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Scientists find 12 new genes with potential as drug targets

Scientists have identified 12 new genes that are somewhat strange bedfellows: Some link gallstones and blood cholesterol levels, others link melatonin and sleep patterns to small increases in glucose levels and larger jumps in the risk of diabetes.

8 Dec 2008

Brain's circuitry survives longer than previously thought in Alzheimer's

Researchers at the Babraham Institute near Cambridge, supported by the Alzheimer's Research Trust and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), have discovered that the brain's circuitry survives longer than previously thought in diseases of ageing such as Alzheimer's disease.

8 Dec 2008

Fractional dose of scarce meningitis vaccine may be effective in outbreak control

One fifth of the standard dose of a commonly used meningitis vaccine may be as effective as using the full dose.

8 Dec 2008

Hormone Oxytocin calms arguing couples

A dose of the hormone Oxytocin reduces the stress hormone Cortisol in arguing couples. In addition, Oxytocin strengthens positive behaviour, as researchers at the University of Zurich have discovered. The study by the psychologist Beate Ditzen has appeared in the specialist magazine "Biological Psychiatry".

8 Dec 2008

Genes for nine health indicators: Population study finds genetics clues

A new genome-wide study examines genetic variants associated with nine metabolic traits and is the first to draw out novel variants from a population unselected for current disease. The traits are indicators for common disease such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, blood pressure, inflammation and lipid levels.

7 Dec 2008

Study finds six genetic variants associated with 'bad' cholesterol

A new study presages a real aim of genetics: to look at whole populations to in order determine the significance of individual genetic variants for individual health. The research team, whose work is published in Nature Genetics, find six novel genetic variants that are associated with lipid levels, a common indicator of heart or artery disease.

7 Dec 2008

Body clock and sleep patterns linked to diabetes and high blood sugar

Diabetes and high levels of blood sugar may be linked to abnormalities in a person's body clock and sleep patterns, according to a genome-wide association study published today in the journal Nature Genetics.

7 Dec 2008

Scientists pinpoint immune-system targets in complex pathogens

Our immune cells have an amazingly intricate recognition system to detect invading pathogens. Often, the intricacies have overwhelmed scientists who want to know exactly what gives an alarm signal to T cells, a class of white blood cells that recognizes invaders.

7 Dec 2008

Well-armed immune cells help long-term non-progressors contain HIV

To help develop an effective HIV vaccine, researchers are trying to better understand how the immune systems of a small minority of HIV-infected people known as long-term non-progressors (LTNPs) contain the virus naturally.

5 Dec 2008

Vitamin E supplementation may reduce inflammation in the brain

With up to half of a person's body mass consisting of skeletal muscle, chronic inflammation of those muscles - which include those found in the limbs - can result in significant physical impairment.

5 Dec 2008

Treatment fails to improve common form of heart failure

A medication used for high blood pressure does not improve a common form of heart failure, according to new results from a large, international study.

5 Dec 2008

Study finds medication fails to improve common form of heart failure

A medication used for high blood pressure does not improve a common form of heart failure, according to new results from a large, international study.

5 Dec 2008

New insights into development of the human immune system

A UCSF study has found that a surprisingly high number of maternal cells enters the fetus during pregnancy, prompting the generation of special immune cells in the fetus that suppress a response against the mother.

5 Dec 2008

Breakthrough in understanding the phenomenon of nucleolar dominance

Since the machinery involved in nucleolar dominance is some of the same machinery that can go haywire in diseases such as cancer, Pikaard and his collaborators' research may have important implications for applied medical research.

5 Dec 2008

Discovery of groundbreaking technique for body to accept gene therapy

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center and the State University of New York at Stony Brook (SUNY) have developed a groundbreaking technique to sneak therapeutic genes past the body's defenses, possibly clearing one of the largest hurdles to realizing the potentials of medically altering a patient's DNA.

5 Dec 2008