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Detecting rare microRNAs with gold nanoparticles

Over the past three years, numerous studies have shown that short pieces of single-stranded RNA, known as microRNAs, play a central role in the development of at least some cancers.

30 Oct 2006

Multifunctional composite nanoparticles: magnetic, luminescent, and mesoporous

Silica, the mineral of which sand is made, is generally inert in the body and can be modified easily using a variety of well-established chemical reactions.

30 Oct 2006

Paroxetine effective in treating patients with compulsive hoarding syndrome

In a paper published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research, Sanjaya Saxena, M.D., Director of the Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders (OCD) Program at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine, reports the surprising finding that the serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) medication, paroxetine, is effective in treating patients with compulsive hoarding syndrome.

24 Oct 2006

Remote-control software that enables off-site MRI imaging via the Internet

UCLA radiologists and Siemens Medical Solutions have developed remote-control software that enables an off-site imaging expert to operate a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine via the Internet.

From Siemens Healthineers 24 Oct 2006

New imaging technique reveals differences in brains of people with autism

Using a new form of brain imaging known as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), researchers in the Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging at Carnegie Mellon University have discovered that the so-called white matter in the brains of people with autism has lower structural integrity than in the brains of normal individuals.

23 Oct 2006

Quantum dots help cancer imaging studies

One of the more difficult diagnostic tasks an oncologist faces is determining if cancer has spread to the lymphatic system, particularly when it is necessary to assess lymphatic drainage from two separate drainage basins.

23 Oct 2006

Multivalent effects of RGD peptides obtained by nanoparticle display

While a growing body of literature has shown that nanoparticle targeting can improve drug delivery and tumor imaging, there have been few systematic studies examining the net positive effect of nanoparticle targeting.

23 Oct 2006

Functionalization of individual ultra-short single-walled carbon nanotubes

While most research aimed at developing carbon nanotubes as tumor-targeting drug and imaging agent delivery vehicles has focused on full-length nanotubes, Lon Wilson, Ph.D., and his colleagues at Rice University have been working with ultra-short nanotubes that cells appear to take up more efficiently than their longer counterparts.

23 Oct 2006

Gene called Kibra plays an important role in memory

Researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) have announced the discovery of a gene that plays a significant role in memory performance in humans.

20 Oct 2006

Flexible interface between DNA ligase and a heterotrimeric sliding clamp supports conformational switching and efficient ligation of DNA

Scientists investigating an important DNA-repair enzyme now have a better picture of the final steps of a process that glues together, or ligates, the ends of DNA strands to restore the double helix.

20 Oct 2006

Parkinson's disease affects more than just motor control

Although Parkinson's disease is most commonly viewed as a "movement disorder," scientists have found that the disease also causes widespread abnormalities in touch and vision - effects that have now been verified using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of the brain.

17 Oct 2006

Researchers find areas in the brain that indicate bilingualism

The finding sheds new light on decades of debate about how the human brain's language centers may actually be enhanced when faced with two or more languages as opposed to only one.

17 Oct 2006

Cocaine addicts have an altered perception of reward

People addicted to cocaine have an impaired ability to perceive rewards and exercise control due to disruptions in the brain's reward and control circuits, according to a series of brain-mapping studies and neuropsychological tests conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory.

16 Oct 2006

Laser technique shows women's skin ages faster than men's

According to German researchers women's skin ages faster than men's - so men become distinguished women just look older!

4 Oct 2006

Research implicates brain circuits involved in drug craving and emotional response to food

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have found new clues to how the brain and the stomach interact with emotions to cause overeating and obesity.

2 Oct 2006

Multispectral imaging of clinically relevant cellular targets in tonsil and lymphoid tissue using semiconductor quantum dots

When pathologists examine tissue samples in order to diagnose cancer of the lymphatic system, they examine the relative amounts of a group of proteins known as Cluster of Differentiation markers.

25 Sep 2006

Cigna provides data on cost, quality of services to web site

Cigna, which last year began to post cost and quality information for inpatient services performed at hospitals on a Web site for members, this week added data for outpatient services performed at stand-alone surgical centers, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports (Perotin, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9/20).

22 Sep 2006

Researchers identify neurocircuit that controls the brain's response to fear

Results suggest that it may be possible to understand psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety or depression, from the underlying neurophysiology - workings of the brain.

21 Sep 2006

How the brain resolves emotional conflict

Daily life requires that people cope with distracting emotions--from the basketball player who must make a crucial shot amidst a screaming crowd, to a salesman under pressure delivering an important pitch to a client.

21 Sep 2006

Earlier detection and treatment of kidney cancer not decreasing mortality

The number of cases of kidney cancer has been rising over the last two decades, and new research from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center shows that this increase is driven largely by the detection of small, presumably curable, kidney masses.

19 Sep 2006