Tag: "unnecessary" at biology news

Spleen may be source of versatile stem cells

...mergencies. What has been considered a practically unnecessary organmay actually provide critical healing cells," says Faustman, anassociate professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.She adds, "This data also shows the kind of payback that can come fromstudies of lower animals like newts and sponges. Combi...

Viral protein influences key cell-signaling pathway

...ne" because the protein encoded by the gene seemed unnecessary since the virus could still reproduce, or replicate, in cells grown in the laboratory even when p12 was missing. "But viruses do not keep genes unless they have a purpose," Lairmore says. In an earlier study, Lairmore and his colleagues tried to inf...

Solutions that reduce death of marine life reeled in by International Smart Gear Competition

...and science to find solutions that will reduce the unnecessary decline of vulnerable species due to bycatch. Applicants from 16 countries applied their ingenuity and expertise to solving this global problem. WWF and its partners will assist the winners with making their ideas commercially viable. ...

Test for early detection of prostate cancer shows promise

... PSA screening, may help reduce the number of both unnecessary biopsies and undetected prostate tumors,?said Getzenberg, In addition to being highly sensitive to prostate cancer, the EPCA test is also very specific to it, meaning that other cancers and benign prostate conditions are not detected, thus boosting d...

Researchers extend mouse lifespan by protecting against free radicals

...r level. Those reactive chemicals can take part in unnecessary chemical reactions that can damage the cell components, including DNA. Some researchers believe that free radicals could contribute to or hasten heart disease, cancer, and other age-related diseases. The theory also suggests that if the body could be...

Micro-molecule plays big role in birth defects

...n light seasoning in the genetic soup, distant and unnecessary cousins to the main ingredients, DNA, which contains all the genetic instructions for the human body, and RNA, which translates DNA's message into proteins - the building blocks of life. Scientists now think the pint-sized pieces of RNA may control ...

Quantum dots provide a faster, more sensitive method for detecting respiratory viral infections

...viral infections inappropriately, thereby reducing unnecessary antibiotic side-effects and cutting down on the development of antibiotic-resistance in bacteria. * keep the RSV patients separate from other patients who are especially susceptible to infection, such as those undergoing bone-marrow transplants. ...

U-M researchers identify new blood test for prostate cancer

...positive around 80 percent of the time, leading to unnecessary prostate biopsies. The normal range for the PSA test is less than 4.0 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL) in most men. For men over 40 years old with a family history of prostate disease or for African-American men over 40 years old, some doctors sugges...

Elusive salamanders have role in developing new sampling models

...pe and location of suitable habitats plus minimize unnecessary and time-consuming sampling." Of more than 1,000 seasonal ponds at the 280,000-acre military facility in southeastern Georgia, 483 have been identified as potential candidates to support this particular salamander, technically known as Ambystoma cin...

Asian immigrants in NYC not receiving HIV education at religious institutions

...searchers found. Furthermore, some leaders felt it unnecessary to become involved in HIV education because their worshipers are protected by religious teachings of moral restraint and abstinence. Even though most religious leaders and members expressed little interest in becoming involved in HIV-related work...

Chernobyl: The true scale of the accident

...ams through more targeted benefits, elimination of unnecessary benefits to people in less contaminated areas, improving primary health care, support for safe food production techniques, and encouragement for investment and private sector development, including small and medium-size enterprises. Notes Vinton, "T...

Microarray technology for tailoring breast cancer therapy

...t benefit from adjuvant therapy, and avoid painful unnecessary treatments and wastage of healthcare resources. ...

Children overprescribed antibiotics for sore throat

...throat. To improve diagnostic accuracy and reduce unnecessary antibiotic treatment, it is recommended that a GABHS test be conducted prior to treating children with an antibiotic. Penicillin is the recommended antibiotic, but acceptable alternatives include amoxicillin, erythromycin (for penicillin-allergic pat...

Expert dispels bird flu paranoia

...id he wanted to clear up some of the confusion and unnecessary panic about the virus. He said bird flu was a viral disease of all birds, usually spread by water birds but normally only causing disease in poultry. Contaminated water is the most common source of infection from bird droppings but it can be spre...

Efficiency, not more doctors, is the prescription for aging population

...eed, evidence shows they may actually be harmed by unnecessary medical care, Goodman said. If all medical practices adopted the practice style and resource use of efficient providers, patient care would cost less and patients would be less subject to interventions that could do more harm than good. The argume...

Is the brain wired for faces?

...mance, which provided further evidence that it was unnecessary to postulate any kind of special processing in the brain for faces. The researchers then tested these predictions against experimental data measured in a functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) machine, a high-powered imaging technology that ca...

Epidemic of unneeded amputations

... that in this day and age, there is an epidemic of unnecessary amputations. Amputation is a drastic procedure that takes a great physical and emotional toll on patients and their families. But physicians often jump too quickly to amputation rather than exploring medical advances that can prevent limb loss," said...

Archerfish tune their shots to universal properties of prey adhesion

...ment that has been manipulated to make such tuning unnecessary for successful hunting. The findings suggest that the tuning aspect of the archerfish's hunting strategy is not as plastic in response to learning as might have been thought. Instead, the strategy may reflect the evolution of archerfish behavior in a...

New fMRI technology making brain tumor surgery safer

...ing that the technology may make brain stimulation unnecessary for many surgeries in the future. The new BrainLAB equipment also enables physicians to integrate diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), which provides a map of critical white-matter tracts in the brain. “White-matter tracts,?said Dr. Leach, “are like ...

New test helps identify hepatitis C patients at high risk of developing cirrhosis

...patient to consider deferring treatment, avoiding unnecessary side effects and expense of current therapy." Last June, Celera licensed Specialty Laboratories of Valencia, Calif., to perform the genetic test. The test currently costs about $500. ...

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