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Scientists identify mechanism that regulate nuclear size

Size matters when it comes to the nucleus of a cell, and now scientists have discovered the signals that control how big the nucleus gets. Nuclear size varies not only among different species, but also in different types of cells in the same species and at different times during development. In addition, cancer cells are known to develop larger nuclei as they become more malignant. Screening for cervical cancer, for example, involves looking for grossly distorted nuclei in cervical cells collected during a Pap smear.

15 Oct 2010

Fitness freaks may have higher sex drive

According to Dr Peter Biro and his colleagues in their latest study, people obsessed with staying fit may have higher sex drives and also tend to be more aggressive and socially dominant. The team was studying the relationship between behavior and metabolic rate in a number of insects, birds and animals.

14 Oct 2010

A bad job is worse than unemployment: Mental health study

According to the latest research a bad job is worse than unemployment for a person’s mental health. The study was published today in the journal BMC Public Health. Australian National University (ANU) researchers conducted the study.

14 Oct 2010

Scientists discover 'switch' mechanism of lymphatic and blood vessel cells

Scientists at the University of East Anglia have made an important breakthrough in the way anti-cancer drugs are tested. A tumour cannot grow to a large size or spread until it has developed its own blood supply and leading research has looked for a way of halting capillary formation to stop tumours taking hold.But new findings published today in the Journal of Cell Science have shown that scientists testing such treatments may not have been studying exactly what they thought they were.

14 Oct 2010

Kineta awarded second NIH contract to identify new drug targets and candidates

Kineta announced today it has been awarded its second NIH contract in twelve months - the latest focused on mining vast, existing, basic research databases with the goal of identifying new drug targets and candidates. The project will be directed at five key therapeutic areas: infectious, cardiovascular, neurological, metabolic and autoimmune diseases.

14 Oct 2010

Real-time data access can improve quality and efficiency of drug development

Technologies to capture and view clinical trial data in real time offer great potential to enhance patient safety, strengthen trial quality and accelerate drug development, but they also require new guidelines to ensure trial integrity, according to the white paper "Using Real-Time Data to Drive Better Decisions, Faster" released today by Quintiles, the world's leading biopharmaceutical services company.

14 Oct 2010

Patient-specific experimental vaccine to prevent recurrence of glioblastoma

Mary Lee's primary care physician is also a family friend. When he walked into the exam room in October 2006 with tears in his eyes, she knew something serious was wrong. But she was shocked to learn she had a brain tumor - and later found out it was the most aggressive malignant type, a glioblastoma multiforme.

14 Oct 2010

'Brain-computer interface' development receives Arizona Biomedical Research Commission grant

Efforts to advance technology to aid people who have lost communication and movement abilities are getting support from an Arizona Biomedical Research Commission grant for a project combining resources and expertise at Arizona State University and the Children's Neuroscience Institute at Phoenix Children's Hospital.

14 Oct 2010

LFA announces award of new grants for lupus research

The Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. (LFA) today announced the awarding of six new research grants to address gaps in the science and understanding of key areas of lupus research, including pediatric lupus, reproductive health issues in people with lupus, lupus nephritis (kidney involvement), and neuropsychiatric lupus, which affects the brain and nervous system.

14 Oct 2010

Study suggests link between individual's personality and capacity to exercise

There may be a fundamental link between aspects of an individual's personality and their capacity to exercise or generate energy, recent research suggests.

14 Oct 2010

Research finds fat cells can secrete hormones

Scientists are reporting new evidence that the fat tissue in those spare tires and lower belly pooches - far from being a dormant storage depot for surplus calories - is an active organ that sends chemical signals to other parts of the body, perhaps increasing the risk of heart attacks, cancer, and other diseases. They are reporting discovery of 20 new hormones and other substances not previously known to be secreted into the blood by human fat cells and verification that fat secretes dozens of hormones and other chemical messengers.

14 Oct 2010

Scientists identify root cause of chromosomal errors and gene diversity

A team led by a scientist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine has discovered a regulatory protein that influences where genetic material gets swapped between maternal and paternal chromosomes during the process of creating eggs and sperm. The findings, which shed light on the roots of chromosomal errors and gene diversity, appear in tomorrow's issue of Nature.

14 Oct 2010

Drugs that restore mitochondria function may treat Alzheimer's disease at early stages: Research

Before Alzheimer's patients experience memory loss, the brain's neurons have already suffered harm for years. A new study in mouse models by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center has found that the brain's mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cell, are one of the earliest casualties of the disease. The study, which appeared in the online Early Edition of PNAS, also found that impaired mitochondria then injure the neurons' synapses, which are necessary for normal brain function.

14 Oct 2010

Stimulating brain's nicotine receptors may eliminate side effects of Alzheimer's drug: Research

A team of neuroscientists has discovered important new information in the search for an effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease, the debilitating neurological disorder that afflicts more than 5.3 million Americans and is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. Hey-Kyoung Lee, associate professor in the University of Maryland Department of Biology, and her research team have shown that they may be able to eliminate debilitating side effects caused by a promising Alzheimer's drug by stimulating the brain's nicotine receptors.

14 Oct 2010

Global project to find biological activity in sea organisms suitable for pharmaceutical products

Researchers at the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Helsinki are co-ordinating an extensive project which aims to find biological activity from among organisms in the sea which would be suitable for use as a basis for pharmaceutical products. Interesting compounds isolated from organisms in the sea are chemically modified to be more suitable for medical purposes.

13 Oct 2010

Medicago and PATH partner on development of broad coverage influenza vaccine

Medicago Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing highly effective and affordable vaccines based on proprietary manufacturing technologies and Virus-Like Particles (VLPs), today announced that it has been awarded $946,000 in funding by U.S.-based PATH pursuant to a research collaboration agreement. Medicago and PATH will work together on a broad coverage influenza vaccine based on Medicago's proprietary plant-based Virus-Like Particle (VLP) technologies for the developing world.

13 Oct 2010

New York Stem Cell Foundation names first six NYSCF Investigators

In an expansion of its ongoing effort to promote the next generation of stem cell scientists, The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) today named the first six NYSCF Investigators. Each of the NYSCF-Robertson and NYSCF-Helmsley Investigators will receive up to $1.5 million over the next five years to expand their own laboratories, train other scientists and foster innovative high-risk/high reward research to explore the therapeutic potential of stem cells derived from humans and model organisms.

13 Oct 2010

Study examines restrictive strategy of RBC transfusion in patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery

Use of stricter guidelines for the use of red blood cell transfusions for patients undergoing cardiac surgery was associated similar rates of death and severe illness compared to patients who received more transfusions, according to a study in the October 13 issue of JAMA. Another study in this issue of JAMA examines the variation in the use of blood transfusions for patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

13 Oct 2010

Pycnogenol effective in relieving tinnitus symptoms: Study

More than 50 million Americans will experience some degree of tinnitus in their lifetime, according to the American Tinnitus Association. Tinnitus is a hearing condition that causes the constant misperception of sound, including hissing, ringing and rushing noises. A study recently published in Panminerva Medica reveals that Pycnogenol (pic-noj-en-all), an antioxidant plant extract derived from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, is effective in relieving tinnitus symptoms by improving blood flow in the inner ear.

13 Oct 2010

Study demonstrates chitosan/IL-12 is an effective anti-tumor immunotherapy

A new study by a University of Arkansas biomedical engineer and his colleagues at the National Cancer Institute demonstrates further promise for chitosan/interleukin-12 as an effective anti-tumor immunotherapy.

13 Oct 2010