Vitamin B3, also known as niacin and nicotinic acid, prevents eye degeneration in glaucoma-prone mice, according to a study published in the Feb. 17 issue of the journal Science. Williams et al show that dietary supplementation with a single molecule (vitamin B3 or NAM) or Nmnat1 gene therapy significantly reduces …

Vitamin D supplementation can help protect against acute respiratory infections including colds and flu, particularly among very deficient individuals, according to a new study published in the journal BMJ. The study by Martineau et al provides the most robust evidence yet that vitamin D has benefits beyond bone and muscle …

As Cassini continues its ring-grazing orbits, diving just past the outside of Saturn’s F ring, the outermost discrete ring of the planet, it is tracking several small objects there. This image of the object F16QA was obtained using Cassini’s narrow-angle camera on Feb. 5, 2017, at a distance of 610,000 …

According to a new study published in the journal PLoS Genetics, dwindling populations created a ‘mutational meltdown’ in the genomes of the last wooly mammoths, which had survived on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Ocean until about 3,700 years ago. This is an artist’s rendition of a woolly mammoth. Image …

“Like a summer’s evening here on Earth just after sunset. A faint blue glow follows the Sun below the horizon — the only bit of color within an otherwise black sky,” Tanguy Bertrand imagines a view from the surface of Pluto, a picture more fully realized following recent man-made visitors …

Using mid-infrared data from the 8.2-m Subaru Telescope, a research team led by Dr. Hideaki Fujiwara, Subaru scientist at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, has measured the brightness and temperatures of Saturn’s main rings. This is a three-color composite image of Saturn and its rings taken January 23, 2008 …

Conversational AI is pushing deeper into enterprise with Workfit, a new startup promising to make conference call follow-ups and mid-meeting CRM updates as easy as playing a song or checking the weather on Google Home or Amazon Echo. Battery Ventures, Greycroft Partners, Salesforce Ventures and a number of angels joined …

Uber’s SVP of engineering, Amit Singhal, left the company earlier today after Uber CEO Travis Kalanick asked him to step down, Recode reports. According to Recode, Singhal failed to disclose a sexual harassment allegation made against him at former employer Google during the hiring process. This comes after Uber’s hell of a …

Boston Dynamics’ wheeled Handle robot received much fanfare earlier this month when DFJ partner Steve Jurvetson slipped us an early video from a company Keynote. Today we have more details on Handle in the form of a shiny HD video. We already knew Handle could manage some pretty sick hurdles …

The de facto head of Samsung, Jay Y. Lee, is facing the potential of years behind bars after South Korean prosecutors said today that they intend to indict him on bribery charges, the Wall Street Journal reported. Lee was arrested earlier this month on bribery, embezzlement, and perjury charges related to giving $37 million …