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New technique could restore fertility of boys undergoing cancer treatment

Treatments for childhood cancers are increasingly successful with cure rates approaching 80%, but success often comes with a downside for the surviving men: the cancer treatments they received as boys can leave them sterile as adults. Now, a research team led by Ralph Brinster of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine has completed a 14-year experiment that gives hope for a technique that could restore their fertility.

29 Mar 2012

Broad-ranging CVBD prevention key element of animal health planning

As part of its ongoing commitment to the scientific community, Bayer Animal Health today marked their seventh year of support for the CVBD World Forum (CVBD7) in Berlin, Germany; and this year's meeting has again proven to be a landmark in the understanding of CVBDs.

29 Mar 2012

Multiresistant bacteria withstand wastewater treatment processes

Large quantities of antibiotic-resistant bacteria enter the environment via municipal - and especially hospital - wastewater streams. Although wastewater treatment plants reduce the total number of bacteria, the most hazardous - multiresistant - strains appear to withstand or even to be promoted by treatment processes. This was demonstrated by Eawag researchers in a study carried out in Lake Geneva, near Lausanne.

23 Mar 2012

U of S professor receives Canada Gairdner Wightman Award

University of Saskatchewan Professor Emeritus Lorne Babiuk has been awarded the prestigious Canada Gairdner Wightman Award in recognition of his accomplishments over three decades that include leading the U of S Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) to become a world centre for vaccine research, training and development.

22 Mar 2012

New EU project to assess risk of contaminated food brought in from other countries

The EHEC crisis in Germany in 2011 proved that food brought in from other countries can potentially carry agents that cause life-threatening diseases. Nevertheless, there have been extremely few investigations of the actual danger posed by germs that enter the EU along with food. The gap is now to be addressed by a new project, with the EU providing almost three million Euro to cover the costs.

17 Mar 2012

Collaborative research discovers genetic marker that identifies pigs with reduced susceptibility to PRRS

A collaborative discovery involving Kansas State University researchers may improve animal health and save the U.S. pork industry millions of dollars each year.

16 Mar 2012

Researchers double time to store donated cartilage

For years, doctors have been able to treat defects in joint cartilage by grafting cartilage donated from cadavers into patients' bad joints. Using current methods, donated cartilage can be stored for 28 days for a transplant before the tissue becomes too degraded to transplant into a patient. Now, researchers from the University of Missouri have found a way to store donated cartilage more than twice as long.

14 Mar 2012

EBV can infect and may also contribute to lymphomas in man's best friend

More than 90 percent of humans have antibodies to the Epstein Barr virus. Best known for causing mononucleosis, or "the kissing disease," the virus has also been implicated in more serious conditions, including Hodgkin's, non-Hodgkin's and Burkitt's lymphomas. Yet little is known about exactly how EBV triggers these diseases.

13 Mar 2012

Reducing consumption of antimicrobial agents reduces resistance: DANMAP

Antimicrobial agents are the most important weapons in the fight against bacterial infections in humans and animals, but these agents can lose their potency. When bacteria are exposed to antimicrobial agents they can develop resistance. This would make it more difficult to treat common diseases such as pneumonia and other infections.

8 Mar 2012

NeuroVista technology shows promise in detecting and predicting seizures

Mayo Clinic and partners from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine and College of Pharmacy, the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and NeuroVista Corporation have been awarded $7.5 million grant (U01) from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a division of the National Institutes of Health.

7 Mar 2012

Loss of STAT1 transcription factor causes breast cancer development

Breast cancer represents about a fifth of all cancers diagnosed in women. The reasons for the rapid progression of the disease remain relatively poorly understood but recent work in the group of Veronika Sexl at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna has pointed the finger strongly at loss or inactivation of the transcription factor STAT1.

1 Mar 2012

Scientists find evidence of a ‘different’ flu virus in bats

They were surprised to find genetic fragments of a flu virus in bats. So far, scientists haven't been able to grow it, and it's not clear if — or how well — it spreads. Flu bugs are common in humans, birds and pigs and have even been seen in dogs, horses, seals and whales, among others. About five years ago, Russian virologists claimed finding flu in bats, but they never offered evidence.

28 Feb 2012

Symposium discusses links between genetic, epigenetic and environmental influences on autism

Two UC Davis MIND Institute researchers will lead a symposium on relationships between genetic, epigenetic and environmental influences on the development of autism in children during the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting, Feb. 16 -18 in Vancouver, Canada.

20 Feb 2012

Early-life farm environment increases number of regulatory T-lymphocytes

Immunological diseases, such as eczema and asthma, are on the increase in westernised society and represent a major challenge for 21st century medicine. A new study has shown, for the first time, that growing up on a farm directly affects the regulation of the immune system and causes a reduction in the immunological responses to food proteins.

9 Feb 2012

New immunotherapy combination prolongs survival in dogs with NHL

A new immunotherapy for companion dogs with advanced-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) has been shown to improve survival while maintaining quality of life, according to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports.

8 Feb 2012

Asian bird flu update for Ferbruary 2012

Health workers in Nepal are to cull thousands of chickens following the discovery of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in the southeastern part of the Himalayan country.

6 Feb 2012

Australian bird flu scare spurs widespread poultry bans

After the bird flu outbreak at two Victorian duck farms, other countries like Japan, Vietnam, Singapore and Hong Kong have placed bans on all poultry products from Victoria and across Australia. South Africa is also now asking certification that an Australian poultry import has not come from within 20km of the quarantined sites.

2 Feb 2012

New research gains increased respect for contraceptive method

Imagine a contraceptive that could, with one or two painless 15-minute non-surgical treatments, provide months of protection from pregnancy. And imagine that the equipment needed were already in physical therapists' offices around the world.

31 Jan 2012

Bird flu detected in Victoria spurs action

A bird flu outbreak has been detected at two Victorian farms and at least 10,000 ducks will have to be destroyed. The two farms are about 25km apart in an area north of Melbourne, but officials are keeping the exact location private.

30 Jan 2012

Researchers study new strategies to treat patients with influenza

Influenza virus can rapidly evolve from one form to another, complicating the effectiveness of vaccines and anti-viral drugs used to treat it. By first understanding the complex host cell pathways that the flu uses for replication, University of Georgia researchers are finding new strategies for therapies and vaccines, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

30 Jan 2012