Grand Rapids, Mich. (March 17, 2011) – In a recently-published study mapping the structure and function of the so-called "orphan" nuclear receptor TR4, Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) investigators suggest that Vitamin A may play a more direct role than was previously known in certain physiological functions including sperm cell formation and the development of the central nervous system.
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TORONTO, Ont., March 17, 2011 — Major clinical studies that evaluate prevention strategies for heart disease and stroke fail to consider a participant's ethnicity, a factor that can more than double the rate of death in some groups, according to research led by St. Michael's Dr. Joel Ray.
A pilot study in healthy children and adolescents shows that it is feasible to screen for undiagnosed heart conditions that increase the risk of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Adding a 10-minute electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) to a history and physical examination identified unsuspected cases of potentially serious heart conditions.
Although more research is needed, the preliminary results suggest that a relatively low-cost screening might help identify children who are at risk for sudden cardiac arrest, possibly preventing childhood death.
In 2006, Maria Otilia Carvalho, a researcher from the Tropical Research Institute of Portugal had an ambitious goal: to cut the huge losses of rice – a staple food crop for half of humanity – due to pests, without using toxic pesticides that are increasingly shunned by consumers worldwide. She realised she could not do it alone and turned to EUREKA to support an international collaboration to address a looming threat to world's rice supplies.
A study by the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), analysing the impact of the labour reforms introduced over the past 30 years and the living conditions of new generations, asserts that these reforms have been the origin and cause of the current development model based on the exploitation of young people.
MIAMI – March 17, 2010 -- University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science scientist Chris Langdon and colleagues developed a new tool to monitor coral reef vital signs. By accurately measuring their biological pulse, scientists can better assess how climate change and other ecological threats impact coral reef health worldwide.
Researchers at UCLA's Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a way to produce normal butanol — often proposed as a "greener" fuel alternative to diesel and gasoline — from bacteria at rates significantly higher than those achieved using current production methods.
New research suggests that promoting active play in children's leisure time could increase the physical activity of today's children, but that such strategies might need to be tailored according to gender.
The paper, 'What is the meaning and nature of active play for today's children in the UK?' by Rowan Brockman and colleagues in the Centre for Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences within the School for Policy Studies at the University of Bristol, is published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.
From office block windows to power lines and wind turbines, many species of bird are prone to colliding with large man-made objects, many of which appear difficult not to notice to human eyes. A new study published today in IBIS outlines a new approach to understanding how birds see the world and why they find pylons and turbines so hard to avoid.
The problem of bird collisions is a serious concern for conservationists. Research suggests that bird mortality caused by collisions with human artifacts is the largest unintended human cause of avian fatalities worldwide.
A drug that targets the antibody immunoglobulin E (IgE), a key player in asthma, nearly eliminated seasonal increases in asthma attacks and decreased asthma symptoms among young people living in inner city environments, a clinical trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health has found.
The findings will appear in the March 17 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
CINCINNATI—Researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center have found that the FDA-approved drug sirolimus, used primarily to prevent rejection in organ transplant patients, stabilized lung function in women with lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM).
The Multicenter International LAM Efficacy of Sirolimus (MILES) trial was the first randomized, controlled study designed to develop a therapy for this life-threatening illness, which currently has no cure or treatment.
WHAT: Sirolimus, a drug currently used to help prevent transplant rejection, can improve lung function and quality of life in individuals living with the lung disease lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), according to the results of a new study sponsored and conducted in part by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health.
"Efficacy and Safety of Sirolimus in Lymphangioleiomyomatosis," will be published online March 16 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
(Boston) – Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), in collaboration with researchers from the Inner City Asthma Consortium, have found that among inner-city children, the drug omalizumab improved asthma control, nearly eliminated seasonal exacerbations and reduced the need for controller medication. These findings appear in the March 17th issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Durham, NC — A new study of more than three dozen bacteria species — including the microbes responsible for pneumonia, meningitis, stomach ulcers and plague — settles a longstanding debate about why bacteria are more likely to steal some genes than others.
What's in a name? Letters. And psychologists have posited that the letters—particularly the first letter of our names—can influence decisions, including whom we marry and where we move. The effect is called "implicit egotism."
In 2008, two Belgian researchers found that workers in their country were more likely to choose a workplace if the first letter of its name matched their own.