Digestive in Biological News

NIH expands Human Microbiome Project; funds sequencing centers and disease projects

... Project from five areas of the body: the digestive tract, the mouth, the skin, the nose and the ... collected from seven areas of the body: the digestive tract, the mouth, the skin, the nose, the vagina, ... School of Medicine, Baltimore (two grants) digestive tract: Obesity $1 million This study will ...

Five outstanding young gastroenterologists receive AGA Foundation 2009 Research Scholars Award

... Maryland (May 27, 2009) The Foundation for digestive Health and Nutrition has announced the 2009 ... Cohen, MD, AGAF, chairman of the Foundation for digestive Health and Nutrition. "The AGA Foundation for digestive Health and Nutrition remains committed to ...

The AGA Foundation invests in gastroenterology's future

... Maryland (June 25, 2008) The Foundation for digestive Health and Nutrition has announced the 2008 ... support to fund a 10-week session of research in digestive diseases or nutrition under the supervision of an ... at www.fdhn.org . There are more than 300 digestive diseases that adversely affect the lives of more ...

NIH launches Human Microbiome Project

... to be inhabited by microbial communities: the digestive tract, the mouth, the skin, the nose, and the ... the biggest reservoir of microbes in humans: the digestive tract. The human gut harbors many beneficial ... can stimulate the immune system and improve digestive functions. In contrast, previous research ...

The Prestige oil spill caused changes in the cell structure of mussels

... tissue level, Ms Garmendia studied the cell types of the tissues from the digestive gland of the mussel. Between 2004 and 2005, serious changes were observed ... samples from all the locations studied atrophy of certain parts of the digestive gland, for example Measuring health The health of the mussels was ...

Review of probiotic trial research finds only Bifantis able to claim efficacy for IBS symptoms

... benefits of this strain for the millions of Americans struggling to manage digestive upsets each day. We're excited to make Bifantis available to consumers ... and maintain a natural defense against abdominal discomfort and episodic digestive upsets such as constipation, diarrhea, urgency, gas and bloating. ...

Our microbes, ourselves

... as it's called, helps the body perform a variety of regulatory and digestive functions, many still poorly understood. How this microbial mlange may ... by the multitude of microbial custodians. The intermediary products of the digestive process include hydrogen, carbon dioxide and several short chain fatty ...

Modified plants may yield more biofuel

... too much lignin, which can cause ruminants like cows to get sick. Their digestive enzymes go into overdrive to break down the lignin, creating a lot of gas ... problems for the animals. "All animals produce enzymes in their digestive process that break down amino acids and small proteins that can be ...

Syracuse University partners with Serum Institute of India to develop vaccines for children

... the protein molecules used in the tetanus vaccine are destroyed in the digestive system. However, the tetanus molecules are 30 times larger than insulin, ... is to figure out how to package this large molecule, sneak it through the digestive system unharmed, and transport it through the wall of the small intestine ...

NYU Langone Medical Center's tip sheet to the International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease 2008

... at 12:30 p.m. CT NYU researchers genetically enhanced the activity of digestive enzymes in the nerve cells of mice that were susceptible to producing an ... shows that the failure to degrade amyloid beta in lysosomes containing the digestive enzymes is an important factor in Alzheimer's disease. Amyloid beta and ...

Weill Cornell science briefs June/July 2008

... to control inflammation by secreting anti-inflammatory proteins into the digestive tract, allowing for regeneration of tissue and prevention of scar tissue. ... Diarrhea, painful cramping, blood in stool, ulcers and other wounds in the digestive tract are all possible symptoms of the disease. Patients who have ...

Study uncovers clues to cystic fibrosis gene dysfunction and gastrointestinal disease

... of this protein are associated with cystic fibrosis (CF) and a range of digestive diseases, such as inflammation of the pancreas, that can be severe and ... The CFTR protein resides in the surface of cells lining the digestive system, lungs and sweat glands. In normal cells, it acts as an ion channel ...

Tips from the Journals of the American Society for Microbiology

... and develop new preventative therapies accordingly. Due to the human digestive tracts low sensitivity to the poliovirus, no previous rodent model ... the mice had died and the virus was detected in their small intestines and digestive tracts. Mice expressing the interferon receptor gene were found to be ...

Key to evolutionary fitness: Cut the calories

... the hares are operating at below their maximum capacity and shows that this is not due to any kind of physiological constraint, such as length of digestive tract or maximum capacity of mammary glands. Also, as the hares were provided with plentiful food, there could be no limitation of energy turnover ...

American Chemical Society's Weekly PressPac -- June 3, 2009

... CONTACT: H. Martin Garraffo, Ph.D. Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry National Institute of Diabetes and digestive and Kidney Diseases National Institutes of Health Bethesda, Md. 20892-0820 Phone: 301-496-1095 Fax: 301-480-5703 Email: garraffo@helix.nih.gov ...

Seventy-three scientists elected to the American Academy of Microbiology

... The Ohio State University, Columbus John Hayes, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MA Deborah M. Hinton, National Institute of Diabetes and digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, MD David W. Holden, Imperial College London, United Kingdom James A. Hoxie, University of Pennsylvania School of ...

Harvard scientist says we are what we eat -- and what we cook

... is published today (June 1) by Basic Books. In it, he makes the case that the ability to harness fire and cook food allowed the brain to grow and the digestive tract to shrink, giving rise to our ancestor Homo erectus some 1.8 million years ago. "Cooking is the signature feature of the human diet, and ...

The evolution of gene regulation

... to internal and external conditions even in microorganisms. It is known, for example, that the intestinal bacterium Escherichia coli in the digestive tract of young mammals can break down lactose, the sugar abundant in mother's milk. To do this, the bacterium produces the enzyme lactase but only ...

Diuscovery in amber reveals ancient biology of termites

... a liquid that contained protozoa that they would excrete. The termite offspring in turn consume the feces and thereby gain the protozoa in their digestive systems. It took time for all of this to get worked out, the study indicated. The successful establishment of protozoa in the termites required ...

Mass Biologic Labs/UMass Med School and Medarex license C. difficile monoclonal antibody to Merck

... were randomized to receive intravenous CDA-1/CDB-1 or intravenous placebo. An oral presentation of the Phase II data is scheduled at the upcoming digestive Disease Week (DDW) in Chicago on June 2, 2009 at 2:15 p.m. local time. About CDA-1 and CDB-1 CDA-1 and CDB-1 (also known as MDX-066/MDX-1388 ...

CFI awards $854,098 to University of Montreal and partners

... water-based process that does not involve the use of organic solvents. It allows the formulation of drugs that could otherwise not be absorbed by the digestive system," says Dr. Leclair. "Using a nanosuspension-based formulation, medications can be swallowed, inhaled, injected or applied topically. This CFI ...

Fish oils reduce greenhouse gas emissions from flatulent cows

... animals." More than a third of all methane emissions, around 900 billion tonnes every year, are produced by methanogen bacteria that live in the digestive systems of ruminants such as cattle, sheep and goats. By volume, methane is 20 times more powerful at trapping solar energy than carbon dioxide ...

Diabetics on high-fiber diets might need extra calcium, report UT Southwestern researchers

... 14 to 15 grams of fiber a day. Sometimes called "roughage," dietary fiber is the indigestible portion of plant foods that pushes food through the digestive system, absorbing water and easing defecation. Calcium is a nutrient found in food that is absorbed by the body and then excreted in urine, feces or ...

The sunlight solution for better health

... level of sun exposure. She explains on a cellular level how the body creates its own vitamin D from UV light and the multiple ways it is used. The digestive process of absorbing and activating vitamin D from foods and supplements is also discussed. Part history, part prescription, and part ...

Low levels of vitamin B12 may increase risk for neural tube defects

... L. Mills, M.D., senior investigator in the Division of Epidemiology, Statistics, and Prevention Research. He added it is advisable for women with digestive disorders that interfere with the absorption of foods to consult a physician before getting pregnant, to make sure they are receiving adequate ...

40 minority scientists receive travel fellowships to Experimental Biology 2009 in New Orleans

... that 40 fellows will receive the travel awards. APS administers the program with financial support from the National Institute of Diabetes and digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). Both NIDDK and NIGMS are part of the National Institutes ...

Updated formula measures kidney function more accurately

... 50 institutions across North America and was based on data collected by the CKiD Study, which was funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and digestive and Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health. Schwartz is a principal investigator in the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children (CKiD) ...

Rett Syndrome Research Trust advisor makes significant discovery

... before the age of 18 months. These children lose speech, motor control and functional hand use, and many suffer from seizures, orthopedic and severe digestive problems, breathing and other autonomic impairments. Most live into adulthood, and require total, round the clock care. Individuals with Rett and ...

Brain background to body mass

... "It might seem remarkable that it is the brain that is most commonly influenced by genetic variation in obesity, rather than fat tissue or digestive processes," says Dr Ines Barroso, a senior author on the study, from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. "Until 2007, no genetic associations had ...

Irritable bowel syndrome can have genetic causes

... Genetics. These mutations appear to cause changes in the composition or number of receptors on the cell surface. "The signal transduction in the digestive tract may be disturbed and this may lead to overstimulation of the intestine. Resulting disturbances in fluid balance could explain the occurrence of ...

Bacterial biofilms as fossil makers

... of a deep ocean or buried in anoxic lakeside mud. If significant oxygen is available, the embryo will undergo "autolysis," or self-destruction, as digestive enzymes get free and wreak havoc. Without oxygen, autolytic enzymes remain stuck inside their organelle prisons. "The next step, we believe, is ...

Escherichia coli bacteria transferring between humans and mountain gorillas

... gastrointestinal microbes, such as Escherichia Coli , from humans. The study, published in Conservation Biology , examines the exchange of digestive system bacteria between humans, mountain gorillas and domestic animals with overlapping habitats. The findings show the presence of identical, ...

Proteomics study yields clues as to how tuberculosis might be thwarting the immune system

... which engulf and contain the invaders within the membrane-bound shells of their phagosomes. Once safely contained, the invaders can be killed with digestive enzymes from another cell organelle, called a lysosome, which fuses with the phagosome. Macrophages, like other kinds of cells, also use lysosomal ...

Earthworm activity can alter forests' carbon-carrying capabilities

... floor - while others eat roots or soil organic matter. This begins a decomposition process in which organic materials pass through the animals' digestive tracts and back into the soil. The research team found that forests with greater numbers of invasive earthworms tend to have litter and soil ...

Childhood environmental health

... more air, consume more food and drink more water weight for weight than adults. The child's developing central nervous, immune, reproductive, and digestive systems, are also more susceptible to irreversible damage from toxins and pollutants. They also point out that two other important factors affect ...

Human Microbiome Project awards funds for technology development, data analysis and ethical research

... the microbial communities present in samples taken from healthy human volunteers. The samples will be collected from five areas of the body: the digestive tract, the mouth, the skin, the nose and the vagina. After researchers generate profiles of microbial communities in healthy people, they will ...

NIAID announces 25 new awards to develop radiation countermeasures

... people exposed to radiation would suffer from injuries to important tissues and organs, such as the skin, lungs, blood cells, nervous system and digestive tract. The severity of these injuries would vary. Proper diagnosis and prompt treatment of those affected is a key issue. "These 25 new awards ...

The Rett Syndrome Research Trust launches operations

... skills, including speech and functional hand use. As the disorder progresses, symptoms may include disordered breathing, sleep disturbances, severe digestive problems, orthopedic abnormalities, anxiety, apraxia, seizures, impaired cardiac and circulatory function and Parkinsonian tremor. Many children ...

Marine debris will likely worsen in the 21st century

... pollute the ocean, can cause significant harm. For instance, birds, fish, and marine mammals ingest debris, especially plastics, which can lead to digestive problems and uptake of toxic compounds. Animals can also suffer injuries or die after becoming entangled in fishing-related debris such as plastic ...

High blood pressure takes big toll on small filtering units of the kidney

... quarts of plasma daily, eliminating about two quarts of waste product and extra water as urine, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and digestive and Kidney Diseases. But the complete physiology remains a mystery. He challenged colleagues to fill in important blanks in how this process ...