ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic researchers have found a gene mutation linked to one family's hereditary form of atrial fibrillation. Researchers hope this discovery will lead to better understanding of the disease and, eventually, better ways to predict, prevent and treat the heart rhythm problem.
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Early stage gene therapy clinical trials are recruiting patients from the developing world, providing medically deprived populations access to interventions that show promise but have largely unknown effects in humans. According to commentary by bioethicists at Carnegie Mellon and McGill universities published in this week's issue of The Lancet, the practice may be inconsistent with international ethics guidelines on justice.
Tel Aviv -- Think you have trouble getting rid of the clutter in your living room? After more than 50 years of launching rockets and satellites into space, the human race now has to deal with the clutter left behind -- or is it "above"? Dead satellites, spent rocket stages, paint flakes, and coolant from nuclear-powered satellites continue to orbit the Earth at ultrahigh velocities.
SANTA MONICA, CA - In celebration of 50 years of publishing groundbreaking research, the June issue of Human Factors features 33 papers that highlight pivotal research and significant discoveries in the field of Human Factors/ergonomics (HF/E). The entire online issue is available without charge from HFES.
Hospitals accredited by the Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC) have been shown to perform better in the heart attack core measures established by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as compared to non-accredited hospitals, according to a national study led by an Emory University researcher.
The findings, by Michael Ross, MD, associate professor and medical director for observation medicine in the Emory University School of Medicine, are reported in the July issue of The American Journal of Cardiology.
Birmingham, U.K. July 9, 2008 Led by Anna Catriona Phillips of the University of Birmingham, researchers assessed the response to a hepatitis A vaccine in young healthy adults and also examined responses to the annual influenza vaccination in older community-based adults.
West Lafayette, IN July 9, 2008 Researchers led by Steven R. Wilson of Purdue University videotaped forty mothers as they completed a ten minute play period with one of their children between the ages of three and eight years. The mothers then completed a series of questionnaires including the Verbal Aggressiveness Scale.
Described in the July 10, 2008 issue of the journal Nature, the research reveals the shape of the Ebola virus spike protein, which is necessary for viral entry into human cells, bound to an immune system antibody acting to neutralize the virus. The structure provides a major step forward in understanding how the deadly virus works, and may be useful in the development of potential Ebola virus vaccines, or treatments for those infected.
PHILADELPHIA - Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that the activity of a specific family of nanometer-sized molecular motors called myosin-I is regulated by force. The motor puts tension on cellular springs that allow vibrations to be detected within the body. This finely tuned regulation has important implications for understanding a wide variety of basic cellular processes, including hearing and balance and glucose uptake in response to insulin. The findings appear in the most recent issue of Science.
UPTON, NY — Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University have developed a new instrument that allows them to control the size of nanoclusters — groups of 10 to 100 atoms — with atomic precision. They created a model nanocatalyst of molybdenum sulfide, the first step in developing the next generation of materials to be used in hydrodesulfurization, a process that removes sulfur from natural gas and petroleum products to reduce pollution.
July 9, 2008 -- Medical science may be a significant step closer to climbing into the driver's seat of an important class of immune cells, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report in Nature Immunology.
The researchers showed that a single protein, HS1, enables key functions of natural killer (NK) cells, which kill early cancers and fight off viral infections. The protein allows the NK cells to pursue their targets, latch on to them and configure the cellular machinery it uses to kill them.
Microorganisms once reigned supreme on the Earth, thriving by filling every nook and cranny of the environment billions of years before humans first arrived on the scene. Now, this ability of microorganisms to grow from an almost infinite variety of food sources may play a significant role in bailing out society from its current energy crisis, according to the Biodesign Institute's Bruce Rittmann, Rosa Krajmalnik-Brown, and Rolf Halden.
Imagine trying to figure out how your car's power train works from just a few of its myriad components: It would be nearly impossible. Scientists have long faced a similar challenge in understanding cells' tiny powerhouses — called "mitochondria" — from scant knowledge of their molecular parts.
Keeping the genome stable is a "sister act" of matched chromatids the pairs of the double helix DNA molecule that exist during the chromosome duplication in the S phase of the cell cycle.
Cool, air blown under football shoulder pads reduces body temperature and heart rate, research finds
ORLANDO, Florida Cool, dry air flowing between the athlete and their football pads reduces core body temperature and heart rate dramatically, thereby reducing the likelihood of heat-related illness, a study released today at the 2008 American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine Annual Meeting at JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes shows. The study found that air forced under the uniform, rather than misted, cool air blown on to the uniform, could be a helpful measure to avoid heat-related illness in football players.