EurekAlert! - Breaking News

  • Novel hydrogel systems for dentin regeneration
    Dental caries, or tooth decay, continues to be the most prevalent infectious disease in the world,presenting significant public health challenges and socio-economic consequences.

  • New therapeutic options for diabetes-related tissue injury
    Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder characterized by altered glucose tolerance and impairedlipid and carbohydrate metabolism, and is associated with a number of complications directly resulting from hyperglycemiainducedinflammation.

  • How effective are dental referrals by primary care physicians?
    Young children from low-income families experience high levels of tooth decay and face many barriersto getting dental treatment and preventive services. Because these children usually visit their pediatrician or other primarycare provider far more frequently than a dentist, the primary care medical setting is gaining popularity as a place toprovide preventive dental services.

  • Mother's vitamin D status during pregnancy will affect her baby's dental health
    Low maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy may affect primary tooth calcification, leading toenamel defects, which are a risk factor for early-childhood tooth decay.

  • UCLA researchers clarify function of glucose transport molecule
    UCLA scientists have solved the structure of a class of proteins known as sodium glucose co-transporters, which pump glucose into cells. The solution of the SGLT structure will accelerate development of new drugs designed to treat patients with diabetes and cancer. The journal Science publishes the findings.

  • AGU Journal Highlights -- July 3, 2008
    In this issue: "Carbon enters deep Arctic Ocean mainly from continent edges"; "Magnetic patterns around Venus revealed"; "How porous, organism-rich layers form in Antarctic sea ice"; "Cold plasma plumes help generate aurora"; "Sea current near Norway gets cooled in Arctic"; "Rock type may influence hill steepness and landslide frequency"; and "Permafrost risk from rapid melt of Arctic sea ice."

  • New study points to agriculture in frog sexual abnormalities
    A farm irrigation canal would seem a healthier place for toads than a ditch by a supermarket parking lot.But University of Florida scientists have found the opposite is true. In a study with wide implications for a longstanding debate over whether agricultural chemicals pose a threat to amphibians, UF zoologists have found that toads in suburban areas are less likely to suffer from reproductive system abnormalities than toads near farms -- where some had both testes and ovaries

  • Visualizing atomic-scale acoustic wavesin nanostructures
    Acoustic waves play many everyday roles -- from communication between people to ultrasound imaging. Now the highest frequency acoustic waves in materials, with nearly atomic-scale wavelengths, promise to be useful probes of nanostructures such as LED lights.

  • Accord on core competency, standards and quality assurance in health promotion and education
    In response to the global health crisis, 26 leading authorities in competency-based and accreditation movements in global health promotion, health education, and public health reached an accord last week on what should comprise the domains of core competency in health promotion and health education.

  • In unique stellar laboratory, Einstein's theory passes strict, new test
    Taking advantage of a unique cosmic configuration, astronomers have measured an effect predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of General Relativity in the extremely strong gravity of a pair of superdense neutron stars. Essentially, the famed physicist's 93-year-old theory passed yet another test.

  • Radicals shake up molecules in a tug o' war
    Until now, it was commonly thought that colliding molecules get the shakes as the result of energy transfer solely from the smashing of the molecules, but some new research adds a second means by which colliding molecules become vibrationally excited -- it is being called the "Tug o' War Mechanism."

  • 'Mind's eye' influences visual perception
    Letting your imagination run away with you may actually influence how you see the world. New research from Vanderbilt University has found that mental imagery -- what we see with the "mind's eye" -- directly impacts our visual perception.

  • Species have come and gone at different rates than previously believed
    Diversity among the ancestors of such marine creatures as clams, sand dollars and lobsters showed only a modest rise beginning 144 million years ago with no clear trend afterwards, according to an international team of researchers. This contradicts previous work showing dramatic increases beginning 248 million years ago and may shed light on future diversity.

  • Prevalence of religious congregations affects mortality rates
    LSU associate professor of sociology Troy C. Blanchard recently found that a community's religious environment -- that is, the type of religious congregations within a locale -- affects mortality rates, often in a positive manner. These results were published in the June issue of Social Forces, a leading journal in the field of sociology.

  • Volcanic activity shaped Mercury after all
    A research team led by Brown University planetary geologist James Head has determined that volcanism played a central role in forming Mercury's surface. The evidence of volcanic activity lends important insights into Mercury's geologic history and appears in a special section describing the MESSENGER mission's recent flyby of Mercury in the July 4 issue of Science.

  • Disclosing violence to primary care or obestetrics/gynecology physicians most beneficial
    Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center found that patients who disclose intimate partner violence to their clinicians of any type did not experience serious harm. However, those who disclosed IPV in a primary care or obstetrics/gynecology setting received the most benefit.

  • Geologists push back date basins formed, supporting frozen Earth theory
    Even in geology, it's not often a date gets revised by 500 million years. But University of Florida geologists say they have found strong evidence that a half-dozen major basins in India were formed a billion or more years ago, making them at least 500 million years older than commonly thought.

  • Stem cells from umbilical cord used in the treatment of hepatic diseases
    Researchers of the University of Granada and the University of León (Spain) have proved that human umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells can be an effective alternative to bone marrow. This work, accepted to be published by the journal Cell Transplantation, means a significant advance in regenerative hepatic medicine.

  • 'Smart' materials get smarter with ability to better control shape and size
    A dynamic way to alter the shape and size of microscopic three-dimensional structures built out of proteins has been developed by biological chemist Jason Shear and his former graduate student Bryan Kaehr at the University of Texas at Austin.

  • Local elite rule over small villages in Indonesia
    Dutch-sponsored researcher Y. Argo Twikromo has investigated how the local ruling elite have retained their political control over the local population. He has tried to understand and analyse the dynamic processes of state formation and the interaction between national states and local communities.

  • Partners in peace
    International organizations frequently have high expectations about their interventions. Dutch researcher Mathijs van Leeuwen's work on peacebuilding reveals the need to exhibit modestly and to link into local agendas. Instead of wanting to realise ambitious programmes and to take the lead in social change, international organizations must instead try to be partners in peace.

  • Tasty meal out of reach
    Dutch Rubicon laureate Chris Smit has concluded that small mammals, such as rabbits and mice, play a major role in the development of natural diversity. Smit researched how scrub becomes established in natural grassland. It seems that prickly shrubs are important in protecting plants and preventing animal species from grazing. Smit has also demonstrated that natural disturbances such as flooding and animal diseases are very important for the diversity of natural areas.

  • Sophisticated communication a prerequisite for people's independence
    With the availability of the Internet, citizens are increasingly expected to search themselves for information on security risks in their living environment. Until now, however, too little was known about the willingness of citizens to do this and the factors that promote this information-seeking behavior. The work of Dutch researcher Ellen ter Huurne suggests there are many factors which communication professionals should pay greater attention to.

  • Giving nature a helping hand
    Dutch ecologist Marijke van Kuijk has studied the regeneration of the tropical forest in Vietnam. Abandoned agricultural land does regenerate to tropical forest, but only slowly. Two procedures are used to help nature along: pruning of foliage to free up space for trees and planting the desired tree species. Van Kuijk used the PHOLIAGE model to calculate the appropriate measures.

  • Extended cyclone relief efforts aided from space
    Earth observation satellites have provided vital information to relief workers in Myanmar throughout a particularly long crisis response window following the devastating Cyclone Nargis that hit the country on May 2 and 3, 2008.

  • Woman aquires new accent after stroke
    A woman in southern Ontario is one of the first cases in Canada of a rare neurological syndrome in which a person starts speaking with a different accent, McMaster University researchers report in the July issue of the Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences.

  • Scientists set out to measure how we perceive naturalness
    Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory are working towards producing the world's first model that will predict how we perceive naturalness. The results could help make synthetic products so good that they are interpreted by our senses as being fully equivalent to the "real thing," but with the benefits of reduced environmental impact and increased durability.

  • Rubber 'snake' could help wave power get a bite of the energy market
    A device consisting of a giant rubber tube may hold the key to producing affordable electricity from the energy in sea waves.

  • Great Ape Trust's Wich lead author of Oryx paper on continuing orangutan population declines
    Endangered wild orangutan (Pongo spp.) populations are declining more sharply in Sumatra and Borneo than previously estimated, according to new findings published this month by Great Ape Trust of Iowa scientist Dr. Serge Wich and other orangutan conservation experts in Oryx -- the International Journal of Conservation.

  • Statins have unexpected effect on pool of powerful brain cells
    Cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins have a profound effect on an elite group of cells known as glial progenitor cells that are important to brain health as we age, scientists have found. The new findings shed light on a long-debated potential role for statins in the area of dementia.

  • Brain noise is a good thing
    Canadian scientists have shown that a noisy brain is a healthy brain. "Brain noise" is a term that has been used by neuroscientists to describe random brain activity that is not important to mental function. Intuitive notions of brain-behavior relationships would suggest that this brain noise quiets down as children mature into adults and become more efficient and consistent in their cognitive processing. But new research from the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest overturns this notion.

  • Eclipses again prove key for Einstein
    Eclipses in a unique system of two dead stars, called pulsars, has shown that one of the pair is "wobbling" in space -- just like a spinning top. The effect, called precession, is precisely as predicted by Albert Einstein, and is thus a new and exciting confirmation of his theory.

  • Screening for heart disorders in competitive athletes would save lives
    Athletes who take part in competitive sport should be screened for potentially fatal heart problems before they compete, according to a study published online today.

  • Malaria on the increase in the UK
    A huge rise in the numbers of UK residents travelling to malaria endemic areas, combined with a failure to use prevention measures, has significantly increased cases of imported falciparum malaria in the UK over the past 20 years, according to a study published online.

  • Mercury's surface dominated by volcanism and iron-deficiency
    Multispectral data on the composition of rock untis of the surface of Mercury show a widespread role for volcanism and an apparent deficiency in iron in the rocks' minerals.

  • Potential treatment for TB solves puzzle
    Scientists have uncovered a new target for the potential treatment of TB, finally resolving a long-running debate about how the bacterial cell wall is built. The research, published in the July issue of Microbiology reveals several molecules that could be developed into drugs to treat tuberculosis. Multi drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes TB, sparked concern but the recent emergence of extensively drug-resistant strains means the search for new treatments is imperative.

  • Mimic molecules to protect against plague
    Bacteria that cause pneumonic plague can evade our first-line defences, making it difficult for the body to fight infection. In fact, a signature of the plague is the lack of an inflammatory response. Now, scientists have discovered a way to protect against death following infection with plague bacteria, by using molecules that can mimic the pathogens. According to research published in the July issue of Microbiology, these molecules make antibiotics more effective and can even be used to protect against other diseases.

  • Long-term study of middle-aged mice shows
    Sirtris, a GlaxoSmithKline company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat diseases of aging such as type 2 diabetes, is included among a research team that reported in today's online edition of Cell Metabolism that mice treated at middle-age to the end-of-life with resveratrol showed an overall health improvement, including improved bone health, a reduction in cataracts and cardiovascular dysfunction, and improved balance and motor coordination.

  • Simian foamy virus found to be widespread among chimpanzees
    Researchers in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Gabon, Germany, Japan, Rwanda, the United Kingdom, and the United States have found that simian foamy virus is widespread among wild chimpanzees throughout equatorial Africa. Details are published July 4 in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens.

  • Nature reserves attract humans, but at a cost to biodiversity
    Countering a perception that establishing nature reserves in developing nations drives away local communities, a new UC Berkeley study finds that human settlements are actually drawn to protected areas in Africa and Latin America. Unfortunately, the researchers also found a link between high rates of human population growth and illegal harvesting of timber, bushmeat hunting and species extinction.

  • U-M instrument shows what planet Mercury is made of
    By measuring the charged particles in the planet Mercury's magnetic field, a University of Michigan sensor enabled the first observations about the surface and atmospheric composition of the closest world to the sun.

  • Unique stellar system gives Einstein a thumbs-up
    The only double-pulsar system yet found provides the extremely strong gravitational field and a fortunate geometrical arrangement needed to measure an effect predicted by Einstein's General Relativity theory.

  • Acidifying oceans add urgency to CO2 cuts
    It's not just about climate change anymore. Besides loading the atmosphere with heat-trapping greenhouse gases, human emissions of carbon dioxide have also begun to alter the chemistry of the ocean. The ecological and economic consequences are difficult to predict but possibly calamitous, warn a team of chemical oceanographers, and halting the changes already underway will likely require even steeper cuts in carbon emissions than those currently proposed to curb climate change.

  • Ancient marine invertebrate diversity less explosive than thought
    Diversity among the ancestors of such marine creatures as clams, sand dollars and lobsters showed only a modest rise beginning 144 million years ago with no clear trend afterwards, according to an international team of researchers. This contradicts previous work showing dramatic increases beginning 248 million years ago and may shed light on future diversity.

  • Einstein was right, McGill astrophysicists say
    Researchers at McGill University's Department of Physics -- along with colleagues from several countries -- have confirmed a long-held prediction of Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity, via observations of a binary-pulsar star system. Their results will be published July 3 in the journal Science.

  • New research sheds light on the molecular basis of crib death
    Sudden infant death syndrome is a condition that unexpectedly and unexplainably takes the lives of seemingly healthy babies aged between a month and a year. Now researchers of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Monterotondo, Italy, have developed a mouse model of the so-called crib or cot death. The model, published in this week's issue of Science, reveals that an imbalance of the neuronal signal serotonin in the brain stem is causes sudden death in mice.

  • Organizing an Earth Systems Science Agency
    In an article published today in the journal Science, a group of former senior federal officials call for the establishment of an independent Earth Systems Science Agency to meet the unprecedented environmental and economic challenges facing the nation. They propose forming the new agency by merging the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the US Geological Survey.

  • Resveratrol found to improve health, but not longevity in aging mice on standard diet
    Scientists have found that the compound resveratrol slows age-related deterioration and functional decline of mice on a standard diet, but does not increase longevity when started at middle age. This study, conducted and supported in part by the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health, is a follow-up to 2006 findings that resveratrol improves health and longevity of overweight, aged mice.

  • Red wine ingredient wards off effects of age on heart, bones, eyes and muscle
    Large doses of a red wine ingredient can ward off many of the vagaries of aging in mice who begin taking it at midlife, according to a new report published online on July 3 in Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press publication. Those health improvements of the chemical known as resveratrol -- including cardiovascular benefits, greater motor coordination, reduced cataracts and better bone density -- come without necessarily extending the animals' lifespan.

  • Nanostructures improve bone response to titanium implants
    Titanium implants were successfully introduced by P.-I. Brånemark and co-workers in 1969 for therehabilitation of edentulous jaws. After 40 years of research and development, titanium is currently the most frequently usedbiomaterial in oral implantology, and titanium-based materials are often used to replace lost tissue in several parts of thebody.

  • Infant formula blocks HIV transmission via breastfeeding
    A team of researchers from Lavax and the University of Illinois at Chicago, reporting today during the 86thGeneral Session of the International Association for Dental Research, is developing a new technology that preventsthe infection of HIV by breastfeeding.

  • USC researchers identify tumor suppressor that manages cellular cleaning and recycling proceses
    Researchers at the University of Southern California have identified a specific tumor suppressor that manages membrane traffic routes for cellular cleaning and recycling.

  • University of Hawaii researchers discover new pathway for methane production in the oceans
    A new pathway for methane production has been uncovered in the oceans, and this has a significant potential impact for the study of greenhouse gas production on our planet. The article, released in the prestigious journal Nature Geoscience, reveals that aerobic decomposition of an organic, phosphorus-containing compound, methylphosphonate, may be responsible for the supersaturation of methane in ocean surface waters.

  • UI researchers make first measurements of the solar wind termination shock
    Two University of Iowa space physicists report that the Voyager 2 spacecraft, which has been traveling outward from the sun for 31 years, has made the first direct observations of the solar wind termination shock, according to a paper published in the July 3 issue of the journal Nature.

  • New antibiotic beats superbugs at their own game
    By targeting the gene that confers resistance to antibiotics, a new drug may be able to finally outwit drug-resistant staph bacteria.

  • Looking for the Founatain of Youth? Cut your calories, research suggests
    In addition to reducing one's risk for many common diseases, new Saint Louis University research found that calorie restriction may slow the aging process.

  • Instances of mass die-offs in wild lions precipitated by extreme climate change
    An international research team has published the first clear example of how climate extremes can create conditions in which diseases that are normally tolerated singly may converge and bring about mass die-offs in wildlife.

  • USGS science picks -- leads, feeds and story seeds
    Learn about an upcoming Canoe Journey to study water resources in the Salish Sea, the development of a volcano early warning system in Chile, the slow recovery of California sea otter populations, floods in the Midwest, what makes an old geyser faithful, recent findings on the solar system's formation, the sage-grouse's chances for survival, what makes colors in fireworks, and more.

  • Search for salt tolerant grasses aims to improve roadside plantings
    URI researcher aims to identify a salt tolerance limit for native and ornamental turf grasses in hopes of finding a variety that can be used along highways without being killed when roadway salt -- mixed with melting snow -- is splashed onto the grass.

  • The body's own 'cannabis (marijuana)' is good for the skin
    Scientists from Hungary, Germany and the UK have discovered that our own body not only makes chemical compounds similar to the active ingredient in marijuana, but these play an important part in maintaining healthy skin. This finding on "endocannabinoids" just published online in, and scheduled for the October 2008 print issue of, the FASEB Journal could lead to new drugs that treat skin conditions ranging from acne to dry skin, and even skin-related tumors.

  • Seizures in newborns can be detected with small, portable brain activity monitors
    Compact, bedside brain-activity monitors detected most seizures in at-risk infants, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis showed. That means the compact units could assist clinicians in monitoring for electrical seizures until confirmation with conventional EEG, the researchers assert in an article published in the June issue of Pediatrics.

  • Exploding asteroid theory strengthened by new evidence located in Ohio, Indiana
    Was the course of life on the planet altered 12,900 years ago by a giant comet exploding over Canada? New evidence found by UC assistant professor of anthropology Ken Tankersley and colleagues suggests the answer is affirmative.

  • Get smart about what you eat and you might actually improve your intelligence
    New research findings published online in the FASEB Journal provide more evidence that if we get smart about what we eat, our intelligence can improve. According to MIT scientists, dietary nutrients found in a wide range of foods from infant formula to eggs increase brain synapses and improve cognitive abilities.

  • Some fundamental interactions of matter found to be fundamentally different than thought
    When an atom collides with a molecule, traditional wisdom said the atom had to strike one end of the molecule hard to deliver energy to it. People thought a glancing blow from an atom would be useless in terms of energy transfer, but that turns out not to be the case. "We have a new understanding of how energy can be transferred in collisions at the molecular scale," said Richard Zare, of Stanford University.

  • FSU researcher using computers to hone cancer-fighting strategies
    A Florida State University faculty member who uses computational techniques to evaluate a new class of cancer-killing drugs is attracting worldwide attention from other researchers.

  • UC San Diego researchers identify potential new drug candidates to combat 'bird flu'
    As the specter of a worldwide outbreak of avian or "bird flu" lingers, health officials recognize that new drugs are desperately needed since some strains of the virus already have developed resistance to the current roster of anti-flu remedies.

  • New study finds coronary arterial calcium scans help detect overall death risk in the elderly
    Measuring calcium deposits in the heart's arteries can help predict overall death risk in American adults, even when they are elderly, according to a new study published in the July issue of Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

  • Tigers disappear from Himalayan refuge
    World Wildlife Fund is alarmed by the dramatic decline of at least 30 percent in the Bengal tiger population of Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve in Nepal, once a refuge that boasted among the highest densities of the endangered species in the Eastern Himalayas. The recent survey of April 2008 showed a population of between 6-14 tigers, down from 20-50 tigers in 2005.

  • Texas A&M researchers develop tool to study complex clusters of genes
    Texas A&M University researchers have developed a computational tool that will help scientists more accurately study complex units of clustered genes, called operons, in bacteria.

  • Experimental philosophy movement explores real-life dilemmas
    Imagine a business executive who thinks: "I know that this new policy will harm the environment, but I don't care at all about that -- I just want to increase profits." Is the business executive harming the environment intentionally? Faced with this question from a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill philosopher, 82 percent of people polled said yes.

  • Synthetic molecules emulate enzyme behavior for the first time
    When chemists want to produce a lot of a substance -- such as a newly designed drug -- they often turn to catalysts, molecules that speed chemical reactions. Many jobs require highly specialized catalysts, and finding one in just the right shape to connect with certain molecules can be difficult. Natural catalysts, such as enzymes in the human body that help us digest food, get around this problem by shape-shifting to suit the task at hand.

  • US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute announces new genome sequencing projects
    In the continuing effort to tap the vast, unexplored reaches of the earth's microbial and plant domains for bioenergy and environmental applications, the DOE Joint Genome Institute has announced its latest portfolio of DNA sequencing targets. The 44 projects, culled from nearly 150 proposals received through the Community Sequencing Program, represent over 60 billion nucleotides of data to be generated through this biodiversity sampling campaign -- roughly the equivalent of 20 human genomes.

  • Being an MRSA carrier increases risk of infection and death
    Patients harboring methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus for long periods of time continue to be at increased risk of MRSA infection and death, according to a new study in the July 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, currently available online.

  • Study shows quantum dots can penetrate skin through minor abrasions
    Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that quantum dot nanoparticles can penetrate the skin if there is an abrasion, providing insight into potential workplace concerns for healthcare workers or individuals involved in the manufacturing of quantum dots or doing research on potential biomedical applications of the tiny nanoparticles.

  • Ethanol byproduct produces green results
    Commercial flower and plant growers know all too well that invasive, ubiquitous weeds cause trouble by lowering the value and deterring healthy growth of potted ornamental plants. To control weeds, many commercial nursery owners apply herbicides or pay workers to hand-weed containers. A study by US Department of Agriculture researchers investigated using "dried distillers grains with solubles" or DDGS as a weed deterrent on potted ornamentals.

  • Weight Watchers vs. fitness centers
    In the first study of its kind, using sophisticated methods to measure body composition, the nationally known commercial weight loss program, Weight Watchers, was compared to gym membership programs to find out which method wins in the game of good health. A University of Missouri researcher examined the real-life experiences of participants to determine which program helps people lose pounds, reduce body fat and gain health benefits.

  • HapMap browsing and DDDP methods for genetic analysis featured in CSH Protocols
    This month's issue of Cold Spring Harbor Protocols features a set of articles with clear, step-by-step instructions for the analysis of HapMap data.

  • Scientists reveal the key mechanisms for affinity between transient binding proteins
    Researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine have performed the first computational analysis of transient interactions between proteins in order to reveal what determines their recognition as ideal partners and have unveiled part of the molecular mechanisms involved in the specificity of this binding. The results of this study have been published in the scientific journal PLoS One.

  • 10,000 people in world-first cerebral palsy study
    Researchers from the University of Adelaide, Australia, have launched the largest study of its kind in the world in a bid to better understand the possible genetic causes of cerebral palsy.

  • ETH Zurich and IBM improve diagnosis of osteoporosis
    Using a Blue Gene supercomputer, scientists of ETH Zurich and the IBM Zurich Research Laboratory demonstrated the most extensive simulation yet of actual human bone structure. This achievement may lead to better clinical tools to improve the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis, a widespread disease that worldwide affects one in three women and one in five men over the age of 50.

  • Healthy or diseased?
    Scientists from the Institute for Bioinformatics and Systemic Biology of the Helmholtz Zentrum München and the faculty for biology of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität have shown that biological indicators for diseases caused or influenced by environmental factors can be detected by the systemic analysis of the body's metabolism (metabolomics). The procedure presented here is also suitable for pre-clinical drug testing and allows for the early detection of possible side effects of a new medication.

  • Major rise in Caesarean sections linked to impaired womb function with age
    Delaying childbirth has substantially contributed to recent rises in Caesarean section rates, according to a paper published this week by scientists at Cambridge University. They found that advancing age was associated with impaired uterine function, in particular a reduced degree of spontaneous contraction and change in the type of contraction. The reduction is thought to result in poor progression of labor and thus the increased rate of Caesarean section.

  • Atomic tug of war
    A new form of energy-transfer processes, reported today in Nature may have implications for the study of reactions going on in the atmosphere, and even for those occurring in the body.

  • Footrot vaccine closer than ever
    Monash University scientists have started clinical trials to find a successful vaccine against footrot in sheep.

  • Gene directs stem cells to build the heart
    Researchers have shown that they can put mouse embryonic stem cells to work building the heart, potentially moving medicine a significant step closer to a new generation of heart disease treatments that use human stem cells. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report in Cell Stem Cell that the Mesp1 gene locks mouse embryonic stem cells into becoming heart parts and gets them moving to the area where the heart forms.

  • Discovery explains how cold sore virus hides during inactive phase
    Now that Duke University Medical Center scientists have figured out how the virus that causes cold sores hides out, they may have a way to wake it up and kill it.

  • Controlling bone disease improves survival of hemodialysis patients
    Consistently maintaining certain blood levels of markers of bone metabolism and disease can prolong the lives of patients on hemodialysis, according to a study appearing in the September 2008 issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology. The findings indicate that keeping parathyroid hormone, calcium, and phosphorous levels in control is critically important for dialysis patients with chronic kidney disease.

  • Worms do calculus to find meals or avoid unpleasantness
    Thanks to salt and hot chili peppers, researchers have found a calculus-computing center that tells a roundworm to go forward toward dinner or turn to broaden the search. It's a computational mechanism, they say, that is similar to what drives hungry college students to a pizza.

  • First images of solar system's invisible frontier
    An instrument aboard NASA's STEREO spacecraft unexpectedly detected particles from the edge of the solar system last year, allowing UC Berkeley scientists to map for the first time the energized particles in the region where the hot solar wind slams into the cold interstellar medium. The region, at about 100 AU, is invisible to other telescopes, but can be mapped by detecting energetic neutral atoms, largely hydrogen.

  • Species extinction threat underestimated due to math glitch, says CU-Boulder study
    Extinction risks for natural populations of endangered species are likely being underestimated by as much as 100-fold because of a mathematical "misdiagnosis," according to a new study led by a University of Colorado at Boulder researcher.

  • The benefits of green tea in reducing an important risk factor for heart disease
    More evidence for the beneficial effect of green tea on risk factors for heart disease has emerged in a new study reported in the latest issue of European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation. The study found that the consumption of green tea rapidly improves the function of (endothelial) cells lining the circulatory system; endothelial dysfunction is a key event in the progression of atherosclerosis.

  • UC San Diego undergraduates forge new area of bioinformatics
    A group of undergraduate students from the University of California San Diego have forged a new area of bioinformatics that may improve genomic and proteomic annotations and unlock a collection of stubborn biological mysteries. Their work will be published in the July issue of the journal Genome Research.

  • Blood vessel inhibitor shows promise against metastatic thyroid cancer
    Thyroid cancer that has spread to distant sites has a poor prognosis, but an experimental drug that inhibits tumor blood vessel formation can slow disease progression in some patients, a research team led by investigators from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports in the July 3 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

  • Report says clinicians should consider economic impact of new interventions
    Cancer clinicians should understand and consider the economic impact of new interventions, which often have substantial costs, according to a report appearing in the July/August issue of CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

  • Circulating tumor cells can reveal genetic signature of dangerous lung cancers
    Massachusetts General Hospital investigators have shown that an MGH-developed, microchip-based device that detects and analyzes tumor cells in the bloodstream can be used to determine the genetic signature of lung tumors, allowing identification of those appropriate for targeted treatment and monitoring genetic changes that occur during therapy.

  • 'Multi-target' immune therapy improves outcomes of severe lupus nephritis
    A new treatment using a combination of drugs targeting different parts of the immune system improves the recovery rate for patients with severe lupus involving the kidneys, according to a report in the October Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

  • Glaucoma surgery studied in Medicare patients, new hope for people
    Ophthalmologists continue to develop treatments to help the more than three million Americans with glaucoma. The July issue of Ophthalmology includes a large, national study of outcomes of incisional surgeries, used to reduce pressure inside the eye, in Medicare patients. Also covered is research that may brighten the outlook for patients with end-stage glaucoma.

  • Women over 90 more likely to have dementia than men
    Women over 90 are significantly more likely to have dementia than men of the same age, according UC Irvine researchers involved with the 90+ Study, one of the nation's largest studies of dementia and other health factors in the fastest-growing age demographic.

  • Are men or women more likely to have memory problems in very old age?
    Women over age 90 are significantly more likely to have dementia compared to men in their 90s, according to a study published in the July 2, 2008, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Research shows that dementia risk for both men and women increases from age 65 to 85, but this most recent study is one of few that looks at people over age 90.

  • Erectile dysfunction lower in men who have intercourse more often
    Having intercourse more often may help prevent the development of erectile dysfunction. A study published in the July 2008 issue of the American Journal of Medicine reports that researchers have found that men who had intercourse more often were less likely to develop ED.

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