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Cells direct membrane traffic by channel width

For a glycerol molecule, a measly angstrom's difference in diameter is a road-closed sign: You can't squeeze through unless you are a sleek, water-molecule-sized sports car, say scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

11 Aug 2005

Snorers can blame the shape of their throats

Scientists have discovered, by carrying out head and neck scans of snorers and non-snorers, why it is that some people are chronic snorers.

11 Aug 2005

Ethanol treatment may be instrumental in fighting IV-based infections

Inserted through the skin and into a vein, long-term intravascular devices such as IV catheters deliver to patients a range of life-saving medications, nutrition and fluids, among other uses.

11 Aug 2005

Little convincing evidence that dietary antioxidant supplements such as vitamin E prevent heart disease

Instead there has been a surprise finding, which relates to a synthetic antioxidant, the drug Probucol, which is no longer prescribed in Australia.

11 Aug 2005

New study points to new treatments for some forms of Lou Gehrig's disease

A new study indicates that mutant Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) enzymes that are associated with an inherited form of Lou Gehrig's disease cause the protein to become sticky in tissues. Partial unfolding of the mutant protein can expose hydrophobic residues that may promote abnormal interactions with other proteins or membranes in the cell.

11 Aug 2005

Researchers discover that tumors secrete fatty acids which inhibit the cytotoxic T lymphocytes' ability to kill tumor cells

Researchers have discovered that tumors release fatty acids that interfere with the cells that are trying to kill them. Consequently, strategies that reduce the amount of fatty acids surrounding the tumors may give a boost to anti-cancer therapeutics.

11 Aug 2005

Ground-breaking discoveries that provide hope of an alternative treatment option for haemophilia sufferers

Haemophilia is a hereditary blood disease, primarily affecting males, where the blood fails to clot causing potentially life-threatening 'bleeds'. About one in 6000 Australian males is born with haemophilia in severe, moderate or mild form. People with haemophilia rely on intravenous infusion of recombinant Factor VIII clotting protein.

11 Aug 2005

Lifestyle changes may affect the progression of any type of cancer

Men with early stage prostate cancer who make intensive changes in diet and lifestyle may stop or perhaps even reverse the progression of their illness, according to a new study.

11 Aug 2005

Preliminary molecular diagram of the early stages of embryo formation

A team of genomic researchers headed by biologists at New York University's Center for Comparative Functional Genomics, in collaboration with researchers at Harvard University, the Max Planck Institute, and Cenix Biosciences, has mapped out a preliminary molecular diagram of the early stages of embryo formation, offering for the first time a global look at how a single cell begins its path into a multi-cellular organism.

11 Aug 2005

Cancer causing potential of the sex hormones

The cancer causing potential of the sex hormones used in hormone therapy has been known since the 1930s, say researchers and women's health advocates in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

11 Aug 2005

Childhood cancers are strongly linked to pollution from engine exhausts

The postal addresses of 22,500 children who had died of cancer in Britain between 1955 and 1980 were linked to emissions hotspots for specific chemicals.

11 Aug 2005

FDA approval sought for Pfizer's new cancer drug

Drug company Pfizer has announced it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) for its cancer drug Sutent, to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

11 Aug 2005

Hangover gene may be to blame for alcohol addiction

By studying the effects of alcohol on fruit flies, scientists have discovered a gene that could lead to alcohol addiction.

11 Aug 2005

As many as one in 25 men in the UK could be raising another man's child

In rather disconcerting news, it appears that as many as one in 25 fathers, could unwittingly be raising another man's child.

11 Aug 2005

Bird flu in Indonesia - source still a mystery

Indonesia's search for the source of the bird flu virus that killed three people near its densely populated capital, Jakarta, has ended in failure, the health minister said this week.

11 Aug 2005

Nurses unable to engage in research practices essential for positive patient outcomes

A recent study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Nursing (AJN), found that many U.S. registered nurses are not ready to engage in evidence-based practice (EBP), the "gold standard" approach to clinical problem solving, due to gaps in computer literacy knowledge and skills, limited access to quality information resources and attitudes toward research.

10 Aug 2005

Blondes may have fun but redheads can take the pain

According to a new British study, blondes may have more fun, but redheads are less likely to feel the pain.

10 Aug 2005

No link between multiple vaccinations and infections

Over the years many concerns have been raised about chilhood vacinations, and one concern has been that multiple vaccinations 'use up' the immune system, so children are unable to fight off other illnesses.

10 Aug 2005

New prostate cancer test could save thousands from unnecessary surgery

Doctors at present lack a test that can distinguish fast-developing tumours that need urgent attention from slow-growing ones that are not a threat and need only watching, and as a result many men have operations that can leave them impotent and incontinent for prostate tumours that would never have killed them.

10 Aug 2005

Important breast cancer discovery

Scientists at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) have made an important discovery that will advance our understanding of how the female hormone estrogen causes growth of breast cancer cells. The research, in collaboration with scientists at the Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montreal (IRCM) identifies 153 genes that respond to estrogen and one in particular that can be used to halt the growth of breast cancer cells.

10 Aug 2005