Health

Small neighboring galaxy filled with dark matter detected with gamma rays, How a virus induces heart inflammation, Shedding light on the happy hormone, Microfossils may hold key evolution clues. Read all in the October's Editor's Choice plus Upcoming event KNOWLEDGE MARKETPLACE – Bangkok 2022: Exchanging of ideas for a Democratic Myanmar.

Investigations in Japan have uncovered some molecular mechanisms behind mitochondrial dysfunction in chronic heart failure.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are scaling up production of a zombie fungus, the critical eye of female dogs, and enlightenment available on your smartphone.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers interviewed active para-athletes with lower-limb disabilities who compete at an international level, about diet and nutrition. The research team found that what para-athletes considered an ideal diet was not necessarily optimized for improving athletic performance, and even when para-athletes understood diets geared towards athletic performance, characteristics of their disabilities impose barriers to implementing dietary changes. Understanding these concerns and struggles is important for nutritionists who support para-athletes in sports nutrition.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers conducted a study of human mobility to find effective lifestyle changes that enable people to exist with the novel coronavirus COVID-19, while maintaining social and economic activities. They found that restricting the human mobility in specific areas according to the state of the pandemic, rather than uniformly controlling human mobility, could be effective in reducing the number of new COVID-19 infections.

When a cancer spreads, the invasion of tumor cells into the lymph nodes present various barriers to effective treatment. Harnessing a lymphatic drug delivery system, where drugs are injected directly into sentinel lymph nodes under ultrasound guidance, a collaborative research group has developed a novel drug formulation that enhances the therapeutic response of carboplatin, a commonly used chemotherapy medication.

Researchers develop a ground-breaking model to estimate bait vaccination effectiveness in wild animals based on the proportion of immunized animals in a population and the number of vaccine applications.

Researchers from Hokkaido University and Toppan have developed a method to detect build-up of amyloid β in the brain, a characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, from biomarkers in blood samples.

Good hand hygiene has been found to be an effective way to prevent the spread of infectious organisms and the most important defence against disease, but studies have shown that many parents have inadequate knowledge, reporting skills, and parenting practices related to seasonal influenza. Previous research has shown a positive relationship between parents’ and children’s health practices. The research by Dr Peggy Or Pui-lai, Assistant Professor at the Department of Health and Physical Education, The Education University of Hong Kong, investigated whether there was any correlation between flu infection among parents and their kindergarten-age children, and the effectiveness of using hand hygiene interventions in kindergartens to lower kindergarten children’s absenteeism attributable to seasonal flu.

The National Health Innovation Centre, Singapore (NHIC) has launched a Clinical Innovation and Adoption Initiative to nurture promising healthtech projects for adoption and scaling across healthcare clusters in Singapore.

Researchers from Osaka University have developed a skin-like device to measure brain activity via electroencephalography, which uses electrodes to measure electrical activity on the scalp (reflecting underlying brain activity). The device has other useful applications, such as measuring heart rate and blood oxygen levels. Wearable devices that can remotely assess brain health in everyday settings are likely to improve healthcare for millions of people worldwide.

The Malaysia Technology Expo (MTE) 2022: SDG International Innovation Awards & Expo (SDGIIAE) returns for its 2nd edition and the awards encourage the development of innovative solutions for local and global challenges.

Giants in History: Japanese chemist Takamine Jokichi (3 November 1854 – 22 July 1922) founded the Tokyo Artificial Fertilizer Company, where he isolated a starch-digesting enzyme (named takadiastase) from the fungus Aspergillus oryzae.

Vaccines have become the most important weapon in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, but antibody levels after vaccination decay quickly over time. Therefore, an accurate and affordable antibody rapid test is urgently needed to adjust the revaccination strategy. A research team led by City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently invented an accurate rapid-testing device that can quantify and display the antibody level as a length of a visual bar, like a mercury thermometer, in as few as 20 minutes, enabling convenient mass screening or individual monitoring of immune protection against COVID-19.

- DGIST Professor Jin Ho Chang and Jae Youn Hwang's joint research team revealed for the first time in the world that the depth focused light can be increased by using a bubble layer temporarily created using ultrasound. - The collaborative research of ultrasound and optical imaging experts is expected to overcome the physical limitations of optical imaging and treatment depth.

Low concentrations of cetylpyridinium chloride, an antimicrobial agent present in mouthwashes, inhibit the infectivity of four variants of SARS-CoV-2.

Metastasis—when cancer spreads to form new tumors—causes approximately 90% of cancer-related deaths. Because metastatic cancer cells circulate in the blood, the liver—which filters the blood—is considered the most vulnerable organ, so treatments that prevent liver metastasis are urgently needed. A team of Osaka Metropolitan University researchers discovered a mechanism that allows metastatic cancer cells to infiltrate the liver, and how that infiltration can be blocked by inhibiting a related protein.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are an algorithm that can detect epilepsy from brain scans, the first National Robotics Tournament in Vietnam, and how being lonely or depressed can accelerate aging.

Research performed on human blastoids, a research model of an early embryo built out of stem cells, may allow scientists to understand better what causes birth defects and lost pregnancies, and so prevent them. But such research is also ethically fraught, warn bioethicists, due to differing beliefs on whether the blastoid possesses sentience or has the potential to do so.

Linked lanthanides shine light on crystal engineering, New technique reveals hidden genome, Red, white and blue alerts for dangerous bacteria & Windows gain competitive edge over global warming. Read all in the September's Editor's Choice plus this month's Asia Research News 2022 magazine pick - Floating sensors to gather ocean data.

A simple and economical method of detecting SARS-CoV-2 viral loads in wastewater with high sensitivity has been developed, expanding the use of wastewater-based epidemiology for tracking the virus in populations.

-Microrobots disintegrate in the body after delivering stem cells to the target point, and the delivered stem cells are verified to be capable of normal proliferation and differentiation. -Expected to contribute to increasing the efficiency of regenerative medicine such as stem cell delivery.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are the effects of extreme weather becoming more likely due to climate change and leading to sinking cities, putting googly eyes on cars that help pedestrian safety, and how many ants there are on Earth.

Researchers led by Osaka University developed a novel fluorescent sensor to detect and monitor levels of the neuropeptide oxytocin, also known as the “happy hormone.” The OT sensor facilitated the successful measurement of OT dynamics in the brains of living animals and may serve as a foundation for the development of therapeutics for the treatment of neurological disorders such as autism and schizophrenia.

A pathway that malfunctions in advanced non-alcoholic fatty liver disease could be fixed with the aid of spermidine, a compound naturally found in bodily cells and certain whole foods.

Scientists have uncovered how Coxsackievirus B3, the most common cause for viral heart inflammation, takes advantage of a specific heart sensor to trigger chronic inflammation that can lead to heart failure.

A special issue of Horizon Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences Research (JHSSR Vol.4 (S) Oct. 20212) is now published. This issue includes papers on the Covid-19 pandemic, developments in business and digital practices, changes in social media behavior in South Asia.

Researchers from The Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo have developed a streamlined photo-uncaging system for photodynamic cancer therapy, using a pulse of light for tumor-specific activation of a cancer-fighting agent

It is commonly believed that patients with chronic kidney disease should limit their protein intake given that excessive protein worsens kidney function. However, a new study by Osaka Metropolitan University scientists indicates that changes in skeletal muscle mass are positively correlated with protein intake, suggesting the necessity of adequate protein intake to improve muscle mass after kidney transplantation.

Cellular structures called mitochondria depend on microproteins to assist and control the assembly of a protein chain that extracts energy from nutrients, according to a new study by scientists in Singapore.