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Getting the flu early may protect against worse one later

New evidence about the worldwide influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 indicates that getting the flu early protected many people against a second deadlier wave, an article co-authored by an NIH epidemiologist concludes.

20 Oct 2008

NIH funds two new centers for imaging technology for neurodegenerative disorders and software for protein analysis

The National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today it will provide up to an estimated $11 million over the next five years to create two new Biomedical Technology Research Centers (BTRCs) that will provide researchers nationwide with access to specialized research tools, training and state-of-the-art equipment.

15 Oct 2008

Addex Parkinson's product progressing in early clinical trials

Addex Pharmaceuticals has announced that it has completed the first part of a two-part Phase I clinical trial to evaluate the newly developed modified release formulation of ADX48621. ADX48621 is scheduled to start a Phase IIa proof of concept study for the treatment of levodopa associated dyskinesia in Parkinson's disease during the first half of 2009.

15 Oct 2008

Altruistic behaviour can be sexually attractive to others

Displays of altruism or selflessness towards others can be sexually attractive in a mate. This is one of the findings of a study carried out by biologists and a psychologist at The University of Nottingham.

14 Oct 2008

St. Jude Medical gets U.S. and European approval of Angio-Seal Evolution Vascular Closure Device

St. Jude Medical, Inc. has announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European CE Mark approval of the Angio-Seal Evolution Vascular Closure Device. The approval and global launch was announced at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference in Washington, D.C.

14 Oct 2008

Discovery of gene variant for cleft lip

About 20 percent of isolated cleft lip, one of the world's most common birth defects, may be due to a one-letter difference in the DNA sequence of a gene involved in facial development, researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health report.

6 Oct 2008

Short RNAs show a long history

MicroRNAs, the tiny molecules that fine-tune gene expression, were first discovered in 1993. But it turns out they've been around for a billion years.

1 Oct 2008

Tuberculosis bacterium uses its sugar coat to sweeten its chances of living in lungs

Common strains of tuberculosis-causing bacteria have hijacked the human body's immune response to play tricks on cells in the lungs, scientists say.

29 Sep 2008

Genetic fishing expedition yields surprising catch important to mammals

Johns Hopkins investigators report the discovery of master controllers of a gene critical to human and all mammalian development by trawling, implausibly enough, through anonymous genetic sequences using tiny zebrafish embryos.

21 Sep 2008

Roman York skeleton could be one of Britain's earliest victims of tuberculosis

The skeleton of a man discovered by archaeologists in a shallow grave on the site of the University of York's campus expansion could be that of one of Britain's earliest victims of tuberculosis.

16 Sep 2008

Infectious heart disease death rates rising again say scientists

Infectious heart disease is still a major killer in spite of improvements in health care, but the way the disease develops has changed so much since its discovery that nineteenth century doctors would not recognise it, scientists heard today (Thursday 11 September 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn meeting being held this week at Trinity College, Dublin.

10 Sep 2008

Egg secretions from a worm may be useful in gene therapy

Egg secretions from a worm that causes a deadly human disease may prove useful in gene therapy, according to research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester.

8 Sep 2008

Percutaneous mitral valve repair

The scope of percutaneous cardiac therapy has expanded from percutaneous coronary and peripheral intervention to percutaneous valve intervention, first used in the mid eighties.

1 Sep 2008

Discovery of tumour growth enzyme could lead to new cancer drugs

Scientists say a landmark study has revealed an enzyme which is vital to the growth of many cancers.

1 Sep 2008

Scientists trace evolution of the nerve cell

University of Queensland researchers have traced the origins of one of the most important steps in animal evolution - the development of nerves.

20 Aug 2008

Evolution in the ribosome

A new study of the ribosome, the cell's protein-building machinery, sheds light on the oldest branches of the evolutionary tree of life and suggests that differences in ribosomal structure between the three main branches of that tree are "molecular fossils" of the early evolution of protein synthesis.

18 Aug 2008

Symmetry the key to sexual appeal

Scientists say when it comes to searching for a partner, the attraction of a potential mate is all about symmetry.

18 Aug 2008

What makes the human body attractive?

A study by Dr William Brown and colleagues in Brunel University's School of Social Sciences and School of Engineering and Design, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), has revealed an explanation for the correlation between attractiveness and bodily characteristics like height, breast size, long legs, broad shoulders or a curvy figure.

18 Aug 2008

18 cases of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis found in California

In the first statewide study of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR TB) in the United States, California officials have identified 18 cases of the dangerous and difficult-to-treat disease between 1993 and 2006, and 77 cases that were one step away from XDR TB. The study appears in the August 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, now available online.

13 Aug 2008

Newly discovered molecular switch creates new path to study birth defects and cancer

Researchers have discovered a central molecular switch in fruit fly embryos that opens new avenues for studying the causes of birth defects and cancer in humans.

11 Aug 2008