The mitral valve is an essential part of your heart. Matter of fact, you wouldn’t exist without it. The valve is essentially a small, round hole with two flaps on the top and bottom. Its job is to open and close rapidly, regulating the flow of blood between the upper and lower chambers of the heart’s left side- the main pumping chambers that send oxygen-rich red blood to your limbs and organs.
In some people, however, the mitral valve can leak, usually because of a congenital d
Expedition achieves milestone in analyzing atmospheric chemistry
A research consortium funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and led by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, has successfully sent a fleet of aerial drones through the pollution-filled skies over the Indian Ocean, thereby achieving an important milestone in the tracking of pollutants responsible for dimming Earth’s atmosphere.
The instrument-bearing
’Life detector’ could be part of evolutionary old system, say researchers
The reason people can approach animals in the wild more easily from a car than by foot may be due to an innate “life detector” tuned to the visual movements of an approaching predator’s feet, says Queen’s University psychologist Niko Troje.
“We believe this visual filter is used to signal the presence of animals that are propelled by the motion of their feet and the force of grav
Study generates genes, some previously considered, for further study
The findings of a meta-analysis of microarray data of several mouse models that differ in voluntary alcohol consumption highlight new neurobiological targets for further study and provide researchers a novel statistical approach for use in future microarray meta-analyses. Insight into the genetic differences in gene expression associated with different levels of drinking may lead to a better understanding
Cider making, as with any similar process, involves the production of leftover “waste” such as the apple pulp, discarded apples and liquid residue, for example.
AZTI-Tecnalia Technological Centre, given its intention to improve and innovate the production process of natural cider, is undertaking a number of studies of the management, the reduction and the re-evaluation of waste residue from cider making. The aim is twin-fold: the gains from eliminating the waste generated in th
Adults and children with asthma will breathe deeper and have better control over their asthma with inhaled corticosteroids than with the medicine cromolyn, according to a new review of recent studies comparing the two treatments.
Adult asthma patients using inhaled steroids such as the brand names Beclovent, Pulmicort and Flovent had on average three fewer severe asthma flare-ups each year compared to patients using inhaled cromolyn, sold under the brand name Intal.
Patients taki
Mobile phones can save lives in emergencies, but are not widely used among those considered to be most at risk: elderly people and sufferers of age-related and chronic diseases. A new device gives users the benefits of instant wireless communication, combined with location detection, without the complications of normal mobiles.
Validated for commercial use in the MobilAlarm project with funding from the European Commission’s eTEN Programme, the small and simple mobile device allows user
Researchers from the Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) connected to the University of Antwerp are the first to show that the quantity of amyloid protein in brain cells is a major risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. Amyloid protein has already been known to be the primary component of the senile plaques in the brains of patients. The new discovery demonstrates that the greater the quantity of the protein that is produced, the younger the dementia patient is.
Through a project supported by the European Space Agency, the UK-based company Wired Ocean Ltd can now provide enhanced Internet access for ships at sea at a much lower cost than was previously possible.
Although satellite links at sea are quite common, the speed of data transmission for most users is very low, from 600 bps to 64 kbps, with around 10 kbps being a typical speed. This, combined with usage costs of around € 20 per megabyte, has created an environment in which many s
Chernobyl, the most significant accident in nuclear history, took place on 26 April 1986. Even 20 years later, the accident has left the world with many unanswered questions about its impact on human health, the environment, and the socio-economic sector.
To provide some answers, GreenFacts has released a Three-Level Summary of Chernobyl’s Legacy, a report published in March 2006 by the Chernobyl Forum. This forum included hundreds of experts from, e.g., the International Atomic Energy A
Scientists from Imperial College London and Pfizer have developed a new method that could predict individual patient responses to drug treatments. The authors anticipate that the development will advance biomedical research further towards development of personalised medicines.
Research published today in Nature demonstrates the new ‘pharmaco-metabonomic’ approach that uses a combination of advanced chemical analysis and mathematical modelling to predict drug-induced responses in ind
Considerable gaps exist among European national pandemic plans, according to a new report published in the online edition of The Lancet on 20 April 2006.
The report, ‘How prepared is Europe for Pandemic Influenza? An analysis of national plans’, issued by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), reveals marked discrepancies in pandemic preparedness across Europe. The authors conclude that further planning and implementation is needed so that governments can e
Previously unknown nickel complexes with new amino-substituted and hydroxy-substituted phosphino-acetic acid ligands are suitable as catalysts for ethylene…
The fins of the heating head of a stirling-engine will be strongly contaminated by the combustion with biomass with dust and smoke particles so that the heat…
Scientists observe strong spectral signals from spikes on gold particles
New optics research from Rice University’s Laboratory for Nanophotonics suggests that tiny gold particles called nanostars could become powerful chemical sensors.
The findings are available online and due to appear in an upcoming issue of the journal Nano Letters.
Nanophotonics is a rapidly growing field of study that looks at ways to generate and manipulate light using ultrasmall, e
Fast tracking the healing process for common ear infections will be the focus of ground-breaking research by WA’s Lions Ear and Hearing Institute (LEHI).
The research will aim to understand why some eardrums heal by themselves (and why some do not heal at all) by identifying which genes are responsible for the wound-healing process of an infected human ear drum.
According to the World Health Organisation, almost half of the world’s population suffers from ’
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