University of Wyoming

More than 130 years after cyclodextrins were first discovered and reported, a team of scientists has created chemical mirror images of these complex carbohydrates in the laboratory. This discovery may revolutionize how medications are delivered to patients. Cyclodextrins (CDs) are complicated carbohydrates, a term that describes the natural, sugar-based, starchy material that makes up much of fruits, vegetables and grains. Their unique chemical properties make them ideal for all sorts of uses, including air fresheners, medications and cosmetics. Scientists also are exploring their potential to treat cardiovascular diseases caused by atherosclerotic plaques. Now, more than 130 years after CDs were first discovered and reported, a University of Texas at Arlington team of scientists has created chemical mirror images of these complex carbohydrates in the laboratory. This discovery may revolutionize how medications are delivered to patients. Daniel W. Armstrong, the Robert A. Welch Distinguished University Chair in Chemistry, has co-authored a new peer-reviewed publication in Nature Synthesis describing mirror-image cyclodextrins for the first time along with his former graduate student Saba Aslani. "This discovery is exciting, as it may make it easier to formulate and deliver complex medications to patients," Armstrong said. "This missing piece of the puzzle definitely paves the way for additional gains in treating and curing disease." Other authors on the paper are from Northwestern University; University of Hong Kong; University of Wyoming; ZJU-Hangzhou Global Scientific and Technological Innovation Center in China; National University of Singapore; Universite d'Angers in France; Zhejiang University in China; and University of New South Wales in Australia. After creating these mirror-image CDs in the lab, researchers were able to confirm their discovery using X-ray crystallography and binding studies of other mirror-image molecules. "In the pharmaceutical industry, it is common and even mandated to synthesize and test such mirror-image drug entities, as they may have different medicinal properties and toxicities," Armstrong said. "Based on how popular CDs are already for delivering medications, this newly discovered mirror image may have even more biomedical uses. Plus, we know that such mirror-images carbohydrates are more resistant to biological degradation than their natural counterparts."

Loneliness may be harmful to our daily health, according to a new study focused on understanding the subtleties of loneliness and how variations in daily feelings of loneliness effect short- and long-term well-being. The researchers said the work provides more evidence in support of the devastating impact of loneliness and isolation on physical health in the country, calling it a public health crisis. Loneliness may be harmful to our daily health, according to a new study led by researchers in the Penn State College of Health and Human Development and Center for Healthy Aging focused on understanding the subtleties of loneliness and how variations in daily feelings of loneliness effect short- and long-term well-being. The researchers said the work provides more evidence in support of the 2023 statement made by U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on the devastating impact of loneliness and isolation on physical health in the country, calling it a public health crisis. The work, published in the journal Health Psychology, also brings more attention to different experiences of loneliness, a focus during June 10-16 for Loneliness Awareness Week. The long-term health consequences of loneliness and insufficient social connection include a 29% increased risk of heart disease, a 32% increased risk of stroke and a 50% increased risk of developing dementia in older adults, according to the surgeon general. People who frequently feel lonely are also more likely to develop depression and other mental health challenges, compared to people who rarely or never feel lonely. In the current study, the researchers found that loneliness can lead to negative health symptoms for people even if they do not generally identify as lonely or typically experience loneliness. People who experience more temporary feelings of loneliness or have a lot of variability in their feelings of loneliness are likely to have daily health issues related to loneliness, including general fatigue, headaches and nausea. The data represents 1,538 participants in the National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE), one of the studies in the MacArthur Foundation Survey of Midlife in the United States. NSDE is led by David Almeida, professor of human development and family studies at Penn State and senior author on the paper. The current study focuses on loneliness in midlife, using data from respondents between the ages of 35 and 65. Prior research on loneliness largely focuses on adolescents and older adults, the researchers said. NSDE participants engaged in telephone interviews that assessed their daily stress and mood for eight consecutive days. Respondents were asked to describe any stressful and/or positive situations they encountered and their feelings for each day, including whether they felt lonely and how often. They were also asked if they had physical symptoms that day, including general fatigue or headaches. These assessments were performed twice, 10 years apart. From this data, researchers found that when participants were less lonely on average, and on days when loneliness was lower than a person's average, they had fewer and less severe physical health symptoms. Additionally, participants who were more stable in loneliness across the eight days had less severe physical health symptoms. "These findings suggest that day-to-day dynamics of loneliness may be crucial in understanding and addressing the health effects of loneliness," Almeida said. "Increasing feelings of social connection even for one day could result in fewer health symptoms on that day. Such a daily focus offers a manageable and hopeful micro-intervention for individuals living with loneliness." Dakota Witzel, a postdoctoral research fellow in the Center for Healthy Aging and the lead author on the paper, said the results suggest that closer attention should be paid to daily, more temporary feelings of loneliness. While sustained loneliness can contribute to the long-term health effects identified in the surgeon general's advisory, these shorter, more variable instances of loneliness can produce shorter-term negative health symptoms. "A lot of research is focused on loneliness being a binary trait -- either you're lonely or you're not. But based on our own anecdotal lives, we know that's not the case. Some days are worse than others -- even some hours," Witzel said. "If we can understand variations in daily loneliness, we can begin to understand how it affects our daily and long-term health." Karina Van Bogart, doctoral candidate in the Department of Biobehavioral Health at Penn State; Erin Harrington, assistant professor of cognition and cognitive development at the University of Wyoming; and Shelbie Turner, postdoctoral fellow in the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, also contributed to this research. The National Institutes of Health funded this research.

A new set of maps that document the movements of ungulates was published today in the fourth volume of the Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States. The maps in this collaborative report series reveal the migration routes and critical ranges used by ungulates, or hooved mammals, in the western U.S., furthering scientists' understanding of the geography of big game migrations. A new set of maps that document the movements of ungulates was published today in the fourth volume of the Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States. The maps in this collaborative U.S. Geological Survey report series reveal the migration routes and critical ranges used by ungulates, or hooved mammals, in the western U.S., furthering scientists' understanding of the geography of big game migrations. The new volume, "Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States: Volume 4," documents 33 mule deer, pronghorn and elk herd migrations in collaboration with the wildlife agencies of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, Wind River Reservation, Wyoming and, for the first time, the states of Oregon and Colorado and the Pueblo of Tesuque in New Mexico. With this latest volume, the report series includes details and maps of the migrations and seasonal ranges for a total of 182 uniqueherds across 10 states. "We've now mapped nearly two hundred migrations of mule deer, pronghorn, elk and other ungulates across diverse landscapes, from the high alpine Rocky Mountains to the temperate rainforest of the Pacific Northwest and the desert ecosystems of the American Southwest," said Matt Kauffman, the report's lead author and a wildlife biologist with the USGS Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Wyoming. "I'm impressed with how the team has worked together to adopt a standard set of methods to create robust migration maps of these ungulates across the West." Ungulates migrate throughout the American West each spring and fall to access the most nutritious plants and avoid deep snow. But as the human footprint in the West expands, these species increasingly face obstacles such as new subdivisions, energy development, impermeable fences and high-traffic roads on their long journeys. By mapping their migrations, scientists provide critical information -- like where migrations overlap with existing and potential obstacles -- to managers, policymakers, NGOs and private landowners working to minimize impacts on wildlife. "To best conserve and protect the habitat used by migrating elk, mule deer, moose and pronghorn, we have to know exactly where these species move across the landscape," said Blake Henning, chief conservation officer at the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. "That's why this mapping work is so important -- it's to ensure their future health and well-being. We support and greatly appreciate the USGS and collaborating states and Tribes for leading this highly collaborative and globally significant effort." The new report highlights how migration maps can be used for conservation and management amid changing landscapes. For example, when solar farms are built in an ungulate's range, they can negatively impact habitat and create barriers to movement for resident and migratory animals. The maps featured in the report series have previously been used to inform leasing decisions for oil and gas development, and they can also provide a key resource to help site future renewable energy projects that minimize effects to critical habitat. "By using these migration maps and data, the Arizona Game and Fish Department was able to have informed conversations with landowners and solar developers about managing for wildlife corridors through a planned solar facility," says Jeff Gagnon, statewide connectivity biologist at the Arizona Game and Fish Department. "These efforts will hopefully allow ungulates to continue their seasonal migrations." In addition to managers from the respective state wildlife agencies, co-authors on the fourth volume include the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife, Pueblo of Tesuque Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and Shoshone & Arapaho Tribes Fish and Game, among other partners. Maps of each herd were produced in collaboration with state and Tribal experts by cartographers from the USGS and the InfoGraphics Lab at the University of Oregon. Thanks to funding from the USGS and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, mapping by partners is ongoing, with a fifth volume of migration maps currently in preparation. The Corridor Mapping Team, established in 2018 in response to Department of the Interior Secretary's Order 3362, is a state-Tribal-federal partnership working to map ungulate migration corridors with standard techniques. The first three volumes in the Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States report series were published in 2020 and 2022.