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Not all women in breast cancer families share high risk

Mothers, sisters and daughters from breast cancer families with known genetic mutations do not all share the same high risk of developing the disease, according to a new international study involving the University of Melbourne.

Women with the breast cancer genetic mutations BRCA1 or BRCA2 are at least 10 times more likely to develop breast cancer than the average woman.

The new study found that women who do not have a genetic mutation, but are closely related to women who do have genetic mutations are at an average risk of developing the disease.

'Protein microarrays' may reveal new weapons against malaria

A new research technology is revealing how humans develop immunity to malaria, and could assist programs aimed at eradicating this parasitic disease.

Dr Alyssa Barry from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute's Infection and Immunity division is using 'protein microarray' technology to screen human blood serum samples for immunity to proteins produced by the malaria-causing Plasmodium falciparum parasite. Her research, which determines a person's immunity to hundreds of proteins simultaneously, has been published in the journal Molecular and Cellular Proteomics this month.

Live-action films of worm sperm help researchers track critical fertility enzymes

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 1, 2011 -- Compared to most other cells in an organism, sperm undergo a radical transformation to become compact and mobile delivery systems for paternal DNA. Even though sperm looks and moves quite differently across species, SF State researcher Diana Chu and colleagues now say that there are at least a few key enzymes that are critical for sperm development and mobility in species as different as mice and nematode worms. The study by Chu, et al., was published today online by the journal Genetics.

A new species of gall makers in the aphid genus of plant lice was found in China

Aphid researchers from Chinese Academy of Sciences found one new species, Aleurodaphis sinojackiae Qiao & Jiang, 2011 from Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, China. It forms leaf galls on Jack trees (Sinojackia xylocarpa) and is one of two known gall makers in the plant lice Aleurodaphis (Hemiptera, Aphididae, Hormaphidinae). The study was published in the open access journal ZooKeys.

Lessons to learn from community land ownership in Scotland

Community land ownership (CLO) is bringing people back to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and helping to create more vibrant and resilient communities, according to a report from the Scottish Agricultural College. For the first time, researchers and practitioners from across the UK are coming together to discuss CLO as well as rural health and community resilience in other parts of the world at an event during the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC) Festival of Social Science.

How lonely you are may impact how well you sleep, research shows

DARIEN, IL – Loneliness is not only heartbreaking, it breaks up a normal night's sleep, a new study shows. Researchers say compromised sleep may be one pathway by which feelings of loneliness adversely affect our health.

"It's not just a product of very lonely individuals having poor sleep. The relationship between loneliness and restless sleep appears to operate across the range of perceived connectedness," said lead author Lianne Kurina, PhD, of the Department of Health Studies at the University of Chicago.

Study finds overweight teens want to lose weight, going about it the wrong way

About 14 percent of Philadelphia's high school students are considered overweight, and while a myriad of research has been published on what schools, communities and parents can do to help curb these rates, very little information exists on what the teens themselves are doing to lose weight.

Research led by public health doctoral candidate Clare Lenhart has found that while most obese teens in Philadelphia report wanting to lose weight, their actions are more of a hindrance than a help.

Preterm birth rate shows three year improvement in most states

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Preterm birth rates improved in almost every state between 2006 and 2009, and in several states the change was more than 10 percent, according to the March of Dimes 2011 Premature Birth Report Card.

Many radiologists disagree on management of incidental findings, study finds

According to a recent study published in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology, many radiologists disagree on the management of incidental findings found on body computed tomography (CT) scans. An incidental finding is something found that is unrelated to the present illness and is discovered unintentionally.

Radiologists, primary users of non-cardiac ultrasound

Although non-radiologist physicians have contributed to the widespread use of point-of-care (POC) ultrasound, radiologists remain the primary users, according to a study in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. POC ultrasound is defined as an ultrasound performed (and interpreted) by the clinician at the bedside.

Ready for their close-up

Proteins are literally the movers and the shakers of the intracellular world. If DNA is the film director, then they are the actors. And much can be learned about cell function – and dysfunction – by watching proteins on the move.

Until now, scientists have only been able to see this process indirectly. Now researchers at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., have come up with a promising new technique that uses a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) to view proteins tagged with gold nanoparticles in whole, intact cells.

Yoga aids chronic back pain sufferers

Yoga can provide more effective treatment for chronic lower back pain than more conventional methods, according to the UK's largest ever study into the benefits of yoga.

The study, led by the University of York and funded by Arthritis Research UK, found that people offered a specially-designed 12-week yoga programme experienced greater improvements in back function and more confidence in performing everyday tasks than those offered conventional forms of GP care.

Enzymes act like a switch, turning antibiotic resistance on and off in enterococci

Antibiotic-resistant enterococci are a serious problem for patients in the hospital, but little is known about how these bacteria are able to escape antibiotics. New discoveries about the ways in which enterococci turn their resistance to cephalosporin antibiotics on and off are described in a study that will be published November 1 in the online journal mBio®. The new details about resistance could lead to new therapies for preventing and treating enterococcal infections.

No higher risk of breast cancer for women who don't have BRCA mutation but have relatives who do

STANFORD, Calif. -- In the largest study of its kind to date, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have shown that women related to a patient with a breast cancer caused by a hereditary mutation -- but who don't have the mutation themselves -- have no higher risk of getting cancer than relatives of patients with other types of breast cancer. The multinational, population-based study involving more than 3,000 families settles a controversy that arose four years ago when a paper hinted that a familial BRCA mutation in and of itself was a risk factor.

Study shows no increased risk of breast cancer for non-carriers in families with BRCA gene mutation

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