June 1, 2016: Aortic disease, including aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection, is an important cause of cardiovascular morbidity and death. There have been exciting developments in caring for patients with aortic aneurysm and dissection, including great advances in diagnosis and endovascular therapies. Despite this, there remains significant gaps in knowledge of the understanding of mechanisms of aortic pathology and opportunity to further improve patient care. With this in mind, Vascular Medicine, the official journal of the Society for Vascular Medicine, dedicated its June, 2016 issue to this important topic.

Scientists from RIKEN in Japan have discovered that acrolein--a toxic substance produced in cells during times of oxidative stress--in fact may play a role in preventing the process of fibrillation, an abnormal clumping of peptides that has been associated with Alzheimer's disease and other neural diseases. The key to this new role is a chemical process known as 4+4 cycloaddition, where two molecules with "backbones" made up of four-atom chains come together to form a ring-like structure with eight atoms. The group found that in some circumstances, acrolein can combine with a class of molecules called polyamines, which themselves are important biological players, to make substances that can prevent the fibrillation of Aβ40 peptides.

WASHINGTON, DC, May 25, 2016 -- A new study suggests that psychotherapists discriminate against prospective patients who are black or working class.

"Although I expected to find racial and class-based disparities, the magnitude of the discrimination working-class therapy seekers faced exceeded my grimmest expectations," said Heather Kugelmass, a doctoral student in sociology at Princeton University and the author of the study.

Among middle-class people who contacted a therapist to schedule an appointment, Kugelmass found that 28 percent of whites and 17 percent of blacks received appointment offers. Appointment offer rates for both black and white working-class therapy seekers were 8 percent.

Acupuncture, like most other alternative therapies, is particular popular for indications that are:

1. chronic

2. associated with a high burden of suffering,

3. not easily treatable with conventional therapies,

4. are frequently resolved without any intervention.

Infertility or subfertility tick most of these boxes. It is therefore not surprising that acupuncturists the world over claim that acupuncture can cure infertility. But is this claim based on evidence or on wishful thinking?

Crystals are solid materials composed of microscopic building blocks arranged in highly ordered patterns. They have countless applications, ranging from metallurgy to jewellery to electronics. Many of the properties that make crystals useful depend on the detailed pattern of arrangement of their constituents, which, in turn, is highly sensitive to the details of the interaction between the building blocks. In molecular and atomic crystals the interparticle forces are fixed by Nature, and the only way of tuning the microscopic arrangement is to either vary the external conditions (temperature, pressure, etc.) or change the particles themselves.

Since 2008, the overall rate of reported gonorrhoea infections has more than doubled across Europe, going up from 8 per 100 000 population to 20 cases per 100 000 persons in 2014.

In total, 66 413 gonorrhoea cases were reported in 27 countries of the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA) in 2014 - which constitutes an increase of 25% compared with 2013. The highest rates were observed in the United Kingdom (60 per 100 000), Ireland (28), Denmark (20) and Latvia (18). The majority of gonorrhoea infections were diagnosed among young adults aged 15-24 years who accounted for 38% of cases; followed by the 25-34-year-olds (34%).

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The mouth is one of the "dirtiest" parts of the body, home to millions of germs. But puffing cigarettes can increase the likelihood that certain bacteria like Porphyromonas gingivalis will not only set up camp but will build a fortified city in the mouth and fight against the immune system.

University of Louisville School of Dentistry researcher David A. Scott, Ph.D., explores how cigarettes lead to colonization of bacteria in the body. Scott and his research team have identified how tobacco smoke, composed of thousands of chemical components, is an environmental stressor and promotes bacteria colonization and immune invasion.

We've seen increasingly bizarre claims from social psychologists and advocates with confirmation bias: American liberals are evolving into a different species, they have prettier children, conservatives are motivated by fear, and more. 

One thing is truth, people are more likely to mate by education level now, there are very few scenarios where smart people simply don't go to college in a culture where government spends money convincing young people they need a college degree.  That would have to change the genetic makeup of subsequent generations, right?

Though wind energy is not viable everywhere, there are places it can work. The Galapagos Islands, a fragile ecosystem, is touted as one example, because it otherwise has to import diesel fuel. 

A performance summary and recommendations for the expansion are contained in a new report by the Global Sustainable Electricity Partnership (GSEP), which led and financed the $10 million project. The project's three 51-meter-tall wind turbines and two sets of solar panels have supplied, on average, 30% of the electricity consumed on San Cristóbal, the archipelago's second-largest island in size and population, since it went into operation in October 2007.