News by Subject Technology & Engineering

Scientists have equipped a virus that kills carcinoma cells with a protein so it can also target and kill adjacent cells that are tricked into shielding the cancer from the immune system. It is the first time that cancer-associated fibroblasts within solid tumors -- healthy cells that are tricked into protecting the cancer from the immune system and supplying it with growth factors and nutrients -- have been specifically targeted in this way.

An unexpected twist from fastball can make the difference in winning or losing the World Series. However, 'some explanations regarding the different pitches are flat-out wrong,' said Barton Smith, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Utah State University who considers himself a big fan of the game. He and Nazmus Sakib are conducting experiments to explain how baseballs move. Sakib and Smith will present at the Division of Fluid Dynamics Meeting, Nov. 18-20.

How do wombats produce cube-shaped poop? Patricia Yang at Georgia Tech set out to investigate. Yang studies the hydrodynamics of fluids, including blood, processed food and urine, in the bodies of animals. She was curious how the differences in wombats' digestive processes and soft tissue structures might explain their oddly shaped scat. During the APS Division of Fluid Dynamics 71st Annual Meeting, Nov. 18-20, Yang will explain findings from dissecting the alimentary systems of wombats.

A surprising discovery about a failed pain drug -- and specifically, the pathway it targets, BH4 -- could have implications for autoimmunity and cancer. Neuroscientists at Boston Children's Hospital and immunologists from IMBA in Vienna report that BH4 also functions as a kind of immunological thermostat, raising and lowering the activity levels of T cells. Inhibiting BH4 could relieve atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, lupus, polyarthritis and inflammatory bowel disease; boosting it could help the immune system attack cancers.

Caught in the act of landfall, Tropical Cyclone Gaja was seen by NASA's Aqua satellite as it passed overhead and collected temperature information.

Researchers have developed a new technique to analyse cell membrane proteins in situ which could revolutionise the way in which we study diseases, such as cancer, metabolic and heart diseases.

A team of researchers from the University of Tokyo and RIKEN in Japan were finalists for the coveted Gordon Bell Prize for outstanding achievements in high-performance computing, praised for their simulation of earthquake physics in complex urban environments.