White blood cells are the principle mediators of immune system function, yet efforts to influence their role in illness have been hampered due to a lack of understanding of the surface structure of these cells – until now. Dartmouth Medical School researchers characterize the structure of white blood cells and challenge assumptions about how a certain immunodeficiency disorder affects the white blood cell surface in the September 1 issue of Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematolog
Technical Insights plastics materials – Emerging technology and trends analysis
Economical, performance-focused plastics materials application development is dependent not only on leveraging traditional, well-defined ‘cost-performance’ parameters, but also on understanding the strategic nuances essential for sustaining long-term growth.
“Adherence to regulatory legislation – particularly in the areas of continuous improvement in size and weight reduction – is one of th
Most miniature electronic, optical and micromechanical devices are made from expensive semiconductor or ceramic materials. For some applications like diagnostic lab-on-a-chip devices, thin-film polymers may provide a cheaper alternative, but the structure and properties of these materials—-often no more than a few nanometers (nm) thick—-are difficult to determine. In addition, defects in the thin polymer masking materials used to “print” integrated circuits can produce malfunctioning components.
To the wonderment—and the befuddlement—of scientists, the patterns that form as plastics, metals and many other materials crystallize can vary incredibly, ranging from sea-urchin-like spheres to elaborate tree-like branches.
Now, Hungarian and National Institute of Standards and Technology scientists report in the September issue of Nature Materials* that they have developed a way to predict the polycrystalline microstructures that will form as complex liquid mixtures cool and
Body tissues such as blood vessels, cartilage and skin—even whole organs such as kidneys, livers and hearts—could become more widely available for transplants as a result of a patent issued recently to Organ Recovery Systems of Chicago for a method to chill body tissues and organs well below freezing without forming ice crystals. The new process for tissue “vitrification”—-chilling tissue and organs to a disordered, glass-like solid without ice formation—-was developed with support from the Nationa
A new type of microfluidic device that can help industry to optimize paints, coatings for microelectronics and specialty polymers has been developed by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers. The device is made of a chemically durable plastic that is resistant to many common organic solvents. It was fabricated with a rapid prototyping method also developed at the agency.
Described in the Aug. 18 issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society,* such
Inadequate software interoperability in the capital facilities industry cost the commercial, institutional and industrial building sectors $15.8 billion in 2002 in lost efficiency, according to a newly released study commissioned by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Conducted by RTI International (Research Triangle Park, N.C.) and the Logistics Management Institute (McLean, Va.), the report places a price tag on avoidance, mitigation and delay activities due
Biochemists have pinpointed how a flaw in DNA that is central to mutations in cancer and aging fools the cellular enzyme that copies DNA. Their finding explains how oxidative DNA damage — a process long believed to underlie cancers and aging — can create permanent genetic damage.
The Duke University Medical Center researchers’ findings were published online Aug. 22, 2004, by the journal Nature. The scientists were led by Associate Professor of Biochemistry Lorena Beese, Ph.D., and
An under-recognized and usually asymptomatic condition called subclavian artery stenosis – an obstruction of arteries located under the clavicle, or collarbone – is important in the diagnosis and treatment of high blood pressure, according to a study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
Published in the August 4, 2004 issue of the Journal of the American College of Card
Want a tennis racket that propels balls faster than a race car or a sturdy ship hull that never rusts? Finding the recipes for such remarkable materials – called amorphous metals – should be easier using a new computational approach developed by Carnegie Mellon University physicist Michael Widom.
Described in an upcoming issue of Phys. Rev. B (September 1, 2004), this method already has been used to virtually generate recipes for more than 1,700 structures, many of which have never b
Although the world in which we live in is non-linear, or multi-dimensional, engineers and scientists have long used linear mathematical formulas to create models to predict physical phenomena such as the infiltration of water through soils or flooding.
But existing theories based on linear models do not accurately portray what actually occurs in nature, claims Temple University civil and environmental engineering professor Sergio Serrano, Ph.D.
In the September issue o
How can we best use observations and models to quantify the state of the Earth System and better understand the coupled interactions between the ocean, atmosphere, cryosphere and biosphere? This complex but vital question was at the heart of the second ESA Summer School on Earth System Monitoring & Modelling.
This summer, 68 young scientists coming from 21 countries across the world (e.g. Europe, Canada, Australia, Argentine, Brazil, China, India) converged on ESA’s European Sp
Internet companies can boost sales and build trust with online shoppers by providing clear and readily available privacy disclosures, according to a recent UC Irvine study.
“Surveys have demonstrated that online shoppers are concerned about their privacy, specifically about the confidentiality of the personal data they provide to Web retailers,” explained Alfred Kobsa, author of the study and professor of informatics in UCI’s Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences. “T
“Other studies have indicated a benefit for heart attack patients in beginning treatment with statins relatively early, so today the standard practice is to prescribe them upon discharge,” says R. Scott Wright, M.D., the Mayo Clinic cardiologist who was the study’s lead investigator in North America. “Our new findings suggest they should be given even earlier, as soon as the patient arrives at the hospital.”
The PRINCESS Trial (The PRevention of Ischemic EveNts by Early Treatment of CE
Study finds antibiotics do not prevent heart attacks
Results from landmark PROVE IT-TIMI 22 trial suggest clinicians should use proven therapies, such as high-dose statin therapy, to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Previous studies have found Chlamydia pneumoniae, a common bacterium that causes respiratory illness, may also be a risk factor for atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases. Researchers and clinicians had hoped that treating C. pneumoniae wit
Myocardial infarction, caused by coronary artery occlusion, can lead up to loss of muscle tissue of the heart and functional detriment, even at times where rapid reperfusion strategies like PTCA or thrombolysis are at hand. In the study presented here, we investigated embryonic endothelial progenitor cells as therapy for ischemia reperfusion injury in a large animal model (pig). This model, which induces an infarct of predictable size in a pig heart, was used to test the cardioprotective potential
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