Microbial degradation products and other forms of natural organic matter can make water look, smell and taste bad. Natural organic matter also can foul the membranes used in water treatment plants, significantly reducing their efficiency.
Now, a polymer-based colloidal adsorbent developed at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign offers an environmentally friendly and cost-effective way of removing troublesome natural organic matter from municipal water supplies.
The dendritic cells act as the body’s sentries, standing guard around the clock. As soon as they detect a potential enemy, they alert the T cells, whose role is to defend the body.
At the Institut Curie, CNRS researchers in an Inserm laboratory have filmed the encounter of dendritic cells and T cells. They have shown that this “rendez-vous”, which is indispensable for the activation of the immune system, cannot take place in the absence of the proteins Rac 1 and 2. Published in the
Study findings could have major impact on wildlife control and agriculture production
One of the most debated hypotheses in evolutionary biology received new support today, thanks to a study by a scientist at the University of Nevada, Reno. Elissa Cameron, a mammal ecologist in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, has helped to disprove critics of a scientific theory developed in 1973.
At that time, ecologist Bob Trivers and mathematician Dan
The ever-slowing capacity to clear the build-up of such toxins as isoprostanes and misfolded proteins that accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients causes the death of cells involved in memory and language. Domenico Pratico, MD, Associate Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and colleagues have shown in a preliminary study that reducing the levels of isoprostanes, which specifically reflect oxidative damage in the brain, by draining c
A new long-term study finds over 20 years, only one in five women who have mammograms every two years will have to undergo follow up evaluation for a false positive finding. Only one in 16 will have an unnecessary invasive procedure over two decades. The study, published August 23, 2004 in the online edition of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, should reassure physicians and patients that the risks of breast cancer screening are minimal given the notable benefit
Ohio State University researchers are working on developing a multi-purpose cancer drug that might one day scale back the number of medications some cancer patients need to take.
In laboratory tests, a dual-action compound called OSU 111 has shown promise in killing prostate cancer cells. “It had a direct toxic effect on cancer cells, and also prevented angiogenesis – the formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones,” said Tom Li, the study’s lead investigator and an a
Scientists have been trying for some time to develop molecules that mimic natural regulators of gene expression. These natural regulators, called transcription…
Thanks to a productive collaboration between clinical and basic scientists, researchers from the University of Chicago have identified the first genetic cause of one of the most common birth defects of the brain, Dandy-Walker malformation (DWM). Infants with this disorder, about one in 10,000 births, have a small, displaced cerebellum and other brain abnormalities that can reduce coordination, impair mental function and cause hydrocephalus.
In the September, 2004, issue of Nature G
Possible implications for some anti-inflammatory drugs used in fighting cardiovascular disease
Very little is known about how aortic aneurysms initially form and progress. Now, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have shown in an atherosclerotic animal model that susceptibility for developing aneurysms increases significantly when an inflammation pathway important in asthma is activated. Mice without the inflammation gene were protected from aneurysm
People in a negative mood provide more accurate eyewitness accounts than people in a positive mood state, according to new research.
The surprise finding, which is to be published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, is the first to assess the effect of mood on memory and human thinking.
People in a positive mood such as happiness were shown under experimental conditions to have relatively unreliable memories, and show poorer judgement and critical thinking ski
Nitroxyl-releasing drugs seem to strengthen cardiac contractions, relaxation in conscious dogs
Half a million Americans are diagnosed each year with heart failure, a progressively debilitating condition characterized by the heart’s declining ability to pump blood efficiently. The condition causes about 50,000 deaths annually and accounts for 1 million hospitalizations – more than for all forms of cancer combined.
Since the 1980s, nitroglycerin and other medications that releas
University of Toronto researchers have identified individual cells in the adult mouse pancreas capable of generating insulin-producing beta cells.
Their research, published Aug. 22 in the online edition of Nature Biotechnology, offers hope for the millions of diabetics worldwide who take insulin injections to compensate for defective pancreatic islets. Healthy islets, made up largely of beta cells, release insulin to help regulate the body’s blood sugar levels.
“P
Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory and the University of Florida have uncovered information that may help “molecular wires” replace silicon in micro-electronic circuits and/or components in solar energy storage systems. The scientists were studying how electric charge is distributed in polymer molecule chains that are several nanometers, or billionths of a meter, in length.
Brookhaven chemist John Miller, the study’s lead scientist
First-ever side-by-side comparison of PCB-laden sediments taken from separate, contaminated rivers
One of Mother Nature’s most promising weapons to break down persistent, toxic polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) is bacteria. Now, a study by Carnegie Mellon University scientists provides convincing evidence that how quickly a PCB gets eaten and what it becomes depends on where it settles. Using DNA fingerprinting, the Carnegie Mellon team discovered distinct bacterial populations in th
High-resolution snapshots of a virus attacking its host – which have culminated in a movie of the process – could reveal secrets of viral infection and improve gene therapy techniques, according to a Purdue University research group.
Structural biologists including Michael G. Rossmann have obtained clearer pictures of how the T4 virus, long known to infect E. coli bacteria, alters its shape as it prepares to pierce its host’s cell membrane. The complicated infection process
While the Earth is moistened by rainfall, scientists believe that the water in soil can, in turn, influence rainfall both regionally and globally. Forecasters, water resource managers and farmers may benefit once this connection is better understood.
A NASA researcher led an effort that used a dozen computer models to locate “hot spots” around the world where soil moisture may strongly affect rainfall during northern hemisphere summertime. The results appear in the August 20 issue
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