An article published today in Journal of Biology shows that the phosphatidylserine receptor, previously thought to be critical for the recognition and engulfment of dying cells, is not in fact necessary for these processes at all. Instead, the researchers found that the receptor is involved in the differentiation of a wide range of tissues during embryogenesis. When cells undergo programmed cell death, they spill their normally hidden contents and their neighbours can thus recognise them as s
Gene mutations are closely targeted — enhancing the immune response while avoiding cancer
Researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston have begun unraveling the mystery of how B lymphocytes — key infection-fighting cells in the body — are able to create many different kinds of specialized antibodies through selective gene mutations, while being protected from random mutations that could give rise to cancers.
The findings, reported in the Aug. 26 issue of the journal Natu
Time is fast running out for the semiconductor industry as transistors become ever smaller and their insulating layers of silicon dioxide, already only atoms in thickness, reach maximum shrinkage. In addition, the thinner the silicon layer becomes, the greater the amount of chemical dopants that must be used to maintain electrical contact. And the limit here also is close to being reached.
But a Cornell University researcher has caused an information industry buzz with the discover
The combination of ultraviolet (UV) light and certain coatings can lower — by 15 to 50 percent — the ability of some types of bacteria to stick to a glass surface and cause contamination or biofouling, Penn State environmental engineers have found.
Dr. Baikun Li, assistant professor of environmental engineering, Penn State Harrisburg, says “Ultraviolet light has been used for many years as an environmentally friendly route to water disinfection. However, these new results indica
Your knees take the brunt of the increased demands on your lower body in terms of the amount of muscle mass used and joint flexion when you compare walking to running. By a lot. Why? Because you’re human.
Though humans share a lot of qualities with other mammals, we are unique in terms of posture, locomotion and gait. (In fact, we’re among the only two-legged mammals who walk and run.) For instance, horses consume about the same amount of energy to cover a mile when running or walkin
A University of Alberta study has verified that there is physical evidence for those who suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), giving new weight to the often stigmatized and misdiagnosed disorder.
Research just published in the “International Journal of Psychophysiology” determined that, using independent criteria, CFS can be distinguished from depression–two disorders that share many of the same symptoms.
CFS is an often debilitating disorder, characterized by a c
Scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a part of the National Institutes of Health, have created a database of information about a group of genes associated with multidrug resistance in cancerous tumors. The research, published in the August 24, 2004, issue of Cancer Cell*, details the gene expression of a 48-member family of proteins called ABC transporters. The NCI scientists identified associations between expression of individual ABC transporters in cancer cells and resistance to
Loss supports cilia’s role in the condition
Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered that many people with Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS), a rare, complex condition marked by an array of seemingly unconnected symptoms, including obesity, learning difficulties, eye problems and asthma, also have another, previously unreported problem: many of them can’t detect odors. Because people with the syndrome likely lose their sense of smell before or shortly after birth, it wouldn
Temple University researcher seeking physiological evidence of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has found a link between creatine and metabolic energy. The findings, which hold promise for future CFS treatments, were published in a recent issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology.
“We found that creatine affects mitochondria – the parts of the cells that produce energy for all biological functioning – in normal human subjects. Now that we have established this baseline evidence, we ar
People in Georgia’s Dodge and Bleckley counties have for years picked up small pieces of natural glass called “Georgiaites,” which were produced by an unknown asteroid or comet impact millions of years ago. Just where these small, translucent green objects came from, however, was unclear.
Now researchers at the University of Georgia, studying a kaolin mine in Warren County, have found a layer of tiny grains, which indicate that the grains and the Georgiaites were products o
Tangled strands of proteins called amyloid are found in the brain tissues of patients with a variety of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. One such protein is tau, now known to participate in tangle formation in Alzheimer’s patients. Another is alpha-synuclein, whose mutations cause Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. In a paper published in the current issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, researchers from the Tokyo Institute of Psy
Scientists have determined the precise molecular structure of a potential new target for treating prostate cancer, a disease driven in part by abnormal testosterone activity. The target is part of the androgen receptor, a protein essential for testosterone to function in human cells. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men.
The androgen receptor and testosterone – technically, 5-alpha dihydrotestosterone – each drive prostate cancer at different stages of the disease
A plant called roseroot grows wild in Norway. Roseroot helps improve memory and the immune system and stabilizes cholesterol levels, blood pressure and blood sugar levels. Roseroot has been used in folk medicine for more than 3000 years, and grows throughout Norway
(University of Trondheim) NTNU’s Plant Biocentre in the Department of Biology has analysed the plant’s essential oils and volatile compounds. A test of the plant’s cancer prevention properties is also planned. The Norwegi
A new study sheds light on the response to infection in people with type 2 diabetes. These individuals develop diabetes associated with obesity. Findings from this study revealed that controlling a specific protein produced by the body, known as a cytokine, reduces the expression of other molecules and helps control inflammation. This is significant because many complications associated with diabetes trigger an inflammatory response. Right now, type 2 diabetes affects over 17 million people in the
Researchers may get some indication of how aggressively an angry person will react by measuring the size relationship between a person’s ears and other body parts, according to a new study.
Research showed that the farther certain paired body parts were from symmetry – if one ear, index finger or foot was bigger than another, for example – the more likely it is was that a person would show signs of aggression when provoked. The symmetry effects were different in men and women, howe
Researchers in Italy have observed significant reductions of gray matter volume in areas of the brain associated with language processing among people with a family history of dyslexia in comparison with controls with no reading problems. Published in the August 24 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology, the study also lends support to previous studies suggesting intensive reading therapy activates areas of the brain necessary for word de-coding.
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