Different combinations of genetic mutations may give rise to diverse human traits, including complex diseases such as schizophrenia, say scientists at the University of Toronto and McGill University in Montreal.

Drs. Brenda Andrews and Charles Boone of U of T and Howard Bussey of McGill used simple yeast cells to demonstrate that there are many different combinations of genetic mutations that can lead to cell death or reduced cell fitness. The research team will now focus on mapping gene int

A method for determining the function of large numbers of genes is being developed and piloted by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers at Harvard Medical School. In a trial of the technique, the researchers characterized the role in growth and viability of nearly all the genes in the genome of the fruit fly Drosophila.

Although the fruit fly genome was chosen for the first study, the researchers are confident that their technique can be applied to any organism, including humans

MIT neuroscientists have discovered a new brain mechanism controlling the formation of lasting memories. This mechanism explains how signals between neurons stimulate production of the protein building blocks needed for long-term memory storage.

The study, which will appear in the Feb. 6 issue of the journal Cell, has broad implications for our understanding of how learning and memory normally occur, and how these abilities may be undermined in psychiatric and neurologic diseases.

L

Two studies in this week’s issue of THE LANCET highlight the public-health implications of blood transfusion as a possible route for infection by the prion protein responsible for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD).

The death from vCJD of an individual in the UK who had previously received a blood transfusion from a donor who went on to have vCJD was announced on December 17, 2003. Robert Will from the National CJD Surveillance Unit, Edinburgh, UK and colleagues outline the process wh

A recent theory proposing that unsafe injections are a major cause of HIV-1 infection in sub-Saharan Africa is rejected by authors of an article in this week’s issue of THE LANCET.

During the past year, a group (D Gisselquist and colleagues) has argued that unsafe injections are a major mode of HIV-1 transmission in sub-Saharan Africa, with up to 40% of HIV-1 infections being attributed to unsafe injections. In this week’s issue of THE LANCET, an international group of experts* has identifie

Devoted to finding the most effective and safest blood-thinning recipe, Northwestern Memorial researchers present findings at National Stroke Conference

Aspirin dose and type may not matter when taken in combination with Plavix for the purpose of thinning blood and possibly reducing the risk of stroke in people with cerebrovascular disease, according to research presented today at the American Stroke Association’s 29th International Stroke Conference. The American Stroke Associat

Treating stroke is all a matter of timing: therapy delivered too late misses the critical window when neurons can still be saved. A report by Stanford University School of Medicine researchers shows that cooling the brain can lengthen the therapeutic window, giving doctors more time to protect brain cells.

The idea of cooling the brain isn’t new. Study leader Gary Steinberg, MD, PhD, the Lacroute-Hearst Professor of Neurosurgery and the Neurosciences, said he started cooling brains dur

Bacteria responsible for a lethal form of food poisoning may escape the immune system by hiding out in the gall bladder of seemingly healthy people. The finding by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine suggests that an unwitting food worker could transmit the bacteria to others by contaminating food products.

The bacteria, Listeria monocytogenes, can cause severe illness or death in people with weakened immune systems and may cause miscarriage in pregnant women. “Twenty to 40

American Stroke Association meeting report

A revolutionary tiny corkscrew that captures blood clots from vessels deep inside the brain can “almost instantly” reverse damage caused by ischemic stroke, according to the first report on the safety and efficacy of the device presented today at the American Stroke Association’s 29th International Stroke Conference.

Ischemic strokes are caused by a blood clot that blocks blood supply to the brain. Each year, about 700,000 Ameri

American Stroke Association meeting report

A new catheter device that diverts some blood from the lower body to the brain appears safe for treating acute stroke and may significantly reduce stroke complications – even after a critical treatment window has lapsed.

The results of this experimental study were reported today at the American Stroke Association’s 29th International Stroke Conference.

“The device treats stroke by a unique approach that increases blood

Are all tunas alike? It is true that they are all swift, powerful swimmers that benefit from high metabolic rates – and that in order to support these rates, they have evolved into a state of high heart rates. Consider the skipjack tuna, which has been clocked at a heart rate of over 200 beats-per-minute. But is the cardiac stamina of the cold water (endothermic) tuna, such as the bluefin, albacore and yellowfin, the same as that of its warm water (ecothermic) sister the mackerel? Why should it matte

A membrane protein, NCX1, that transports sodium and calcium into and out of cells, may determine the frequency as well as strength of the heartbeat, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas report.

The findings are published in today’s issue of Nature.

“This calcium transporter really is an important key to understanding how the heart is regulated,” said Dr. Donald Hilgemann, professor of physiology and senior author of the study. “At every beat, calcium in hear

Study with transgenic mice could lead to omega-3-containing meats, dairy products

Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have found that tissues from mice transgenic for a gene usually found in the c.elegans roundworm contain omega-3 fatty acids, consumption of which has been shown to protect against heart disease. Usually mammals cannot produce omega-3s from the more abundant omega-6 fatty acids, which do not have the health benefits of omega-3s. The finding, published

The possibility of using the Earth’s abundant supply of water as a cheap source of hydrogen is a step closer thanks to researchers from Imperial College London. By mimicking the method plants use to split water, researchers say that a highly energy efficient way to form cheap supplies of hydrogen fuel may be possible in the future.

Reporting online in the journal Science today Imperial researchers reveal the fine detail of the protein complex that drives photosynthesis – the process tha

New research findings from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (MUHC) provide hope for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), one of the most common and devastating diseases of the nervous system. These findings, published in today in Neuron, characterize an enzyme that plays a central role in the onset and progress of MS.

” We have identified a key enzyme that triggers MS-like disease in an animal model,” says MUHC neuroscientist and Professor of Medicine at McGi

Recent results from a phase IIA clinical trial on the use of tetrodotoxin – a neurotoxin extracted from puffer fish – in patients with refractory cancer pain show extremely promising results.

The study, reported in the January/February issue of the Journal Supportive Oncology, details the findings from the open-label dose finding trial, showing that the majority of patients who received the novel analgesic experienced either a complete or partial response to the agent. Overall, 68% (17/25) p