Science

Garden soil houses a variety of bacteria and their natural byproducts — including one that may help halt tumor growth. Lankacidins are molecules that can be isolated from Strepomyces rochei, a common bacterium in soil. In addition to antimicrobial properties, a type of lankacidins, called lankacidin C, can inhibit tumor activity in various cancer cell lines, including leukemia, melanoma, ovarian and breast cancers. Lankacidin C offers a potential foundation on which to design anticancer drugs, but its structure is complicated and difficult to manipulate, according to an international research group. The same group recently identified where antitumor activity is housed on the molecule and has now used that information to simplify lankacidin as a potential starting point to engineer treatments.

Aromaticity of the Space Surrounded by Two Aromatic Rings

Kavli IPMU and UC Berkeley's Hitoshi Murayama has been named a new fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Congratulations!

Researchers have developed an innovative catalyst for the synthesis of propylene, which has potential benefits for the chemical industry and carbon recycling.

An international research group demonstrated that the Kondo effect can have a significant impact on transition metal oxide compound, which has unique and desirable properties to realize wide range of quantum phenomena. The findings have provided more evidence in a decade long debate.

Giants in History: In 1939, biochemist Kamala Sohonie (18 June 1911 – 28 June 1998) became the first woman to be accepted into the Indian Institute of Science (IISc).

Studying the sensory organs of a 100-million-year-old cockroach offers new insights into how the species may have lived.

A ring-expanded porphyrin, diazuliamethyrin, was successfully synthesized via a “3+3” condensation method. This porphyrin showed a 24pi non- or antiaromatic character. We analyzed the optical and electronic structures using magnetic circular dichroism spectroscopy and time-dependent density functional theory calculations.

A specific deep neural network model called Bidirectional Long-Short-Term Memory can use cough sounds to distinguish sick from healthy children, paving the way for preliminary screening.

A study led by Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) has revealed that different degrees of exposure to bisphenol S (BPS), an industrial chemical widely used in paper products and plastic containers, are associated with the growth and deterioration of breast tumours in a mouse model. The research results suggest the need for more in-depth and comprehensive research on the potential negative impact of BPS on human health, and the ongoing search for a safer alternative for use in industrial production may be warranted.

A new method for creating a highly useful chemical subunit eliminates the need for precious metals, potentially leading to the sustainable production of pharmaceuticals and electronics.

Giants in History: Mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani (12 May 1977 – 14 July 2017) was the first and only woman and Iranian to date to win the Fields Medal in 2014 for her work on curved surfaces.

The dengue virus alters mosquito behaviour in a way that makes it three times more efficient at transmitting infection.

Unveiling substructures at the edge of the Galaxy, Nanodiamonds key to efficient hydrogen purification, How SARS-CoV-2 evades our immune system, A Zika hijacking with devastating impacts & Finding the right story for your audience, all in the January Editor's Choice.

Enzymatic hydrolysis of planteose: α-Galactosidase is a promising molecular target for root parasitic weed control

Giants in History: Mohammad Abdus Salam (29 January 1926 – 21 November 1996) was a theoretical physicist and the first Pakistani to receive a Nobel Prize in science.

Researchers at Kanazawa University report in Applied Physics Letters the design of an ultrafast amplitude detector for use in high-speed atomic force microscopy. The detector will enable the real-time recording of fast dynamical processes of biomolecules.

Giants in History: Filipina chemist María Orosa (29 November 1892–13 February 1945) fought malnutrition and food insecurity in the Philippines by devising over 700 culinary creations including Soyalac, a nutrient rich drink made from soybeans, and Darak, rice cookies packed with Vitamin B1, which could prevent beriberi disease caused by Vitamin B1 deficiency.

Abdus Suttar Khan (c. 1941 – 31 January 2008) was a Bangladeshi engineer who spent a significant part of his career conducting aerospace research with NASA, United Technology and Alstom

In a recent study published in the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles researchers from Kanazawa University have visualized structural changes on the surface of SARS-CoV-2 that enable it to enter human cells.

Scientists have identified a series of molecular candidates for those parts of dog allergens that cause immune reactions in people—the first step in developing a vaccine against most causes of dog allergies.

We have succeeded in establishing a mouse model that develops gastric cancer closely resembling advanced human gastric cancer. Using this model, we have discovered gastric cancer stem cells, i.e. Lgr5+ gastric cancer cells, essential for the development, maintenance, and metastasis of cancer. Our study provides an experimental system that enables detailed analysis of highly malignant gastric cancer and is expected to lead to the development of a breakthrough treatment for advanced human gastric cancer.

We are pleased to announce that the DEC 2021 issue of the Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences Research (JHSSR), Vol. 3 (2) Dec. 2021 has been published ahead of time on 30 Nov 2021 and is now live at the Journal’s web page. We invite you to explore the seventh issue of our Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences Research with excellent essays.

Researchers are closer to understanding potential common features of sources of oxidative stress observed in several diseases, from Parkinson’s disease to cancer.

In a study published in Nature Energy this month, researchers led by Kyoto University’s Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) describe how nanodiamond-reinforced composite membranes can purify hydrogen from its humid mixtures, making the hydrogen generation processes vastly more efficient and cost-effective.

Okara, a soybean byproduct, can now be 3D printed without any additives, boosting food sustainability efforts.

Zika virus infection hijacks glucose metabolism for its own good and to the detriment of infected foetuses.

A research group has shown that fast switching down to 3.5 ns in sub-five-nm ultra-small magnetic tunnel junctions can be achieved by engineering relaxation time. The new technology is expected to lead to the replacement of high-speed DRAM with spintronic non-volatile memory.

The Akira Suzuki Award and the ICReDD Award, both sponsored by the Tosoh Corporation, were established in 2021 by the Akira Suzuki Award Organizing Committee, led by professors at the Institute for Chemical Reaction Design and Discovery (ICReDD), in commemoration of Professor Akira Suzuki’s winning of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and in celebration of his 90th birthday.

Using data on electromagnetic (EM) waves and plasma particles measured simultaneously via multiple satellites, an international collaborative research group has discovered the existence of invisible “propagation path” of EM waves and elucidated the mechanism by which EM waves propagate to the ground.