Post List

  • August 8, 2016
  • 03:38 PM
  • 18 views

World's worst hickeys: Cupping is weird and potentially dangerous

by Rosin Cerate in Rosin Cerate

In an effort to reduce pain or fix other health problems, some people will submit to having suction temporarily applied to various regions of their skin, usually the neck, shoulders, and back, via a collection of plastic or glass cups. This is known as cupping, and is a great way to embrace your inner Polkaroo.... Read more »

Lin CW, Wang JT, Choy CS, & Tung HH. (2009) Iatrogenic bullae following cupping therapy. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 15(11), 1243-1245. PMID: 19922257  

  • August 8, 2016
  • 01:54 PM
  • 19 views

Pesticides used to help bees may actually harm them

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

Pesticides beekeepers are using to improve honeybee health may actually be harming the bees by damaging the bacteria communities in their guts. The discovery is a concern because alterations can affect the gut's ability to metabolize sugars and peptides, processes that are vital for honeybee health.

... Read more »

Madhavi Kakumanu, Alison M. Reeves, Troy Anderson, Richard R. Rodrigues, & Mark A. Williams. (2016) Honey bee gut microbiome is altered by in-hive pesticide exposures. Frontiers in Microbiology. info:/10.3389/fmicb.2016.01255

  • August 8, 2016
  • 06:40 AM
  • 30 views

Scientific Study Shows Mediums Are Wrong 46.2% of the Time

by The Neurocritic in The Neurocritic

Not a very good showing, eh?Here's our latest study on mediumship: "Prediction of Mortality Based on Facial Characteristics". Available here: https://t.co/jVMHmF07Dj— Dean Radin (@DeanRadin) May 21, 2016In the study,“Participants were asked to press a button if they thought the person in a photo was living or deceased. Overall mean accuracy on this task was 53.8%, where 50% was expected by chance (p < 0.004, two-tail). Statistically significant accuracy was independently obtained in 5 of ........ Read more »

Delorme, A., Pierce, A., Michel, L., & Radin, D. (2016) Prediction of Mortality Based on Facial Characteristics. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00173  

  • August 8, 2016
  • 03:46 AM
  • 31 views

On staff training in the UK autism services sector

by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers

I tread carefully in discussing the findings reported by Karola Dillenburger and colleagues [1] (open-access) on the question of "knowledge and training with regards to autism" received by "health, social care, and education staff who work within the statutory autism services sector in the UK." The observation that "an acute lack of autism-specific training that has detrimental impacts" was apparent is a worrying sign indeed.Although not intimately involved in the autism services sector, I ........ Read more »

Dillenburger K, McKerr L, Jordan JA, & Keenan M. (2016) Staff Training in Autism: The One-Eyed Wo/Man…. International journal of environmental research and public health, 13(7). PMID: 27438846  

  • August 7, 2016
  • 02:35 PM
  • 54 views

Why you're stiff in the morning: Your body suppresses inflammation when you sleep at night

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

Feeling stiff first thing in the morning? It's not your imagination, new research has found a protein created by the body's "biological clock" that actively represses inflammatory pathways within the affected limbs during the night. This protein, called CRYPTOCHROME, has proven anti-inflammatory effects in cultured cells and presents new opportunities for the development of drugs that may be used to treat inflammatory diseases and conditions, such as arthritis.

... Read more »

Hand, L., Hopwood, T., Dickson, S., Walker, A., Loudon, A., Ray, D., Bechtold, D., & Gibbs, J. (2016) The circadian clock regulates inflammatory arthritis. The FASEB Journal. DOI: 10.1096/fj.201600353R  

  • August 7, 2016
  • 11:53 AM
  • 34 views

The (surprising) rate of ADHD in Taiwan

by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers

The idea that use of the diagnostic label called attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is on the increase, and pretty significantly so, is quite common-place these days (see here). Appreciating that not everyone is convinced that the increase is necessarily genuine (see here) I would like to discuss some interesting data coming out of the 'big data' country that is Taiwan in the form of the findings reported by Wang and colleagues [1].As regular readers might already know, Taiwan is th........ Read more »

Wang, L., Lee, S., Yuan, S., Yang, C., Yang, K., Huang, T., Chou, W., Chou, M., Lee, M., Lee, T.... (2016) Prevalence rates of youths diagnosed with and medicated for ADHD in a nationwide survey in Taiwan from 2000 to 2011. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 1-11. DOI: 10.1017/S2045796016000500  

  • August 6, 2016
  • 03:24 PM
  • 60 views

Microcephaly discoveries in non-Zika cases explain abnormal brain growth

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

Long before Zika virus made it a household word, the birth defect called microcephaly puzzled scientists and doctors -- even as it changed the lives of the babies born with it during the pre-Zika era. But new discoveries reported by an international team of scientists may help explain what happens in the developing brains of babies still in the womb, causing them to be born with small brains and heads.

... Read more »

Li, H., Bielas, S., Zaki, M., Ismail, S., Farfara, D., Um, K., Rosti, R., Scott, E., Tu, S., Chi, N.... (2016) Biallelic Mutations in Citron Kinase Link Mitotic Cytokinesis to Human Primary Microcephaly. The American Journal of Human Genetics, 99(2), 501-510. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2016.07.004  

  • August 5, 2016
  • 03:10 PM
  • 79 views

From Sci Fi to reality: Unlocking the secret to growing new limbs

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

Many lower organisms retain the miraculous ability to regenerate form and function of almost any tissue after injury. Humans share many of our genes with these organisms, but our capacity for regeneration is limited. So scientists are studying the genetics of these organisms to find out how regenerative mechanisms might be activated in humans.

... Read more »

King, B., & Yin, V. (2016) A Conserved MicroRNA Regulatory Circuit Is Differentially Controlled during Limb/Appendage Regeneration. PLOS ONE, 11(6). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157106  

  • August 5, 2016
  • 07:00 AM
  • 71 views

Friday Fellow: Beggar’s tick

by Piter Boll in Earthling Nature

by Piter Kehoma Boll What if the cure for cancer has been living in your garden all this time and you have been trying to get rid of it because it is an annoying weed? I cannot assure you that … Continue reading →... Read more »

Brandão, M., Krettli, A., Soares, L., Nery, C., & Marinuzzi, H. (1997) Antimalarial activity of extracts and fractions from Bidens pilosa and other Bidens species (Asteraceae) correlated with the presence of acetylene and flavonoid compounds. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 57(2), 131-138. DOI: 10.1016/S0378-8741(97)00060-3  

Chang, J., Chiang, L., Chen, C., Liu, L., Wang, K., & Lin, C. (2001) Antileukemic Activity of Bidens pilosa L. var. minor (Blume) Sherff and Houttuynia cordata Thunb. The American Journal of Chinese Medicine, 29(02), 303-312. DOI: 10.1142/S0192415X01000320  

Chiang, L., Chang, J., Chen, C., Ng, L., & Lin, C. (2003) Anti-Herpes Simplex Virus Activity of Bidens pilosa and Houttuynia cordata. The American Journal of Chinese Medicine, 31(03), 355-362. DOI: 10.1142/S0192415X03001090  

Deba, F., Xuan, T., Yasuda, M., & Tawata, S. (2008) Chemical composition and antioxidant, antibacterial and antifungal activities of the essential oils from Bidens pilosa Linn. var. Radiata. Food Control, 19(4), 346-352. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2007.04.011  

Kviecinski, M., Felipe, K., Schoenfelder, T., de Lemos Wiese, L., Rossi, M., Gonçalez, E., Felicio, J., Filho, D., & Pedrosa, R. (2008) Study of the antitumor potential of Bidens pilosa (Asteraceae) used in Brazilian folk medicine. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 117(1), 69-75. DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2008.01.017  

Oliveira, F., Andrade-Neto, V., Krettli, A., & Brandão, M. (2004) New evidences of antimalarial activity of Bidens pilosa roots extract correlated with polyacetylene and flavonoids. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 93(1), 39-42. DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2004.03.026  

Pereira, R., Ibrahim, T., Lucchetti, L., da Silva, A., & de Moraes, V. (1999) Immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory effects of methanolic extract and the polyacetylene isolated from Bidens pilosa L. Immunopharmacology, 43(1), 31-37. DOI: 10.1016/S0162-3109(99)00039-9  

Sun, Y., Zhou, Q., Wang, L., & Liu, W. (2009) Cadmium tolerance and accumulation characteristics of Bidens pilosa L. as a potential Cd-hyperaccumulator. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 161(2-3), 808-814. DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.04.030  

  • August 5, 2016
  • 05:09 AM
  • 71 views

Multiple germline mutations in rare inherited cancer syndrome genes

by Joana Guedes in BHD Research Blog

A recent study by Whitworth et al. (2016) reports five new cases of multiple germline mutations in inherited cancer syndrome genes, three of them involve the combination of mutations in FLCN with NF1, TP53, and MSH2, respectively.... Read more »

Whitworth J, Skytte AB, Sunde L, Lim DH, Arends MJ, Happerfield L, Frayling IM, van Minkelen R, Woodward ER, Tischkowitz MD.... (2016) Multilocus Inherited Neoplasia Alleles Syndrome: A Case Series and Review. JAMA oncology, 2(3), 373-9. PMID: 26659639  

  • August 5, 2016
  • 02:59 AM
  • 85 views

Hospitalisation for mania following antibiotic exposure?

by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers

"Individuals hospitalized with acute mania have a markedly increased rate of bacterial infections, as evidenced by the recent prescription of antimicrobial agents. The prevention and effective treatment of bacterial infections may be important interventions for the management of individuals with mania."That was the research bottom-line reported by Robert Yolken and colleagues [1] (yes, that Robert Yolken) who continued a theme of how immune function/response might be something pretty important w........ Read more »

Yolken R, Adamos M, Katsafanas E, Khushalani S, Origoni A, Savage C, Schweinfurth L, Stallings C, Sweeney K, & Dickerson F. (2016) Individuals hospitalized with acute mania have increased exposure to antimicrobial medications. Bipolar disorders. PMID: 27425597  

  • August 4, 2016
  • 02:07 PM
  • 91 views

Biomimicry is a promising approach for driving innovation

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

A new case study shows that biomimicry, a relatively new field that seeks to emulate nature to find solutions to human problems, can potentially expand intellectual property, increase energy savings and accelerate product innovation.

... Read more »

Emily Barbara Kennedy, & Thomas Andrew Marting. (2016) Biomimicry: Streamlining the Front End of Innovation for Environmentally Sustainable Products. Research-Technology Management. info:/10.1080/08956308.2016.1185342

  • August 4, 2016
  • 10:15 AM
  • 86 views

These Baby Fish Are Born Knowing How to Kill

by Elizabeth Preston in Inkfish



Some babies are born totally useless (I'm looking at you, Homo sapiens). Others can wobble upright shortly after birth and start teetering around. And still other animals are almost frighteningly precocious.

For example, the metallic livebearer, a little golden fish native to Cuba, hatches from an egg while still inside its mother. That means the mom gives birth to live young. The more traditional fish-y way is to lay eggs. But some other fish also bear live young, including guppies a........ Read more »

Lankheet, M., Stoffers, T., van Leeuwen, J., & Pollux, B. (2016) Acquired versus innate prey capturing skills in super-precocial live-bearing fish. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 283(1834), 20160972. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0972  

  • August 4, 2016
  • 07:02 AM
  • 94 views

Attribute amnesia, uninterrupted eye contact, fMRI bugs, and women  driven out of STEM careers

by Doug Keene in The Jury Room

Here are a few articles that did not act as a catalyst to stimulate an entire post but that tweaked our fancy enough that we wanted to share them with you. Think of them as “rescue items” if you have social anxiety and want to seem scintillating….or something like that. So have you seen this […]

Related posts:
Ten minutes of uninterrupted eye contact causes hallucinations and other important things
Women as Expert Witnesses: The good, the sad, and the ugly
Science knowledge, ob........ Read more »

Chen H, & Wyble B. (2015) Amnesia for object attributes: failure to report attended information that had just reached conscious awareness. Psychological Science, 26(2), 203-10. PMID: 25564523  

Binetti, N., Harrison, C., Coutrot, A., Johnston, A., & Mareschal, I. (2016) Pupil dilation as an index of preferred mutual gaze duration. Royal Society Open Science, 3(7), 160086. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160086  

  • August 4, 2016
  • 03:11 AM
  • 106 views

Take your vitamin D says the UK Government

by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers

"Vitamin D supplements 'advised for everyone'" was just one media headline following the publication of a report (see here) - "a government commissioned report" - by the advisory board of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) here in Blighty recently.After oodles and oodles of peer-reviewed research (quite a bit of it covered in that SACN report) potentially linking issues with vitamin D availability to everything from depression (see here) to schizophrenia (see here) a........ Read more »

Muscogiuri G, Altieri B, Annweiler C, Balercia G, Pal HB, Boucher BJ, Cannell JJ, Foresta C, Grübler MR, Kotsa K.... (2016) Vitamin D and chronic diseases: the current state of the art. Archives of toxicology. PMID: 27425218  

  • August 3, 2016
  • 06:02 PM
  • 109 views

How to excel at academic conferences in 5 steps

by Richard Kunert in Brain's Idea

Academic conferences have been the biggest joy of my PhD and so I want to share with others how to excel at this academic tradition. The author (second from right, with can) at his first music cognition conference (SMPC 2013 in Toronto) which - despite appearances - he attended by himself. 1) Socialising A conference […]... Read more »

Kunert R, & Slevc LR. (2015) A Commentary on: "Neural overlap in processing music and speech". Frontiers in human neuroscience, 330. PMID: 26089792  

Kunert R, Willems RM, & Hagoort P. (2016) Language influences music harmony perception: effects of shared syntactic integration resources beyond attention. Royal Society open science, 3(2), 150685. PMID: 26998339  

  • August 3, 2016
  • 05:50 PM
  • 100 views

Chicks dig musicians, or, birdsong and male quality

by Emily Makowski in Sextraordinary!

Ah, music. Many people are profoundly affected by it, and so are birds. In fact, research by Byers et al. in the August 2016 issue of Ethology suggests that female prairie warblers can gain valuable information about a male through that male’s song, and use this information to decide whether to mate.... Read more »

Byers, B., Akresh, M., & King, D. (2016) Song and Male Quality in Prairie Warblers. Ethology, 122(8), 660-670. DOI: 10.1111/eth.12513  

  • August 3, 2016
  • 02:45 PM
  • 107 views

Why Do People Choose Certain Dogs?

by CAPB in Companion Animal Psychology Blog

Many factors go into people’s choice of dogs. Animal welfare isn’t always top of the list, but could this change?English Bulldogs only live six years, according to a recent paper that highlights the lack of genetic diversity in this breed (Pederson et al 2016). Karin Brulliard of the Washington Post spoke to one of the authors of the study, Niels Pederson. “There are genetic diseases that [breeders] could test for, but they choose not to. Which means they’re more interested in the coat c........ Read more »

Asher, L., Diesel, G., Summers, J., McGreevy, P., & Collins, L. (2009) Inherited defects in pedigree dogs. Part 1: Disorders related to breed standards. The Veterinary Journal, 182(3), 402-411. DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2009.08.033  

Brown, W., Davidson, J., & Zuefle, M. (2013) Effects of Phenotypic Characteristics on the Length of Stay of Dogs at Two No Kill Animal Shelters. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 16(1), 2-18. DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2013.740967  

Diverio, S., Boccini, B., Menchetti, L., & Bennett, P. (2016) The Italian perception of the ideal companion dog. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, 27-35. DOI: 10.1016/j.jveb.2016.02.004  

Garrison, L., & Weiss, E. (2014) What Do People Want? Factors People Consider When Acquiring Dogs, the Complexity of the Choices They Make, and Implications for Nonhuman Animal Relocation Programs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 18(1), 57-73. DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2014.943836  

Ghirlanda, S., Acerbi, A., Herzog, H., & Serpell, J. (2013) Fashion vs. Function in Cultural Evolution: The Case of Dog Breed Popularity. PLoS ONE, 8(9). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074770  

King, T., Marston, L., & Bennett, P. (2009) Describing the ideal Australian companion dog. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 120(1-2), 84-93. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2009.04.011  

Lampe, R., & Witte, T. (2014) Speed of Dog Adoption: Impact of Online Photo Traits. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 18(4), 343-354. DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2014.982796  

McMillan, F., Serpell, J., Duffy, D., Masaoud, E., & Dohoo, I. (2013) Differences in behavioral characteristics between dogs obtained as puppies from pet stores and those obtained from noncommercial breeders. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 242(10), 1359-1363. DOI: 10.2460/javma.242.10.1359  

Mornement, K., Coleman, G., Toukhsati, S., & Bennett, P. (2012) What Do Current and Potential Australian Dog Owners Believe about Shelter Practices and Shelter Dogs?. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People , 25(4), 457-473. DOI: 10.2752/175303712X13479798785850  

Mornement, K., Coleman, G., Toukhsati, S., & Bennett, P. (2015) Evaluation of the predictive validity of the Behavioural Assessment for Re-homing K9's (B.A.R.K.) protocol and owner satisfaction with adopted dogs. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 35-42. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2015.03.013  

Pedersen, N., Pooch, A., & Liu, H. (2016) A genetic assessment of the English bulldog. Canine Genetics and Epidemiology, 3(1). DOI: 10.1186/s40575-016-0036-y  

Pirrone, F., Pierantoni, L., Pastorino, G., & Albertini, M. (2016) Owner-reported aggressive behavior towards familiar people may be a more prominent occurrence in pet shop-traded dogs. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, 13-17. DOI: 10.1016/j.jveb.2015.11.007  

Protopopova, A., & Wynne, C. (2014) Adopter-dog interactions at the shelter: Behavioral and contextual predictors of adoption. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 109-116. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2014.04.007  

Protopopova, A., Brandifino, M., & Wynne, C. (2016) Preference assessments and structured potential adopter-dog interactions increase adoptions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 87-95. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2015.12.003  

Siettou, C., Fraser, I., & Fraser, R. (2014) Investigating Some of the Factors That Influence “Consumer” Choice When Adopting a Shelter Dog in the United Kingdom. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 17(2), 136-147. DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2014.883924  

Svoboda, H., & Hoffman, C. (2015) Investigating the role of coat colour, age, sex, and breed on outcomes for dogs at two animal shelters in the United States. Animal Welfare, 24(4), 497-506. DOI: 10.7120/09627286.24.4.497  

Teng, K., McGreevy, P., Toribio, J., & Dhand, N. (2016) Trends in popularity of some morphological traits of purebred dogs in Australia. Canine Genetics and Epidemiology, 3(1). DOI: 10.1186/s40575-016-0032-2  

Waller, B., Peirce, K., Caeiro, C., Scheider, L., Burrows, A., McCune, S., & Kaminski, J. (2013) Paedomorphic Facial Expressions Give Dogs a Selective Advantage. PLoS ONE, 8(12). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0082686  

  • August 3, 2016
  • 02:40 PM
  • 105 views

Instructions to authors of Health Science journals: what do they communicate?

by SciELO in SciELO in Perspective

Instructions to authors (IA) allegedly contain all necessary and sufficient information to guide authors on the correct submission of a manuscript to a journal. Actually, however, a huge diversity of contents not always fulfills that purpose. In this post, we analyze the instructions to authors of SciELO Brazil Health Science journals, as well as literature on the subject. … Read More →... Read more »

Sardenberg, T., Müller, S., Pereira, H., Oliveira, R., & Hossne, W. (2000) ANÁLISIS DE LOS ASPECTOS ÉTICOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN EN SERES HUMANOS CONTENIDOS EN LAS INSTRUCCIONES A LOS AUTORES DE 139 REVISTAS CIENTÍFICAS BRASILEÑAS. Acta bioethica, 6(2). DOI: 10.4067/S1726-569X2000000200008  

Schriger, D., Arora, S., & Altman, D. (2006) The Content of Medical Journal Instructions for Authors. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 48(6), 743-7490000. DOI: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2006.03.028  

Pellizzon, R., Montero, E., Población, D., Monteiro, R., & Castro, R. (2007) Revistas brasileiras publicadoras de artigos científicos em cirurgia. III: análise das instruções aos autores baseada na estrutura dos requisitos de Vancouver. Acta Cirurgica Brasileira, 22(6), 503-510. DOI: 10.1590/S0102-86502007000600016  

Hirst, A., & Altman, D. (2012) Are Peer Reviewers Encouraged to Use Reporting Guidelines? A Survey of 116 Health Research Journals. PLoS ONE, 7(4). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0035621  

Reveiz L, Villanueva E, Iko C, & Simera I. (2013) Compliance with clinical trial registration and reporting guidelines by Latin American and Caribbean journals. Cadernos de saude publica, 29(6), 1095-100. PMID: 23778541  

Gasparyan, A., Ayvazyan, L., Gorin, S., & Kitas, G. (2014) Upgrading instructions for authors of scholarly journals. Croatian Medical Journal, 55(3), 271-280. DOI: 10.3325/cmj.2014.55.271  

Probst, P., Hüttner, F., Klaiber, U., Diener, M., Büchler, M., & Knebel, P. (2015) Thirty years of disclosure of conflict of interest in surgery journals. Surgery, 157(4), 627-633. DOI: 10.1016/j.surg.2014.11.012  

Bossuyt, P., Reitsma, J., Bruns, D., Gatsonis, C., Glasziou, P., Irwig, L., Lijmer, J., Moher, D., Rennie, D., de Vet, H.... (2015) STARD 2015: an updated list of essential items for reporting diagnostic accuracy studies. BMJ. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.h5527  

  • August 3, 2016
  • 01:52 PM
  • 109 views

New neurons created through exercise don't cause you to forget old memories

by Dr. Jekyll in Lunatic Laboratories

Fellow exercise enthusiasts, you can breath a sigh of relief and so can your brain. Research has found that exercise causes more new neurons to be formed in a critical brain region, and contrary to an earlier study, these new neurons do not cause the individual to forget old memories, according to new research.

... Read more »

Kodali, M., Megahed, T., Mishra, V., Shuai, B., Hattiangady, B., & Shetty, A. (2016) Voluntary Running Exercise-Mediated Enhanced Neurogenesis Does Not Obliterate Retrograde Spatial Memory. Journal of Neuroscience, 36(31), 8112-8122. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0766-16.2016  

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