Most people worry about the gradual loss of stamina, strength, and mental sharpness that comes with aging. Scientists have been exploring new ideas to tackle these concerns and increase not just our years but also our quality of life. 



An international team has been testing a special approach that raises levels of a natural protein in the body.



Their research was led by Professor Miguel Chillón at the Institute of Neurosciences of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (<a href="https://web.ub.edu/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">UB</a>), and it shines a light on what might someday help people stay healthier for a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/organ-aging-can-predict-diseases-decades-in-advance/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">longer period</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-protein-s-kl-and-its-role-in-aging">Protein s-KL and its role in aging</h2>



The protein at the center of this work is <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41581-018-0078-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Klotho</a>, and the form used in the experiments is the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26599613/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">secreted version</a> known as s-KL. 



Some studies suggest that Klotho may influence a wide range of biological processes by managing signals that affect inflammation and cell aging.



The name Klotho first appeared in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/36285" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">scientific journals</a> in the late 1990s, when experiments showed that a deficiency of this protein made mice look older and more frail at younger ages.



"We have been working with the Klotho protein for some time, due to its therapeutic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-old-are-you-really-new-tool-measures-aging-from-the-inside-out/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">potential</a> for treating neurodegenerative diseases. 



In this study, we wanted to see whether s-KL could also be beneficial for healthy aging by examining a broad range of factors," explained Professor Chillón.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-differences-between-males-and-females">Differences between males and females</h2>



The effects of s-KL weren’t the same for male and female mice. Males showed clearer gains in lifespan and muscle strength, while females responded more strongly in measures of bone structure, especially when treated earlier in life.



These sex-based differences might be tied to how male and female bodies process viral vectors or express the s-KL protein. 



Hormonal factors could also play a role, suggesting future human trials may need sex-specific <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/curiosity-might-help-you-stay-sharp-as-you-age/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">strategies</a> to get the best results.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-aging-improvements-with-s-kl-protein">Aging improvements with s-KL protein</h2>



Researchers noticed that mice given s-KL retained better muscle tissue composition, with less of the scarring often linked to older age. They also had stronger performance in tasks that tested endurance and coordination.



Weakened bones can be a big danger in older adults, so it was intriguing that s-KL seemed to keep the inner bone structure more intact. 



This finding aligns with earlier <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16436465/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">observations</a> that Klotho influences mineral balance in bone and may reduce the chances of fractures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-timing-may-matter">Why timing may matter</h2>



Mice treated at 12 months old showed more pronounced improvements in longevity and physical health than those treated at 6 months. One reason could be that the aging mice produced higher levels of the s-KL protein after treatment, which may have amplified its <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/human-bodies-begin-breaking-down-two-very-precise-ages/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">effects</a>.



This finding raises an important question: Could middle age be a better window for intervention than early adulthood? If so, the timing of s-KL therapy in humans could be just as critical as the treatment itself.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-signs-of-brain-support">Signs of brain support</h2>



Aside from the physical improvements, the investigators measured changes in the hippocampus, a region crucial for memory and cognitive ability. 



They detected heightened markers of <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4563705/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">adult neurogenesis</a>, which is the process by which new neurons form in mature brains.



There was also evidence that key immune cells in the brain might be working in a more balanced way. This could help remove cellular waste and reduce the chronic inflammation tied to age-related brain diseases.



The researchers used gene therapy vectors that prompted cells to produce s-KL over an extended period. These vectors included genetic instructions, and once inside the mice, the cells took over production of the protein.



The approach was designed to boost s-KL levels in both the brain and other areas of the body. This helped ensure that many of the organs linked to muscle, bone, and memory got the extra support.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-s-kl-protein-and-human-aging">s-KL protein and human aging?</h2>



Although this study was done in mice, the results open the door to potential <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/defying-time-three-ways-to-slow-biological-aging/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">therapies</a> for humans. 



Age-related decline in mobility, memory, and bone strength all contribute to lower independence and quality of life in older adults. A treatment that addresses these together could shift how we think about aging.



Many current drugs only target one issue at a time, like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/outdoor-exercise-amplifies-physical-and-mental-health-benefits/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">osteoporosis</a> or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/your-sleep-may-predict-memory-loss-years-in-advance/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">memory loss</a>. But the effects of s-KL span across systems. 



This points toward the possibility of a more unified strategy to aging - one that works with the body’s existing repair mechanisms rather than replacing them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-s-next-for-s-kl-protein-research">What’s next for s-KL protein research?</h2>



If we can find a viable delivery method, s-KL could make a significant contribution to improving people’s quality of life and helping to build the healthiest society possible.



Scientists continue to explore whether direct protein administration or refined gene-based aging options might work best for humans. They plan to keep studying how s-KL weaves into different biological pathways.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/molecular-therapy-family/molecular-therapy/fulltext/S1525-0016(25)00120-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Molecular Therapy</a>.



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Protein discovered that boosts lifespan, muscle, and brain power with just one dose

Most people worry about the gradual loss of stamina, strength, and mental sharpness that comes with aging. Scientists have been exploring new ideas to tackle these concerns and increase not just our years but also our quality of life. An international team has been testing a special approach that raises levels of a natural protein in the body. Their research was led by Professor Miguel Chillón at the Institute of Neurosciences of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UB), and it shines a light on what might someday...

In a new study from <a href="https://www.cornell.edu/">Cornell University</a>, experts have developed an antidote to protects <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wild-bees-struggle-to-recover-after-extreme-weather-events/">bees</a> from deadly insecticides, which cause beekeepers to lose around a third of their hives every year on average.

The pollen-sized technology has been demonstrated to effectively protect bees from all insecticides, and has inspired a new company, Beemmunity.

"This is a low-cost, scalable solution which we hope will be a first step to address the insecticide toxicity issue and contribute to the protection of managed pollinators," said study senior author Minglin Ma.

Bees and other pollinators are a critical component of the global food supply, supporting the production of 87 of the leading food crops worldwide.

According to the researchers, studies show that wax and pollen in 98 percent of hives in the U.S. are contaminated with an average of six pesticides, which also lower a bee's immunity to devastating varroa mites and pathogens. 

The research was focused on organophosphate-based insecticides, which account for about a third of the insecticides on the market. Study co-author Professor Scott McArt noted that five insecticides currently pose substantial risks to bees, two of which are organophosphates.

The team developed a uniform pollen-sized microparticle filled with enzymes that detoxify organophosphate insecticides before they are absorbed and harmful to the bees. The particle has a protective casing that allows the enzymes to move past the bee's stomach, where they would normally be broken down.

The microparticles can be mixed with pollen patties or sugar water. Once they the midgut, the enzymes can act to break down and detoxify the organophosphates.

In the lab, bees that were fed the microparticles with a high dose of the enzyme had a 100 percent survival rate after exposure to the insecticide malathion. Meanwhile, unprotected control bees died in a matter of days.

Beemmunity takes the concept one step further. Instead of filling the microparticles with enzymes that break down an insecticide, the particles have a shell made with insect proteins and are filled with a special absorptive oil, creating a kind of micro-sponge. 

Since many insecticides, including widely-used neonicotinoids, are designed to target insect proteins, the microparticle shell draws in the insecticide where it is contained within the casing. Eventually, the sequestered toxins are simply excreted in bee feces. 

"We have a solution whereby beekeepers can feed their bees our microparticle products in pollen patties or in a sugar syrup, and it allows them to detoxify the hive of any pesticides that they might find," said study co-author James Webb, who is also the CEO of Beemmunity.

The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natfood/">Nature Food</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tiny technology protects bees from insecticides

In a new study from Cornell University, experts have developed...

A study from <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">CU Boulder</a> is shedding new light on the link between sleep timing and mental health. The experts report that waking up just one hour earlier could reduce a person's risk of major depression by 23 percent.

In collaboration with researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, the team has uncovered some of the strongest evidence yet that chronotype - a person's propensity to sleep at a certain time - influences depression risk.

The investigation, which was focused on 840,000 people, is among the first of its kind to quantify just how much, or little, change is required to influence mental health.

The findings could have important implications as many people emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic with later sleep schedules.

"We have known for some time that there is a relationship between sleep timing and mood, but a question we often hear from clinicians is: How much earlier do we need to shift people to see a benefit?" said study senior author Professor Celine Vetter. "We found that even one-hour earlier sleep timing is associated with significantly lower risk of depression."

Previous observational studies have shown that night owls are up to twice as likely to suffer from depression as early risers, regardless of sleep duration. However, considering that mood disorders can disrupt sleep patterns, it is difficult to establish which is the cause and which is the effect. 

In 2018, Vetter conducted a long term study of 32,000 nurses which established that "early risers" were up to 27 percent less likely to develop depression over the course of four years. This research prompted the question - what does it mean to be an early riser?

To investigate whether an earlier sleep time is truly protective, as well as how big of a shift is required, study lead author Dr. Iyas Daghlas used data from the DNA testing company 23 and Me and the biomedical database UK Biobank. He applied a method called "Mendelian randomization" to help decipher cause and effect.

"Our genetics are set at birth so some of the biases that affect other kinds of epidemiological research tend not to affect genetic studies," said Dr. Daghlas.

An individual's chronotype is influenced by more than 340 common genetic variants, including variants in the so-called "clock gene" PER2. As much as 42 percent of our sleep timing preference can be attributed to genetics. 

The researchers analyzed genetic data on these variants from up to 850,000 individuals, many of whom had worn wearable sleep trackers for 7 days or filled out sleep-preference questionnaires. This helped to show - down to the hour - how variants in genes influence when we sleep and wake up.

About one third of the participants who were surveyed self-identified as morning larks, 9 percent as night owls, and the rest were in the middle. Overall, the average sleep timing was from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Next, the researchers turned to a different sample which included genetic information along with medical records and surveys about major depressive disorder. They found clear evidence that people with genetic variants which predispose them to be early risers also have lower risk of depression.

For each one-hour earlier sleep midpoint, which is halfway between bedtime and wake time, there was a corresponding with a 23 percent lower risk of major depressive disorder. In other words, if someone who normally goes to bed at 1 a.m. goes to bed at midnight and sleeps the same duration, they could cut their risk by 23 percent. Furthermore, if the individual went to bed at 11 p.m., they could cut the risk of depression by about 40 percent.

One explanation for the results could be greater light exposure during the day, which leads to a cascade of hormonal impacts that can influence mood.

"We live in a society that is designed for morning people, and evening people often feel as if they are in a constant state of misalignment with that societal clock," said Daghlas. 

He emphasized that a large randomized clinical trial is needed to confirm that going to bed early can reduce depression. 

"Keep your days bright and your nights dark. Have your morning coffee on the porch," said Vetter. "Walk or ride your bike to work if you can, and dim those electronics in the evening."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry">JAMA Psychiatry</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Waking up one hour earlier cuts depression risk by 23 percent

A study from CU Boulder is shedding new light on...

A surprising new study has revealed that parasitic infections can extend the life expectancy of worker ants, possibly by slowing down the aging process. The experts report that ants of the species Temnothorax nylanderi infected with a tapeworm live much longer than other worker ants in the same colony. 

"The lifespan of the infected ants is significantly prolonged. According to our observations, such workers have a survival rate similar to that of queens," said Professor Susanne Foitzik of <a href="https://www.uni-mainz.de/eng/">Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz</a> (JGU), who led the research.

According to the researchers, possible explanations for the extended lifespan observed in worker ants may be linked to changes in their physiology caused by the parasites, or to the enhanced care they receive in the nest. 

Some ant queens can survive for several decades, spending almost all of their life tucked away safely in the nest where they are cared for by the workers. By contrast, worker ants live for only for weeks or months, progressing to risky jobs outside of the colony as they grow older, such as foraging for food. 

Queens of the species T. nylanderi can live for up to 20 years, but it is rare for their female workers to reach the age of two. Ant queens live longer thanks to the high levels of social care they receive, a safe environment, and the activation of physiological repair mechanisms. These same factors may actually contribute to the extremely high survival rates of T. nylanderi worker ants with a certain tapeworm infection. 

The ants described in the study form small colonies on the forest floor inside of acorns or wooden branches. The insects serve as an intermediate host for the tapeworm Anomotaenia brevis. A single ant can be infected by up to 70 parasitic larvae, which survive in the body fluid. 

The research team investigated the long-term consequences of the parasitic infection by collecting ant colonies from forests around Mainz and observing them in the laboratory. 

"We tracked the survival rate of the workers and queens in both infected and uninfected ant colonies over three years, until more than 95 percent of the uninfected workers had died," explained Professor Foitzik. 

At that point, over half of the infected workers were still alive. Their survival rate was practically identical to that of long-lived queens. 

"It is quite extraordinary that a parasite can trigger such a positive change in its host. This lifespan extension is very unusual."

The infected workers turn a light yellow color that makes them easy to distinguish from their brown nest-mates. The ants with parasites are also less active, and receive care from other workers in the nest. 

"The infected insects get more attention and are fed, cleaned, and looked after better. They even benefit from slightly more care than the nest's queen," explained Professor Foitzik. 

Remarkably, the infected ants were found to have metabolic rates and lipid levels similar to those of younger ants, suggesting that they remain in a permanent juvenile stage as a result of the parasitic infection. According to the experts, this is likely because the tapeworm larvae alter the expression of ant genes that affect aging, and also due to parasites' release of proteins containing antioxidants.

The researchers found no evidence that the insects actively beg for enhanced care. However, chemical signals on the cuticle of infected ants were found to elicit more attention from their nest-mates. 

"The infected insects live a life of luxury, but the fact that they receive more social care cannot alone account for their prolonged lifespan," concluded Foitzik. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rsos">Royal Society Open Science</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Parasites help worker ants live longer lives

A surprising new study has revealed that parasitic infections can...

Galapagos,Islands.,Galapagos,Tortoise.,Big,Turtle.,Ecuador.

A new study from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> has shown that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/microplastics-found-in-the-remote-vatnajokull-glacier/">plastic</a> pollution has invaded nearly every marine habitat examined in the Galapagos Islands. Microplastics were found in all of the invertebrate species tested, and in all of the seabed and seawater samples.

Study lead author Dr. Jen Jones said the research highlights how far plastic pollution travels, and how it contaminates every part of marine ecosystems.

"Given the level of pollution we have found in this remote location, it's clear that plastic pollution needs to stop at source. You can't fix the problem just by cleaning beaches," said Dr. Jones. 

In collaboration with the Galapagos Conservation Trust (GCT), the researchers focused their investigation on San Cristobal, where Charles Darwin first landed in Galapagos. 

Across the most polluted areas, including a beach used by the rare "Godzilla" marine iguana, more than 400 plastic particles were found per square meter of beach. 

The findings suggest that most of the plastic pollution in Galapagos arrives from elsewhere on ocean currents.

"The pristine image of Galapagos might give the impression that the islands are somehow protected from plastic pollution, but our study clearly shows that's not the case," said study co-author Dr. Ceri Lewis of Exeter's Global Systems Institute.

"The highest levels of plastic we found were on east-facing beaches, which are exposed to pollution carried across the eastern Pacific on the Humboldt Current."

"These east-facing beaches include Punta Pitt, a highly polluted site that is home to Godzilla marine iguanas which - like so much Galapagos wildlife - are found nowhere else in the world."

"There are less than 500 Godzilla marine iguanas in existence, and it's concerning that they are living alongside this high level of plastic pollution."

Dr. Jones noted that the potential health effects of plastic ingestion on marine animals are largely unknown, and more research is needed. "These animals are a crucial part of food webs that support the larger species that famously live on and around the Galapagos Islands," she said. 

All seven marine invertebrate species examined for the study were found to contain microplastics. Overall, 52 percent of the 123 individuals tested had ingested plastic.

Of the larger plastic pieces, only two percent were identified as coming from the Galapagos Islands. These "macroplastics," which are items and fragments larger than five millimeters, were found at 13 of 14 sandy beaches studied, with 4,610 items collected in total.

Furthermore, the study revealed that significant amounts of plastic have accumulated in key habitats including rocky lava shores and mangroves.

Based on the IUCN conservation status of each particular Galapagos species, and also based on where each species can be found across the islands, the experts identified 27 species in need of urgent monitoring and mitigation.

"This situation is only going to get worse if we don't dramatically change our use of plastics," said study co-author Dr. David Santillo.

The experts have also identified marine vertebrates in the Galapagos that have the highest risk of swallowing plastic or getting entangled, including scalloped hammerheads, whale sharks, sea lions, and sea turtles.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/science-of-the-total-environment">Science of the Total Environment</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Plastics are accumulating in nearly every habitat of Galapagos

A new study from the University of Exeter has shown...

Smoke particles preserved in the ice core record show that more fires were burning in the Southern Hemisphere during pre-industrial times than previously thought. The discovery modifies our understanding of the heat-trapping effects of greenhouse gas emissions and of future global warming. 

Study first author Pengfei Liu is a former graduate student and postdoctoral fellow at the <a href="https://www.seas.harvard.edu/">Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences</a> (SEAS).

"Up until now, the magnitude of past fire activity, and thus the amount of smoke in the preindustrial atmosphere, has not been well characterized," said Liu. 

"These results have importance for understanding the evolution of climate change from the 1750s until today, and for predicting future climate."

When it comes to predicting future climate change, one of the biggest uncertainties is how fast surface temperatures will rise in response to greenhouse gases. Forecasting these temperatures involves the calculation of competing warming and cooling effects in the atmosphere. 

Heat-trapping greenhouse gases trigger global warming, while aerosols from volcanoes and fires block the sunlight and cool the planet. To validate today's climate models, scientists rely on estimates of these heating and cooling effects. However, the amount of smoke aerosols in the pre-industrial atmosphere is not well documented. 

To model smoke in the pre-industrial Southern Hemisphere, the researchers focused on Antarctica, where smoke particles emitted from fires in Australia, Africa, and South America remain trapped in the ice.  

Study co-authors Joseph McConnell and Nathan Chellman are ice core scientists at the Desert Research Institute in Nevada. They measured soot, a key component of smoke, deposited in 14 ice cores from across the continent.

"Soot deposited in glacier ice directly reflects past atmospheric concentrations so well-dated ice cores provide the most reliable long-term records," said McConnell.

According to study senior author Loretta Mickley, what the experts found in the ice core record was unexpected. "While most studies have assumed less fire took place in the pre-industrial era, the ice cores suggested a much fierier past, at least in the Southern Hemisphere."

To account for the levels of smoke estimated from the ice cores, the researchers ran computer simulations including wildfires and the burning practices of Indigenous people.

"The computer simulations of fire show that the atmosphere of the Southern Hemisphere could have been very smoky in the century before the Industrial Revolution," explained study co-author Professor Jed Kaplan.

"Soot concentrations in the atmosphere were up to four times greater than previous studies suggested. Most of this was caused by widespread and regular burning practiced by Indigenous peoples in the pre-colonial period."

This idea is supported by the ice core records, which show that soot was abundant before the start of the industrial era and has remained relatively constant through the 20th century. The results of computer simulations suggest that emissions from industry increased as land use changes decreased fire activity.

The findings indicate that climate models have overestimated the warming effect of greenhouse gas emissions by underestimating the cooling effect of smoke particles in pre-industrial times. 

"Climate scientists have known that the most recent generation of climate models have been overestimating surface temperature sensitivity to greenhouse gasses, but we haven't known why or by how much," said Liu. "This research offers a possible explanation."

"Clearly the world is warming but the key question is how fast will it warm as greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. This research allows us to refine our predictions moving forward," said Mickley.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://advances.sciencemag.org/">Science Advances</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Earth's fiery past revealed in ice core record

Smoke particles preserved in the ice core record show that...

River otters in Brazil use a complex range of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dogs-appear-to-get-jealous-over-their-owners-affection/">vocalizations</a> to communicate, according to a new study published by <a href="https://plos.org/">PLOS</a>. The researchers identified six clearly distinguishable call types at frequencies ranging from 90 to 2500 Hz.

Among 13 species of otters, some are completely solitary while others are highly sociable. The giant otter is known to use a complex collection of vocalizations., but the social calls of the other species have remained largely unknown. 

"Most aquatic mammals have complex social and communication systems. Interestingly, little is known about otters’ vocal communication compared to other aquatic mammals," wrote the study authors. 

"Here, for the first time, we acoustically describe vocalizations of the neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis), a solitary and endangered New World otter species."

For their investigation, the researchers observed the behavior of six captive river otters on Santa Catarina Island in Brazil. Overall, they analyzed nearly 1,000 calls.

"We used 422 high-quality recorded calls, along with 990 call occurrences including behavioral context to establish the vocal repertoire of the neotropical river otter," wrote the study authors. "The vocal repertoire was classified into six call types: chirps, squeaks, chuckles, growls, hahs and screams."

The calls identified by the experts, as well as the range of frequencies, were found to be used in different social contexts. For example, high-frequency chirps and low-frequency chuckles were primarily used by males to reaffirm social bonds or to beg for food.

Females often produced low-amplitude squeaks during social grooming, and "hahs" to express alarm or surprise at a new object. They also used high-frequency screams to complain, both during play and in more aggressive contexts. 

Both males and females frequently used low-pitch growls in disputes over food or individual space.

According to the study authors, a better understanding of the vocalizations of neotropical river otters could enable conservationists to make use of acoustic recordings to monitor this elusive endangered species.

"The neotropical river otter has a rich vocal repertoire, with at least six distinct call types, similar in complexity to other solitary otter species but less complex than that of the social giant otter. Despite differences in sociality, phylogeny and ecology, L. longicaudis seems to possess vocalizations homologous to those found in other otters (e.g. hah and chirp), suggesting phylogenetic inertia in the otter communicative repertoire."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Neotropical river otters use complex vocalizations

River otters in Brazil use a complex range of vocalizations...

A study led by investigators at <a href="https://www.bidmc.org/">Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center</a> (BIDMC) is providing new insight into why the benefits of the same exercise can vary among individuals. The research could be helpful for identifying new therapeutic targets for diseases related to metabolism.

"While groups as a whole benefit from exercise, the variability in responses between any two individuals undergoing the very same exercise regimen is actually quite striking, explained study senior author Dr. Robert E. Gerszten, Chief of the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at BIDMC.

"For example, some may experience improved endurance while others will see improved blood sugar levels. To date, no aspects of an individual's baseline clinical profile allow us to predict beforehand who is most likely to derive a significant cardiorespiratory fitness benefit from exercise training."

To investigate how the effects of exercise may differ from one person to the next, the researchers analyzed the blood levels of approximately 5,000 proteins in 650 sedentary adults before and after a 20-week physical fitness program.

"We were particularly interested at looking at proteins in the blood to study the effects of exercise because there is a growing body of evidence showing that exercise stimulates the secretion of chemicals into circulation that can impart their effects on distant organs," said study first author Dr. Jeremy Robbins.

Initially, 147 proteins in the blood indicated an individual's cardiorespiratory fitness, or VO2max. Another set of 102 proteins indicated an individual's change in VO2max after completing the exercise program.

"We identified proteins that emanate from bone, muscle, and blood vessels that are strongly related to cardiorespiratory fitness and had never been previously associated with exercise training responses," said Dr. Gerszten.

"Even though prior studies have shown that an individual's baseline fitness level is unrelated to their response to exercise training, it was fascinating to see that there was minimal overlap between the protein profiles of baseline VO2max and its response to the exercise training intervention," said Dr. Robbins.

Based on their findings, the researchers developed a protein score that predicts an individual's trainability, or change in VO2max. This score could be used to pinpoint individuals who are unable to significantly improve their cardiorespiratory fitness. 

"Baseline levels of several proteins predicted who would respond to the exercise training protocol far better than any of our established patient factors," explained Dr. Gerszten.

In a separate trial, the experts discovered that some of these proteins were associated with an elevated risk of premature death. This highlights the link between cardiorespiratory fitness and long-term health outcomes.

"We now have a detailed list of new blood compounds that further inform our understanding of the biology of fitness and exercise adaptation, and predict individual responses to a given exercise regimen," said Dr. Gerszten. 

"While no pill is ever likely to recapitulate the diversity of benefits from exercise, our study has helped create a roadmap to further explore potential interventions and provides an important step in individualizing exercise as a therapy." 

Dr. Gerszten noted that additional research is needed to better understand the precise effects of the different proteins before and after exercise.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natmetab/">Nature Metabolism</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Why do some people benefit more from exercise than others?

A study led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical...

In a new study from the <a href="https://www.medschool.umaryland.edu/">University of Maryland School of Medicine</a> (UMSOM), researchers have found that each city has its own unique collection of bacteria and viruses. The findings are based on the analysis of 4,728 samples from cities on six continents taken over the course of three years.

The experts sequenced and analyzed samples collected from both public transit systems and hospitals in 60 cities around the world. 

The research, which was conducted by an international team of experts, is considered to be the largest-ever global study of urban microbiomes. The microbial species identified include thousands of viruses and bacteria and two newly identified single-cell organisms.

Study co-author Dr. Lynn Schriml is an associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology &amp; Public Health at the Institute for Genome Sciences (IGS), at UMSOM, who led the study sampling efforts for Baltimore's transit systems. 

"Baltimore's distinct microbial signature reveals a unique, fascinating, and diverse world, providing insights into geographical variation and previously unknown microbial genomes," said Dr. Schriml.

Study senior author Dr. Christopher Mason is a professor at Weill Cornell Medicine and the director of the WorldQuant Initiative for Quantitative Prediction.

"Every city has its own 'molecular echo' of the microbes that define it. If you gave me your shoe, I could tell you with about 90 percent accuracy the city in the world from which you came," said Dr. Mason.

The researchers are now looking at how the COVID-19 pandemic may have affected the microbiome fingerprint of each city. 

In 2020, the team launched the MetaCOV project in 2020 to investigate the change in urban metagenomes and isolate the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in urban environments, such as ATM machines, hospitals, and transit systems.

In addition to distinct microbial signatures in various cities, the analysis revealed a core set of 31 species that were found in 97 percent of samples across the sampled urban areas, according to the researchers.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Cities have their own unique collection of bacteria and viruses

In a new study from the University of Maryland School...

In a new study from the <a href="https://microbiologysociety.org/">Microbiology Society</a>, researchers are describing a previously unknown type of bacteria that causes a fatal wilt disease in palms. 

The experts discovered the new bacteria species, Candidatus Phytoplasma dypsidis, while investigating a disease outbreak in a botanical garden in Queensland, Australia.

A few years ago, several ornamental palms in the Cairns Botanic Gardens died mysteriously. Dr. Richard Davis and colleagues from the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment analyzed a sample from one of the diseased plants.

Genetic testing showed that the bacterium was similar to other species of Candidatus Phytoplasma, many of which are responsible for disease epidemics in palms elsewhere. However, the new strain was different enough to be distinguished as an independent species. 

"When the laboratory testing indicated it was something close to, but not the same as, devastating palm pathogens overseas, we were very surprised," said Dr Davis.

"At first we thought it was most likely an unrelated fungal disease. Almost as an afterthought, I suggested we screen for phytoplasma because there are some very bad phytoplasma diseases of palms moving around the world, including in neighboring Papua New Guinea."

So far, Candidatus Phytoplasma dypsidis has infected 12 different species of palms, including Cocos nucifera, which produces coconuts. 

"Although palms are not grown as a cash crop in Australia, they are important ornamental garden and amenity plants. Coconuts and other palms are an economically significant component of Australia's tourism industry in the tropics," said Dr Davis.

"Palms take on a much greater significance in most of the countries near Australia, in south east Asia and the Pacific, where coconuts are 'the tree of life'. It is important to raise awareness of a new disease threat, such as this, so that regional biosecurity measures can be prioritized."

The experts speculate that the bacteria and wilt disease is being spread from plant to plant by insects which feed on phloem, the tissue which transports nutrients around the plant. 

"It seems certain from our observations of how this thing has spread through the local area, that there must be an insect vector. Finding out what vector species are involved is a vital next research priority."

"Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific island countries and territories have an enviable plant and animal health status compared to much of the rest of the world. Because we are islands, we have escaped many significant plant disease threats that have traveled around the world, over history," explained Dr. Davis.

"As biosecurity plant pathologists for the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, our team's main role is to look out for and detect incursions of exotic plant pathogens. We usually do this in remote parts of Australia's north, so to come across something much closer to home in the suburbs of Cairns, in far North Queensland, Australia, was unusual. However, we have no evidence to suggest this is an incursion from overseas because it is a unique organism. It may well be indigenous to Australia and some as yet unknown factor has triggered a disease outbreak."

Dr. Davis is concerned that the new wilting disease could spread outside of Cairns and affect palm populations further north. "North of Cairns, we have threatened ecological communities of fan palms which are of great environmental significance." 

The researchers will continue to monitor the spread of Candidatus Phytoplasma dypsidis, and will investigate a number of questions that remain, such as whether the bacteria is capable of infecting other types of plants, including bananas and other crops.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/ijsem">International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Newly discovered bacteria causes fatal wilt disease in palms

In a new study from the Microbiology Society, researchers are...

To investigate reproductive success in seabirds, researchers have analyzed more than 50 years of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/murrelets-rely-on-each-other-to-find-breeding-sites/">breeding</a> records for 67 species worldwide. The study shows that many seabirds in the Northern Hemisphere are struggling to breed, and the conditions in the Southern Hemisphere are beginning to follow suit.

The experts report that reproductive success has decreased over the past half century for fish-eating seabirds north of the equator. The greater impacts in this region are tied to climate change and human activities, like overfishing.

Study co-author P. Dee Boersma is the director of the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels and a professor of Biology at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a>. She noted that many scientists view seabirds as sentinels of habitat health because their lives and well-being depend on sound conditions both on land and at sea.

"Seabirds travel long distances - some going from one hemisphere to the other - chasing their food in the ocean," said Professor Boersma. "This makes them very sensitive to changes in things like ocean productivity, often over a large area."

Furthermore, seabirds congregate at particular sites along coasts to breed and rear their young, which makes them vulnerable to changing shore and surface conditions and restricts how far they can travel for food while still successfully raising their chicks, explained Professor Boersma.

The research shows that the diets of seabirds play a major role in their ability to rear chicks. Reproductive success was found to decline among fish-eating seabirds in the north, and also among surface-feeding birds in both hemispheres, over the course of the study period. 

The experts believe that changing environmental conditions are to blame. Climate change is causing more frequent and more extreme events like heat waves. A long term marine heat wave in 2015-2016 caused one million murres to starve to death. In the ocean, seabirds face other threats as well.

"They have to compete with us for food. They can get caught in our fishing nets. They eat our plastic, which they think is food," said Professor Boersma. "All of these factors can kill off large numbers of long-lived seabirds."

"What's also at stake is the health of fish populations such as salmon and cod, as well as marine mammals and large invertebrates, such as squid, that are eating the same small forage fish and plankton that seabirds eat," said study co-author William Sydeman of the Farallon Institute. 

"When seabirds aren't doing well, this is a red flag that something bigger is happening below the ocean's surface which is concerning because we depend on healthy oceans for quality of life."

The team found high variability in reproductive success among species, which means that additional research is needed to understand all the factors that shape feeding and breeding among seabirds.

"By knowing what is important to a species for success, we can make the world a better place for its survival," said Professor Boersma.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Declining reproductive success in seabirds is a red flag for ocean health

To investigate reproductive success in seabirds, researchers have analyzed more...

Wild elephants pay close attention to scent trails of dung and urine that have been left behind by other elephants, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> and <a href="https://www.elephantsforafrica.org/">Elephants for Africa</a>.

"When animals move along well-established pathways, sensory cues along the path may provide valuable information concerning other individuals that have used the same route. Yet the extent to which animals use pathways as sources of public social information is poorly understood," explained the study authors. 

"Here we quantified the responses of wild African savannah elephants, Loxodonta africana, to olfactory information along natural elephant pathways, habitual routes that link predictable critical resources in the environment."

The researchers found that the African savannah elephants were "highly attentive" as they traveled, sniffing and tracking the trail with their trunks. This was especially true of those traveling alone.

The experts said their findings indicate that scents act as a type of "public information resource" for wild elephants. 

Further research is needed to investigate the potential for artificial elephant trails to be used to steer the animals away from farms and villages, where human-elephant conflict can cause devastation. 

Scent trails could also be created to improve the efficiency of routes connecting elephant populations between protected areas.

"Our findings suggest an important role of an elephant's sense of smell in long-distance navigation," said study lead author Connie Allen. "As elephants follow these trails, they deposit their own urine and dung, which reinforces the pathway's presence for future elephants."

"We see great potential for these findings to be applied to elephant management and conservation - primarily as a method for manipulating elephant movements."

Allen noted that the study was conducted in Botswana, where the main threat to elephants is conflict with humans.

"By removing the existing scent paths that lead elephants to close contact with humans in problem areas, and redirecting them, perhaps we could reduce such conflicts happening."

The study also revealed that urine deposits from adults were more likely to attract attention than that of younger elephants.

"African elephants may therefore be able to discern the age and maturity of individuals they can expect to encounter from remote urine cues on pathways," said Allen.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-behavior">Animal Behavior</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Wild elephants track the scents of others in their path

Wild elephants pay close attention to scent trails of dung...

An international team of researchers has discovered amounts of highly toxic mercury in the deepest trenches of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/salmon-virus-has-spread-from-the-atlantic-to-the-pacific/">Pacific</a> Ocean that exceed any value ever recorded in remote marine sediments. 

The experts report that the mercury levels which have accumulated in the remote Pacific are even higher than in many areas that are directly contaminated by industrial releases.

The researchers have obtained the first-ever direct measurements of mercury deposition in one of the most challenging environments to sample on Earth.

Study lead author Professor Hamed Sanei is the director of the Lithospheric Organic Carbon Laboratory (LOC) in the Department of Geoscience at <a href="https://international.au.dk/">Aarhus University </a>. 

"The bad news is that these high mercury levels may be representative of the collective increase in anthropogenic emissions of Hg into our oceans," said Professor Sanei. "But the good news is that ocean trenches act as a permanent dump, and so we can expect the mercury that does end up there will be buried for many millions of years. Plate tectonics will carry these sediments deep into the earth's upper mantle."

"But even as mercury is being removed from the biosphere, it remains quite alarming how much mercury has ended up in the ocean trenches. This may be an indicator of the overall health of our oceans."

Study co-author Dr. Peter Outridge is a research scientist with Natural Resources Canada and the lead author of the United Nations' Global Mercury Assessment.

"The results of this research help fulfill a key knowledge gap in the mercury cycle, i.e. the true rate of mercury removal from the global environment into deep-ocean sediments," said Dr. Outridge. "We have shown that sediments in the ocean trenches are mercury accumulation 'hotspots,' with mercury accumulation rates many times higher than were previously believed to be present."

Study co-author Professor Ronnie Glud, the director of the Hadal Centre at the University of Southern Denmark, was the scientific leader of a multi-national expedition to the ocean trenches. 

"This paper calls for extensive additional sampling of the deep-ocean and in particular hadal trenches to support this preliminary work," said Professor Glud.

"Ultimately this will improve the accuracy of environmental mercury models and the management of global mercury pollution."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mercury levels found in remote Pacific trenches are unprecedented

An international team of researchers has discovered amounts of highly...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Kainji Lake, a reservoir on the Niger River.



In 1968, Kainji Lake was created by the construction of the Kainji Dam. The Niger River, the third longest in Africa, enters the lake in the north.&nbsp;



According to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rivers-in-the-american-west-are-a-lifesaving-resource-for-birds/">ESA</a>, the creation of the lake submerged Foge Island and the town of Bussa and permanently flooded other riverine settlements, leaving around 50,000 people displaced.&nbsp;



Large parts of Foge Island are temporarily exposed during low water tides, and the land is often used by migrating fishermen. Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in Niger State of Central Nigeria. 



Wild mammals occur at relatively low densities due to illegal hunting. Lake Kainji has suffered a dramatic decline as a fishery due to the high numbers of artisanal and subsistence fisherfolk using the lake. It has been suggested that a period of closure, together with controlled fishing rights may help improve fish stocks.



Kainji Lake National Park is the oldest of its kind in Nigeria. The park contains three distinct areas: a part of the Kainji Lake, the Borgu Game Reserve to the west of the lake, and the Zugurma Game Reserve to the southeast. The park is home to around 65 mammal species, 350 bird species, and 30 species of reptiles and amphibians. 



Video/ Image Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.igb.illinois.edu/">Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology</a> reveals how scientists can modify common crops like soybean, rice, and wheat to protect them from heat stress.



“We need to double crop production by 2050 to feed a growing global population, and not only are we not on track to do that, but climate change is further complicating things,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a lecturer at the University of Essex. 



The study is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), an international research project that aims to develop food crops that turn the sun’s energy into food more efficiently.



“Using an engineering approach we designed multiple alternative metabolic pathways to photorespiration. Testing them in the field showed increases in productivity which led Amanda to significantly move the project forward by showing our engineered plants can withstand pretty extreme temperature stress,” said study co-author and RIPE researcher Paul South.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes and temperature stresses increase the pressure on our global food supply, farmers will need every tool available including engineering approaches like the synthetic biology used here to maintain safe and productive harvests.”



The experts tested plants modified to have more efficient photorespiration to see if they were better adapted to warmer temperatures.&nbsp;



The team found that the engineered plants produced 26 percent more biomass than the wild-type plants exposed to the same temperatures, and had 15 percent less yield loss under the higher temperatures.



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Designing crops that can beat the heat

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes the first comprehensive estimate of carbon density in the Saharan, Sahel, and Sudanian zones of Africa. In an effort to measure the amount of carbon stored across these drylands, a team of scientists used high-resolution satellite images and artificial intelligence to map nearly 10 billion individual trees. 



"The high spatial resolution (50 cm) combined with AI and field measurements used in this study is key to improving tree inventories in drylands," said Pierre Hiernaux, a French researcher working for NASA. "The ever-increasing availability of very high-resolution satellite imagery will make it possible to assess carbon pools and their dynamics at the individual tree level on a global scale."



"This study is exceptional because it is pioneering a type of approach that will revolutionize the monitoring of trees and forests on a global scale: in the short term, it will be possible to map the world's trees from the centre of the Amazon to our schoolyards," said <a href="https://www.inrae.fr/en">INRAE</a> researcher Jean-Pierre Wigneron.



"Many fields of application will become much more efficient and accurate, such as tracking carbon stocks, biodiversity, monitoring logging and protection against illegal forest degradation, in near real time.”



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



"Methane is an important greenhouse gas that contributes substantially to global warming. On a molecule by molecule basis, methane is much more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the main driver of warming," says NASA.



"Though human activities, including agriculture, oil and natural gas production and use, and waste disposal, collectively contribute the majority of methane to the atmosphere, about a third of total methane emissions comes from wetlands."&nbsp;



According to NASA, understanding methane emissions from wetlands and other natural sources is critically important for scientists and policymakers who are working to combat climate change by reducing emissions from human activities.



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes why experts are studying zebrafish to gain a better understanding of how the immune system responds to injury. Zebrafish have the ability to repair and regenerate organs.



“Organ regeneration offers an exciting opportunity for studying the immune system and to inquire why some species can regenerate organs like the heart or missing limbs while others like humans cannot,” explained Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski.



Zebrafish sensory organ hair cells are an ideal system to investigate the pathways and cell types involved in regeneration since they are easily destroyed with antibiotics and begin regenerating within five hours. This enabled the researchers to identify the exact timing and genetic programs for each anti-inflammatory macrophage activation state.&nbsp;



“Our hypothesis is that human macrophages do not receive the proper chemical activation 'cocktail' to instruct pro-regenerative processes,” said Dr. Nicolas Denans. “Identifying the molecular recipe of macrophage activation in zebrafish may one day enable us to design regenerative immunotherapies in humans.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The new evidence is a valuable resource for comparative studies on the genetic programs involved in macrophage-mediated repair and regeneration. In other words, different types of injuries may induce different kinds of inflammatory responses. We want to decipher whether this 'language' is universal or if there are a variety of dialects."



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How the immune system responds to injury

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes how record-breaking heat expressed itself around the world in 2022.



Scientists have determined that 2022 was the 5th warmest year since 1880. Furthermore, the last nine consecutive years have been the warmest on record.



From devastating floods and wildfires to natural disasters like Hurricane Ian, 2022 showed us yet again how a warming climate affects people across the globe.&nbsp;



"As we look back at 20:22 and years past, we see that each year we better understand the challenges we face and how important it is to meet them," says NASA.



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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