BOSTON--Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified a set of previously unknown mutations in a single gene in 8 percent of neuroblastomas, tumors of the nervous system that occur in young children and account for approximately 15 percent of all childhood cancer deaths.
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Boston, Mass. – October 15, 2008 – Living donor kidney transplantation is the preferred treatment option for patients with end stage renal disease. The outcomes of this type of transplant are superior to waiting for several years on the deceased donor transplant list while on dialysis. 38 percent of all kidney transplants in the U.S. are now performed using living donors. However, some patients do not have access living donors who are both willing and medically eligible to give them a kidney.
University of Arizona scientists experimenting with some of the coldest gases in the universe have discovered that when atoms in the gas get cold enough, they can spontaneously spin up into what might be described as quantum mechanical twisters or hurricanes.
The surprising experimental results agree with independent numerical simulations produced by collaborating scientists at the University of Queensland in Australia. The Arizona and Queensland researchers are reporting the results of the research in today's issue (Oct. 16) of the journal Nature.
Using highly uniform samples of carbon nanotubes—sorted by centrifuge for length—materials scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have made some of the most precise measurements yet of the concentrations at which delicate mats of nanotubes become transparent, conducting sheets. Their recent experiments* point up the importance of using relatively homogeneous—not overly short, but uniform in length— nanotubes for making high performance conducting films.
Novel nanoparticles being tested at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have researchers seeing stars. In a recent paper,* NIST scientists used surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to demonstrate that gold nanostars exhibit optical qualities that make them superior for chemical and biological sensing and imaging. These uniquely shaped nanoparticles may one day be used in a range of applications from disease diagnostics to contraband identification.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A multicenter team of researchers, including scientists from the University of Florida, has discovered a way to potentially block the growth of neuroblastoma, a type of cancer responsible for 15 percent of all cancer deaths in children.
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– While an international seed bank in a Norwegian island has been gathering news about its agricultural collection, a group of U.S. scientists has just published an article outlining a different kind of seed bank, one that proposes the gathering of wild species –– at intervals in the future –– effectively capturing evolution in action.
Stem-cell sentry sounds the alarm to maintain balance between cancer and aging, U-M researchers find
ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Like a sentry guarding the castle walls, a molecular messenger inside adult stem cells sounds the alarm when it senses hazards that could allow the invasion of an insidious enemy: Cancer.
The alarm bell halts the process of cell division in its tracks, preventing an error that could lead to runaway cell division and eventually, tumor formation.
WHAT:
If research finds that a simpler, cheaper treatment is just as effective as a more costly procedure, which one should doctors and hospitals choose? And which one should insurers and Medicare pay for?
Patients suffering from chest pain related to coronary artery disease often undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), or balloon angioplasty. A major, multicenter study (the COURAGE trial) reported last year that in most cases, intensive medical management can be just as effective, but physicians still have a tendency to reach for the higher-cost option first.
The gecko's amazing ability to stick to surfaces and walk up walls has inspired many researchers to manufacture materials that mimic the special surface of a gecko's foot. The secret behind the gecko's ability to stick so well is a forest of pillars at the micro-/nano-scale on the underside of the gecko's foot. Because there are so many pillars so close together, they are held tightly to the surface the gecko is walking on by a molecular force called the Van der Waals force. This relatively weak force causes uncharged molecules to attract each other.
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 15, 2008 – The HORIZONS AMI clinical trial measuring the safety and efficacy of the use of the medication bivalirudin compared to standard drug therapy – heparin and glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors -- in heart attack patients who receive angioplasty, found that after 1 year, use of bivalirudin resulted in significantly lower rates of all-cause death, death from cardiac causes, and major bleeding.
For children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) tasks that require concentration such as doing homework or taking a test can be very difficult. A simple, inexpensive remedy may be a "dose of nature."
A study conducted at the University of Illinois shows that children with ADHD demonstrate greater attention after a 20-minute walk in a park than after a similar walk in a downtown area or a residential neighborhood.
It's confirmed: Even though flatback turtles dine on fish, shrimp, and mollusks, they are closely related to primarily herbivorous green sea turtles. New genetic research carried out by Eugenia Naro-Maciel, a Marine Biodiversity Scientist at the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the American Museum of Natural History, and colleagues clarifies our understanding of the evolutionary relationships among all seven sea turtle species.
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 15, 2008 – Late-breaking data from the HORIZONS AMI (Harmonizing Outcomes with RevascularIZatiON and Stents in Acute Myocardial Infarction) trial reveal that after one year, use of a drug-eluting (paclitaxel) stent demonstrated significantly reduced rates of target lesion revascularization (TLR) and binary angiographic restenosis when compared to the use of a bare metal stent in heart attack patients.
INDIANAPOLIS – Across the nation concerns about health-care quality and costs are growing. For the first time, both candidates aspiring to the nation's highest office are looking to greater reliance on electronic medical records as critical to any remedy.