Knowledge Update

London, April 20 (IANS) Human limbs share a genetic programme with the respiratory organs of fishes such as sharks and skates, reveals a new research, providing evidence to support a century-old, widely discounted theory on the origin of limbs.

German anatomist Karl Gegenbaur, in 1878, first proposed the theory that human limbs were evolved from gills -- respiratory organs of sharks and skates. 

These fishes have a series of skin flaps -- that protect their gills -- and are supported by arches of cartilage -- a connective tissue found joints between bones -- with finger-like appendages called branchial rays attached to them.Investigation into the embryos of the little skates -- cartilaginous fishes -- revealed striking similarities between the genetic mechanisms used in the development of its gill arches and those in human limbs.

The researchers found 'sonic hedgehog' -- a critical gene in limb development -- performing the same two functions in the development of gill arches and branchial rays in skate embryos as it does in the development of limbs in mammal embryos.In mammal embryos, the Sonic hedgehog gene sets up the axis of the limb in the early stages of development. 

In human limb development, it dictates the identity of each finger and maintains the growth of the limb skeleton.In the later stages of development, Sonic hedgehog maintains outgrowth so that the limb grows to its full size."In a hand, for instance, Sonic hedgehog tells the limb which side will be the thumb and which side will be the pinky finger," said Andrew Gillis from the University of Cambridge in Britain. 

The study, detailed in the journal Development, provides greater understanding of the origin of jawed vertebrates -- the group of animals that includes humans.

"Gegenbaur looked at the way that these branchial rays connect to the gill arches and noticed that it looks very similar to the way that the fin and limb skeleton articulates with the shoulder," Gillis explained.​

Washington, April 20 (IANS) March was the 11th consecutive month a monthly global temperature record was broken, the longest such streak since record-keeping began in 1880, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said.

"At the risk of sounding like a broken record, March set another heat record for the globe," Xinhua quoted the NOAA as saying in a statement on Tuesday.

"As Earth continues to warm and is influenced by phenomena such as El Nino, global temperature records are piling up."

For March, the average temperature across global land and ocean surfaces was 1.22 degrees Celsius above the 20th century average of 12.7 degrees Celsius, according to the NOAA monthly report.

This was not only the highest for the month of March in the 1880-2016 record, but also the highest monthly temperature departure among all months on record, surpassing the previous all-time record set last month by 0.01 degrees Celsius.

Most of the Earth's land surfaces were warmer or much warmer than average in March, said the report, with record warmth notable across eastern Brazil, most of eastern and central Africa, much of southeastern Asia, and large portions of northern and eastern Australia.

Most of northwestern Canada and Alaska, along with vast regions of northern and western Asia, observed temperatures at least three degrees Celsius above their 1981-2010 average.

The weather phenomenon called El Nino continued to weaken in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean during March, but the month globally averaged sea surface temperature remained 0.81 degrees Celsius above the 20th century monthly average, also a record high.

In total, "the six highest monthly global ocean temperature departures have all occurred in the past six months," the report said.

For the first three months in 2016, the average temperature for the globe was 1.50 degrees Celsius above the 20th-century average.

This was also the highest temperature for this period in the 1880-2016 record, surpassing the previous record set in 2015 by 0.28 degrees Celsius.​

​London, April 20 (IANS) Shakespeare is more popular globally than with people in Britain though the bard has made a significant contribution to Britain's economy and culture, a new research revealed on Tuesday.

According to a new survey "All the World's", commissioned by the British Council and conducted by YouGov, the great playwright has been proved more popular outside Britain (65 percent) than in his own country (59 percent), Xinhua reported.

A total of 18,000 respondents in 15 countries participated in the survey in November 2015. Survey showed only 59 percent British people like Shakespeare, while 68 percent Chinese respondents like him.

The top five countries "like Shakespeare" are India (89 percent) , Mexico (88 percent), Brazil (87 percent), Turkey (79 percent) and South Africa (73 percent). Scores of France and Germany were the lowest, with 51 percent and 44 percent, respectively.

The survey also revealed that 84 percent of Brazilians said they found him relevant to today's world, compared with 57 percent in Britain. Meanwhile, 83 percent of Indian respondents said they understood Shakespeare, however, in Britain, only 58 percent of respondents said so.

Contributable factors for the results included Shakespeare's works being translated into more contemporary editions and adaptation into other formats, said British Council.

This new research also underlined the continued importance and relevance of Shakespeare in the 21st century. Over a third of those questioned said Shakespeare made them feel more positive about Britain in general.

Previous research conducted by the British Council in 2014 showed that Shakespeare was the leading personality that 18 to 34 year olds in Brazil, China, Germany, India and the US most identified with contemporary British arts and culture.​

​New York, April 12 (IANS) Scientists have created a new, low-cost approach to build a knee model for studying knee pain and impaired mobility.

The reconstructed knee model closely simulates the movement of the patella (kneecap) observed in cadaver knee models. 

Because the kneecap acts like a shield for knee joint, it can easily be broken. Falling directly onto the knee is a common cause of patellar fractures. 

Researchers Gian Luca Gervasi, Roberto Tiribuzi and a team from the University of Ioannina, Greece and Giuliano Cerulli from Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Italy used a motion tracking system to measure the position of the patella as different loads and forces were applied to the knee model at various degrees of flexion.

They used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of a real knee to develop the computer-aided design software files used by a 3D printer to create the three main components of the knee and a navigation system for combining them with artificial ligaments and a tendon.

The team presented the results of static experiments in the study published in the journal 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing.​

​New York, April 20 (IANS) The presence of certain bacteria in the mouth is likely to identify the risk for pancreatic cancer and enable earlier and precise treatment in patients, finds new research.

Pancreatic cancer patients are known to be vulnerable to gum disease, cavities, and poor oral health in general, said the team from New York University.

The findings showed that bacterial changes in the mouth could potentially show us who are at the risk of developing pancreatic cancer.

"Our study offers the first direct evidence that specific changes in the microbial mix in the mouth represent a likely risk factor for pancreatic cancer along with older age, male gender, smoking and a family history of the disease," said one of the researchers Jiyoung Ahn, associate professor and epidemiologist.

Men and women whose oral microbiomes included Porphyromonas gingivalis - an anaerobic bacteria -- had an overall 59 percent greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer than those whose microbiomes did not contain the bacterium. 

Similarly, people whose oral microbiomes contained Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans -- bacteria often found in association with periodontitis -- were at least 50 percent more likely overall to develop the disease. 

Both types of bacteria have been tied to diseases such as periodontitis or inflammation of the gums.

According to previous research, cigarette smoking was also linked to changes in the amount and mix of bacteria in the oral microbiome. 

For the study, the researchers compared bacterial contents in mouthwash samples from 361 men and women who developed pancreatic cancer with samples from 371 people of similar age who did not. 

The team cautioned that further research is needed to determine if there is any cause-and-effect relationship.

The findings were recently presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research held in New Orleans, US.​

Washington, April 12 (IANS) A team of scientists has developed a new refined tool to search for exoplanets orbiting distant stars or other planetary detections.

One of the most successful techniques to find and confirm planets is called the radial velocity method.

A planet is obviously influenced by the gravity of the star it orbits; that's what keeps it in orbit.

This technique takes advantage of the fact that the planet's gravity also affects the star in return.

As a result, astronomers are able to detect the tiny wobbles the planet induces as its gravity tugs on the star. Using this method, astronomers have detected hundreds of exoplanets.

For certain kinds of low-mass stars, there are limitations to the standard radial velocity method that may find something that looks like a planet but is not.

To address this issue, the team from Carnegie Mellon University, California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Missouri State University decided to use the radial velocity technique but they examined a different, longer wavelength of light.

"Switching from the visible spectrum to the near-infrared, the wobble effect caused by an orbiting planet will remain the same regardless of wavelength," explained Jonathan Gagne from Carnegie.

But looking in the near-infrared will allow us to reject false positives caused by sunspots and other phenomena that will not look the same in near-infrared as they do in visible light, he added.

The research team was able to develop a better calibration tool to improve the overall technology for near-infrared radial velocity work which should make it a better option going forward.

They examined 32 low-mass stars using this technological upgrade att he NASA Infrared Telescope Facility atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii.

The findings confirmed several known planets and binary systems and also identified a few new planetary candidates.

“Our results indicate that this planet-hunting tool is precise and should be a part of the mix of approaches used by astronomers going forward,” added Caltech's Peter Gao in a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal.​

New York, April 12 (IANS) In a first, a team of US researchers has created a bio-solar panel that can generate 5.59 microwatts of energy - a big step in the evolution of bacteria-powered energy to run small devices in remote areas where regular battery replacement is not possible.

"Once a functional bio-solar panel becomes available, it could become a permanent power source for supplying long-term power for small, wireless telemetry systems as well as wireless sensors used at remote sites where frequent battery replacement is impractical," said study co-author Seokheun "Sean" Choi from Binghamton University. 

The researchers connected nine biological-solar (bio-solar) cells in a 3x3 pattern to make a scalable and stackable bio-solar panel. 

The panel continuously generated electricity from photosynthesis and respiratory activities of the bacteria in 12-hour day-night cycles over 60 hours.

"This research could also enable crucial understanding of the photosynthetic extracellular electron transfer processes in a smaller group of microorganisms with excellent control over the microenvironment, thereby enabling a versatile platform for fundamental bio-solar cell studies," Choi noted.

A typical "traditional" solar panel on the roof of a residential house, made up of 60 cells in a 6x10 configuration, generates roughly 200 watts of electrical power at a given moment. 

The cells from this study, in a similar configuration, would generate about 0.00003726 watts. So it isn't efficient just yet but the findings open the door to future research of the bacteria itself.

"The metabolic pathways of cyanobacteria or algae are only partially understood, and their significantly low power density and low energy efficiency make them unsuitable for practical applications," noted Choi in a paper published in the journal Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical.

"There is a need for additional basic research to clarify bacterial metabolism and energy production potential for bio-solar applications," he added.​

New York, April 12 (IANS) Young smokers please take note! Smokers face more problems in finding a job and when they do find a job, they earn considerably less than their non-smoker peers, says an interesting study.

The findings showed that at 12 months, only 27 percent of smokers had found jobs compared with 56 percent of non-smokers. Among those who had found jobs by 12 months, smokers earned on average 5 US dollars less per hour than non-smokers.

"We found that smokers had a much harder time finding work than non-smokers," said lead study author Judith Prochaska from Stanford University Medical Center in the US.

The team surveyed 131 unemployed smokers and 120 unemployed non-smokers at the beginning of the study and then at six and 12 months. 

"The health harms of smoking have been established for decades and our study here provides insight into the financial harms of smoking both in terms of lower re-employment success and lower wages," Prochaska added in a paper published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

They used survey questions and a breath test for carbon monoxide levels to classify job seekers into either daily smokers or non-smokers. 

Smokers were on average younger, less educated and in poorer health than non-smokers. 

"Such differences might influence job seekers' ability to find work," Prochaska stated.

After controlling for these variables, smokers still remained at a big disadvantage. After 12 months, the re-employment rate of smokers was 24 percent lower than that of non-smokers.

"We designed the analysis so that the smokers and non-smokers were as similar as possible in terms of the information we had on their employment records and prospects for employment at baseline," added co-author Michael Baiocchi.

Those who successfully quit smoking will have an easier time getting hired, the authors suggested.​

​London, April 13 (IANS) Researchers have for the first time found it possible to generate simultaneous immune response against diseases such as Hepatitis C virus and HIV, raising the possibility of a combined vaccination.

An estimated 2.3 million people globally are co-infected with HIV and HCV. HCV is the leading cause of non-AIDS deaths in co-infected individuals.

"While we have drugs to treat both HIV and HCV, these are out of reach for many and do not prevent reinfection," said lead researcher Lucy Dorrell, professor at University of Oxford in London. 

“Knowing that it may be possible to vaccinate a single individual against both diseases opens up huge possibilities for rolling back epidemics of disease and co-infection," added one of the researchers Ellie Barnes, professor. 

The findings showed that vaccine priming against HCV and HIV induced immune response in the body, measured by the number of HIV and HCV specific T-cells found in a sample of blood. 

These immune responses were further increased following the boost vaccination.

In addition, co-administration of HCV and HIV components of the boost did not impair the magnitude or breadth of either HCV or HIV specific T-cell responses compared to each alone. 

All vaccines were given as an intramuscular injection and both were well tolerated.

The study showed that the 'prime boost' approach is compatible with co-administration of vectors encoding for HIV and HCV antigens -- molecules capable of inducing an immune response to the immune system.

Following this, booster vaccinations are given with the same combination of HCV and HIV fragments.

The Phase 1 study enrolled 32 healthy volunteers in three groups. Group one received only HCV investigational vaccines at weeks 0 and 8. 

The second group received only HIV investigational vaccines following the same dosing schedule. 

The final group received both HCV and HIV investigational vaccines that were co-administered.

The study was presented at The International Liver Congress 2016 in Barcelona, Spain.​

​New York, April 13 (IANS) A team led by an Indian-origin professor at Columbia University has created a novel sheet camera that can be wrapped around everyday objects to capture images that cannot be taken with one or more conventional cameras.

"Cameras today capture the world from essentially a single point in space. While the camera industry has made remarkable progress in shrinking the camera to a tiny device with ever increasing imaging quality, we are exploring a radically different approach to imaging," said Shree K Nayar, computer science professor at Columbia University. 

"We believe there are numerous applications for cameras that are large in format but very thin and highly flexible," added Nayar who graduated from the Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi, in 1984.

Nayar's team designed and fabricated a flexible lens array that adapts its optical properties when the sheet camera is bent. 

This optical adaptation enables the device to produce high quality images over a wide range of sheet deformations.

If such an imaging system could be manufactured cheaply -- like a roll of plastic or fabric -- it could be wrapped around all kinds of things, from street poles to furniture, cars, and even people's clothing, to capture wide, seamless images with unusual fields of view. 

"The adaptive lens array we have developed is an important step towards making the concept of flexible sheet cameras viable," Nayar noted. 

"The next step will be to develop large-format detector arrays to go with the deformable lens array. The amalgamation of the two technologies will lay the foundation for a new class of cameras that expand the range of applications that benefit from imaging," he said.

The novel technology is set to be presented at the international conference on computational photography (ICCP) at Northwestern University, in Illinois from May 13 to 15.​