Building a “tree of life” for all the species on the planet may be easier than first thought, according to a study by UC Davis researchers published in the journal Science Nov. 12.
A tree of life shows how living things have evolved since the origins of life billions of years ago, grouping related organisms on the same branch. Such trees provide an organizing framework for biology. They can be used for predicting the properties of poorly known species and are powerful tools for
Tiny nanocables, 1,000 times smaller than a human hair, could become key parts of toxin detectors, miniaturized solar cells and powerful computer chips.
The technique for making the nanocables was invented by UC Davis chemical engineers led by Pieter Stroeve, professor of chemical engineering and materials science. They manufacture the cables in the nano-sized pores of a template membrane. The insides of the pores are coated with gold. Layers of other semiconductors, such as telluriu
The modern world is filled with the uncoordinated beeping and buzzing of countless electronic devices. So it was only a matter of time before someone designed an electronic network with the ability to synchronize dozens of tiny buzzers, in much the same way that frogs and cicadas coordinate their night-time choruses.
“Several years ago I was on a camping trip and we pitched our tent in an area that was filled with hundreds of tree frogs,” says Kenneth D. Frampton, an assistant prof
Study presented in the November issue of the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology
Drinking Concord grape juice significantly increased HDL–the good cholesterol–and significantly lowered two markers of inflammation in people with stable coronary artery disease, according to results of a study presented in the November issue of the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology. “In addition to HDL levels increasing, we saw significant decreases in t
X-43A research vehicle screamed into the record books again Tuesday, demonstrating an air-breathing engine can fly at nearly 10 times the speed of sound. Preliminary data from the scramjet-powered research vehicle show its revolutionary engine worked successfully at nearly Mach 9.8, or 7,000 mph, as it flew at about 110,000 feet.
The high-risk, high-payoff flight, originally scheduled for Nov. 15, took place in restricted airspace over the Pacific Ocean northwest of Los Angeles. T
The age-specific prevalence of sexually transmitted human papillomavirus infection in women differs substantially from that in men who have sex with men, according to a new study published in the December 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online. The study, led by Peter V. Chin-Hong of the University of California, San Francisco, indicates a high prevalence of anal human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in all age groups of men who have sex with men. This finding contras
Nowadays, a vial of blood taken by a family physician can sometimes forecast a person’s risk of heart disease, and cholesterol-lowering drugs as well as a daily baby aspirin may be recommended to curb the threat. But in the future, a simple finger prick also may predict which cancers are destined to develop in an individual, years, even decades, down the road.
And based on a person’s unique genetics – the milieu of factors that repair DNA damage, or push cells to grow – the pat
St. Jude scientists find that radiation and high-dose chemotherapy damage is usually transient but can mimic cancer and prompt needless additional treatment
Irradiation and high-dose chemotherapy used to treat two types of brain tumors–medulloblastoma and supratentorial PNET–can cause changes in the brain’s white matter that look like tumors when seen on MRI scans. This finding, by a team of investigators led by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, is published in
Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have shown that breast cancer patients treated with taxane-based chemotherapies and radiation are not at increased risk of developing a dangerous lung condition involving the inflammation of lung tissue, pneumonitis, according to a study published in the Nov. 17 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
These results are vitally important, says Thomas Buchholz, M.D., the study’s correspondin
Extremely low birth weight infants–the tiniest category of premature infants–are much more likely to experience developmental impairments if they acquire an infection during the newborn period, according to a study by the Neonatal Research Network of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, one of the National Institutes of Health. The developmental impairments were seen regardless of the type of infection–whether it occurred in the brain, blood or intestines.
A newly-identified protein that can flag an important tumor suppressor gene for destruction may be a key player in the development of lung cancer.
Writing in the Nov. 17 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, scientists in the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSUCCC) note that the protein, called Pirh2, when overexpressed, diminishes the activity of p53 – possibly the most powerful tumor suppressor in the entire genome. When it functions normally, p
Major breakthrough in the treatment of autoimmune diseases
In the upcoming issue of Immunity, a highly regarded journal put out by the Cell group, Dr. André Veillette, a scientist at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), and his team will publish the results of a study that could revolutionize the treatment of autoimmune diseases, such as juvenile diabetes, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis. Contemporary medicine has to date achieved only mixed results in deal
A research team at the University of Navarre has detected the presence of the prion protein in the digestive tract of three animal species: the autochthonous Pyrennean cow, in a primate and in rats. This study is the first to describe the exact location of the “healthy” form of the prion (PrPc), a protein necessary for the development of prionic diseases in these three species.
The results obtained by the Navarre researchers provide new data on the propagation of the prion and on
ESA’s SMART-1 is successfully making its first orbit of the Moon, a significant milestone for the first of Europe’s Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology (SMART) spacecraft.
A complex package of tests on new technologies was successfully performed during the cruise to the Moon, while the spacecraft was getting ready for the scientific investigations which will come next. These technologies pave the way for future planetary missions. SMART-1 reached its closest
A potent antioxidant abundant in apples and some other fruits and vegetables appears to protect brain cells against oxidative stress, a tissue-damaging process associated with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders, according to a new study in rat brain cells conducted by researchers at Cornell University in New York.
The study adds strength to the theory — bolstered by recent animal studies — that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and similar diseases may be reduced
The same receptors in the brain that are activated when a person smokes cigarettes also play a critical role in the effectiveness of antidepressants, according to a study by Yale researchers in the November issue of Biological Psychiatry.
What this means, particularly for patients who are suicidal, is that finding a way to activate these receptors will make anti-depressants work more quickly. Most anti-depressants now take up to three weeks to bring emotional relief. “Just the
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