In this Policy Forum, Phillip Sharp, Tyler Jacks and Susan Hockfield discuss the need for better integration of engineering, physical, computational, and mathematical sciences with biomedical science, as they publish a report this week outlining key recommendations in this space. Convergence of physics and engineering in the 20th century led to a wealth of advancements - radios, telephones, cars, planes, computers, the internet - and, if the correct investments and commitments are in place, the biomedical field is poised for similar advancements, these authors say. However, only 3% of the principal scientists currently receiving research grants from the U.S. National Institutes of Health - the major source of research funding for biomedical science in the U.S.

A team of researchers have created a detailed computational model of the electrophysiology of congestive heart failure, a leading cause of death. This "virtual heart" could help medical researchers study new drug therapies - according to the study published in PLOS Computational Biology.

Researchers from the University of California created a model that can simulate subtle changes from the cellular and tissue levels of the heart, up to the whole heart itself, then show the results of the associated electrocardiogram (ECG), a common tool that helps doctors diagnose heart abnormalities.

Washington, DC--Researchers have developed an index to better predict which women may experience faster bone loss across the menopause transition, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Osteoporosis is often referred to as a "silent" disease because individuals who have it experience few noticeable symptoms. The progressive condition occurs when bones grow structurally weak and become more likely to fracture or break.

Scientists say good bacteria could be the key to keeping coral healthy, able to withstand the impacts of global warming and to secure the long-term survival of reefs worldwide.

"Healthy corals interact with complex communities of beneficial microbes or 'good bacteria'," says Dr. Tracy Ainsworth from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University who led the study. "It is very likely that these microorganisms play a pivotal role in the capacity of coral to recover from bouts of bleaching caused by rising temperatures."

Male mice appear to be precisely wired to know when they are intruders in another male's territory, according to a study published June 23 in Cell Reports. The smell gives it away. But this study found that a genetically specific cluster of hypothalamic cells is wired to the olfactory system and responds only when a male mouse enters another male's cage.

"There seems to be a specific part of the brain that says, yeah, this is someone's house, and you need to act accordingly," says lead investigator Larry Zweifel, assistant professor of pharmacology at the University of Washington.

BUFFALO, N.Y. - For young people entering adulthood, high-quality relationships are associated with better physical and mental health, according to the results of a recently published study by a University at Buffalo-led research team.

"Health benefits begin to accrue relatively quickly with high-quality relationships and supportive contexts," says Ashley Barr, assistant professor in UB's Department of Sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences. "And then we see detrimental effects from low-quality relationships - particularly, those low-quality relationships that last a long time."

The use of medical marijuana for millions of patients suffering from a wide range of health conditions and the subsequent therapeutic benefits has long been documented. Twenty-three states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam, have determined that Cannabis sativa (a.k.a. marijuana) can benefit patients suffering from a wide range of conditions, including cancer, epilepsy, chronic pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

So given all the health benefits for people experiencing debilitating health issues, why does the federal government continue to stifle valid, externally valid scientific research on Cannabis sativa?

A team of researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego compared sand levels on several San Diego beaches during the last seven winters. The El Niños of winter 2009-10 and 2015-16 were the two most erosive. Three San Diego County beaches that received imported sand in 2012 were about 10 meters (33 feet) wider, and one to two meters (three to six feet) higher in 2015-16 than in 2009-10, with the coarseness of the sand apparently aiding the effectiveness of the effort.

In contrast, Torrey Pines State Beach, which had received no recent sand infusions, had slightly more erosion than in 2009-10.

MAYWOOD, IL - New devices called stent retrievers, which effectively reverse strokes, have revolutionized the treatment of certain stroke patients, according to an article in the journal Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics.

"Stent retrievers are a major advance in acute ischemic stroke care and will have significant impact on the evolution of stroke systems of care," according to the article by Loyola Medicine neurologists Rick Gill, MD and Michael J. Schneck, MD. Dr. Gill is the outgoing chief resident and Dr. Schneck is a professor in the Department of Neurology of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

It is important to diagnose the faults of rolling bearings, because they may lead to the failure of motors, and even entire system-wide problems and failures. In order to diagnose the early faults of bearings, a novel method for early diagnosis of rolling bearing faults based on resonance-based sparse signal decomposition and principal component analysis is proposed in the present paper.