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Britain debates whether to create DNA registry of newborn babies

In a White Paper published last year the Government asked the Human Genetics Commission and the National Screening Committee to consider the case for screening every baby at birth and storing their genetic profile for future use.

7 May 2004

New device - the anthrax smoke detector

A new device, nicknamed "the anthrax smoke detector,' which relies on technology developed by JPL and Caltech scientists, may serve as a first line of defense against acts of bioterrorism.

6 May 2004

International research team have decoded the genetic blueprint of the tularemia (rabbit fever) bacterium

Two teams of researchers, one based in the United States and the other in Europe, have decoded the genetic blueprint of the tularemia (rabbit fever) bacterium, a highly infectious human and animal pathogen.

6 May 2004

Research uncovers critical pieces of human genome

Researchers have found precisely the same sequences in the genomes of humans, rats, and mice; sequences that are 95 to 99 percent identical to these can be found in the chicken and dog genomes, as well.

6 May 2004

Experimental sleep drug eszopiclone helps elderly to sleep better

Older people with insomnia slept better and longer after taking an experimental sleep medication, according to research at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

6 May 2004

Ritalin drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of Parkinson's drug levodopa

A well-known drug used to treat hyperactive children boosts the potency of another drug that reduces Parkinson's disease symptoms, an Oregon Health & Science University study has found.

6 May 2004

West Nile virus found in Arizona mosquito samples

Mosquito samples collected by Maricopa County health officials in the Maricopa County, Arizona have tested positive for the West Nile virus, marking the arrival of the virus in the state in 2004.

6 May 2004

Experts conclude plans to control zoonoses, diseases transmitted from animals to humans

International experts today concluded a three-day international consultation on zoonoses, held by the World Health Organization (WHO) together with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), in collaboration with the Dutch Health Council.

6 May 2004

Protein in the male reproductive tract is a potent anti-bacterial agent

Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found that a protein they discovered three years ago in the male reproductive tract is a potent anti-bacterial agent.

6 May 2004

Investigation to find the source of the current SARS outbreak

Investigation of the source of the current outbreak, first reported on 22 April, continues to focus on the National Institute of Virology in Beijing. The institute is known to have conducted experiments using the live SARS coronavirus during February and March.

5 May 2004

World's first gene therapy trial aimed at preventing cancer

The concept seems straightforward. If, at its heart, cancer is a disease of genes, then giving patients new genes should disarm cancer. Such treatment would replace missing or faulty genes that keep cell growth in check, or would flush the body with "super genes" that could attack and destroy cancer.

5 May 2004

Gene therapy helps alcoholic rats

As a follow up to previous work showing that gene therapy can reduce drinking in rats trained to prefer alcohol, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have used the same technique to cut drinking in rats with a genetic predisposition for heavy alcohol consumption.

5 May 2004

New Canadian Fat Lab

As obesity is fast overtaking tobacco as the leading risk factor for heart disease, a new laboratory for studying the biology of fat cells (adipocytes) is opening its doors at the Henderson Research Centre.

5 May 2004

Discovery of molecular switch could lead to new treatments for lymphoma and other forms of cancer

Turning a vital component of cancer cells from bodyguard to assassin could form the basis of new cancer treatments, according to a report published this week.

4 May 2004

New license agreement for rotavirus diarrhea vaccine

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today a new license agreement aimed at helping to prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths annually from rotavirus diarrhea in children living in developing countries.

4 May 2004

Computers to combat disease

A new initiative harnesses the USA's computing skill to enhance our ability to respond to disease epidemics and bioterrorism.

4 May 2004

Study shows those with weak immune systems should avoid the shower

A study out of the San Diego State University Center for Microbial Sciences reveals that hundreds of millions of colorful bacteria thrive on shower curtains, waiting to attack those who think they are getting clean.

3 May 2004

Study suggests that the vitamins, such as E, C, and beta carotene, could raise bad form of cholesterol

The notion that antioxidant vitamins could provide a safe, convenient way to protect the heart from disease appears to have hit a pothole.

3 May 2004

Fabrication of microscopic polymeric structures on top of a human hair

Researchers in the laboratory of Boston College Chemistry Professor John T. Fourkas have demonstrated the fabrication of microscopic polymeric structures on top of a human hair.

3 May 2004

Drug-resistant gonorrhea is a major public health concern

The increasing resistance to fluoroquinolones effectively eliminates an entire class of antibiotics and leaves only one class of drugs -- cephalosporins -- as the first-line therapy in the treatment of gonorrhea. There are currently no other major groups of antibiotics left to treat gonorrhea.

2 May 2004