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First neurobiological model for third-party punishment

In a paper published online on April 15 by the journal Nature Neuroscience, a pair of neuroscientists from Vanderbilt and Harvard universities has proposed the first neurobiological model for third-party punishment. It outlines a collection of potential cognitive and brain processes that evolutionary pressures could have re-purposed to make this behavior possible.

19 Apr 2012

Morphotek commences MORAb-004 Phase II study in metastatic colorectal cancer

Morphotek, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Inc., announced today that it has commenced a multi-center, Phase II study evaluating the safety and efficacy of MORAb-004 in the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer that is refractory to all standard therapy.

17 Apr 2012

Gene function preserved despite structural differences in the DNA

Chloroplasts, the plant cell's green solar power generators, were once living beings in their own right. This changed about one billion years ago, when they were swallowed up but not digested by larger cells. Since then, they have lost much of their autonomy.

16 Apr 2012

Study examines cellular and molecular organization of human and mouse brain

Scientists at the Allen Institute for Brain Science have identified similarities and differences among regions of the human brain, among the brains of human individuals, and between humans and mice by analyzing the expression of approximately 1,000 genes in the brain.

16 Apr 2012

Missing tool helps sperm and eggs develop exactly 23 chromosomes each

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have discovered a key tool that helps sperm and eggs develop exactly 23 chromosomes each. The work, which could lead to insights into fertility, spontaneous miscarriages, cancer and developmental disorders, is published April 13 in the journal Cell.

16 Apr 2012

Researchers discover intra-cellular function of LOXL2 protein

Researchers at the Hospital de Mar Research Institute (IMIM) have discovered that the protein LOXL2 has a function within the cell nucleus thus far unknown. They have also described a new chemical reaction of this protein on histone H3 that would be involved in gene silencing, one of which would be involved in the progression of breast, larynx, lung and skin tumours.

16 Apr 2012

FDA urges restriction in injudicious use of antibiotics in livestock

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has urged drug companies Wednesday to help limit the use of antibiotics in farm animals. The researchers say that this decades-old practice has contributed to a surge in dangerous, drug-resistant bacteria.

12 Apr 2012

Scientists map physical architecture of intelligence in the brain

Scientists report that they have mapped the physical architecture of intelligence in the brain. Theirs is one of the largest and most comprehensive analyses so far of the brain structures vital to general intelligence and to specific aspects of intellectual functioning, such as verbal comprehension and working memory.

11 Apr 2012

Innovative tool for tracking movement of infectious diseases

It may seem like a game of tag, but it's an innovative tool for teaching the fundamentals of epidemiology, the science of how infectious diseases move through a population.

7 Apr 2012

New hypothesis may be a game changer in the evolution arena

A new hypothesis posed by a University of Tennessee, Knoxville, associate professor and colleagues could be a game changer in the evolution arena. The hypothesis suggests some species are surviving by discarding genes and depending on other species to play their hand.

5 Apr 2012

TLR4/MD-2 protein complex triggers morphine-induced inflammation

A University of Colorado Boulder-led research team has discovered that two protein receptors in the central nervous system team up to respond to morphine and cause unwanted neuroinflammation, a finding with implications for improving the efficacy of the widely used painkiller while decreasing its abuse potential.

3 Apr 2012

Scientists discover new serine protease: NSP4

Neutrophil granulocytes comprise important defences for the immune system. When pathogenic bacteria penetrate the body, they are the first on the scene to mobilise other immune cells via signal molecules, thereby containing the risk. To this end, they release serine proteases - enzymes that cut up other proteins to activate signal molecules. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have now discovered a new serine protease: neutrophil serine protease 4, or NSP4.

3 Apr 2012

Melanoma on the rise especially amongst the young

Women under 40 are hit hardest by the escalating incidence of melanoma, according to a Mayo Clinic study published in the April issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, out today. Researchers examined records from a decades-long database of all patient care in Olmsted County, Minn., and looked for first-time diagnoses of melanoma in patients 18-39 from 1970 to 2009. Melanoma cases increased eightfold among women in that time and fourfold for men, the authors say. However, death rates from melanoma fell during the same period, suggesting that early interventions may be helping to save some lives, said the researchers.

2 Apr 2012

Scientists use DNA sequencing to identify 'driver' mutations in cancer

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are using powerful DNA sequencing technology not only to identify mutations at the root of a patient's tumor - considered key to personalizing cancer treatment - but to map the genetic evolution of disease and monitor response to treatment.

2 Apr 2012

$Pazopanib demonstrates clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer$

Pazopanib demonstrates clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer

The antiangiogenic drug pazopanib has demonstrated clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer, according to results presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2012, held here March 31 - April 4. The results also revealed that increases in interleukin-8 levels early after treatment with pazopanib may predict a lack of tumor response to the therapy.

2 Apr 2012

Scientists produce first genetic brain atlas

The first atlas of the surface of the human brain based upon genetic information has been produced by a national team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the VA San Diego Healthcare System.

30 Mar 2012

ProImmune introduces Special Assay Service

ProImmune Ltd., a leader in services for understanding immune responses, has launched a new Special Assay Service, providing unique, bespoke immunological assays, based on ProImmune's broad ranging proprietary platform technologies, to meet customers' assay needs.

29 Mar 2012

Researchers use game theory to understand dynamics of cancer tumor evolution under stress

In search of a different perspective on the physics of cancer, Princeton University and University of California, San Francisco researchers teamed up to use game theory to look for simplicity within the complexity of the dynamics of cooperator and cheater cells under metabolic stress conditions and high spatial heterogeneity. In the context of cancer, cooperator cells obey the general rules of communal survival, while cheater cells do not.

28 Mar 2012

ACS symposium focuses on biomimetics

Combining the secrets that enable water striders to walk on water and give wood its lightness and great strength has yielded an amazing new material so buoyant that, in everyday terms, a boat made from 1 pound of the substance could carry five kitchen refrigerators, about 1,000 pounds.

27 Mar 2012

The 13th EMBL/EMBO Science and Society conference

Why is the living world so diverse; that is, what forces and processes led to the evolution and proliferation of so many species? The dynamics that allow interacting species to coexist in an ecosystem simultaneously influence the productivity, nutrient dynamics and stability of that ecosystem.

23 Mar 2012