Public Release: 29-Jun-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
GUMC study may help explain 'awakenings' that occur with popular sleep-aid Ambien
Some people who take the fast-acting sleep-aid zolpidem (Ambien) have been observed walking, eating, talking on the phone and even driving while not fully awake. Many often don't remember doing any of these activities the next morning. Similarly, this drug has been shown to awaken the minimally conscious into a conscious state. A new study by Georgetown University Medical Center researchers may help explain why these "awakenings" occur.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Karen Mallet
km463@georgetown.edu
215-514-9751
Georgetown University Medical Center
Public Release: 29-Jun-2009
American Journal of Gastroenterology
Magic ingredient in breast milk protects babies' intestines
Scientists at Queen Mary, University of London have discovered that an ingredient in human breast milk protects and repairs the delicate intestines of newborn babies. The ingredient called pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor, or PSTI, is found at its highest levels in colostrum -- the milk produced in the first few days after birth. The new study highlights the importance of breastfeeding in the first few days after the birth.
Contact: Kerry Noble
k.noble@qmul.ac.uk
44-207-882-7910
Queen Mary, University of London
Public Release: 29-Jun-2009
ESHRE 2009
Ovarian transplantation: First baby is born after a new technique
On June 22, a baby girl was born to a mother who had been menopausal for two years as a result of treatment for sickle cell anemia, after a new, two-step method of ovarian transplant that worked to restore ovarian function quickly. It is the first birth after ovarian autotransplantation in France and the first in the world after treatment for sickle cell anemia.
Contact: Mary Rice
mary@mrcommunication.org
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
Public Release: 29-Jun-2009
Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
4 out of 106 heart replacement valves from pig hearts failed
Pig heart valves used to replace defective aortic valves in human patients failed much earlier and more often than expected, says a report from cardiac surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. This is the first report to demonstrate this potential problem, the researchers say.
Contact: Gwen Ericson
ericsong@wustl.edu
314-286-0141
Washington University School of Medicine
Physios recommend a healthy dose of gaming
FEATURE:  10:09 30 June 200
Amputees and people with Parkinson's are all benefiting from physical therapy based on popular games consoles
Public Release: 30-Jun-2009
American Journal of Roentgenology
Researchers find a way to reduce patient radiation dose during pulmonary CT angiography
While screening for possible pulmonary emboli using pulmonary CT angiography, a new study shows that radiologists can effectively lower the patient radiation dose by approximately 44 percent, and improve vascular enhancement without deterioration of image quality, according to a study performed at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston.
Contact: Heather Curry
hcurry@acr-arrs.org
703-390-9822
American Roentgen Ray Society
Really?
The Claim: Drinking Tea Can Lower Your Levels of Iron
Can compounds in tea affect iron levels in your body?
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR
Personal Health
The Damage of Reflux (Bile, Not Acid)
The symptoms are similar to heartburn, but failure to properly diagnose bile reflux can result in serious, sometimes life-threatening problems
By JANE E. BRODY
Global Update
Drug-Resistant Flu Strain Turns Up in Denmark but Doesn’t Last Long
The first patient with a case of swine flu resistant to the antiviral drug Tamiflu has been found in Denmark, according to Danish health officials.
By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
Public Release: 30-Jun-2009
Arthritis & Rheumatism
Risk of tuberculosis from arthritis medication examined
Treatment with anti-tumor necrosis factor agents is recognized as a risk factor for tuberculosis in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Crohn's disease, psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis.
Contact: Sean Wagner
medicalnews@wiley.com
781-388-8550
Wiley-Blackwell
Observatory
When a Hybrid Takes Hold, the Outcome Can Be Bad
Research involving invasive and native salamanders in the Salinas Valley of California shows the devastating effects of hybridization.
* Shrews Use Sounds the Way Bats Do
By HENRY FOUNTAIN
Public Release: 30-Jun-2009
Arthritis & Rheumatism
Study provides greater understanding of lyme disease-causing bacteria
Lyme disease in the US is caused by the tick-borne bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, and usually begins with a skin lesion, after which the bacteria spread throughout the body to the nervous system, heart or joints.
Contact: Sean Wagner
medicalnews@wiley.com
781-388-8550
Wiley-Blackwell
The genetic secrets of younger-looking skin
THIS WEEK:  14:21 30 June 2009
Genetic analyses of human skin are revealing what makes us look old and providing a way to test claims about skin products
Chimpanzees learn from video demo
Copycat chimps build their own tools after watching video demonstrations.
By Victoria Gill Science reporter, BBC News
1 July 2009 16:38 UK
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Nature
Plants save the earth from an icy doom
Fifty million years ago, the North and South poles were ice-free and crocodiles roamed the Arctic. Since then, a long-term decrease in the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has cooled the Earth. Researchers at Yale University, the Carnegie Institution of Washington and the University of Sheffield now show that land plants saved the Earth from a deep frozen fate by buffering the removal of atmospheric CO2 over the past 24 million years.
Yale Climate and Energy Institute, National Science Foundation, US Department of Energy, Leverhulme Trust, Royal Society-Wolfson Research Merit Award
Contact: Suzanne Taylor Muzzin
suzanne.taylormuzzin@yale.edu
203-432-8555
Yale University
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Nature
Study strongly supports many genetic contributions to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder
An international research consortium has discovered that many common genetic variants contribute to a person's risk of schizophrenia, providing the first molecular evidence that this form of genetic variation is involved in schizophrenia. The researchers also found that many of these DNA variations also are involved in bipolar disorder but not in several nonpsychiatric diseases.
Stanley Medical Research Foundation, Sylvan Herman Foundation, UK Medical Research Council, Wellcome Trust, Science Foundation Ireland
Contact: Sue McGreevey
smcgreevey@partners.org
617-724-2764
Massachusetts General Hospital
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Gastroenterology
Acid-reducing medicines may lead to dependency
Treatment with proton pump inhibitors for eight weeks induces acid-related symptoms like heartburn, acid regurgitation and dyspepsia once treatment is withdrawn in healthy individuals.
Contact: Alissa J. Cruz
media@gastro.org
301-272-1602
American Gastroenterological Association
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
ESHRE 2009
Chromosomal problems affect nearly all human embryos
For the first time, scientists have shown that chromosomal abnormalities are present in more than 90 percent of IVF embryos, even those produced by young, fertile couples
Contact: Mary Rice
mary@mrcommunication.org
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
Brain's response muted when we see other races in pain
14:20 01 July 2009
The response of the brain is less pronounced when we see strangers in pain who are a different race to our own
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Nature
Scientists: Salamanders, regenerative wonders, heal like mammals, people
The salamander is a superhero of regeneration, able to replace lost limbs, damaged lungs, sliced spinal cord -- even bits of lopped-off brain.
Contact: Malcolm Maden
malcmaden@ufl.edu
352-392-5856
University of Florida
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
Emerging techniques put a new twist on ankle repair
People with ankle injuries who do not respond successfully to initial treatment may have a second chance at recovery, thanks to two new procedures.
Contact: Lauren Pearson
lpearson@aaos.org
847-384-4031
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Journal of Thoracic Oncology
Researchers find clear difference in quality, type of lung cancer info available in US and Japan
A study published in the July 2009 issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology revealed that internet-based lung cancer information was of a higher quality in the United States than in Japan. Dr. Yasushi Goto of the National Cancer Center Hospital in Tokyo and his team of researchers evaluated 150 Web sites, and determined noticeable differences in the quality and type of information on lung cancer available over the Internet in the two countries.
Contact: Bethany Fischer
bfischer@spectrumscience.com
202-955-6222
International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer
Dinosaur mummy gives up organic material
THIS WEEK:  18:00 01 July 2009
A mummified dinosaur seems to contain traces of 66-million-year old amino acids - the building blocks of proteins - which could provide vital information about its evolution
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Journal of Periodontology
New treatment for receding gums: No pain, lots of gain
Tufts dental researchers demonstrate three-year success with a tissue regeneration application that reduces the pain and recovery time of gum grafting surgery. This specific treatment, developed at Tufts, eliminates the need to take tissue from the roof of the mouth.
Contact: Siobhan E. Gallagher
617-636-6586
Tufts University, Health Sciences
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Nature
UCLA collaboration identifies immune system link to schizophrenia
Researchers at UCLA and colleagues from around the world have, for the first time, identified additional genes that confirm what scientists have long suspected -- that the immune system may play a role in the development of schizophrenia. Further, they have also identified genetic anomalies that disrupt the cellular pathways involved in brain development, memory and cognition, all markers of schizophrenia.
Contact: Mark Wheeler
mwheeler@mednet.ucla.edu
310-794-2265
University of California - Los Angeles
Public Release: 1-Jul-2009
Neuroscience
Blood stem cell growth factor reverses memory decline in mice
A human growth factor that stimulates blood stem cells to proliferate in bone marrow reverses memory impairment in mice genetically altered to develop Alzheimer's disease, a new study finds.
Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation, Helen Ellis Endowment, Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Byrd Alzheimer's Center
Contact: Anne DeLotto Baier
abaier@health.usf.edu
813-974-3300
University of South Florida Health
Public Release: 2-Jul-2009
Cell Stem Cell
New targeted therapy finds and eliminates deadly leukemia stem cells
New research describes a molecular tool that shows great promise as a therapeutic for human acute myeloid leukemia, a notoriously treatment-resistant blood cancer. The study, published by Cell Press in the July 2 issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell, describes exciting preclinical studies in which a new therapeutic approach selectively attacks human cancer cells grown in the lab and in animal models of leukemia.
Contact: Cathleen Genova
cgenova@cell.com
617-397-2802
Cell Press
Public Release: 2-Jul-2009
Trials
Doubts cast on credibility of some published clinical trials
Randomized controlled trials are considered the "gold standard" research method for assessing new medical treatments. But research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Trials shows that the design of a remarkable 93 percent of 2235 so-called RCTs published in some Chinese medical journals during 1994 to 2005 was flawed, casting doubt on the reliability of research that is likely to influence medical decision-makers.
Chinese Medical Board of New York
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-078-253-17342
BioMed Central
Computer reveals stone tablet 'handwriting' in a flash
18:00 02 July 2009
Identifying individual carving styles on ancient tablets takes years of training – and even then can be up for debate – but now a computer can do it in seconds
Public Release: 2-Jul-2009
Proceedings of the Royal Society B
Scientists 'rebuild' giant moa using ancient DNA
Scientists have performed the first DNA-based reconstruction of the giant extinct moa bird, using prehistoric feathers recovered from caves and rock shelters in New Zealand.
Contact: Nicolas Rawlence
nicolas.rawlence@adelaide.edu.au
61-406-973-557
University of Adelaide
Incredible shrinking sheep blamed on climate change
19:00 02 July 2009
The mysterious size reduction of Scottish sheep over the last 20 years can be explained by shorter winters, researchers say
Public Release: 2-Jul-2009
World Conference of Science Journalists
Research output in developing countries reveals 194 percent increase in five years
The partners of Research4Life announced today at the World Conference of Science Journalists 2009 that a new research impact analysis has demonstrated a dramatic rise in research output by scientists in the developing world since 2002. By comparing absolute growth in published research before (1996 – 2002) and after (2002 - 2008) the advent of the Research4Life programs, the analysis has revealed a 194 percent or 6.4-fold increase in articles published in peer reviewed journals.
Contact: Shira Tabachnikoff
s.tabachnikoff@elsevier.com
31-204-852-736
Elsevier
Public Release: 2-Jul-2009
International Journal of Radiation, Oncology, Biology, Physics
Prostate cancer patients disease free after 5 years likely to be disease free after 10 years
Prostate cancer patients who receive brachytherapy and remain free of disease for five years or greater are unlikely to have a recurrence at 10 years, according to a study in the July 1 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, the official journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology.
Contact: Beth Bukata
bethb@astro.org
703-839-7332
American Society for Radiation Oncology
New dinosaurs found in Australia
Three new dinosaur species are found in Queensland, Australia, and named after the Outback song Waltzing Matilda.
Fellow students smell your exam fear
IN BRIEF:  11:21 04 July 2009
Anxiety seems to prompt the release of a chemical that automatically triggers empathy in anyone who sniffs it
Global Update
Tuberculosis: TB Vaccine Too Dangerous for Babies With AIDS Virus, Study Says
By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.
A common tuberculosis vaccine is too risky to give to those born infected with the AIDS virus, says a new study published by the World Health Organization.
* Health Guide: Tuberculosis »