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new ways to tackle the problem of microplastic pollution, Derek Van Dam reports
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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Can air conditioning really make you sick? A microbiologist explains
Air conditioning can feel heaven-sent on hot summer days. It keeps temperatures comfortable and controls humidity, making indoor environments tolerable even on the most brutally warm days. But some people avoid using air conditioning (AC) no matter how hot it gets outside, out of fear that it will make them sick. While this may sound far-fetched to some, as a microbiologist I can say this fear isn't altogether unfounded. If an air conditioning system malfunctions or isn't properly maintained, it can become contaminated with infectious microbes. This can turn your AC unit into a potential source of numerous airborne infections – ranging from the common cold to pneumonia. Sick buildings 'Sick building syndrome' is the general name for symptoms that can develop after spending extended periods of time in air-conditioned environments. Symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, congested or runny nose, persistent cough or wheeze, skin irritation or rashes, trouble focusing on work and tiredness. The condition tends to occur in people who work in office settings, but can happen to anyone who spends extended periods of time in air-conditioned buildings such as hospitals. The symptoms of sick building syndrome tend to get worse the longer you're in a particular building, and are alleviated after you leave. A 2023 study from India compared 200 healthy adults who worked at least six-to-eight hours per day in an air-conditioned office with 200 healthy adults who didn't work in AC. The AC group experienced more symptoms consistent with sick building syndrome over the two-year study period – particularly a higher prevalence of allergies. Importantly, clinical tests showed those who were exposed to AC had poorer lung function and were absent from work more often, compared with the non-AC group. Other studies have confirmed that AC office workers have a higher prevalence of sick building syndrome than those who do not work in an air-conditioned environment. It's suspected that one cause of sick building syndrome is malfunctioning air conditioners. When an AC unit isn't working properly, it can release allergens, chemicals and airborne microorganisms into the air that it would normally have trapped. Malfunctioning air conditioners can also release chemical vapours from AC cleaning products or refrigerants into the building's air. Chemicals such as benzene, formaldehyde and toluene are toxic and can irritate the respiratory system. Poorly maintained air conditioning systems can also harbour bacterial pathogens which can cause serious infections. Legionella pneumophila is the bacteria that causes Legionnaires' disease – a lung infection contracted from inhaling droplets of water containing these bacteria. They tend to grow in water-rich environments such as hot tubs or air conditioning systems. A Legionella infection is most often caught in communal places such as hotels, hospitals or offices, where the bacteria have contaminated the water supply. Symptoms of Legionnaires' disease are similar to pneumonia, causing coughing, shortness of breath, chest discomfort, fever and general flu-like symptoms. Symptoms usually begin to show between two and 14 days after being exposed to Legionella. Legionella infections can be life-threatening and often require hospitalisation. Recovery can take several weeks. Fungal and viral infections The accumulation of dust and moisture inside air conditioning systems can also create the right conditions for other infectious microbes to grow. For instance, research on hospital AC systems has found that fungi such as Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium and Rhizopusspecies commonly accumulate within the water-rich areas of hospital ventilation systems. These fungal infections can be serious in vulnerable patients such as those who are immunocompromised, have had an organ transplant or are on dialysis – as well as babies who were born premature. For example, Aspergillus causes pneumonia, abscesses of the lungs, brain, liver, spleen, kidneys and skin, and can also infect burns and wounds. Symptoms of fungal infections are mostly respiratory and include persistent wheeze or cough, fever, shortness of breath, tiredness and unexplained loss of weight. Viral infections can also be caught from air conditioning. One case study revealed that children in a Chinese kindergarten class were infected with the norovirus pathogen from their AC system. This caused 20 students to experience the stomach flu. While norovirus is usually transmitted through close contact with an infected person or after touching a contaminated surface, in this instance it was confirmed, unusually, that the virus was spread through the air – originating from the air conditioning unit in a class restroom. Several other cases of norovirus being spread this way have been reported. However, air conditioners can also help stop the spread of airborne viruses. Research shows AC units that are regularly maintained and sanitised can reduce circulating levels of common viruses, including COVID. Another reason AC may increase your risk of catching an infection is due to the way air conditioners control humidity levels. This makes inside air drier than outside air. Spending extended periods of time in low-humidity environments can dry out the mucus membranes in your nose and throat. This can affect how well they prevent bacteria and fungi from getting in your body – and can leave you more vulnerable to developing a deep-tissue infection of the sinuses. Air conditioners are designed to filter air contaminants, fungal spores, bacteria and viruses, preventing them from entering the air we breathe indoors. But this protective shield can be compromised if a system's filter is old or dirty, or if the system isn't cleaned. Ensuring good AC maintenance is essential in preventing air-conditioner-acquired infections. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Primrose Freestone does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Gizmodo
2 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Scientists Unveil Wild New Way to Explore the Edge of Space
Scientists often refer to the mesosphere as the 'ignorosphere'—a region that's too high for planes or weather balloons to explore, yet too low for satellites to probe. Despite our technological advances, we've yet to find a decent way to monitor this large stretch of air, which lies about 37 miles (60 kilometers) above the surface. But engineers are inching towards a solution—one inspired by a toy-like invention from the 19th century. A Nature paper published today presents a proof-of-concept for an extremely lightweight, disc-like structure that levitates thanks to sunlight, no fuel required. Crafted from ceramic aluminum with a chromium base, the device floats on photophoresis, which literally means 'light-driven motion.' When sunlight strikes the device, the differences in heat and pressure around the disc create an upward airflow, keeping the disc airborne. The pressure difference produces photophoretic lift—enough to keep these little guys aloft. Although this particular device was tailored for mesospheric exploration, the physics driving its flight could easily be applied to future missions beyond Earth—including the achingly thin Martian atmosphere, as long as there's sufficient sunlight, the researchers say. 'Photophoresis requires no fuel, batteries, or photovoltaics, so it is an inherently sustainable flight mechanism,' Ben Schafer, study lead author and an associate researcher at Harvard University, told Gizmodo in an email. 'We could use these devices to collect groundbreaking atmospheric data to benefit meteorology, perform telecommunications, and predict space weather.' The initial idea dates back to 1873, when physicist William Crookes invented a radiometer that fed off sunlight. Subsequent projects attempted to build on Crookes's invention, but with limited success, as Igor Bargatin, a mechanical engineer at the University of Pennsylvania, explained in an accompanying News & Views article. (Although Bargatin did not participate in the new study, Schafer cited his work as one of the main inspirations for the device.) Schafer and his colleagues, however, capitalized on previous work and recent advances in nanofabrication technology for their blueprint, constructing samples of 'shiny, thin squares with very tiny holes,' as Schafer described them. Researchers from multiple countries teamed up on the project, combining theoretical and experimental steps. Normally, the photophoretic force is weak relative to an object's size and weight, making it nearly impossible to notice, Schafer explained. But the new device is so thin and tiny—about half the size of a penny—that the photophoretic force actually exceeds its weight, causing it to levitate. To validate its calculations, the team built a low-pressure chamber in the lab to simulate the atmospheric and sunlight conditions of the mesosphere. To their delight, the tiny discs remained aloft. Schafer, now CEO of Rarefied Technologies, is moving quickly to bring these devices to commercial use. His team wants to tinker with the fabrication element so the discs can carry communications technology that can collect and send back weather data, Schafer said. 'We plan to use passive devices that can be tracked remotely with lidar or radar to collect weather data in the upper atmosphere; this could reach the pilot phase in a couple years,' he explained. 'If the full potential of this technology can be realized, swarms or arrays of such photophoretic flyers could be collecting high-resolution data on the temperature, pressure, chemical composition, and wind dynamics of the mesosphere,' Bargatin added. 'What began as a Victorian curiosity might soon become a key tool for probing the most elusive region of the atmosphere.'
Forbes
4 hours ago
- Forbes
An Unexpected Clue To How Metformin, The World's Top Diabetes Drug, Works
Metformin is an unassuming hero of modern medicine. For more than sixty years, this humble pill has been a mainstay of diabetes care, helping millions of people manage their blood sugar. It lowers blood sugar, improves cholesterol, modestly reduces weight, and is so safe it's prescribed to millions worldwide. And yet, for decades, scientists haven't fully understood how it works. The standard explanation has long been that metformin works in the liver, reducing how much sugar it sends into the bloodstream. It also helps muscles and fat cells respond more effectively to insulin. More recent research added other suspects: the gut, which can tweak hormones and the microbiome, and a cellular pathway called mTOR, a major regulator of metabolism and longevity. But a new study published in Science Advances suggests that part of metformin's magic might be happening somewhere unexpected: in the brain. The Blood Sugar Command Center Researchers turned their attention to a protein called Rap1, found in a small pocket of the brain known as the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH). This area is a metabolic mission control, coordinating hunger, energy use, and glucose balance. When scientists switched off Rap1 in this brain region in mice, blood sugar levels fell, even without metformin. But when they kept Rap1 switched on, metformin lost its blood-sugar-lowering power. The results hint that, at the doses typically prescribed, metformin may partly work by silencing Rap1's activity in the brain, not just by acting on the liver or gut. Most of us think of blood sugar control as the domain of the pancreas, liver, and muscles. Yet the brain is deeply involved. The VMH works like an air traffic controller, taking in information from across the body and sending out signals to adjust glucose production and use. Metformin, it seems, may be tapping into this high-level control system. By dialing down Rap1 activity, the drug might trigger a cascade of neural instructions that ripple out to the rest of the body, improving how tissues handle sugar. Beyond Diabetes Metformin has drawn attention far beyond the diabetes world. It's being studied for its potential to slow certain aspects of aging, with researchers probing whether its effects on pathways like mTOR could help extend not just lifespan but healthspan. The discovery of the brain-Rap1 link opens new possibilities. Could this same circuit be part of metformin's longevity effects? If so, drugs that target Rap1 or its related pathways might someday offer more precise ways to improve metabolism or promote healthy aging, perhaps without some of metformin's side effects. When Old Drugs Tell New Tales This does not mean discarding what is already known about metformin's effects on the liver, muscles, and gut. Those mechanisms are still in play. But at everyday doses, the brain may have a starring role in how the drug works. At much higher doses, peripheral mechanisms can take over, but in real-world clinical use, the brain's contribution could be key. The finding is also a reminder that the brain and body are not separate actors in the story of metabolism. They are in constant conversation, adjusting and responding to keep systems in balance. And as this research shows, an old drug can reveal something entirely new about that conversation. Even after six decades, metformin still has secrets to share: secrets that may change how both the medicine itself and the intricate links between the brain, the body, and health are understood.
