Latest news from Stony Brook University on Newswise en-us Copyright 2025 Newswise 115 31 / /images/newswise-logo-rss.gif /articles/study-provides-evidence-of-amyloidosis-in-the-brains-of-some-wtc-responders/?sc=rsin /articles/study-provides-evidence-of-amyloidosis-in-the-brains-of-some-wtc-responders/?sc=rsin Thu, 23 Jan 2025 20:15:56 EST The results of a new brain imaging study led by researchers at Stony Brook Medicine indicates a link between World Trade Center (WTC) exposure duration and the presence of amyloid in the brain. The findings are published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. Stony Brook University /articles/when-human-ancestors-began-eating-meat-remains-a-mystery/?sc=rsin /articles/when-human-ancestors-began-eating-meat-remains-a-mystery/?sc=rsin Wed, 22 Jan 2025 17:30:05 EST An international team of researchers including Dominic Stratford, PhD, of Stony Brook University and the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, have discovered that an ancient human ancestor found in deposits at the Sterkfontein Caves, Australopithecus, which lived more than three million years ago in South Africa, primarily ate plant-based foods. The finding, published in the journal Science, stems from an analysis of tooth enamel from seven Australopithecus fossils and is significant because the emergence of meat eating is thought to be a key driver of a large increase in brain size seen in later hominins. Stony Brook University /articles/multiple-covid-infections-associated-with-long-covid/?sc=rsin /articles/multiple-covid-infections-associated-with-long-covid/?sc=rsin Wed, 15 Jan 2025 20:55:50 EST A new study that identified 475 patients with post-acute sequelae of Covid-19 (PASC), or Long Covid, revealed that nearly 85 percent (403) of these patients had multiple Covid-19 infections over the course of a four-year period. Stony Brook University /articles/study-reveals-kidney-disease-compromises-survival-of-infection-fighting-cells/?sc=rsin /articles/study-reveals-kidney-disease-compromises-survival-of-infection-fighting-cells/?sc=rsin Thu, 09 Jan 2025 09:15:36 EST A new study led by Stony Brook Medicine demonstrates that advanced kidney disease compromises the survival of B cells, a type of infection-fighting white blood cell that produces antibodies to kill microbes, and thus significantly reduces the immune response to the influenza virus. Stony Brook University /articles/stony-brook-university-phd-student-florence-aghomo-wins-the-young-women-in-conservation-biology-award-from-the-society-for-conservation-biology-africa-region/?sc=rsin /articles/stony-brook-university-phd-student-florence-aghomo-wins-the-young-women-in-conservation-biology-award-from-the-society-for-conservation-biology-africa-region/?sc=rsin Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:35:02 EST Stony Brook University doctoral student Florence Aghomo won the Young Women in Conservation Biology (YWCB) Award from the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) Africa Region. Aghomo is a doctoral student in the Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences (IDPAS) and a member of the Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments (ICTE) under the supervision of State University of New York (SUNY) and Stony Brook Distinguished Service Professor Patricia C. Wright. Stony Brook University /articles/grandma-is-still-there/?sc=rsin /articles/grandma-is-still-there/?sc=rsin Fri, 06 Dec 2024 13:25:07 EST It's a challenge to celebrate the holiday season with loved ones who have dementia. But Stephen Post, PhD, a bioethicist, has a message that could change your focus when visiting these loved ones this season: There are powerful lucid moments that occur with the deeply forgetful. Hold onto them. It's worth the time. Stony Brook University /articles/study-uncovers-molecular-mechanisms-during-shrew-s-brain-changes/?sc=rsin /articles/study-uncovers-molecular-mechanisms-during-shrew-s-brain-changes/?sc=rsin Thu, 21 Nov 2024 11:45:09 EST New research led by William R. Thomas, PhD, with Professor Liliana M. Davalos, PhD, in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, shows how the Eurasian common shrew (Sorex araneus) changes its brain and bodily size throughout the year. The study, published online in eLife, reveals how changes in gene expression enable these small mammals to shrink their brain in winter and regrow it in spring, defying the typical mammalian pattern where organ size does not change. Their findings offer genetic clues to neurological and metabolic health in mammals. Stony Brook University /articles/using-matter-waves-scientists-unveil-novel-collective-behaviors-in-quantum-optics/?sc=rsin /articles/using-matter-waves-scientists-unveil-novel-collective-behaviors-in-quantum-optics/?sc=rsin Thu, 21 Nov 2024 09:30:51 EST A Stony Brook University research team has uncovered a novel regime, or set of conditions within a system, for cooperative radiative phenomena, casting new light on a 70-year-old problem in quantum optics. Stony Brook University /articles/study-identifies-pregnant-women-at-risk-for-substance-use/?sc=rsin /articles/study-identifies-pregnant-women-at-risk-for-substance-use/?sc=rsin Mon, 18 Nov 2024 15:20:31 EST A new study published in the Journal of Addiction Medicine conducted by a team of Stony Brook University researchers used the PROMOTE Prenatal Screener - a unique screening tool for use during pregnancy - to pinpoint vulnerabilities for substance use. Stony Brook University /articles/tourist-photos-can-help-gauge-ecological-changes-in-antarctica/?sc=rsin /articles/tourist-photos-can-help-gauge-ecological-changes-in-antarctica/?sc=rsin Thu, 07 Nov 2024 10:10:44 EST A Stony Brook University-led research team has created a computerized method in which photos of penguins in Antarctica taken by tourists can be analyzed by the technique to decipher the location of the photo, thereby indicating the location of penguins over time and providing a clue as to what is causing changes in their abundance and distribution. Stony Brook University /articles/expert-available-edibles-are-not-a-treat-at-halloween/?sc=rsin /articles/expert-available-edibles-are-not-a-treat-at-halloween/?sc=rsin Mon, 28 Oct 2024 13:00:35 EST Stony Brook University /articles/brain-imaging-of-neuromelanin-may-be-key-to-understanding-extensive-substance-use/?sc=rsin /articles/brain-imaging-of-neuromelanin-may-be-key-to-understanding-extensive-substance-use/?sc=rsin Wed, 16 Oct 2024 13:00:47 EST A study that used a specialized type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), named neuromelanin-sensitive MRI, showed that this type of MRI signal was increased in regions of the midbrain in young adults ages 20 to 24 who had an extensive alcohol and drug use history. The findings are published early online in the American Journal of Psychiatry. Stony Brook University /articles/study-shows-use-of-a-gene-could-halt-diabetic-kidney-disease/?sc=rsin /articles/study-shows-use-of-a-gene-could-halt-diabetic-kidney-disease/?sc=rsin Wed, 09 Oct 2024 12:05:36 EST New research by Stony Brook Medicine nephrology specialists that centers on targeting key cellular signaling between two types of kidney cells, and inducing a certain gene within those processes, may help prevent or reduce the progression of diabetic kidney disease (DKD), the leading cause of chronic kidney disease worldwide. Stony Brook University /articles/get-relief-how-to-manage-fall-allergies/?sc=rsin /articles/get-relief-how-to-manage-fall-allergies/?sc=rsin Wed, 09 Oct 2024 11:00:53 EST Stony Brook University /articles/ancient-dna-sheds-light-on-the-genetic-diversity-of-post-roman-elites/?sc=rsin /articles/ancient-dna-sheds-light-on-the-genetic-diversity-of-post-roman-elites/?sc=rsin Thu, 22 Aug 2024 12:05:01 EST A new study of ancient DNA by a team of international researchers and co-led by Krishna R. Veeramah, PhD, of Stony Brook University, provides insight into the development and social structures of European rural communities following the fall of the Roman Empire. The findings, published in a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), suggest that early medieval elites, or those of higher social status, were initially made up of multiple families with distinct genetic ancestries. However, over time these families intermarried and also the local communities integrated genetically diverse newcomers from a variety of different social and cultural backgrounds. Stony Brook University /articles/halting-the-dangerous-neurological-effects-of-the-powassan-virus/?sc=rsin /articles/halting-the-dangerous-neurological-effects-of-the-powassan-virus/?sc=rsin Tue, 20 Aug 2024 09:05:23 EST While Lyme disease is the most prevalent tick-borne disease in the United States, other infections transmitted through tick bites are just as dangerous. One of these is the Powassan virus (POWV). Erich Mackow, PhD, a virologist at Stony Brook University, is conducting research in an attempt to uncover one the most dangerous effects of POWV - neurologic damage. Stony Brook University /articles/stony-brook-leads-new-program-designed-to-further-build-and-test-quantum-networks/?sc=rsin /articles/stony-brook-leads-new-program-designed-to-further-build-and-test-quantum-networks/?sc=rsin Tue, 13 Aug 2024 10:05:16 EST Stony Brook University is leading a new project funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance Quantum Information Science and Technology (QIST) in the United States. The project is one the first five under the NSF's National Quantum Virtual Laboratory (NQVL) program. Stony Brook University /articles/stony-brook-university-center-turkana-basin-institute-tbi-leadership-change-effective-september-1-2024/?sc=rsin /articles/stony-brook-university-center-turkana-basin-institute-tbi-leadership-change-effective-september-1-2024/?sc=rsin Wed, 24 Jul 2024 11:05:40 EST Stony Brook University announces that noted Kenyan entomologist and evolutionary biologist Dr. Dino J. Martins will begin serving as the director of the world-renowned Turkana Basin Institute beginning on September 1, 2024. Stony Brook University /articles/do-s-and-don-ts-fireworks-safety-tips-ahead-of-4th-of-july-celebrations/?sc=rsin /articles/do-s-and-don-ts-fireworks-safety-tips-ahead-of-4th-of-july-celebrations/?sc=rsin Tue, 02 Jul 2024 21:00:28 EST Stony Brook University /articles/climatic-warming-has-made-toxic-algal-blooms-in-lake-erie-more-intense/?sc=rsin /articles/climatic-warming-has-made-toxic-algal-blooms-in-lake-erie-more-intense/?sc=rsin Fri, 21 Jun 2024 11:05:03 EST Climate change is causing a series of maladies by warming land and sea. A study published online in Limnology and Oceanography Letters, demonstrates that one consequence of climate change that has already occurred is the spread and intensification of toxic algae blooms in Lake Erie. Stony Brook University