Radiologists can estimate the risk of death to a SARS patient by the seventh day from the onset of symptoms by using chest radiographs, according to a new study by researchers in Hong Kong. This early determination can allow a physician to better tailor treatment for the SARS patient.
The researchers analyzed 4,369 chest radiographs from 313 SARS patients from the time of their admission into the hospital until death (in 48 of the patients) or discharge from the hospital. The r
Black adolescents with high normal blood pressure who practice transcendental meditation improve the ability of their blood vessels to relax and may reduce their risk of becoming adults with cardiovascular disease, researchers say.
After eight months of meditation, these adolescents experienced a 21 percent increase in the ability of their blood vessels to dilate compared to a 4 percent decrease experienced by their non-meditating peers, says Dr. Vernon A. Barnes, physiologist at
Wildlife researchers are being warned that radio-tracking could be affecting the animals they are studying. According to new research published today in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Applied Ecology, fitting radio-collars to water voles was associated with a “dramatic shift” in the sex ratio of the animals’ offspring, casting doubt on the assumption that radio-tracking does not fundamentally affect the biology of radio-collared water voles.
The water vole (A
Fragile X Syndrome is one of the most commonly inherited forms of mental retardation, with an incidence of 1 in 4,000 males and 1 in 8,000 females. Not many medications exist to help Fragile X patients. Now, in a fruit fly model of the disease, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and their colleagues have shown that it is possible to reverse some of the symptoms of the disorder using drugs that dampen specific neuronal overactivity. Their findings appear in the Mar
Clearance of beta amyloid accumulation within neurons stops memory decline in mice
Researchers at UC Irvine have identified a trigger at the molecular level that marks the onset of memory decline in mice genetically engineered to develop brain lesions – in the form of plaques and tangles – associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The trigger is a protein called “beta amyloid” that accumulates within neurons in the mice’s brains. Although several researchers have studied the
For wild turkeys, at least, helping your brother find a willing and eager mate is a better way to pass on your genes than chancing the mating game alone, according to a new study by a University of California, Berkeley, graduate student.
The American wild turkey is a textbook example of cooperative courtship, where subordinate male turkeys help dominant males attract a mate, even though they themselves do not get a chance to breed. When this cooperative courtship was first report
Scientists have obtained new insight into the unique power source for many of Jupiter’s auroras, the most spectacular and active auroras in the Solar System. Extended monitoring of the giant planet with NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory detected the presence of highly charged particles crashing into the atmosphere above its poles.
X-ray spectra measured by Chandra showed that the auroral activity was produced by ions of oxygen and other elements that were stripped of most
Discovery points to new class of astronomical objects
Astronomers at Sweet Briar College and the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) have detected a powerful new bursting radio source whose unique properties suggest the discovery of a new class of astronomical objects. The researchers have monitored the center of the Milky Way Galaxy for several years and reveal their findings in the March 3, 2005 edition of the journal, “Nature.”
Principal investigator, Dr. Scott Hyman, pr
A full-scale quantum computer could produce reliable results even if its components performed no better than today’s best first-generation prototypes, according to a paper in the March 3 issue in the journal Nature* by a scientist at the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
In theory, such a quantum computer could be used to break commonly used encryption codes, to improve optimization of complex systems such as airline schedules, and to s
Surgery gives normal life expectancy to patients with severe mitral regurgitation; death risk for medically treated patients is five times greater
“We know from previous studies that patients with symptomatic mitral regurgitation are at increased risk of death, but for those without symptoms the picture has been murkier,” says Maurice Enriquez-Sarano, M.D., the Mayo Clinic cardiologist who led the study. “In this study we followed a large population of asymptomatic patients pros
Finding could further improve understanding of disease mechanism, lead to new treatments
Researchers from the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (MIND) have identified a gene variant that may increase the risk of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. In the March 3 New England Journal of Medicine they report that specific changes in the gene for a protein called ubiquilin-1 are associated with an increased incidence of Alzheimer’s in two large study samples
Proteins also link cellular aging and response to calorie restriction in mammals
In the March 3 issue of Nature, Johns Hopkins researchers report that two proteins best known for very different activities actually come together to turn the liver into a sugar-producing factory when food is scarce. Because the liver’s production of sugar is a damaging problem in people with diabetes, the proteins’ interaction might be a target for future drugs to fight the disease, the researchers sa
Preparations for the arrival of “Jules Verne”, the first European Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), and those for ESA astronaut Roberto Vittori’s mission, took a step forward when the unmanned Russian cargo spacecraft Progress M-52 docked yesterday, 2 March at 21.10 Central European Time (CET) with the International Space Station (ISS).
Launched two days earlier, on 28 February at 20.09 CET from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan by a Soyuz rocket as ISS mission 17P, the Progre
The importance of hand-washing
IFST Advisory Statement for Foodlink Food Safety Week 2005
The Institute of Food Science & Technology, through its Public Affairs and Technical & Legislative Committees, has authorised this Advisory Statement, dated 24 March 2005, as an IFST contribution to the 13th Foodlink National Food Safety Week, which runs from 13-19 June 2005, organised by Foodlink.
Summary
Much scientific effort goes into making fo
Virtual reality games can help alleviate pain in children being treated for severe injuries, according to research published today in the Open Access, peer reviewed journal BMC Pediatrics.
Immersion in a virtual world of monsters and aliens helps children feel less pain during the treatment of severe injuries such as burns, according to a preliminary study by Karen Grimmer and colleagues from the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide, Australia.
A virtual realit
The next Research-TV broadcast will take place on Friday 04 March 09:15 – 09:30 GMT and will feature one topical technology story.
Research-TV produces VNRs tailor made for TV news, radio, online and written coverage. Each story highlights groundbreaking research and/or new discoveries.
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EU Research Infrastructures
Materials Science and Nanotechnology – The Big Picture
The study of materials science starts small – in the nanometre
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