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Researchers identify genetic signature for eosinophilic esophagitis

Researchers have identified a genetic signature for a severe, often painful food allergy – eosinophilic esophagitis – that could lead to improved diagnosis and treatment for children unable to eat a wide variety of foods.

12 Mar 2012

Chlamydia has evolved more actively than previously thought

In a study released today in Nature Genetics, researchers have found that Chlamydia has evolved more actively than was previously thought. Using whole genome sequencing the researchers show that the exchange of DNA between different strains of Chlamydia to form new strains is much more common than expected.

12 Mar 2012

Researchers produce extensive catalog of genes expressed in human islets

A new JDRF-funded study shows that many of the genes known to play a role in type 1 diabetes (T1D) are expressed in pancreatic beta cells, suggesting that the cell responsible for producing insulin may be playing a part in its own destruction to lead to T1D.

12 Mar 2012

New insight into causes of childhood pneumonia

The scientific journal Clinical Infectious Diseases has released its March Special Supplement focusing entirely on the research design of and pilot data from the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) Project, which seeks to identify the causes of pneumonia among the world's most vulnerable populations.

12 Mar 2012

TSRI, OPKO Health to develop and commercialize SR 3306 for Parkinson's

OPKO Health, Inc. and The Scripps Research Institute today announced a global agreement for the development and commercialization of SR 3306, a novel compound discovered by scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute that blocks the destruction of brains cells in animal models of Parkinson's disease.

12 Mar 2012

HIPK2 regulator protein plays a crucial role in kidney fibrosis

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have identified a regulator protein that plays a crucial role in kidney fibrosis, a condition that leads to kidney failure. Finding this regulator provides a new therapeutic target for the millions of Americans affected by kidney failure. The research is published in the March 11 issue of Nature Medicine.

12 Mar 2012

OSU researchers use carbon nanotubes to increase the speed of biological sensors

Researchers at Oregon State University have tapped into the extraordinary power of carbon "nanotubes" to increase the speed of biological sensors, a technology that might one day allow a doctor to routinely perform lab tests in minutes, speeding diagnosis and treatment while reducing costs.

12 Mar 2012

Salt resistant wheat developed using genomics

Matthew Gilliham, of the University of Adelaide, said the new variety of durum wheat would be made freely available to publicly funded breeding programs overseas. Field trials in Moree and at other sites across southern Australia have shown that the new variety has a grain yield in salty soil of up to 25 per cent higher than that of the standard variety.

12 Mar 2012

Boston Scientific in bid to take over Cameron Health

Boston Scientific, the second-biggest cardiac-device maker, will pay $150 million when the deal closes and another $150 million if Cameron’s technology called the S-ICD System wins U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, the Natick, Massachusetts-based company said in a statement yesterday.

12 Mar 2012

Blood vessels that form within brain cancers predominantly not made up of cancer cells

Johns Hopkins scientists have published laboratory data refuting studies that suggest blood vessels that form within brain cancers are largely made up of cancer cells. The theory of cancer-based blood vessels calls into question the use and value of anticancer drugs that target these blood vessels, including bevacizumab (Avastin).

10 Mar 2012

Boston Scientific exercises option to acquire Cameron Health

Boston Scientific Corporation announces the exercise of its option to acquire Cameron Health, Inc., a privately held company based in San Clemente, California.

9 Mar 2012

Biologists identify how and where the brain processes FM sweeps

In both animals and humans, vocal signals used for communication contain a wide array of different sounds that are determined by the vibrational frequencies of vocal cords. For example, the pitch of someone's voice, and how it changes as they are speaking, depends on a complex series of varying frequencies. Knowing how the brain sorts out these different frequencies-which are called frequency-modulated (FM) sweeps-is believed to be essential to understanding many hearing-related behaviors, like speech.

9 Mar 2012

Cancer-based blood vessel theory questioned

8 Mar 2012

Scientists identify 2,000 important genes linked to singing

Can the song of a small bird provide valuable insights into human stuttering and speech-related disorders and conditions, including autism and stroke? New research by UCLA life scientists and colleagues provides reason for optimism.

8 Mar 2012

Deafness penetrates more rapidly and deeply into the brain than previously thought

Portions of a songbird's brain that control how it sings have been shown to decay within 24 hours of the animal losing its hearing.

8 Mar 2012

New inexpensive medical sensor may simplify diagnosis of diseases

An inexpensive new medical sensor has the potential to simplify the diagnosis of diseases ranging from life-threatening immune deficiencies to the common cold, according to its inventors at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

8 Mar 2012

Combining radiation therapy with ipilimumab shows promise against melanoma

Research published today in the New England Journal of Medicine by scientists at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR) and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) showed that combining targeted radiation therapy with immunotherapy (ipilimumab), fostered a strong immune response and a favorable clinical outcome in a patient with melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer.

8 Mar 2012

Researchers document unknown biological mechanism in the blood-brain barrier

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have documented a previously unknown biological mechanism in the brain's most important line of defence: the blood-brain barrier. Scientists now know that the barrier helps maintain a delicate balance of glutamate, a vital signal compound in the brain.

8 Mar 2012

NCGR to host eighth annual NMBIST symposium on March 22-23, 2012

The National Center for Genome Resources (NCGR) announced today that it will host the eighth annual New Mexico Bioinformatics, Science and Technology (NMBIST) symposium on March 22-23, 2012.

7 Mar 2012

Genesys BioLabs introduces PAULA's test for early lung cancer detection

Genesys BioLabs, a division of 20/20 GeneSystems, Inc. announces today the launch of PAULA's test, a blood test for the early detection of lung cancer, addressing the need for a widely useable early detection protocol for asymptomatic patients.

7 Mar 2012