Highlights of the October 2004 Journal of the American Dietetic Association
... Concerns about the overall health and well-being of America's children continue to rise as the obesity epidemic continues to expand. Many nutrition experts say an increase in soft drink consumption among adolescents coupled with the easy access to soft drinks in school vending machines over the past two decades are contributing factors to excess weight among kids. ... .....International study findings link acne-like rash to effectiveness of new targeted cancer treatment
Geneva, Switzerland: Acne is not a condition that anyone would welcome under normal circumstances, but an international study of a new targeted cancer treatment cetuximab has shown that patients who developed an acne-like rash responded better to the treatment than those who did not....... Professor Eric Van Cutsem told a news briefing today (Thursday 30 September) at the EORTC-NCI-AACR[1] Symp...USAID, Conservation International & Starbucks launch Conservation Coffee Alliance in Central America
Seeking to improve the livelihoods of small-scale coffee farmers while conserving the environment, the United States Government, working through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) today joined forces with Conservation International (CI) and Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq: SBUX) to create the Conservation Coffee Alliance. ...... With a focus on Central America and Me...Tips from the Journals of the American Society for Microbiology
... ...Cranberry and oregano extracts combined with lactic acid may inhibit the growth of bacteria in meat and fish say researchers from Massachusetts. Their findings appear in the September 2004 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. ... ...Listeria monocytogenes, the cause of many food-borne illnesses throughout North Ameri...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
...Alexander C. Jackson, Gui Lan Yao, and Bruce P. Bean ... ...The biological clock depends on spontaneously firing neurons of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Several ion channels, including L-type calcium channels, Ih, and subthreshold TTX-sensitive sodium channels, have been nominated for the spontaneous interspike "pacemaker" current that drives spontaneous firing. To distinguish between...ConocoPhillips & Conservation International launch 'Biodiversity Action Plan' in Venezuela
Working to protect one of the Caribbean's two most important regions for marine species, Conservation International and ConocoPhillips have launched a 'Biodiversity Action Plan' (BAP) to promote environmental protection and regional economic development as part of the company's oil production strategy in Venezuela's Gulf of Paria. ... ...Home to over 200 species of mollusks, 50 species of crusta...Joslin President awarded medal from international diabetes organization
BOSTON - C. Ronald Kahn, M.D., President and Director of Joslin Diabetes Center, has been awarded the 2004 Claude Bernard Medal by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) at the organization's 40th Annual Meeting in Munich, Germany. This prestigious award recognizes innovative leadership and superior contributions in the field of diabetes research and is the highest scientific...New research suggests link between maternal diet and childhood leukemia risk
A new study suggests that eating more vegetables, fruit and protein before pregnancy may lower the risk of having a child who develops leukemia, the most common childhood cancer in the United States.... ..."This is the first time researchers have conducted a systematic survey of a woman's diet and linked it to the risk of childhood leukemia," said Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the National Insti...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
1. Becker et al.... ...Expression of the cell adhesion molecule L1 is generally correlated with regenerative success, but it only appears in mammalian axotomized central neurons when axons are within a permissive peripheral nerve graft. The fish homolog L1.1 is upregulated after spinal transection, and is thought to aid in their robust axon regeneration and functional recovery. Without L1.1,...Select research highlights from current AACR journals
From the September 1 issue of Cancer Research:... ... Aberrations in the receptor protein dystroglycan may lead to either muscular dystrophy or the development of carcinomas. Whereas several molecular defects in muscle disease have been characterized, little is known about such changes in carcinoma cells. Singh et al. identified multiple post-translational modifications that modulate dystrog...A room with a view for the International Space Station: Completion of the cupola observation module
Development phase completion of the European-built observation module, or "cupola", for the International Space Station will be marked by a ceremony at the Alenia Spazio facility in Turin, Italy on Monday 6 September....... ...The pressurised module will accommodate command and control workstations and other hardware, enabling crewmembers to control the station's rob...No longer just for biology, RNA can now be built into 3-D arrays
ARLINGTON, Va.-- Researchers have coaxed RNA to self-assemble into 3-D arrays, a potential backbone for nanotech scaffolds. These RNA structures can form a wider variety of shapes than double-stranded DNA can and are easier to manipulate than many protein alternatives. ... ...Peixuan Guo of Purdue University and his colleagues report the findings in the August 11, 2004, issue of the journal Nan...Enzyme activation appears key in helping internal clock tell night from day
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Feel like time is repeating itself and won't move on? It could be your internal clock is backpedaling because your PKG-II is out of whack. ......That scenario was played out at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in experiments at a molecular level deep within the brain of rats where, like in all mammals, the primary circadian clock is located. The clock is a dynam...International symposium on nutritional genomics
Diet and genes, lifestyles and disease will be on the menu at the Bruce Ames International Symposium on Nutritional Genomics, to be held at the University of California, Davis, Oct. 22-24....... Topics at the meeting include how individuals respond differently to diets; how foods can influence health and aging; and ethical and consumer issues. The symposium will present the latest findings linkin...Tips from the journals of the American Society for Microbiology
......Researchers from Maryland have developed a new DNA vaccine that targets proteins expressed in cervical cancer cells. Their findings appear in the August 2004 issue of the Journal of Virology. ......Human papillomavirus (HPV) is found in more than 99 % of cervical cancer cases, which is the second leading cause of cancer death among women throughout the world. Consistently identified in H...RNA could form building blocks for nanomachines
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Microscopic scaffolding to house the tiny components of nanotech devices could be built from RNA, the same substance that shuttles messages around a cell's nucleus, reports a Purdue University research group.... ...By encouraging ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecules to self-assemble into 3-D shapes resembling spirals, triangles, rods and hairpins, the group has found what co...Despite darkness, nocturnal bees learn visual landmarks while foraging at night
Day-active bees, such as the fabled honeybee, are well known for using visual landmarks to locate a favoured patch of flowers and to find their way back to their hive. Researchers have now found that nocturnal bees can do the same thing, despite experiencing light intensities that are more than 100 million times dimmer than daylight. The new findings, reported by a team led by Eric Warrant of the...Increasing international insect threat to stored food
Increased international trade means the world community will have to more vigilant in preventing economic loss and hardship due to destruction and spoilage of foodstuffs by insects, according to CSIRO entomologist David Rees.... ...Public health officials, quarantine workers, farmers and scientists around the world will have to pay greater attention to preventing infestations in stored foodstuffs...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
1. ...William M. DeBello and Eric I. Knudsen ......The barn owl, given a reason, can reorganize its auditory map to match its perception of visual space. This plasticity was thought to center on only one brain area--the inferior colliculus (ICX), the initial site in which the map is formed. Now DeBello and Knudsen identify a second site of plasticity: the superficial layers of the optic tectum...Ecologist calls for creation of an international panel to assess human behavior
Stanford University Professor Paul R. Ehrlich is urging fellow ecologists to join with social scientists to form an international panel that will discuss and recommend changes in the way human beings treat one another and the environment....... Ehrlich is scheduled to call for the establishment of a Millennium Assessment of Human Behavior (MAHB) during a speech at the 89th annual meeting of the E...AGU journal highlights - 29 July 2004
Contents ...I. Highlights, including authors and their institutions ...II. Ordering information for science writers ...... ...I. Highlights, including authors and their institutions ......The following highlights summarize research papers in Geophysical Research...Letters (GL). The papers related to these Highlights are printed in the next paper...issue of the journal following their electronic p...Researchers look into components of RNA silencing machinery
COLLEGE STATION, July 27, 2004 - Up to 95 percent of a person's DNA is believed to be junk DNA. In order to prevent these relics of evolution from rearranging chromosomes and causing disease, natural mechanisms exist to silence them, according to contemporary theories of chromosome biology.... ...The RNA silencing machinery silences gene expression, by destroying RNA, a molecule that carries o...Cutting-edge cancer researchers sought for international recognition
The American Association for Cancer Research now is accepting nominations for the fourth annual Kirk A. and Dorothy P. Landon Foundation-AACR Prizes. ... ...These two major international prizes recognize seminal basic and translational cancer research discoveries at the cutting edge of scientific novelty and significance. Eligible candidates are active, recently published scientists who have made...Yale scientists visualize details of how hepatitis C unwinds RNA
New Haven, Conn. -- Research led by Anna Marie Pyle, professor of molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale University reveals how a protein from Hepatitis C (HCV) unwinds RNA, potentially allowing it to be copied. ...... The work published in the journal Nature focuses on an enzyme, helicase NS3, that unwinds the RNA virus for replication inside cells. NS3 is one member of an extensive fami...First International Scientific Conference on Childhood Leukaemia
CHILDREN with LEUKAEMIA Britain's leading charity dedicated exclusively to the conquest of childhood leukaemia is organising the first international scientific conference ever to be held into the incidence, causes and prevention of childhood leukaemia. ......Major advances in treatment have seen a significant increase in 5-year survival rates from under 5% in the early 1960s to over 80% for th...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...Annals of internal medicine tip sheet, July 20, 2004
... ...After reviewing literature on heart patients traveling by airplane, authors discuss effects of air travel and security devices on pacemakers and implantable automatic defibrillators; preflight screening; and in-flight venous thrombosis. They make recommendations on safe air travel after heart attacks and prevention of in-flight deep venous thrombosis. ... ...Authors also present a nine-it...Maternal DHA levels plays important role in infant development
Docosahexaenoic acid, or "DHA," is a nutritional compound (an essential fatty acid, or lipid) that has many effects in the body, including the development of the eyes and brain. Prior to birth, fetuses obtain DHA from their mothers, with DHA primarily accumulating in the brain during the third trimester....... DHA is also found naturally in breast milk and has recently been added to some U.S. co...Significant strides in small regulatory RNA research in plants
Molecular biology experienced a significant shift in thinking in recent years with growing evidence that microRNAs (miRNAs) play a major role in the control of eukaryotic gene expression during development. These tiny RNAs, which have sequence complimentarity to short segments of protein-coding genes, are encoded in regions of the genome distinct from other recognized genes. miRNAs function simil...Tips from the Journals of the American Society for Microbiology
... ...Filmy residue, or "soap scum", on household shower curtains may be a breeding ground for potentially harmful bacteria say researchers from San Diego State University, California, University of Colorado at Boulder, and Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Their findings appear in the July 2004 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology.... ..."One househol...Small RNA surmounts large cancer problem
Many potentially effective cancer treatments are undone by the onset of resistance to the treatment. In order to circumvent this problem, D. Gary Gilliland and colleagues, of Brigham and Women's Hospital, have developed a strategy using the latest technologies involving small interfering RNA to enhance cancer treatment even in a situation where drug resistance has developed. Small interfering R...Tips from the Journals of the American Society for Microbiology
...... Researchers from the University of Washington, Seattle and the University of Alaska Fairbanks have found bacterial activity in arctic wintertime sea ice and may attribute its survival to particle or surface attachment. Their findings appear in the January 2004 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology....... Previous studies pertaining to bacterial activity in sea ice h...NSF invites science journalists to conference
Science journalists are invited to attend a National Science Foundation (NSF) Principal Investigator's meeting for researchers exploring the links between biocomplexity and the environment. The conference will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, Va., Sept. 14-17, 2003....... Speakers include: Dr. Rita Colwell, director of NSF; Dr. Margaret Leinen, NSF assistant director for geos...Laboratory 'theme park' re-creates RNA world for study
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Aug. 26, 2003) People love theme parks, giant playgrounds that usually offer patchwork renditions of either an evocative historical moment or a particular future vision. Rarely, if ever, are theme parks built around a biological theme and never do such parks fit inside a test tube. Almost never. Scientist David Bartel is hard at work on what might seem an impossibility a micr...Genomics, internationally recognized speakers to figure prominently in upcoming symposium
A special symposium, Exploring Medicine in the Post-Genome World, will take place April 19-20 during the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine's Spring Medical Alumni-Medical Center 50th Anniversary celebrations. ...The symposium will be held at the William and Ida Friday Continuing Education Center and in Berryhill Hall on the UNC campus. ...During the 2-day event, nati...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...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.....Highlights of the July Journal of the American Dietetic Association
The July 2004 issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association contains articles and research studies you may find of interest. Below is a summary of some of this month's articles. For more information or to receive a faxed copy of a Journal article, call Kelly Liebbe at 800-877-1600, ext. 4769 or e-mail ....... ...... According to the Centers for Diseas...Basic RNA enzyme research promises single-molecule biosensors
ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Research aimed at teasing apart the workings of RNA enzymes eventually may lead to ways of monitoring fat metabolism and might even assist in the search for signs of life on Mars, according to University of Michigan researcher Nils Walter. ... ...His latest work was published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences June 24.... ...Walter and associates at...Oxford Journals takes bold step towards free access to research
Oxford Journals, a Division of Oxford University Press (OUP), announced today that its flagship journal Nucleic Acids Research (NAR) is to move to a full 'Open Access' (OA) publishing model from January 2005. This represents a significant step towards maximum dissemination of scholarly research, a core part of OUP's mission as a leading University-owned Press.... ...NAR will adopt a man...