(Boston) – Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have shown that the quality – not just the quantity – of adipose, or fat, tissue is a significant contributing factor in the development of inflammation and vascular disease in obese individuals.
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DURHAM, N.C. – Most of the world's "missing" or undiscovered species live in regions already identified by scientists as conservation priorities, according to a new study published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The study's findings suggest recent conservation efforts have been on target and should reduce uncertainty over global conservation priorities, its team of international authors say. But, they add, the extinction threat for many of the as-yet undiscovered species is worse than previously feared.
Research led by the University of East Anglia has discovered the crucial role of a molecule in skeletal muscle development.
The finding could have implications in the future for maintenance of healthy muscle or muscle regeneration in certain diseases, for example cancer and neuromuscular conditions such as muscular dystrophy.
LA JOLLA, CA – July 4, 2011 – For several years, scientists have been pondering a question about a genetic disease called Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease type 2D: how can different types of mutations, spread out across a gene, produce the same condition?
Now, a team of scientists at The Scripps Research Institute may have found the answer. By studying a gene called GARS, which is mutated in individuals with the disease, the team found that all the mutations have one thing in common: they cause the tightly coiled three-dimensional shape of the resulting protein to shift open.
The use of varenicline to stop smoking is associated with a 72% increased risk of a serious adverse cardiovascular event, states an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) (pre-embargo link only) http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj110218.pdf.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – July 4, 2011 – Smoking cigarettes is a dangerous habit that many are struggling to break, but for the smokers who choose to use one of the most popular smoking cessation drugs on the market, new warnings about the risk of serious cardiovascular events are on their way.
Healthy, middle-aged smokers who take the most popular smoking cessation drug on the market have a 72 percent increased risk of being hospitalized with a heart attack or other serious heart problems compared to those taking a placebo, a Johns Hopkins-led study suggests.
A new discovery reveals that the shrimp-like creature at the heart of the Antarctic food chain could play a key role in fertilising the Southern Ocean with iron – stimulating the growth of phytoplankton (microscopic plant-like organisms). This process enhances the ocean's capacity for natural storage of carbon dioxide.
Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Phoenix, AZ, USA – July 4, 2011 – VisionGate, Inc., a company developing a revolutionary non-invasive test for the early detection of lung cancer, today announced that it will present data showing how adjunctive use of its LuCED™ test can improve the utility of low dose x-ray computed tomography (CT) screening for the early detection of lung cancer in high risk individuals. LuCED uses VisionGate's revolutionary automated 3D cell imaging platform, the Cell-CT™, which generates high-resolution 3D biosignatures from intact cells using a sputum sample.
A new artificial surface inspired by floating seeds, which could provide an alternative to the toxic paints currently used to prevent fouling on ship hulls, has been developed by German scientists.
Neurofibromatosis (NF1) is a genetic condition which affects one in every 3,000 people. The severity of symptoms can range from benign 'café au lait' patches on the skin, through small tumors under the skin and deep plexiform neurofibromas, to malignant tumors of the nerve sheath. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medicine shows that a simple blood test for the protein melanoma-inhibitory activity (MIA) could be used to indicate the presence of neurofibromas even if they cannot be seen.
In the early 2000s, the international aid community started to fund health programs through Global Health Initiatives (GHIs) which provide aid and support for tackling infectious diseases, and for implementing immunization programs against childhood diseases. However priorities set by GHIs and by governments are not always the same. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Globalization and Health uses 'agency theory' to examine the conflicts between donor and recipient countries.
Stockholm, Sweden: Ovarian stimulation undertaken by women of advanced maternal age (over 35 years) receiving fertility treatment may be disrupting the normal pattern of meiosis – a critical process of chromosome duplication followed by two specialised cell divisions in the production of oocytes and sperm – and leading to abnormalities of chromosome copy numbers (aneuploidy) that result in IVF failure, pregnancy loss or, more rarely, the birth of affected children with conditions such as Down's syndrome, which is caused by the inheritance of three copies of chromosome 21 (trisomy 21).
INDIANAPOLIS – Scientists have deciphered the structure of an essential part of Mediator, a complex molecular machine that plays a vital role in regulating the transcription of DNA.
UBC researchers have developed a DNA measurement platform that sets dramatic new performance standards in the sensitivity and accuracy of sample screening.
The advance could improve a range of genetic diagnostics and screenings where precise measurement is crucial--including the early detection of cancer, prenatal diagnostics, the detection of pathogens in food products, and the analysis of single cell gene expression.