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It’s all about a mutation of genome. Researchers from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a set of human gene mutations that prevent cognitive decline and dementia in older adults, according to a new study published on July 9, 2022, in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution. The scientists focused on one of the mutated genes and traced its evolution through its appearance in the human genome.

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Scientists studying the aging process in the eye have made an important discovery around the role of a so-called “youth” protein, and shown how it promotes a cellular recycling process that maintains our vision. Experiments on mice missing this protein led to fast-tracked degeneration in the retina, indicating that the protein plays an important protective role against age-related vision loss.

Led by scientists at the US National Eye Institute, the study centers on a protein called pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF). This protein plays an important mediatory role in a natural recycling process in the eye. It is produced by a layer of support cells, called the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), which sits beneath the retina’s light-sensing photoreceptor cells and helps recycle and replenish them as their outer edges wear out. This ability declines as we grow older and in people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), leading to vision loss.

“People have called PEDF the ‘youth’ protein, because it is abundant in young retinas, but it declines during aging,” said Patricia Becerra, senior author of the study. “This study showed for the first time that just removing PEDF leads to a host of gene changes that mimic aging in the retina.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDS) is alerting customers to an “urgent” nationwide blueberry recall. The organization announced in a July 14 notice that certain pouches of Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Blueberrie are being recalled due to possible lead contamination. The recall was voluntarily issued by BrandStorm Inc.

The recall involves two lots of blueberries, both of which were packaged in 1.2-ounce pack sizes and distributed in the United States through retail and online stores services. Recalled Lot 2021363–1 features a best-by date of “12÷2024” and UPC 812907011160. The second recalled lot number is 2022026–1, with a best-by date of “01÷2025” and UPC 812907011160. The recalled Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Blueberries were sold in a white and blue pouch with Natierra brand and Logo, with an image available here.

The company issued the recall after testing conducted by a lab in Maryland identified the presence or potential presence of lead above the FDA’s recommended limits. Per the release, “an investigation was conducted by the packing site. The original heavy metal reports received for the crop year showed no presence of lead and-or cause for batch testing. After further investigation it was found that the products county of Origin is Lithuania and aggressive monitoring of heavy metals may be deemed necessary.” Although lead, a toxic substance, is constantly present in small amounts and people are exposed to it daily, exposure to large amounts can lead to lead positing. According to the Mayo Clinic, signs and symptoms of lead poisoning include joint and muscle pain, headache, abdominal pain, and mood disorders, among others. However, symptoms typically don’t appear until dangerous amounts have accumulated. Infants, young children, and a developing fetus can experience more severe symptoms.

In November last year, an undercover agent with the FBI was inside a group on Amazon-owned messaging app Wickr, with a name referencing young girls. The group was devoted to sharing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) within the protection of the encrypted app, which is also used by the U.S. government, journalists and activists for private communications. Encryption makes it almost impossible for law enforcement to intercept messages sent over Wickr, but this agent had found a way to infiltrate the chat, where they could start piecing together who was sharing the material.

As part of the investigation into the members of this Wickr group, the FBI used a previously unreported search warrant method to force one member to unlock the encrypted messaging app using his face. The FBI has previously forced users to unlock an iPhone with Face ID, but this search warrant, obtained by Forbes, represents the first known public record of a U.S. law enforcement agency getting a judge’s permission to unlock an encrypted messaging app with someone’s biometrics.

According to the warrant, the FBI first tracked down the suspect by sending a request for information, via an unnamed foreign law enforcement partner, to the cloud storage provider hosting the illegal images. That gave them the Gmail address the FBI said belonged to Christopher Terry, a 53-year-old Knoxville, Tennessee resident, who had prior convictions for possession of child exploitation material. It also provided IP addresses used to create the links to the CSAM. From there, investigators asked Google and Comcast via administrative subpoenas (data requests that don’t have the same level of legal requirements as search warrants) for more identifying information that helped them track down Terry and raid his home.

Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG), whose primary goal is to defend Google users from state-sponsored attacks, said today that Russian-backed threat groups are still focusing their attacks on Ukrainian organizations.

In a report regarding recent cyber activity in Eastern Europe, Google TAG security engineer Billy Leonard revealed that hackers part of the Turla Russian APT group have also been spotted deploying their first Android malware.

They camouflaged it as a DDoS attack tool and hosted it on cyberazov[.]com, a domain spoofing the Ukrainian Azov Regiment.

Just days after the first formal release of its first show-off images scientists using the new James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have posted some stunning new images of two spiral galaxies.

Posted on Flickr by Judy Schmidt working on the PHANGS Survey, the stunning image, above, shows the spectacular “Phantom Galaxy” (also called M74 and NGC 628), with others (scroll down) showing another spiral galaxy called NGC 7496.

The incredible new images are testament to Webb’s skill at seeing in infrared and thus seeing through the gas and dust that obscures a lot of what is going on in some of the most arresting objects in the night sky.

What is the Roman Space Telescope? A colleague for Webb, Roman will launch in 2026 on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.

200 million people will experience temperatures in the 90s or higher for the next three days.

A team of astronomers using the Chinese Insight-HXMT x-ray telescope have made a direct measurement of the strongest magnetic field in the known universe. The magnetic field belongs to a magnetar currently in the process of cannibalizing an orbiting companion.

Magnetars are nasty, but thankfully rare. They are a special kind of neutron star that power up the strongest known magnetic fields.

Continue reading “A new Record for the Strongest Magnetic Field Seen in the Universe: 1.6 Billion Tesla” »