Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Studying the genetic make-up of different varieties of lipids (fatty molecules) in the blood plasma of an individual can lead to a better and earlier prediction of diseases such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, and heart disease, two researchers will tell the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics today (Monday 30 May). In the first study, Dr.
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Chapel Hill, NC – Laboratory research has always been limited in terms of what conclusions scientists can safely extrapolate from animal experiments to the human population as a whole. Many promising findings in mice have not held up under further experimentation, in part because laboratory animals, bred from a limited genetic foundation, don't provide a good representation of how genetic diversity manifests in the broader human population.
CINCINNATI – Scientists identify in the journal Nature a new molecular pathway used to suppress blood vessel branching in the developing retina – a finding with potential therapeutic value for fighting diseases of the retina and a variety of cancers.
Boston, Mass. - When children with asthma get the flu, they often land in the hospital gasping for air. Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston have found a previously unknown biological pathway explaining why influenza induces asthma attacks. Studies in a mouse model, published online May 29 by the journal Nature Immunology, reveal that influenza activates a newly recognized group of immune cells called natural helper cells – presenting a completely new set of drug targets for asthma.
Bar Harbor, Maine -- Mice and humans share about 95 percent of their genes, and mice are recognized around the world as the leading experimental model for studying human biology and disease. But, says Jackson Laboratory Professor Gary Churchill, Ph.D., researchers can learn even more "now that we really know what a laboratory mouse is, genetically speaking."
Fairbanks, Alaska—With an estimated 34,000 square miles of ice, an area about the size of Maine, Alaska's multitude of glaciers have a global impact.
Anthony Arendt, an assistant research professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, has outlined the complexity and influence of Alaska glaciers in this week's issue of the journal Science. In his article, Arendt explains the importance of integrating field observations and more precise glacier simulation models.
A new study from George Mason University and the Urban Institute reveals that greater spending on medical services means better overall health for Medicare participants. Health Administration and Policy Professor Jack Hadley and his co-authors, Urban Institute researchers Timothy Waidmann, Stephen Zuckerman, and Robert Berenson, analyzed data from more than 17,000 Medicare beneficiaries to draw this conclusion.
In the first major study exploring the connection between vitamin D and multiple sclerosis in African Americans, a team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has discovered that vitamin D levels in the blood are lower in African Americans who have the disease, compared to African Americans who do not.
Part of what determines how much success you will have in the dating world is whether you have a good sense of whether people find you attractive. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, finds that certain personality traits contribute to being a good judge of whether someone else thinks you're worth meeting again.
University of Calgary Faculty of Kinesiology researcher Elias Tomaras says the idea came to him while watching track and field sprinters warm-up for a race. "If you watch sprinters, short distance speed skaters or cyclists before their race, they will often warm-up for one to two hours, including several brief bouts of high intensity exercise. From an exercise physiology point of view, it seemed like it might be pretty tiring."
FRANKFURT. Salmonella is widely prevalent in the animal kingdom. The reason we do not suffer from severe intestinal infections very often is due to our body's defence system, which manages to digest invading bacteria. This is why, generally speaking, a healthy human being will only fall ill if he consumes more than 100.000 salmonella bacteria via a contaminated food source, such as eggs or meat. An international team of researchers, led by Prof. Ivan Dikic from the Goethe University in Frankfurt has now found out how body cells recognise salmonella and render it harmless.
5% to 10% of all breast cancers are monogenic in origin. In other words, there is a mutation of the genes BRCA1, BRCA2 or other high-risk genes. In this edition of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2011; 108(19): 323 30), Alfons Meindl of the Klinikum rechts der Isar (Munich) and coauthors report on new insights into the pathogenesis and treatment of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer and newly-discovered risk genes.
Low-cost catfish fillets sold as expensive sole fillets or cod caught in the North Sea but declared as originating from the Baltic Sea are both examples of types of fraud in the fisheries sector. A European Commission report published today shows how molecular technologies - based on genetics, genomics, chemistry and forensics - can provide clear answers to questions such as "what species does this fish product come from….where was this fish caught….is it wild or farmed?".
NEW YORK, NY (May 26, 2011) – The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) – a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing cures for major diseases through stem cell research – today applauded the announcement by Stanford University scientists, led by NYSCF – Robertson Investigator Dr. Marius Wernig, that they directly converted skin cells of humans into functional neurons. These neurons will allow researchers to study neural diseases with the ultimate goal of developing more effective treatments and cures.
How do females select partners? Darwin's initial idea that the fittest males would be the most desirable and would therefore be most likely to secure partners has represented a cornerstone of evolutionary theory since the publication of "The Descent of Man" in 1871. Darwin proposed that secondary sexual characteristics enabled females to see at a glance which male was "best", i.e. best for every female. This male would be the chosen partner as he would pass on the best possible genes to the next generation, thereby increasing the fitness of the species.