In a painstaking set of experiments in overweight mice, scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered a gene that appears to play an important role in the onset of type 2 diabetes.
The finding is important because it provides evidence that the same gene in humans could provide clinicians with a powerful tool to determine the likelihood that some individuals will acquire the condition. Moreover, the finding that the gene works through a pathway not generally
Researchers here have discovered a new mechanism used by cells – and manipulated by retroviruses – to control the making of certain essential proteins, including some involved in cancer.
The mechanism uses an enzyme called RNA helicase A (RHA), which is made by the cell.
The study by researchers with The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute and the OSU College of Veterinary Medi
For anyone tethered to a lawnmower, the Holy Grail of horticultural accomplishment would be grass that never grows but is always green.
Now, that vision of suburban bliss—and more—seems plausible as scientists have mapped a critical hormone signaling pathway that regulates the stature of plants. In addition to lawns that rarely require mowing, the finding could also enable the development of sturdier, more fruitful crop plants such as rice, wheat, soybeans, and corn.
A radiologist at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine has developed a new procedure to treat fractured vertebrae caused by spinal tumors, a procedure that may decrease the risk of complications, which are experienced by 5 to 10% of patients with malignant tumors of the spine.
Wade Wong, D.O.F.A.C.R, UCSD professor of radiology, and San Diego clinician Bassem Georgy, M.D., partially removed spinal tumors from 28 patients before repairing the spine
Could reduce HIV transmission: Study
HIV plagues more than 25 million people in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the World Health Organization, and efforts to develop a vaccine against the virus have achieved limited success.
But what if a vaccine against another sexually transmitted infection found widely in that region of Africa – chancroid – was relatively easy to develop and could reduce transmission of HIV as much as 10-fold?
That may be the case, accordin
UNC scientists’ findings have implications for prostate cancer
For the second time in less than a year, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientists have purified a novel protein and have shown it can alter gene activity by reversing a molecular modification previously thought permanent.
The findings, published today (May 5) in the journal Cell, also show that the new protein plays a role in gene activation mediated by androgen receptor, a protein that re
The morale of British midwives is at an all time low and 10,000 extra staff are needed, according to a leading healthcare expert.
Linda Ball, a midwife and senior lecturer in health and social care research at Sheffield Hallam University, says that the midwifery profession is crippled by unhappy staff and overstretched wards.
The revelations come after National Midwifery Week (1-7 May, 2006) and compound the Government’s NHS misery, after it announced more job cuts
… about the nature of reactions in living beings and to be able to inhibit or accelerate them
Experimental methods have certain limits and there are times when nature briefly switches off the lights on scene to hide its tricks. One of these moments takes place during chemical reactions. All chemical reactions go through a sort of Limbo, a ghost-like stage between the initial reagents and the final product in which it is almost impossible to know experimentally what has occurred
New technologies that mimic the way insects, plants and animals overcome engineering problems could help reduce our dependence on energy, according to new research published in the Royal Society journal Interface.
When faced with engineering difficulties, such as lifting a load or coping with extremes of heat, up to 70 per cent of man-made technologies manipulate energy, often increasing the amount used, in order to resolve the problem.
However, new research which has
A research team from Uppsala University has uncovered an entirely new mechanism for how communication between cells is regulated. By functioning like glue, a certain type of sugar in the body can make cell communication more effective and stimulate the generation of new blood vessels. The discovery paves the way for the development of drugs for cancer and rheumatism, for example. The study is being published on May 9 in the prominent journal Developmental Cell.
Blood vessels are made up o
These images, taken by the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft, show the tectonic ’grabens’ in Tempe Terra, a geologically complex region that is part of the old Martian highlands.
The HRSC obtained these images during orbit 1180 on 19 December 2004 with a ground resolution of approximately 16.5 metres per pixel. The data were acquired in the region of Northern Olympus Mons, at approximately 48.5° North and 288.4° East.
Safe distribution of electricity has been set as objective
Multifarious intentional and unintentional situations – ranging from short circuits and human errors to hackers and terrorists exploiting security vulnerabilities in control systems – can paralyse Large Critical Complex Infrastructures (LCCIs). VTT is playing a key role in an EU project aimed at protecting the critical infrastructure of European society. The project focuses on, e.g. preventing information security threa
2nd IFOM-IEO Campus Meeting on Cancer
What is the best strategy to determine the specific function of a gene? Certainly a good idea is to eliminate the gene and see what kind of effects this move has on the whole organism. With this goal in mind, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, the Whitehead Institute and the Broad Institute at MIT and Harvard – together with a consortium of five bioinformatics companies (Bristol-Myers, Novartis Pharma, Eli Lilly, Sigma, Astra Zeneca
Genes are the underlying cause of a large number of disorders. But identifying and studying these genes more closely is a major challenge for biotechnologists worldwide. Researchers from ESAT-SCD (Engineering Sciences) and the Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) connected to the Catholic University of Leuven have now developed ENDEAVOUR: a computer program that compiles and processes data from a variety of databases and identifies the genes that play a key role in the origin o
The spread of West Nile Virus appears to be triggered by a complex interaction of mosquitoes, nesting birds and specific weather patterns, scientists say, which leads to “amplification” of the virus within mosquito populations.
Researchers from Oregon State University and the University of Florida have identified how those factors mesh to create heightened risk of the West Nile Virus in southern Florida, and they hope to expand their studies to the rest of the nation.
Results of t
Alternative energy solutions
Carnegie Mellon University researchers say the use of switchgrass could help break U.S. dependence on fossil fuels and curb costly transportation costs.
“Our report indicates the time is right for America to begin a transition to ethanol derived from switchgrass,” said Scott Matthews, an assistant professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. A 25 percent hike in gas prices at the pump since December adds to the researcher
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