WORCESTER, Mass. – A team of researchers at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) Life Sciences and Bioengineering Center at Gateway Park has developed a new model system to study fungal infections. The system can be a powerful tool for screening potential drug targets for conditions like thrush, athlete's foot and vaginal yeast infections, which affect millions of people each year but are difficult to treat with existing medications. Using the new model, the researchers also identified a gene that may be a promising target for a new anti-fungal drug.
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DALLAS – Nov. 19, 2009 – Contrary to current thinking, a condition called gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) might not develop as a direct result of acidic digestive juices burning the esophagus, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found in an animal study.
Amsterdam, 19 November 2009 – Last week during the 'Vaccines for Biothreats and Emerging and Neglected Diseases Symposium' in Galveston TX, USA, the Elsevier journal Vaccine released a supplement dedicated to vaccines for biodefense (www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0264410X). This publication provides a comprehensive, state-of-the-art overview on vaccines that have been developed against a diverse group of human and veterinary pathogens, including Bacillus anthracis, smallpox, and blue tongue.
'Prevention is the best cure' is a common expression, but what happens if preventative measures are not used? A large proportion of pregnant Ugandan women are going out of their way not to be HIV tested, increasing the risk of mother-to-child transmission.
A recent paper by Larsson et al. in AIDS journal discussed how mother-to-child transmission of HIV can be easily and cost-effectively prevented using a short course of antiretroviral therapy. However, this is effective only if the mother is willing to be screened for HIV.
Oxford, November 19, 2009 – Elsevier, the leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, announced today the publication of a freely available Special Issue of Child Abuse and Neglect The International Journal 1989-2009 on the 20th Anniversary of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
Philadelphia, PA, 19 November 2009 - Phthalates are important components of many consumer products, including toys, cleaning materials, plastics, and personal care items. Studies to date on phthalates have been inconsistent, with some linking exposure to these chemicals to hormone disruptions, birth defects, asthma, and reproductive problems, while others have found no significant association between exposure and adverse effects.
Drug approvals are taking just as long as they ever did despite increased expenditure on new information technology at the Food and drug Administration. So says a statistical analysis of approval intervals from 1997 to 2006, published in the International Journal of Electronic Healthcare.
A series of studies carried out at the University of Haifa have found that rodent, reptile and ant lion species behave differently on either side of the Israel-Jordan border. "The border line, which is only a demarcation on the map, cannot contain these species, but the line does restrict humans and their diverse impact on nature," says Dr. Uri Shanas.
Chronic stress in humans has been implicated in heart disease, weight gain, and diabetes, among a host of other health problems. Extreme environments, a source of chronic stress, present a challenge even for the hardiest organisms, and plants are no exception. Yet, some species somehow manage to survive, and even thrive, in stressful conditions.
TEMPE, Ariz. – A baby's sleep position is the best predictor of a misshapen skull condition known as deformational plagiocephaly – or the development of flat spots on an infant's head – according to findings reported by Arizona State University scientists in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics.
There are minimal data assessing the relationship between diabetes with gallbladder, biliary and pancreatic cancer. Recent small studies have suggested an elevated risk of pancreatic cancer only in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).
A team of Princeton biologists and engineers has dramatically improved the speed and accuracy of measuring an enigmatic set of proteins that influences almost every aspect of how cells and tissues function. The new method offers a long-sought tool for studying stem cells, cancer and other problems of fundamental importance to biology and medicine.
Researchers from Stony Brook University Medical Center in New York have confirmed that Homo floresiensis is a genuine ancient human species and not a descendant of healthy humans dwarfed by disease. Using statistical analysis on skeletal remains of a well-preserved female specimen, researchers determined the "hobbit" to be a distinct species and not a genetically flawed version of modern humans. Details of the study appear in the December issue of Significance, the magazine of the Royal Statistical Society, published by Wiley-Blackwell.
Researchers from the German Sport University Cologne in Germany found that non-steroidal and tissue-selective anabolic agents such as Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) are being sold on the black market for their performance enhancing qualities. The availability of authentic SARMs was recently demonstrated for the first time by the detection of the drug candidate Andarine in a product sold via the Internet. Full findings of the study appear in the latest issue of Drug Testing and Analysis published by Wiley-Blackwell.
Bird flu viruses would have to make at least two simultaneous genetic mutations before they could be transmitted readily from human to human, according to research published today in PLoS ONE.