Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Archives of Dermatology
Retinoid cream associated with death in clinical trial, but relationship does not appear causal
Patients using a cream containing tretinoin, a retinoid commonly used to treat acne and other conditions, appeared more likely to die than those using a placebo in a clinical trial that was halted early as a result, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. However, evidence does not suggest these excess deaths were caused by the therapy.
Contact: James Burrows
jim.burrows@va.gov
401-457-3004
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery
Victims of intimate partner violence display distinct patterns of facial injury
Women who are victims of intimate partner violence tend to have different patterns of facial injury than women who experience facial trauma from other causes, according to a report in the January/February issue of Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. This information, and other key characteristics such as a delay before visiting a health-care facility, could help surgeons and other physicians recognize patients who are victims of this type of abuse.
Contact: Megan Chiplock
chiplock@temple.edu
215-707-1731
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Motor skill learning may be enhanced by mild brain stimulation
People who received a mild electrical current to a motor control area of the brain were significantly better able to learn and perform a complex motor task than those in control groups. The findings could hold promise for enhancing rehabilitation for people with traumatic brain injury, stroke and other conditions.
NIH/National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke Contact: Margo Warren
warrenm@ninds.nih.gov
301-496-5751
NIH/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Language driven by culture, not biology
Language in humans has evolved culturally rather than genetically, according to a study by UCL (University College London) and US researchers. By modelling the ways in which genes for language might have evolved alongside language itself, the study showed that genetic adaptation to language would be highly unlikely, as cultural conventions change much more rapidly than genes. Thus, the biological machinery upon which human language is built appears to predate the emergence of language.
Contact: Jenny Gimpel
j.gimpel@ucl.ac.uk
44-020-767-99726
University College London
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
The more promiscuous the female, the speedier the sperm
Female promiscuity appears to have triggered changes in the type of sperm a male produces, according to new research on fish from central Africa.
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Canada Fund for Innovation, Ontario Innovation Trust Contact: Michelle Donovan
donovam@mcmaster.ca
905-525-9140
McMaster University
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Journal of Clinical Oncology
Penn study: Breast cancer survivors call for more 'survivorship care' from primary care physicians
Many breast cancer patients give low marks to the post-cancer care they receive from their primary care physicians, who generally serve as a patient's main health care provider after they're released from active treatment with their oncologists, according to a new study from the University of Pennsylvania's Abramson Cancer Center published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Contact: Holly Auer
holly.auer@uphs.upenn.edu
215-349-5659
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Inherited traits may explain differences in 'identical' twins
15:43 19 January 2009
Chemical adornments to DNA letters might play a substantial role in shaping individual differences between people
Were Mercury and Mars separated at birth?
IN BRIEF:  15:45 19 January 2009
A simulation of how a rocky ring of debris formed the inner planets reveals why Mars and Mercury are much smaller than Earth and Venus
Cheap paint could protect against super-fast wireless
17:33 19 January 2009
Shielding used to stop sensitive hospital equipment going awry can't cope with the latest high-frequency wireless transmissions – but a new coating could change all that
Public Release: 19-Jan-2009
Journal of Immunology
Baffling the body into accepting transplants
An unexpected discovery made by a Sydney scientist has potential to alter the body's response to anything it perceives as not 'self,' such as a tissue or organ transplant.
Contact: Alison Heather
a.heather@garvan.org.au
61-043-407-1326
Research Australia
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Cochrane Library
Acupuncture stops headaches, but 'faked' treatments work almost as well
Headache sufferers can benefit from acupuncture, even though how and where acupuncture needles are inserted may not be important. Two separate systematic reviews by Cochrane Researchers show that acupuncture is an effective treatment for prevention of headaches and migraines. But the results also suggest that faked procedures, in which needles are incorrectly inserted, can be just as effective.
Contact: Jennifer Beal
wbnewseurope@wiley.com
44-012-437-70633
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Cochrane Library
Stop traffic crashes: Switch on the lights
Street lighting provides a simple, low cost means of stemming the global epidemic of road traffic death and injury. Low income countries should consider installing more lights, and high income countries should think carefully before turning any off to reduce carbon emissions, is the advice from a new Cochrane Review.
Contact: Jennifer Beal
wbnewseurope@wiley.com
44-012-437-70633
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Cochrane Library
Preterm birth: Magnesium sulphate cuts cerebral palsy risk
Magnesium sulphate protects very premature babies from cerebral palsy, a new study shows. The findings of this Cochrane Review could help reduce incidence of the disabling condition, which currently affects around one in every 500 newborn babies overall, but up to one-in-10 very premature babies (fewer than 28 weeks of gestation).
Contact: Jennifer Beal
wbnewseurope@wiley.com
44-012-437-70633
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Hepatology
Low-carbohydrate diet burns more excess liver fat than low-calorie diet, UT Southwestern study finds
People on low-carbohydrate diets are more dependent on the oxidation of fat in the liver for energy than those on a low-calorie diet, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in a small clinical study.
National Institutes of Health, American Diabetes Association Contact: LaKisha Ladson
lakisha.ladson@utsouthwestern.edu
214-648-3404
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Cancer Research
Mayo Clinic researchers find experimental therapy turns on tumor suppressor gene in cancer cells
Researchers at Mayo Clinic have found that the experimental drug they are testing to treat a deadly form of thyroid cancer turns on a powerful tumor suppressor capable of halting cell growth. Few other cancer drugs have this property, they say.
National Institutes of Health, Mayo Clinic Research Committee, Florida Department of Health Bankhead Coley grant, private donors Contact: Paul Scotti
scotti.paul@mayo.edu
904-953-2299
Mayo Clinic
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
American Museum Novitates
Fish out of water
A new species of catfish from tropical South America combines traits typically found in two related but different catfish families. The new species, Lithogenes wahari, not only has the bony armor of the Loricariidae but has adaptations that allow it to climb like the Astroblepidae. Researchers think that the common ancestor to both families probably combined these traits as well.
National Science Foundation, Constantine S. Niarchos Scientific Expedition Fund Contact: Kristin Elise Phillips
kphillips@amnh.org
212-496-3419
American Museum of Natural History
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Molecular Ecology
Orphaned elephants forced to forge new bonds decades after ivory ban
An African elephant never forgets -- especially when it comes to the loss of its kin, according to researchers at the University of Washington. Their findings, published in a January issue of Molecular Ecology, reveal that the negative effects of poaching persist for decades after the killing has ended.
Contact: Finbar Galligan
fgalligan@wiley.com
44-018-654-76298
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 20-Jan-2009
Conservation Biology
Frogs are being eaten to extinction: new study
The global trade in frog legs for human consumption is threatening their extinction, according to a new study by an international team including University of Adelaide researchers.
Contact: Associate Professor Corey Bradshaw
corey.bradshaw@adelaide.edu.au
61-840-157-0267
University of Adelaide
Lottery wins no guarantee of health or long-term wealth
15:42 20 January 2009
Winners of big cash prizes get no discernible health boost as a result – even long-term financial security isn't a cert, say economists
Starving bacteria bumped up early Earth's oxygen
THIS WEEK:  11:15 21 January 2009
Measurements of nickel prior to the "Great Oxygenation Event" 2.5 billion years ago suggest that hungry bacteria spewed less oxygen-eating methane
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
NEJM study: Americans owe 5 months of their lives to cleaner air
A new study by researchers at Brigham Young University and Harvard School of Public Health shows that average life expectancy in 51 US cities increased nearly three years over recent decades, and approximately five months of that increase came thanks to cleaner air.
US Centers for Disease Control, US Environmental Protection Agency, NIH/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Association of Schools of Public Health, Brigham Young University Contact: Michael Smart
michael_smart@byu.edu
801-422-7320
Brigham Young University
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Cell Host & Microbe
Topical treatment wipes out herpes with RNAi
A topical treatment disables key proteins necessary for the herpesvirus to infect and thrive in the host. Using a laboratory strategy called RNA interference, or RNAi, the treatment cripples the virus in a molecular two-punch knockout, simultaneously disabling its ability to replicate, as well as the host cell's ability to take up the virus. The research, conducted in mice, demonstrated that the treatment is effective when applied anywhere from one week before infection to a few hours after virus exposure.
National Institutes of Health Contact: David Cameron
david_cameron@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-0441
Harvard Medical School
Did the Moon's far side once face Earth?
THIS WEEK:  18:00 21 January 2009
An analysis of lunar impact craters suggests that the Moon's hidden hemisphere may have pointed our way - until an asteroid flipped it around
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Nature
New understanding of the origin of galaxies advanced
A new theory as to how galaxies were formed in the Universe billions of years ago has been formulated by Hebrew University of Jerusalem cosmologists. The theory takes issue with the prevailing view on how the galaxies came to exist.
Contact: Jerry Barach
jerryb@savion.huji.ac.il
972-258-82904
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Archives of Disease in Childhood
Research exposes the risk to infants from the chemicals used in liquid medicines
Study reveals importance of researching medicines for children.
Contact: Dr. Hitesh Pandya
hp28@le.ac.uk
44-011-625-25881
University of Leicester
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Environmental Science and Policy
Industrialization of China increases fragility of global food supply
Global grain markets are facing breaking point according to new research by the University of Leeds into the agricultural stability of China. Experts predict that if China's recent urbanization trends continue, and the country imports just 5 percent more of its grain, the entire world's grain export would be swallowed whole.
Natural Environment Research Council Contact: Clare Ryan
c.s.ryan@leeds.ac.uk
44-011-334-38059
University of Leeds
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
The Prostate
Measles virus may be effective prostate cancer treatment
A new study appearing in the Prostate has found that certain measles virus vaccine strain derivatives, including a strain known as MV-CEA, may prove to be an effective treatment for patients with advanced prostate cancer.
Contact: Sean Wagner
medicalnews@bos.blackwellpublishing.net
781-388-8550
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Researchers genetically link Lou Gehrig's disease in humans to dog disease
Researchers from the University of Missouri and the Broad Institute have found that the genetic mutation responsible for degenerative myelopathy (DM) in dogs is the same mutation that causes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the human disease also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. As a result of the discovery, researchers can now use dogs with DM as animal models to help identify therapeutic interventions for curing the human disease, ALS.
American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation Contact: Kelsey Jackson
JacksonKN@missouri.edu
573-882-8353
University of Missouri-Columbia
Drug Making’s Move Abroad Stirs Concerns
In 2004, when Bristol-Myers Squibb said it would close the last plant in the United States to manufacture the key ingredients for crucial antibiotics, few people worried about the consequences for national security. Now experts and lawmakers are growing more and more concerned that the nation is far too reliant on medicine from abroad, and they are calling for a law that would require that certain drugs be made or stockpiled in the United States.
By GARDINER HARRIS Published: January 19, 2009
Q & A
The Arctic Larder
How did people avoid malnutrition in societies, like those in the Arctic, where historically there was little or no produce?
By C. CLAIBORNE RAY
Identifying the Bird After a Strike, When Not Much Bird Is Left
Clues from the wreckage from US Airways Flight 1549, which crashed in the Hudson River, are going to the best investigators in the world: the black boxes to the National Transportation Safety Board, the engines to the manufacturer’s experts and a bird feather to a Smithsonian museum.
By MATTHEW L. WALD January 25, 2009
Public release date: 22-Jan-2009
Pacific people spread from Taiwan
New research into language evolution suggests most Pacific populations originated in Taiwan around 5,200 years ago.
Contact: Professor Russell Gray
rd.gray@auckland.ac.nz
64-210-592-405
University of Auckland
Public Release: 21-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Altered brain activity in schizophrenia may cause exaggerated focus on self
Schizophrenia may blur the boundary between internal and external realities by overactivating a brain system that is involved in self-reflection, and thus causing an exaggerated focus on self, a new MIT and Harvard brain imaging study has found.
Mental Illness and Neuroscience Discovery Institute, et al Contact: Teresa Herbert
617-258-5403
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Holographic discs set to smash storage records
Improved materials promise discs that could store over 1000 gigabytes of data within 3D holograms
17:06 22 January 2009
 Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
HortScience
WineCrisp -- new apple was more than 20 years in the making
A new, late-ripening apple named WineCrisp which carries the Vf gene for scab resistance was developed over the past 20 plus years through classical breeding techniques, not genetic engineering. License to propagate trees will be made available to nurseries through the University of Illinois.
University of Illinois, Purdue-Rutgers-Illinois Cooperative Breeding Program
Contact: Debra Levey Larson
dlarson@illinois.edu
217-244-2880
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
Journal of Alzheimer's Disease
New study provides further evidence that apple juice can delay onset of Alzheimer's disease
A growing body of evidence demonstrates that we can take steps to delay age-related cognitive decline, including in some cases that which accompanies Alzheimer's disease, according to a study published in the January 2009 issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.
Contact: Astrid Engelen
a.engelen@iospress.nl
31-206-883-355
IOS Press
Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors
The continents as a heat blanket
Drifting of the large tectonic plates and the superimposed continents is not only powered by the heat-driven convection processes in the Earth's mantle, but rather retroacts on this internal driving processes. In doing so, the continents function as a thermal blanket, which leads to an accumulation of heat underneath, and which in turn can cause the break-up of the super-continents.
Contact: Franz Ossing
ossing@gfz-potsdam.de
49-331-288-1040
Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres
Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
New England Journal of Medicine
New treatment reduces severity of asthma attacks in preschoolers
The largest study of its kind on preschoolers has demonstrated that preventive treatment with high doses of inhaled corticosteroids is effective in reducing the severity and duration of asthma attacks triggered by colds. Dr. Francine Ducharme, assistant director of clinical research at the Sainte-Justine Hospital Research Center and a pediatrics professor at the University of Montreal, led the study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
GlaxoSmithKline, Fonds de la Recherche en Santé du Québec, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Contact: Melanie Dallaire
melanie.dallaire.hsj@ssss.gouv.qc.ca
514-345-7707
University of Montreal
Historic trial to treat spinal injury with stem cells
Patients with spinal cord injuries will be first to receive repair cells derived from embryonic stem cells – similar work has restored limb function in rats
14:09 23 January 2009
Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
Nature Materials
Implants mimic infection to rally immune system against tumors
Bioengineers at Harvard University have shown that small plastic disks impregnated with tumor-specific antigens and implanted under the skin can reprogram the mammalian immune system to attack tumors. The research -- which ridded 90 percent of mice of an aggressive form of melanoma that would usually kill the rodents within 25 days -- represents the most effective demonstration to date of a cancer vaccine.
National Institutes of Health, Harvard University
Contact: Steve Bradt
steve_bradt@harvard.edu
617-496-8070
Harvard University
Public Release: 22-Jan-2009
Journal of Nutrition
Eating less may not extend life
Caloric restriction only benefits obese mice, according to a new study in the Journal of Nutrition. The results suggest that caloric restriction may not be a universally beneficial anti-aging strategy, as commonly believed.
NIH/National Institute on Aging
Contact: Carl Marziali
marziali@usc.edu
213-740-4751
University of Southern California
Public Release: 25-Jan-2009
Nature Geoscience
Dramatic expansion of dead zones in the oceans
Unchecked global warming would leave ocean dwellers gasping for breath. Dead zones are low-oxygen areas in the ocean where higher life forms such as fish, crabs and clams are not able to live. A team of Danish researchers have now shown that unchecked global warming would lead to a dramatic expansion of low-oxygen areas zones in the global ocean by a factor of 10 or more. The findings are published in the scientific journal Nature Geoscience.
Contact: Gertie Skaarup
skaarup@nbi.dk
453-532-5320
University of Copenhagen