21-Jun-2010 Lemurs
lose weight with 'life-extending' supplement The anti-obesity properties of
resveratrol have been demonstrated for the first time in a primate.
Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Physiology studied
the compound, generated naturally by plants to ward off pathogens,
which has received much interest as a dietary supplement for its
supposed life-extending effects. 21-Jun-2010 Cancers
of sweat glands, other skin-related structures may be increasing in
United States Cutaneous appendageal carcinomas --
tumors of the skin appendages such as hair, nails, sweat glands and
mammary glands -- are rare but rates appear to be increasing in the
United States, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of
Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Really? The Claim: A Craving for Ice Is a Sign of
Anemia By ANAHAD O’CONNOR Is a fixation for ice is sign of iron
deficiency anemia? 21-Jun-2010 Seasonality
of child abuse a myth A new study of homicides of 797
children younger than age 5 has found that these deaths occur uniformly
throughout the year, dispelling the widely held anecdotal notion that
the winter months, and especially winter holidays, are a time of
increased child abuse. 21-Jun-2010 Humans
have a mighty bite The robust jaws and formidable teeth
of some of our ancestors and ape cousins may suggest that humans are
wimps when it comes to producing a powerful bite: but a new study has
found the opposite is true. The surprise findings suggest that early
modern humans did not necessarily need to use tools and cooking to
process high-nutrient hard foods, such as nuts, but may have lost an
ability to eat very tough items, such as tubers or leaves. 22-Jun-2010 Coffee
may protect against head and neck cancers Data on the effects of coffee on
cancer risk have been mixed. However, results of a recent study add to
the brewing evidence that drinking coffee protects against cancer, this
time against head and neck cancer. Seeking to Illuminate the Mysterious
Placebo Effect By ERIK VANCE A childhood experience helps guide a
researcher’s quest. 22-Jun-2010 Incidence
and reproduction numbers of pertussis Analyses of serological and social
contact data from five European countries by Mirjam Kretzschmar and
colleagues show that childhood vaccination against Bordetella pertussis
(whooping cough) has shifted the burden of infection from children to
adolescents and adults. 22-Jun-2010 No
link between early child cancers and living near mobile phone masts There is no association between risk
of early childhood cancers and a mother's exposure to a mobile phone
base station during pregnancy, concludes a new study published on
bmj.com Chimps, Too, Wage War and Annex Rival
Territory By NICHOLAS WADE Researchers have observed a community
of chimps that wage attacks on outsiders, gaining power and territory. Weakened
flu virus proves ideal vaccine THIS WEEK:
11:59 22 June
2010 A "crippled" influenza vaccine
provokes the same immune response as a
natural infection – without causing illness Observatory Ancient Mesoamerica’s Rubber Industry By SINDYA N. BHANOO The Mesoamericans were robust users of
rubber, according to historical and archaeological records. 22-Jun-2010 Research
from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute professor offers clues to
Alzheimer's disease An organic compound found in red wine
-- resveratrol -- has the ability to neutralize the toxic effects of
proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease, according to research led by
Rensselaer Professor Peter M. Tessier. The findings, published in the
May 28 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, are a step
toward understanding the large-scale death of brain cells seen in
certain neurodegenerative diseases. The
fruit fly formerly known as Drosophila COMMENT AND ANALYSIS:
14:24 22 June 2010 The famous fly is to be renamed – it's
a bad idea, says ecologist Kim
van der Linde, while geneticist Amir Yassin says change is
overdue Cold, Dark and Teeming With Life By WILLIAM J. BROAD Researchers are deeply concerned about
what the BP oil spill means for the creatures flourishing in the dark,
frigid ecosystems known as cold seeps. * Photographs Slide Show: A Complex Food
Chain 22-Jun-2010 Growing brain is
particularly flexible Science has long puzzled over why a
baby's brain is particularly flexible and why it easily changes. Is it
because babies have to learn a lot? A group of researchers from the
Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience, the Max Planck Institute
for Dynamics and Self-Organization in Göttingen, the Schiller
University in Jena and Princeton University have now put forward a new
explanation: Maybe it is because the brain still has to grow. Pelican
fossil poses evolutionary puzzle
17:00 22 June 2010
A fossilised pelican's bill resembles its modern equivalent – but
why has it has remained almost unchanged for some 30 million years? 22-Jun-2010 Brain
structure corresponds to personality Personalities come in all kinds. Now
psychological scientists have found that the size of different parts of
people's brains correspond to their personalities. 22-Jun-2010 Filtering
donor blood reduces heart, lung complications Researchers have discovered yet
another reason to filter the foreign white cells from donor blood: The
resulting blood product is associated with dramatically fewer
cardiopulmonary complications for patients who received a transfusion. Lucy's Ancestor, 'Big Man,' Revealed The discovery could reshape what we
know about Lucy and her species. 22-Jun-2010 23-Jun-2010 VLT
detects first superstorm on exoplanet Astronomers have measured a
superstorm for the first time in the atmosphere of an exoplanet, the
well-studied "hot Jupiter" HD209458b. The very high-precision
observations of carbon monoxide gas show that it is streaming at
enormous speed from the extremely hot day side to the cooler night side
of the planet. The observations also allow another exciting "first" --
measuring the orbital speed of the exoplanet itself, providing a direct
determination of its mass. Fungi, Feces Show Comet Didn't Kill Ice Age
Mammals?
National Geographic 23-Jun-2010 Polio
research gives new insight into tackling vaccine-derived poliovirus A vaccine-derived strain of
poliovirus that has spread in recent years is serious but it can be
tackled with an existing vaccine, according to a new study published
today in the New England Journal of Medicine. 23-Jun-2010 Separation between Neanderthal and Homo
sapiens might have occurred 500,000 years earlier Spanish scientists have analyzed the
teeth of almost all species of hominids that have existed during the
past 4 million years. Thus, they achieved to identify Neanderthal
features in ancient European populations. Dental fossils suggest that
the separation occurred at least a million years ago, while DNA-based
analyses suggest that this occurred much later. EurekAlert 23-Jun-2010 Polio
outbreak in Tajikistan is cause for alarm The rapidly growing polio outbreak in
Tajikistan raises serious concerns that the disease could spread to
other regions in the world, states an editorial in CMAJ (Canadian
Medical Association Journal). It is imperative that health agencies
attempt to limit further spread by ensuring high vaccination rates. 23-Jun-2010 Evidence
that nanoparticles in sunscreens could be toxic if accidentally eaten Scientists are reporting that
particle size affects the toxicity of zinc oxide, a material widely
used in sunscreens. Particles smaller than 100 nanometers are slightly
more toxic to colon cells than conventional zinc oxide. Solid zinc
oxide was more toxic than equivalent amounts of soluble zinc, and
direct particle to cell contact was required to cause cell death. Their
study is in ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology, a monthly journal. 24-Jun-2010 Nematodes
vanquish billion dollar pest Diabrotica virgifera virgifera beetle
larvae (known as western corn rootworm) wreak havoc on maize, causing
an estimated $1 billion of damage every year to US agriculture. Knowing
that Heterorhabditis bacteriophora nematodes kill the pest, researchers
at the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland, have successfully improved
the nematode's response to a chemical, (E)-beta-caryophyllene, released
by damaged maize roots, to attract the nematodes directly to the pest
in a bid to produce an environmentally safe pesticide. 24-Jun-2010 Behavior
breakthrough: Like animals, plants demonstrate complex ability to
integrate information A University of Alberta research team
has discovered that a plant's strategy to capture nutrients in the soil
is the result of integration of different types of information. Cahill
found plants also have the ability to integrate information about the
location of both food and competitors. As a result, plants demonstrate
unique behavioral strategies to capture soil resources. 24-Jun-2010 Virus-plus-susceptibility
gene combo triggers disease Mice that carry a gene variant
earlier linked to the inflammatory bowel disorder known as Crohn's
disease only succumb to symptoms if they've also been infected by a
common virus, according to a study reported in the June 25 issue of the
journal Cell, a Cell Press publication. Chronic
fatigue syndrome: suspicion is back on virus
17:12 24 June 2010
The link between a virus and CFS has once again gained support, after
US National Institutes of Health scientists confirm the association 24-Jun-2010 Touch:
How a hard chair creates a hard heart Through textures, shapes, weights and
temperatures, the sense of touch influences both our thoughts and
behavior. In a series of six experiments documented in the June 25
issue of the journal Science, a Yale-led team of psychologists
demonstrated how dramatically our sense of touch affects how we view
the world. 24-Jun-2010 Antihypertensive
drugs may protect against Alzheimer's disease
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of
Medicine have found that the drug carvedilol, currently prescribed for
the treatment of hypertension, may lessen the degenerative impact of
Alzheimer's disease and promote healthy memory functions. The new
findings are published in two studies in the current issues of
Neurobiology of Aging and the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. 24-Jun-2010 Brown team
finds widespread glacial meltwater valleys on Mars A research team led by Brown
University has documented dozens of channels carved by melted water
from glaciers located in the midlatitude region of Mars. The
glaciofluvial valleys were carved in Mars' most recent epoch, the team
reports, supporting the idea that the Red Planet was home to diverse
watery environments in its recent past. Results are published in Icarus. Morphine
and Other Pain Relief Drugs Used in Cancer Surgery May Spur Return of
Malignancy 24-Jun-2010 Lung-on-a-chip
points to alternative to animal tests
19:00 24 June 2010
A miniature polymer lung reveals how pathogens and particles make their
way into the bloodstream 24-week
fetuses cannot feel pain
13:04 25 June 2010
The brain connections needed for a fetus to feel pain have not formed
by the 24th week of pregnancy, a report by UK doctors concludes 25-Jun-2010 Wet era on
early Mars was global Conditions favorable to life may once
have existed all over Mars. Detailed studies of minerals found inside
craters show that liquid water was widespread, not only in the southern
highlands, but also beneath the northern plains. Why losing a loved one can be lethal THIS WEEK:
17:36 25 June 2010 The stress of bereavement combined
with changes in the immune system can send widows and widowers to an
early grave Proposed rules
would allow metric only labeling for some products The National Institute of Standards
and Technology has issued two publications calling for the amendment of
labeling laws to allow the voluntary use of only metric units on some
consumer products. Opinion Bubbles, Bread and Beer By OLIVIA JUDSON Yeast, with but a single cell, is
nevertheless a star of the laboratory, and not just because it's
essential to making bread and beer. Tutankhamen 'killed by sickle-cell disease'
19:45 25 June 2010 A new interpretation of pathological
evidence from the boy king's mummy suggests he succumbed to an
inherited blood disorder Amelia Earhart May Have Survived Months as
Castaway The famous pilot and her navigator may
have eaten turtles, fish and birds to survive on a remote island. The ups and downs of speech that we all
understand THIS WEEK:
08:00 26 June 2010 A universal rule that links intonation
with word order could explain how babies piece together the grammatical
rules of language Ancient
voyager's tomb found in East China
People's Daily Serbian
site may have hosted first copper makers
Finds intensify debate over Old World origins of metal production
Science News Asteroid
capsule opening begins
Japanese scientists have begun to open the Haybusa capsule Antarctic
Garbage Patch Coming?
Analysis by Michael Reilly
Fri Jun 25, 2010 09:12 AM ET
PDF
document HERE
WORD document HERE
