The American Thoracic Society (ATS) and the European Respiratory Society (ERS) announced the establishment of a set of unique, web-based guidelines to help physicians throughout the world treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The announcement came at the 2004 ATS International Conference in Orlando, Florida.

COPD usually involves severe emphysema and chronic bronchitis, which severely affect the alveoli of the lungs, leading to illness and death. Smoking is a leading cause of

With new technology that uses short strands of genetic material to shut down a specific gene, researchers have regulated immune system proteins to boost production of cells that seek and destroy cancer cells. This approach may improve the effectiveness of vaccines in the treatment of tumors, including malignant brain tumors.

Results of the study appear in the June issue of the European Journal of Immunology, and the research was conducted at Cedars-Sinai’s Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical I

Jülicher Wissenschaftler messen Wassergehalt im lebenden Gehirn

Bei vielen Krankheiten des Gehirns, beispielsweise bei einem Hirntumor, sammelt sich Wasser um das kranke Gewebe an. Ein Ödem entsteht und der Wassergehalt im Hirn steigt an. Wissenschaftler des Forschungszentrums Jülich haben ein neues Messverfahren entwickelt, mit dem sie quantitativ den Wassergehalt in unterschiedlichen Bereichen des lebenden Gehirn bis auf etwa ein Prozent genau bestimmen können. Damit können sie j

Evidence could indicate bacteria-like etiology of vascular calcification

Researchers at the Mayo Clinic found they could isolate and culture nanoparticles from filtered homogenates of diseased calcified human cardiovascular tissue. These cultured nano-sized particles were recognized by a DNA-specific dye, incorporated radiolabeled uridine, and after decalcification, appeared via electron microscopy to contain cell walls.

The research paper, entitled “Evidence of Nanobacteria

By employing experimental evolution to study the effects of mating within and between different insect populations, researchers have gained insight into the ways in which sexual selection can affect fitness and influence various aspects of evolutionary change.

As a consequence of investigating the short-term fitness consequences of mate choice, researchers had largely come to believe that sexual selection is beneficial. However, conflicts between the sexes are ubiquitous and could erode fitn

UK researchers writing in Europe’s leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction[1], today (Tuesday 25 May) report what they believe to be a world record – a baby born using sperm that had been frozen for 21 years.

“We believe this is the longest period of sperm cryopreservation resulting in a live birth so far reported in the scientific literature,” according to one of the authors, Dr Elizabeth Pease, Consultant in Reproductive Medicine at the Department of Reproductive Medicine

A revolutionary type of ‘self healing’ bandage that uses the patient’s own cells is being developed. The technique has already been tried successfully on patients with diabetic ulcers and in the long-term could offer a more effective, quicker and cost efficient way of treating many types of slow-healing wounds such as pressure ulcers. The bandages are already available for patients with severe burns.

The bandages have been developed by CellTran Ltd., a spin-out company from the University

A new charitable foundation that will improve cancer care in Europe and beyond is being created by the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), the leading charity in the field of oncology education and training.

The new ESMO Foundation will officially come into existence during ESMO’s biennial congress, which is being held in Vienna this year. In the city where Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, and the Strauss family did their most significant work, it is only fitting th

In an unusual paradox, smoking cigarettes-a deadly habit that contributes to the development of peripheral artery disease-actually helps arteries stay open following a procedure to repair clogged blood vessels in the legs, according to a study in the June issue of Radiology. The study found that habitual to heavy smokers who continued to smoke after angioplasty had a lower rate of restenosis, or re-narrowing of the arteries, than nonsmokers.

As expected, the researchers who conducted the st

Diagnosing heart attacks will become a more precise science thanks to the first of a new series of clinical standards just issued by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Standard Reference Material (SRM) 2921 (human cardiac troponin complex) will help manufacturers develop and calibrate assays that measure specific protein concentrations in patient blood samples to determine whether a heart attack has occurred.

The SRM is a solution containing certified concentrations

A small clinical trial of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who did not respond to interferon alone found that adding the human antibody daclizumab improved patient outcome. Patients who received the combined therapy had a 78 percent reduction in new brain lesions and a 70 percent reduction in total lesions, along with other significant clinical improvements. The trial was led by investigators at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), a component of the National Inst

Lung transplantation increases the survival of patients with cystic fibrosis by almost 4.5 years on average, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference in Orlando on May 24.

“Initially the risks from lung transplantation for cystic fibrosis patients are quite high, but the risk drops over time, and it becomes worth the risk in the long run,” said study co-author Roger D. Yusen, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Divisions of Pulmona

Using a technique that enables them to study both early and advanced stages of arterial plaque buildup in the same mice, researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center found that an antioxidant compound found in green tea leaves does not clear established plaque but does inhibit the development of new deposits.

Results of the study are published in the May 25 issue of the American Heart Association journal Circulation.

Several components of green tea leaves are known to have natural pr

A Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center lung disease specialist reports that some smokers may be genetically predisposed to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Jill Ohar, professor of pulmonology and critical care medicine at Wake Forest Baptist, presented her findings at the 100th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in Orlando, Fla., today (May 25).

In her study, Ohar looked at more than 500 men and women age 40 and older who had smoked 20 ye

A pair of scientists has proposed a new model for behavioral development among social insects, suggesting that a higher male susceptibility to disease has helped shape the evolution of the insects’ behavior.

What might be called the “sick-male” theory has been proposed by animal behaviorists Sean O’Donnell of the University of Washington and Samuel Beshers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and appears in the current issue of Proceedings Biological Sciences, publish

Researchers have identified the first gene linked to the productivity of the stem cells that produce sperm in mammals. The discovery was made by applying the latest laboratory methods to a strain of mice restored from embryos frozen since the early 70s. The findings, which could someday have implications for infertility, contraception, and stem cell transplantation therapy, will be published in the June issue of Nature Genetics.

What researchers are trying to do is unravel the mystery of the