Health of world's sea lions the focus of Wakefield Symposium
Anchorage, Alaska--More than 100 scientists who study the world's sea lions, including dozens who study the decline of Alaska's Steller sea lions, will gather in Anchorage, Alaska, from September 30 to October 3, 2004, for the 22nd Lowell Wakefield Fisheries Symposium....... Sea Lions of the World: Conservation and Research in the 21st Century, is the theme of the international science conference...Genetic modification of linseed produces healthier omega 3 and 6 fatty acids
In research reported this month in The Plant Cell, scientists succeeded in producing genetically modified linseed plants that accumulate significant levels of very long chain poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in seed. This is the first report of the successful engineering of very long chain PUFA into an oilseed crop, and is an excellent example of how genetic engineering of agronomically import...Chemical signals health of brain cells Symposium
The "First International Symposium on N-acetylaspartate," (NAA), will be held September 13-14, 2004 at the National Institutes of Health Natcher Conference Center, Bethesda, MD. NAA is best known as a marker for the health of neurons, brain cells, which can be measured non-invasively, using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). ...... The meeting brings together basic researchers and clinicians...The birth of reproductive health: A difficult delivery
This week marks the 10 year anniversary of the landmark "Cairo Conference" on population and development. In 1994, officials, experts and activists from 179 countries drew up a 20 year plan to deliver reproductive health care for all. But the plan is being threatened, says Dr Shereen El Feki, acclaimed health-care correspondent at The Economist magazine, by ideological battles, a severe shortfa...Ventilation in bars, casinos doesn't control health risk for hospitality workers
Baltimore, Md. The level of cancer-causing particles is much higher in the air of smoke-filled bars and casinos than on truck-choked highways and city streets, according to the first published comparison of indoor air quality before and after smoke-free workplace legislation. The study, conducted in a casino, six bars and a pool hall in Wilmington, Delaware, is published in the September 2004...Identifying tick genes could halt disease, bioterrorism threat
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Ticks as small as a freckle can transmit a number of illnesses for which there is no vaccine and, in some cases, no cure. These creatures even could become bioterrorism weapons.... ...To find new ways to control the tiny animals and halt the spread of the pathogens they carry, Purdue University researchers and colleagues from the University of Connecticut Health Center, the...Optimizing protein's 'death domain' halts leukemia in laboratory study
BOSTON--A part of the system that causes cells to self-destruct when they are damaged or unneeded has been harnessed to kill leukemia cells in mice, say scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The discovery could aid in the discovery of new drugs for cancer and other diseases. ... ...The researchers plucked a critical "death domain" from a key molecule in the self-destruction mechanism of...Diabetics face fewer healthy food choices in some urban areas
Diabetics in East Harlem have a much tougher time finding healthy foods at their local stores than diabetics in New York's Upper East side. ...... According to researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine who conducted the study, this problem is likely present in cities across the country. The study was published in the September 2004 issue of American Journal of Public Health....... Carol Horow...OneWorld Health compiles comprehensive state of infectious diarrhea treatments, potential solutions
San Francisco, Calif. Aug. 23, 2004 To most people in the developed world, diarrhea is a nuisance. It means some discomfort and maybe a trip to the local pharmacy. However, many would be shocked to learn that it is one of the leading causes of death among the developing world's children, responsible for approximately two million deaths each year. Even more shocking, diarrhea contributes to t...Muscling their way into the food chain: Zebra mussels alter fish populations in the Hudson River
In 1991, an exotic bivalve called the zebra mussel moved into the Hudson River. Over the past two decades, the prolific species has colonized habitats with hard sediments, becoming the most abundant animal in the river's freshwater reaches. As competitors in the aquatic food chain, scientists have long speculated that zebra mussels may impact fish. A recent Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquat...Institute for OneWorld Health nominated for the 2004 World Technology Awards
San Francisco, Calif. Aug. 16, 2004 The Institute for OneWorld Health, the first nonprofit pharmaceutical company in the U.S., announced today that it has been nominated for this year's World Technology Awards in the category of Health & Medicine. The award is sponsored by the World Technology Network (WTN) and held in association with Nasdaq, Microsoft, TIME magazine, magazine, and CNN. ......Alterations in vitamin D receptor gene increase prostate, breast cancer risk
Subtle differences in the receptor for vitamin D reverse the anti-cancer action of the sunshine vitamin, increasing the risk of breast cancer in Caucasian women and prostate cancer in African-American men, according to two new studies.... ...The results, in journals published by the American Association for Cancer Research, underscore how naturally-occurring variants of the same gene, called poly...Early clinical treatment can halt progression of Alzheimer's disease, UCI researchers find
Irvine, Calif. -- UC Irvine neurobiologists have provided the first evidence that early clinical treatment of brain lesions can halt the progression of Alzheimer's disease....... Working on genetically modified mice, the researchers found that using specific antibodies to clear a certain type of brain lesion reversed abnormalities arising from a second type of brain lesion, which halted the progr...Human health risks in space flight focus of research internships
HOUSTON, Aug. 3, 2004 — Two of only 13 candidates accepted from a pool of international applicants, University of Houston doctoral students Andrew Abercromby and F. Jay Haran are working with scientists in the Neurosciences Laboratory at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI).... ...Abercromby, a second-year doctoral student of kinesio...Study shows impact of emotionally healthy fathers when mothers' poor mental health affects children
CINCINNATI A new Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center study points to the important role fathers play in their children's emotional and behavioral health.... ...The study shows that a father in good mental health can substantially reduce the negative influence of a mother's poor mental health on a child's behavioral and emotional well-being.... ..."If a mother and father are depressed,...Clusters of alterations on PIK3CA gene found in brain cancers
Hotspots in two areas of a gene that encodes a specific signaling enzyme, or kinase, are vulnerable to a variety of mutations found in five types of brain cancers, according to a report published in the August 1 issue of the journal ....... Mutations in the gene PIK3CA occur spontaneously as part of the brain tumor development rather than being passed genetically between generations, said Hai Ya...Ottawa's leadership in biomedical and health research has paid off
Montreal Canada is one of the world's top research nations, thanks to Ottawa's commitment to research and leadership role in funding biomedical and health research over the past 5 years, according to an article published today in the prestigious journal EMBO reports. ......But to keep up the momentum and continue to grow in innovation and high-quality research, the federal government needs to de...K-State researcher working to improve alternatives to equine antibiotics
MANHATTAN, KAN. -- Antibiotics can save lives. But the increasing occurrence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria presents a number of challenges for researchers in medicine....... Veterinary medicine is no exception and Dr. Elizabeth Davis, assistant professor of equine internal medicine at Kansas State University, is working to help improve alternative methods for combating infectious diseases in h...Healthy fats and oils essential to satisfy calorie-conscious consumers
Palo Alto, Calf -- July 21, 2004 -- Reacting to the obesity epidemic, food consumers have stirred a global health revolution and are increasingly demanding healthier oils and fats. Since eliminating fats can upset the nutritional balance, researchers are constantly trying to develop innovative methods to improve the health properties of oils and fats.... ...Though fats and edible oils are largely...Oxygen sensing in worms may hold key to healthy blood pressure in humans
For life on our planet, the rule is simple: if you don't get the right amount of oxygen, you die. ...... For humans, living as we do in an atmosphere with a rich and stable supply of oxygen, maintaining the correct levels in our bodies is a relatively routine task. For organisms that live in soil or water, however, where oxygen levels can fluctuate wildly, the task is far more challenging -- and...Institute for OneWorld Health receives Gates Foundation grant
San Francisco, Calif. July 13, 2004 The Institute for OneWorld Health, the first nonprofit pharmaceutical company in the U.S., announced today it has received a $1.4 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support development of a vaccine for the prevention and treatment of malaria, including for infants and children in the developing world. ...... Globally, more than 300 m...Altered protein involved in a novel link to Alzheimer's disease
New findings of the presence of beta amyloid in the brain of a mouse that overproduces a protein called p25 may help explain the occurrence of sporadic Alzheimer's (as opposed to the less common familial form of the disease) and also why stroke and high blood pressure increase the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's.... ...Dr. Li-Huei Tsai, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator...'Rolling Store' provides model for overcoming barriers to healthy foods and better health outcomes
The Rolling Store, a unique approach to overcoming economic and transportation barriers in order to provide poor women in the Lower Mississippi Delta access to healthy foods, not only prevented continuing weight gain - the study's objective - but resulted in weight loss and improved self esteem.... ...Dr. Betty Kennedy, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, described the Rolling Store proje...Waste motor oil management may pose threat to health and the environment
Better designed oil filters and less frequent oil changes are two ways to reduce the health and environmental threats of used motor oil, according to a new study published in the Jan. 15 issue of , a peer-reviewed journal of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.... ...The approximately one billion gallons of used oil generated in the United States each year comes...Canada, US launch collaborative research programs for circulatory and respiratory health
The leading federal health research agencies in Canada and the United States -- the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- have formed a partnership to advance research of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. ... ...Three research programs are being launched collaboratively between CIHR's Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (...New guidelines can help health officials better predict and control dengue epidemics
Dengue fever, once under control in many tropical areas of the Americas, has now re-emerged. Globally, some 2.5 to 3.0 billion people live in regions where the disease is endemic. In developing countries, the lack of a closed water system and adequate refuse disposal has encouraged the proliferation of water containers that are ideal larval habitats for Aedes aegypti, the mosquito responsible for...Pathogenic yeasts and fungi: A growing health concern
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (May 13, 2003)When a few weeds appear on your front lawn, you can easily pick them off one by one. But if they start taking over the yard, the picking becomes laborious, and you may need to turn to a chemical weed-killer to hold the invaders in check. After several applications of the herbicide, however, the weeds could become resistant, forcing you to use an even more powerful s...Invasive species summit aims to halt Great Lakes-Mississippi River species exchange
... Experts on aquatic invasive species will meet with environmental engineers and fishing and river-carrier interests to come up with practical ways to prevent invasive species from moving between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. More than 60 people from the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom will participate in the summit. The summit will begin with presentat...Health benefits of training mothers in developing countries to exclusively breastfeed for 6 months
Reducing diarrhoeal disease among infants in less-developed countries could be assisted by the imple-mentation of straightforward community-based health programmes to promote exclusive breastfeeding for six months after childbirth, conclude authors of a study in this week's issue of The Lancet....... The WHO recommend exclusive breastfeeding until six months of age for infants in less-developed c...Texas A&M, Ecor Corp. sign deal to produce health-related proteins
WESLACO Before a plastic surgeon injects collagen into a patient's face to repair damage, smooth out wrinkles, or create more sensual, pouty lips, the patient undergoes skin tests to detect any possible allergies to the collagen. ... That's because the collagen surgeons use is protein derived from either cow or human cadaver collagen. While the risk may be low, the potential nevertheless exist...Study suggests ovarian cancer cells can alter surroundings to promote chemotherapy resistance
Compelling new scientific evidence suggests cancer cells can trigger changes in their immediate surroundings that promote self-preservation. Collagen VI, a protein produced by ovarian cancer cells, appears to help these cells alter their microenvironment so they are more resistant to chemotherapeutic drugs commonly used to treat the disease, according to investigators at the National Institute on...Society for Women's Health Research sponsors 3rd Annual Conference on sex and gene expression
SAGE III brings together invited participants in a variety of fields to discuss the molecular and cellular underpinnings of sex differences in biology. SAGE III will include discussion of cutting-edge research on model organisms for understanding sex differences in development, sex & gene expression in the immune system, and the interplay of steroid hormones, apoptosis, and carcinogenesis. In...Don't be fooled about your oral health: AAP uncovers common misconceptions
CHICAGO (March 28, 2002) Your shoe lace is untied, or Look! A flock of geese are just a few of the innocent tricks Americans play on friends on April 1. While most of these practical jokes are just fun and games, the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) doesnt want you to be fooled about taking care of your teeth and gums, which could negatively affect your teeth in the years to come.... .....Altered expression of key developmental genes underlies evolution of butterfly wing patterns
The diverse and colorful wing patterns of butterflies and moths provide some of the most iconic examples of the evolutionary process. Researchers studying gene expression in a range of moth and butterfly species report this week that a certain class of wing patterns has likely evolved through seemingly simple alterations in the timing of various types of gene expression.... ...The class of wing p...Gene therapy alternative to calcium channel blockers
In animal studies, scientists at Johns Hopkins have developed what is believed to be the first successful gene therapy that mimics the action of calcium channel blockers, agents widely used in the treatment of heart diseases, including angina, arrhythmias, hypertension and enlarged heart. ... Their findings published in the latest edition of Circulation Research, online July 8 may lead to a ge...Study suggests first molecular target to halt spread of HPV
HERSHEY, PA-Penn State College of Medicine researchers have discovered the first molecular therapy to target cancer-causing components and thereby destroy a bona fide human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.... ..."Our results suggest that targeting therapies to the RNA that encodes a specific pair of proteins in HPV may break a chain that, left unhindered, promotes cellular proliferation and, poten...As humans alter land, infectious diseases follow
MADISON, Wis. - As people remake the world's landscapes, cutting forests, draining wetlands, building roads and dams, and pushing the margins of cities ever outward, infectious diseases are gaining new toeholds, cropping up in new places and new hosts, and posing an ever-increasing risk to human and animal health....... , an international team of experts warns that widespread changes in the globa...Vacuum assisted deliveries are safe alternative to forceps
Vacuum assisted deliveries are a safe alternative to forceps deliveries,...despite a warning by the US Food and Drug Administration in 1998 that...vacuum assisted deliveries may result in fatal complications, say...researchers in this week's BMJ....... They compared the risk of death and birth injuries between vacuum...extraction and forceps deliveries for over 11 million singleton live births.....WASHINGTON, D.C., July 1, 2004 -- For many Americans, summertime fun begins and ends in the nearest swimming pools. According to U.S. Census data, swimming ranks as the second most popular exercise activity in the country. Whether in the backyard, local recreation center, neighborhood swim club or vacation hotel, it's a healthy pursuit that deserves an equally healthy environment in which to swim...Imagine that by altering the function of a single gene, you could live longer, be thinner and have lower cholesterol and fat levels in your blood.... ...Medical College of Georgia researchers are using a tiny worm called C. elegans to transform that vision into reality.... ...Researchers You-Jun Fei and Vadivel Ganapathy have found the Indy gene is critical in providing cells with energy, produci...