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Caesarean babies at risk of diabetes

New research from the UK is suggesting that babies born by Caesarean section have a 20% higher risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

26 Aug 2008

Infections of amniotic fluid may be a significant cause of premature birth

Previously unrecognized and unidentified infections of amniotic fluid may be a significant cause of premature birth, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

25 Aug 2008

Study reveals how blood flow force protects against atherosclerosis

Machines on cell surfaces, mechanical and lifeless as bed springs, protect blood vessels by responding to blood flow force, according to research published today in the Journal of Cell Biology. By sensing and reacting to force, such machines interfere with inflammatory pathways central to atherosclerosis, the cause of clogged arteries that lead to heart attack and stroke, the authors said. The next set of studies, already underway, seeks to "tweak" the process with the goal of designing a new class of therapies.

25 Aug 2008

U.S. spinach and lettuce to be irradiated to stop outbreaks of foodborne bacteria

Following an increasing number of outbreaks of foodborne illnesses over the last few years, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States is about to allow food producers to irradiate spinach and iceberg lettuce to kill foodborne bacteria.

25 Aug 2008

Researchers discover key details of how rheumatoid arthritis destroys bone

Researchers have discovered key details of how rheumatoid arthritis (RA) destroys bone, according to a study published in the Aug. 22 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry. The findings are already guiding attempts to design new drugs to reverse RA-related bone loss and may also address more common forms of osteoporosis with a few adjustments.

24 Aug 2008

Malaria researchers discover new mosquito virus

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Malaria Research Institute have identified a previously unknown virus that is infectious to Anopheles gambiae-the mosquito primarily responsible for transmitting malaria.

24 Aug 2008

Scientists uncover molecule that keeps pathogens like salmonella in check

Scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found a potential new way to stop the bacteria that cause gastroenteritis, tularemia and severe diarrhea from making people sick.

21 Aug 2008

New discovery on how rheumatoid arthritis destroys bone

20 Aug 2008

Bacterial pneumonia caused most deaths in 1918 influenza pandemic

The majority of deaths during the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 were not caused by the influenza virus acting alone, report researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. Instead, most victims succumbed to bacterial pneumonia following influenza virus infection.

19 Aug 2008

Rifamycin antibiotics attack tuberculosis bacteria with walls, not signals

Amid concerns about the rising number of new tuberculosis cases worldwide, researchers led by Rockefeller University's Seth A. Darst have reexamined and disproved a theory that describes how a potent class of antibiotics kills a deadly form of bacteria. The findings, which will appear in this week's online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, not only bring scientists closer to understanding how these antibiotics work but also how the bacteria become resistant to their effects.

19 Aug 2008

Stanford develop method to overcome multiple drug resistant diseases

Many drugs once considered Charles Atlases of the pharmaceutical realm have been reduced to the therapeutic equivalent of 97-pound weaklings as the diseases they once dispatched with ease have developed resistance to them.

18 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

Australians have the right to know if they are eating GM food say chefs

A leading Australian nutritionist and top Australian chefs have joined forces with Greenpeace in demands for the comprehensive labelling and testing of genetically modified (GM) food products.

18 Aug 2008

Researchers create synthetic heparin

Robert Linhardt has spent years stitching together minuscule carbohydrates to build a more pure and safer alternative to the commonly used and controversial blood thinner heparin. At the national conference of the American Chemical Society on August 17, 2008, Linhardt announced that his research team may have accomplished this task by building the first fully synthetic heparin. Their creation is the largest dose of heparin ever created in the lab.

17 Aug 2008

New plastic film to tackle E. coli

Chemical Engineers in Switzerland have created a plastic film that's up to 1000 times more effective at killing E. coli bacteria cells than conventional methods.

14 Aug 2008

Researchers find Leishmaniasis parasites evade death by exploiting the immune response to sand fly bites

Cutaneous leishmaniasis, a disease characterized by painful skin ulcers, occurs when the parasite Leishmania major, or a related species, is transmitted to a mammalian host by the bite of an infected sand fly.

14 Aug 2008

New understanding of how white blood cell eosiniphils fights infection

U.S. and Swiss scientists have made a breakthrough in understanding how a type of white blood cell called the eosinophil may help the body to fight bacterial infections in the digestive tract, according to research published online this week in Nature Medicine

13 Aug 2008

Contraceptive pill affects odour preferences, influences partner choice

The contraceptive pill may disrupt women's natural ability to choose a partner genetically dissimilar to themselves, research at the University of Liverpool has found.

12 Aug 2008

Ulysses Pharma issued U.S. patent for novel class of antibiotics

Ulysses Pharma has announced the issuance of US Patent 7,410,974, covering its novel class of antibiotics which target drug resistant bacteria.

12 Aug 2008

Scientists discover new species of bacteria in the mouth

Scientists have discovered a new species of bacteria in the mouth. The finding could help scientists to understand tooth decay and gum disease and may lead to better treatments, according to research published in the August issue of the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology.

10 Aug 2008