Many types of cancer–like those of the breast and prostate–would not be nearly as deadly if it weren’t for their ability to spread to vital organs. Still, scientists don’t yet fully understand the way in which cancer spreads, or metastasizes, or how to prevent the process.
Now, researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC) have used a modified version of a naturally occurring human protein to decrease the spread of human breast cancer implanted in mice.
“We
Neurons transmit chemical signals in a fleeting “kiss-and-run” process, which in large part determines how quickly neurons can fire, according to new studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers.
The transfer of information between nerve cells occurs when chemicals called neurotransmitters are released into the synapse, the junction between neurons. Electrical impulses in the neuron cause tiny vesicles loaded with neurotransmitters to move to the tip of the nerve terminal where th
Technology is bringing precision agriculture one-step closer to widespread use
USDA-Agricultural Research Service scientists at the George E. Brown, Jr. Salinity Laboratory, Riverside, California, have developed general guidelines for soil mapping using mobile equipment. This advanced technology is valuable for looking at changes in soil quality over time; including the presence of pollutants such as salts, pesticides, and fertilizers; and for use in precision agriculture to determine
A diabetes epidemic that appears to have claimed the life of composer Johann Sebastian Bach may explain baffling disparities in the disease’s rates among 21st-century ethnic groups, a UCLA geographer and evolutionary biologist says in the current issue of Nature.
Aside from speculating that many people may carry genes that predispose them to diabetes, researchers have been at loss to explain why, for instance, only 2 percent of Europeans contract the disease as opposed to 13 percent of
In a clinical trial conducted at the University of Illinois at Chicago, researchers have demonstrated the first promising drug treatment for a common and life-threatening sleep disorder called sleep apnea.
The drug, an antidepressant called mirtazapine, significantly reduced the symptoms of sleep apnea. It cut in half the number of times breathing stopped or slowed during sleep and reduced the number of times sleep was disrupted by 28 percent. All 12 patients who participated in the study s
Warnings about methylmercury contaminated fish are not just for young children and expectant mothers, according to new research published today in Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source. Adults who regularly eat contaminated fish could find that their concentration, dexterity and verbal memory are impaired.
The major source of methylmercury is diet, particularly large fish like shark and swordfish. The authors of this new research concluded: “methylmercury exposure at levels of
A study of about 50,000 pregnant women has shown that the integrated test for Down’s syndrome offers a “significantly higher” level of safety than the screening available to most women in the UK. The study, which will be reported in the June Journal of Medical Screening, was carried out by Professor Nicholas Wald and colleagues at the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine and University College Hospital. Their report also shows that the integrated test is best in terms of efficacy and cost.
Academics at The University of Nottingham are developing new nanotechnology that could be used to treat brain tumours more effectively by reducing the serious side-effects associated with anti-cancer drugs.
A team led by Dr Martin Garnett in the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences has been awarded a £206,000 grant from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council to continue investigations on the preparation of nanoparticles for delivering drugs to brain tumours.
Anti-c
A research study at The University of Nottingham looking at how growth can contribute to spontaneous childhood cancer regression could lead to more effective ways of treating tumours.
The one-year project, led by Christopher Jones in the School of Nursing in collaboration with Dr Michael Symonds in the Division of Child Health and Dr David Walker at the University’s Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre, will look at whether growth hormone plays a part in tumours spontaneously ge
Car owners of the future could one day swap petrol for environmentally-friendly alternatives, thanks to a multi-million pound research project involving academics at The University of Nottingham.
Researchers from the University’s School of Chemistry and School of Mechanical, Materials, Manufacturing Engineering and Management are developing new materials for hydrogen storage and for use in fuel cells that can use hydrogen as a clean alternative to oil and natural gas.
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Oxford scientists are using the latest virtual reality technology to study how we perceive the world in 3D. The “immersive virtual reality” used by the Virtual Reality Research Group at Oxford University allows subjects to walk around or look up and down while what they see through a headset changes accordingly – they can explore the virtual environment by literally walking around. Meanwhile, the scientists monitor how they are perceiving the dimensions of their ‘Matrix’-style world.
The res
Defying ocean’s end offers global perspective on eve of pew report
For the first time ever, the world’s largest environmental organizations, working with scientists, the business community and international governments, met specifically to develop a comprehensive and achievable agenda to reverse the decline in health of the world’s ocean.
The five-day Defying Ocean’s End (DOE) conference marked the launch of a new, science-based international effort to restore and maintain
Engineers at Cardiff University, UK, are using the latest technology to update a time-honoured practice – and turn a serious environmental problem into a valuable resource.
Modern industrial societies generate vast quantities of waste – the UK alone produces more than a million tonnes every day. A large proportion of it has traditionally been put into “landfill” – literally dumped into large holes in the land, but space is running out and the damage to the environment from landfill sites is
St. Jude researchers say reprogrammed nucleus model could offer valuable clues to how certain influencing factors combine with DNA mutations to cause tumors
Nuclei removed from mouse brain tumor cells and transplanted into mouse eggs whose own nuclei have been removed, give rise to cloned embryos with normal tissues, even though the mutations causing the cancer are still present. This research, from scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, appears in the June 1 issue
Laptop computers can generate enough heat that, in rare cases, they actually catch fire. While engineers have a great grasp of how to control electrical charge in circuits, they have a hard time getting rid of the heat created by flowing electrons. What’s missing is a fundamental understanding of how individual electrons generate heat.
A new device developed by University of Wisconsin-Madison Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Professor Robert Blick promises to change that.
A new study links a protein discovered a few years ago at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with formation of scar tissue that occurs after injury to nerve cells in the brain or spinal cord.
Such scarring apparently blocks neurons of the central nervous system from recovering after traumatic injury – inhibiting their axon filaments from regenerating and ferrying nerve impulses elsewhere, to other neurons and tissue, including muscle. Loss of nerve cell function and paralysis ca
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