JCI table of contents -- July 26, 2007
...truction of the dying cells by dendritic cells was irregular and the mice became susceptible to the development of a multiple sclerosis-like autoimmune response. This is the first study demonstrating that macrophages in the marginal zone of the spleen regulate not only efficient clearance of dying cells, but a...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
... expected, activityrest cycles in R6/2 mice became irregular with age, as did expression of the circadian proteins mPER1 and mPER2 in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). In slices, however, the electrophysiological and molecular clockwork of the SCN appeared intact in R6/2 mice, suggesting that the intrinsic SC...Scientists take next step in understanding potential target for ovarian cancer treatment
...ancer cells. Then, drug development, targeting the irregular function of the protein, can begin. Our studies provide a better understanding of how the protein works, what it does, and how its functions may be altered in cancer cells. This leads us to the critical next step -- the design of drugs that can r...Double identities lie behind chromosome disorders
...rs in sex cells cause infertility, miscarriage and irregular numbers of chromosomes (aneuploidy) in neonates. A new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the scientific journal Nature Genetics shows how chromosome disorders can arise when sex cells are formed. Sex cells contain a control station for...Mother-of-pearl -- Classic beauty and remarkable strength
... wall contained distinct clumps of bricks, each an irregular column of crystals with identical composition but ... orientation, gradually building a rough column of irregular width. With further experiments, the researchers hope to test and refine their model as well as ex...Researchers identify fifth gene responsible for Joubert syndrome
...n developmental delay, poor physical coordination, irregular breathing, visual impairment, kidney failure and extra digits. Diverse symptoms may occur making diagnosis difficult, though patients typically feature a characteristic configuration of the brainstem and cerebellum on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)...Duetting birds with rhythm present a greater threat
...ely poorer vocals often include gaps, overlaps, or irregular tempos. Yet the influence of those timing differences on the level of threat perceived by members of the birds listening audiences remained uncertain. Hall and study collaborator Robert Magrath of Australian National University, Canberra, tested th...Species thrive when sexual dimorphism broadens their niches
...horter legs better suited to navigating narrow and irregular twigs. West Indian anole species also vary greatly in their degree of sexual dimorphism, ranging from species where adult males and females are the same size to those where the mass of adult males is triple than of adult females. Sexual differences...Study confirms the risk of exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke outdoors
...ems, including asthma attacks, chronic bronchitis, irregular heartbeat, nonfatal heart attacks and even premature death in people with heart or lung disease. The current EPA ambient air standard for PM2.5 is 35 micrograms per cubic meter of air averaged over 24 hours. Levels that exceed 35 micrograms are cons...The brain is more adept at using the nose than previously realized
.... When smells were quite distinct, they used more irregular activity, and the oscillations became more regular when the smells were similar. Other researchers had shown that activated regions of the olfactory bulb overlap when smells are similar but are distinct when the smells are different. Beshel and Kay ...Think herbal supplements are safe? Think again, book by Saint Louis University doctor says
...as been linked to cardiovascular problems, such as irregular heart rhythm and low blood pressure. If a patient takes the herb along with an antihypertensive drug, her blood pressure could plummet, putting her at risk of stroke. Some people take echinacea, which enhances the immune system, for the common cold...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
...rent fluctuations, suggesting that they can encode irregular inputs, not just integrate the mean input. The authors suggest that the adaptation to input mean, but not to the variance, may be explained by slow voltage-dependent inactivation of the sodium current. Seems these neurons can stay on task even in a n...Fruit flies may pave way to new treatments for age-related heart disease
...utation exhibited prolonged heart contractions and irregular beats seen usually in older flies (and older people). To enable their study of the fly heart, the researchers created new methods to dissect the hearts, and quantify heart contractility and other functions by using a movie camera to capture flys card...Active lifestyle reduces risk of invasive breast cancer
... at the time of the first period, and tend to have irregular periods and a shortened estrogen-producing phase, which translates in a lower body exposure to estrogen, the researchers say. Similarly, postmenopausal women who are physically active have also been shown to have lower levels of estrogen. This red...'Biomimetic Technologies' project will create first soft-bodied robots
... machines including climbing textured surfaces and irregular objects, crawling along ropes and wires, or burrowing into complex confined spaces. "Soft-bodied robots could make many dangerous surgeries much safer and less painful," Trimmer adds. "They could also be used by NASA to repair space stations by reach...Thinking with the spinal cord?
...rk activity underlying movements, show the similar irregular firing patterns as seen in the cerebral cortex. New approach "Our findings contradict conventional wisdom about spinal cord functions," says Rune W. Berg from Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology at the Faculty of Health Sciences. Unti...News tips from the Journal of Neuroscience
... to wakefulness, striatal discharge switched to an irregular firing pattern. Because MSNs are the major input to basal ganglia, such state-dependent changes in firing patterns are likely to have a major influence on basal ganglia function. 4. A Clue to Gender Influences on Depression Lisa M. Hines, Paula L...Control mechanism for biological pattern formation decoded
...fusion than the activator, thereby stabilizing the irregular distribution. This kind of dynamic could determine the arrangement of periodic body structures and the pattern of fur markings. Biologists from the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology in Freiburg, in collaboration with theoretical physicists and ...Temperament linked to onset of cancer and early death in female rats
...o. The apprehensive rats were more likely to have irregular reproductive cycles than adventuresome rats, and t... twice as likely as the adventuresome rats to have irregular cycles (52 percent, versus 22 percent). The cycles stabilized after the rats reached adulthood, and ...... heads cease normal growth, and they begin to show irregular breathing, obsessive hand-wringing, and autistic behaviors. Researchers had traced the RTT's cause to mutations in the gene for methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2)--a protein found in tissues throughout the body that regulates many target genes by...