Chocolate infused with prebiotics, probiotics and flavorings could have enhanced health benefits. Image Credit: Smriti Gaur

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Science Reports
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Chocolate’s Surprising Health Benefits Uncovered

Many people will soon load up Easter baskets with chocolate candy for children and adults to enjoy. On its own, dark chocolate has health benefits, such as antioxidants that neutralize damaging free radicals. And a report in ACS Food Science & Technology suggests that packing the sweet treat with pre- and probiotics could make it more healthful. Flavoring agents, however, can affect many properties, including moisture level and protein content of the chocolate product. Probiotics, found in fermented foods such…

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Peter Adams, PhD, is director and professor in theCancer Genome and Epigenetics Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys and senior and co-corresponding author of the study. Karl Miller, PhD, is a staff scientist in the Adams lab at Sanford Burnham Prebys and lead and co-corresponding author of the study. Image Credit: Sanford Burnham Prebys
Studies and Analyses

How Cellular Circuits Influence DNA Repair and Aging

Study reveals new information about how to prevent chronic inflammation from zombie-like cells that accumulate with age In humans and other multicellular organisms, cells multiply. This defining feature allows embryos to grow into adulthood, and enables the healing of the many bumps, bruises and scrapes along the way. Certain factors can cause cells to abandon this characteristic and enter a zombie-like state known as senescence where they persist but no longer divide to make new cells. Our bodies can remove…

Thrush Nightingale, Luscinia luscinia. A bird sits on a tree branch and sings. Image Credit by yuriybal, Envato
Studies and Analyses

Bird Vocal Changes May Indicate Aging Disorders in Humans

University of Arizona neuroscientists studying the brains of songbirds have found that aging alters the gene expressions that control the birds’ song. The finding could lead to earlier diagnoses and better treatments for human neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, which are known to hinder vocal production in their early stages. The study, published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging, found that networks of interacting genes, in a region of the bird’s brain involved with singing, dramatically…

The researchers. Image Credit: King's College London
Studies and Analyses

New Antibody Reduces Tumor Growth in Resistant Cancers

A new type of antibody which stimulates the immune system to target cancer cells slows tumor growth, according to new research Antibody treatment which activates the patient’s own immune system against cancer, known as immunotherapy, is increasingly being investigated as an alternative for chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This is because it specifically targets the cancer cells, which reduces the side effects seen with more conventional therapies. Tumours, such as some breast and ovarian cancers, can express the marker HER2. HER2 is…

Closeup shot of a flock of butterfly on the ground. Image by wirestock, Envato
Studies and Analyses

Butterflies Choose Mates Based on Attractiveness Factors

Study links genetics, vision and neural processing to mating behavior in Heliconius butterflies A simple neural change alters mating preferences in male butterflies, aiding rapid behavioral evolution, Nicholas VanKuren and Nathan Buerkle at the University of Chicago, US, and colleagues, report March 11th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology. Heliconius are a group of tropical butterflies known for their wide variety of wing patterns and colors, which act as a warning to predators. Because wing coloration is crucial for their…

Yuan Xu, postdoctoral researcher in the Sharkey lab, uses a LICOR to measure the rate of photosynthesis in a plant. Image Credit: Kara Headley
Science Reports

MSU Researchers Explore Innovative Plant Studies for Future Conditions

As major changes continue for our planet’s climate, scientists are concerned about how plants will grow and adapt. Researchers in the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, or PRL, Sharkey lab are studying changes in plant metabolism that occur when plants are grown in high light, high CO2 (HLHC) conditions. They found that under these conditions, plants photosynthesize more, which can lead to larger plants, and potentially larger crop yields. However, there are tradeoffs; scientists also found that plants lose carbon under…

A child participant perceiving color in the study. Image Credit: (KyotoU/Moriguchi lab)
Science Reports

Unlocking Visual Insights Through New Innovation Tools

Understanding children’s subjective experiences through color As a child, did it ever occur to you that your perception of color differed from that of others? It’s quite common to have this thought, but it turns out that the human color experience may be more universal than we previously believed. In psychology and neuroscience, the relationship between subjective experience, such as how we perceive color, and physical brain activity has remained an unresolved problem. Furthermore, due to their limited language abilities,…

Microscopy images show fluorescently stained mouse brains expressing genes that cause Alzheimer’s disease. Compared with an Alzheimer’s-like brain (left), the more intense green color (right) indicates more neuronal synapses—connections between nerve cells that underlie learning and memory—upon treatment with the drug diAcCA. Image Credit: Scripps Research
Studies and Analyses

Herb-Derived Compound Shows Promise as Alzheimer’s Anti-Inflammatory

Scripps Research scientists created a stable form of carnosic acid, observing greater memory function and other disease improvements in mice. The herb rosemary has long been linked with memory: “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance,” says Ophelia in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. So it is fitting that researchers would study a compound found in rosemary and sage—carnosic acid—for its impact on Alzheimer’s disease. In the disease, which is the leading cause of dementia and the sixth leading cause of death in the US,…

Human antibodies. Image Credit by iLexx, Envato
Studies and Analyses

How Plasma Cell Proteins Impact Migration From Home

Researchers from Osaka University find that in immune tissues, plasma cells that express certain proteins are more likely to migrate to the bone marrow, where they help create long-lasting antibody responses Vaccine effectiveness relies on creating a strong antibody response that can be reactivated to fight future infections. Now, researchers from Japan report that antibody-producing cells are destined for longevity from the moment they are born. In a recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, a multi-institutional research…

Young woman walking outdoor. Image Credit by peus80, Envato
Studies and Analyses

Walking More Can Reduce Cardiovascular Death Risk in Women

American Heart Association Epidemiology and Prevention | Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2025 – Oral Presentation 060 Research Highlights: Embargoed until 11 a.m. CT/12 p.m. ET, Sunday March 9, 2025 This news release contains updated information from the researcher that was not in the abstract and will be referenced in the oral presentation. Among postmenopausal women with a history of cancer, taking more daily steps and engaging in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity were both associated with a significantly reduced risk…

Shark biologists now say a lemon shark, like this one, is a better model of the extinct megalodon's body than the great white shark. Image Credit: Albert Kok
Studies and Analyses

Megalodon’s True Form: The Sleek Super Predator Unveiled

Novel study paints more accurate picture of extinct, gigantic shark The megalodon has long been imagined as an enormous great white shark, but new research suggests that perception is all wrong. The study finds the prehistoric hunter had a much longer body—closer in shape to a lemon shark or even a large whale. The study team, which included researchers from University of California, Riverside and across the globe, used a novel approach to estimate the shark’s total body length, moving…

Parent confidence in state and federal government's ability to handle bird flu. Image Credit: Sara Schultz, University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's National Poll on Children's Health
Science Reports

Parents’ Knowledge On Bird Flu: A Surprising Gap

National Poll: 2 in 5 parents wish the government was doing more to prevent a bird flu outbreak; 1 in 3 have taken action to protect their family against it With soaring egg prices and ongoing bird flu headlines, many parents are uncertain about the risks and facts surrounding the virus, a national poll suggests. Most parents say they don’t know if there have been cases of bird flu in their state, and less than half feel that they are…

Student performance scores dipped following the COVID-19 pandemic, and recent UM research shows they have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The team discovered that a loss of life skills normally developed in high school that prepare students to succeed may be to blame. Image Credit: Graphic by Stefanie Goodwiller/University Marketing and Communications
Studies and Analyses

COVID-19’s Lasting Impact on Education: UM Study Insights

Declining student performance tied to life skills gaps, not just pandemic The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student performance is well known, but four years after the pandemic, scores in college classes are not returning to their pre-pandemic levels.  A University of Mississippi study might point to an answer. In a study published in a special issue of the Educational Sciences journal, three Ole Miss researchers found that student performance scores started a downward trend following COVID-19. Dozens of…

Volker Rudolf, professor of biosciences at Rice. Image Credit: Rice University.
Studies and Analyses

Rising Temperatures: Rice Study Links Climate to Population Declines

Researchers at Rice University have uncovered a critical link between rising temperatures and declines in a species’ population, shedding new light on how global warming threatens natural ecosystems. The study, published in Ecology and led by Volker Rudolf, revealed that rising temperatures exacerbate competition within populations, ultimately leading to population crashes at higher temperatures. It offers one of the first clear experimental confirmations that rising temperatures alter the forces that control population dynamics in nature. “Our research provides an essential missing piece in…

A study of 51 countries revealed that 38% of women had personally experienced online harassment. Bullying and harassment have led people to create their own digital safe spaces. Image Credit: Lillie Klefelt Ek
Social Sciences

Empowering Discriminated Groups Through Online Safe Spaces

Online threats, hatred and harassment have led people who feel discriminated against to create digital spaces where they can feel safe. According to a new thesis from the University of Gothenburg, these spaces are characterised by clear rules and constant maintenance and monitoring. Much of social life today takes place online. Unfortunately, the worst aspects of interpersonal relationships also appear in the digital world. A study of 51 countries revealed that 38% of women had personally experienced online harassment. Bullying…

The late Warren Bickel (left) and Stephen LaConte, both professors at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, led a study that suggests envisioning future events could be an effective behavioral therapy for alcohol use disorder. The study also documented changes in brain connectivity associated with the practice. Image Credit: Virginia Tech
Social Sciences

Future Events Influence Brain for Better Decision-Making

Virginia Tech scientists at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC found practicing episodic future thinking both reduced impulsivity and enhanced connectivity in key regions of the brain Learning to think more about specific events in the future appears to reduce impulsivity,  improve decision-making, and shows potential as a therapy for alcohol use disorder, a new Virginia Tech study found. The study, which involved 24 participants whose brains were scanned during both resting-state and task-based fMRI, showed brain connections were altered…

The clone of bladderwrack in the Baltic Sea was long assumed to be a separate species, which was called narrow seaweed. Image Credit: Lena Bergström
Studies and Analyses

Giant Seaweed Clones Transform Baltic Sea Ecosystem

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have discovered that what was previously thought to be a unique seaweed species of bladderwrack for the Baltic Sea is in fact a giant clone of common bladderwrack, perhaps the world’s largest clone overall.  The discovery has implications for predicting the future of seaweed in a changing ocean. In the brakish waters of the Baltic Sea, bladderwrack is the dominant seaweed species as it is one of the few seaweed species that can tolerate…

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