Plants use this trick to survive extreme stress

Researchers have identified a mechanism that allows plants to rapidly slow growth in response to extreme environmental stress.

The finding could help farmers grow more resilient crops. One researcher even continued the work years into retirement to uncover it.

The rapid response system is based on a process inside plant cells that produces compounds needed for growth, development, and survival. If even one of the key enzymes in this process fails, the plant cannot live.

Under stress conditions such as intense light, this biological pathway behaves in an unexpected manner. Rather than being governed by changes in gene expression, a standard mechanism in biology, it is modulated instantly through direct alterations in enzyme activity.

In most living things, cells adjust their RNA levels to alter protein production, which then changes the balance of other important molecules. But this process takes time that plants may not have when faced with sudden light or heat stress.

In plants, the response is much faster. Stress directly alters the activity of enzymes already present in the cell, allowing leaves to respond immediately without waiting for new proteins to be made.

“This kind of response has to be immediate,” says Katie Dehesh, UC Riverside distinguished professor of molecular biochemistry. “Changing gene expression takes time, but modifying enzyme activity allows the plant to react right away and survive.”

Reactive oxygen molecules interfere with the enzymes, reducing their activity and slowing the pathway. At the same time, new compounds build up, blocking earlier steps in the process and preventing some enzymes from working efficiently.

The immediate effect is protective. By limiting the pathway’s output, the plant reduces production of growth-related compounds, effectively pausing development while it copes with stress.

Over time, a second phase begins as the plant adjusts its internal machinery to prolonged stress. These longer-term changes help the plant adapt, but often at a cost, redirecting resources away from growth and resulting in smaller or slower development.

There have been many efforts to engineer plants to increase crop yields and drought tolerance as well as produce valuable molecules like carotenoids, which protect against damage. However, these engineering efforts often fail because they did not account for the two-stage response identified by the Dehesh laboratory and described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The breakthrough was the result of painstaking work led by Mien van de Ven, a former lab manager and research supervisor who continued contributing to the project even after retiring. She systematically measured intermediate compounds at each step of the pathway, even though they are present in extremely small amounts.

“There were both conceptual and experimental challenges,” Dehesh says. “The metabolites are at very low levels, and even identifying them required careful, step-by-step work.”

The team’s progress began with an unexpected clue. A mutation in one enzyme caused plants to grow smaller without dying. Following this lead, the researchers analyzed each step of the pathway and discovered that one downstream compound accumulated at unusually high levels.

They eventually determined why. The compound binds to an upstream enzyme, blocking it and slowing the entire pathway.

Proving this interaction was technically difficult. The team had to isolate delicate enzymes and recreate the right conditions for them to function outside the plant. Even then, the work was challenging. Proteins can become unstable outside their natural environment, and excess materials can interfere with measurements.

“It took a lot of time to get all the components working together under the right conditions,” van de Ven says.

The work culminated in a clearer picture of how plants balance survival and growth under stress. Because similar pathways exist in bacteria, the findings may reflect a broader strategy used by living organisms to respond to environmental change.

The research also has practical applications. Enhancing this natural pathway could help scientists develop crops that are more resilient to drought and high light as well as temperature extremes and salinity.

Equally notable is the path to the discovery. Van de Ven continued working on the project for two years after retiring, returning to the lab to complete key experiments.

“She just kept going,” Dehesh says. “It shows how much impact one person can have on science through dedication.”

For van de Ven, now enjoying baking and line dancing in retirement, the decision was simple: finish what she started.

“I didn’t know it would take as long as it did,” van de Ven says. “But it was worth continuing to see it through.”

Source: UC Riverside

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How cigarette smoke speeds up eye aging

A new study sheds light on how cigarette smoke accelerates eye aging.

Through a series of experiments, researchers say they have advanced understanding of how smoking damages the eye and contributes to the development of age-related macular degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration is the leading worldwide cause of visual impairment and blindness among people age 50 and older.

It has long been known that people who smoke are four times more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration than non-smokers, but smoking’s role in eye disease development and progression has remained unclear.

In a report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers describe how they compared how retinal pigmented epithelial cells—which protect and maintain light-sensing photoreceptors necessary for sight—changed in 3-month old and 12-month old mice after acute and chronic cigarette smoke exposure. These ages correspond to young adulthood and late middle age in humans.

“Smoking is often assumed to accelerate aging by releasing tissue-damaging molecules called free radicals,” says James T. Handa, principal investigator and chief of the retina division at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University.

The new study, Handa says, shows smoking also causes epigenetic changes—non-permanent shifts in gene expression that are not caused by changes in a cell’s DNA sequence—to retinal pigmented epithelial cells, or RPE cells, that have widespread effects on the eye and its ability to respond to environmental stress.

Using genetic sequencing techniques, the team studied RPE cells from mice three, six, and 10 days after they were injected with cigarette smoke condensate, and those exposed to cigarette smoke daily for four months. The researchers were able to identify dysfunctional RPE cells and understand how chromatin accessibility—the ability to physically access chromatin, a condensed structure of DNA, RNA, and proteins that control which genes are turned on or off—changed post-exposure. Such changes, if found, would indicate drastic shifts in a cell’s ability to adapt, function, and survive.

In both young and aged mice, acute exposure to injected cigarette smoke condensate caused the formation of dysfunctional RPE clusters with decreased expression of core RPE cell function genes, decreased chromatin accessibility, and decreased expression of “hallmarks of aging” genes—genes that prevent or regulate processes linked to aging. Such processes include genomic instability, shrinkage of the ends of chromosomes, and disruption of cells’ energy-producing mitochondria, among others.

Changes in chromatin arrangement caused by acute cigarette smoke stress limited the ability of young and aged mouse RPE cells to function, and replicated characteristics seen in humans with age-related macular degeneration, the researchers say.

Notably, the researchers say, they found that a separate, distinct subset of hallmarks of aging genes were expressed only in the dysfunctional cells of young mice treated with cigarette smoke condensate, but not their aged counterparts. Similar observations were made in young and aged mice that had been exposed to cigarette smoke daily for four months.

Conducting additional experiments with RPE cells donated by two people without age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, who did not smoke, one person without AMD who smoked, and one person with early AMD, the researchers identified 1,698 genes that either increased or decreased in expression and were shared between dysfunctional human and mouse RPE cells. Collectively, they suggested the shared hallmarks of aging genes may be relevant to AMD development and progression.

“Knowing environmental stress can interfere with the eye’s ability to produce the genes needed to stay healthy, we now want to narrow down which changes are temporary and which are permanent,” says Handa.

Building on their findings, Handa’s team plans on characterizing how age and continuous cigarette smoke exposure contributes to eye damage and comorbidities seen in patients with late-stage AMD.

The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Research to Prevent Blindness Stein Innovation Award, and a BrightFocus Foundation macular degeneration research grant.

Handa is on the scientific advisory boards for Character Biosciences, Cirrus Pharmaceuticals, and Seeing Medicines.

Source: Johns Hopkins University

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More electric vehicles could push down gas prices

Putting more electric cars on the road doesn’t just benefit those with enough money to buy the often-pricey vehicles.

It also pushes down prices at the gas pump while strengthening US energy security, according to new research

According to the study in Energy Policy, widespread adoption of electric vehicles, or EVs, by 2035 would cut energy bills for US households by more than 6%—including more than 4% at the gas pump.

It also would drive oil imports down by 7% and increase exports by nearly 4%, the researchers say.

However, those benefits are imperiled by the repeal of national electric vehicle incentives and the recent decision by the federal government to roll back EV-boosting rules meant to increase vehicle fuel efficiency and reduce pollution, according to the study’s authors. Their study was conducted prior to the federal decisions.

“Proponents of eliminating fuel efficiency standards and other EV-boosting policies often frame those regulatory approaches as consumer-unfriendly, but our analysis shows that such policies have many long-term benefits, both for consumers and for the nation’s energy security,” says Georgia Tech PhD candidate Niraj K. Palsule.

To reach their conclusions, the researchers used a version of the National Energy Modeling System created by Carter School researchers that more accurately captures the dynamic interplay of energy production, consumption, and demand compared to other models.

They modeled the impact of vehicle fuel efficiency standards and other policies between 2022 and 2035, first analyzing what would happen to the economy with no EV incentives and only less-stringent fuel efficiency standards dating back to before 2024. They then built a model that took a middle-of-the-road approach to EV growth between the now-repealed federal standards, which sought to more than double new EV sales to 69% by 2032, and standards adopted by California and 17 other states. Those rules, which remain in effect, seek to end the sale of new gasoline-powered vehicles in those jurisdictions by 2035.

The researchers found that, compared to the pre-2024 rules, the newer policies would cause household energy expenditures and gasoline consumption to fall across incomes, oil imports to fall, and oil exports to rise by 2035.

Those savings work across multiple pathways.

One is simple demand reduction: putting more electric vehicles on the road reduces the need for gasoline and imported oil, pushing pump prices down for all consumers. While upper-income households would save about 6.4% on energy, including gasoline, lower-income households likely to still be driving cars with traditional gasoline engines in 2035 stand to gain the most—spending 6.6% less on energy, according to the research.

The other pathway is through the “domino effect” that would occur thanks to cheaper, more efficient battery technology made to serve an increasing EV market. Widespread EV adoption would spur innovation and efficiencies that would make it less costly for utilities to store energy. Marilyn A. Brown, a professor of sustainable systems, and Palsule describe this development as pivotal to helping stabilize costs and offset any potential increase in home electricity prices driven by EV adoption. Home electricity prices might even fall slightly, according to the study.

And because global oil demand seems unlikely to fall, US oil producers would typically be able to ship some of the oil they would have used to make gasoline to other countries, increasing the US role as a net energy exporter, according to the research. During shocks, such as the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine or Iran, Brown and Palsule say electric vehicle adoption would help cushion the US economy.

Given recent events, Palsule and Brown say it’s unclear whether any of the predicted savings will come to pass, however. Not only have the federal rules been repealed, the US government and some other state governments are also challenging the emissions rules adopted by California and 17 other states, administratively and in court.

Even if those rules remain in place, such a piecemeal approach may not be enough to keep the momentum going, or to realize all the benefits of a widespread EV transition, they say.

“Maximizing the benefits of a transition to electric vehicles that would both help consumers and strengthen the nation’s energy security can only come with a nationwide strategy,” Brown says.

The research was supported by funding from the Ray C. Anderson Foundation, Georgia Tech’s Energy Policy and Innovation Center, and the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems at Georgia Tech.

Source: Georgia Tech

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How can you get the best sleep?

Sleep is something we all do, yet most of us know surprisingly little about what’s actually happening when we close our eyes.

So, what should you know about sleep?

Kimberly Fenn is a professor in the psychology department at Michigan State University’s College of Social Science.

Here, she breaks down common misconceptions about sleep and shares steps we can take to get better quality sleep:

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Overconfident CEOs are less likely to delegate

A new study finds overconfident CEOs are less likely to delegate responsibilities to underlings, particularly in settings that involve complex transactions—such as hammering out the details of high-stakes deals.

“Organizations have only gotten more complex over time, often operating in multiple countries across many different sectors,” says Jared Smith, coauthor of a paper on the work and a professor of finance in North Carolina State University’s Poole College of Management.

“As a result, it is important for modern companies to bring more voices to the table. Involving more people who have more varied expertise and experiences can be valuable in helping companies navigate a complex business environment.

“In other words, delegation is an important tool for CEOs,” says Smith. “It can help them bring in expert voices while also freeing up their own time to tackle the multitude of issues facing any enterprise. We wanted to see whether there is a relationship between overconfidence in CEOs and their willingness to delegate—because that may have meaningful implications for their organization.”

To explore this issue, the researchers focused on 3,690 mergers and acquisitions by publicly traded companies between 2000 and 2019. The researchers looked only at transactions with a value of at least $50 million and that constituted at least 1% of the acquiring company’s equity.

Those mergers and acquisitions involved 1,634 CEOs. The researchers used an established technique to assess the confidence of those CEOs based on how the executives made use of their stock options. And to assess the extent to which those CEOs were willing to delegate responsibility, the researchers looked at press releases and news articles about the 3,690 mergers and acquisitions (M&As).

“In general, if anyone other than a C-suite executive is mentioned in these releases, it strongly suggests that the person who was mentioned played a meaningful role in the M&As,” Smith says.

The researchers also looked at “background of the merger” documents that acquiring companies submit to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which detail all relevant meetings that took place between companies while arranging the relevant transaction.

“We found that if someone other than an executive was mentioned in a press release or news article, that person was very likely involved in meetings that took place during the M&A process,” Smith says.

“This helps validate the use of news releases and articles as a tool for determining whether an executive is willing to delegate responsibility.”

The researchers found that 41% of the CEOs in their data set were overconfident. And when the researchers compared the behavior of overconfident CEOs to the behavior of the overall group, they found that overconfident CEOs were 10-15% less likely than average to delegate responsibility.

The researchers also found that the relationship between overconfidence and delegation behavior varied quite a bit depending on the nature of the M&A.

“For example, when a firm was acquiring a company in an industry sector it was not previously involved in, overconfident CEOs were even less likely to delegate responsibility,” Smith says. “This is notable given that these deals involve unfamiliar industries, where outside expertise is more likely to be relevant.”

However, the most surprising result was also the most statistically powerful result.

“We found that the more segments—or business arms—the acquiring firm had, the less likely overconfident CEOs were to delegate responsibility,” says Smith.

“This is remarkable, because theory suggests that the more complex the CEO’s own information environment is, the more likely they are to benefit from getting outside expertise.

“It is important for leadership to be confident in their own abilities,” says Smith. “But our study suggests that executives who are overconfident are less likely to delegate responsibility to the people on their team—and that may affect the C-suite’s ability to navigate complex business situations.

“It would be interesting to see how this may be reflected in post-merger performance—that’s an area for future research.”

The paper appears in the Journal of Management Studies. Additional coauthors are from Indiana University and Clemson University.

Source: North Carolina State University

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Watch: New tool makes robots way faster at tricky tasks

Pancake-flipping robots could be just around the corner thanks to a new robot learning system.

Robots are increasingly learning new skills by watching people. From folding laundry to handling food, many real-world, humanlike tasks are too nuanced to be efficiently programmed step by step.

With imitation learning, humans demonstrate a task and robots learn to copy what they see through cameras and sensors. While at the leading edge of robotics research, this approach is limited by a major constraint: Robots can only work as fast as the people who taught them.

Now, researchers have created a tool that smashes that speed barrier. The system allows robots to execute complex tasks significantly faster than human demonstrations while maintaining precision, control, and safety.

The team addresses a central challenge in modern robotics: how to combine the flexibility of learning from humans with the speed and reliability required for real-world deployment. The technology could lead to wider adoption of imitation learning in industrial and household applications and even enable robots to execute humanlike tasks better than ever before.

“The thing we’re trying to create—and I would argue industry is also trying to create—is a general-purpose robot that can do any task that human hands can do,” says Shreyas Kousik, assistant professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech and a co-lead author on the study. “To make that work outside the lab, speed really matters.”

The new tool is called SAIL (Speed Adaptation for Imitation Learning).

Teaching robots to work faster than the speed of human demonstrations is challenging. Robots can behave differently at higher speeds, and small changes in the environment can cause errors.

“The challenge is that a robot is limited to the data it was trained on, and any changes in the environment can cause it to fail,” Kousik says.

SAIL addresses this challenge through a modular approach, with separate components working together to accelerate beyond the training data. The system keeps motions smooth at high speed, tracks movements accurately, adjusts speed dynamically based on task complexity, and schedules actions to account for hardware delays. This combination allows robots to move quickly while staying stable, coordinated, and precise.

“One of the gaps we saw was that our academic robotics systems could do impressive things, but they weren’t fast or robust enough for practical use,” says Benjamin Joffe, senior research scientist at the Georgia Tech Research Institute. “We wanted to study that gap carefully and design a system that addressed it end to end.”

He adds, “The goal is not just to make robots faster, but to make them smart enough to know when speed helps and when it could cause mistakes.”

The team evaluated SAIL’s performance across 12 tasks, both in simulation and on two physical robot platforms. Tasks included stacking cups, folding cloth, plating fruit, packing food items, and wiping a whiteboard. In most cases, SAIL-enabled robots completed tasks three to four times faster than standard imitation-learning systems without losing accuracy.

One exception was the whiteboard-wiping task, where maintaining contact made high-speed execution difficult.

“Understanding where speed helps and where it hurts is critical,” Kousik says. “Sometimes slowing down is the right decision.”

While SAIL does not make robots universally adaptable on its own, it represents an important step toward robotic systems that can learn from humans without being constrained by human pace.

By showing how learned robotic behaviors can be accelerated safely and systematically, SAIL brings imitation learning closer to real-world use—where speed, precision, and reliability all matter.

The researchers presented their work at the Conference on Robot Learning (CoRL).

Funding for the work came from the State of Georgia and the Agricultural Technology Research Program at Georgia Tech.

Source: Georgia Tech

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How to tell a panic attack from a heart attack

Can a panic attack feel like a heart attack? Oftentimes, yes. Panic attacks are alarming because the symptoms can mirror a life-threatening heart attack.

“It can be frightening because both conditions can bring chest pain, rapid heartbeat, and shortness of breath, and you can’t be sure what is happening,” says Andrew Mathias of University of Rochester Medicine Cardiac Care.

That’s why it’s important to understand the differences between the two and when to seek appropriate medical care.

What does a panic attack feel like?

Panic attacks are sudden, intense episodes of fear or overwhelming anxiety that can peak within minutes. Although some call them anxiety attacks, panic attacks are different from generalized anxiety.

They occur in response to stress, fear, or a specific trigger, but they can also come unexpectedly. They are more common in individuals with anxiety disorders but can happen to anyone.

During a panic attack, you may feel:

• Chest pain or discomfort
• Rapid heartbeat
• Shortness of breath
• Sweating
• Trembling or shaking
• Feeling of choking
• Nausea or abdominal distress
• Dizziness or lightheadedness

Panic attacks are more common in individuals with anxiety disorders, but they can happen to anyone.

What does a heart attack feel like?

A heart attack (myocardial infarction) occurs when blood flow to a part of the heart muscle is blocked, usually by a blood clot. This blockage prevents oxygen from reaching the heart. Symptoms can vary, but commonly include:

• Chest pain or pressure
• Ache in jaw or jaw pain
• Arm, back, or neck pain or discomfort
• Stomach pain or discomfort
• Shortness of breath
• Cold sweats
• Nausea
• Light-headedness or dizziness

Heart attacks are medical emergencies and require immediate treatment. If you suspect a heart attack, call 9-1-1 immediately.

How to tell the difference

The key differences between panic attacks and heart attacks are in the onset and duration of symptoms:

• Onset: Panic attacks start suddenly and peak within minutes. Heart attack symptoms often begin gradually and intensify.
• Duration: Panic attack symptoms typically fade within 20–30 minutes. Heart attack symptoms last longer and do not go away without medical treatment.
• Triggers: Panic attacks can be triggered by specific situations or thoughts, while external factors do not lead to heart attacks.
• Response to Medication: Panic attacks may subside after anti-anxiety medications, whereas heart attacks require immediate medical care, such as clot-busting drugs or procedures to restore blood flow to the heart.

“If you’re an anxious person or you’ve had a panic attack before, sit down and take some deep breaths or do some calming exercises. If the symptoms ease, it may more likely be a panic attack,” Mathias says.

If you have chest pain that persists or worsens after several minutes despite calming techniques, it’s best to get care immediately.

Source: University of Rochester

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