5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers convert long used chemical industry method to cheaply fab pure graphene. Rice University and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology : In a development that could lead to new carbon composites and touch-screen displays, researchers have unveiled a new method for producing bulk quantities of one-atom-thick sheets of carbon called graphene. It wasn't until 2004 that stand-alone sheets of graphene were first characterized with modern nanotechnological instruments. Since then, graphene has come under intense scrutiny from materials scientists, in part because it is both ultrastrong and highly conductive. 'There are high-throughput methods for making graphene oxide, which is not as conductive as graphene, and there are low-throughput methods for making pure graphene,' said lead co-author Matteo Pasquali, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and chemistry at Rice. 'Our method yields very pure material, and it is based on bulk fluid-processing techniques that have long been used by the chemical industry.'

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists find genes associated with throat cancer through study of over 10,000 subjects. Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) and the Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Centre : Scientists have identified three new susceptibility genes in a genome-wide association study of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). NPC is a type of cancer that forms in the epithelial lining of the nasopharynx, the area of the upper throat that lies behind the nose. To search for the genetic risk factors for NPC, the scientists carried out a comprehensive genetic analysis of the human genome in a large clinical sample of southern Chinese descent - approximately 5,000 patients and 5,000 controls. The researchers found that the genetic variation within the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) [1] and the three genes known as TNFRSF19, MDSIEVI1 and CDKN2A/2B can significantly influence a person's risk of developing NPC.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers find the gene that cause severe birth defects. University of Leeds : An international group of researchers has identified the genetic cause of an inherited condition that causes severe abnormalities in developing babies. The work should allow couples at risk of conceiving babies with the profoundly disabling Meckel-Gruber and Joubert syndromes to be identified beforehand through genetic screening. Their findings, which show how the disease gene stops cells' finger-like antennae or 'cilia' from detecting and relaying information, may ultimately lead to treatments for more common related disorders, such as spina bifida and polycystic kidney disease.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers discover the genetic secrets behind your eye color. Erasmus University Medical Center in the Netherlands : Scientists have discovered new genes involved in determining human eye colour. More than just blue, green and brown, the team believes that your eye color has many more dimensions and variations than previously believed. The researchers uncovered three new genetic loci (the locations of gene sequences on chromosomes) that significantly contribute to the natural and subtle eye colour variations that distinguish one person from the next. Learning about the role of the three loci (referred to as LYST, 17q25.3, and TTC3/DSCR9) has added to a more comprehensive and concise understanding of the genetic basis of human eye color.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Advances made in designing robots able to walking and running using far less energy. Oregon State University Dynamic Robotics Laboratory : Researchers have made an important fundamental advance in robotics, in work that should produce robots that not only can walk and run effectively, but use little energy in the process. By achieving an optimal approach with robotic mechanisms, studies are moving closer to robots that could take on dangerous missions in the military, create prosthetic limbs for humans that work much better, or even let people who use wheelchairs start walking again. "In terms of locamotion," said Jonathan Hurst, an assistant professor of robotics and mechanical design at OSU. "Humans and other animals are a tough act to follow. Using limited energy, they can move easily over uneven terrain, and respond with a fascinating balance of muscles and tendons. They have different ways to deal with forces, such as holding something in place rigidly, or also responding to outside influences – like the delicate act of holding a cup of coffee level during a bumpy car ride." In their recent studies, the OSU researchers essentially proved that these two abilities are mutually exclusive. Humans deal with this problem by flexing opposing pairs of muscles, to change the dynamic properties of their arm. For a robot, the more it is able to do one of these tasks, the less able it is to do the other. "If robotic locomotion is ever to achieve some of what we want, it will have to use less energy," Hurst said. "There are machines that can walk with no active controls at all, using barely any energy, but they fall if they run into the smallest bump. We need to use as much of that passive ability as possible and only use motors or active controls if it's really necessary, so we can save energy in the process."

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers create retina from human embryonic stem cells. Reeve-Irvine Research Center and the Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center at University of California, Irvine : Scientists have created an eight-layer, early-stage retina from human embryonic stem cells, the first three-dimensional tissue structure to be made from stem cells. It also marks the first step toward the development of transplant-ready retinas to treat eye disorders such as retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration that affect millions. 'We made a complex structure consisting of many cell types,' said study leader Hans Keirstead of UCI. 'This is a major advance in our quest to treat retinal disease.' In previous studies on spinal cord injury, the Keirstead group originated a method by which human embryonic stem cells could be directed to become specific cell types, a process called differentiation. Results of those studies are leading to the world's first clinical trial using a stem cell-based therapy for acute spinal cord injury.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Gene variant found to cause congenital heart disease. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Michigan Medical School : Although congenital heart disease (CHD) represents the most common major birth defect, scientists have not previously identified the common variation in the genes that give rise to it. Now genetics and cardiology researchers, two of them brothers, have discovered a genetic variant on chromosome 5 that strongly raises the risk of congenital heart disease. 'This gene, ISL1, plays a key role in regulating early cardiac development, so there is a compelling biological reason for investigating it as a genetic risk factor for CHD,' said study leader Peter J. Gruber, M.D., Ph.D., a pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon and developmental biologist who collaborated with his brother, Stephen B. Gruber, M.D., Ph.D., a geneticist and epidemiologist.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Watch the BeBionic 'Luke' hand show its dexterity. BeBionic : The next generation of fully articulated myo-electric hands features a range of naturally compliant grip patterns that provide repeatable accuracy. The powerful new hands feature naturally compliant grip patterns and combine innovative technology with life-like appearance. Functions of the hand such as speed, grip force and grip patterns may be custom programmed to suit individual user desires through smart software and wireless technology. Lighter than existing products, the Bebionic includes the world's first powered wrist with rotation as well as flexion/extension and 19 shades of advanced silicone skin are available.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Stress found to shorten life by reducing telomere length, but brief exercise reduces the effect. University of California - San Francisco : Exercise can buffer the effects of stress-induced cell aging, according to new research from UCSF that revealed actual benefits of physical activity at the cellular level. The scientists learned that vigorous physical activity as brief as 42 minutes over a 3-day period, similar to federally recommended levels, can protect individuals from the effects of stress by reducing its impact on telomere length. Telomeres (pronounced TEEL-oh-meres) are tiny pieces of DNA that promote genetic stability and act as protective sheaths by keeping chromosomes from unraveling, much like plastic tips at the ends of shoelaces.

5/30/2010 PERMALINK
Neutralizing HIV, flu and other viruses with radical advances in vaccine design and production technologies. Seth Berkley: speaks at TED Conference on how radical advances in vaccine design, production and distribution are bringing us closer to the day when the threat from virus can be permanently eliminating, ending the threats posed by numerous diseases from AIDS to malaria to flu pandemics.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Learning strategies are associated with distinct neural signatures. California Institute of Technology : The process of learning requires the sophisticated ability to constantly update our expectations of future rewards so we may make accurate predictions about those rewards in the face of a changing environment. Although exactly how the brain orchestrates this process remains unclear, a new study suggests that a combination of two distinct learning strategies guides our behavior. One accepted learning strategy, called model-free learning, relies on trial-and-error comparisons between the reward we expect in a given situation and the reward we actually get. The result of this comparison is the generation of a "reward prediction error," which corresponds to that difference. For example, a reward prediction error might correspond to the difference between the projected monetary return on a financial investment and our real earnings. In the second mechanism, called model-based learning, the brain generates a cognitive map of the environment that describes the relationship between different situations. "Model-based learning is associated with the generation of a 'state prediction error,' which represents the brain's level of surprise in a new situation given its current estimate of the environment," says Jan Glascher, a postdoctoral scholar at Caltech and the lead author of the study.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
As you age the tiny blood vessels in your brain lose their ability to expel debris. Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine : Scientists have discovered capillaries have a unique method of expelling debris, such as blood clots, cholesterol or calcium plaque, that blocks the flow of essential nutrients to brain cells. The capillaries spit out the blockage by growing a membrane that envelopes the obstruction and then shoves it out of the blood vessel. Scientists also found this critical process is 30 to 50 percent slower in an aging brain and likely results in the death of more capillaries. 'The slowdown may be a factor in age-related cognitive decline and may also explain why elderly patients who get strokes do not recover as well as younger patients,' said Jaime Grutzendler, senior author and principal investigator of the study and assistant professor of neurology and of physiology at Feinberg. 'Their recovery is much slower.'

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
FDA and politicos take steps that will kill millions by needlessly obstructing and delaying personalized genetic medicine. Technology Review: Consumer Genetic Tests Under Scrutiny : On May 19, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce sent a toughly worded letter to three CEOs, including James Plante of San Diego-based Pathway Genomics. Pathway was preparing to sell an over-the-counter genetic-testing kit at Walgreens. The product, called Genetic Health Report, purported to test for more than 70 health issues, including predispositions to Alzheimer's, breast cancer, and diabetes. But the committee's questions prompted Walgreens to postpone its plans to sell Genetic Health Report.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Curing cancer by preventing cancer cells from getting the kinks out of their DNA. University of California, Berkeley : Many standard antibiotics and anti-cancer drugs block the enzymes that snip the kinks and knots out of DNA, DNA tangles are lethal to cells but the drugs are increasingly encountering resistant bacteria and tumors. A new discovery by biochemists could pave the way for new research into how to re-design these drugs to make them more effective poisons for cancer cells and harmful bacteria. 'The development of the anti-bacterial and anti-tumor agents that target these enzymes thus far has been done entirely in the absence of any visualization of how these drugs actually interact with the protein itself. And they have done remarkably well,' said James Berger, professor of molecular and cell biology. 'But we have increasing problems of resistance to these drugs. Being able to see how these drugs can interact with the enzyme and DNA is going to be critical to developing the next generation of therapeutics that can be used to overcome these resistance problems.'

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Mount Sinai discovers bone marrow plays critical role in enhancing immune response to viruses. Mount Sinai School of Medicine : Researchers have discovered that bone marrow cells play a critical role in fighting respiratory viruses, making the bone marrow a potential therapeutic target, especially in people with compromised immune systems. They have found that during infections of the respiratory tract, cells produced by the bone marrow are instructed by proteins to migrate to the lungs to help fight infection. Led by Carolina Lopez, PhD, Assistant Professor of Microbiology, the research team evaluated the immune response to influenza infection in the lung and blood of mice. The team found that in the days following infection the lung became inflamed and produced interferons, or infection-fighting proteins, a message that alerted bone marrow cells of the presence of the virus and signaled them to prepare to fight the infection. The researchers determined that many new cells generated in the bone marrow enter the infected lung to help fight infection.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Blocking tumor's 'death switch' paradoxically stops tumor growth. University of Chicago and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine : Every cell contains machinery for self-destruction, used to induce death when damaged or sick. But according to a new research study, a receptor thought to mediate cell suicide in normal cells may actually be responsible for the unrestrained growth of cancerous tumors. Blocking the activity of this 'death receptor' can stop and even reverse the growth of tumors in human tissue culture and mice, say scientists.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
New improved heart-pump implant easier to implant and causes fewer infections. Henry Ford Hospital Heart & Vascular Institute : A state-of-the-art heart pump recently approved for use in end-stage cardiac patients has a significantly lower risk for infection than an earlier model of the device, according to researchers. Known as a left ventricular assist device, the newest version of the HeartMate is much smaller than the first and uses a tiny turbine with synthetic ruby bearings, lubricated by the blood itself, to continually push blood through the body. Its predecessor is larger, heavier, has more moving parts, and is designed to mimic the pulsing of blood through a healthy heart. Implanting the latest version of the pump is also less invasive, so researchers sought to find whether it offered less risk of infection.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Ultrasound can be used to boost tissue implant success. MIT, Center for Laryngeal Surgery and Voice Rehabilitation at Massachusetts General Hospital, Ben Gurion University : When we think of ultrasound, it's usually imaging the inside of the body that springs to mind. However, while ultrasound imaging typically requires frequencies that are 50 to 2500 times higher than those human ear can detect, evidence indicates that ultrasound at lower frequency can also be used to help certain body tissues to heal and regenerate. Ultrasound can improve cell viability, thanks to its ability to get molecules moving, and researchers have used it to increase blood flow to tissues in the process of healing and regenerating. In particular, low-intensity ultrasound (LIUS) has been used to help regenerate cartilage and bone, and in tissue engineering to stimulate cells.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Finding the right scaffold gradient environment for regrowing replacements for your organs. National Institute of Standards and Technology : Tissue engineering is a relatively new field that is developing methods to grow or regenerate bodily tissues—skin, bone, cartilage, blood vessels, perhaps one day even whole organs—to replace those damaged by injury or disease. One of the key challenges in the field is developing appropriate three-dimensional 'scaffolds,' artificial materials that can hold tissue progenitor cells and allow them to be nurtured and supported while they multiply and develop into desired tissues. Research has shown that cells often need to develop in a 3D environment if they are to mature and differentiate properly. Hydrogels—most familiar for their use in soft contact lenses—are a promising material for tissue scaffolds. They consist of a loose network of polymer chains that is swollen with water; in fact, like the majority of the body's tissues, they are mostly water. But, says NIST materials scientist Kaushik Chatterjee, deciding on a hydrogel is just the beginning. 'Now you've got these gels, what sort of properties do you want? What gets you the best kind of whatever tissue you're after—in our case, bone? We focused on stiffness because cells are known to sense and respond to changes in the stiffness of their environment.'

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Stem cells obsolete dental implants by growing replacement teeth. Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory of Dr. Jeremy Mao, the Edward V. Zegarelli Professor of Dental Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center : A new technique can orchestrate stem cells to migrate to a three-dimensional scaffold infused with growth factor, holding the translational potential to yield an anatomically correct tooth in as soon as nine weeks once implanted. Despite being the preferred (but generally painful and potentially protracted) treatment for missing teeth nowadays, dental implants can fail and are unable to 'remodel' with surrounding jaw bone that undergoes necessary changes throughout a person's life. An animal-model study has shown that by homing stem cells to a scaffold made of natural materials and integrated in surrounding tissue, there is no need to use harvested stem cell lines, or create an environment outside of the body where the tooth is grown and then implanted once it has matured. The tooth instead can be grown "orthotopically," or in the socket where the tooth will integrate with surrounding tissue in ways that are impossible with hard metals or other materials. "These findings represent the first report of regeneration of anatomically shaped tooth-like structures in vivo, and by cell homing without cell delivery," Dr. Mao and his colleagues say in the paper. "The potency of cell homing is substantiated not only by cell recruitment into scaffold microchannels, but also by the regeneration of periodontal ligaments and newly formed alveolar bone."

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
'Stress' protein could halt aging process, claim scientists. University's School of Clinical Sciences and University of California : HSP10 (Heat Shock Protein) helps monitor and organise protein interactions in the body, and responds to environmental stresses, such as exercise and infection, by increasing its production inside cells. Researchers found that excessive amounts of HSP10 inside mitochondria, 'organs' that act as energy generators in cells, can halt the body's ageing process by preserving muscle strength. HSP10 occurs naturally in all living organisms and scientists believe that study into its functions could prove significant for the design of future health care for the elderly, who are particularly susceptible to muscle damage. Researchers examined the role HSP10 plays inside cells, to further understand how ageing muscle tissue can recover from stress. Professor Anne McArdle said: 'We studied the role of HSP10 inside mitochondria, as it is here that unstable chemicals are produced which can harm parts of the cell. The damage caused by this is thought to play an important part in the ageing process, in which skeletal muscle becomes smaller and weaker and more susceptible to stress damage.'

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
NIST scientists gain new 'core' understanding of nanoparticles. National Institute of Standards and Technology Center for Neutron Research : While attempting to solve one mystery about iron oxide-based nanoparticles, a research team has stumbled upon another one. But once its implications are understood, their discovery may give nanotechnologists a new and useful tool. The nanoparticles in question are spheres of magnetite so tiny that a few thousand of them lined up would stretch a hair's width, and they have potential uses both as the basis of better data storage systems and in biological applications such as hyperthermia treatment for cancer. A key to all these applications is a full understanding of how large numbers of the particles interact magnetically with one another across relatively large distances so that scientists can manipulate them with magnetism. 'It's been known for a long time that a big chunk of magnetite has greater magnetic 'moment'—think of it as magnetic strength—than an equivalent mass of nanoparticles,' says researcher Kathryn Krycka. 'No one really knows why, though. We decided to probe the particles with beams of low-energy neutrons, which can tell you a great deal about a material's internal structure. When the field is applied, the inner 7 nm-wide core orients itself along the field's north and south poles, just like large iron filings would, but the outer 1 nm 'shell' of each nanoparticle behaves differently. It also develops a moment, but pointed at right angles to that of the core.'

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Compulsive behavior in mice cured by bone marrow transplant. Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Human Genetics, University of Utah School of Medicine : Scientists earlier found that mice missing one of a group of core developmental genes known as the Hox genes developed an odd and rather unexpected pathology: the mutant animals groomed themselves compulsively to the point that they were removing their own hair and leaving self-inflicted open sores on their skin. Now, they've found a surprising connection between the Hoxb8 gene and the behavior that looks an awful lot like that of people with an obsessive compulsive spectrum disorder (OCD). Even more stunning, they report that the animals' neuropsychological behavior can be cured by bone marrow transplant. It turns out that the Hoxb8 gene in question plays an important role in the development of immune cells known as microglia, which reside in the brain.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers use new sperm stem-cell technique to produce 35 new genetically modified lab rat lines. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center : Researchers have created 35 new lab rat 'lines,' with each type of animal harboring mutations in specific genes. More than half of these mutated genes are associated with biological processes linked to human diseases, including cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, aberrant circadian rhythms and mental illness.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers find the gene mutation responsible for another disease - lymphatic dysfunction. University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health : A genetic mutation for inherited lymphedema associated with lymphatic function has been discovered that could help create new treatments for the condition, say researchers at the.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers develop a powerful new weapon against highly resistant microbes. University of Bonn : More and more bacteria are becoming resistant to normal antibiotics. This is especially true for the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Most of the pharmaceutical weapons are now useless against these MRSA strains . According to estimates, as many as every second patient in the USA treated by intensive-care medicine comes down with an MRSA infection. Plectasin could shift the balance of power back in the doctors' favor.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Controlling a smart mobile device using only your eye movement. It's hard sending a text message with arms full of groceries or while wearing winter gloves. Voice control is one alternative to using your fingers, but researchers are also working on other hands-free ways to control mobile devices. A team at Dartmouth College has now created an eye-tracking system that lets a user operate a smart phone with eye movement.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
Using PET to see inside a living body so precisely that immune cell function can be tracked. Immune cells use more glucose as their energy source when active. There are specific PET probes that can be used to detect this switch to increased glucose utilization. In this study, the researchers found that in mice with a retrovirus-induced sarcoma (a form of cancer that arises from connective tissue cells such as bone, cartilage, and fat cells) two PET probes that detect increased glucose utilization (FDG and FAC) accumulated in different immune cell populations. Specifically, FDG accumulated mainly in innate immune cells, while FAC accumulated predominantly in active CD8 T cells. These data suggest that PET can be used more widely than it is currently to noninvasively evaluate the effectiveness of numerous immune modulating therapies.

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
If you don't brush your teeth twice a day, you're more likely to develop heart disease Individuals who have poor oral hygiene have an increased risk of heart disease compared to those who brush their teeth twice a day. In the last twenty years there has been increased interest in links between heart problems and gum disease. While it has been established that inflammation in the body (including mouth and gums) plays an important role in the build up of clogged arteries, this is the first study to investigate whether the number of times individuals brush their teeth has any bearing on the risk of developing heart disease, says the research. The researchers, led by Professor Richard Watt from University College London, analysed data from over 11,000 adults who took part in the Scottish Healthy Survey. The team analysed data about lifestyle behaviours such as smoking, physical activity and oral health routines. Individuals were asked how often they visited the dentist (at least once every six months, every one to two years, or rarely/never) and how often they brushed their teeth (twice a day, once a day or less than once a day).

5/29/2010 PERMALINK
A new and non-controversial source of stem cells can form heart muscle cells and help repair heart damage. Investigators in Japan have used the amniotic membrane, the inner lining of the sac in which an embryo develops, to obtain stem cells called human amniotic membrane-derived mesenchymal (undifferentiated) cells (hAMCs). "The amniotic membrane is medical waste that could be collected and used after delivery," said Shunichiro Miyoshi, M.D., Ph.D., co-author of the study and assistant professor in the cardiology department and Institute for Advanced Cardiac Therapeutics at the Keio University School of Medicine in Tokyo.

5/28/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers develop test to identify sperm with least DNA damage.. Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have discovered a method to select sperm with the highest DNA integrity in a bid to improve male fertility. The method is comparable to that of the egg's natural selection abilities, according to the study.

5/28/2010 PERMALINK
How to eat to prevent cancer - foods that prevent blood vessels from supply tumors. In a talk at the TED conference, William Li presents a new way to think about treating cancer and other diseases: anti-angiogenesis, preventing the growth of blood vessels that feed a tumor. The crucial first (and best) step: Eating cancer-fighting foods that cut off the supply lines and beat cancer at its own game.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Progress towards molecular robots that float in your blood stream and maintain your good health. Researchers from Columbia University, Arizona State University, the University of Michigan and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have created and programmed robots the size of single molecule that can move independently across a nano-scale track. This development marks an important advancement in the nascent fields of molecular computing and robotics, and could someday lead to molecular robots that can fix individual cells or assemble nanotechnology products.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
The genes that could turn your brown eyes blue. Scientists have discovered new genes involved in determining human eye colour. More than just blue, green and brown, the team believes that our eye colour has many more dimensions and variations than previously documented. This new lead has the potential to be used in forensic science, providing investigators with a 'face' to genetic clues left at a crime scene.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
To create an explosion of innovation and great new products - abolish copyright and patents. Johanna Blakley gives a talk at TED showing how copyright and patent law's that are claimed to foster innovation and new product creation, actually have the effect of stifling innovation. She points out that the one creative industry that courts have denied patent and copyright protection to, fashion, is actually the most efficiently creative of all creative industries.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
BioFuel Cell Uses Glucose in the Body to Produce Electricity for Cyborgs. Researchers at Joseph Fourier University in France have created a new biofuel cell that harnesses oxygen and glucose from the body to produce electricity. Glucose biofuel cells (GBFCs) were placed inside the bodies of rats, and displayed peak energy densities of 24.4 microwatts per milliliter – better than many pacemaker batteries. Glucose and oxygen flow into the fuel cell, and waste products flow out, but the enzymes and metals inside don’t contiminate the body.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Rare hybrid cell key to regulating your immune system. A cell small in number but powerful in its ability to switch the immune system on or off is a unique hybrid of two well-known immune cell types, Medical College of Georgia researchers report. The discovery of this rare hybrid could have implications for the efficacy of new therapies that manipulate these two cell types to treat diseases such as cancer and rheumatoid arthritis.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Discovery of new type of brain stem cell defines brain evolution & points to new therapies. UCSF scientists have discovered a new stem cell in the developing human brain. The cell produces nerve cells that help form the neocortex – the site of higher cognitive function -- and likely accounts for the dramatic expansion of the region in the lineages that lead to man, the researchers say. Future studies of these cells are expected to shed light on developmental diseases such as autism and schizophrenia and malformations of brain development, including microcephaly, lissencephaly and neuronal migration disorders, they say, as well as age-related illnesses, such as Alzheimer's disease.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
More 'good' cholesterol is not always good for your health A new study finds that a high level of HDL, or the so-called 'good' cholesterol, is not always beneficial and puts certain patients at high risk for recurrent coronary events, such as chest pain, heart attack, and death. Increasing good cholesterol can lead to negative consequences in some people, and should be taken into account when testing drugs designed to increase HDL cholesterol.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists discover a way to exploit a function of the p53 gene to kill cancer cells without harming normal cells.ancer treatments Researchers from the p53 Laboratory of Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research have found that activating the p53 gene halts the cell cycle and prevents endoreduplication, a process by which a cell accumulates excess genetic material by duplicating its existing genetic material without actually dividing. If endoreduplication happens in human cells, they die. Deliberately inducing endoreduplication in cancer cells through chemical means has been explored as a means of killing off cancer cells. However, as the drugs used are not highly specific to cancer cells, many normal cells are also killed in the process. Fortunately, in many cancers, the cancer cells lack working copies of p53. By using a drug that activates p53 in healthy cells and temporarily induces the cells to stop the production of genetic material, endoreduplication is prevented. Cancer cells which lack working copies of p53 are thus left susceptible to a second drug that induces endoreduplication, resulting in tumour-specific killing. The activation of p53 is reversible and the normal cells resume their function once the cancer cells have been killed.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Cheese found to help restore declines in the immune system that happen with aging. Cheese acts as carrier for probiotic bacteria that can help to restore the decline in your immune system that comes with age. Scientists at the University of Turku in Finland have discovered that cheese can help preserve and enhance the immune system by acting as a carrier for probiotic bacteria. The research reveals that daily consumption of probiotic cheese helps to tackle age-related changes in the immune system.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Secret messages are coded Into DNA of first synthetic bacteria. Researchers at the J Craig Venter Institute recently unveiled their first self-replicating synthetic bacteria (M. mycoides JCVI-syn1.0) whose DNA was programmed base pair by base pair. To verify that they had synthesized a new organism and not assembled the DNA from another natural bacteria, scientists encoded a series of watermarks into the genes of M. mycoides JCVI-syn1.0. There are four of these hidden messages: an explanation of the coding system used, a URL address for those who crack the code to go visit, a list of 46 authors and contributors, and a series of famous quotes.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Stem cells use GPS to generate proper nerve cells. An unknown function that regulates how stem cells produce different types of cells in different parts of the nervous system has been discovered by Stefan Thor, professor of Developmental Biology, and graduate students Daniel Karlsson and Magnus Baumgardt, at Linkoping University in Sweden. The results improve our understanding of how stem cells work, which is crucial for our ability to use stem cells to treat and repair organs.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
The types of bacteria you have in your colon appears to determine your risk of colon cancer. Scientists from the University of Florida have found that the bacteria residing in the the human intestinal tract may be associated with an individual's risk of developing colon cancer. 'Our findings suggest that some bacterial signatures are more frequently detected in subjects with polyps, early lesions that can develop into cancer, while other bacterial signatures are less frequently observed in such individuals' says Tyler Culpepper, a researcher on the study. Culpepper and his colleagues collected data on dietary habits and medical history, a fecal sample as well as multiple colon biopsy samples from 91 subjects. They analyzed microbiota composition in 30 individuals presenting with at least one polyp and 30 age- and gender- matched controls. Several bacterial signatures were detected only in subjects with polyps, others only in subjects without polyps.

5/26/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists figure out how embryonic stem cells are actually able to become any cell in your body. A study at the University of Edinburgh has shown that embryonic stem cells switch back and forth between precursors of different cell types, giving them he potential to become any cell type in the body. The findings could help scientists catch embryonic stem cells at exactly the right point when they are primed to differentiate into cells that form specific tissues. The study indicates that embryonic stem cells are not a single cell type as previously thought, but comprise a mixture of different cell types from the early embryo that can transform themselves from one type to another. Scientists previously thought that embryonic stem cells were only able to become the embryonic precursors for adult cells, a property known as pluripotency. The researchers have now found that they can also turn into cells associated with the placenta. These cells, known as the primitive endoderm, form the yolk sac that helps provide nutrients to the early embryo.

5/24/2010 PERMALINK
New version of the LittleDog Robot demos smart walking capability. Created by the University of Southern California's Computational Learning and Motor Control Lab, the LittleDog robot is completely autonomous and trained by machine learning algorithms. None of the walking and recovery speeds shown in the clip are speeded up, everything shown is happening in real-time.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Just eating more nuts can improve your cholesterol levels, which can increase your lifespan. Consuming more nuts appears to be associated with improvements in blood cholesterol levels, according to a pooled analysis of data from 25 trials. 'Dietary interventions to lower blood cholesterol concentrations and to modify blood lipoprotein levels are the cornerstone of prevention and treatment plans for coronary heart disease,' the authors write as background information in the article. Nuts are rich in plant proteins, fats (especially unsaturated fatty acids), dietary fiber, minerals, vitamins and other compounds, such as antioxidants and phytoesterols.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
The genetic variant that creates alcoholics by boosting your dopamine response to alcohol. A genetic variant of a receptor in the brain's reward circuitry plays an important role in determining whether the neurotransmitter dopamine is released in the brain following alcohol intake, according to a study led by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Dopamine is involved in transmitting the euphoria and other positive subjective effects produced by alcohol.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Keynesian pseudo-economics is another major threat to our civilization. In the 1950s there were seven workers for every retiree in western economies. By 2050, the ratio will be 2 to 1 in the USA and 1.3 to 1 in the European Union. Bubble economics will be long dead by then, of course, as the current boomer retirement puts it at unsustainable levels. Investors are already starting to lose confidence in western sovereign debt and fiat monies backed only by the promises of politicos. The Austrian school of economics is a real science. The Keynesian fantasy has only persisted because it serves to justify the massive growth in government of the 20th century and politicos have favored and supported Keynesian economists. Eventually, Keynesian economics will be look back on as being just as ridiculous as communism economics.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
A devastating asteroid hit on Earth appears to be a lot more likely than previously thought. If last year's impact on Jupiter increased the probability of another strike by an order of magnitude, by how much does it increases the probability of a strike on Earth? The public deserves an answer to this question and the fact that the team that analyzes such risks is silent on the matter is worrying. (Our cosmos is a dangerous neighborhood and if humanity is to avoid premature extinction, mitigating extinction threats needs to become a higher priority. -- Editor)

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Gene fusions may be the 'smoking gun' in prostate cancer development. Prostate cancer treatments that target the hormone androgen and its receptor may be going after the wrong target, concludes a new study from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. New research suggests that the gene fusion -- not the androgen receptor -- is the real smoking gun that should be targeted.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Modding viruses to provide anti-tumor immunity to humans. Researchers at the University of Helsinki, Finland, and Oncos Therapeutics, the biotech company developing new cancer therapeutics based on the next generation oncolytic viruses, have published initial results from their Advanced Therapy Access Program in Cancer Research. The results demonstrate an anti-tumor immunity of oncolytic viruses – published for the first time in humans – and indicate the strong efficacy of the next generation viruses against solid tumor cancers.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Variations in genes that control brain cell signalling found to cause schizophrenia. By analyzing the genomes of patients with schizophrenia, genetics researchers have discovered numerous copy number variations -- deletions or duplications of DNA sequences -- that increase the risk of developing schizophrenia. Significantly, many of these variations occur in genes that affect signaling among brain cells.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Untangling the quantum entanglement that makes photosynthesis so perfectly efficient. Berkeley reserchers have carried out the first study in which the quantum phenomenon known as 'entanglement' has been observed and characterized in a real biological system. Quantum entanglement is thought to be a critical factor behind the ability of green plants and certain bacteria, through photosynthesis, to transfer energy from sunlight and initiate its conversion into chemical energy with near 100-percent efficiency.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Mutations that cause neural degeneration prevent cells from destroying defective mitochondria. A team of researchers led by Tso-Pang Yao of Duke University found that cells expressing mutant forms of Parkin failed to clear their mitochondria after the organelles were damaged. Different mutations blocked mitophagy at distinct steps: mitochondria accumulated in the perinuclear region of cells expressing Parkin lacking its ubiquitin ligase activity, for example. The researchers found that ubiquitination of defective mitochondria by Parkin normally recruits the autophagy proteins HDAC6 and p62 to clear these mitochondrial aggregates. Depolymerizing microtubules or inhibiting the dynein motor protein blocked aggregation and prevented mitochondrial turnover. Transport to the perinuclear region was also blocked by a mutation in Parkin, indicating that this stage of mitophagy is also regulated by the protein.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
New nanoscale electrical phenomenon discovered that could help bring about tiny medical implants and bots. A University of Michigan biomedical engineering professor has discovered a powerful new nanoscale phenomenon that could lead to faster, less expensive portable diagnostic devices and push back frontiers in building micro-mechanical implants and 'lab on a chip' devices. In our macroscale world, materials called conductors effectively transmit electricity and materials called insulators or dielectrics don't, unless they are jolted with an extremely high voltage. Under such 'dielectric breakdown' circumstances, as when a bolt of lightening hits a rooftop, the dielectric (the rooftop in this example) suffers irreversible damage. This isn't the case at the nanoscale, according to a new discovery by Alan Hunt, an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Hunt and his research team were able to get an electric current to pass nondestructively through a sliver of glass, which isn't usually a conductor.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Quickly evolving bacteria could improve your digestive health. In a scrupulously controlled experiment, Duke and NC State researchers introduced a single type of bacteria into a colony of mice raised in a completely sterile environment and tracked the mutations of the bacteria into different types that were hardier inside of the mice than the original bacterium was. "In some regards, this is one of the best demonstrations of evolution ever carried out in a laboratory," said William Parker, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Duke Department of Surgery. "This is the first time the evolution of bacteria has been monitored for a period of years in an incredibly complex environment." The study also strengthens the idea that evolution can be harnessed in the laboratory to develop microbes to improve human health.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Opening a new avenue for brain repair, astroglia reprogrammed to generate synapse-forming neurons. The research team led by Professor Magdalena Götz of Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat (LMU) Munich reports a major step forward in discovering a therapy for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or stroke. The researchers were able to convert glial cells of the brain into two different functional classes of neurons.

5/23/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists discuss new progress in stem cell research. Listen as three researchers discuss recent adult and embryonic stem cell developments.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists have implanted the first functional glucose biofuel cell in a living animal. Unlike the batteries that now supply power to implants, a power-generating glucose biofuel cell would not have to be surgically removed and replaced. Because the glucose in your body offers a potentially limitless source of energy. The device uses enzymes to harvest energy from the glucose and oxygen found naturally in your body. Past attempts at testing such a device in animals have failed because the enzymes have required acidic conditions or were inhibited by charged particles in the fluid surrounding cells. But now Philippe Cinquin and his team from Joseph Fourier University in Grenoble, France, have overcame these obstacles by confining selected enzymes inside graphite discs that were placed into dialysis bags. Glucose and oxygen flowed into the device, but the enzymes stayed in place and catalyzed the oxidation of glucose to generate electrical energy.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers move toward a universal flu vaccine that works against all strains of flu. Researchers at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine have developed a new influenza vaccine that could represent the next step towards a universal influenza vaccine eliminating the need for seasonal immunizations. 'Current influenza vaccines are effective against only a narrow range of influenza virus strains. It is for this reason that new vaccines must be generated and administered each year,' says Peter Palese, an author on the study. 'We now report progress toward the goal of an influenza virus vaccine which would protect against multiple strains.' The main reason the current seasonal vaccine is so strain-specific is that the antibodies it induces are targeted at the globular head of the hemaglutinin (HA) molecule on the surface of the influenza virus. This globular head is highly variable and constantly changing from strain to strain. In this study the researchers constructed a vaccine using HA without its globular head. Mice immunized with the headless HA vaccine showed a broader, more robust immune response than mice immunized with full-length HA, and that immune response was enough to protect them against a lethal viral challenge.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
New invention can regulate your nerve cells electronically. A major step toward being able to regulate nerve cells externally with the help of electronics has been taken by researchers at Linkoping University and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. The breakthrough is based on an ion transistor of plastic that can transport ions and charged biomolecules and thereby address and regulate cells.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Create your own mentally controlled remote bot agent for under $1,000. Using a combination of low-cost hardware and software and some ingenuity, Robert Oschler has tweaked his low-cost Rovio WiFi tele-presence robot to be mind-controllable with a $300 Emotiv EPOC Neuroheadset developed for video gamers.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Tissue engineers create an improved way to assemble artificial tissues. Tissue engineering has long held promise for building new organs to replace damaged livers, blood vessels and other body parts. However, one major obstacle is getting cells grown in a lab dish to form 3-D shapes instead of flat layers. Researchers at the MIT-Harvard Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST) have come up with a new way to overcome that challenge by encapsulating living cells in cubes and arranging them into 3-D structures, just as a child would construct buildings out of blocks. The new technique, dubbed 'micromasonry,' employs a gel-like material that acts like concrete, binding the cell 'bricks' together as it hardens. Ali Khademhosseini, assistant professor of HST, and former HST postdoctoral associate Javier Gomez Fernandez describe the work in a paper. The tiny cell bricks hold potential for building artificial tissue or other types of medical devices, says Jennifer Elisseeff, associate professor of biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins University, who was not involved in the research. 'They're very elegant and have a lot of flexibility in how you grow them,' she says. 'It's very creative.'

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Low-cost, ultra-fast DNA sequencing brings diagnostic use closer. Boston University researchers show the viability of a novel, more efficient method to sequence DNA using nanopores. By doing it fast and inexpensively, this method brings routine use of DNA sequencing in medical diagnostics closer to reality.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Study finds genetic links that govern your susceptibility to infectious disease. Researchers from the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at the University of Oxford, Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and National University Health System (NUHS) have identified new genetic variants that increase susceptibility to several infectious diseases including tuberculosis and malaria. With greater understanding of the role of the gene implicated, it is hoped the findings could one day lead to better therapies and vaccines. Environmental factors such as malnutrition and poor hygiene can account for a large proportion of an individual person's susceptibility to infectious diseases, but it's clear that this is not the whole story. Studies of twins and adopted persons indicate that genetics also plays a role. The team analysed genes from over 8,000 people at clinical sites in Malawi, Kenya, Vietnam, Hong Kong and The Gambia, over a period of 5 years to obtain their results.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Human engineered antibodies called synbodies hold tremendous biomedical promise. Researchers at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University have developed a much faster and simpler way of making synthetic antibodies, by carrying out the usual steps in reverse. Stephen Albert Johnston and Chris Diehnelt have developed a technique for constructing peptide sequences, then linking them together to form a synthetic antibody, or synbody, that can bind with one or more protein molecules contained in the vast repository of human proteins -- the proteome. The ability to produce ligands to all 30,000 proteins in the human proteome would be a boon to science, offering the ability to study any protein in the body with fine-grained specificity and to develop a suite of new diagnostic tools.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Abdominal fat at middle age is associated with greater risk of dementia. Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine determined that excess abdominal fat places otherwise healthy, middle-aged people at risk for dementia later in life. Preliminary findings suggest a relationship between obesity and dementia that could lead to promising prevention strategies in the future.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Synthetic eye prosthesis The miniscale artificial cornea has to meet almost contradictory specifications. On the one hand, the material should grow firmly together with the cells of the surrounding eye tissue, but no cells should settle in the optical region of the artificial cornea - i.e., the middle - since this would again impair the ability to see. Moreover, the outer side of the implant must be able to moisten with tear fluids, otherwise the implant will cloud up on the anterior side. This would consequently require the patient to get a new prosthesis after a relatively brief period of time. Tear fluid moisture is also necessary for the eyelid to slide across the implant without friction. Dr. Joachim Storsberg of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP in Potsdam-Golm found the solution with a hydrophobic polymer material. This material has been in use for a long time in ophthalmology, such as for intraocular lenses. In order for it to satisfy the various characteristics required, complex development steps were necessary. The material was thoroughly modified on a polymer-chemical basis, and subsequently re-tested for public approval.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers find genes and brain centers that regulate the meal size that you choose. Biologists from the California Institute of Technology and Yale University have identified two genes, the leucokinin neuropeptide and the leucokinin receptor, that appear to regulate meal sizes and frequency in fruit flies. Both genes have mammalian counterparts that seem to play a similar role in food intake, indicating that the steps that control meal size and meal frequency are not just behaviorally similar but are controlled by the same genes throughout the animal kingdom.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists 'boot up' a bacterial cell with a synthetic genome. A team of scientists, led by Craig Venter of the J. Craig Venter Institute, has already chemically synthesized a bacterial genome, and it has transplanted the genome of one bacterium to another. Now, the scientists have put both methods together, to create what they call a synthetic cell, although only its genome is synthetic. "This is the first synthetic cell that's been made, and we call it synthetic because the cell is totally derived from a synthetic chromosome, made with four bottles of chemicals on a chemical synthesizer, starting with information in a computer," said Venter. Click for a clip of Venter describing the development.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers find a gene that if turned off, causes the development of kidney cancer. Researchers at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida have discovered a key gene that, when turned off, promotes the development of common kidney cancer. Their findings suggest that a combination of agents now being tested in other cancers may turn the gene back on, providing a much-needed therapy for the difficult-to-treat cancer.

5/21/2010 PERMALINK
Human microbiome project researchers publish first genomic collection of human microbes. The Human Microbiome Project today published an analysis of 178 genomes from microbes that live in or on the human body. The researchers discovered novel genes and proteins that serve functions in human health and disease, adding a new level of understanding to what is known about the complexity and diversity of these organisms. It is estimated that their may actually be more microbial cells within your body than human cells, so keeping your symbiotic microbial community in good health is essential to your body's health.

5/19/2010 PERMALINK
Muscle loss as you age linked to your blood vessels' failure to dilate properly. Why do people become physically weaker as they age? And is there any way to slow, stop, or even reverse this process, breaking the link between increasing age and frailty? University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers present evidence that answers to both those questions can be found in the way the network of blood vessels that threads through muscles responds to the hormone insulin. Normally, these tiny tubes are closed, but when a young person eats a meal and insulin is released into the bloodstream, they open wide to allow nutrients to reach muscle cells. In elderly people, however, insulin has no such "vasodilating" effect. "We were unsure as to whether decreased vasodilation was just one of the side effects of aging or was one of the main causes of the reduction in muscle protein synthesis in elderly people, because when nutrients and insulin get into muscle fibers, they also turn on lots of intracellular signals linked to muscle growth," said UTMB's Dr. Elena Volpi, senior author of the paper. "This research really demonstrates that vasodilation is a necessary mechanism for insulin to stimulate muscle protein synthesis."

5/19/2010 PERMALINK
Using calorie restriction to extend lifespan appears to have negative impact on learning and memory. Decreasing the intake of calories and tweaking the activity of the hormone insulin are two methods long known to increase lifespan in a wide range of organisms. In particular, studies have shown that longevity can be extended by reducing activity in the insulin-signaling pathway -- a chain of events through which insulin influences numerous biological processes, including metabolism, stress response and development. Now, a team of biologists lead by Coleen Murphy, an assistant professor of molecular biology and the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton has found the first evidence that these mechanisms also have an impact on cognitive function. When Murphy and her colleagues looked at the effects of caloric restriction on cognitive function in C. elegans roundworms, they found that restricting calories impaired long-term memory in early adulthood. But surprisingly, the worms did not suffer further memory reduction with age, suggesting that caloric restriction may guard against memory loss over time.

5/19/2010 PERMALINK
Reprogram stem cells with heart tissue to improve treatments for heart disease. Spanish researchers have employed for the first time adult cells extracted from human heart tissue to turn stem cells from adipose tissue into cardiac myocytes. At present, the use of stem cells in heart disease treatments is one of the most common practices. However, working with stem cells involves many difficulties and inducing cell differentiation into cardiac muscle (cardiomyocytes) may be one of the best options in the treatment of these pathologies.

5/19/2010 PERMALINK
Gene therapy found effective in yet another disease - pulmonary arterial hypertension. Gene therapy has been shown to have positive effects in rat models of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), according to researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
The younger you get cochlear implants, the more dramatic the benefits are likely to be. Older adults appear to benefit significantly from cochlear implants, but not as much as younger patients who had similar levels of hearing impairment before surgery, according to a report.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
Stem cells used to restore acutely damaged lung tissue to normal function. Human stem cells administered intravenously can restore alveolar epithelial tissue to a normal function in a novel ex vivo perfused human lung after E. coli endotoxin-induced acute lung injury (ALI), according to research from the University of California San Francisco.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
Meet Brooke Greenberg, the only human who's body does not age. Brooke Greenberg is now more than seventeen years old, but she physically looks to be about one. Doctors have long been baffled by her condition, sometimes referred to as Syndrome X, because no one knows what it is. She seems to be the only living person in the world with her peculiar defiance of aging. Richard Walker from the University of South Florida, believe that mutations in her DNA may be the force behind her apparent eternal youth

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
Slight changes in 2 key genes appear to launch breast cancer development. Researchers at Georgetown Lombard Comprehensive Cancer Center have been able to show, in mice, how just a little adjustment in the expression of two common genes can promote the kind of cellular changes that led to breast cancer. They say these tweaks likely mimic natural variation women have in expression of the two genes.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers find a way to coax embryonic stem cells into becoming the sensory cells found in your inner ear. After ten years of effort, researchers report finding a way to coax embryonic stem cells as well as reprogrammed adult cells to develop into sensory cells that normally reside in the mammalian inner ear. Those mechanosensitive sensory hair cells are the linchpin of hearing and balance.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
New evidence shows caffeine may slow Alzheimer's disease and other dementias and restore cognitive function. Although caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive drug worldwide, its potential beneficial effect for maintenance of proper brain functioning has only recently begun to be adequately appreciated. Substantial evidence from epidemiological studies and fundamental research in animal models suggests that caffeine may be protective against the cognitive decline seen in dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
'Fountain of youth' steroids could protect against heart disease A natural defense mechanism against heart disease could be switched on by steroids sold as health supplements, according to researchers at the University of Leeds. The University of Leeds biologists have identified a previously-unknown ion channel in human blood vessels that can limit the production of inflammatory cytokines – proteins that drive the early stages of heart disease. They found that this protective effect can be triggered by pregnenolone sulphate - a molecule that is part of a family of 'fountain-of-youth' steroids. These steroids are so-called because of their apparent ability to improve energy, vision and memory.

5/17/2010 PERMALINK
When PTPN2 gene ceases to function cancer cells survive longer and grow faster. Gene loss causes leukemia: "Researchers from VIB and K.U.Leuven, both in Flanders, Belgium, have discovered a new factor in the development of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. In the cells of the patients, the specific gene PTPN2 ceases to function, causing the cancer cells to survive longer and grow faster. The study provides genetic and functional evidence for a tumor suppressor role of PTPN2.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Tagwhat Offers Augmented Reality Social Networking. Tagwhat differentiates itself from other augmented reality applications by positioning itself as an augmented reality social networking application rather than as yet another augmented reality browser providing visual search. As a social media tool, either you or someone you follow has to tag content before it appears, if it's a restaurant you like, tag it, if not it will never appear and you won't have 100 restaurants cluttering up your view.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
UC Irvine Stem Cell Research Center Set to Launch Today. Friday May 14th will mark another important day for ongoing research into human stem cells. The University of California at Irvine (UCI) is set to open the $80 million and 100,000+ square foot Sue and Bill Gross Hall – a stem cell research center. This will be the first such research center in southern California.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
A safer alternative to laser vision-enhancement surgery? A new type of procedure for correcting short-sightedness could be safer than laser eye surgery, according to a new Cochrane Systematic Review. The study also shows that patients prefer the new procedure that involves the insertion of phakic intraocular lenses (IOLs).

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers tweak immune system to better position virus-fighting T-cells. Inducing cellular immunity as a means to protect against influenza virus is the focus of several laboratories at the Trudeau Institute. Researchers identify two important signaling components required by the immune system that might allow us to pre-position our own virus-fighting T cells to the lungs, the site of initial infection.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Without this protein, embryonic development comes to a halt. Researchers have identified a key protein, Ash21, that is essential to life. In animal studies, embryos without it do not survive past the first few days of gestation.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Tibetans developed genes to help them adapt to life at high elevations Researchers have long wondered why the people of the Tibetan Highlands can live at elevations that cause some humans to become life-threateningly ill. A new study solves that mystery by showing that through thousands of years of natural selection, those hardy inhabitants of south-central Asia have evolved 10 unique oxygen-processing genes that help them live comfortably at higher altitudes. (Further study of this might find gene mods that can boost athletic performance. -- editor)

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Stem Cells Injected into Heart, Visually Tracked For 12 Months Dr. Edward Yeh and colleagues at the University of Texas MD Anderson Center in Houston used an innovative technique to give stem cells a special gene that made them glow so they could be tracked! They were able to follow the lights to see where and how stem cells acted over a year. Yeh also alternatively inhibited the growth of muscle and blood vessel cells to determine which kind were most responsible for the healing process.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
New information on the development of the brain: Mechanism found that prepares the brain of a newborn for information processing With their French colleagues, researchers at the University of Helsinki have found a mechanism in the memory centre of newborn that adjusts the maturation of the brain for the information processing required later in life. The study was published this week in an American science magazine The Journal of Neuroscience.

5/14/2010 PERMALINK
Stem cells used to regenerate lost teeth. - DentistryIQ A new technique pioneered in the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory of Dr. Jeremy Mao, Edward V. Zegarelli Professor of Dental Medicine, and a professor of biomedical engineering at Columbia University, can orchestrate the body’s stem cells to migrate to three-dimensional scaffold that is infused with growth factor. This can yield an anatomically correct tooth in as soon as nine weeks once implanted in the mouth.

5/11/2010 PERMALINK
A solitary grad student at a lab bench can produce more simple logic circuits than the world's entire output of silicon chips in a month. A Duke University engineer says the next generation of computer logic circuits will be produced inexpensively in almost limitless quantities. The secret is that instead of silicon chips serving as the platform for electric circuits, computer engineers will take advantage of the unique properties of DNA, that double-helix carrier of all life's information. In his latest set of experiments, Chris Dwyer, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering, demonstrated that by simply mixing customized snippets of DNA and other molecules, he could create literally billions of identical, tiny, waffle-looking structures."

5/11/2010 PERMALINK
Apoptosis, the natural 'programmed' death of cells, is arrested in the aftermath of strenuous exercise. Gabriella Marfe from the University of Rome led a team of researchers who studied ten amateur athletes after a 42km run. Marfe said, 'Apoptosis is a normal physiological function dependent on a variety of signals, many of which can be modulated by strenuous exercise. Here, we've shown for the first time that exercise modulates expression of the sirtuin family of proteins.' The researchers believe that the sirtuin family of proteins, particularly SIRT1, may be involved in the protective effects of exercise against cell death. Speaking about these results, Marfe added, 'Sirtuins may play a crucial role of mediators/effectors in the maintenance of skeletal and cardiac muscle tissues as well as neurons, thus explaining the synergic protective effects of physical exercise and calorie restriction for survival and ageing.'

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Transplanted adult stem cells provide lasting help to injured hearts. Human adult stem cells injected around the damage caused by a heart attack survived in the heart and improved its pumping efficiency for a year in a mouse model, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report. Researchers at the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, used innovative imaging techniques developed by researchers at MD Anderson to track the stem cells' location and performance over time. Injection of a patient's own adult stem cells into the heart has shown some efficacy in assisting recovery after a heart attack in early human clinical trials, said study senior author Edward T. H. Yeh, M.D., professor and chair of MD Anderson's Department of Cardiology. 'But nobody knows how they work, or how long the stem cells last and function in the heart.' This study shows that the effect is lasting.

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Touch Bionics’ I-LIMB Pulse is Bluetooth programmed for a firmer grip. Prosthetic limbs have sparked a new life in the bleak lives of the physically disabled. Enhancing their prosthetic limb, the i-LIMB, Scottish company Touch Bionics has come up with another bionic hand that using pulsing technology provides ultimate freedom and flexibility. Entitled the “i-LIMB pulse,” the electric prosthetic hand is programmed using Bluetooth to allow multiple grip patterns for the ease of use like a real hand.

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers identify a key protein (PEA-15) that stops T-cell proliferation by blocking the cell's ability to reproduce. The control of T-cell proliferation is essential in preventing certain blood cancers and autoimmune diseases, as well as the orchestration of the immune response to infection. A new study by a team of researchers from the University of Hawai'i Cancer Research Center, Rutgers University and Washington University in St. Louis examines the normal function of PEA-15, which acts as a tumor suppressor in some cancers. To determine the normal role of this protein, investigators examined mice lacking PEA-15. They found that those without the protein had both spatial learning disabilities and a pronounced increase in lymphocyte (white blood cell) proliferation. Upon closer inspection, they further found that loss of PEA-15 particularly affected a group of lymphocytes called T-cells. T-cells are involved in killing invading pathogens as well as stimulating more long-term immunity. The PEA-15 protein works by acting as a brake on a group of proteins that activate cell cycling and proliferation when they recognize a signal from an invading organism. Lymphocytes without PEA-15 continue proliferating beyond normal response levels as if they lack the "brakes" to stop.

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers make progress towards a genetic cure for chronic pain. Chronic pain severely limits patients' quality of life and is among the cost drivers in U.S. health care. Patients can suffer pain without an apparent cause and often fail to respond to available treatments. Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators now report that chronic pain may be caused by the inadvertent reprogramming of certain genes in the peripheral nervous system. The research findings could ultimately lead to 'transcription therapy' the researchers speculate, which would kill pain in a totally new way, by tweaking the activity of specific genes.

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Genes involved in human eye color identified by researchers. Three new genetic loci have been identified with involvement in subtle and quantitative variation of human eye colour. The study, led by Manfred Kayser of the Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

5/07/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers use endometrial stem cells to restore brain dopamine levels. Endometrial stem cells injected into the brains of mice with a laboratory-induced form of Parkinson's disease appeared to take over the functioning of brain cells eradicated by the disease. The finding raises the possibility that women with Parkinson's disease could serve as their own stem cell donors. Similarly, because endometrial stem cells are readily available and easy to collect, banks of endometrial stem cells could be stored for men and women with Parkinson's disease. 'Endometrial stem cells are widely available, easy to access and appear to take on the characteristics of nervous system tissue readily,' said Alan E. Guttmacher, M.D., acting director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

5/06/2010 PERMALINK
Human jawbone grown from stem cells. Watch this fascinating Reuters.com clip of an interview with a Columbia University scientist who has managed to grow a replacement human jaw bone using stem cells.

5/05/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers crack 'splicing code,' a breakthrough in the fight against the degenerative diseases of aging. A research team led by Professors Brendan Frey and Benjamin Blencowe of the University of Toronto describes how a hidden code within DNA explains one of the central mysteries of genetic research. Namely how a limited number of human genes can produce the vastly greater number of genetic messages necessary for the generation of enormously complex organs like the human brain. The discovery bridges a decade-old gap between our understanding of the genome and the activity of complex processes within cells, and could one day help predict or prevent the tissue degeneration that tends to plague us as we age.

5/05/2010 PERMALINK
Researchers engineer a synthetic muscle protein that can be implanted to repair muscle tear injuries. The team engineered a synthetic protein to reproduce the molecular structure of titin, the muscle protein 'that largely governs the elastic properties of muscle.' The researchers tested the nanomechanical properties of the new proteins at the single-molecule level and then cross-linked them into a solid rubber-like material. The researchers found that the synthetic biomaterials display the unique multifunctional characteristics of titin, acting like a spring with high resilience at low strain and as a shock-absorb at high strains. "The material's spring-like properties are fully recoverable," said Professor Dan Dudek of Virginia Tech, one of the researchers who engineered the new protein. Implants of this new material could be used to fix muscle tears larger than a centimeter, which will not normally reconnect on their own.

5/05/2010 PERMALINK
First clinical trial shows that bone marrow stem cells effective against multiple sclerosis. The research team, led by Neil Scolding, Burden Professor of Clinical Neurosciences for the University of Bristol has now completed a small trial in patients with MS. "We are encouraged by the results of this early study," said Professor Scolding. "The safety data are reassuring and the suggestion of benefit tantalising."

5/05/2010 PERMALINK
A dozen of today's designers conceptualize tomorrow wearware. Designing tomorrow's wearable gadgets.

5/04/2010 PERMALINK
In a quantum leap for cryptography, researchers have found a way to make random numbers that are truly random. To create random number lists for encryption purposes, cryptographers usually use mathematical algorithms called 'pseudo random number generators'. But these are never entirely 'random' as the creators cannot be certain that any sequence of numbers isn't predictable in some way. Now a team of experimental physicists has made a breakthrough in random number generation by applying the principles of quantum mechanics to produce a string of numbers that is truly random. (Unbeatable encryption is essential to insuring your control over the mind implants and remote net and real world smart agents that will empower your humods future. - Editor)

5/04/2010 PERMALINK
Control mechanism behind autoimmune diseases discovered. An important component your body's immune defence is a type of cell called a B cell. Normally, the job of these cells is to produce antibodies, which in turn bind to and neutralise invasive microorganisms, such as bacteria and viruses. "In people with an autoimmune disease," explains Mikael Karlsson, associate professor at the Department of Medicine at Karolinska Institutet in Solna. "These B cells actually have an injurious effect and instead of serving the body, are activated against its own tissues, which they start to break down."

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
Biologists have been able to change the brain of a developing fish embryo to resemble that of another species. Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology have found that by applying chemicals to manipulate genes in a developing embryo, they've been able to change the brain of one type of cichlid fish to resemble that of another. The researchers also discovered differences in the general patterning of the brain very early in development before functional neurons form in a process known as neurogenesis."

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
A common steroid medication appears to promote and protect stem cell populations used for regenerative medicine. A class of drugs commonly used for asthma, inflammation and skin injury also may hold promise for tissue-repairing regenerative medicine, according to Duke University Medical Center researchers. In studies on cells from mice, the drugs, a kind of steroid hormone called glucocorticoids, appear to be promoting and protecting stem cell populations that perform tissue repair.

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
Scientists create super human embryonic stem cells with enhanced pluripotency. Whitehead Institute researchers have converted established human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells and human embryonic stem (ES) cells to a base state of greater pluripotency. 'This is a previously unknown pluripotent state in human cells,' says Jacob Hanna, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Whitehead Member Rudolf Jaenisch. 'It's the first time these cell types have approached the flexibility found in mouse ES cells.'

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
Compound in broccoli helps prevent/treat breast cancer by effecting the cancer stem cells that fuel tumor growth. A new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center tested sulforaphane, a component of broccoli and broccoli sprouts, in both mice and cell cultures. Researchers found sulforaphane targeted and killed the cancer stem cells and prevented new tumors from growing. "This new insight suggests the potential of sulforaphane or broccoli extract to prevent or treat cancer by targeting the critical cancer stem cells," said study author Duxin Sun, Ph.D.

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
Discovery prompts completely new theory on the cause of autoimmune diseases. The discovery of a protein fragment capable of causing diabetes in mice has spurred researchers at National Jewish Health and the University of Colorado to propose a new hypothesis about the cause of diabetes and autoimmunity in general. In the April 23, 2010, issue of Immunity, Drs. Brian Stadinski, John Kappler and George Eisenbarth propose that the unusual and rare presentation of protein fragments (peptides) to the immune system allows autoreactive T cells to escape the thymus and trigger autoimmune disease. The findings could lead to a new strategy for preventing type 1 diabetes.

5/03/2010 PERMALINK
'Junk DNA' found to drive cancer growth. Researchers from the University of Leeds, UK, the Charite University Medical School and the Max Delbruck Centre for Molecular Medicine (MDC) in Berlin, Germany, have discovered a new driving force behind cancer growth. Their studies have identified how 'junk' DNA promotes the growth of cancer cells in patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Professor Constanze Bonifer and Dr Stephan Mathas who co-led the study suspect that these pieces of 'junk' DNA, called 'long terminal repeats', play a role in many forms of cancer and have now uncovered the process by which this occurs. 'We have shown this is the case in Hodgkin's lymphoma, but the exact same mechanism could be involved in the development of other forms of blood cancer,' said Prof. Bonifer. 'This would have implications for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy of these diseases.'

5/02/2010 PERMALINK
Bio-Fab ready to distribute building blocks of synthetic life. The first biological design-build facility in the world announced that it will soon be able to synthesize chemicals, fuels and new drugs by manipulating the elements necessary to make microbes. The facility’s output of standardized biological parts made from genetic material will be made available to both academic and commercial users, greatly shortening necessary development times and significantly lowering research costs.

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Hypertensive rat genome sequence expected to uncover genetic basis of human high blood pressure. Chronic high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a serious health risk factor that afflicts more than 25% of all adults worldwide, but the molecular basis of the disease remains poorly understood. Now scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have sequenced the genome of the spontaneously hypertensive rat, building a rich catalog of genetic variants that will help researchers to understand causes of chronic high blood pressure in humans.

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Gene therapy sets stage for new treatments for inherited blindness. Veterinary vision scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have safely and successfully used a viral vector in targeting a class of photoreceptors of the retina called rods, a critical first step in developing gene therapies for inherited blindness caused by rod degeneration. In this study, the viral vector, or missile that carries the genetic material designed to correct a DNA mutation, was not intended to treat a disease but to demonstrate through the use of a fluorescent protein that a safe and effective viral cocktail could be delivered inside rod cells.

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Your genes have a pause button. New evidence in embryonic stem cells shows that mammalian genes may all have a layer of control that acts essentially like the pause button on your DVR. The researchers say the results show that the pausing phenomenon, previously thought to be a peculiarity of particular genes, is actually a much more general feature of the genome. 'We're coming to the realization that we've been missing out on an entire second step in the control of gene expression,' said Richard Young of the Whitehead Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 'There's tremendous excitement.'

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Refined tools can speed pinpointing of disease-causing genes. In findings that may speed the search for disease-causing genes, a new study at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia challenges the prevailing view that common diseases are usually caused by common gene variants (mutations). Instead, say genetics researchers, the culprits may be numerous rare variants, located in DNA sequences farther away from the original 'hot spots' than scientists have been accustomed to look.

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Study searches for the secrets to healthy longevity - sleeping well at the age of 100. A study is the first to examine sleep issues in a large sample of exceptionally old adults, including nearly 2,800 people who were 100 years of age and older. Results show that about 65 percent of the sample reported that their sleep quality was good or very good, and the weighted average daily sleep time was about 7.5 hours including naps. Surprisingly, the oldest adults aged 100 and above were 70 percent more likely to report good sleep quality than younger participants aged 65 to 79, after controlling for variables such as demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status and health conditions. Men were 23 percent more likely than women to report sleeping well.

5/01/2010 PERMALINK
Eating more olive oil can protect you from developing ulcerative colitis. Medical researchers at the University of East Anglia studied more than 25,000 people aged 40-65 living in Norfolk, UK. They found that those consuming more olive oil had a 90 per cent lower risk of developing ulcerative colitis. "Oleic acid seems to help prevent the development of ulcerative colitis by blocking chemicals in the bowel that aggravate the inflammation found in this illness," said study leader Dr. Andrew Hart of UEA's School of Medicine.