Scientists have found that overexpression of a protein called Down Syndrome Critical Region 1 (DSCR-1) blocks the formation of new blood vessels and thus reduces tumor growth. Therapeutics based on this finding may potentially lead to new cancer treatments.

The research appears as the “Paper of the Week” in the November 26 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology journal.

Many vascular disorders including

UK scientists have designed a knowledge management system which could enable medical practitioners to make speedy, informed decisions about breast cancer patients. The project pulls together information which was previously held in separate locations and it has the potential to revolutionise patient diagnosis and management.

The MIAKT project (Medical Imaging with Advanced Knowledge Technologies), aims to facilitate medical practitioners in diagnosing and treating breast cancer.

The Institute of Food Science & Technology, through its Public Affairs and Technical & Legislative Committees has authorised the following Information Statement, dated November 2004, prepared by its Professional Food Microbiology Group, and replacing the version dated 14 September 1996.

Summary

Foodborne illness caused by verocytotoxin-producing E.coli (VTEC) – sometimes referred to as enterohaemorrhagic E.coli (EHEC) – was first recognised in the early 1980s. Although the

Generic antipsychotic drugs can protect brain cells from a virus that causes a fatal nervous system disorder, according to research conducted at Brown University and Case Western Reserve University.

The disorder, called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy or PML, affects hundreds of Americans with suppressed immune systems, including kidney transplant recipients, cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and an estimated 4 percent of people with AIDS.

PML is cau

An effective navigation system would improve the mobility of millions of blind people all over the world. A new “eye” developed by scientists in Japan will allow blind people to cross busy roads in total safety for the first time.

The “electronic eye”, which would be mounted on a pair of glasses, will be capable of detecting the existence and location of a pedestrian crossing, and at the same time measure the width of the road to the nearest step and detect the colour of the traf

A recent study, published in the journal Pain Practice, identified situations in which injections of local anesthetic would be the best treatment for pain and reduce unnecessary risk and procedural costs.

While the use of sympathetic blocks (injections) is controversial, in this study, 20 patients suffering from complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) were given injections to examine the method’s contribution “as prospective predictors of outcome.”

The patients, who exhib

Evidence of exposure to a monkey virus possibly related to cancer has been found in the blood of North American zoo workers, according to a study in the December 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online. The virus, a polyomavirus known as simian virus 40 (SV40), has long been a subject of public health concern, in part because it has been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals, and some investigators have reported SV40 DNA in human tumors.

The authors, E

Vitamin E may help some diabetics

Despite recent reports that show use of high-dose vitamin E supplements is associated with a higher overall risk of dying, at least one group stands to benefit greatly from the same vitamin. About 40 percent of diabetic patients can reduce their risk of heart attacks and of dying from heart disease by taking vitamin E supplements, according to a Technion-Israel Institute of Technology study published in the November 2004 Diabetes Care.

LRRK2 gene may play a central role in the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative disorders

A team of researchers at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., and colleagues in Canada and Germany have discovered a gene and six mutations of it that cause symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Their discovery will be reported in the Nov. 18 issue of the journal, Neuron. The team found a mutation of the gene, named LRRK2, in members of six

Researchers find no role for RET-independent GFR-alpha in development or regeneration

Neurons depend on external molecular signals for their very survival. These molecules, collectively referred to as neurotrophic factors, include a family of four GDNF Family Ligands (GFLs) that bind to specific receptor sites on the surfaces of neural cells. These sites allow GFLs to signal through a receptor complex composed of the RET tyrosine kinase and a GFRá-family receptor. Tyrosine kinases,

Some 100 species of birds are what scientists call “obligate brood parasites”–instead of building nests and raising their own young, they lay their eggs in the nests of other species and let those birds do the hard work of parenting for them. The black-headed duck of South America is one of these, but it stands out from all the others in a striking way. Black-headed ducks don’t need any parental care other than incubation for their eggs–the ducklings leave the nest one day after hatchin

Opens the door for new therapeutic targets

Researchers at The Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids) and the University of Toronto (U of T) have confirmed that childhood and adult brain tumours originate from cancer stem cells and that these stem cells fuel and maintain tumour growth. This discovery has led to development of a mouse model for human brain tumours and opens the door for new therapeutic targets for the treatment of brain tumours. This research is reported in the Nov

Possible links to DiGeorge syndrome, schizophrenia also seen

Tiny bits of short-lived genetic material called microRNAs, or miRNAs, have attracted enormous interest from scientists since their discovery in humans only a few years ago. Viewed most broadly, they appear to play significant roles in controlling gene expression and development in many different settings.

Now, a new study from researchers at The Wistar Institute identifies for the first time a molecular comple

A study looking at chronic infectious respiratory diseases that affect most swine during their critical growing stage has shed new light on the reasons for restricted weight gain and reduced muscle mass.

In the November issue of the Journal of Nutrition, scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign report that the production of inflammatory cytokines by immune cells appears to be responsible for declines of both protein accretion and weight gain in swine infected w

A group of chemicals in apples could protect the brain from the type of damage that triggers such neurodegenerative diseases as Alzheimer’s and Parkinsonism, according to two new studies from Cornell University food scientists.

The studies show that the chemical quercetin, a so-called phytonutrient, appears to be largely responsible for protecting rat brain cells when assaulted by oxidative stress in laboratory tests.

Phytonutrients, such as phenolic acids and fla

Although they are one millionth the size of a human hair and are so small they cannot be seen with the naked eye, nanoparticles may become one of the most significant new products in the biomedical field thanks to University of Missouri-Columbia researchers who have developed a procedure to make them that is 240 times faster than previous methods.

Today, nanoparticles are used in applications as varied as making laundry detergent to medicines. However, for them to be beneficial in