Small-bowel transplant patients with an ileostomy -- an opening into their small bowel -- have a very different population of bacteria living in their gut than patients whose ileostomy has been closed, researchers from UC Davis and Georgetown University Medical Center have found. The results are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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RICHMOND, Va. (Sept. 15, 2009) – Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have discovered a gene involved with the production of sperm that may contribute to male infertility and lead to new approaches to male contraception.
One in six couples trying to conceive a baby is affected by infertility, according to the American Fertility Association – and in about half of these cases, a male factor is present. Sperm defects are often found to be the main cause or a contributing cause.
In a development that could lead to a novel approach to the treatment of a devastating lung disease, biochemists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston report they are the first to link the osteopontin (OPN) protein to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Findings appear online and will be in the January 2010 print issue of The FASEB Journal, the journal of The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
HOUSTON – (Sept. 15, 2009) – A research project looking for ways to reduce bone loss in astronauts may yield methods of improving the bone health of cancer patients undergoing radiation treatment.
Researchers from several institutions including the University of Colorado at Boulder have sequenced DNA "barcodes" for as many as 25 hunted wildlife species, providing information that can be used to better monitor the elusive trade of wildlife products, or bushmeat.
HANOVER, NH – Two recent studies by Dartmouth researchers use individual genetic data to reveal the powers and limits of our current understanding of how the genome influences human health and what genes can reveal about the ancestry of the people of New Hampshire.
A team of researchers led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) radiologists has developed a computed-tomography-based protocol that identifies both narrowing of coronary arteries and areas of myocardial ischemia – restricted blood flow to heart muscle tissue – giving a better indication of clinically significant coronary artery disease. Their report appears in the September 15 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Doha, Sept. 15, 2009 – Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar have mapped a draft version of the date palm genome, unlocking many of its genetic secrets.
"We have generated a draft DNA sequence and initial assembly of the date palm using the most advanced technology," says Joel Malek, director of the Genomics Laboratory at WCMC-Q. Genetic information about the date palm is extremely valuable to researchers who are working to improve fruit yield and quality and to better understand susceptibility and resistance to disease.
Technological Corporation is developing an innovative application for the automatic inspection of hot steel surfaces, based on Machine Vision technologies that enhance quality control in hot rolling mill processes.
The world's largest quality of life study of chronic angina patients has revealed that almost one in three experience frequent chest pain, which affects their daily life.
The collaborative project between the University of Adelaide and Servier Australia surveyed more than 2000 chronic angina patients attending general practice clinics throughout Australia and has been published today in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Previous research has found that children raised in homes without a biological father have sex earlier than children raised in traditional nuclear families. Now a new study that used a novel and complex design to investigate why this is so challenges a popular explanation of the reasons.
ATLANTA– September 15, 2009 – The latest edition of Cancer Facts & Figures for Hispanics/Latinos reports that Hispanic/Latino Americans –the largest, fastest-growing, and youngest minority in the United States—have a unique cancer risk profile that requires a targeted approach to cancer prevention. The report finds Hispanic/Latino Americans are less likely than non-Hispanic whites to develop and die from all cancers combined as well as the four most common cancers (female breast, prostate, colorectum, and lung).
International guidelines for treating tuberculosis are due for specific improvements, according to two research papers published this week in the open access journal PLoS Medicine.
New York, NY (September 14, 2009): A new study published in the September 15, 2009, issue of PLoS ONE found that patients with cavitary pulmonary tuberculosis receiving anti-TB medications supplemented with nebulized interferon-gamma have fewer bacilli in the lungs and less inflammation, thereby reducing the transmissibility of tuberculosis in the early phase of treatment.
Montreal, September 15, 2009 – Tuberculosis is a global threat that affects more than 10 million people each year. Working with colleagues in the United States and France, Dr. Dick Menzies of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) has placed current tuberculosis treatment guidelines under the microscope in a new study. The team's conclusions, published today in two separate articles in the journal PLoS Medicine, recommend that the World Health Organization (WHO) must review and adjust its guidelines for fighting the disease.