Laboratory News and Research

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Elderly at risk for physical disabilities exercise, improve physical function

Elderly adults at risk for physical disabilities are able to adhere to a regular program of moderate exercise for one year, a recent study of 213 men and women suggests.

18 Dec 2007

Scientists identify and repress breast cancer stem cells in mouse tissue

By manipulating highly specific gene-regulating molecules called microRNAs, scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) report that they have succeeded in singling out and repressing stem-like cells in mouse breast tissue - cells that are widely thought to give rise to cancer.

18 Dec 2007

Omega-3 fatty acids for depression - new trial

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences are seeking participants for a clinical trial examining whether two polyunsaturated Omega-3 fatty acids are effective treatments for depression.

18 Dec 2007

New advanced emergency technology

When Javier Rodriguez Molina visited the Atocha Train Station Memorial in Madrid last summer, the Barcelona native felt a great sadness for the victims of the 11 March 2004 Madrid train bombings.

18 Dec 2007

Cheaper drugs now closer to realization with new DropArray technology

A standard laboratory tool for measuring pharmacological activity of biological substances and performing other related tests may soon be replaced by a new miniaturized bioassay that will be faster, cheaper and more efficient for scientists to use, with new technology developed by Singapore's Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN).

17 Dec 2007

Researchers spearhead key genome initiative

The complete collection of genes - the genome - of a moss has been sequenced, providing scientists an important evolutionary link between single-celled algae and flowering plants.

17 Dec 2007

A common language for health care IT needed

I may say soda and you may say pop, but what if the hospital lab you go to today says BMP and the one you visit next week calls the same test SMA7? Your physician knows that these are the same tests, but the computer systems they use don't automatically know.

17 Dec 2007

Study looks at denosumab in preventing bone loss caused by aromatase inhibitors

Denosumab is a new drug being studied to prevent fractures in breast cancer patients receiving hormonal therapy.

17 Dec 2007

Highly promising Alzheimer's and Parkinson's research

The TI Pharma project is a large-scale study into the brain material of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients, who gave permission to the Netherlands Brain Bank for their tissue to be used for scientific research.

17 Dec 2007

Children require more health care when their mothers are victims of domestic violence

Children whose mothers have a history of abuse by intimate partners have higher health care needs than children whose mothers have no history of abuse, according to a study conducted at Group Health, a Seattle-based health plan.

17 Dec 2007

Sunitinib may be associated with cardiac toxicity

Another FDA-approved targeted cancer drug, sunitinib (SutentTM, Pfizer), may be associated with cardiac toxicity, report researchers at Children's Hospital Boston, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston), and Thomas Jefferson University (Philadelphia).

17 Dec 2007

Aging gracefully requires taking out the trash

Suppressing a cellular cleanup-mechanism known as autophagy can accelerate the accumulation of protein aggregates that leads to neural degeneration.

17 Dec 2007

Scientists overcome obstacles to stem cell heart repair

Scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) at Imperial College London have overcome two significant obstacles on the road to harnessing stem cells to build patches for damaged hearts.

14 Dec 2007

Profound immune system discovery opens door to halting destruction of lupus

A researcher funded by the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) has discovered an entirely new and powerful molecular switch that controls the inflammatory response of the immune system.

14 Dec 2007

Molecular 'trip switch' shuts down inflammatory response

Like a circuit breaker that prevents electrical wiring from overheating and bringing down the house, a tiny family of three molecules stops the immune system from mounting an out-of-control, destructive inflammatory response against invading pathogens, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have found.

14 Dec 2007