A gene's first 'kiss' sets off that affair known as puberty
Puberty, that awkward phase when boys and girls are primed for their sexual reproductive years as men and women, appears to be triggered by the brain's own version of "It takes two to tango," whereby a signal literally gets turned on by a molecule that is produced by a gene aptly named KiSS-1. The couple ?a biochemical equivalent to Adam and Eve ?makes its sudden appearance in a region of...Newly Discovered Compound Blocks Known Cancer-Causing Protein
Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center scientists have discovered a potential new drug that inhibits destructive cell signals that drive the growth of one-third of all cancers. The scientists showed they could block the growth of cultured colon cancer cells using this new compound, called cysmethynil. Their finding, reported in the March 22, 2005, issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of...Scientists identify molecule that regulates well-known tumor suppressor
Scientists have discovered that a molecule called DJ-1 is likely to be involved in the generation of human tumors through negative regulation of the well-known tumor suppressor, PTEN. The research, published in the March issue of Cancer Cell, has important implications for determining the prognosis of some human cancers, and may prove to be a suitable target for cancer therapy. The phospha...Butterfly migration could be largest known
Millions of painted lady butterflies that fluttered into California's Central Valley in the last week of March could be just the advance guard of one of the largest migrations of the species on record, said Arthur Shapiro, a professor and expert on butterflies at UC Davis. Shapiro said he is getting reports of "bill...Study: Well-known protein helps stem cells become secretory cells
Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered that a single protein regulates secretion levels in the fruit fly's salivary gland and its skin-like outer layer. Th...UW scientist wins Pew grant to study little-known immune cells
Jenny Gumperz, an assistant professor of medical microbiology and immunology, will receive $60,000 per year for the next four years from the Pew Charitable Trusts, an independent nonprofit organization that annua...Viral encephalitis can cause more damage than already known
A study of patients with viral encephalitis by researchers at the ClevelandClinic, Ohio has revealed that the condition could cause seriouys movementproblems. The investigators studied a group of patients with the condition, fiveof whom had West Nile virus. They found that 11 of the victims were admitted toneurological intensive care, while four developed severe movement disorders liket...Aspirin Induced Asthma , A Little-Known Inducer
Aspirin-induced asthma is a severe reaction to aspirin or other painkillers that is characterized by the onset of asthma 30 minutes to three hours // after taking the medications. British researchers analyzed more than 20 studies on asthma and found more than 20 percent of adults and about 5 percent of children suffer from the condition. Researchers say most of these patients were also...Little Known DNA Repair Enzyme May Be A Tumor Suppressor Gene
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have demonstrated that loss of DNA // repair enzyme’s activity in mouse cells leads to dramatic chromosomal instability. The DNA in our cells is constantly subject to environmental, chemical and cellular impacts. Thanks to nature, our cells contain several enzymes dedicated to detecting and repairing any damage caused by these impacts. Failu...Snappy Mobiles Known To Cause Snappish Behavior in Families
There is a flip side to cell phones as well! The Cell Boom, a boon to communication has turned a bane to family relationships, according to a recent study.// As part of the study, more than a thousand steady mobile phone users were tracked for over 2 years. The study revealed a definite decline in satisfied family relationships, attributed to constant mobile communication that invad...Bird Flu: Fear of the Unknown Could Put Financial Markets in a Soup
London – Investors and Financial Markets are simply at a loss, trying to fathom the possible implications of the Bird-flu on the financial market. // "We just don't know how it is going to pan out," said John Ip, a senior economist with Morley Fund Management in London. With the Flu making an entry into western industrialized countries, financial markets, are pretty clueless to its re...