Evolution as driving force in Earth’s development
A geomicrobiologist at Washington University in St. Louis has proposed that evolution is the primary driving force in the early Earth’s development rather than physical processes, such as plate tectonics.
Carrine Blank, Ph.D., Washington University assistant professor of geomicrobiology in the Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences in Arts & Sciences, studying Cyanobacteria – bacteria that use light, water,
Advance helps in arrythmia research
Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have developed the first mathematical model of a canine cardiac cell that incorporates a vital calcium regulatory pathway that has implications in life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, or irregular heartbeats.
Thomas J. Hund, Ph.D., post-doctoral researcher in Pathology ( in Dr. Jeffrey Saffitz laboratory) at the Washington University School of Medicine, and Yoram Rudy, The Fred Saigh D
A new study has shown a stroke-prevention drug designed to be an improvement over prior treatments is less cost-effective for most patients than warfarin, the blood thinner with a 50-year history of helping prevent blood clots and strokes. The study, conducted by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found, however, that the new drug would be cost-effective for those atrial fibrillation patients whose risk of bleeding is high. The findings are reported in the Februa
Scientists have given us another reason to eat carrots – a compound found in the popular root vegetable has been found to have an effect on the development of cancer.
A team of researchers, from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in England and Denmark, found the natural pesticide falcarinol reduced the risk of cancer developing in rats by one third. Although experts have recommended that people eat carrots for their anti-cancer properties, it has not been known exactly what
The spread of tuberculosis may have killed off leprosy in Europe in the Middle Ages, according to research published in the latest issue of the Royal Society Proceedings B.
A collaborative study led by University College London (UCL) scientists, following the discovery of a shrouded body in a sealed chamber overlooked by tomb robbers, found evidence of both diseases in a range of archaeological remains dating from the 1st to the 15th centuries.
An initial examination of
A project to create a common platform throughout Europe for researchers working in the field of ‘biological crystallography’ is underway thanks to a grant of 10 million euros from the EU’s 6th Framework Programme (FP6).
The BIOXHIT (Biocrystallography on a Highly Integrated Technology Platform) project plans to integrate and further develop the best of current technologies at major European centres for research in structural biology. It will then weave them into a single standardis
W3C Technologies Critical to Mobile Web Success
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is staffing a booth at the 3GSM Congress from 14 to 17 February 2005, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congres in Cannes, France. All attendees now have the opportunity to learn about W3C’s mobile Web efforts in Hall 1, stand A24.
“W3C’s Recommendations have provided the Web with standard technologies that better serve the full range of Web citizens,” explained Tim Berners-Lee,
Clearstream began 2005 with growth in its core businesses and new business streams continuing progress made in 2004. The value of assets held in custody on behalf of customers rose to approximately EUR 7.7 trillion, a rise of 2.5 percent from the same month last year. The number of international transactions processed by Clearstream stood at 1.5 million for January 2005 compared to 1.7 million for the same month last year. Of these transactions, 15 percent are registered as stock exchange transactio
A little-studied outcome of animal migration is whether these long journeys can limit the spread of parasites by weeding out diseased animals. Monarch butterflies in eastern North America fly up to thousands of kilometers from Canada to Central Mexico – one of the longest migrations of any insect species.
Emory University researchers found that monarchs infected with a protozoan parasite fly slower, tire out faster and expend more energy flying than healthy monarchs. These result
Electrochemical transistors made of plastic open myriad possibilities. Since both electrons and ions are active, they can function as a bridge between traditional electronics and biological systems. A new dissertation from Linköping University in Sweden describes a simple and inexpensive humidity sensor that can be manufactured in a printing press.
Electrically conducting plastic is used today in field effect transistors, light-emitting diodes, electrochemical components, and
Few studies quantify evolutionary processes in populations of domesticated plants in traditional farming systems. In February’s Ecology Letters, Pujol, David and McKey show that these systems offer unusual opportunities for studying microevolution. Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is clonally propagated, but Amerindian cassava farmers also regularly incorporate volunteer plants from sexually produced seeds into their clonal stocks (cuttings) at harvest time.
These new genotypes re
The severity of possible infection and the effectiveness of a vaccine weighed heavily in the decision-making process for parents reporting their views on childhood vaccination for sexually transmitted diseases.
The analysis of 278 parental views on STD vaccination for children was reported in the Feb.7 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine by researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine.
In an ongoing series of studies, lead author Greg
Physicians found that signs, symptoms and identifiable risk factors are absent in more than half of the mothers of infants with congenital toxoplasmosis in a national study of children with this disease.
More than half of the pregnant women who were at risk for acute infection with Toxoplasma gondii could not be identified by history or routine examination. Therefore, the physicians recommend that systematic screening for acute acquired toxoplasmosis for all pregnant women in the U
What influences a child to choose a career on the family farm, and when is that decision made? A new University of Illinois study of pre-teen farm youth suggests that the foundations for this life choice are set early and that maternal influence, rather than paternal expectations, may be key.
Although previous studies have focused on high-school-aged youth, Angela Wiley’s training in child development led her to believe farm kids would be influenced toward or against farmin
Nano-sized particles embedded with bright, light-emitting molecules have enabled researchers to visualize a tumor more than one centimeter below the skin surface using only infrared light. A team of chemists, bioengineers and medical researchers based at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Minnesota has lodged fluorescent materials called porphyrins within the surface of a polymersome, a cell-like vesicle, to image a tumor within a living rodent. Their findings, which represent
Northwestern University seismologists have determined that the Dec. 26 Sumatra earthquake that set off a deadly tsunami throughout the Indian Ocean was three times larger than originally thought, making it the second largest earthquake ever instrumentally recorded and explaining why the tsunami was so destructive.
By analyzing seismograms from the earthquake, Seth Stein and Emile Okal, both professors of geological sciences in Northwestern’s Weinberg College of Arts and Science
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