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Hunger affects decision making and perception of risk
New palm-sized microarray technique grows 1,200 individual cultures of microbes
Is weight loss good for obese type 2 diabetes patients?
Kidney tumor aggressiveness linked to energy producing metabolic processes
Compound enhances SSRI antidepressant’s effects in mice
Two mutations triggered an evolutionary leap 500 million years ago
Diel Vertical Migrations and Ocean Breathing
'Singing' rats show hope for older humans with age-related voice problems
Zebrafish Study Points to Potential Treatment Strategies for Multiple Sclerosis

Hunger affects decision making and perception of risk

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 07:06 AM PDT

Hungry people are often difficult to deal with. A good meal can affect more than our mood, it can also influence our willingness to take risks. This phenomenon is also apparent across a very diverse range of species in the animal kingdom. Experiments conducted on the fruit fly, Drosophila, by scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have shown that hunger not only modifies behaviour, but also changes pathways in the brain.

New palm-sized microarray technique grows 1,200 individual cultures of microbes

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 04:25 AM PDT

A new palm-sized microarray that holds 1,200 individual cultures of fungi or bacteria could enable faster, more efficient drug discovery, according to a study published in mBio®, the online open-access journal of the Am

Is weight loss good for obese type 2 diabetes patients?

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 08:51 PM PDT

According to a new study, intensive lifestyle intervention focusing on weight loss failed to reduce cardiovascular problems in obese adults with type 2 diabetes. The study questions the general belief that weight loss methods may reduce serious cardiovascular events, including death, in obese type 2 patients.

Kidney tumor aggressiveness linked to energy producing metabolic processes

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 06:28 PM PDT

Scientists have uncovered a connection between how tumor cells use energy from metabolic processes and the aggressiveness of the most common form of kidney cancer, clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Their findings demonstrate that normal metabolism is altered in ccRCC tumor cells, and involves a shift from using one metabolic pathway to another. This change – termed a metabolic shift – correlates with tumor stage and severity in some cases.

Compound enhances SSRI antidepressant’s effects in mice

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 04:14 PM PDT

A synthetic compound is able to turn off “secondary” vacuum cleaners in the brain that take up serotonin, resulting in the “happy” chemical being more plentiful, scientists from the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio have discovered. Their study, released June 18 by The Journal of Neuroscience, points to novel targets to treat depression.

Two mutations triggered an evolutionary leap 500 million years ago

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 01:03 PM PDT

A research team led by a University of Chicago scientist has discovered two key mutations that sparked a hormonal revolution 500 million years ago.

Diel Vertical Migrations and Ocean Breathing

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 12:48 PM PDT

The oxygen content of the ocean may be subject to frequent ups and downs in a very literal sense — that is, in the form of the numerous sea creatures that dine near the surface at night then submerge into the safety of deeper, darker waters at daybreak.

'Singing' rats show hope for older humans with age-related voice problems

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 11:53 AM PDT

A new study shows that the vocal training of older rats reduces some of the voice problems related to their aging, such as the loss of vocal intensity that accompanies changes in the muscles of the larynx. This is an animal model of a vocal pathology that many humans face as they age. The researchers hope that in the future, voice therapy in aging humans will help improve their quality of life.

The research appears in The Journals of Gerontology.

Zebrafish Study Points to Potential Treatment Strategies for Multiple Sclerosis

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 09:39 AM PDT

Researchers have discovered that individual oligodendrocytes coat neurons with myelin for only five hours after they are born. Oligodendrocytes are a type of brain cells that produce myelin and support neurons in the brain. If the findings hold true in humans, they could lead to new treatment strategies for multiple sclerosis.