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First sequence-based map of large-scale structural variation across the human genome

A nationwide team of researchers, funded in part by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has produced the first sequence-based map of large-scale structural variation across the human genome. The work, published today in the journal Nature, provides a starting point to examine how such DNA variation contributes to human health and disease.

30 Apr 2008

Binge eating and crash diets could shorten your life

According to scientists in Britain binge eating and crash dieting may significantly reduce life expectancy.

30 Apr 2008

New findings challenge conventional ideas on evolution of human diet, natural selection

New findings suggest that the ancient human "cousin" known as the "Nutcracker Man" wasn't regularly eating anything like nuts after all.

29 Apr 2008

Miniscule closed containers for precise delivery of nano-quantities of drugs

Researchers at the USC Information Sciences Institute have demonstrated a way to manufacture miniscule closed containers that might be used to deliver precise micro- or even nano-quantities of drugs.

29 Apr 2008

Silver nanoparticles may kill beneficial bacteria

Too much of a good thing could be harmful to the environment. For years, scientists have known about silver's ability to kill harmful bacteria and, recently, have used this knowledge to create consumer products containing silver nanoparticles.

29 Apr 2008

CSIRO researchers open up new class of chemistry

CSIRO Entomology business manager, Cameron Begley, said researchers believed the discovery opened up an entirely new class of chemistry.

29 Apr 2008

Scientists determine drug target for the most potent botulinum neurotoxin

Botulinum neurotoxin - responsible for the deadly food poisoning disease botulism and for the beneficial effects of smoothing out facial wrinkles - can also be used as a dreaded biological weapon. When ingested or inhaled, less than a billionth of an ounce can cause muscle paralysis and eventual death. Although experimental vaccines administered prior to exposure can inhibit the destructive action of this neurotoxin - the most deadly protein known to humans - no effective pharmacological treatment exists.

29 Apr 2008

Tomato paste helps fight sunburn and wrinkles

Scientists in Britain are suggesting that a tomato product may help fight sunburn and wrinkles.

29 Apr 2008

Making GNA for nanotechnology

In the rapid and fast-growing world of nanotechnology, researchers are continually on the lookout for new building blocks to push innovation and discovery to scales much smaller than the tiniest speck of dust.

29 Apr 2008

New research suggests hypertonic, hyperviscous fluids may be better treatment for severe blood loss

Intravenous administration of isotonic fluids is the standard emergency treatment in the U.S. for patients with severe blood loss, but UC San Diego bioengineering researchers have reported improved resuscitation with a radically different approach. Building on earlier studies in humans that have shown benefits of intravenous fluids that are eight times saltier than normal saline, the researchers combined hypertonic saline with viscosity enhancers that thicken blood.

29 Apr 2008

Scientists find distinct kind of stem cells in the pituitary gland

A team of researchers led by scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have for the first time identified stem cells that allow the pituitary glands of mice to grow even after birth.

28 Apr 2008

New insights into early history of human populations before they moved out of Africa

A team of Genographic researchers and their collaborators have published the most extensive survey to date of African mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).

24 Apr 2008

AMPK signaling helps explain how cell growth is inhibited when nutrients are low

A team of scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies think they know how many-if not most-living organisms answer this question. They recently showed that when food supplies dwindle, mammals, fruitflies, or frogs probably activate the same ancient cell signaling pathway in order to conserve energy.

24 Apr 2008

Second annual Johns Hopkins NanoBio Symposium to focus on cancer

An estimated 600 experts on nanobiotechnology-a science that develops tools and machinery at the scale of one-billionth of a meter-are expected to attend the second annual Johns Hopkins NanoBio Symposium, May 1-2, 2008.

22 Apr 2008

Sperm "on the rocks" - Using semen cryopreservation to protect amphibian species

A current research project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF is working to optimise the cryopreservation of amphibian sperm.

21 Apr 2008

US lags Europe in highly relevant nano risk research

A new analysis by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN) indicates that European nations are investing nearly twice as much as the U.S. in research primarily aimed at addressing the potential risks of nanotechnology.

21 Apr 2008

Fluorine-based nanoparticles on track to improve cancer detection and therapy

Perfluorocarbons, a class of inert, oily polymers, have a proven track record in a variety of clinical uses, including in contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging and in eye surgery to correct a detached retina.

18 Apr 2008

Nanoparticles provide detailed view inside living animals

Using nanoparticles designed specifically to produce a bright Raman spectroscopic signal, a team of investigators at the Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence Focused on Therapy Response (Stanford CCNE) has shown that it can produce whole-body images in small animals that can reveal the location of tumors and track how these nanoparticles traffic through the body.

18 Apr 2008

Quantum rods light up pancreatic cancer cells

Quantum dots have shown promise as ultrabright contrast agents for use in a variety of cancer imaging studies. Now, a team of investigators at the Multifunctional Nanoparticles in Diagnosis and Therapy of Pancreatic Cancer Platform Partnership, headed by Paras Prasad, Ph.D., of the State University of New York at Buffalo, has shown that quantum rods may perform even better than their spherical cousins.

18 Apr 2008

Novel polymers inhibit nonspecific protein absorption

One problem that confounds researchers who are developing nanoparticles for use as cancer imaging and therapeutic agents is that many nanoparticles accumulate blood proteins on their surfaces as they circulate through the body.

18 Apr 2008