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    How it works: The Protein that Stimulates Muscle Growth

    April 29, 2022, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Scientists say the discovery of a new function by cells known as astrocytes opens a whole new direction for neuroscience research. Illustration: Siena Fried

    Research findings may help identify drug targets for neuromuscular disorders. Using genetic approaches, researchers have demonstrated how a certain protein is involved in skeletal muscle growth. The findings open new avenues to develop drug targets for neuromuscular diseases and other pathological conditions.

    In the gym, you are not just pumping iron, you are oxygenating muscle cells which keeps those muscles healthy, strong and growing — a process called hypertrophy, or an increase in muscle mass due to an increase in muscle cell size. Conversely, under the covers, lounging, your muscles may begin to atrophy, or shrink.

    Scie...

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    ‘Lensless’ Imaging through Advanced Machine Learning for Next Generation Image Sensing Solutions

    April 29, 2022, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    The targets are the images displayed on an LCD screen (left two columns) and the objects in the wild (right two columns; beckoning cat doll and stuffed bear), respectively. The first row shows the ground truth images displayed on the screen and the shooting scenes for in-the-wild objects. The second row shows the captured patterns on the sensor. The last three rows illustrate the reconstructed images by the proposed, model-based, and CNN-based methods, respectively. The proposed method produces the most high-quality and visually appealing images. Credit: Xiuxi Pan from Tokyo Tech

    A camera usually requires a lens system to capture a focused image, and the lensed camera has been the dominant imaging solution for centuries...

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    Earth’s Atmosphere may be source of some Lunar Water

    April 29, 2022, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    The image shows the distribution of surface ice at the moon’s south pole (left) and north pole (right), detected by NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper instrument in 2009. Blue represents the ice locations, and the gray scale corresponds to surface temperature. Photo courtesy of NASA

    Hydrogen and oxygen ions escaping from Earth’s upper atmosphere and combining on the moon could be one of the sources of the known lunar water and ice, according to new research by University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute scientists.

    The work led by UAF Geophysical Institute associate research professor Gunther Kletetschka adds to a growing body of research about water at the moon’s north and south poles.

    Finding water is key to NASA’s Artemis project, the planned long-term human presence o...

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    RNA Binding Proteins help T cells pick their Weapons before Battle

    April 28, 2022, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Scientists at the Babraham Institute have shown that two RNA binding proteins hold the key to a stronger immune response to influenza in mice. Their findings, published today in Nature Communications, reveal that the absence of these proteins changes the potency of T cells that arise at the start on an infection. Further research could lead to implications for therapies that harness the immune system, and for vaccine design.

    Researchers from the Turner lab focussed on the activity of the RNA binding proteins ZFP36 and ZFP36L1. By studying mice lacking these RNA binding proteins, the researchers were able to show that their absence in T cells during the initial phase of a viral infection leads to a superior cytotoxic immune response.

    When the researchers infected mice with influe...

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