SciNews20070528

Public Release: 20-May-2007
American Urological Association 2007 Annual Meeting
Green tea may protect the bladder from becoming inflamed
Herbal agents could be used to treat inflammatory bladder diseases, according to a preliminary study that looked at the ability of green tea to protect bladder cells from inflammation. The University of Pittsburgh study found that components of green tea protected bladder cells from damage in culture. Green tea, reported to have many health benefits, is rich in powerful antioxidants that make it a desired remedy for many medical conditions.
Fishbein Family CURE-IC Program
Contact: Clare Collins
CollCX@upmc.eu
412-647-3555
University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences
Public Release: 20-May-2007
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Repetitive exposure to an opinion can influence as much as exposure to opinions from several people
According to a new study, repeated exposure to one person's viewpoint can have almost as much influence as exposure to shared opinions from multiple people.
Contact: Carla Daniels
cdaniels@apa.org
202-336-5706
American Psychological Association
Public Release: 21-May-2007
PLoS Medicine
UCLA imaging study reveals how pure oxygen harms the brain
A new UCLA imaging study reveals how inhaling 100 percent oxygen can harm the brain. The findings fly in the face of national guidelines for resuscitation and urge a new approach adding carbon dioxide to the gas mix to preserve brain function in patients.
NIH/National Institute of Child Health and Development
Contact: Elaine Schmidt
eschmidt@mednet.ucla.edu
310-794-2272
University of California - Los Angeles
Public Release: 21-May-2007
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Alarming acceleration in CO2 emissions worldwide
Between 2000 and 2004, worldwide CO2 emissions increased at a rate that is over three times the rate during all of the 1990s. The accelerating growth rate is largely due to the increasing energy intensity of economic activity and the carbon intensity of the energy system, with increases in population and in per-capita gross domestic product. The increases in energy and carbon intensity constitute a reversal of a long-term trend toward greater energy efficiency and reduced carbon intensities.
Contact: Chris Field
cfield@globalecology.stanford.edu
650-462-1047 x201
Carnegie Institution
Public Release: 21-May-2007
Canadian Medical Association Journal
A drug's brand name skews patient treatment choices
The brand name of a drug can strongly influence treatment decisions by patients, according to a randomized trial of decision aids by researchers from McMaster University.
Contact: Dr. Anne Holbrook
905-525-9140 x22169
Canadian Medical Association Journal

Public Release: 21-May-2007
Nature Biotechnology
'Star Trek'-type scanning may reveal genetic activity of tumors, Stanford study shows
Peering into the body and visualizing its molecular secrets, once the stuff of science fiction, is one step closer to reality with a study from researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine.
Contact: Mitzi Baker
mabaker@stanford.edu
650-725-2106
Stanford University Medical Center
Public Release: 21-May-2007
Archives of Dermatology
Topical retinol helps reduce wrinkles associated with natural skin aging
Applying vitamin A to the skin appears to improve the wrinkles associated with natural aging and may help to promote the production of skin-building compounds, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Contact: Katie Gazella
734-764-2220
JAMA and Archives Journals
Public Release: 21-May-2007
Digestive Disease Week
Cure for hepatitis C announced by VCU researcher
The use of peginterferon alone, or in combination with ribavirin, points to a cure for hepatitis C, the leading cause of cirrhosis, liver cancer and the need for liver transplant, a Virginia Commonwealth University researcher said today.
Contact: Anne Buckley
albuckley@vcu.edu
804-828-6052
Virginia Commonwealth University
Public Release: 21-May-2007
Nature Medicine
UF researchers awaken vision cells in blind mice
Scientists describe how they used a harmless virus to deliver corrective genes to mice with a genetic impairment that robs them of vision. The discovery shows that it is possible to target and rescue cone cells -- the most important cells for visual sharpness and color vision in people.
National Institutes of Health, Foundation for Fighting Blindness, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Macula Vision Research Foundation, Lions of Central New York, Research to Prevent Blindness, Fight for Sight, NASA
Contact: John D. Pastor
jdpastor@ufl.edu
352-273-5815
University of Florida
Vital Signs
Outcomes: Alcohol Is Tied to Lower Risk of One Type of Kidney Cancer
By NICHOLAS BAKALAR
Published: May 22, 2007
Scientists have discovered yet another reason that alcohol might be good for you. Using pooled data from 12 studies and more than 750,000 subjects, researchers found that moderate alcohol consumption ― about a drink a day ― is associated with a decreased risk of renal cell carcinoma, one type of kidney cancer.
Mysteries to Behold in the Dark Down Deep: Seadevils and Species Unknown
By WILLIAM J. BROAD
The revolution in lights, cameras, electronics and digital photography is revealing a strange undersea world.
Q & A
Taking a Dim View
By C. CLAIBORNE RAY
Does wearing someone else’s prescription glasses for a short time do any damage to a child’s eyes?
Public Release: 22-May-2007
PLoS ONE
Einstein researchers' discover 'radiation-eating' fungi
Scientists have long assumed that fungi exist mainly to decompose matter into chemicals that other organisms can then use. But researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found evidence that fungi possess a previously undiscovered talent with profound implications: The ability to use radioactivity as an energy source for making food and spurring their growth.
National Institutes of Health
Contact: Karen Gardner
kgardner@aecom.yu.edu
718-430-3101
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Public Release: 22-May-2007
107th American Society for Microbiology General Meeting
Salt increases ulcer-bug virulence
Scientists have identified yet another risk from a high-salt diet. High concentrations of salt in the stomach appear to induce gene activity in the ulcer-causing bacterium Helicobacter pylori, making it more virulent and increasing the likelihood of an infected person developing a severe gastric disease.
Contact: Jim Sliwa
jsliwa@asmusa.org
202-942-9297
American Society for Microbiology

Public Release: 22-May-2007
Psychosomatic Medicine
Scientists find war vets' hand dexterity determines susceptibility to PTSD
With the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continuing, an investigator with the Geisinger Center for Health Research in Danville, Pa., has found a clear link between post-traumatic stress disorder and veterans' handedness. In fact, veterans who use both of the hands more often are more likely to experience PTSD according to Dr. Joseph Boscarino's study, which is being published in the May issue of Psychosomatic Medicine. The study examined PTSD among 2,490 Vietnam veterans.
Contact: Justin Walden
jawalden@geisinger.edu
570-271-8083
Geisinger Health System
Bubonic Plague Kills a Monkey at the Denver Zoo
By MINDY SINK
May 23, 2007
The death of a monkey at the Denver Zoo from bubonic plague has prompted officials to change the habitats of some zoo animals and renew efforts to keep visitors from feeding the urban wildlife here.
Captive shark had 'virgin birth'
A hammerhead shark kept at a US zoo produced a pup without having had sex, scientists confirm.
Plant extract may block cannabis addiction
A compound derived from a plant in the buttercup family reduces rats' desire for marijuana and may provide a treatment for human addicts of the drug
22:00 22 May 2007
The 300th Birthday of the Man Who Organized All of Nature
By JAMES BARRON
Carl Linnaeus, the Swedish naturalist, is remembered as the man who gave the world modern taxonomy, the science of classifying organisms.
Public Release: 23-May-2007
Neuron
Adult brain cells rediscover their inner child
Johns Hopkins researchers have found that newly made nerves in an adult brain's learning center experience a one-month period when they are just as active as the nerves in a developing child. The study, appearing this week in Neuron, suggests that new adult nerves have a deeper role than simply replacing dead ones.
National Institutes of Health, Whitehall Foundation, Rett Syndrome Research Foundation, others
Contact: Nick Zagorski
nzagors1@jhmi.edu
443-287-2251
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions
Public Release: 23-May-2007
Addiction
Moderate drinking lowers women's risk of heart attack
Women who regularly enjoy an alcoholic drink or two have a significantly lower risk of having a non-fatal heart attack than women who are life-time abstainers, epidemiologists at the University at Buffalo have shown.
NIH/National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Contact: Lois Baker
ljbaker@buffalo.edu
716-645-5000 x1417
University at Buffalo
Public Release: 23-May-2007
Journal of Biological Chemistry
Plants that produce more vitamin C may result from UCLA-Dartmouth discovery
UCLA and Dartmouth scientists have identified a crucial enzyme in plant vitamin C synthesis, which could lead to enhanced crops.
Contact: Stuart Wolpert
swolpert@support.ucla.edu
310-206-0511
University of California - Los Angeles
Public Release: 23-May-2007
Follow the 'green' brick road?
Researchers have found that bricks made from fly ash -- fine ash particles captured as waste by coal-fired power plants -- may be even safer than predicted. Instead of leaching minute amounts of mercury as some researchers had predicted, the bricks apparently do the reverse, pulling minute amounts of the toxic metal out of ambient air.
Contact: Josh Chamot
jchamot@nsf.gov
703-292-7730
National Science Foundation

Public Release: 23-May-2007
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
New study indicates that people may need more dietary choline than previously thought
A new study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition indicates that the current recommended Adequate Intake (AI) for choline may, in fact, be inadequate for some people. Choline is an essential nutrient for normal functioning of all cells, including those involved with liver metabolism, brain and nerve function, memory, and the transportation of nutrients throughout the body.
Contact: Egg Nutrition Media Hotline
info@eggnutrition.org
312-233-1211
Edelman Public Relations
Mars rover's disability leads to major water discovery
A stuck wheel on NASA's Spirit rover unearths a bright patch of soil high in silica -- a mineral usually formed through the action of water
15:49 23 May 2007
Bugs struck down by 'super-oxidised' water
A form of water packed with oxychlorine ions can kill bacteria and viruses, but is kinder on the human skin than bleach, say its developers
18:00 23 May 2007
Ancient gene kit came in handy for limbs
Your hands and feet are not the dramatic evolutionary innovation once thought - ancient fish already had the key genes
18:20 23 May 2007
US approves birth control pill that blocks menstruation
The FDA has approved a contraceptive pill that stops monthly menstruation -- but bleeding and spotting may still occur for several days each month
20:22 23 May 2007
Public Release: 24-May-2007
Science
'Teaching gap' exists among US and Asian math teachers, study says
Compared to math teachers in the high-achieving nations of Hong Kong and Japan, teachers in the United States offer less of certain supports that could help students learn more. This could contribute to the lower performance among US students on international math tests, a UCI researcher discovered.
US Department of Education
Contact: Allan Taing
tainga@uci.edu
949-824-7687
University of California - Irvine
Magnets may make the brain grow stronger
Stimulating the brain with a magnetic coil appears to promote growth of new neurons - possibly leading to treatments for brain diseases
10:00 24 May 2007
'Probiotics' could save frogs from extinction
Micro-organisms that inhabit the skin of amphibians have fungus-resistant properties that could help fight a devastating disease that is wiping out many species
13:26 24 May 2007
Hubble's successor could be fixed in space after all
NASA may add a docking feature to the James Webb Space Telescope -- but robots, rather than humans, would most likely do any repairs
15:29 24 May 2007
Our solar system started with a nudge, not a bang
Meteorite studies suggest that winds from a nearby massive star -- not a supernova explosion -- triggered the birth of our solar system
19:00 24 May 2007
National Briefing | Science and Health
Report Seeks F.D.A. Regulation of Tobacco
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: May 25, 2007
A report from the Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academy of Sciences, urged Congress and the president to give the Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate tobacco.
Public Release: 25-May-2007
Arthritis & Rheumatism
Drinking 4 or more cups of coffee a day may help prevent gout
Among its complex effects on the body, coffee or its components have been linked to lower insulin and uric acid levels on a short-term basis or cross-sectionally. These and other mechanisms suggest that coffee consumption may affect the risk of gout, the most prevalent inflammatory arthritis in adult males.
Contact: Amy Molnar
amolnar@wiley.com
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Public Release: 25-May-2007
Arthritis Care and Research
Aggressive treatment for whiplash does not promote faster recovery
Whiplash, the most common traffic injury, leads to neck pain, headache and other symptoms, resulting in a significant burden of disability and health care utilization. Although there are few effective treatments for whiplash, a growing body of evidence suggests that the type and intensity of treatment received shortly after the injury have a long-lasting influence on the prognosis.
Contact: Amy Molnar
amolnar@wiley.com
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Public Release: 25-May-2007
Cell Proliferation
Adult stem cells from human cord umbilical cord blood successfully engineered to make insulin
In a fundamental discovery that someday may help cure type 1 diabetes by allowing people to grow their own insulin-producing cells for a damaged or defective pancreas, medical researchers have reported that they have engineered adult stem cells derived from human umbilical cord blood to produce insulin.
Emmett and Miriam McCoy Foundation, Clayton Foundation for Research of Houston
Contact: Tom Curtis
tcurtis@utmb.edu
409-772-2455
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
BBC NEWS
2007/05/24 11:29:19
Using drugs as weapons 'unsafe'
UK doctors fear public safety could be compromised by the growing interest of world governments in using drugs for law enforcement.
BBC NEWS
2007/05/26 22:59:52
'Living plugs' smooth ant journey
A scientific study of the teamwork of army ants has discovered how they are prepared to let their fellow ants walk all over them to get the job done.