Eager buyers who get swept up in the excitement of an auction and end up regretting it can take some comfort in knowing why: bidding frenzy, a condition uncovered by University of Alberta researchers.
The more intense the bidding is at an auction, the more likely it is that a buyer will be gripped by bidding frenzy, said Dr. Peter Popkowski Leszczyc, a marketing professor at the University of Alberta School of Business. “It is a mental state characterized by a high level of aro
A newly discovered plant protein complex that apparently switches on plants’ growth machinery, has opened a scientific toolbox to learn about both plant and animal development, according Purdue University scientists.
The protein complex triggers communication between molecules along a pathway that leads to the creation of long protein strings, called actin filaments, that are necessary for cellular growth, said Dan Szymanski, agronomy associate professor and lead author of the st
St. Jude study shows success in blocking CK2 activity in tumor cells, suggesting that a similar tactic could enhance treatment of patients with colorectal cancer and other solid tumors
A protein called CK2 plays a deadly role in colorectal carcinoma by blocking the ability of these tumors to activate a natural self-destruct mechanism that would clear this cancer from the body. This finding, by researchers at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, is currently published in t
Finding that Mcl-1 blocks cell suicide in hematopoietic stem cells also suggests that interfering with this protein might improve leukemia treatment
The complex and life-sustaining series of steps by which hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) give rise to all of the body’s red and white blood cells and platelets has now been discovered to depend in large part on a single protein called Mcl-1. This finding, from an investigator at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, is publi
Increased physical activity may be positive side effect of state program
A state program designed to make children’s routes to school safer may actually be encouraging kids to walk or bike to school more often – something that’s good for their health.
The UC Irvine study examining the effectiveness of the California Safe Routes to Schools program is the first to evaluate whether changes to the built environment can increase pedestrian travel to school. The study looks at el
Bimetallic nanoparticles break down TCE 100 times faster than bulk catalysts
New research from Rice University’s Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology finds that nanoparticles of gold and palladium are the most effective catalysts yet identified for remediation of one of the nation’s most pervasive and troublesome groundwater pollutants, trichloroethene or TCE. The research, conducted by engineers at Rice and the Georgia Institute of Technology, will
Researchers have unprecedented chance to search for Alzheimer’s susceptibility genes and develop advanced clinical testing
Phoenix-Researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and Kronos Science Laboratories, an affiliate of Phoenix-based Kronos Optimal Health Company, have initiated a study with unprecedented power to identify genes that are involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of disabling memory and thinking problems
In a few days, a three-man scientific expedition called Pole Track is to embark upon a gruelling 1000 km trek across the frozen Arctic to collect valuable data for climate-change research. Throughout the demanding two-month expedition, the team will also take thousands of snow depth measurements in support of ESA’s CryoSat mission.
The international Pole Track team is led by the Dutch professional explorer Marc Cornelissen who is passionate about the polar environment and de
Research on adult stem cells found in the skin hints at a new class of genes, according to a study from investigators at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. These genes – dubbed pangenes – can both govern a stem cell’s fate and put a hold on future differentiation until the time is right. Understanding the molecular control of these genes has implications for therapies that involve tissue regeneration. The researchers found that Pax3, a gene critical in embryonic development of m
Data may help researchers develop new vaccines and diagnostic tests to distinguish the amoeba’s most deadly strains
The genome sequence of the parasitic amoeba Entamoeba histolytica, a leading cause of severe diarrheal disease in developing countries, includes an unexpectedly complex repertoire of sensory genes as well as a variety of bacterial-like genes that contribute to the organism’s unique biology. The report, which appears in the February 24 issue of Nature, pres
Crystal images could yield new strategies for AIDS vaccine and drug development
Structural biologists at Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School have shown how a key part of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) changes shape, triggering other changes that allow the AIDS virus to enter and infect cells. Their findings, published in the Feb. 24 issue of the journal Nature, offer clues that will help guide vaccine and treatment approaches.
Researchers
Study in New England Journal of Medicine finds treatment significantly reduces bleeding in brain, decreases mortality by nearly 40% and reduces long-term disability for most deadly, least treatable form of stroke
A new multi-center, international study led by Columbia University Medical Center researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia shows that recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa) has the potential to be a significant advance in treating bleeding stroke (acute in
Findings help explain how cancer cells develop resistance to gefitinib
A new study led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) identifies a second mutation in a gene associated with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a discovery that helps to explain why NSCLC tumors become resistant to treatment with the cancer therapy gefitinib (Iressa).
The findings, which are reported in the February 24, 2005 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine (NE
ESA’s comet-chaser Rosetta will make a fly-by of planet Earth on 4 March 2005, and sky watchers should be able to see it with telescopes or binoculars if the sky is clear! Read on for details of ESA’s ’Rosetta Up Close’ photo contest.
Rosetta is approaching Earth from an area in the sky between the constellations Leo and Sextans, and should first become visible to large amateur telescopes around 26 February 2005. The spacecraft will make its closest approach to
For the first time last month, technicians at ESA’s research centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, including an ESA astronaut, entered inside the vertically positioned Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), Jules Verne, in order to simulate the late loading of cargo bags.
An identical operation will be performed for real one week before the first ATV launch on top of an Ariane 5 launcher, from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, in 2006. “This first late access dress rehe
The jet airliners of the future will be significantly quieter and more environmentally friendly with the help of engineers at The University of Nottingham.
Researchers have been awarded £830,000 (€1.2m) to explore new design methods that could reduce the noise of jet engines while at the same time cutting the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) they release into the atmosphere. They will play a key part in a new research project called VITAL — which stands for EnVIronmenTALly Friendly A
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