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Variation in a taste receptor gene influences taste sensitivity

Variation in a taste receptor gene influences taste sensitivity of children and adults, accounting for individual differences in taste preferences and food selection, report a team of researchers from the Monell Chemical Senses Center. In addition to genes, age and culture also contribute to taste preferences, at times overriding the influence of genetics.

7 Feb 2005

High consumption of dairy products and fruits and vegetables may lower the risk of disability

There may be more reason than ever to drink your milk and eat your fruits and vegetables. A Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center researcher and colleagues reported today that high consumption of dairy products and fruits and vegetables may lower the risk of disability, especially among black women.

7 Feb 2005

Cell research signals cancer hope

Scientists have moved a step closer to understanding what happens when cells receive a faulty signal that is known to be a cause of cancer.

From The University of Manchester 3 Feb 2005

Potential risk of suffering ischemic stroke shortly after discontinuing aspirin

Stroke survivors who stopped taking their prescribed daily aspirin tripled their risk of having another stroke within the month, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2005.

3 Feb 2005

African American men who live in the south are at significantly higher risk of dying from stroke

African American men who live in southern states are at significantly higher risk of dying from stroke than African American men living elsewhere, researchers reported at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2005.

3 Feb 2005

Gene therapy helps generate bone around dental implants

A University of Michigan research team has found that introducing a growth factor protein into a mouth wound using gene therapy helped generate bone around dental implants, according to a new paper in the February issue of the journal Molecular Therapy.

3 Feb 2005

Gene used in brain development can cause childhood brain cancers

A gene that's normally silenced after contributing to brain development was found to be expressed in cells from medulloblastoma, the most common form of pediatric brain malignancy in children, scientists report in an article published in the February 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research.

3 Feb 2005

Rheumatoid arthritis linked to excess risk of congestive heart failure

A serious chronic disease, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by inflammation and damage of the joint, major organ involvement and increased mortality. Among patients, about one in three deaths results from cardiovascular disease (conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels).

3 Feb 2005

Reaction time and IQ may predict long life

The ancient Greeks imagined three Fates - one spun the thread of life, the second measured its length, and the third snipped it off. Science has tried to provide more plausible (if less poetic) reasons for why some of us live longer than others.

3 Feb 2005

Research reveals a novel key player in the initiation of colon cancer

Gastric and colorectal cancers account for more than 1 million deaths worldwide every year and several research groups have been working to identify the molecular events that result in the initiation and progression of these tumors.

3 Feb 2005

Transient ischemic attack (TIA) patients receive less aggressive attention than those with stroke

Transient ischemic attack (TIA) patients receive less aggressive diagnostic testing, treatment and education compared to stroke patients, which is a missed opportunity to prevent permanent disability or death, researchers reported at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2005.

3 Feb 2005

Women who feel more loved are less at risk for major depression than men

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have found that women who feel more loved and supported by their friends, relatives and children are less at risk for major depression than men, suggesting important gender differences in the pathways leading to depression.

3 Feb 2005

State policies decrease youth smoking, drinking, sex

State policies, such as taxing the sale of cigarettes and alcohol, decrease teenage smoking and drinking, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

3 Feb 2005

Bacterial spread all down to chance: some strains 'just the luckyones'

Scientists have discovered that factors such as human immunity and drug resistance are less important to the success of bacterial spread than previously thought.

3 Feb 2005

Highest average rate of US road deaths on Independence Day

More than 100 people die on US roads every day, but there is definitely a seasonal trend, with the highest average death toll on July 4, Independence Day, reveals research in Injury Prevention.

3 Feb 2005

Mitochondria - the energy factories in our cells - can sustain a cancer

University of Glasgow scientists have discovered how mitochondria - the energy factories in our cells - can sustain a cancer, reporting their findings in a new study published in Cancer Cell.

31 Jan 2005

New understanding of the causes for symptoms of sickle cell disease

A new understanding of the causes for symptoms of sickle cell disease, a condition affecting one in every 600 African-Americans, has resulted from a study by researchers at Duke University Medical Center and Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). Their findings may lead to a new, more direct method for treating the disease, they said.

31 Jan 2005

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

A gene that plays many fundamental roles in cells throughout the body has, for the first time, been implicated in human disease, according to researchers at the Duke Center for Human Genetics.

31 Jan 2005

Significant advance toward understanding lifelong process of blood cell formation

A research study published in the February issue of Developmental Cell expands on previous studies by using adult animals to examine the role of a key gene known to be required for blood cell formation. Information gained from this research will be useful for future studies aimed at directing stem cell differentiation in a variety of potential therapeutic contexts.

31 Jan 2005

New insights into how a language is born

How is a language born? What are its essential elements? Linguists are gaining new insights into these age-old conundrums from a language created in a small village in Israel's Negev Desert.

31 Jan 2005