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Hypnosis has potential therapeutic value in children with respiratory disorders

Hypnosis has potential therapeutic value in children with respiratory disorders for alleviating symptoms such as habit cough or unexplained sensations of difficulty breathing and for lessening a child's discomfort during medical procedures.

15 Feb 2010

GM crops can help bolster global food security, scientists say in special journal issue

Acceptance of genetically modified (GM) crops in agriculture will help bolster global food security as the world faces population growth and the potential effects of climate change, Nina Fedoroff, science and technology advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and colleagues write in an article published in a special issue of the journal Science, the Times of London reports.

15 Feb 2010

VR technology plays important role in treating patients with PTSD

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) threatens to overload healthcare and social support systems worldwide as the number of cases rises and existing treatments are not sufficiently effective.

12 Feb 2010

World leaders need to alter their notions on sustainable agriculture to prevent starvation catastrophe

Yields from some of the most important crops begin to decline sharply when average temperatures exceed about 30 degrees Celsius, or 86 Fahrenheit. Projections are that by the end of this century much of the tropics and subtropics will regularly see growing season temperatures above that level, hotter than the hottest summers now on record.

12 Feb 2010

Better and standardized animal models needed for musculoskeletal regenerative medicine

Clinical testing and development of novel therapies based on advances in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine that will one day enable the repair and replacement of diseased or damaged human muscle, bone, tendons, and ligaments depends on the availability of good animal models.

12 Feb 2010

New screening system developed to discover molecules that block HCV life cycle

A newly designed system of identifying molecules for treating hepatitis C should enable scientists to discover novel and effective therapies for the dangerous and difficult-to-cure disease of the liver, says Zhilei Chen, a Texas A&M University assistant professor of chemical engineering who helped develop the screening system.

12 Feb 2010

Neurotoxin study may help find new therapies to block hyperactive ion channels

There are approximately 500 species of cone snails, each producing 50 - 200 different conotoxins. A similar number of peptide toxins are produced by snakes, spiders, sea anemones, scorpions and other venomous animals. The animals use the neurotoxins to paralyze their prey.

11 Feb 2010

India puts indefinite 'moratorium' on release of country's first GM vegetable

"India has postponed the launch of its first genetically modified (GM) vegetable, saying it would adopt a cautious approach and wait for more scientific studies on the impact of the new variety of eggplant," Reuters reports (Majumdar, 2/9).

11 Feb 2010

VSV has potential to be genetically modified to serve as anti-cancer agent

Vesicular stomatitis virus, or VSV, has long been a model system for studying and understanding the life cycle of negative-strand RNA viruses, which include viruses that cause influenza, measles and rabies.

10 Feb 2010

Researchers find that mutation in single gene can cause endometrial cancer

A mutation in a single gene can cause endometrial cancer that is responsive to a specific drug therapy, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in an animal study.

10 Feb 2010

Plant-produced antibodies can help prevent infection

The first head-to-head comparison of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies produced from plants versus the same antibodies produced from mammalian cells has shown that plant-produced antibodies can fight infection equally well.

9 Feb 2010

Anti-doping community urges researchers and athletes to fight illegal doping

With the 2010 Winter Olympic Games just days away, officials in the anti-doping community are urging researchers and those in the athletic community to re-double their efforts to fight illegal doping.

5 Feb 2010

Bioheart initiates REGEN Phase I Clinical Trial for testing genetically modified MyoCell in CHF patients

Bioheart, Inc., announced today that the company has commenced work on its REGEN trial, a Phase I Clinical Trial to test genetically modified MyoCell® in patients suffering from Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). Bioheart’s MyoCell® is a regenerative cell therapy that uses myoblasts, or muscle stem cells,that are grown from a patient’s own muscle. MyoCell® has been tested successfully on patients in four clinical trials.

5 Feb 2010

GEN Feb issue provides up-to-date coverage on the emerging field of epigenetics

Increasing numbers of research studies clearly demonstrate that genetics alone cannot explain the diversity of living organisms, reports Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN).

4 Feb 2010

Findings provide potential new targets to combat malaria

Yale University researchers have found more than two dozen scent receptors in malaria-transmitting mosquitoes that detect compounds in human sweat, a finding that may help scientists to develop new ways to combat a disease that kills 1 million people annually.

4 Feb 2010

Research suggests growth factor gene plays a central role in palate development

Cleft palate has been linked to dozens of genes. During their investigation of one of these genes, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were surprised to find that cleft palate occurs both when the gene is more active and when it is less active than normal.

3 Feb 2010

CSC, ALS TDI extend collaboration in advancing potential stem cell therapy for ALS

California Stem Cell, Inc. (CSC) and ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) are pleased to announce an extension and expansion of their collaboration aimed at advancing a potential stem cell therapy for ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). This effort will build on work that has already been completed as part of this on-going partnership to understand how stem cells, and their derivatives, may be applied to treatment of this fatal neurodegenerative disease.

3 Feb 2010

Mary Ann Liebert launches Videourology journal for urologists

Videourology- is the first and only videojournal for urologists, publishing fully peer-reviewed surgical and micro-invasive video demonstrations of the latest techniques and technologies used to optimize surgical patient care.

2 Feb 2010

Decreased release of neurotransmitter acetylcholine contributes to heart failure

Scientists at the Robarts Research Institute at The University of Western Ontario, working in collaboration with researchers in Brazil, have used a unique genetically-modified mouse line to reveal a previously unidentified mechanism contributing to heart failure.

2 Feb 2010

New technique could reduce animal use in gene study

A new method of priming early embryos to form embryonic stem (ES) cells has allowed ES cells to be derived from mice used in diabetes research for the first time.

28 Jan 2010