Social tolerance allows bonobos to outperform chimpanzees on a cooperative task
In experiments designed to deepen our understanding of how cooperative behavior evolves, researchers have found that bonobos, a particularly sociable relative of the chimpanzee, are more successful than chimpanzees at cooperating to retrieve food, even though chimpanzees exhibit strong cooperative hunting behavior in the wild
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Archives of Internal Medicine
Cocoa, but not tea, may lower blood pressure
Foods rich in cocoa appear to reduce blood pressure but drinking tea may not, according to an analysis of previously published research in the April 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Contact: Dirk Taubert
dirk.taubert@medizin.uni-koeln.de
JAMA and Archives Journals

Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Archives of Neurology
Smoking and caffeine inversely associated with Parkinson's disease
Individuals with Parkinson's disease are less likely to smoke or consume high doses of caffeine than their family members who do not have the disease, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Contact: Omar Montejo
305-243-5654
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Archives of Ophthalmology
1 donor cornea may treat 3 patients
One donor cornea may be divided and transplanted into multiple patients with eye disease or damage, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Contact: Rasik B. Vaypayee
rvajpayee@gmail.com
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Trees to offset the carbon footprint?
How effective are new trees in offsetting the carbon footprint? A new study suggests that the location of the new trees is an important factor when considering such carbon offset projects. Planting and preserving forests in the tropics is more likely to slow down global warming.
Contact: Anne Stark
stark8@llnl.gov
925-422-9799
DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Scripps research study shows humans and plants share common regulatory pathway
In findings that some might find reminiscent of science fiction, scientists at the Scripps Research Institute have shown for the first time that humans and plants share a common pathogen recognition pathway as part of their innate immune systems. The data could help shed fresh light on how pathogen recognition proteins function and the role they play in certain chronic inflammatory diseases.
National Institutes of Health, Novartis
Contact: Mike Benedyk
mbenedyk@scripps.edu
858-784-2052
Scripps Research Institute
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
European Heart Journal
Doctors aggressively treat early heart attacks, research shows
An international study involving 467 hospitals in 12 countries found that doctors do a good job of aggressively treating the early stages of heart attacks -- even before laboratory tests confirm the diagnosis.
Sanofi-Aventis
Contact: Karen Richardson
krchrdsn@wfubmc.edu
336-716-4453
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Environmental Health Perspectives
Pitt study notes decline in male births in the US and Japan
A study published in this week's online edition of Environmental Health Perspectives reports that during the past 30 years, the number of male births has decreased each year in the US and Japan. They note that the decline in births is equivalent to 135,000 fewer white males in the US and 127,000 fewer males in Japan over the past three decades and suggest that environmental factors are one explanation for these trends.
US Centers for Disease Control, others
Contact: Clare Collins
CollCX@upmc.edu
412-647-3555
University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
FSU anthropologist finds earliest evidence of maize farming in Mexico
A Florida State University anthropologist from Tallahassee, Fla., has new evidence that ancient farmers in Mexico were cultivating an early form of maize, the forerunner of modern corn, about 7,300 years ago -- 1,200 years earlier than scholars previously thought.
National Science Foundation, Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies
Contact: Mary Pohl
mpohl@mailer.fsu.edu
850-644-8153
Florida State University
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Nature Medicine
CT imaging with use of novel contrast agent may predict heart attack in waiting
A new imaging technology may hold the key to not only stopping heart attacks in their tracks but also preventing them for ever occurring.
Contact: Mount Sinai Press Office
newsmedia@mssm.org
212-241-9200
The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Public Release: 9-Apr-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Jefferson scientists identify protein key to breast cancer spread, potential new drug target
Researchers at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson have identified a protein that they say is key to helping a quarter of all breast cancers spread. The finding, reported online the week of April 9, 2007, in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could be a potential target for new drugs aimed at stopping or slowing the growth and progression of breast cancer.
Contact: Steve Benowitz
steven.benowitz@jefferson.edu
215-955-5291
Thomas Jefferson University
Q & A
Calcium Calculus
By C. CLAIBORNE RAY
Q. Is there any difference in how the body deals with calcium from food versus supplements?
April 10, 2007
The Search for the Female Equivalent of Viagra
By NATALIE ANGIER
Since the spectacular success of Viagra and similar drugs, the pharmaceutical industry has been searching for the female equivalent of Viagra - a treatment that would do for women's most common sexual complaint, lack of desire, what sildenafil did for men's, erectile dysfunction.
Astronomer Sees Signs of Water in Atmosphere of a Dusty Planet
By DENNIS OVERBYE
An alien planet about 150 light-years away that appeared to be dry, dark and dusty has water in its atmosphere, an astronomer said.
How Did the Universe Survive the Big Bang? In This Experiment, Clues Remain Elusive
By KENNETH CHANG
An experiment that some hoped would reveal a new class of subatomic particles has instead produced a first round of results that are mysteriously inconclusive.
Making a mint out of the Moon
By Nick Davidson
BBC Horizon
From his office in Nevada, entrepreneur Dennis Hope has spawned a multi-million-dollar property business selling plots of lunar real estate at $20 (£10) an acre.
Public Release: 10-Apr-2007
JAMA
Use of hydrocortisone reduces incidence of atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery
Patients who receive corticosteroids after cardiac surgery have a significantly lower risk of atrial fibrillation in the days following the surgery, according to a study in the April 11 issue of JAMA.
Contact: Jari Halonen
jari.halonen@kuh.fi
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 10-Apr-2007
Journal of Biological Chemistry
Stress may help cancer cells resist treatment, research shows
Scientists from Wake Forest University School of Medicine are the first to report that the stress hormone epinephrine causes changes in prostate and breast cancer cells that may make them resistant to cell death.
US Department of Defense
Contact: Karen Richardson
krchrdsn@wfubmc.edu
336-716-4453
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
Public Release: 10-Apr-2007
Geophysical Research Letters
NASA data show earthquakes may quickly boost regional volcanoes
Scientists using NASA satellite data have found strong evidence that a major earthquake can lead to a nearly immediate increase in regional volcanic activity.
NASA, University of Firenze
Contact: Mike Bettwy
mbettwy@aol.com
717-391-2821
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
New England Journal of Medicine
Global momentum for smoke-free indoor environments at tipping point
In a perspective in the April 12, 2007, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and the Association of European Cancer Leagues describe the growing momentum for indoor smoking bans in countries across the globe. They identify Ireland's pioneering 2004 comprehensive indoor smoking ban as a likely tipping point for fundamental change in social norms and public health worldwide. A map of smoke-free countries is included.
Contact: Robin Herman
rherman@hsph.harvard.edu
617-432-4752
Harvard School of Public Health
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
American Journal of Hand Surgery
Mayo Clinic solves painful puzzle of UT ligament split tear in wrist
A Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon has discovered a common cause of debilitating wrist pain -- a split tear of the UT ligament -- that can be reliably detected through a simple physical examination and can be fully repaired through an arthroscopically guided surgical procedure. The findings are published in the April issue of the American Journal of Hand Surgery.
Contact: Lee Aase
newsbureau@mayo.edu
507-284-5005
Mayo Clinic
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
Misclassified for centuries, medicinal leeches found to be 3 distinct species
Genetic research has revealed that commercially available medicinal leeches used around the world in biomedical research and postoperative care have been misclassified for centuries. Until now, the leeches were assumed to be the species Hirudo medicinalis, but new research reveals they are actually a closely related but genetically distinct species, Hirudo verbana.
Contact: Cheryl Dybas
cdybas@nsf.gov
703-292-7734
National Science Foundation
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
British Journal of Dermatology
Anti-wrinkle compound causes pathological reaction in skin cells
Researchers from Université Laval's Faculty of Medicine have discovered that a compound commonly used in many anti-wrinkle products causes a pathological reaction in skin cells. Guillaume Morissette, Lucie Germain and François Marceau present their conclusions about the mode of action of this substance -- called DMAE -- in the latest edition of the British Journal of Dermatology.
Contact: Jean-François Huppé
jean-francois.huppe@dap.ulaval.ca
418-656-7785
Université Laval
'Axis of evil' a cause for cosmic concern Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
Biological Psychiatry
Study finds drug helps PTSD nightmares
A generic drug already used by millions of Americans for high blood pressure and prostate problems has been found to improve sleep and lessen trauma nightmares in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
US Department of Veterans Affairs, National Institutes of Health
Contact: Jeri Rowe
Jeri.rowe@med.va.gov
206-764-2435
Veterans Affairs Research
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
Journal of Biological Chemistry
Liver regeneration may be simpler than previously thought
The way the liver renews itself may be simpler than what scientists had been assuming. A new study, appearing in the April 13 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, provides new information on the inner workings of cells from regenerating livers that could significantly affect the way physicians make livers regrow in patients with liver diseases such as cirrhosis, hepatitis or cancer.
Contact: Pat Pages
ppages@asbmb.org
301-634-7366
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Public Release: 11-Apr-2007
UCLA study challenges conventional treatment
The chemical lactate has gotten a bad rap. Conventional wisdom considered it to be little more than the bane of runners and other athletes, causing stiff muscles and fatigue, and the "sour" in sour milk. It turns out that view may have been too narrow.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Mark Wheeler
mwheeler@mednet.ucla.edu
310-794-2265
University of California - Los Angeles
Public Release: 12-Apr-2007
Science
Third primate genome, the rhesus macaque, helps illuminate what makes us human
Researchers have sequenced the genome of the relatively ancient rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta), providing perspective into how humans are genetically different from our primate relatives. In addition to benefiting human health research in areas as diverse as HIV and aging, the genome enhances understanding of primate evolution. The macaque genome research appears in the April 13 issue of Science published by AAAS, the nonprofit science society.
NIH/National Human Genome Research Institute
Contact: Natasha Pinol
npinol@aaas.org
202-326-7088
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Public Release: 12-Apr-2007
Science
Protein fragments sequenced in 68 million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex
In a venture once thought to lie outside the reach of science, researchers from Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center have captured and sequenced tiny pieces of collagen protein from a 68 million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex. The protein fragments -- seven in all -- appear to most closely match amino acid sequences found in collagen of present day chickens, lending support to a recent and still controversial proposal that birds and dinosaurs are evolutionarily related.
National Science Foundation, Paul F. Glenn Foundation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Contact: John Lacey
public_affairs@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-0442
Harvard Medical School
Public Release: 12-Apr-2007
Reproduction: Gamete Biology
Early-stage sperm cells created from human bone marrow
Adult stem cells extracted from human bone marrow have been coaxed into becoming male reproductive cells.
Contact: Karim Nayernia
karim.nayernia@ncl.ac.uk
191-241-8643
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Public Release: 12-Apr-2007
Hormones and Behavior
Research shows men and women look at sexual photographs differently
Researchers analyzing the viewing patterns of men and women looking at sexual photographs were surprised to find that men are more likely than women to first look at a woman's face before other parts of the body, and women focused longer on photographs of men performing sexual acts with women than did the males. These types of results could play a key role in helping researchers to understand human sexual desires and its ultimate effect on public health.
Center for Behavioral Neuroscience
Contact: Holly Korschun
hkorsch@emory.edu
404-727-3990
Emory University
Public Release: 12-Apr-2007
College students know more about politics than pop culture
The "National Survey of Civic and Political Engagement of Young People" compared college students with young people not in college full time. Far from being self-absorbed, college students are civically and politically engaged, and more likely to be so than non-students. Surprisingly, those in both categories are far more likely to be able to name their US representative than the winner of "American Idol."
Tufts University Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service
Contact: Kim Thurler
kim.thurler@tufts.edu
617-627-3175
Tufts University
Public Release: 13-Apr-2007
Computers in Biology and Medicine, Information Fusion
Study shows hope for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's
Electroencephalograms can help in the diagnosis of early-stage Alzheimer's disease, indicates a multi-year study by three institutions for the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Aging.
NIH/National Institute on Aging
Contact: Patricia Quigley
quigley@rowan.edu
856-256-4241
Rowan University
Public Release: 13-Apr-2007
Study: Not just a menopausal symptom -- men have hot flashes, too
A new study in Psychophysiology confirms a surprising fact -- men who have undergone chemical castration for conditions such as prostate cancer experience hot flashes similar to those experienced by menopausal women. Using a technique called sternal skin conductance, doctors were able to positively identify hot flashes in males, a positive step toward providing therapy for those patients in need.
Contact: Sean Wagner
swagner@bos.blackwellpublishing.com
781-388-8550
Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Public Release: 14-Apr-2007
Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association
Blame the brain for high blood pressure
The controversial idea that one cause of high blood pressure lies within the brain, and not the heart or blood vessels, has been put forward by scientists at the University of Bristol, UK.
British Heart Foundation
Contact: Cherry Lewis
cherry.lewis@bristol.ac.uk
44-011-792-88086
University of Bristol
Google Earth turns spotlight on Darfur
By Laura Smith-Spark
BBC News, Washington
Using hi-tech satellite imagery, photos and eyewitness accounts, the ongoing crisis in Sudan's Darfur region is being brought into the homes of millions of internet users.
Termites are 'social cockroaches'
UK scientists have said that they have produced the strongest evidence to date that termites are actually cockroaches.