Tag: "bolster" at biology news

Newly found sensing system enables certain bacteria to resist human immune defenses

...gs may help chart a path to designing new drugs to bolster our antimicrobial treatment options,” notes NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. Led by Michael Otto, Ph.D., of NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML), the scientists used the gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus epidermidis to study its res...

Uniform language for describing genes of pathogenic and beneficial microbes

... The new terms added to the GO will significantly bolster what is already a powerful tool for scientists to compare the functions of genes and proteins in a wide range of disease-related organisms. The ongoing initiative is part of the Plant-Associated Microbe Gene Ontology (PAMGO) project, a recently-estab...

NIAID expands capability for influenza research and surveillance

...internationally and in the United States, and will bolster influenza research in key areas, including understanding how the virus causes disease and how the human immune system responds to infection with the virus. The goal of the newly created centers is to provide the federal government with important info...

In obesity, brain becomes 'unaware' of fat

...tic circuitry being aware.? The new results also bolster evidence that a suppressor called SOCS-3 may be responsible for the loss of sensitivity to the fat hormone known as leptin. Therapeutic strategies designed to inhibit SOCS-3 may therefore bypass leptin resistance in obese animals to restore energy ba...

Hybrid molecule causes cancer cells to self-destruct

... the separate chemical components work together to bolster the cancer-fighting power of butyrate. The double attack triggers cellular suicide, also called apoptosis, in the cancer cells. To find out whether this butyrate-ManNAc hybrid alone would produce the positive results, the researchers tested three...

100 percent juices found as beneficial to health as fruits and vegetables

...st that more studies in certain area are needed to bolster their findings. The study was published in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition (2006). “Although this independent review of the literature is not designed to focus on any particular 100 percent juice, it does go a long way in...

Ocean sampling yields environmental sources of coral symbionts

...s with new corals. The findings, which potentially bolster future efforts to protect and rehabilitate coral reefs, are reported by a group including Mary Alice Coffroth of the University at Buffalo and appear in the December 5th issue of Current Biology. In response to environmental stresses, coral reefs...

Tiny Tampa Bay fish key to evolution of immune system

...ns. Doctors often use infusions of antibodies to bolster immune systems weakened by cancer or other conditions, but ironically, these proteins are susceptible to enzymes that break them down. A number of such monoclonal antibody-based drugs are in clinical use, such as Herceptin for breast cancer or Avasti...

New study finds similarities between monkey business and human business

...s to extend to closely-related species, this would bolster the assumption of preference stability." As part of the study, the researchers presented capuchin monkeys with two payoff-identical gambles: one in which a good outcome was framed as a bonus, and the other in which bad outcomes were emphasized as lo...

WWF captures first-ever photo of wild rhino on Borneo

...gram Center" in the Heart of Borneo forest area to bolster the rhino monitoring and research work in that area. Supporters of WWF-Malaysia's rhino conservation work include Honda Malaysia and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Sabah and the forests of the "Heart of Borneo" still hold huge tracts of continuous ...

BioMed Central launches Biology Direct

... better system of peer review and, in the process, bolster productive scientific debate?. They continue, "Anyone who ever attended a scientific conference worth its salt knows that the discussions can be quite vigorous, often enough going to bare knuckles, especially during the coffee breaks or at the bar, b...

Commonly used antidepressants may also affect human immune system

...to infections, it is possible that they might also bolster immunity to the point that they trigger autoimmune disease. "At this point we just don't know how these drugs might affect immunity, so we really need to clarify the normal role of serotonin in immune cell functioning," Ahern said. The surprising fi...

UCLA imaging study of children with autism finds broken mirror neuron system

...itation and empathy. The new findings dramatically bolster a growing body of evidence pointing to a breakdown of the brain's mirror neuron system as the mechanism behind these autism symptoms. "Our findings suggest that a dysfunctional mirror neuron system may underlie the social deficits observed in autism...

Wild birds help to create human flu vaccine

...ible avian flu pandemic. As we work in Congress to bolster preparedness for an avian flu pandemic, contributions like this from the scientific community will be critical to ensure that the steps we take will protect the public as best as possible." ...

Wolves' top-down effect

...his trophic cascade. "Our study findings strongly bolster the use of conservation and restoration strategies which are based on the key role of large predators," says Hebblewhite. "Human Activity mediates a Trophic Cascade caused by Wolves," Ecology 86 (8), August 2005 ...

Costly breeding programs for endangered species pay off

...e breeding strategies conducted at Rice University bolster the case for costly and sometimes troublesome breeding programs that preserve maximum genetic variability in small populations of endangered species. Worldwide, zoos spend millions of dollars each year transporting rare animals thousands of miles in...

Pinpointing the cause of a neurodegenerative disorder

...govern balance and motor coordination. The studies bolster the emerging theory that neurodegenerative disorders can be caused by having extra copies of a normal protein, not just a mutated one. People who are afflicted with the rare neurodegenerative disorder spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) suffer dama...

U.N. mulls the protection of Earth's forests

...egally non-binding arrangement and, ultimately, to bolster international commitments to sustainable forest management. Auer is also the coauthor of a report in this month's Journal of Forestry that examines recent international efforts to promote sustainable forest management. Auer, along with U.S. Departme...

New Clues Add 40,000 Years to Age of Human Species

...ars old. The researchers believe the findings may bolster the “Out-of-Africa?hypothesis that suggests we all trace to an ancient line that first evolved in Africa and then displaced other hominids as recently as 50,000 years ago. Ian McDougall of Australian National University (ANU), Frank Brown of the Uni...

1