Scientists aim to thwart use of flu as bioweapon
Flu is already a big killer, responsible for more than 35,000 deaths in the United States alone each year. And wild birds infected with the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu are gradually broadening the scope of that disease. This week in Rochester, scientists are discussing ways to better understand the flu and also how to prevent the possibility that terrorists could somehow modify flu as a biowea...Gene thwarts some pathogens, gives access to others, could save crops
A single gene apparently thwarts a disease-causing invader that creates a fuzzy gray coating on flowers, fruits and vegetables. But the same gene provides access to a different type of pathogen. A Purdue University plant molecular biologist and his collaborators in Austria and North Carolina identified the gene that helps plants recognize pathogens and also triggers a defense against disea...Avian flu modeled on supercomputer, explores vaccine and isolation options for thwarting a pandemic
Using supercomputers to respond to a potential national health emergency, scientists have developed a simulation model that makes stark predictions about the possible future course of an avian influenza pandemic, given today's environment of worldwide connectivity. The research, by a team of scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, the University of Washington and the Fred Hu...Neural bottleneck found that thwarts multi-tasking
Many people think they can safely drive while talking on their cell phones. Vanderbilt neuroscientists Paul E. Dux and René Marois have found that when it comes to handling two things at once, your brain, while fast, isn't that fast. "Why is it that with our incredibly complex and sophisticated brain, with 100 billion neurons processing information at rates of up to a thousand times a se...Cancer stem cells similar to normal stem cells can thwart anti-cancer agents
Current cancer therapies often succeed at initially eliminating the bulk of the disease, including all rapidly proliferating cells, but are eventually thwarted because they cannot eliminate a small reservoir of multiple-drug-resistant tumor cells, called cancer stem cells, which ultimately become the source of disease recurrence and eventual metastasis. Now, research by scientists at the Unive...How to thwart the dont-be-right Midwest technology boss
Through your career, you've carefully watched and listened and learned so you can excel in your field and do the right thing at the right time. Ha ha! Joke's on you! Sometimes, for some Midwest...Supercomputers To Assist In Thwarting Bird Flu Epidemic In Future
Supercomputers can now be used during health emergencies like predicting about the development of a diseases and its course as well. // Scientists have devised a simulator, which could make stark predictions about the possible course of bird flu pandemic based on today's environment of worldwide connectivity.The research, by a team of scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory in New...Early Treatment May Thwart Mad Cow-Type Disease
A number of brain diseases caused by mutant prion proteins, such as mad cow disease or scrapie in sheep, //might be averted if normal prion proteins can be depleted, researchers report. Prion disease, which includes the human form of mad cow disease called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, is thought to be caused when prion protein in the brain becomes misfolded, and this causes norm...