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More scientific evidence supporting Darwinian views of evolution

Studies at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine on brain electrical signaling offer a fresh perspective on vertebrate evolution, provide additional evidence supporting Darwinian views of evolution, and may also lead to more effective treatment of epileptic seizures in infants.

21 Jan 2009

Health and environmental hazards of tungsten

Surprising new scientific research is raising concerns about the potential health and environmental hazards of tungsten - a metal used in products ranging from bullets to light bulbs to jewelry - that scientists once thought was environmentally-benign, according to an article scheduled for the Jan. 19 issue of Chemical & Engineering News , ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

19 Jan 2009

Ancient fish provides new piece in the jigsaw puzzle of human origins

In an article in the journal Nature, Uppsala researcher Martin Brazeau describes the skull and jaws of a fish that lived about 410 million years ago.

19 Jan 2009

Nanotechnology safety high on Congress' priority list

The House Science and Technology Committee has introduced legislation that highlights the growing attention on Capitol Hill to the need to strengthen federal efforts to learn more about the potential environmental, health and safety (EHS) risks posed by engineered nanomaterials.

19 Jan 2009

FDA issues final guidance on genetically engineered animal regulation

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a final guidance for industry on the regulation of genetically engineered (GE) animals under the new animal drug provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

19 Jan 2009

Barriers to effective FDA regulation of nanotechnology-based dietary supplements

The ability of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate the safety of dietary supplements using nanomaterials is severely limited by lack of information, lack of resources and the agency's lack of statutory authority in certain critical areas, according to a new expert report released by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN).

15 Jan 2009

Genetic variation cues social anxiety in monkeys and humans

A genetic variation involving the brain chemical serotonin has been found to shape the social behavior of rhesus macaque monkeys, which could provide researchers with a new model for studying autism, social anxiety and schizophrenia.

15 Jan 2009

Pasture-based farming passes the taste test and is healthier too

Cattle and sheep grazed on natural grasslands help maintain biodiversity and produce tastier, healthier meat, according to a study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

15 Jan 2009

Researchers learn to synthesize and control the formation of nanobristles

From the structure of DNA to nautical rope to distant spiral galaxies, helical forms are as abundant as they are useful in nature and manufacturing alike.

9 Jan 2009

Researchers measure repulsive Casimir forces

Researchers from Harvard University and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have measured, for the first time, a repulsive quantum mechanical force that could be harnessed and tailored for a wide range of new nanotechnology applications.

7 Jan 2009

Genomics in China

Ten years ago, the Chinese National Human Genome Center at Shanghai (South Center, hereafter) was established in the Zhangjiang HiTech Park of Pudong District in Shanghai.

7 Jan 2009

Levitating nanomechanics shows potential to improve medicine

Magicians have long created the illusion of levitating objects in the air. Now researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Harvard University have actually levitated an object, suspending it without the need for external support.

7 Jan 2009

Gene named scrawny keeps stem cells healthy

Stem cells are the body's primal cells, retaining the youthful ability to develop into more specialized types of cells over many cycles of cell division.

6 Jan 2009

Biologist finds plant polymerases IV and V are really variants of polymerase II

It's a little like finding out that Superman is actually Clark Kent. A team of biologists at Washington University in St. Louis has discovered that two vital cellular components, nuclear RNA Polymerases IV and V (Pol IV and V), found only in plants, are actually specialized forms of RNA Polymerase II, an essential enzyme of all eukaryotic organisms, including humans.

6 Jan 2009