Public
Release: 29-Jan-2007
Neurology Updated rates of common US neurological
disorders In an
up-to-date review of most of the common neurological disorders in
the United States published in the January 30, 2007, issue of
Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology,
researchers reviewed studies from nearly 500 articles published between
1990 and 2005 to determine the best available data.
Contact: Angela Babb ababb@aan.com
651-695-2789 American Academy of
Neurology
Public Release: 29-Jan-2007
PLoS Medicine Worldmapper draws attention to the world's health inequalities
Worldmapper is a collection of cartograms that rescale the size of
territories in proportion to the value being mapped. Examples of values
that are mapped are public health spending, malaria cases, HIV
prevalence and number of physicians.
Contact: Andrew Hyde press@plos.org
44-122-346-3330 Public Library of Science 'Hobbit' human 'is a new species' The tiny skeletal remains of human
"Hobbits" found on an Indonesian island belong to a completely new
branch of our family tree, a study has found. Public Release: 29-Jan-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Genes behind animal growth discovered
Oysters could become the "soy of the sea" and crop yields could be
increased further if USC research on the genetic roots of hybrid vigor
is applied in farming and aquaculture. The worst case scenario if
nothing is done is a collapse of traditional fisheries and a worldwide
food crisis.
US Department of Agriculture, W. M. Keck Foundation, National Science Foundation
Contact: Carl Marziali marziali@usc.edu
213-740-4751 University of Southern California Public Release: 29-Jan-2007
Physical Review Letters Does evolution select for faster evolvers?
A January 29 study in Physical Review Letters suggests the speed of
evolution has increased over time because bacteria and viruses
constantly exchange transposable chunks of DNA between species, making
it possible for life forms to evolve faster than they would if they
relied only on sexual selection or random genetic mutation. The Rice
University findings come from the first exact solution of a
mathematical model of evolution that accounts for cross-species genetic
exchange.
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
Contact: Jade Boyd jadeboyd@rice.edu
713-348-6778 Rice University
Prospect of Womb Transplant Raises Hopes and Red Flags By RONI RABIN The risks associated with a uterus
transplant would be enormous, but for some women, the chance to carry a
baby would be worth it. New Vaccine for Cervical Cancer Could Prove Useful in Men, Too By DAVID TULLER Doctors hope the new vaccine against
human papillomavirus will be able to prevent a less well-known disease
in gay men, anal cancer. British Tycoon Sets Up Umbilical Bank By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: February 1, 2007 British entrepreneur Richard Branson
said Thursday he is setting up a nonprofit blood bank to allow parents
to store stem cells from their children's umbilical cords. Once a Dream Fuel, Palm Oil May Be an Eco-Nightmare By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL Just a few years ago, politicians and
environmental groups in the Netherlands were thrilled by the early and
rapid adoption of "sustainable energy," achieved in part by coaxing
electrical plants to use biofuel - in particular, palm oil from
Southeast Asia. But last year, when scientists studied practices
at palm plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia, this green fairy tale
began to look more like an environmental nightmare.Panel Says Humans ‘Very Likely’ Cause of Global Warming By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The world is already committed to centuries of warming and rising seas, an international network of climate experts said today.
A treatment for type 1 diabetes that involves injecting "clean" pig cells into human patients is poised for trials in Russia
14:33 31 January 2007
Public Release: 31-Jan-2007
Neuron Prion disease treatable if caught early
Studies in mice have indicated that the effects of prion disease could
be reversed if caught early enough. The researchers said that their
findings support developing early treatments that aim to reduce levels
of prion protein in the brains of people with prion disease. Also, they
said that their findings suggest testing the efficacy of treatments in
a new way: by analyzing their cognitive effects in prion-infected mice.
Medical Research Council of Great Britain
Contact: Erin Doonan edoonan@cell.com
617-397-2808 Cell Press Public Release: 31-Jan-2007
International Journal of Radiation, Oncology, Biology, Physics Prostate cancer patients see high survival rates with seed implants
More than 90 percent of men who receive appropriate radiation dose
levels with permanent radiation seed implants to treat their prostate
cancer are cured of their cancer eight years after diagnosis, according
to a study released in the February 1 issue of the International
Journal for Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, the official journal
of ASTRO.
Contact: Beth Bukata bethb@astro.org
703-839-7332 American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology Public Release: 31-Jan-2007 Garlic hope in infection fight
Garlic has been hailed a wonder drug for centuries and has been used to
prevent gangrene, treat high blood pressure, ward off common colds and
is even believed by some to have cancer-fighting properties.
Contact: Dr Alan Smyth alan.smyth@nottingham.ac.uk
44-011-582-31703 University of Nottingham Public Release: 31-Jan-2007
Journal of Marketing Food-mood connection: The sad are twice as likely to eat comfort food
People feeling sad tend to eat more of less-healthy comfort foods than
when they feel happy, finds a new study co-authored by Cornell's Brian
Wansink. However, when nutritional information is available, those same
sad people curb their hedonistic consumption, but happier people don't.
Contact: Press Relations Office pressoffice@cornell.edu
607-255-6074 Cornell University News Service Public Release: 31-Jan-2007
PLoS ONE Endangered shortnose sturgeon saved in Hudson River
For the first time, a fish identified as endangered has been shown to
have recovered -- and in the Hudson River near New York City, report
Cornell's Mark Bain and colleagues in the online publication PLoS ONE.
Contact: Press Relations Office pressoffice@cornell.edu
607-255-6074 Cornell University News ServicePublic Release: 1-Feb-2007
Nature Reviews Drug Discovery New forecasting tool could reduce drug development costs
It now costs more than $800 million to develop a new drug. But what if
pharmaceutical companies could predict which experimental drugs will
ultimately get FDA approval, and which will ultimately fail?
Researchers present a forecasting model that could potentially save
hundreds of millions of dollars per new drug. They also urge more data
sharing by the drug industry to improve the accuracy of forecasting,
allowing more medical discoveries to be brought to the bedside.
Contact: Anna Gonski
anna.gonski@childrens.harvard.edu
617-355-6420 Children's Hospital Boston Public Release: 1-Feb-2007
Science What does it mean to have a mind? Maybe more than you think
Through an online survey of more than 2,000 people, psychologists at
Harvard University have found that we perceive the minds of others
along two distinct dimensions: agency, an individual's ability for
self-control, morality and planning; and experience, the capacity to
feel sensations such as hunger, fear and pain.
NIH/National Institute of Mental Health, Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
Contact: Steve Bradt steve_bradt@harvard.edu
617-496-8070 Harvard University Public Release: 1-Feb-2007
International Journal of Cancer Gut research yields new anti-cancer approach
Researchers believe they have discovered by chance a new way to fight
colorectal cancer, and potentially cancers of the esophagus, liver and
skin. Early work shows that a group of compounds called peroxisome
proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARgamma) inhibitors may act
through some of the same mechanisms as the blockbuster chemotherapy
Taxol, but with key differences.American Cancer Society
Contact: Greg Williams Greg_Williams@urmc.rochester.eduUniversity of Rochester Medical Center Public Release: 1-Feb-2007 Pills or papayas? Survey finds Americans want healthful foods, not more medicines
If you thought Americans would rather pop a pill to treat illness than
make major diet changes, think again. A new survey shows the vast
majority would rather change their diets -- including trying a
vegetarian diet -- than use medicines. According to a nationally
representative survey of 1,022 adults conducted in mid-January by
Opinion Research Corporation, 69 percent of Americans would prefer to
try a dietary approach. Just 21 percent preferred treating diabetes
with medicines.
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Contact: Simon Chaitowitz simonc@pcrm.org
202-686-2210 Physicians Committee for Responsible MedicinePublic Release: 1-Feb-2007
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Helium helps patients breathe easier
It makes for bobbing balloons and squeaky voices, but now helium is
also helping people with severe respiratory problems breathe easier.
Contact: Bev Betkowski beverly.betkowski@ualberta.ca
780-492-3808 University of Alberta Public Release: 1-Feb-2007
Geophysical Research Letters Researchers find substantial wind resource off Mid-Atlantic coast
The wind resource off the Mid-Atlantic coast could supply the energy
needs of nine states from Massachusetts to North Carolina, plus the
District of Columbia -- with enough left over to support a 50 percent
increase in future energy demand -- according to a study by researchers
at the University of Delaware and Stanford University.
Delaware Green Energy Fund, University of Delaware College of Marine
and Earth Studies, Delaware Sea Grant College Program, Energy Project
at Stanford University
Contact: Tracey Bryant tbryant@udel.edu
302-831-8185 University of DelawarePublic Release: 2-Feb-2007
Journal of Biological Chemistry Lipid plays big role in embryonic development
A little-known lipid plays a big role in helping us grow from a hollow
sphere of stem cells into human beings, researchers have found.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Toni Baker tbaker@mcg.edu
706-721-4421 Medical College of Georgia Public Release: 2-Feb-2007
Physical Review Letters Physicists find way to 'see' extra dimensions
Peering backward in time to an instant after the big bang, physicists
at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have devised an approach that
may help unlock the hidden shapes of alternate dimensions of the
universe
National Science Foundation, US Department of Energy, Research Corp.
Contact: Gary Shiu shiu@physics.wisc.edu
608-265-3285 University of Wisconsin-Madison Public Release: 4-Feb-2007
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology What makes a good leader -- the assertiveness quotient
Organizational leaders who come across as low or high in assertiveness
tend to be seen as less effective, according to a study coming out in
the February issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
published by the American Psychological Association. Leaders in the
middle may have an "optimal" level of assertiveness, but there is
plenty of company on the extremes. The research suggests that being
seen as under- or over-assertive may be the most common weakness among
aspiring leaders.
Contact: Pam Willenz pwillenz@apa.org
202-336-5707 American Psychological Association
WORD document HERE
Snakes eat poisonous toads and steal their venom
