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Feeding your baby on demand 'may contribute to higher IQ' suggests study
ChronoZoom, a zoomable timeline of timelines, beta version released
Discovery Provides Blueprint for New Drugs That Can Inhibit Hepatitis C Virus
Scientists link 2 cancer-promoting pathways in esophageal cancer
The Secret Life of Magnets
Genetic Variation in Human Gut Viruses Could be Raw Material for Inner Evolution, Perelman School of Medicine Study Finds
First National Guideline for Sudden Hearing Loss Published
A new tool to reveal structure of proteins
Focus on technology overlooks human behavior when addressing climate change
Moffitt Cancer Center Researchers Find That Smoking May Restore Tapped-Out Self-Control Resources
Team discovers how bacteria resist a 'Trojan horse' antibiotic microcin C7
Researchers discover novel therapy for Crohn’s disease

Feeding your baby on demand 'may contribute to higher IQ' suggests study

Posted: 20 Mar 2012 07:27 AM PDT

A new study suggests that babies who are breast-fed or bottle-fed to a schedule do not perform academically as well at school as their demand-fed peers. The finding is based on the results of IQ tests and school-based SATs tests carried out between the ages of five and 14, which show that demand-feeding was associated with higher IQ scores. The IQ scores of eight-year-old children who had been demand-fed as babies were between four and five points higher than the scores of schedule-fed children, says the study published in the European Journal of Public Health.

ChronoZoom, a zoomable timeline of timelines, beta version released

Posted: 20 Mar 2012 05:58 AM PDT

Imagine a timeline of the universe, complete with high-resolution videos and images, in which you could zoom from a chronology of Egypt’s dynasties and pyramids to the tale of a Japanese-American couple interned in a World War II relocation camp to a discussion of a mass extinction that occurred on Earth 200 million years ago – all in seconds.

Based on an idea from a University of California, Berkeley, student, ChronoZoom – essentially a zoomable timeline of timelines augmented with multimedia features –- is coming to life.

Discovery Provides Blueprint for New Drugs That Can Inhibit Hepatitis C Virus

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 08:12 PM PDT

Chemists at the University of California, San Diego have produced the first high resolution structure of a molecule that when attached to the genetic material of the hepatitis C virus prevents it from reproducing.

Crystals of the molecule were produced so its structure could be determined.

Hepatitis C is a chronic infectious disease that affects some 170 million people worldwide and causes chronic liver disease and liver cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hepatitis C now kills more Americans each year than HIV.

Scientists link 2 cancer-promoting pathways in esophageal cancer

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 08:06 PM PDT

Identification of a non-traditional pathway for spiriting a cancer-promoting protein into the cell nucleus points to a possible combination therapy for esophageal cancer and indicates a mechanism of resistance for new drugs that attack the Hedgehog pathway.

A team of researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports in the March 20 Cancer Cell that the mTOR molecular pathway promotes the activity of the Gli1 protein in esophageal cancer development and progression.

The Secret Life of Magnets

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:45 PM PDT

The Kapteyn/Murnane group and scientists from NIST-Boulder and Germany have figured out how the interaction of an ultrafast laser with a metal alloy of iron and nickel destroys the metal’s magnetism. In a recent experiment, the researchers were able to observe how individual bits of quantum mechanical magnetization known as “spin” behaved after the metal was heated with the laser. The researchers included newly minted Ph. D.

Genetic Variation in Human Gut Viruses Could be Raw Material for Inner Evolution, Perelman School of Medicine Study Finds

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 12:19 PM PDT

A growing body of evidence underscores the importance of human gut bacteria in modulating human health, metabolism, and disease. Yet bacteria are only part of the story. Viruses that infect those bacteria also shape who we are. Frederic D. Bushman, PhD, professor of Microbiology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, led a study published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that sequenced the DNA of viruses -- the virome -- present in the gut of healthy people.

First National Guideline for Sudden Hearing Loss Published

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 10:05 AM PDT

The first national treatment guideline for sudden hearing loss, a frightening condition that sends thousands in the U.S. to the emergency room each year, was published this month in the journal Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery.

The guideline was developed by a 19-member panel led by Robert J. Stachler, M.D., an otolaryngologist in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.

A new tool to reveal structure of proteins

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 10:01 AM PDT

A new method to reveal the structure of proteins could help researchers understand biological molecules – both those involved in causing disease and those performing critical functions in healthy cells.

For roughly a decade, a technique called solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has allowed researchers to detect the arrangements of atoms in proteins that defy study by traditional laboratory tools such as X-ray crystallography. But translating solid state NMR data into an actual 3D protein structures has always been difficult.

Focus on technology overlooks human behavior when addressing climate change

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 09:45 AM PDT

Technology alone won't help the world turn away from fossil fuel-based energy sources, says University of Oregon sociologist Richard York. In a newly published paper, York argues for a shift in political and economic policies to embrace the concept that continued growth in energy consumption is not sustainable.

Moffitt Cancer Center Researchers Find That Smoking May Restore Tapped-Out Self-Control Resources

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 09:40 AM PDT

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., have found that when they deplete a smoker's self control, smoking a cigarette may restore self-control.

Team discovers how bacteria resist a 'Trojan horse' antibiotic microcin C7

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 09:37 AM PDT

A new study describes how bacteria use a previously unknown means to defeat an antibiotic. The researchers found that the bacteria have modified a common “housekeeping” enzyme in a way that enables the enzyme to recognize and disarm the antibiotic.

The study appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers discover novel therapy for Crohn’s disease

Posted: 19 Mar 2012 09:10 AM PDT

The Nutritional Immunology and Molecular Medicine Laboratory (NIMML) research team at Virginia Tech has discovered important new information on the efficacy of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in treating Crohn’s disease, a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). CLA is a naturally occurring acid found in meat and dairy products known for its anti-cancer and immune modulatory properties.