Reading the fossil record, a paleontologist can peer into evolutionary history and see the surface features that plants and animals and, occasionally, microbes have left behind.
Now, scouring the genome of a Japanese yeast, scientists have found a trackway of fossil genes in the making, providing a rare look at how an organism, in response to the demands of its environment, has changed its inner chemistry and lost the ability to metabolize a key sugar.
The finding is a s
Recent analyses of ESA’s Mars Express data reveal that concentrations of water vapour and methane in the atmosphere of Mars significantly overlap. This result, from data obtained by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS), gives a boost to understanding of geological and atmospheric processes on Mars, and provides important new hints to evaluate the hypothesis of present life on the Red Planet.
PFS observed that, at 10-15 kilometres above the surface, water vapour is well mixed and
You’ve seen it in horror movies, or even in real-life at the local museum: a painting in which the eyes of the person portrayed seem to follow you around the room, no matter where you go.
People have described the effect as creepy or eerie, and some have thought it supernatural. But now researchers have demonstrated the very natural cause for this visual effect.
All it takes for the effect to work is to have the person in the painting, or photograph, look straight ahead, said
Approximately half of patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) fail to receive the recommended dose and schedule of chemotherapy, reducing their chances for remission or cure.
The study of 4,522 patients in 567 oncology practices nationwide, led by the University of Rochester Medical Center, is the largest of its kind to date. Published September 20, 2004 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (online edition), the study found that 48 to 53 percent of NHL patients receive
Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center now have evidence that receptors found on tumors that were believed to function only on the surface of cells can actually switch on genes inside a cell’s nucleus, thus promoting cancer development in two distinct ways.
They specifically found that HER-2 cell surface receptors, known to promote breast and other cancers when they allow too many growth signals to enter a cell, can actually travel into the nucleu
A single gene called cylE within the important bacterial pathogen Group B Streptococcus (GBS), controls two factors that act together as a “sword” and “shield” to protect the bacteria from the killing effects of the immune system’s white blood cells, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.
GBS is the leading cause of serious bacterial infections such as meningitis and pneumonia in newborns and is increasingly recognized as
Researchers have combined sophisticated biochemical and imaging techniques to get a glimpse of the stepwise assembly of amyloid fibers in a yeast prion protein. Their findings suggest that these structured fibers form in competition with the amorphous globules that some believe may cause toxicity in amyloid diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. The researchers say this may have important implications for those designing drugs to prevent formation of the brain-damaging proteins i
A new research study identifies a molecule that promotes one of the most deadly cancers in humans and reveals the molecular mechanisms underlying the protective effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) against the disease. The research, published in the September issue of Cancer Cell, identifies potential targets for future therapeutics aimed at the prevention and treatment of cancer of the colon and rectum.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most common caus
Scientists have identified what may be the first nontoxic treatment for a subset of medulloblastoma, the most common type of malignant pediatric brain tumor. The finding is encouraging in that such precise, targeted therapies may someday replace traditional treatments that can have overwhelmingly negative side effects for pediatric cancer patients. The research is published in the September issue of Cancer Cell.
“Therapy for pediatric cancers of the central nervous system has not i
A new strategy for cancer therapy, which converts the tumor-promoting effect of the immune system’s inflammatory response into a cancer-killing outcome, is suggested in research findings by investigators at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.
The findings provide new insight into the immune system’s response to inflammation, the connection between inflammation and malignancy, and how the delicate balance between cancer promotion and inhibiti
Imagine having your own annual greenhouse gas allowance which you ’spend’ each time you fill up with petrol or pay an electric or gas bill. It sounds like a scene from a futuristic movie, but this scenario could really happen in the next few years according to researchers at the UK’s Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Prediction.
Dr Kevin Anderson and Richard Starkey are investigating a system of personal trading for carbon emissions. Instead of people being forced to pay a carbo
WHO/WHAT:
The University of Illinois at Chicago unveils its 9.4-tesla MRI scanner, capable of revealing not just the anatomy but metabolism within the human brain. The scanner is the most powerful magnetic resonance imaging machine in the world for human studies.
WHEN:
Tuesday, Sept. 21
Ribbon-cutting ceremony: 10:30 a.m.
Media tour of MRI facility: 11:00 a.m.
WHERE:
UIC Center for Magnetic Resonance Research
1801 W. Taylor St.
Chicago, Illinois
Using an animal model, investigators find that Mitomycin C, a common chemotherapy agent, offers limited benefit in reducing keloid or hypertrophic scars.
The tendency for extreme scarring is one reason many African Americans avoid plastic surgery and other surgical incisions. Though surgeons continue to develop less invasive techniques that minimize scarring, other options are needed to help these individuals who are prone to developing keloid scars.
Keloid scars are cause
New data presented today at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology confirm that specialized oral appliances are a viable option to counter the devastating effects of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and new FDA-approved technologies for home-based sleep studies are a valuable tool to diagnose and assess the effectiveness of the therapy.
Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a disorder characterized by repeated episodes of reductions or cessation in breathing du
A preliminary study indicates that BOTOX® injections may ease the irritation of tinnitus, otherwise know as ringing in the ears, for some patients. Researchers say more study is needed, but initial results are promising.
Tinnitus, or the presence of noises (ringing, whistling, hissing, roaring, booming) in the ears, is a common complaint affecting an estimated 10-20 percent of the general population. Chronic, persistent tinnitus can affect one’s ability to work, engage in social
Some 37 million Americans suffer from sinusitis; some of those patients are unfortunate enough to also have asthma, an inflammatory disease of the lungs characterized by reversible airway obstruction. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that more than 15 million Americans have this disorder. The association between asthma and rhinosinusitis has long been established. While this relationship is unclear, molecular research is now focusing on whether asthma and rhinosinusitis are likely
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