Story tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, September 2004
...lly enhanced spectral and photophysical properties can be formed from single molecules of semiconducting ...stions and challenges remain before these deposits can be tapped. Clathrate hydrates, which consist of a gas molecule surrounded by a cage of water molecul...Reducing allergens in the home helps inner-city children with asthma
...hey show that changes made in the home environment can produce a reduction in symptoms comparable to that achieved with asthma inhalers," said Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Children who participated in the intervention had 21 fewer days o...New genetic hypothesis for the cause of autism
...cine in Houston, propose that most cases of autism can be explained by a complex model for genetic malfun...resents some fresh perspectives for autism, and it can be tested in a number of ways. "We believe that this model is highly likely to apply to some small...Sandia experiments may reduce possibility of future water wars
...ation and over-absorption by soil. Over time, this can also result in soil salination and loss of agricul...unique in the animal forage area," he said. "If we can get the animals to perform just as well on greenhouse forage, that would be an incredible advance. I...Maine-based biophysics institute gets funding for first US-based 4Pi nanoscale microscope
...age of your state of such high resolution that you can spot the local college football field," says IMB c...trolling the migration of fibroblast growth factor can prevent reocclusion of coronary arteries after angioplasty. We are confident that this fruitful coll...A new protein is discovered to play a key role in cancer progression
... essential role in maintaining TGF-b signaling, we can better understand the progression of many human ca...rget for cancer drugs." TGF-b is a protein that can suppress tumor development by signaling a cell to stop growing. The unresponsiveness to TGF-b signal...Viral suspect for amphibian decline traced to human spread through bait
...the virus was being introduced to the ponds, which can be isolated from each other by miles. "We were re...h it could be moving around, and whether or not it can jump between species," Collins said. The salamander virus is related to another iridovirus strain th...UCLA molecular biologists uproot the tree of life
... archaeal prokaryotes, some members of which today can live at temperatures hot enough to boil water (160230 degrees Fahrenheit) and can be found in hot sulfur springs and geothermal ocean vents worldwide. "At least 2 billion years ago, ...Final Alert: 16th EORTC NCI AACR Symposium
...ests show gossypol abandoned as a contraceptive can sensitise prostate cancer to radiotherapy patient trials now planned Please note: information above on news briefing & press release topics is for information only and is embargoed until the time of the news briefings or press releases. The confe......centration, but it's resistant to proteases and it can penetrate the cell membrane just like other small molecules," said Dowdy, who is at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. The result of the search for Smac mimics was a molecule the researchers called "Compound 3." "The way we ...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
...oapoptotic proteins of the BcL-2 family, like Bax, can be activated by BH3-only proteins, like Bim, resulting in Bax integration into the outer mitochondrial membrane, formation of channels, release of cytochrome c, and apoptotic cell death. A selective inhibitor of JNK reduced apoptosis in the ischemic ...Computer scientists at UH developing 'nurturing' computers
...cial imagery, almost the full range of vital signs can be extracted. This physiological information can then be used to draw inferences about a variety of health symptoms on a continuous basis. "An incr...New evidence of radiation risk in childhood leukaemia
... only by finding out more about the causes that we can establish whether it is possible to take preventiv...ne and Belarus have shown that genomic instability can be induced in the paternal germ-line in humans. It remains to be seen whether this instability can b...Extreme stretch-growth of axons
...growth commonly occurs in nature. "For example, it can be inferred that axons in a blue whale's spine gro...he axons to grow in an extreme way. "Although they can handle enormous growth, you can't just spring it on them," explains Bryan Pfister, PhD a post-doctor...Do genes respond to global warming?
... genetic level. Now it appears that climate change can shape genetic diversity. Elizabeth Hadly and colleagues have analyzed three different dynamic processes--environmental change, population response, and gene diversity fluctuations--and report that climate change influences variation in genetic divers...Fossils reveal direct link between global warming and genetic diversity in wildlife
...lar DNA. Over time, this lack of genetic diversity can jeopardize the entire population, because each individual inherits the same vulnerability to diseases and other external threats. "When you decrease population size, you have the potential of eliminating much genetic diversity," Hadly explained. "Tha...For imitative parrots, wagging tongues may be key to vocalization
...communication, researchers have shown that parrots can modify the sound of their vocalizations by articul...human speech, but evidence that similar mechanisms can shape vocalizations in other species has been difficult to obtain. In humans, speech is produced by ...Heart gene yields insights into evolution, disease risk
...n with certain other alleles, which allele is best can differ. So we're advocating a more nuanced view o...with new analytical techniques at our disposal, we can now start to look at the 'wiring diagram' of the genome and how it is influenced by evolution." Both...Common cold virus can cause polio in mice when injected into muscles
... a common cold virus closely related to poliovirus can cause polio in mice. The researchers injected a co...Gromeier. Viruses are extremely adaptable and they can alter themselves dramatically based upon their environment. Coxsackievirus A21 is one of a large gro...Imitative parrots just might tell you it's all in the tongue
... for the first time that parrots, like humans,also can use their tongues to craft and shape sound. "This ...n tiny changes in theposition of a parrot's tongue can lead to big differences in sound. "Birdsong is an excellent model for human speech and also for thed...