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Cancer May be Prevented Before it Develops
May 24, 2013 | Comments
Scientists have uncovered a survival mechanism that occurs in breast cells that have just turned premalignant- cells on the cusp between normalcy and cancers- which may lead to new methods of stopping tumors. Researchers report that a protein known as transforming growth factor beta, considered a tumor suppressor in early cancer development, can actually promote cancer once a cell drifts into a pre-cancerous state.
Secret Neuron Rewiring Exposed
May 24, 2013 10:08 am | Comments
As the human body fine-tunes its neurological wiring, nerve cells often must fix a faulty...
Smartphones Become Handheld Biosensors
May 24, 2013 9:43 am | Comments
Researchers and physicians in the field could soon run on-the-spot tests for environmental...
Scientists Announce Top 10 New Species
May 24, 2013 9:11 am | Comments
An amazing glow-in-the-dark cockroach, a harp-shaped carnivorous sponge and the smallest...
Huntington's Symptoms Prevented in Mice
May 24, 2013 10:57 am | CommentsResearchers have succeeded in preventing very early symptoms of Huntington’s disease, depression and anxiety, by deactivating the mutated huntingtin protein in the brains of mice. Huntington’s is a debilitating disease for which there is still neither cure nor sufficient treatment.
Determining the Fate of Living Cells
May 24, 2013 10:44 am | CommentsA newly developed tension gauge tether (TGT) laboratory method has broad applications for research into stem cells, cancer, infectious disease and immunology. Cells in the human body do not function in isolation. Living cells rely on communication with their environment—neighboring cells and the surrounding matrix—to activate a wide range of cellular functions.
Study: No higher cancer rate at Conn. Pratt plants
May 23, 2013 11:12 pm | by STEPHEN SINGER - AP Business Writer - Associated Press | CommentsAn 11-year study of the incidence of brain cancer at jet engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney in the state ended Thursday with university researchers saying they found no statistically significant elevations in the rate of cancer among workers. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and...
Study: No higher cancer rate at Conn. Pratt plant
May 23, 2013 7:39 pm | by STEPHEN SINGER - AP Business Writer - Associated Press | CommentsAn 11-year study of the incidence of brain cancer at jet engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney in the state ended Thursday with university researchers saying they found no statistically significant elevations in the rate of cancer among workers. The researchers at the University of Pittsburgh...
Alabama mystery illness solved: it's common flu
May 23, 2013 5:34 pm | by KATHY WINGARD - Associated Press - Associated Press | CommentsHealth officials investigating a cluster of mysterious illnesses in Alabama closed their investigation Thursday after determining the illnesses were unrelated and no new bacteria or viruses were involved. The investigation involved 10 people who became sick and were admitted to hospitals in...
Merck ends development of Parkinson's disease drug
May 23, 2013 5:31 pm | by The Associated Press | CommentsWHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. (AP) — Merck & Co. says it is ending development of an experimental Parkinson's disease drug because the drug wasn't working. Merck says it reviewed initial data from three late-stage clinical trials and did not find evidence preladenant was more effective than a...
Omeros prepares for two studies of OMS824
May 23, 2013 2:21 pm | by The Associated Press | CommentsOmeros Corp. said Thursday it will start two midstage clinical trials of its drug OMS824 later this year, giving its stock a boost. The company said it will begin testing the drug as a treatment for the neurologic disorder Huntington's disease during the third quarter and will start a trial...
WHO: 22 deaths worldwide from coronavirus
May 23, 2013 1:37 pm | by JOHN HEILPRIN - Associated Press - Associated Press | CommentsWorld Health Organization officials said Thursday that their probe into the deadly new coronavirus that has now claimed 22 lives is being delayed because of a dispute over the ownership rights to a sample — a claim disputed by the researcher at the center of the issue. Dr. Keiji Fukuda, WHO's...
Shuttered NM plant resumes making peanut butter
May 23, 2013 1:07 pm | by The Associated Press | CommentsThe eastern New Mexico peanut butter plant shuttered eight months ago after a salmonella outbreak is making nut butter again. Sunland Inc. Vice President Katalin Coburn tells the Portales News-Tribune (http://bit.ly/10OJvDX ) the company's products could be back on store shelves within a month. ...
Lymphoid Cells Control T-cell Response to Bacteria
May 23, 2013 11:47 am | CommentsThe human gut is loaded with commensal bacteria– “good” microbes that, among other functions, help the body digest food. The gastrointestinal tract contains literally trillions of such cells, and yet the immune system seemingly turns a blind eye.
Protein Fusion May Yield Universal Influenza Vaccination
May 23, 2013 11:47 am | CommentsA new approach for immunizing against influenza elicited a more potent immune response and broader protection than the currently licensed seasonal influenza vaccines when tested in mice and ferrets. The vaccine concept represents an important step forward in the quest to develop a universal influenza vaccine.
Farm bill: Senate rejects GMO labeling amendment
May 23, 2013 11:24 am | by MARY CLARE JALONICK - Associated Press - Associated Press | CommentsThe Senate has overwhelmingly rejected an amendment allowing states to require labeling of genetically modified foods. The amendment by Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders tried to clarify that states can require the labels. Both the Vermont House and Connecticut Senate voted this month to...
UN: 22 deaths worldwide from coronavirus
May 23, 2013 11:24 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsA new coronavirus has now claimed 22 lives worldwide out of 44 lab-confirmed cases, mostly in Saudi Arabia, World Health Organization officials said Thursday. The latest fatal case of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, or MERS, involves a 63-year-old man with an underlying medical...
Report: Nation's kids need to get more physical
May 23, 2013 11:18 am | by JENNIFER C. KERR - Associated Press - Associated Press | CommentsReading, writing, arithmetic — and PE? The prestigious Institute of Medicine is recommending that schools provide opportunities for at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day for students and that PE become a core subject. The report, released Thursday, says only about half of the...
Enzyme Discovery Holds Possible Adavances for Stuttering
May 23, 2013 11:10 am | CommentsScientists have determined the 3-D structure of the chemically active part of an enzyme involved in stuttering. While the discovery is not likely to lead to a cure for stuttering any time soon, it is welcome news to scientists who have been studying this enzyme, known as "uncovering enzyme" or UCE, for decades.
