Flu helps spread pneumonia
Bacteria that cause pneumonia and meningitis are only able to spread when individuals are infected with flu, says a scientist reporting at the Society for General Microbiology's Spring Conference in Harrogate.
Experimental drug achieves unprecedented weight loss
An investigational combination of drugs already approved to treat obesity, migraine and epilepsy produced up to a 10 percent weight loss in obese individuals participating in a one-year clinical trial, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center.
Scientists find potential benefit of hypericin for recurrent brain tumors
Early research shows synthetic hypericin to be well-tolerated as a salvage therapy for malignant gliomas
Estrogen treatment with no side-effects in sight
Oestrogen treatment for osteoporosis has often been associated with serious side-effects.
The nauseating taste of bitter
The wisdom of the body helps protect against accidental poisoning
Routine lab test data predicts progression to kidney failure for chronic kidney disease patients
A prediction model that included data on measures of several routinely obtained laboratory tests including blood levels of calcium, phosphate and albumin accurately predicted the short-term risk of kidney failure for patients with moderate to severe chronic kidney disease, according to a study that will appear in the April 20 issue of JAMA.
Stem cells make 'retina in a dish'
Mouse cells have been coaxed into forming a retina, the most complex tissue yet engineered.
Alcohol helps the brain remember, says new study
Repeated ethanol exposure enhances synaptic plasticity in a key area in the brain
Weight loss improves memory, according to Kent State researcher
John Gunstad, an associate professor in Kent State University's Department of Psychology, and a team of researchers have discovered a link between weight loss and improved memory and concentration.
Coffee studies should warm your heart
Recent studies say coffee may be good for the cardiovascular system and might help prevent strokes - a repudiation of previous research.
Giant fire-bellied toad's brain brims with powerful germ-fighters
Frog and toad skins already are renowned as cornucopias of hundreds of germ-fighting substances.
Experimental Alzheimer's disease drugs might help patients with nerve injuries
Compounds helped nerve extensions re-grow faster in mouse studies
Carbon dating identifies South America's oldest textiles
Textiles and rope fragments found in a Peruvian cave have been dated to around 12,000 years ago, making them the oldest textiles ever found in South America, according to a report in the April issue of Current Anthropology.
Long-sought fossil mammal with transitional middle ear found
Fossil from China suggests mammalian ear of monotremes evolved separately from that of marsupials and placentals
Scientists recreate brain cells from skin cells to study schizophrenia safely
A team of scientists at Penn State University, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, and other institutions have developed a method for recreating a schizophrenic patient's own brain cells, which then can be studied safely and effectively in a Petri dish.
Loch fossils show life harnessed sun and sex early on
Remote lochs along the west coast of Scotland are turning up new evidence about the origins of life on land.
Monsoons spinning the Earth's plates: study
Scientists have for the first time shown a link between intensifying climate events and tectonic plate movement in findings that could provide a valuable insight into why huge tremors occur.
Genes from algae allow blind mice to see
BLIND people could one day have their sight restored thanks to a treatment that borrows a gene from an unlikely source - algae - and inserts it into the retina.
Higher CCSVI prevalence confirmed in MS, but meaning of findings remains unclear
A just released study on the relationship between multiple sclerosis (MS) and chronic cerebral venous insufficiency (CCSVI), a narrowing of the extracranial veins that restricts the normal outflow of blood from the brain, found that CCSVI may be a result of MS, not a cause.
Serotonin: A critical chemical for human intimacy and romance
The judgments we make about the intimacy of other couples' relationships appear to be influenced by the brain chemical serotonin, reports a new study published in Biological Psychiatry.
Eyes of rock let chitons see predators
Using eyes made of a calcium carbonate crystal, a simple mollusk may have evolved enough vision to spot potential predators, scientists say.
In Japan, Aftershocks Are Also Felt From Within
Aguri Suzuki, a 44-year-old real estate agent, says she sometimes thinks the ground is shaking even when it is not. When she sees a tree branch swaying in the wind, she worries there has been an earthquake.
A chance discovery may revolutionize hydrogen production
Producing hydrogen in a sustainable way is a challenge and production cost is too high.
Why 30 years of AIDS is only the tip of an iceberg
JUNE marks 30 years since the first report of AIDS - a syndrome that has killed an estimated 25 million people worldwide.
Antarctic Lake Hides Bizarre Ecosystem
Bacterial colonies form cones like those on early Earth
Mind controls: Magnetic relief for depression
Anyone who remembers high-school physics knows that a fluctuating magnetic field can induce an electrical current. That's the principle behind transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), where an electromagnet is held over the head and pulsed rapidly.
Evolutionary Babel was in southern Africa
Where did humanity utter its first words? A new linguistic analysis attempts to rewrite the story of Babel by borrowing from the methods of genetic analysis – and finds that modern language originated in sub-Saharan Africa and spread across the world with migrating human populations.
Language universality idea tested with biology method
Language brain centres during MRI The study challenges the idea that the "language centres" of our brains are the sole driver of language
Jefferson researchers unlock key to personalized cancer medicine using tumor metabolism
Thomas Jefferson University researchers used gene signatures and energy metabolism to predict clinical outcome, rather than gene mutations
Neurological basis for embarrassment described
Recording people belting out an old Motown tune and then asking them to listen to their own singing without the accompanying music seems like an unusually cruel form of punishment.
Putting a fuel cell 'in your pocket'
Technology using catalysts which make hydrogen from formic acid could eventually replace lithium batteries and power a host of mobile devices.
New procedure promises to be a breakthrough in lung transplants
For decades, heart and lung transplant surgeons have followed a strict directive: Get the donor organ into the recipient as soon as possible.
The 70 kilo single person plane
Aki Suokas, a Finnish aeronautical engineer, has just finished creating a unique single-seat aircraft this week. The project was completed at Aero Friedrichshafen, and it has been dubbed the FlyNano.