Wrapping a memory with an experience, capacity for recollection detected in non-human species
(Boston) -- For millennia, the process of memory and remembering has intrigued scholars and scientists. In 350 B.C., Aristotle, in his seminal treatise on the subject, described it as having two forms: familiarity and recollection. Of these, he considered recollection to be a purely human condition. ... ...That tenet is now being challenged by researchers at Boston University. ...... Neurobio...PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Brown University researchers have discovered that mefloquine, an anti-malarial drug, blocks two gap junction proteins, or connexins, in low doses and with very few side effects in the brains of laboratory mice. The work opens an important door: Connexins found in high concentrations in the brain are believed to play a critical role in movement, vision and memory....... To unde...Stanford launches public lecture series on genomic medicine
Stanford University is offering a series of free monthly lectures designed to enhance public understanding of the Human Genome Project and the revolution in genomic medicine. The lecture series, titled ''Sequencing the Human Genome: What Does It Tell Us About Ourselves,'' will be held in Fairchild Auditorium on the Stanford campus.... ...The first lecture, "Biomedical Innovations: Confronting the...Adolescent rodents experience milder hangover effects than do adult rodents
... sensitive to chronic alcohol exposure, with more pronounced alcohol-related memory problems and brain damage than adult animals.... sensitive to the unpleasant consequences of an alcohol-related hangover, as measured by anxiety.... Such a lack of aversive effects could help establish a persisting cycle of drinking in adolescents, leading to a future of alcohol-related problems.... ... Many...Fisheries forecasting in the Niger inner delta
Optimal management of fishing zones requires assessment of the stocks potentially available as early as possible into the fishing season, or even before it begins if possible. The problem is how periods of fish scarcity or abundance might be predicted. In flood plains, annual catches depend on river flood levels. The inner delta of the Niger, one of the most extensive flooded areas on Earth, is s...Article series aims to educate on the truth of anti-aging claims
As part of a summer effort to present peer-reviewed research on the truth of anti-aging medicine, The Gerontological Society of America has released the first of two special sections in The Journals of Gerontology: Biological and Medical Sciences (Vol. 59A, No. 6). ......Supervised by guest editors S. Jay Olshansky, PhD, Leonard Hayflick, PhD, and Thomas T. Perls, MD, MPH, this issue focuses on t...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.....A fly's taste experience is much like our own
Berkeley - When a fly drops in to sample your picnic lunch, it's basically tasting the same thing you taste, according to a new study by University of California, Berkeley, scientists.... ...In the first detailed genetic study of fly taste receptors, UC Berkeley neuroscientist Kristin Scott and her colleagues showed that fruit flies have receptors devoted to sweet and bitter tastes just like huma...Evidence of nanobacterial-like structures found in human calcified arteries and cardiac valves
May 24, 2004 Bethesda, MD Researchers at the Mayo Clinic found they could isolate and culture nanoparticles from filtered homogenates of diseased calcified human cardiovascular tissue. These cultured nano-sized particles were recognized by a DNA-specific dye, incorporated radiolabeled uridine, and after decalcification, appeared via electron microscopy to contain cell walls....... The research...Archaeologists announce discoveries at the ancient Maya site of Waka' in northern Guatemala
DALLAS (SMU) -- An international archaeological project, sponsored by Southern Methodist University, headed by Dr. David Freidel of SMU, and Guatemalan archaeologist Hctor Escobedo of Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, is attempting to combine scientific research of the ancient Maya past of Guatemala with conservation and development in an effort to save a vital section of tropical rainfores...Tiny beetle wreaks havoc on Texas ornamental tree nurseries
OVERTON Long a threat, the Asian ambrosia beetle is now appearing in devastating numbers. This insect is wreaking havoc among the Southern U.S. ornamental tree growing industry this year, according to a Texas Cooperative Extension integrated pest management specialist.... ... Dr. Scott Ludwig and other IPM specialists have embarked in a search for an economically sound means of controlling the p...Undergraduate research experience advances education
DNA is often used to identify mysterious materials or match a suspect with a crime. However, identification can be slowed while a trace amount of DNA is increased so there will be enough to test. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is the series of steps necessary to amplify DNA. ... ...Last summer, when Cindy Schreiber of Huntington, W.Va. was accepted into the Bio-Inspired Chemistry Research Experi...Pioneering discoveries, pursuing new knowledge, fostering partnerships
HOUSTON, March 23, 2004 From paradoxical pharmacology and drug development to neurological repair and neuro motor rehabilitation, a bevy of projects will be showcased at an event to focus on cutting-edge research and scholarly programs at the University of Houston. ...... The University of Houston's fifth annual Research and Scholarship Day will take place from 8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Friday,...Discoveries reveal that gene regulation is bipolar
Two new studies, one to be published on 5 March 2004 in the journal , reveal a surprising relationship among the hordes of gene regulatory molecules that are the ultimate controllers of life processes. The surprise is that only a small portion of all genes--those needed to respond to emergencies--within a simple organism such as baker's yeast are heavily regulated. Most other genes, in contras...New technologies reveal mysteries of marine megafauna
How can scientists follow leatherback sea turtles that dive to crushing depths a half-mile below the surface and swim across 80% of the world's ocean? Or tunas that race faster than most boats? Or albatrosses that soar halfway across the Pacific without sleep or a meal -- unlike their human observers? Science is beginning to make all this possible with a series of leaps in tagging technologies. H...Rare ant may help solve some mysteries of social evolution
COLUMBUS, Ohio Last fall, ecologists at Ohio State University cracked open an acorn they had found in an Ohio park and discovered a colony of extremely rare ants.... ...They had uncovered Leptothorax minutissimus, an ant species that has been found in only four other areas of the eastern United States. The researchers found the acorn at a Columbus metro park the first time the ant has been foun...Bacteria discoveries could resemble Mars, other planets
CORVALLIS, Ore. A team of scientists has discovered bacteria in a hole drilled more than 4,000 feet deep in volcanic rock on the island of Hawaii near Hilo, in an environment they say could be analogous to conditions on Mars and other planets. ... Bacteria are being discovered in some of Earth's most inhospitable places, from miles below the ocean's surface to deep within Arctic glaciers. The la...Aged roaches experience perils of stiff joints, find Case researchers
CLEVELAND Humans are not alone in suffering the ravages of aging. Cockroaches endure it, too.... Case Western Reserve University researchers reported in the Journal of Experimental Biology that as the roach's life wanes between 60-65 weeks after the onset of adulthood, and the cockroach slows down, experiences stiff joints and has problems climbing and a decreased spontaneous fleeing response....CSIRO scientist wins highest global award for fisheries research
An Australian scientist has won the highest accolade in the world for ecological research, the prestigious Japan Prize. ...... Dr Keith Sainsbury, a CSIRO marine ecologist and mathematical modeller received the Prize for his international efforts to conserve fisheries and marine ecosystems....... The award relates to food production based on sustainable ecosystems, a concept that Dr Sainsbury and...Whites, African-Americans better rate medical care experiences when seeing same-race physicians
White and African-American patients who see physicians of the same race rate their medical visits as more satisfying and participatory than do those who see physicians of other races, even when the nature of the conversation in both types of visits is similar, a Johns Hopkins study finds. ... ...Results of the study of audiotaped conversations between physicians and patients showed that medical...Uncovering mysteries beneath the Earth's surface
If we humans can rely on CAT scans to form three-dimensional computer models of our insides, surely "CAT scans for the Earth" can be valuable in finding contaminants such as nuclear waste, to replace drilling and other harmful methods. Miller and his team, with funding from the Department of Energy, are busily toiling away on this very kind of environmental remediation and monitoring. ...For much...Estrogen receptor-a disruption and vasodilation in coronary arteries
Bethesda, MD In women, the risk of coronary heart disease increases significantly after menopause. Estrogen therapy, however, reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy postmenopausal women. Estrogen enhances endothelial function of the coronary arteries, and this may contribute to the cardioprotective effects of the female hormone.... ...The precise mechanisms that mediate the benefi...Ethical guidelines needed before 'nutrigenomic' groceries come to market
......New research designed to help consumers create customized diets based on their genetic make up will create ethical and legal challenges with serious implications for the scientific and medical communities, warns a new consultation paper by a panel of international experts.... ...The paper, "Nutrition and Genes: Science, Society and the Supermarket," a joint project of the University of To...Scientists, physicians discuss latest discoveries for stopping cancer before it starts
A low-carbohydrate diet, rather than a low-fat diet, may halt the progression of prostate cancer. Conversely, vitamin A and related compounds present in dairy products, beef fat and fish oil, slow the growth of prostate tumors. ... Eating fruits and vegetables reduces breast cancer risk but may not impede colorectal cancer; while ginger potentially can. ... Drinking green tea helps keep the...Purdue biologists' spotlight solves mysteries of photosynthesis, metabolism
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A complete molecular-scale picture of how plants convert sunlight to chemical energy has been obtained at Purdue University, offering potential new insights into animal metabolism as well. ... ...Using advanced imaging techniques, a team of Purdue biologists has determined the structure of the cytochrome, a protein complex that governs photosynthesis in a blue-green bacteri...NSF'S 'FIBR' to mix disciplines, use breakthroughs on 5-year explorations into biology's mysteries
ARLINGTON, Va.--How do species arise? Do they even matter among microbes? And what does sex--or more precisely, genetic recombination--do for Daphnia?... ...These questions are among those to be pursued by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) new Frontiers in Integrative Biological Research (FIBR) program, which today announced its first six five-year projects. Totaling $30 million, they e...Salmon farms pose significant threat to salmon fisheries in the Pacific Northwest, researchers find
The growing popularity of farm-raised salmon has plunged the commercial fishing industry in the Pacific Northwest into a state of crisis, according to a new report by Stanford University researchers.... ...Writing in the October issue of ENVIRONMENT magazine, the research team found that, since the late 1980s, worldwide production of farm salmon has increased fivefold, while the market share of w...SPR Annual Meeting features newsworthy discoveries
The 43rd annual meeting of the Society for Psychophysiological Research (SPR) will be October 29 November 2, 2003 in Chicago, Illinois. The meeting is being held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago, 151 East Wacker Drive.... ...SPR's annual meeting is widely regarded as a leading forum for presentations on cutting-edge research on the connections between the physiological and psychological aspects of...MOSS LANDING, California--Exploring a deep-sea ridge off Northern California, scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) have discovered a unique undersea nursery, where groups of fish and octopus brood their eggs, like chickens on their nests. This is the first time that marine biologists have directly observed any deep-sea fish brooding its eggs. It is also the first tim...Dual discoveries in genetic processing improve accuracy of genome information
ARLINGTON, Va.-- University of Connecticut Health Center geneticists have made a two-fold discovery in gene recoding that will significantly increase understanding of the information in genome sequences and could prove to be a knowledge expressway scientists need for unraveling nervous system disorders such as Parkinson Disease and epilepsy....... , was supported by the National Science Foundatio...Discoveries made about cellular reaction processes from ancient life
(Blacksburg, Va., Aug. 4, 2003) -- How did life begin? What chemical combination launched the first organism with self-contained metabolism? And then what happened? Researchers in Robert H. White's group at Virginia Tech are tracing the family tree of life on earth by tracing the biochemical mechanisms within the cell -- specifically those that are used in the formation of peptide bonds....... Th...New imaging vehicle maps coral reefs to determine health of reef and fisheries
Deepwater coral reefs in the US Virgin Islands may occupy a much larger area and be in better health than previously thought, based on evidence gathered by a new autonomous underwater vehicle which flies through the sea like a helicopter.... ... ...Scientists and engineers used an autonomous underwater vehicle and imaging platform called SeaBED during a first-of-its-kind study to determine the h...New discoveries about old-growth forests
PORTLAND, Ore. July 24, 2003. Scientists have long debated exactly how to define an old-growth forest. It is generally accepted that old-growth forests are ecosystems defined as forests with old trees and related structural attributes like large trees, large dead woody material on the forest floor, and horizontal and vertical canopy diversity. ... But Tom Spies, an ecologist at the Forest Service...Deciphering how arteries contribute to hypertension
National Insitute of Standards and Technology (NIST) scientists are taking their knowledge of mechanical tensile strength tests in metals and composites and applying it to medical research problems. Doctors long have known that babies born with congenital heart defects at higher altitudes have an increased risk of developing complications, such as pulmonary hypertension. Could there be some way t...'Immortalized' cells enable researchers to grow human arteries
DURHAM, N.C. -- In a combination of bioengineering and cancer research, a team of Duke University Medical Center researchers has made the first arteries from non-embryonic tissues in the laboratory, an important step toward growing human arteries outside of the body for use in coronary artery bypass surgery.... ...In 1999, Duke researchers led by Laura Niklason, M.D., reported in the journal Scie...Hospitalized children experience medical errors at the same rate as adults
As healthcare leaders from around the country continue to examine ways to improve patient safety in hospitals nationwide, a new study from researchers at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) finds that hospitalized children experience rates of medical errors similar to those of hospitalized adults. ... ...Based on 3.8 million pediatric discharge records from 22 states in 1997, or...Copper chelation is a promising new therapy for clogged arteries
Researchers at the Maine Medical Center Research Institute (MMCRI) in Scarborough, Maine, announce their discovery that the renarrowing of arteries following balloon angioplasty can be halted by copper chelation therapy. Preventing the function of copper in the body stops arteries from reclogging following the mechanical stress of removing arterial obstructions through angioplasty. The therapy...Automated imaging of brain tissue, high-quality glimpses inside arteries
... ... ... ...Washington, DC, May 21, 2003 ----- The Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics/Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference (CLEO/QELS) 2003 -- a leading conference showcasing new results in laser science, quantum optics, and related fields -- will take place June 1-6, 2003 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, MD. This year's...Scientists returning to field of eerie thermal spires
The bizarre hydrothermal vent field discovered a little more than two years ago surprised scientists not only with vents that are the tallest ever seen the one that's 18 stories dwarfs most vents at other sites by at least 100 feet but also because the fluids forming these vents are heated by seawater reacting with million-year-old mantle rocks, not by young volcanism. ... The remarkable Lost C...Tufts University biologists unveil more mysteries of fireflies flash
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, Mass. A new study by biologists at Tufts University has translated what male fireflies are saying to females when they flash their lights - and it looks like the males are bragging....... The National Science Foundation-funded research found that female fireflies are strongly attracted to males who give longer flashes because it indicates they are able to be better fathers by...