Public Release: 18-Oct-2009
Nature Geoscience
Geologists point to outer space as source of the Earth's mineral riches
According to a new study by geologists at the University of Toronto and the University of Maryland, the wealth of some minerals that lie in the rock beneath the Earth's surface may be extraterrestrial in origin.
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, NASA
Contact: Sean Bettam
s.bettam@utoronto.ca
416-946-7950
University of Toronto
Public Release: 18-Oct-2009
Nature Methods
A major step in making better stem cells from adult tissue
A team led by scientists from the Scripps Research Institute has developed a method that dramatically improves the efficiency of creating stem cells from human adult tissue, without the use of embryonic cells. The research makes great strides in addressing a major practical challenge in the development of stem-cell-based medicine.
National Institutes of Health, Fate Therapeutics
Contact: Keith McKeown
kmckeown@scripps.edu
858-784-8134
Scripps Research Institute
Norwegian Wood For The Ages: 'Mummified' Pine Trees Found
Science Daily
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Neurology
Protein may predict heart attack and early death, not stroke
People with high levels of a protein called C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation in the blood, may be at higher risk for heart attack and death but not stroke, according to a study published in the Oct. 20, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Contact: Rachel Seroka
rseroka@aan.com
651-695-2738
American Academy of Neurology
Was our oldest ancestor a proton-powered rock?
FEATURE:  16:18 19 October 2009
Forget primordial soup: the cradle of life may have been a foaming stone
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Archives of Surgery
Clots traveling from lower veins may not be the cause of pulmonary embolism in trauma patients
A report from Massachusetts General Hospital physicians calls into question the longstanding belief that pulmonary embolism -- life-threatening blockage of a major blood vessel in the lungs -- is caused in trauma patients by a blood clot traveling from vessels deep within the legs or lower torso. The study, which utilized advanced imaging technologies, found no evidence of deep venous thrombosis in most trauma patients with pulmonary embolism.
Contact: Sue McGreevey
smcgreevey@partners.org
617-724-2764
Massachusetts General Hospital
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
 Neuroscience 2009
Study: Added oxygen during stroke reduces brain tissue damage
Scientists have countered findings of previous clinical trials by showing that giving supplemental oxygen to animals during a stroke can reduce damage to brain tissue surrounding the clot. The timing of the delivery of 100 percent oxygen -- either by mask or in a hyperbaric chamber -- is critical to achieving the benefit, however.
Contact: Savita Khanna
savita.khanna@osumc.edu
614-247-7840
Ohio State University
Meet future woman: shorter, plumper, more fertile
20:00 19 October 2009
A contemporary study of women in Massachusetts shows that natural selection is still going strong in humans
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Geological Society of America's 2009 Annual Meeting & Exposition
Clemson researchers say algae key to mass extinctions
Geologist James W. Castle and ecotoxicologist John H. Rodgers have published findings that toxin producing algae were a deadly factor in mass extinctions millions of years ago. The research not only provides new insights into the past but also offers a caution about the future.
Contact: James W. Castle
jcastle@clemson.edu
864-207-6288
Clemson University
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
The book of life can now literally be written on paper
An insight from the labs of Harvard chemist George Whitesides and cell biologist Don Ingber is likely to make a fundamental shift in how biologists grow and study cells -- and it's as cheap and simple as reaching for a paper towel.
Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Vertex Inc., US Department of Defense, Fulbright-Generalitat de Catalunya, American Heart Association
Contact: Karen Weintraub
karen.weintraub@wyss.harvard.edu
617-432-7785
Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Shifting the world to 100 percent clean, renewable energy as early as 2030 -- here are the numbers
Wind, water and solar energy resources are sufficiently available to provide all the world's energy. Converting to electricity and hydrogen powered by these sources would reduce world power demand by 30 percent, thereby avoiding 13,000 coal power plants. Materials and costs are not limitations to these conversions, but politics may be, say Stanford and U.C. researchers who have mapped out a blueprint for powering the world.
Contact: Louis Bergeron
louisb3@stanford.edu
650-725-1944
Stanford University
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
International Journal of Low Radiation
Herbal tonic for radiotherapy
Antioxidant extracts of the leaves of the Gingko biloba tree may protect cells from radiation damage, according to a study published in the International Journal of Low Radiation. The discovery may one day be used to help reduce side effects in cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy.
Contact: Chang-Mo Kang
kangcm@kcch.re.kr
Inderscience Publishers
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
32 new exoplanets found
Today, the team who built HARPS, the spectrograph for ESO's 3.6-meter telescope, reports on the incredible discovery of some 32 new exoplanets, cementing HARPS's position as the world's foremost exoplanet hunter. This result also increases the number of known low-mass planets by an impressive 30 percent. Over the past five years HARPS has spotted more than 75 of the roughly 400 or so exoplanets now known.
Contact: Dr. Henri Boffin
hboffin@eso.org
49-893-200-6222
ESO
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
PLoS ONE
Smart rat 'Hobbie-J' produced by over-expressing a gene that helps brain cells communicate
Over-expressing a gene that lets brain cells communicate just a fraction of a second longer makes a smarter rat, report researchers from the Medical College of Georgia and East China Normal University.
Contact: Toni Baker
tbaker@mcg.edu
706-721-4421
Medical College of Georgia
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
Review: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines effective at preventing child deaths
A study published in the Cochrane Review this month concludes that pneumococcal conjugate vaccines, already known to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and X-ray defined pneumonia, were also effective against child deaths. According to the review, 80 percent of children were less likely to develop vaccine-type IPD, 58 percent all-serotype IPD, and 27 percent X-ray defined pneumonia than children who did not receive the vaccine. Eleven percent of child deaths were also prevented.
Johns Hopkins University
Contact: Traci Siegel
traci.siegel@gmmb.com
202-262-7938
Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health
Public Release: 19-Oct-2009
Neuroscience 2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
A master mechanism for regeneration?
Biologists long have marveled at the ability of some animals to re-grow lost body parts. Newts, for example, can lose a leg and grow a new one identical to the original. Zebrafish can regrow fins.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Nancy Ross-Flanigan
rossflan@umich.edu
734-647-1853
University of Michigan
Well
Treating Dementia, but Overlooking Its Physical Toll
By TARA PARKER-POPE
Dementia, often viewed as a disease of the mind, is also a progressive physical disease.
First Mention: Lou Gehrig’s Disease
Really?
The Claim: Garlic Can Be Helpful in Warding Off a Cold
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR
Can the medicinal properties of garlic prevent colds?
Cosmic pattern to UK tree growth
By Matt Walker Editor, Earth News
The growth of British trees appears to follow a cosmic pattern, with trees growing faster when high levels of cosmic radiation arrive from space.
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
BMC Pediatrics
Prolonged thumb sucking in infants may lead to speech impediments
Using a pacifier for too long may be detrimental to your child's speech. Research published in the open access journal BMC Pediatrics suggests that the use of bottles, pacifiers and other sucking behaviors apart from breastfeeding may increase the risk of subsequent speech disorders in young children.
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-020-319-22129
BioMed Central
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
BMC Emergency Medicine
Calling it in: New emergency medical service system may predict caller's fate
Japanese researchers have developed a computer program which may be able tell from an emergency call if you are about to die. Research published in the open access journal BMC Emergency Medicine shows that a computer algorithm is able to predict the patient's risk of dying at the time of the emergency call.
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-020-319-22129
BioMed Central
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
Molecular Neurodegeneration
Alzheimer's researchers find high protein diet shrinks brain
One of the many reasons to pick a low-calorie and low-fat diet is that host of epidemiological studies have suggested that such a diet may delay the onset or slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Now a study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Molecular Neurodegeneration tests the effects of several diets for their effects on AD pathology. Unexpectedly, the researchers found that a high protein diet apparently led to a smaller brain.
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-020-319-22129
BioMed Central
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
PLoS ONE
2-million-year-old evidence shows tool-making hominins inhabited grassland environments
In an article published in the open-access, peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE Oct. 21, Dr. Thomas Plummer of Queens College at the City University of New York, Dr. Richard Potts of the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History and colleagues report the oldest archaeological evidence of early human activities in a grassland environment, dating to two million years ago. The article highlights new research and its implications concerning the environments in which human ancestors evolved.
Contact: Rebecca Walton
rwalton@plos.org
44-122-346-3333
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
Transfusion
Better blood screening process needed to prevent babesiosis transmission
Babesiosis is a potentially dangerous parasitic disease transmitted by ticks and is common in the Northeast and the upper Midwest. It can also be transmitted through a blood transfusion from an infected but otherwise asymptomatic blood donor. A new study led by researchers at Rhode Island and The Miriam hospitals finds a dramatic increase in the number of transfusion-transmitted babesiosis cases, leading to a call for a better screening test in blood donors living in areas of the country where babesiosis is prevalent.
Contact: Nancy Cawley Jean
njean@lifespan.org
Lifespan
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
Hepatology
Drinking coffee slows progression of liver disease in chronic hepatitis C sufferers
Patients with chronic hepatitis C and advanced liver disease who drink three or more cups of coffee per day have a 53 percent lower risk of liver disease progression than non-coffee drinkers according to a new study led by Neal Freedman, Ph.D., MPH, from the National Cancer Institute. Findings of the study appear in the November issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.
Contact: Dawn Peters
medicalnews@wiley.com
781-388-8408
Wiley-Blackwell
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
PLoS ONE
Presidential election outcome changed voters' testosterone
Young men who voted for Republican John McCain or Libertarian candidate Robert Barr in the 2008 presidential election suffered an immediate drop in testosterone when the election results were announced, according to a study by researchers at Duke University and the University of Michigan.
Contact: Karl Leif Bates
karl.bates@duke.edu
919-681-8054
Duke University
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
Neuroscience 2009
Researchers find ways to encourage spinal cord regeneration after injury
Animal research is suggesting new ways to aid recovery after spinal cord injury. New studies demonstrate that diet affects recovery rate and show how to make stem cell therapies safer for spinal injury patients. The findings were presented at Neuroscience 2009, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news on brain science and health.
Contact: Kat Snodgrass
ksnodgrass@sfn.org
Society for Neuroscience
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
JAMA
Experts issue call to reconsider screening for breast cancer and prostate cancer
Twenty years of screening for breast and prostate cancer -- the most diagnosed cancer for women and men -- have not brought the anticipated decline in deaths from these diseases, argue experts from the University of California, San Francisco and the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in an opinion piece published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Contact: Elizabeth Fernandez
EFernandez@pubaff.ucsf.edu
415-476-2557
University of California - San Francisco
Public Release: 20-Oct-2009
Anesthesia & Analgesia
UF scientists discover new explanation for controversial old patient-care technique
Researchers from University of Florida College of Medicine have used magnetic resonance imaging of the neck region to show that an under-fire medical maneuver often practiced when patients receive anesthesia is effective, but not for the obvious reasons.
Contact: Czerne M. Reid
czerne@ufl.edu
352-273-5810
University of Florida
When Parents Are Too Toxic to Tolerate
By RICHARD A. FRIEDMAN, M.D.
Children may do well to cut ties with abusive mothers and fathers.
Public Release: 21-Oct-2009
New England Journal of Medicine
Study conclusively ties rare disease gene to Parkinson's
An international team led by a National Institutes of Health researcher has found that carriers of a rare, genetic condition called Gaucher disease face a risk of developing Parkinson's disease more than five times greater than the general public. The findings were published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Raymond MacDougall
macdougallr@mail.nih.gov
301-402-0911
NIH/National Human Genome Research Institute
Public Release: 21-Oct-2009
BMC Medicine
Study reveals possible link between autism and oxytocin gene via non-DNA sequence mutation
A new study indicates a link between autism and alterations to the oxytocin receptor, OXTR, caused by inherited alterations that do not involve DNA sequence mutation. The study, published in the open-access journal BMC Medicine, identified the non-DNA change in "OXTR" via an autistic child and his mother, who potentially has obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-203-192-2129
BioMed Central
Subterranean microbes revive tired old gas fields
THIS WEEK:  18:00 21 October 2009
Engineers are brimming with ideas of how to extract every last tonne of fossil fuel: one company is now showing that all it takes is common fertiliser
Public Release: 21-Oct-2009
Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
A scientific basis the 'golden rule' of pairing wines and foods
Scientists in Japan are reporting the first scientific explanation for one of the most widely known rules of thumb for pairing wine with food: "Red wine with red meat, white wine with fish." The scientists are reporting that the unpleasant, fishy aftertaste noticeable when consuming red wine with fish results from naturally occurring iron in red wine. The study is in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a bi-weekly publication.
Contact: Michael Woods
m_woods@acs.org
202-872-6293
American Chemical Society
Earliest evidence of humans thriving on the savannah
18:07 21 October 2009
Humans were settled on open grassland in Africa as early as 2 million years ago, making stone tools and using them to butcher zebra and other grazers
Public Release: 21-Oct-2009
American Journal of Pathology
Alzheimer's lesions found in the retina
The eyes may be the windows to the soul, but new research indicates they also may mirror a brain ravaged by Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation, National Basic Research Program of China, UC Discovery Grant Program, Larry L. Hillblom Foundation
Contact: Jennifer Fitzenberger
jfitzen@uci.edu
949-824-3969
University of California - Irvine
Public Release: 21-Oct-2009
First in New York: Bionic technology aims to give sight to woman blinded beginning at age 13
A 50-year-old New York woman who was diagnosed with a progressive blinding disease at age 13 was implanted with an experimental electronic eye implant that has partially restored her vision. A team led by Dr. Lucian V. Del Priore at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center performed the June 26 surgery -- the first case of its kind in New York.
Contact: Jennifer Homa
jeh9057@nyp.org
212-305-5587
New York- Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center
Sun's rain could explain why corona heat is insane
00:01 22 October 2009
Simulations of rain on the sun hint at the process that could be heating the corona to much higher temperatures than would be expected
Reduced genome works fine with 2000 chunks missing
THIS WEEK:  01:00 22 October 2009
The first systematic scan for non-essential DNA has given an estimate of the minimum genome a healthy person needs, as well as clues to our evolution
Public Release: 22-Oct-2009
Addiction
New UK study suggests minimal relationship between cannabis and schizophrenia or psychosis
Last year the UK government reclassified cannabis from a class C to a class B drug, partly out of concerns that cannabis, especially the more potent varieties, may increase the risk of schizophrenia in young people. But the evidence for the relationship between cannabis and schizophrenia or psychosis remains controversial. A new study has determined that it may be necessary to stop thousands of cannabis users in order to prevent a single case of schizophrenia.
Contact: Amy Molnar
amolnar@wiley.com
201-748-8844
Wiley-Blackwell
Ancient 'Lucy' Species Ate A Different Diet Than Previously Thought
PhysOrg.com
Research examining microscopic marks on the teeth of the "Lucy" species Australopithecus afarensis suggests that the ancient hominid ate a different diet than the tooth enamel, size and shape suggest, say a University of Arkansas researcher and his colleagues.
Public Release: 22-Oct-2009
Current Biology
Female choice benefits mothers more than offspring
The great diversity of male sexual traits, ranging from peacock's elaborate train to formidable genitalia of male seed beetles, is the result of female choice. But why do females choose among males? In a new study published today in Current Biology, researchers from Uppsala University found no support for the theory that the female choice is connected to "good genes."
Contact: Alexei Maklakov
Alexei.Maklakov@ebc.uu.se
461-847-1270
Uppsala University
Public Release: 22-Oct-2009
Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment
Halloween sex offender policies questioned
The rates of non-familial sex crimes against children under the age of 12 are no higher during the Halloween season than at any other times of the year, according to a study published in the September issue of Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment. The findings raise questions about the wisdom of law enforcement practices aimed at dealing with a problem that does not appear to exist.
Contact: Jim GIidlen
media.inquiries@sagepub.com
SAGE Publications
Public Release: 23-Oct-2009
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine
Patients in US 5 times more likely to spend last days in ICU than patients in England
Patients who die in the hospital in the United States are almost five times as likely to have spent part of their last hospital stay in the ICU than patients in England. What's more, over the age of 85, ICU usage among terminal patients is eight times higher in the US than in England, according to new research from Columbia University that compared the two countries' use of intensive care services during final hospitalizations.
Contact: Keely Savoie
ksavoie@thoracic.org
212-305-8620
American Thoracic Society
Public Release: 23-Oct-2009
Psychological Science
Cleanliness is next to godliness: New research shows clean smells promote moral behavior
People in rooms freshly spritzed with Windex were more fair and generous than people in normal-smelling rooms.
Contact: Michael Smart
michael_smart@byu.edu
801-372-4011
Brigham Young University
Ancient Greeks introduced wine to France, Cambridge study reveals
France's well-known passion for wine may have stemmed from the Ancient Greeks, a Cambridge University study discloses.
Telegraph UK
Public Release: 24-Oct-2009
Lancet
1 shot of gene therapy and children with congenital blindness can now see
A study using gene therapy safely improved vision in five children and seven adults with Leber's congenital amaurosis. The greatest improvements occurred in the children, all of whom are now able to navigate a low-light obstacle course.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Foundation Fighting Blindness, Research to Prevent Blindness
Contact: Karen Kreeger
karen.kreeger@uphs.upenn.edu
215-459-0544
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Public Release: 25-Oct-2009
Canadian Cardiovascular Congress 2009
The heart attack myth: Study establishes that women do have same the heart attack symptoms as men
The gender difference between men and women is a lot smaller than we've been led to believe when it comes to heart attack symptoms, according to a new study presented to the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress 2009, co-hosted by the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cardiovascular Society.
Contact: Jane-Diane Fraser
jfraser@hsf.ca
613-569-4361 x273
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Public Release: 25-Oct-2009
Nature Photonics
Mantis shrimps could show us the way to a better DVD
The remarkable eyes of a marine crustacean could inspire the next generation of DVD and CD players, according to a new study from the University of Bristol published today in Nature Photonics.
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, US Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Asia Office of Aerospace Research and Development, Australian Research Council, National Science Foundation
Contact: Hannah Johnson
hannah.johnson@bristol.ac.uk
44-117-928-8896
University of Bristol
Public Release: 25-Oct-2009
Nature Neuroscience
Master regulator found for regenerating nerve fibers in live animals
Researchers at Children's have found an essential factor for regenerating neurons in the central nervous system, which normally can't regenerate. This enzyme, or factors that stimulate it, could lead to a possible treatment for stroke, spinal cord damage and traumatic brain injury.
National Institutes of Health, European Union, Alseres Inc., Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Medical Research Foundation
Contact: James Newton
james.newton@childrens.edu
617-919-3110
Children's Hospital Boston
Testicular tumours linked to offsprings' disease
18:00 25 October 2009
Undetected tumour cells may produce faulty sperm – which could be why older fathers are more likely to have children with genetic diseases
World's Oldest Known Granaries Predate Agriculture
Science Daily
A new study coauthored by Ian Kuijt, associate professor of anthropology at the University of Notre Dame, describes recent excavations in Jordan that reveal evidence of the world's oldest know granaries.