DNA Imaging to Design Better Drugs
...n be performed on long piecesof DNA -- from 300 to over 100,000 base pairs -- that more closelyresemble the genetic material in the cells of living organisms. Traditional methods that derive information from longer DNA strandsinclude linear and circular dichroism, viscometry and sedimentation.These metho...Digital Speech Analysis Tests Sobriety
...d under emotional stress, with an accuracy rate of over 90percent. For her current research, Cummings said, "the idea is, can we do thesame thing with sober versus intoxicated speech? If we have a sample ofsomebody's speech from an accident or at a particular time, can weanalyze it and say, 'Yes, this pe...Chemists Develop Probe To Detect Changes In Imaging Agents Inside Body
...e probes appear to be working well despiteconcerns over their stability. "You have the heart beating and bumping, and you know howfragile the carbon fiber is. We tried it, and we didn't have anyproblems with it." Professor Heineman believes the probes could eventually beused to study other medically impor...New Colorectal Cancer Treatment Available
... are planning to enroll approximately 660 patients over the next year who have newly diagnosed metastatic disease and have not been treated with chemotherapy or those who may have received adjuvant chemotherapy but have been disease-free for at least one year. About 50 centers throughout the U.S., Canada...Hopkins Researchers Develop Under-The-Skin Implant For Pain Treatment
...s released in a steady amount into the bloodstream over one to three months. The shape and size of the polymer, which is made at Hopkins, controls the release of pain medication. "Different polymers will be available to meet the needs of a particular patient, so that patients requiring more pain control ...Maternal Exposure To Crack Cocaine Produces Stressed Newborns
...r-cut evidence into a two-decade-old medicaldebate over what happens to newborns whose mothers smoke crack cocaine duringpregnancy. Its testing procedure was developed by the Brown researchers as partof an ongoing, long-term multisite study, sponsored by the NationalInstitutes of Health, of about 1,400 in...What Makes Tics Tick? Clues Found In Tourette Twins' Caudates
...kely explains the ebb and flow of tics experienced over the course of Tourette Syndrome and its overlap with obsessive compulsive disorder. "While we know that genetics plays an important role in transmission of Tourette Syndrome, the fact that identical twins show differences in symptom severity suggests...Study Demonstrates Safety & Effectiveness Of Asthma Drug
...each of the study locations were able to enterdata over the Internet using an online form. The data were then verifiedby data managers at Hershey. In addition to keeping a daily record of symptoms,10 to 16 pages of data were produced for all 255 patients on each of 12hospital visits. After a 6-week evalu...Raising The Retirement Age In The United States Could Save Billions In Social Security Payments
...helpshore up the ailing Social Security trust fund over the long term, accordingto two university research...hat 24 percent of the country's populationmight be over age 65 by the year 2025. One response has been for older managersin Japan to continue working as sen...A Surgical Semiconductor Laser With More Precision And Power
...that semiconductor lasers offer several advantages over thegas lasers more widely used in surgery. They're.... Semiconductor lasers also have an advantage over gas lasers in portability: gas lasers are often immovablerefrigerator-sized units. By contrast, a se...KUMC Researchers Announce Breakthrough Method For Predicting Epileptic Seizures
...oject has been in development at KU Medical Center over the past three and a half years. Standard electroencephalograms (EEGs) can record when a seizure occurs. EEGs are tools used to measure electrical activity within the brain. By using the algorithm, researchers can now predict when a seizure is...It Matters Where, In America, You Suffer A Heart Attack
...hen you look at what actually happens to a patient over the span of a year. "We found evidence of a patient management strategy on the West Coast that seems to strike the best balance between cost and patient outcomes," Mark said. "It combines quick decisions about use of interventions, a moderate use ...Benefits Of New Diet Drug Don't Outweigh Risks
...lacebo, but the advantage of taking the medication over a placebo after a year is less than 5-and-a-half pounds," said David Levitsky, professor of nutritional sciences and of psychology in the Division of Nutritional Sciences and Department of Psychology at Cornell and a nationally known expert on the co...Laser Shown Effective In Patients Who Are Not Candidates For Bypass Surgery Or Angioplasty
...he procedure, andit appears that the benefit lasts over time. A six-month follow-up alsodemonstrated that...e 101 patients in the medical therapy groupcrossed over to the TMR arm of the trial because of unstable angina. "The mortality rate for the group that...Laser Offers Hope For Heart Patients With No Alternatives
...heartmedications. If these benefits are sustained over time, this will be anotherimportant therapy for a very sick group of patients." Specifically, the procedure is approved for patients who have not respondedto the two standard therapies for blocked or diseased coronary arteries:coronary arter...UNC-CH Study Shows State Protects HMO Clients Poorly
...rstandable. track problems associated with HMOs over time. make data comparing selected aspects of competing health plans available to consumers. improve the due process requirement. give the N.C. Department of Insurance broader power to ensure quality of services. The Robert Wood Johnson ...Study Injects New Interest In How Vaccines Work
... enough," Hem says. Though scientists have puzzled over the mechanism by which aluminum hydroxide increase...f the substance that remained in vaccinated tissue over a period of time. They developed a series of rabbit vaccines containing a small amount of aluminum-2...New Drug For Parkinson's Disease Proves Effective, Study Finds
...vements. The condition of patients slowly declines over a period of years or even decades, with the hardest-hitunable even to stand or walk. Current drugs reduce the symptoms, but their effects wane with time. Pramipexole dihydrochloride is a member of a family of drugsknown as dopamine agonists, whi...Mother's Milk: Nutrition And Nurture For Infants -- And The Best Defense Against Disease
...accineresponses in breast-fed infants are enhanced over those of formula-fed babies.One proposed mechanism...ual pathogen proteins. A number of studies over the last decade have also revealed the presenceof more than a dozen cytokines in breast milk. Cytoki......rs safe behind the wheel, according to a review of over 54studies. These findings will be presented at the 105th AmericanPsychological Association's (APA) Annual Convention in Chicago. "What we found in this comprehensive review," said researcherJohn R. Mattox, II, M.S., from the University of Memphi...