hospitals and nursing homes, CNN reported.

Seven cases occurred between May 2013 and August 2016 in four states: Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey and New York. As of August 31, four of these seven patients, all with bloodstream infections, died, though it is unclear whether their deaths were due to C. auris.

The remaining six cases were identified after August and are still under investigation.

"It appears that C. auris arrived in the United States only in the past few years," Dr. Tom Chiller, Chief of the CDC's Mycotic Diseases Branch, said in a statement. 

He added that scientists are working to better understand the fungus so they can develop recommendations to protect those at risk.

C. auris bloodstream infections have a 50 per cent fatality rate in some countries, according to one study.

Some strains of this yeast are multidrug-resistant and cannot be treated by the three major classes of antifungal medications. 

First reported in 2009 in Japan, cases have been recorded in South Korea, India, South Africa, Kuwait, Colombia, Venezuela, Pakistan and the United Kingdom.

"Experience outside the United States suggests that C. auris has high potential to cause outbreaks in healthcare facilities," the CDC notes on its website. 

Importantly, this deadly organism is difficult to identify using traditional laboratory biochemical methods.

​New York, Nov 4 (IANS) An increase in muscle size with exercise may not be directly related to an increase in muscle strength, suggests a recent study.

Researchers suggested that size and muscle strength may actually be separate phenomena.

The researchers in the study published in the journal Muscle and Nerve, noted that there is a weak correlation between change in muscle size and change in muscle strength following training.

Also, there is a loss of muscle mass with detraining, yet often a maintaining muscle strength. Furthermore, similar muscle growth can occur with low load or high load resistance training, yet there are divergent results in strength.

"Neural adaptations are contributing first with muscle growth playing a more prominent role in the latter portion of a training program: however, there is little direct evidence that this is actually true in an adult partaking in a resistance training program," said Jeremy Loenneke, Researcher at the University of Mississippi, Mississippi.