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Researchers develop low-cost, electricity-free device for detecting DNA of infectious pathogens

Diagnosing HIV and other infectious diseases presents unique challenges in remote locations that lack electric power, refrigeration, and appropriately trained health care staff. To address these issues, researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a low-cost, electricity-free device capable of detecting the DNA of infectious pathogens, including HIV-1.

2 Dec 2014

New findings could help develop therapeutic options for glycogen storage disease

Glycogen storage disorders, which affect the body's ability to process sugar and store energy, are rare metabolic conditions that frequently manifest in the first years of life. Often accompanied by liver and muscle disease, this inability to process and store glucose can have many different causes, and can be difficult to diagnose.

11 Nov 2014

SOFIE BIOSCIENCES awarded NCI Phase II SBIR contract to develop [18F]FAC PET

SOFIE BIOSCIENCES, a leader in the field of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging, including probes, scanners, and chemistry systems, announced today that the National Cancer Institute has awarded the company a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract for approximately $1.5M over two years.

16 Oct 2014

Magnesium essential to the activity of vitamin D

Extensive research has shown that vitamin D deficiencies play a major role in the development of dozens of diseases, including breast, prostate and colon cancer, as well as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, osteoporosis, psoriasis and mental illness.

8 Oct 2014

New approach to imaging metastatic tumors

Bioluminescence, nanoparticles, gene manipulation - these sound like the ideas of a science fiction writer, but, in fact, they are components of an exciting new approach to imaging local and metastatic tumors.

18 Sep 2014

Researchers pave way for development of new generation of chemotherapy drugs

A new mechanism to inhibit proteasomes, protein complexes that are a target for cancer therapy, is the topic of an article published in the journal Chemistry & Biology.

10 Sep 2014

Extreme environment medicine: an interview with Dr Kevin Fong, University College London

The understanding of how long-duration space flight affects the human body has come on quite considerably in recent years, and in large part, we owe that to programs of research that have taken place aboard the International Space Station and the Mir Space Station.

8 Sep 2014

Engineers create truly portable device for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

A team of engineers at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), Schlumberger-Doll Research Center in Cambridge, Mass., and the University of Texas, Austin, have created a truly portable device for nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.

5 Aug 2014

Metal-free chemical reaction for anti-HIV, anti-cancer and anti-bacterial drugs

A team of researchers from KU Leuven, in Belgium, has developed an economical, reliable and heavy metal-free chemical reaction that yields fully functional 1,2,3-triazoles. Triazoles are chemical compounds that can be used as building blocks for more complex chemical compounds, including pharmaceutical drugs.

4 Jul 2014

Investigators isolate protein that is responsible for fungus' ability to cross blood-brain barrier

In a remarkable series of experiments on a fungus that causes cryptococcal meningitis, a deadly infection of the membranes that cover the spinal cord and brain, investigators at UC Davis have isolated a protein that appears to be responsible for the fungus' ability to cross from the bloodstream into the brain.

13 Jun 2014

NSF awards nearly $200,000 to make environmentally friendly field analyzer

The National Science Foundation has awarded nearly $200,000 to two University of Texas at Arlington researchers teaming with a private company to make an affordable, environmentally friendly field analyzer for arsenic levels in water.

13 Jun 2014

French researchers introduce new method to effectively control bleeding and repair tissues

Stopping bleeding, closing wounds, repairing organs—these are everyday challenges in medical and surgical practice. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, French researchers have now introduced a new method that employs gluing by aqueous nanoparticle solutions to effectively control bleeding and repair tissues. In animal tests, their approach proved easy to apply, rapid and efficient even in situations when conventional methods are traumatic or fail.

25 Apr 2014

Scientists develop DNA nanodevices that survive body's immune defenses

It's a familiar trope in science fiction: In enemy territory, activate your cloaking device. And real-world viruses use similar tactics to make themselves invisible to the immune system.

23 Apr 2014

Researchers discover effective way of tuning muscle elasticity

How does yoga improve your flexibility? In the Mar 13 cover story of Cell, Columbia University biological sciences professor Julio Fernandez and team report the discovery of a new form of mechanical memory that adjusts the elasticity of muscles to their history of stretching.

14 Mar 2014

Unprecedented, atom-scale simulation of G protein-coupled receptor site's transformation

Roughly 40 percent of all medications act on cells' G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). One of these receptors, beta 2 adrenergic receptor site (B2AR), naturally transforms between two base configurations; knowing the precise location of each of approximately 4,000 atoms is crucial for ensuring a snug fit between it and the drug.

28 Dec 2013

Researchers discover easy-to-use method for bonding gels and biological tissues

Researchers have discovered an efficient and easy-to-use method for bonding together gels and biological tissues. A team headed by Ludwik Leibler, involving researchers from the Laboratoire Matière Molle et Chimie (CNRS/ESPCI ParisTech) and the Laboratoire Physico-Chimie des Polymères et Milieux Dispersés (CNRS/ UPMC/ESPCI ParisTech), has succeeded in obtaining very strong adhesion between two gels by spreading on their surface a solution containing nanoparticles.

12 Dec 2013

Probe mimics pathogen's amino acids, solving mystery behind Chlamydiae cell wall

Biochemical sleuthing by an Indiana University graduate student has ended a nearly 50-year-old search to find a megamolecule in bacterial cell walls commonly used as a target for antibiotics, but whose presence had never been identified in the bacterium responsible for the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States.

12 Dec 2013

American scientists introduce novel gel for sealing wounds

In first-aid situations, wounds must be quickly and effectively closed to stop blood loss and prevent infection. For treatment on arrival in a hospital, the temporary seal must be reopened, which often causes additional damage to the injured tissue. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, American scientists have now introduced a novel gel for sealing wounds. The gel can later be dissolved and gently removed.

28 Nov 2013

New method to display viral DNA in host cells at single-molecule resolution

The medical, humanitarian and economical impact of viral diseases is devastating to humans and livestock. There are no adequate therapies available against most viral diseases, largely because the mechanisms by which viruses infect cells are poorly known.

17 Oct 2013

Common catalyst cerium oxide opens door to nanochemistry for medicine

Scientists at Rice University are enhancing the natural antioxidant properties of an element found in a car's catalytic converter to make it useful for medical applications.

16 Oct 2013