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A study conducted in mice has revealed that maternal milk provides an essential signal that triggers the maturation of heart metabolism after birth, allowing the neonatal heart to function correctly and ensuring postnatal survival. The study shows that the fatty acid gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), present in breast milk, binds to the retinoid X receptor (RXR) protein found in heart cells. RXR acts as a nutritional sensor of lipids and vitamin A derivatives, altering gene expression and influencing biological functions such as immunity, cell differentiation, and metabolism. Once activated by maternal GLA, RXR initiates genetic programs that equip mitochondria, the energy...

The footage was recorded at Alcacuz Prison in the north eastern Brazilian city of Natal which is in the midst of a bloody riot as rival gangs attack each other. The bodies of some prisoners have been returned to their loved ones with their heads missing after they were decapitated. Only 22 victims of the horrific violence had been identified so far, with forensic experts still trying to determine who two heads, a forearm, an arm and a leg removed by the prison grounds belonged to. ... Elite military police are expected to move in shortly to help jail guards...

Some time in December, Ben Hooper will step on to a beach in Dakar, Senegal, and plunge into the warm blue waters of the Atlantic. He will not stop swimming until he hits Natal in Brazil. The distance is 1,763 miles. But that’s only if he goes in a straight line. And swimming across the Atlantic in a straight line is a bad idea: “The currents in the centre are so strong, I’d never get there. It’s an absolute car wreck in the centre. Great for rowers, great for sailors, horrible for swimmers,” he says. Instead he will go in...