Science looks for bacteria in the clouds

Posted by admin on April 30, 2012 Comments Off

Microbiologist Gary Franc, University of Wyoming has focused all his attention training in clouds for bacteria .

The professor has spent his career studying plant pathology and its impact on crop production, but now research has removed from earth to focus on the sky.

The specific bacteria are looking for, generating bacteria ice , contribute to water droplets freeze and could play a role in influencing precipitation and weather patterns.

It is a research field again draw the attention of experts, but Franc been studied for decades the role of bacteria in the atmosphere .

“I’m sure there’s a whole ecosystem in the sky that we are just warning” he told the Laramie Boomerang.

The clouds are composed of microscopic water droplets. For them to precipitate, in most cases be frozen, which happens when in contact with a particle such as a dust.

Some cloud particles have a core biological, such as bacteria , in the center rather than a speck of dust. And even some species of bacteria can cause the droplets to freeze at warmer temperatures.

“Basically, these bacteria have proteins that align water molecules that mimic the crystal structure of ice ,” said Franc.

His first contact with the ice-forming bacteria occurred when a student at the University of Wisconsin at Madison in the 70′s, when a graduate student conducted a demonstration in the class of introduction to plant pathology.

The student began with clean water and added ice forming bacteria. “The water instantly froze and became ice.

I wondered what was at stake evolutionary pressure to cause a water body froze, “said Franc.

Regardless of research in Wisconsin, a future professor at the University of Wyoming, Gabor Vali, made a similar discovery in the mid-60.

Franc, who grew up on a dairy farm and was always fascinated with bacteria, he continued his studies in bacteriology and plant pathology, up to the University of Colorado as a research assistant in the 80.

Continued to collect atmospheric samples after arriving at the University of Wyoming in 1991 and worked at the Storm Peak Laboratory in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, which rises on Mount Werner, 3 thousand 200 meters high, which allows scientists to collect samples of clouds.

lae


El Universal: Science

Nicotine may engage in other drug fetus

Posted by admin on April 30, 2012 Comments Off

Nicotine is a teratogen fetal changes the brain structure of the unborn , so that later the contact with the snuff the likelihood that the minor hitch consumption will be high , so the mother should avoid smoking during pregnancy.

In an interview with the founder of the Clinic of Snuff, Eduardo Hernandez, said that the popular belief that smoking during pregnancy is that the infant will have low weight “is the least of the problems.”

“ Nicotine can alter fetal neurons , conformándolas to work with nicotine. A mother who smokes is condemning his son to be chained to snuff because the brain of the unborn adapted to work with this alkaloid” he said.

He said that the National Addiction Survey 2008 revealed that kids try snuff for the first time in high school, on average at 13.7 years, and if they were children of smoking mothers will remain more susceptible to create dependence on addictive substances natural , synthetic, legal or illegal, and nicotine.

The author of “Uprooting of smoking, substance abuse prevention,” said that 82% of the 14 million smokers in Mexico began smoking as children.

Settled that the snuff is the gateway to other drugs, which means that those who test nicotine increase the incidence of cocaine use in 32 times over a nonsmoker marijuana and 113 times .

Also avoid that children are exposed to secondhand smoke, the “snuff and Youth Survey 2006″ of the World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that 50 percent of youth live in an environment where it is consumed snuff regularly and at home.

The therapist recommended to provide adequate information to the public to avoid contact with chemical addiction, in order to obtain better results in the fight against tobacco and alcohol abuse.

lae


El Universal: Science

IPN seeks benefits for diabetics in the starch

Posted by admin on April 29, 2012 Comments Off

National Polytechnic Institute (IPN), do a research project on a corn starch containing , which also provide vital nutrition, has beneficial properties for patients with diabetes.

Research is directed by Rosalva Escobedo Mora, researcher at the National School of Biological Sciences (ENCB), who noted that this enzyme is found in products such as tortillas and other derivatives of that grain .

The expert noted that the tortilla is to Mexican traditional food rich in calcium, a major source of energy and because she did not have serious problems with deficiencies of calcium, is also rich in carbohydrates, making it in a food basic diet.

In explaining some details of the investigation, said it was observed that during nixtamalization starch, which is a component of the tortilla, undergoes major changes in its composition because gelatinized and becomes more resilient.

In a statement, said that this process contributes to reduce levels of blood glucose of patients with diabetes who eat the tortilla.

He said the way you achieve higher profits is keeping the tortillas in the refrigerator, and when the sick are to consume, can overheat or even the roast, because the starch is harder to achieve greater benefit for diabetics.

The food specialist previously reported that the doctors said to patients with diabetes should not eat tortillas “because its consumption was going to raise sugar levels.”

However, according to research conducted in the ENCB, it has been shown experimentally that the starch contained in corn is of great benefit to people with this disease.

He reported that this is very important, especially if we consider that diabetes is one of the main conditions that have the Mexican population, and recommended moderate consumption of corn tortillas for those suffering this disease.

This line of investigation is placed in the area of ​​functional foods, which are products that provide nutritional benefits after, also have beneficial properties to health or to cure any disease.

lae


El Universal: Science

Phoebe, the moon came from beyond Saturn

Posted by admin on April 28, 2012 Comments Off

Data obtained by NASA’s Cassini probe confirmed that Phoebe, moon of Saturn cratered , did not originate during the formation of the planet, but was caught from the Kuiper belt.

For years scientists have discovered that this natural satellite was not a direct part of the planet, but was until now the images confirm, and is published by the Spanish newspaper ABC.es.

The research, published in the journal Icarus , says Phoebe may have more in common with other planets than any of the other satellites orbiting Saturn.

The data obtained by NASA spacecraft since 2004 identified that Phoebe is a “planetesimal” is a remnant of the formation of the Solar System , which originated independently before rounding the gaseous planet.

“Unlike primitive organisms, such as comets, Phoebe seems to have evolved active for a while before stalling,” said Julie Castillo Rogez, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of NASA in Pasadena, California.

The images captured by Cassini shows that Phoebe, the same size as Pluto, it originated in the Kuiper belt , a distant and ancient region of icy bodies and rock beyond Neptune’s orbit.

The satellite may have been born in the first 3 million years birth solar . The moon may have been originally porous, but apparently collapsed as it was heated.

In addition, research suggests that their shape was almost spherical, but the impacts from other asteroids gave this present irregularly.

lae


El Universal: Science

Traces of drugs found in the waters of Barcelona

Posted by admin on April 27, 2012 Comments Off

The groundwater in Barcelona, ​​northeastern Spain, have a high concentration of traces of drugs, including cocaine, methadone and ecstasy , a study published in the journal Science of the Total Enviroment .

The Spanish newspaper El Pais released the study published by this journal and realized in 2010 that lets you draw a map substance use in three areas of the city that have been analyzed.

These areas are: the central section of the streets of Mallorca, the environment Avenue Paral • lel and both banks of the Besos River Delta.

The investigator said Damia Barcelo near the intersection of the streets of Mallorca Enric Granados and has the highest concentration of cocaine metabolite, this is the product resulting from the passage of the drug by the human body.

He noted that in the Paral • lel consumed more ecstasy and the Besos, methadone.

The researchers who conducted the study analyzed 37 wells located in the three areas defined.

Water samples were collected in May and December 2010 and then in laboratories sought the trail of 20 “drug abuse”, divided into six blocks.

These are: cocaínicos compounds, cannabinoids, opiates, amphetamines, lysergic compounds and benzodiazepines as well as their metabolites, substances resulting from the passage of drug through the human body.

Barceló, researcher and director of the Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), explained that the drug reaches the aquifer through leakage of the sewer system in Barcelona.

The study estimates that the sewage system is leaking between three and four percent.

The researcher said that “we are surprised the presence of traces of cocaine, as if someone had thrown the drugs down the toilet.”

lae


El Universal: Science

Antioxidants may cause cancer

Posted by admin on April 26, 2012 Comments Off

U.S. researchers warned today that the action of anticancer which is attributed to some antioxidant supplements has not been demonstrated scientifically and said their intake might even be counterproductive .

According to a team of five scientists led by Maria Elena Martinez , University of San Diego (California, USA), the supposed anti-cancer benefits of supplements such as beta carotene or vitamins C and E are “ mostly a myth “.

In an article published today in the British journal Journal of the National Cancer Institute, experts say that these substances may even cause biological effects promote cancer development .

The intake of antioxidants has become widespread since the popularization of the theory that prevent aging and certain diseases such as cancer, whose origin may have an important role cells oxidative stress .

However, according to Martinez, people are being “deceived by the messages of supplement manufacturers,” which highlights the health benefits of their products, among which cancer prevention.

“The assumption that any dietary supplement is safe under all circumstances and in any amount is not supported empirically,” said Martinez.

In recent years, numerous animal studies have supported the theory that these supplements may reduce the risk of developing cancer, however, their conclusions have not yet been confirmed by randomized controlled trials, the “gold standard” in medicine, Martinez argued.

Only a small number of supplements has been subjected to such tests, Martinez said, and some studies have concluded that, in fact, the risk increased after taking these antioxidants.

“The intake of exogenous antioxidants can be a double edged sword. These components may act as pro-oxidants the opposite effect to be obtained, or interfere in some body’s protective processes such as induction of apoptosis,” wrote the researchers in their paper.

Apoptosis, or programmed cell death is a process by which cells with problems cause their death.

Experimental studies have shown that different body tissues respond differently to each of the nutrients, “so an antioxidant linked to protection against cancer in a particular tissue may cause damage in another,” concludes the article.

Read original article in English

lae

El Universal: Science

Are traces of asteroid that struck the United States

Posted by admin on April 26, 2012 Comments Off

tiny meteorites found at the foothills of northern California probably part of a giant fireball exploded in the daylight with about a third of the explosive force of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima at the end of World War II, scientists said on Wednesday.

The tiny rocks weigh about 10 grams , or the weight of two nickels U.S. currency, said John T. Wasson, longtime professor and meteor expert at the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at UCLA.

Experts said the flaming meteor was probably the size of a minivan when he entered the Earth’s atmosphere with a loud explosion at about 8 pm on Sunday.

He was from Sacramento, California, to Las Vegas and parts of northern Nevada.

An event of this magnitude can occur once a year somewhere in the world, said Don Yeomans, of the Office of Program Near Earth Objects of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

“However, most of them occur on the ocean or in an uninhabited area, so getting to see one is something special,” said Yeomans.

“Most of the meteors you see in the night sky are the size of small pebbles or sand grains, and the trail takes a second or two,” he said.

The fireball was probably the size of a minivan and weighing approximately 70 000 kilograms , calculated Bill Cooke, an expert in meteorites at the Marshall Space Flight Center of NASA in Huntsville, Alabama.

He added that at the time of the breakup probably released energy equivalent to five kilotons explosion . The nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima was 15 kilotons.

Wasson said that a meteorite was found near the town of Coloma, about 56 kilometers northeast of Sacramento and another was discovered in the west near Lotus, between Auburn and Placerville.

He said he was located by collectors who had knowledge but did not identify them.

“I’m sure you were nearer, I hope to include some fairly large pieces,” said Wasson.

“The fact that already found two pieces means they know where to look.”

Parts of the meteor could be spread over an area of ​​up to 16 kilometers. Wasson suspect that hundreds of dealers and collectors have joined the search.

He said it was important to recover meteorites soon, since any rain will degrade and lose sodium and potassium.

“From my perspective as a meteorite researcher, I have the hope that some large pieces are immediately,” he said.

lae


El Universal: Science

Stress causes more heart problems in women

Posted by admin on April 25, 2012 Comments Off

Women are more likely than men to show signs of heart trouble after emotional setbacks and stressful situations, according to a study presented at Experimental Biology 2012 conference .

Coronary heart disease is a major cause of hundreds of thousands of deaths in the U.S., but the way this disease is affecting men and women is not equal: each year more males than females are diagnosed with heart disease .

Other studies have shown that during exercise the heart contracts more men than women and this decreases blood flow.

But women are more likely than men to have symptoms of heart problems after the emotional upheavals .

A team of researchers at the Medical College of Pennsylvania State University, led by Charity Sauder, conducted a study to understand these differences and found that the coronary blood flow actually increases in men during mental stress and emotional but not change in women .

The conference, which began on April 21 and continues through 25 at the Convention Center San Diego, California, is sponsored by the American Physiological Society and five other scientific societies and attracts over 12,000 participants.

Sauder’s team recruited 17 healthy adults, 8 men and 9 women. Each volunteer was measured heart rate and blood pressure at rest , as well as vascular conductance, a measure of blood flow through coronary heart pathways taken with an ultrasound .
Then, volunteers underwent a three-minute test of mental arithmetic in which the researchers asked them to evade seven, in sequence, from a random number.

To increase the stress, the researchers urged the volunteers for the task, urging them to hurry or telling them they were wrong even if they were given the correct number.

After the test they were subjected to all, again, the three measurements of cardiac function.

The results show that when at rest were men and women had no major differences in the three measurements. During the mental arithmetic task of the volunteers showed an increase in heart rate and blood pressure.

But while men showed an increase in coronary vascular conductance under stress, women remained unchanged.

This difference, said researcher Chester Ray, may predispose women to heart problems during stress.

The results were surprising, said Ray, as previous studies indicated that men have a flow of blood to the heart significantly lower than in women during exercise stress and could explain why women have more heart problems after stressful events, such as loss of the couple.

The findings also emphasize the extent to which stress affects mental and emotional health.

“Stress reduction is important for everyone, whatever their gender,” said Ray, “but this study shows how stress affects differently the hearts of women, putting them potentially at greater risk of heart problem. ”

lae


El Universal: Science

Today is Earth Day

Posted by admin on April 23, 2012 Comments Off

Today in the world International Earth Day , commemoration held since 1970 to raise awareness to the problems of overpopulation, pollution production and biodiversity on the planet.

The promoter of this event was U.S. Senator Gaylard Nelson, an environmental activist who, thanks to the support of universities, schools and hundreds of communities in the United States created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and a series of laws aimed at protection of the environment.

In 1972 he held the first international conference on environment : the Stockholm Conference, whose objective was to raise awareness among world leaders on the magnitude of environmental problems and to institute policies to eradicate them.

The Organization of the United Nations celebrates Earth Day each year on the vernal equinox, around March 21.

On February 26, 1971, the Secretary General U Thant signed a proclamation to that effect. At the time of the equinox sounds the Peace Bell at UN headquarters in New York.

Earth Day has helps nations to reflect on the importance of protecting non-renewable resources of the planet and deal with new crises as water and constant droughts due to climate change.

This year in June, world leaders will gather in United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20) in Rio de Janeiro .

The meeting will focus on two main issues: how to build a green economy to achieve sustainable development and lift people out of poverty and how to improve international coordination in achieving sustainable development.

More information on International Day of Mother Earth

lae


El Universal: Science

Asian glaciers recover volume

Posted by admin on April 23, 2012 Comments Off

Scientists have found that glaciers in mountain ranges one of the largest in Asia have expanded in recent years , defying the general trend towards the melt.

Experts say that a detailed study of the glaciers of the Karakoram mountain range, running through Pakistan, India and China, shows a slight expansion, while the Himalayan glaciers have shrunk.

The researchers of the scientific journal Nature indicate that, apparently due to a quirk in the weather pattern, less heat reaches the Karakoram, while the mountains receive higher amounts of snow.

Traditionally, it tends to include within the concept of the Himalayas to the Karakoram Mountains and Trans-Himalayan mountains in Tibet.

However, the current geographers divide the Karakoram Himalaya. The Karakoram, located northwest of the Himalayas, is a mountain range with its own geological features, highlights Alkaid Editions, on your page online.

The Himalayan mountain range located in Asia, spanning the countries of Bhutan, China, Nepal, India, Tibet and Pakistan, in an arc from west to east than 2600 kilometers from north to south and 350 kilometers. Do not confuse the Himalayas with the Kunlun Mountains and other mountain ranges.

What raised by the group of scientists in Nature could hit maybe findings of other experts in studies like one published in early 2012, which referred to the backwardness of the next ice age and joined the cumulative effect of industrialization.

These scientists studied the natural succession between ice ages and the warmer or interglacial, which began about three million years.

Emissions of carbon dioxide have reached such high levels that a group of scientists from the U.S., UK and Norway have been considered sufficient to have delayed the start of the next ice age.

The researchers, whose study published in Nature Geoscience, asked about the start of the previous ice ages and calculated that the transition to the next should start in about 1,500 years, told the BBC.

That study concluded that although carbon dioxide emissions were stopped tomorrow, there is enough in the atmosphere to delay the onset of a geological period, characterized by a general lowering of temperature and an increase in ice caps and Alpine glaciers.

lae


El Universal: Science