A drug prescribed for the prevention of osteoporosis reduced women’s risk of mild cognitive impairment by 33 percent in a worldwide clinical trial led by researchers at San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).

The drug, raloxifene, modulates the activity of the hormone estrogen. The finding was published in the April 2005 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) affects more than one-third of women and one-fifth of men aged 65 a

Study says sleep improves by more than a third

Sleep, a vital ingredient in life, can sometimes become difficult as humans get older. But a recent study by researchers at Case Western Reserve University’s Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing and the Buddhist Tzu-Chi General Hospital in Taiwan shows that listening to soft music at bedtime will help older adults sleep better and longer.

The research, published in the February 2005 edition of The Journal of Advanced Nur

A team of scientists from Aston University in Birmingham, UK have made a discovery that could lead to new ways of treating children who develop a particularly aggressive form of cancer. The research was funded by the Association for International Cancer Research (AICR).

Craniopharyngioma tumours cause severe headaches, vomiting, disturbed vision and growth defects. They are usually diagnosed in babies and very young children, and cause one in ten of all childhood brain tumours.

Rabies, HIV, cancer and malaria could all be prevented with pills in the future, if a new technique using specially modified viruses to deliver vaccines is adopted, according to scientists speaking today (Tuesday, 05 April 2005) at the Society for General Microbiology’s 156th Meeting at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.

“We can take a special type of virus which only infects bacteria, called a bacteriophage, and replace some of its DNA with vaccine DNA, and then use the p

Nylon strips, beads and hospital stitching thread covered in viruses could be an effective weapon against the hospital acquired superbug, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, known as MRSA, according to research presented today (Tuesday, 05 April 2005) at the Society for General Microbiology’s 156th Meeting at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.

Scientists from the University of Strathclyde have developed a method of chemically bonding a type of virus called a bacteriop

The charming meanderings of butterflies are not as random as they appear, according to new research1. Scientists at Rothamsted Research,2 a research institute sponsored by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) in Hertfordshire, have found that their seemingly irresolute flutterings are in fact decisive flight paths. The harmonic radar has been used before to track the flights of bumblebees and honeybees. Now it has been shown to work for butterflies too, opening a n

Link suggests news ways of thinking about tumor growth and inflammation

Johns Hopkins researchers have found that two genes already known to control cell movement are also needed for proper cell division. They report their findings in the April issue of Developmental Cell.

The researchers discovered that the two genes are required for a dividing cell’s halves to separate, raising the possibility that interfering with them could be helpful in stopping the uncontrolled

Melanoma is a particularly deadly form of skin cancer very resistant to treatment. Researchers at H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute and the University of South Florida are testing a promising new therapy that prompts the immune system to aid in the fight against melanoma tumors.

“This is a milestone clinical trial because it is the first time that electroporation is being used to deliver plasmid DNA in a gene therapy study in humans,” said Richard Heller, PhD, USF p

Scientists at the Yale School of Medicine identified a molecule in osteoclasts, IRAK-M, that is a key regulator of the loss of bone mass.

Osteoclasts are cells that play a major role in the development and remodeling of bone. They originate from the fusion of macrophages and are important mediators of the loss of bone mass that leads to osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is a serious problem worldwide: it is characterized by loss of bone density leading to fractures in response t

Despite the divergent evolutionary paths of dolphins and primates — and their vastly different brains — both have developed similar high-level cognitive abilities, says Emory University neuroscientist and behavioral biologist Lori Marino. She presented her latest findings on the evolution of and differences in brain structure between cetaceans (ocean mammals like whales and dolphins) and primates April 5 during the 14th annual Experimental Biology 2005 meeting in San Diego.

Marino&#

Obtaining a genetic picture of how a tumor will react to the many treatment techniques available could help doctors prescribe therapies customized for individual cancer patients’ needs, suggests a Purdue University research team.

A group of scientists including Jian-Jian “J.J.” Li has found a trio of proteins often present in cancer cells that protect the tumor from destruction by radiotherapy. Because no single protein in the group is responsible for keeping the cancer aliv

Contrary to popular belief, a ’few drinks’ do not promote optimal lactation

Despite age-old claims advising breastfeeding moms that alcoholic beverages can improve their nursing performance, researchers at the Monell Chemical Senses Center report that even moderate doses of alcohol affect the hormones responsible for lactation in a counterproductive manner.

“This information is important for women,” comments lead author Julie Mennella, PhD, a biopsychologist. “

Scientists have discovered a novel method to reduce cat allergic reactions by topping up the immune cells responsible for controlling them.

According to research published this week in the Public Library of Science (PLoS) Medicine, the team from Imperial College London and Royal Brompton Hospital have discovered a way to decrease allergic reactions by increasing numbers of CD4+ regulatory T-cells.

Dr Mark Larché from Imperial College London and Royal Brompton Hospital,

’Micro-organisms could also prompt rainfall’

Micro-organisms in clouds could play a crucial role in the spread of disease and in the formation of rain drops, scientists have claimed. The radical theories about nanobacteria – micro-organisms considerably smaller than ordinary bacteria – in clouds are published in two recent articles in the Journal of Proteome Research by Dr Andrei P. Sommer of the University of Ulm, Germany, and Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe of Cardiff U

Intense light pulses can kill 99.999% of food poisoning bugs in just six bursts, say researchers from Strathclyde University today (Wednesday, 06 April 2005) presenting at the Society for General Microbiology’s 156th Meeting at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.

The dangerous food poisoning bacteria Listeria monocytogenes can be effectively cleared from contaminated kitchen surfaces, water treatment plants, hospital operating theatres, and even from the air by using puls

Circulation article describes Viagra’s ability to stabilize

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have found that the popular impotence drug Viagra prevents damage to the heart from a potent chemotherapeutic agent frequently used in the treatment of breast cancer, leukemia and sarcomas.

In the April 5 issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, researchers demonstrated for the first time that administration of clinically relevant doses