place in Biological News

When it comes to brain damage, blankets take the place of drugs

Have you ever covered yourself with a blanket to stave off the shivers? A new study shows that a blanket can also help alleviate shivering in patients who have been cooled to prevent brain damage. Patients with brain injuries or dangerously high fevers are often cooled to reduce their core body...

No hiding place for infecting bacteria

Scientists in Colorado have discovered a new approach to prevent bacterial infections from taking hold. Writing in the Journal of Medical Microbiology , Dr Quinn Parks and colleagues describe how they used enzymes against products of the body's own defence cells to prevent Pseudomonas aeruginosa...

Singapore research team first place in Brain-Computer Interface contest

The Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) research team at Singapore's Infocomm Research (I2R) has won first place in the worldwide BCI Competition IV, 2008, in all three electroencephalogram (EEG) based non-invasive BCI categories. The results were announced on Dec. 12 at the international Neural In...

No place like home: New theory for how salmon, sea turtles find their birthplace

CHAPEL HILL How marine animals find their way back to their birthplace to reproduce after migrating across thousands of miles of open ocean has mystified scientists for more than a century. But marine biologists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill think they might finally have unra...

A place in the sun

LA JOLLA, CA Those spindly plants that desperately try to reach for a break in the canopy formed by larger plants all suffer from the same affliction: Shade avoidance syndrome or SAS. Now, the molecular details of SAS have been brought to light by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological ...

Katherine Freed wins first place at the International ISPE Undergraduate Poster Contest

HOBOKEN, N.J. Katherine Freed, undergraduate at Stevens Institute of Technology, won first place at the International ISPE Undergraduate Poster Contest in Las Vegas in November 2007. Freed was the first competitor from New Jersey to win this ISPE award. Her winning poster, Impedance Mammography, ...

Neurons find their place in the developing nervous system with the help of a sticky molecule

The brain, that exquisite network of billions of communicating cells, starts to take form with the genesis of nerve cells. Most newborn nerve cells, also called neurons, must travel from their birthplace to the position they will occupy in the adult brain. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biol...

Einstein scientists discover how protein crucial for motion is synthesised at the right place in the cell

Researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the German Cancer Research Institute have shown how protein synthesis is targeted to certain regions of a cell--a process crucial for the cellular motility that governs nerve growth, wound healing and cancer metastasis. Their study appears ...

Women often opt to surgically remove their breasts, ovaries to reduce cancer risk

...ations that when a woman has a biopsy, even if benign, most are more likely to opt for risk-reduction surgery. "Screening should be conducted at a place with expertise in an effort to minimize false-positive results, which often lead to biopsy. This will minimize the anxiety that comes along with such ...

Venomous sea snakes play heads or tails with their predators

...; it may increase the chances of surviving predator attack by exposing a less 'vital' body part, but more importantly it may deter attack in the first place if attackers perceive the tail as the venomous snakes head," said Rasmussen. Similar defence mechanisms have been discovered in lizards, and some l...

K-State researchers say after-school programs should promote activity, healthy nutrition

...ical activity and healthy snacks could be the best place for children's health. David Dzewaltowski, head...ion," Dzewaltowski said. "Parents should strive to place their children in healthy environments that are su...iors, and the after-school setting is an effective place for obesity prevention. Since many schools do not ...

New hope for fisheries

...f the CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship in Australia, since "there are no single silver bullet solutions. Management efforts must be customized to the place and the people." According to the authors' analysis, Alaska and New Zealand have led the world in terms of management success by not waiting until...

Leicester research paves way for first use in Europe of an insect to fight invasive plant

...y female plants occurred. Extensive hybridisation was observed to be taking place between Japanese Knotweed and both Giant Knotweed and Russian Vine. The hyb...0s. The molecular tools to discover the origin of Japanese Knotweed were in place and the trip to Japan already arranged. That Japanese Knotweed had been...

First genetically-engineered malaria vaccine to enter human trials

...that the attenuated parasite vaccine could restore its capacity to multiply and lead to disease," he said. The human trials of the vaccine will take place at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Maryland, US. The genetically attenuated parasites to be used in the trial are being manufactured at ...

Test helps in fight against lung infections and for treating other life-threatening infections

...is of immense significance to the medical community. Chronic infections place a major cost burden on the health system. Patients spend more time in hosp... burns and wounds. Furthermore, Innovotech™ has development plans in place for companion products to bioFILM PA™ that will address biofilm infec...

Fox Chase researchers uncover one force behind the MYC oncogene in many cancers

...Their studies were performed in mouse cancer models and in human cell cultures. "While MYC has a definite role in cancer, MYC also has an important place in the normal functioning of cells, so it may be difficult to target without killing healthy cells," says Joseph Testa, PhD, a Fox Chase professor and...

Maternal, paternal genes' tug-of-war may last well into childhood

...at children with disorders characterized by dominance of some maternal genes -- Silver-Russell syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, and Temple syndrome -- place fewer demands on their mothers' resources. For example, newborns with all three disorders display a weak desire to nurse, and slower childhood gro...

Biologists rediscover endangered frog population

...o fail as well as helping to ensure that the last known population of the mountain yellow-legged frog in the San Bernardino Mountains had a program in place to aid the frog's recovery," said Craig Wentworth, a senior environmental planner/biologist with Caltrans. Jim Bartel, the field supervisor for the...

UBC researchers help push for standard DNA barcodes for plants

...the two-site solution. In 72% of cases they were immediately able to determine the correct species of plant, and in the rest of the cases were able to place the plant in a group of congeneric species. "There's no doubt this will be refined in the future, but there is a need for a core barcoding standar...

Researchers develop 'brain-reading' methods

... perceives information before it reaches a person's awareness. But until now, there was little way to determine what specific mental tasks were taking place prior to the point of conscious awareness. That has changed with the findings of scientists at Rutgers University in Newark and the University of C...

Common allergy drug reduces obesity and diabetes in mice

...e suffering from allergy or asthma," said Shi. "It's almost as if the drugs place an extra layer of plastic on the ripped trash bag. So it seemed like a logical place to begin." The mice were divided into four groups. The first was the co...

High-tech vehicle design boosts emergency rescue capacity

... to get medical teams to a disaster area rapidly with all the equipment they require and to transfer as many patients as possible to hospital or other place for treatment as quickly as possible. The 4 SAVE project therefore set out to increase the carrying capacity of rescue vehicles by developing a self...

Scientists discover gene mutation responsible for hereditary neuroendocrine tumor

...anglioma (PGL). The gene, called hSDH5, is required for activation of an enzyme complex that plays a critical role in the chemical reactions that take place within cells to convert biochemical energy into usable energy. This study will be published in the journal Science , to be released online in Scienc...

Iowa State University researchers develop process for 'surgical' genetic changes

...hen scientists introduced DNA into plants, they would randomly inject that DNA into the plant cell. There was no way of knowing if it was in the right place or if it would work until many resulting plants were tested. The new technique harnesses a natural process called homologous recombination to precis...

University of Miami receives stimulus funds for study of hurricane impacts on structures, ecosystems

... structures, ecosystems and even on human health is essential. This building will provide an excellent resource to help us to decipher what is taking place on the planet." Professor Brian Haus led the proposal to establish this new facility with the participation of co-Principal Investigators Robert...

New theory on why male, female lemurs same size

...lid plug inside the female's reproductive tract just as they finish mating. The plug is deposited as a liquid protein but quickly hardens and stays in place for a day or two. Since many female lemurs are sexually responsive to males for only one day out of the entire year, the plug serves the purpose of pr...

The last supper of the hominids establishes the times they lived at the sites

...e dental wear of the ungulates (herbivorous mammals) caused by microscopic particles of opaline silica in plants. These marks appear when eating takes place and erase the previous ones. This is why they are so useful. Thanks to the "last supper phenomenon", the scientists have been able to analyze the...

Federal Bureau of Investigation Awards Lockheed Martin Biometric Card Scanning Service Contract

...loyment opportunities in West Virginia," added FBI CJIS Division Acting Assistant Director Jerome M. Pender. Operations for the program will take place primarily in Fairmont, WV, with support from several small business partners across the country, including West Virginia-based IMTS; Communications Re...

French Authorities Give Sole Approval to GMAT Exam to Collect Biometric Data to Advance Security

...s. "The CNIL's action in granting approval for the collection of biometric data only to the GMAT exam reflects the importance of the high priority we place on vigilant security." In 2005, GMAC notified the CNIL of other security measures under the Data Protection Act to protect the GMAT exam against ...

New way to make sensors that detect toxic chemicals

...Beach, the most important "first" to come out of the study is their discovery of the reaction pathway -- that is, the various chemical steps that take place inside the pressure cooker during the synthesis of the material. Now that the researchers know the reaction pathway, they can devise ways to add ch...

NTU professor discovers method to efficiently produce less toxic drugs using organic molecules

..., in particular the study of using small organic molecules as catalysts, in the synthesis process called organocatalysis. Such synthesis process takes place for example, during the production of chiral drugs. In his study, Professor Zhong, who is from NTU's School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, ...

Sustainable bioenergy project has global launch

...e project is a series of five meetings scheduled around the world beginning in Malaysia in November 2009. In the first half of 2010 meetings will take place in the Netherlands, South Africa, Brazil and the United States. An 11-person organizing committee will oversee the meetings with international represe...

Playing it safe

...m cells (gPS) has been reversed, they start to reproduce rapidly. The researchers have proven that the "reignition" of the cells has actually taken place with the aid of numerous tests. Not only can the reprogrammed cells be used to generate heart, nerve or endothelial cells, as is the case with embryon...

Laboring without the labor bed: It's a good thing

...sed to advance slow labours. The study, called place (Pregnant and Labouring in an Ambient Clinical Env...tal Nursing Research at the University of Toronto, place included 62 women at two Toronto teaching hospital...ital bed sent a message that this was not the only place a woman could labour," says Hodnett. A portable, ...

U Alberta researcher in same group as Darwin and Hawking

...ment of chemistry, has been named to the Royal Society, the national academy of science of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. The ceremony takes place the week of July 6 in London. Included in the Royal Society's membership are Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and Stephen Hawking. There are more than ...

Biological warfare in bacteria offers hope for new antibiotics

...cells' own protein machinery to evade their defences. Professor Kleanthous said: "Colicins are the weapon used in the biological warfare that takes place between competing bacteria. Understanding how this group of proteins work could help scientists develop new drug delivery methods to target the bacte...

New e-science service could accelerate cancer research

... Service. In addition to providing the means to programmatically access life science tools and databases over the Internet, the facility acts as a place where researchers can contact and meet the experts and maintainers of these services. Web services have gained a momentum as a means for packaging ...

Anti-biotech groups obstruct forest biotechnology

...ng that is genetically modified as a mortal sin are successfully putting in place details that will make it virtually impossible to move ahead with genetic m...g the industry down." Some major successes with biotechnology have taken place in crop agriculture, Strauss said, and because of the enormous benefits, th...

Can a new implant coating technique create a new six million dollar man?

...truct joints in the human body using metal structures implanted to take the place of the natural joint. In order to better integrate the new addition to the ...e developed a way to electrochemically deposit synthetic hydroxyapatite. In place of plasma-spraying the coating onto the metal, the metal implant is placed ...

New, less invasive genetic test greatly improves pregnancy rates in older women with poor prognosis

...of obtaining information about the chromosome content of an egg and its resulting embryo than other alternatives, such as day-three biopsy, which take place during conventional screening strategies involving the use of the FISH technique. The removal of the polar bodies does not adversely affect the subseq...