Mechanism of RNA recoding: New twists in brain protein production
...e an array of proteins from a single DNA sequence, each with a slightly different function. Producing different proteins in a cell at once could let organisms fine tune biological processes with extreme precision--a level of flexibility the DNA code doesn't afford. "Genetics is digital," says Reenan, ad...Brain imaging study may hold clues to onset of schizophrenia in people at high risk
...icipants must ignore an auditory tone sounded when each cue is presented. "Of particular interest was the neural activity generated by a series of infrequent circles that were designated as 'target' events, which participants were instructed to detect and respond to as quickly as possible by pressing a b...'Chemistry and Flavor of Hispanic Foods' one-day symposium, March 15
...g tequila, orange liqueur and lime) and found that each of its ingredients contains a few hundred flavor components, indicating that its simple flavor belies its chemical complexity. They hope to use this study to improve the taste of margaritas and produce new food products based on its flavor. ( AGFD 11...Study shows risk of cardiac death after radiation for breast cancer has dramatically decreased
... cardiac mortality. The researchers concluded that each year after 1979, the risk of death from ischemic heart disease declined by six percent annually in women with left sided breast cancer compared to those with disease on their right side. Giordano cautions that death from ischemic heart disease may no...Mayo Clinic discovers 'new pathway' against pancreatic cancer
...er annually, and the disease kills the same number each year. Ninety percent of these cancers are pancreatic ductular adenocarcinoma, the fourth leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Pancreatic cancer patients have one of the poorest prognoses -- the five-year survival rate is 3 percent. Be...Community care tops medical care at preventing heart disease in black Americans
...eginning and end of the study to assess changes in each individual's risk factors. The researchers also used the Framingham Risk Score, an estimate of the likelihood of developing major heart problems, such as a heart attack, within 10 years. Roughly half (196) of the participants were provided with comm...Multi-center study shows direct link between residential radon exposure and lung cancer
...States with an estimated 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year related to radon exposure, according to EPA. A radioactive, invisible, odorless gas that comes from the decay of naturally occurring uranium in the earth's soil, radon can accumulate in enclosed areas, such as underground mines and homes. The i...Genetics important in age-related macular degeneration
...esearchers found. "Environmental factors unique to each twin were estimated to account for 19 to 37 percent of the variation in AMD grade [level of severity] and 28 to 64 percent of the variation in the specific macular measures." "In summary, based on what is, to our knowledge, the largest twin study o...Simple blood test may help to predict cardiovascular risk in older women
...th the highest level. Medical histories were taken each year for six years of follow-up. Only participants who were entirely free of clinical CVD and cancer at the beginning of the study were included in the analysis. Women in the fourth quartile (highest WBC) had a doubled risk for coronary heart diseas...Mountain life spells longer life
...ssure, and alcohol consumption, were collected for each person in 1981. Blood samples were also taken to build up the profile of biochemical health. Overall, both men and women living in the mountain village had a worse coronary heart disease risk profile than their peers living in the lowland area, with...AACC and The Endocrine Society partner to promote patient education
...anizations have independently established links to each other's websites. It seemed very natural that we ... editorial board comprised of representatives from each of the participating partner associations, representing a range of expertise, reviews and approves c...HIV-1 spread through six transmission lines in the UK
...ate of a doubling of the number of people infected each year, similar to that estimated for the US subtype...the 1980s. The average number of infections across each chain was 445, approximately 2.5% of the infected population at the time. This trend is remarkably ...Rhesus monkeys reason about perspectives of others in obtaining food
...tudy published this month in Current Biology . In each of six experiments, two people stood in front of a platform, each with a grape attached to the platform. The experiments created competitive conditions, the monkeys w...Orchestra pit no danger to hearing
...rformance, all of them in the pit. The duration of each activity was roughly three hours and included two operas with average-sized orchestras. The researchers found that the noise exposure of players of all of the instrument groups fell below acceptable 85 dBA (noise exposure level measured in decibels ...Brain imaging studies investigate pain reduction by hypnosis
...ed on their skin to determine the temperature that each volunteer considered painful (8 out of 10 on a 0 to 10 pain scale). The volunteers were then split into two groups. One group was hypnotized, placed in the fMRI machine and their brain activity scanned while the painful thermal stimuli was applied. T...In solution, tiny magnetic wires scatter light
...nne Bentley described how suspended nickel wires - each 200 times thinner than a human hair - could one day serve as magneto-optical switches. The switches could aid in fields such as photonics, where light, rather than electricity, relays information. "In a broader sense, it is also helpful to study how ...Age shouldn't be a factor in kidney transplantation
...e the limited number of kidneys that are available each year from deceased donors. "There is a critical shortage of kidneys for transplantation, which puts us in the difficult situation of rationing organs," said Stratta. "Some physicians have ethical concerns that providing elderly patients with scarce d...Philanthropist Paul F. Glenn launches labs for aging research at Harvard Medical School
... and even cataracts. The hypothesis is that within each of our cells lies an evolutionarily ancient defense program that can be activated by so-called "longevity genes" which ameliorate the cellular damage that causes death and disease. Activation of these genes in genetically altered worms and flies has ...New NHS payment system 'is no panacea'
...undation hospitals, whereby providers are paid for each individual case rather than through block contracts. This new system uses healthcare resource groups (HRGs) as a measure of care based on diagnosis and complexity of treatment, but it has already run into problems. The planned roll-out across all NH...Drug that hinders blood vessel growth under study in ovarian cancer
...t 24,000 new cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed each year and about three-quarters of those new patients have advanced disease. "Ovarian cancer has no early signs and symptoms and there is not yet a screening test, such as the Pap smear for cervical cancer," Dr. Ghamande says. Despite the advanc...