SIE

Life's origins were easier than was thought

In the primordial soup that produced life on earth, there were organic molecules that combined to produce the first nucleic acid chains, which were the first elements able to self-replicate. According to one of the more accepted theories, these molecules were ribonucleic acid (RNA) chains, a molecule that is practically identical to DNA and that today has the secondary role in cells of copying in...

Technique makes it easier to see mouse embryo in all its glory

A fast, high-resolution, 3D mouse embryo visualization technique developed by collaborators at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and the University of Utah will revolutionize the way birth defects and cancer genes are studied in animal models. That's the prediction of the researchers in an article to be published online in PLoS Genetics on April 28, a peer-reviewed, ope...

Why we could all do with a siesta

The Spaniards may have been right all along ?a siesta after a hearty lunch is natural, new research suggests. The findings ?published in the scientific journal Neuron this week ?have implications for treating obesity and eating...

Elasticity imaging identifies cancers and reduces breast biopsies

A new ultrasound technique allows radiologists to accurately distinguish benign from malignant breast lesions. Using elasticity imaging, researchers correctly identified both cancerous and harmless lesions in nearly all of the cases studied. The findings were presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). “In our work, elasticity imaging has been...

MIT's molecular sieve advances protein research

New MIT technology promises to speed up the accurate sorting of proteins, work that may ultimately aid in the detection and treatment of disease. Separating proteins from complex biological fluids such as blood is becoming increasingly important for understanding diseases and developing new treatments. The molecular sieve developed by MIT engineers is more precise than conventional methods...

T-ray breakthrough could make detecting disease far easier

A breakthrough in the harnessing of 'T-rays' - electromagnetic terahertz waves - which could dramatically improve the detecting and sensing of objects as varied as biological cell abnormalities and explosives has been announced. Researchers at the University of Bath, UK, and in Spain have said they have found a way to control the flow of terahertz radiation down a metal wire. Their findi...

Helium helps patients breathe easier

It makes for bobbing balloons and squeaky voices, but now helium is also helping people with severe respiratory problems breathe easier. Researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada have discovered that by combining helium with 40 per cent oxygen allowed patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to increase their exercise capacity by an average of 245 per...

CSIRO scientists join fight to save 'Tassie devil'

Researchers from CSIRO’s Livestock Industries’ Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL), Textiles and Fibre Technology and Land and Water, are working together to hunt down the cause of Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD) and possibly devel...