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Coalition's guidelines on fish consumption for pregnant women 'misleading,' opinion piece says

The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition's recent recommendations for fish and seafood consumption for pregnant and breast-feeding women are "misleading" and a "classic example of industry-driven marketing under the cloak of scientific research," Andrea Kavanagh, director of the National Environmental Trust's Pure Salmon Campaign, writes in a Los Angeles Times opinion piece (Kavanagh, Los Angeles Times, 10/31).

31 Oct 2007

Visual field loss increases the risk of falls in older adults

Visual field loss (specifically peripheral visual fields) is the primary vision component that increases the risk of falls, according to a study published this month in Investigative Ophthalmology and Vision Science, a peer-reviewed monthly publication of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO).

31 Oct 2007

Molecular condom that protects against AIDS

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman's ongoing trade delegation to India will initiate a long-term international collaboration with that country and the University of Utah.

31 Oct 2007

Clinical threshold for inflammatory bowel disease surgery may be too high

The clinical threshold for undertaking elective surgery to remove part or all of the colon (colectomy) for people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may be too high, warn researchers in a study published on bmj.com.

31 Oct 2007

Neural stem cells may help to restore memory after brain damage

In the study, mice with brain injuries experienced enhanced memory -- similar to the level found in healthy mice -- up to three months after receiving a stem cell treatment. Scientists believe the stem cells secreted proteins called neurotrophins that protected vulnerable cells from death and rescued memory.

31 Oct 2007

Speed plays crucial role in breaking protein's H-bonds

Researchers at MIT studying the architecture of proteins have finally explained why computer models of proteins' behavior under mechanical duress differ dramatically from experimental observations.

31 Oct 2007

Scripps design new type of vaccine that could one day be used in humans to block the onset of infection

In hopes of combating the growing scourge of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, in particular drug-resistant staph bacteria, a team of scientists from the Scripps Research Institute has designed a new type of vaccine that could one day be used in humans to block the onset of infection.

31 Oct 2007

Herb rosemary fights free radical damage in the brain

Rosemary not only tastes good in culinary dishes such as Rosemary chicken and lamb, but scientists have now found it is also good for your brain.

31 Oct 2007

Significant improvement over current test for human papillomavirus

Iowa State University researchers have developed a technology that detects a single molecule of the virus associated with cervical cancer in women.

31 Oct 2007

Novel strategy to inactivate encephalitis virus

A collaborative team of scientists from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have developed a novel strategy to inactivate highly virulent Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) that can infect and kill both animals and humans.

31 Oct 2007

Research programme for foods and services promoting well-being

One of the challenges facing the food industry is how to create tasty, convenient and experiential products made from health promoting ingredients.

31 Oct 2007

The role of growth factor in vertebrae formation

The Stowers Institute's Pourquié Lab has demonstrated the role of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) in the embryonic process of somitogenesis, an event required for vertebrae formation, in a paper posted to the Web site of the journal Development.

31 Oct 2007

Step toward mapping the human decision-making process

The brain, the human supercomputer, might work more like an assembly line when recognizing objects, with a hierarchy of brain regions separately absorbing and processing information before a person realizes what they are seeing, according to new research conducted at the University of Pittsburgh and published in the Oct. 31 edition of the Journal of Neuroscience.

31 Oct 2007

Fiber composites for bone implants

Stainless steel will be replaced by fiber composites. This is the future for bone implants, according to a team of EU researchers who will be meeting at a conference hosted by the University College of Boras, Sweden, on November 5-6.

31 Oct 2007

New brain marker predicts cognitive decline and the development of Alzheimer's disease

Duke University Medical Center researchers have used imaging technology to identify a new marker that may help identify those at greatest risk for cognitive decline and the development of Alzheimer's disease.

31 Oct 2007

Light beams used as tweezers to manipulate cells

In a feat that seems like something out of a microscopic version of Star Trek, MIT researchers have found a way to use a "tractor beam" of light to pick up, hold, and move around individual cells and other objects on the surface of a microchip.

31 Oct 2007

Sensitivity to smells explained

Some people are oblivious to the odor in the locker room after a game, while others wrinkle their noses at the slightest whiff of sweat.

31 Oct 2007

Key findings for all veterans seen in depression and suicide study

The largest and most up-to-date study of suicides among depressed veterans provides important new data that may help guide screening and treatment for all veterans.

31 Oct 2007

Fibromyalgia pain caused by neuron mismatch

The unexplained pain experienced by patients with fibromyalgia is the result of a mismatch between sensory and motor systems, new research suggests.

31 Oct 2007

How can some people live at high altitudes and thrive while others struggle?

The answer for Tibetans who live at altitudes around 14,000 feet is increased nitric oxide (NO) levels. High levels of NO circulate in various forms in the blood and produce the physiological mechanisms that cause the increased blood flow that maintains oxygen delivery despite hypoxia - low levels of oxygen in the ambient air and the bloodstream.

31 Oct 2007