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It takes two to tango: Pairs of entwined Hsp33 proteins handle the stress
Learning about the future from the past
Does alcohol increase the risk of breast cancer?
Current study on mice documents the anxiety-reducing effect of intranasally administered neuropeptide S
When My Eyes Serve My Stomach
Planarian genes that control stem cell biology identified
Diabetes risk from sitting around - Women could be more at risk than men
Neural Implants Made of Carbon
A model burster: Researchers find the first neutron star that bursts as predicted
Australian birds status declining faster than elsewhere in world
Oldest fossilised forest revealed - The Gilboa fossil forest, in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York
Artificial 'womb' unlocks secrets of early embryo development
Scientists ID cell, signaling pathway of PDGF-B in trophoblasts that regulate blood stem cells in placenta
UC San Diego among First in Nation to Treat Brain Cancer with Novel Viral Vector
Biologists Offer Clearer Picture of How Protein Machine Systems Tweak Gene Expression
Nutrient serum taurine found in dark meat of poultry, some seafood, may have cardiovascular benefits
Investigators predict, confirm how E. coli bacteria hijack cells' directional mechanism
Research supports success of non-invasive faecal occult blood test in detection of colorectal cancer

It takes two to tango: Pairs of entwined Hsp33 proteins handle the stress

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 07:35 AM PST

Imagine two tango dancers sweeping across the dance floor and suddenly encountering a slick spot. To avoid a slip or even a nasty tumble, the pair must work together to support one another and glide safely through the stressful moment.

In a similar way, a certain type of helper protein called a stress-specific molecular chaperone prevents its client proteins from collapsing during stressful situations by uncoiling a long, supportive arm that wraps around them, a University of Michigan-led research team has shown,

Learning about the future from the past

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 07:24 AM PST

Current rates of ocean acidification are unparalleled in Earth’s history, according to new research from an international team of scientists which compiled all the evidence of global warming and acidifying oceans from the past 300 million years.

Does alcohol increase the risk of breast cancer?

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 07:16 AM PST

Does alcohol increase the risk of breast cancer? Yes, even light to moderate drinking, according to a new analysis from the well-known Nurses’ Health Study, which followed 106,000 women for more than 25 years. It found that women who routinely consumed 3 to 6 drinks per week were 15 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than nondrinkers, regardless of the type of alcoholic beverage they drank. For women averaging 6 to 19 drinks per week, the increased risk was 20 percent. Among those consuming more than 19 drinks per week, the risk jumped by 50 percent.

Current study on mice documents the anxiety-reducing effect of intranasally administered neuropeptide S

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 07:06 AM PST

Max Planck researchers have succeeded in showing in experiments on mice that the anxiolytic substance neuropeptide S (NPS) can be absorbed through the nasal mucosa and unfold its effect in the brain. Having bound to its receptors, the neuropeptide S reaches particular neurons in the brain in this way. Just four hours after the administration of the drug, the tested mice showed less anxiety. Altered neuronal activity was also measured directly in the hippocampus, an important brain structure for learning and memory.

When My Eyes Serve My Stomach

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 06:57 AM PST

Our senses aren’t just delivering a strict view of what’s going on in the world; they’re affected by what’s going on in our heads. A new study finds that hungry people see food-related words more clearly than people who’ve just eaten. The study, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, finds that this change in vision happens at the earliest, perceptual stages, before higher parts of the brain have a chance to change the messages coming from the eyes.

Planarian genes that control stem cell biology identified

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 06:51 AM PST

Despite their unassuming appearance, the planarian flatworms in Whitehead Institute Member Peter Reddien’s lab are revealing powerful new insights into the biology of stem cells—insights that may eventually help such cells deliver on a promising role in regenerative medicine.

Diabetes risk from sitting around - Women could be more at risk than men

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 06:43 AM PST

A new study has found that women who stay seated for long periods of time every day are more prone to developing type 2 diabetes, but that a similar link wasn’t found in men.

Researchers from the University of Leicester Departments of Health Sciences and Cardiovascular Sciences revealed that women who are sedentary for most of the day were at a greater risk from exhibiting the early metabolic defects that act as a precursor to developing type 2 diabetes than people who tend to sit less.

Neural Implants Made of Carbon

Posted: 02 Mar 2012 06:32 AM PST

The blind see, the lame walk, and the deaf hear: in the future, neural implants could replace destroyed sensory cells in the eye or ear – a dream come true for humanity. One of the greatest challenges yet to be addressed is designing the interface between medical technology and human tissue. In order to overcome the limitations of existing models, scientists from Forschungszentrum Jülich and eleven other institutions involved in the NeuroCare project, which kicks off on 1 March 2012, will develop novel biointerfaces made of carbon.

A model burster: Researchers find the first neutron star that bursts as predicted

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 10:27 PM PST

For the first time, researchers at MIT and elsewhere have detected all phases of thermonuclear burning in a neutron star. The star, located close to the center of the galaxy in the globular cluster Terzan 5, is a “model burster,” says Manuel Linares, a postdoc at MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.

Australian birds status declining faster than elsewhere in world

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 02:32 PM PST

A newly published study shows Australians must work with international partners if they are to save all of Australia's birds.

The joint study by The University of Queensland (UQ), Charles Darwin University and BirdLife Australia shows that the status of Australian birds was declining faster than elsewhere in the world.

The Australian Research Council funded study, which was published in the journal Biological Conservation, reports on changes in the Red List Index for all Australian species and subspecies of birds since 1990.

Oldest fossilised forest revealed - The Gilboa fossil forest, in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 02:26 PM PST

An international team, including a Cardiff University researcher, who previously found evidence of the Earth’s earliest tree, has gone one step further.

The research team has now unearthed and investigated an entire fossil forest dating back 385 million years.

The Gilboa fossil forest, in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York, is generally referred to as ‘the oldest fossil forest’. Yet by scientific standards it has remained mythical.

Artificial 'womb' unlocks secrets of early embryo development

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 02:10 PM PST

Pioneering work by a leading University of Nottingham scientist has helped reveal for the first time a vital process in the development of the early mammalian embryo.

A team led by Professor of Tissue Engineering, Kevin Shakesheff, has created a new device in the form of a soft polymer bowl which mimics the soft tissue of the mammalian uterus in which the embryo implants. The research has been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Scientists ID cell, signaling pathway of PDGF-B in trophoblasts that regulate blood stem cells in placenta

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 12:37 PM PST

UCLA stem-cell researchers have identified a certain type of cell and a signaling pathway in the placental niche that play a key role in stopping blood stem cells from differentiating into mature blood cells in the placenta. Preventing this premature differentiation is critical to ensuring a proper blood supply for an individual's lifetime.

UC San Diego among First in Nation to Treat Brain Cancer with Novel Viral Vector

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 10:44 AM PST

UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center researchers and surgeons are among the first in the nation to treat patients with recurrent brain cancer by directly injecting an investigational viral vector into their tumor. The treatment is being developed by a local San Diego Company, Tocagen Inc.

Biologists Offer Clearer Picture of How Protein Machine Systems Tweak Gene Expression

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 10:22 AM PST

Indiana University biologists have found that specific types of RNA polymerase enzymes, the molecular machines that convert DNA into RNA, can differ in function based on variation in the parts -- in this case protein subunits -- used to assemble those machines.

Nutrient serum taurine found in dark meat of poultry, some seafood, may have cardiovascular benefits

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 10:07 AM PST

A nutrient found in the dark meat of poultry may provide protection against coronary heart disease (CHD) in women with high cholesterol, according to a study by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center.

Investigators predict, confirm how E. coli bacteria hijack cells' directional mechanism

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 08:05 AM PST

Working in the emerging field of systems biology, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers mathematically predicted how bacteria that cause food poisoning hijack a cell’s sense of direction and then confirmed those predictions in living cells.

Research supports success of non-invasive faecal occult blood test in detection of colorectal cancer

Posted: 01 Mar 2012 07:51 AM PST

A comparative study of the two types of strategy normally employed to detect colorectal cancer - faecal occult blood test and colonoscopy - has been published for the first time ever. The New England Journal of Medicine published the results from the eight of the Autonomous Communities (the political administrations within the Spanish State) which took part in the research, including the team led by Dr Luis Bujanda from the Digestive System Service at the Hospital Donostia, in the Basque coastal city of Donostia-San Sebastian.