A close-up view of nano-sized semiconductors that initiate and speed up a natural process called photocatalytic oxidation. 

Harnessing the Sun’s radiation to help rid the oceans of microplastics contamination is one of several technical innovations to be developed by a new EU-funded project. Beginning in November 2017, a system developed at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden for breaking down microplastics from personal care products will be tested for implementation in homes and wastewater treatment plants. While exposure to sunlight can degrade plastics into harmless elements, it’s a slow process. In some cases plastics can take several years to decompose. Joydeep Dutta, chair of the Functional Materials department at KTH, says this system will speed up that process by making more efficient use of available visible light and ultraviolet rays from the Sun. The system involves coatings with material of nano-sized semiconductors that initiate and speed up a natural process called photocatalytic oxidation, Dutta says. In a test household, these nano material coated filter systems will be placed at the exit of wastewater from homes. Similarly, in wastewater treatment plants these devices will be used to initiate microplastics degradation after the classical treatments are completed.

Talking about dental health with children and parents – about what is healthy and unhealthy for your teeth – can be one way to prevent children from developing overweight. This is suggested in a thesis from Sahlgrenska Academy on children’s diet, BMI and well-being. “Weight can be a sensitive subject, but if you talk about eating behaviors alongside dental health, you’re looking at the issue from a different angle,” confirms Louise Arvidsson, registered dietitian and PhD student at the Institute of Medicine. In one of her sub-studies, she reviewed eating behavior, BMI and dental health of 271 pre-school and primary school children in Sweden. The children’s height, weight, and food intake over one day were compared with the prevalence of cariogenic microorganisms in saliva - and the link was clear: The children who had higher amount of caries bacteria also had significantly higher BMI and worse eating habits. They ate more frequently and consumed more foods rich in sugar.

Yes. As long as it is handled properly, new research reveals. In Norway they say that nothing is in more of a hurry than a dead fish. This is probably true, because on average it takes three days for a fresh cod to reach most sales counters. And for both retailers and customers, a three-day-old fresh fish is stretching it a bit. However, if the fish is frozen on board the vessel and thawed properly before it reaches the sales counter, its quality can be just as good as if it had never seen the inside of a freezer. Just as long as the fishermen and fisheries industry take note of our research results.

 Ricerca su Nature Communications ha, per la prima volta, spiegato i processi ambientali che hanno guidato la variabilità del ghiaccio marino e la presenza dei pinguini e degli elefanti marini durante gli ultimi 10 mila anni nel Mare di Ross in Antartide. Il ghiaccio marino o banchisa di ghiaccio è un elemento fondamentale del sistema climatico e il suo ciclo stagionale influenza la dinamica globale del clima a causa della sua interazione con l'albedo planetario, la circolazione atmosferica e oceanica oltre ad essere un essenziale componente dell’ecosistema marino polare. I meccanismi che guidano la variabilità del ghiaccio marino a causa delle forzanti ambientali naturali ed antropiche sono ancora poco compresi.

Relational factors in music therapy can contribute to a positive outcome of therapy for children with autism. It might not surprise that good relationships create good outcomes, as meaningful relational experiences are crucial to all of us in our everyday life. However, the development of a relationship with a child with autism may be disrupted due to the level of symptoms interfering with the typical development of emotional and social abilities.  In a new study, researchers from GAMUT, Uni Research Health and University of Bergen, could show that the quality of the therapeutic relationship predicts generalized changes in social skills in children diagnosed with an autism spectrum condition (ASC). This predictor study included 48 children between 4 and 7 years who received improvisational music therapy weekly over a period of 5 months. Outcomes related to the child’s social skills were measured before and after treatment. Based on session videos the researchers assessed the relationship between the child and the therapist.  

 A new study found large disparities by sex, race, and age in survival for patients diagnosed with different cancers caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the findings suggest that improvements in HPV vaccination and access to cancer screening and treatment are needed.
HPV causes most cases of cervical cancer, but it can also cause cancers in other parts of the body, including the oropharynx (the base of the tongue, the tonsils, and the back of the throat), vagina, vulva, penis, and anus. More than 38,000 HPV-associated cancers are diagnosed annually in the United States. Investigators at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion looked to see how survival rates vary for each of these cancers by certain demographic characteristics, such as race and age. The team examined data from 27 population-based cancer registries covering approximately 59 percent of the US population. The researchers focused on invasive cancer diagnosed from 2001-2011 and followed these cases through 2011.

Create a picture of how you are feeling on this particular day, said the first exercise in the art therapy. After ten treatments the patients who suffered from severe or moderately severe depression had shown more improvement than the patients in the control group, shows research at Sahlgrenska academy. "The conclusion is that it was the art therapy that facilitated their improvement", says Christina Blomdahl, PhD at the institute of health and care sciences, licensed occupational therapist and art therapist. As part of her dissertation she has allowed 43 patients with severe or moderately severe depression to undergo a manual-based art therapy that she has developed herself. The control group consisted of 36 people who all suffered from the same medical condition. In parallel with this, all participants were given different combinations of medication, cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic therapy and physical therapy. The majority of the participants were so affected by their depression that they were unable to work.