Veículo

• Home
• Veículos
• Science Codex

A new device designed to help scientists study in detail what happens during electrochemical reactions has been developed by researchers at the Center for Innovation in New Energies (CINE) in collaboration with researchers at the Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS), a unit of the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM). CINE is an Engineering Research Center (ERC) established by FAPESP (São Paulo Research Foundation) and Shell and is hosted by the [...]

Animal toxins are research targets owing to their therapeutic and biotechnological potential. Researchers at the Federal University of the ABC (UFABC), Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and Federal University of Ceará (UFC) in Brazil have discovered that VmCT1, an antimicrobial peptide isolated from the venom of the scorpion Vaejovis mexicanus, and its analogs kill Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite that causes Chagas disease. Previous research has demonstrated VmCT1's [...]

Maresin and resolvin, produced by the body from omega-3 fatty acids, can help repair tissue damaged by periodontal disease. A recent study shows that even in the presence of inflammation they stimulate periodontal ligament stem cells. The periodontal ligament is one of the structures lost in severe cases of the disease. The study was part of the PhD research of Emmanuel Albuquerque de Souza at the University of São Paulo's Dental School (FO-USP) in Brazil and was conducted at the [...]

Barchans are crescent-shaped sand dunes whose two horns face in the direction of the fluid flow. They appear in different environments, such as inside water pipes or on river beds, where they take the form of ten-centimeter ripples, and deserts, where they can exceed 100 meters, and the surface of Mars, where they can be a kilometer in length or more. If their size varies greatly, so does the time they take to form and interact. The orders of magnitude range from a minute for small barchans in [...]

A drug used to treat pulmonary hypertension significantly reduced the capacity of tumor cells to migrate and invade other tissues in trials involving pancreatic, ovarian, breast cancer, and leukemia cell lines. Furthermore, in mice with an aggressive form of breast cancer, the drug reduced the incidence of metastasis in the liver and lungs by 47% and lengthened survival compared with untreated animals. The study is published in Scientific Reports. "The drug ambrisentan is an inhibitor of [...]

In Brazil, researchers at São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Ilha Solteira have developed a film that can replace plastic in food packaging. The film is made from hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) and bacterial cellulose scraps left over from industrial processing. Both raw materials are sustainable. They are combined to produce a biodegradable film of bacterial cellulose nanocrystals and HPMC. The product outperforms film made of HPMC alone. An article on the research project, [...]

Virtual reality-based rehabilitation programs are becoming an important complement to conventional motor therapy for stroke patients and individuals with neurodegenerative diseases. Immersion in virtual environments stimulates several sensory systems, especially sight and hearing, and intensifies central nervous system information input and output. “The technology is expected to increase brain connectivity by stimulating the new neural connections needed to repair the losses caused by [...]

For a caterpillar that lives surrounded by ants, there are two ways of avoiding attack: going unnoticed or offering the ants a sugary treat in exchange for protection. This is the main conclusion of a study funded by FAPESP (São Paulo Research Foundation) and published in Ecological Entomology. Based on chemical analysis of interacting plants, caterpillars and ants, researchers in Brazil affiliated with the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) and the University of Campinas [...]

The pandemic has disrupted economic activity and worsened social problems in many countries. In Brazil, its impact has been especially severe. “The level of employment, defined as the number of people in work divided by the working-age population, fell below 50% in April 2020. It remained low until July when it bottomed out at 47%. This means over half the working-age population was unemployed,” said Rogério Barbosa, a professor at the State University of Rio de [...]