Craft sends Saturn moon pictures
Nasa has released the latest raw images of Saturn's moon Enceladus, from the Cassini spacecraft's extended mission to the planet and its satellites.
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
Journal of Geophysical Research - Planets
New computer-developed map shows more extensive valley network on Mars
In a newly published study, scientists used an innovative computer program to produce a more detailed global map of Mars' valley networks. It shows the networks are much more extensive than had been previously depicted. Regions that are most densely dissected by the valley networks roughly form a belt around the planet, consistent with a past climate scenario that included precipitation and the presence of an ocean covering a large portion of Mars' northern hemisphere.
NASA
Contact: Tom Parisi
tparisi@niu.edu
815-753-3635
Northern Illinois University
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health
Flaxseed oil and osteoporosis
Animal studies suggest that adding flaxseed oil to the diet could reduce the risk of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women and women with diabetes, according to a report to be published in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health.
Contact: Mer Harvi
merharvi@hotmail.com
Inderscience Publishers
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
Nature Neuroscience
Upending textbook science on Alzheimer's disease
In a new study published in Nature Neuroscience, Dr. Inna Slutsky of Tel Aviv University's Sackler Faculty of Medicine finds that the amyloid-beta protein, currently the target of Alzheimer's drug research, is essential for normal information transfer through nerve cell networks in the brain. "If this protein is removed from the brain," says Dr. Slutsky, "it may cause an impairment of neuronal function, as well as a further and faster accumulation of amyloid-beta in Alzheimer's."
Contact: George Hunka
ghunka@aftau.org
212-742-9070
American Friends of Tel Aviv University
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
10 x '20: ID experts call for 10 new antibiotics by 2020
The Infectious Diseases Society of America has asked for a commitment from the Obama administration and the European Union to further the Society's mission to achieve the development of 10 new antibiotics within the next 10 years, known as the 10 x '20 Initiative. The World Health Organization has identified antimicrobial resistance as one of the three greatest threats to human health.
Contact: John Heys
jheys@idsociety.org
703-299-0200
Infectious Diseases Society of America
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
Palaeogeoraphy, Palaeocilmatology, Palaeoecology
Supervolcano eruption -- in Sumatra -- deforested India 73,000 years ago
A new study provides "incontrovertible evidence" that the volcanic super-eruption of Toba on the island of Sumatra about 73,000 years ago deforested much of central India, some 3,000 miles from the epicenter, researchers report.
Contact: Diana Yates
diya@illinois.edu
217-333-5802
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
American Journal of Pathology
Factors from common human bacteria may trigger multiple sclerosis
Current research suggests that a common oral bacterium may exacerbate autoimmune disease. The related report by Nichols et al, "Unique Lipids from a Common Human Bacterium Represent a New Class of TLR2 Ligands Capable of Enhancing Autoimmunity," appears in the December 2009 issue of the American Journal of Pathology.
Contact: Angela Colmone
acolmone@asip.org
301-634-7953
American Journal of Pathology
Public Release: 23-Nov-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Fish food fight: Fish don't eat trees after all, says new study
Recent theories suggesting that half of fishes' food comes from from land-based ecosystems may not hold water. Experiments show that algae, not land-based matter, is needed to build healthy and fertile aquatic organisms.
National Science Foundation Contact: Hannah Hickey
hickeyh@uw.edu
206-543-2580
University of Washington
Well
Food, Kin and Tension at Thanksgiving
By TARA PARKER-POPE
Turkey with a side of scorn? For some families, holiday meals can be cauldrons of longstanding tensions, fresh criticism and battles for control.
Really?
The Claim: Vinegar Can Help Lower Blood Sugar Levels
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR
Can adding vinegar to a large meal prevent a spike in blood sugar?
Personal Health
Exploring a Low-Acid Diet for Bone Health
By JANE E. BRODY
Proponents suggest that such a regimen could lead to stronger bones than the typical American diet rich in dairy products and animal protein.
* Health Guide: Osteoporosis »
Public Release: 24-Nov-2009
Tulane University surgeon pioneers 'scarless' thyroid surgery
Tulane University School of Medicine surgeon Dr. Emad Kandil is one of the first in the country to perform a new form of endoscopic surgery that uses a small incision under the arm to remove all or a portion of the thyroid or parathyroid glands without leaving a scar on the neck.
Contact: Keith Brannon
kbrannon@tulane.edu
504-862-8789
Tulane University
Can you be blamed for sleepwalking crimes?
16:17 24 November 2009
Research on the causes of sleepwalking may make it easier to identify whether those who commit crimes in their sleep should bear the responsibility
Public Release: 25-Nov-2009
American Journal of Human Genetics
First 'genetic map' of Han Chinese may aid search for disease susceptibility genes
The first genetic historical map of the Han Chinese, the largest ethnic population in the world, as they migrated from south to north over evolutionary time. The study was published online by the American Journal of Human Genetics.
Contact: Winnie Serah Lim
limcp2@gis.a-star.edu.sg
656-478-8013
Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore
Public Release: 25-Nov-2009
Academic Medicine
Medical students regularly stuck by needles, often fail to report injuries
Medical students are commonly stuck by needles -- putting them at risk of contracting potentially dangerous blood-borne diseases -- and many of them fail to report the injuries to hospital authorities, according to a Johns Hopkins study published in the December issue of the journal Academic Medicine.
Mr. and Mrs. Chad Richison Foundation, Lotus Global Health Foundation
Contact: Stephanie Desmon
sdesmon1@jhmi.edu
410-955-8665
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions
Public Release: 25-Nov-2009
Cell
Study sheds light on brain's fear processing center
A University Iowa study helps explain why breathing carbon dioxide can trigger panic attacks and also suggests a new role for the amygdala -- the brain region that processes fear signals and directs fear behavior -- as a sensor that can detect certain fear signals for itself.
National Institutes of Health, National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, Anxiety Disorders Association of America, US Department of Veterans Affairs
Contact: Becky Soglin
becky-soglin@uiowa.edu
319-356-7127
University of Iowa
Cup of mint tea is an effective painkiller
A cup of Brazilian mint tea has pain relieving qualities to match those of commercially available analgesics, a study suggests.
25 November 2009
How to 'unlock' the brains of coma patients
14:30 25 November 2009
Rom Houben, a conscious man presumed to be in a coma for 20 years, won't be the last person found to be imprisoned in their bodies, says Celeste Biever
Device spells doom for superbugs
Researchers have demonstrated a prototype device that can rid hands, feet, or even underarms of bacteria, including the hospital superbug MRSA.
By Jason Palmer Science and technology reporter, BBC News
26 November 2009
HIV infections on the decline
12:00 26 November 2009
Fewer people are becoming infected with HIV, according to a new report
Public Release: 26-Nov-2009
Science
First-ever blueprint of a minimal cell is more complex than expected
In three papers published back-to-back today in Science, scientists in a partnership between the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, Germany, and the Centre de Regulacio Genòmica in Barcelona, Spain, provide the first comprehensive picture of a minimal cell, based on an extensive quantitative study of the biology of the bacterium that causes atypical pneumonia, Mycoplasma pneumoniae. The study uncovers fascinating novelties relevant to bacterial biology and shows that even the simplest of cells is more complex than expected.
Contact: Sonia Furtado
sonia.furtado@embl.de
European Molecular Biology Laboratory
How to wind snail shells up the wrong way
15:48 26 November 2009
Prodding embryos with a glass rod made snails reverse their "handedness", giving insight into when the symmetry of bodies begins
Public Release: 27-Nov-2009
Diabetes Care
Diabetes cases to double and costs to triple by 2034
In the next 25 years, the number of Americans living with diabetes will double and spending on diabetes will triple, rising from $113 billion to $336 billion. This will add to the existing strains on an overburdened health care system.
National Changing Diabetes Program of Novo Nordisk
Contact: John Easton
John.Easton@uchospitals.edu
773-702-6241
University of Chicago Medical Center
Trying to Explain a Drop in Infant Mortality
By ERIK ECKHOLM
Mothers in Dane County, Wis., are the subject of a study by researchers into the large racial gap in infant deaths.
* Times Topics: Infant Mortality
Multiple sclerosis 'blood blockage theory' tested
US scientists are testing a radical new theory that multiple sclerosis (MS) is caused by blockages in the veins that drain the brain.
By Michelle Roberts Health reporter, BBC News
27 November 2009
Observatory
People Hear With Their Skin as Well as Their Ears
By HENRY FOUNTAIN
Researchers have added to evidence that suggests an innate ability among humans to integrate different sensory cues.
Fresh claim for fossil life in Mars rock
17:04 27 November 2009
The 1996 claim that a meteorite contains microbe fossils from Mars has been boosted by the rejection of a non-biological explanation for the minerals