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Pediatric research project to expand data collection linked to newborn screening results

Within the first days of life, screening tests are performed on all newborns born in the U.S. to identify rare and often life-threatening medical conditions that are not apparent at birth. These newborn screening programs have been operating for decades, permitting doctors to intervene early and improve outcomes in potentially devastating conditions.

18 Jan 2012

Ethanol, nonalcoholic compounds in red wine may reduce risk of vascular disease

Observational epidemiologic studies relating wine and alcohol to health all suffer from the fact that they, of necessity, compare people who prefer certain beverages, but not the beverages themselves. While there have been many intervention trials in animals, randomized trials in humans are less common. Randomized crossover trials, in which each subject receives all interventions in sequence, can be especially important as they tend to avoid baseline differences among subjects and can detect effects of different interventions with smaller numbers of subjects.

18 Jan 2012

Georgia Tech findings advance glaucoma research

Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness. Nearly 4 million Americans have the disorder, which affects 70 million worldwide. There is no cure and no early symptoms. Once vision is lost, it's permanent. New findings at Georgia Tech, published in January during Glaucoma Awareness Month, explore one of the many molecular origins of glaucoma and advance research dedicated to fighting the disease.

18 Jan 2012

New lab test quickly identifies bacterium responsible for staph infections

Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed a new laboratory test that can rapidly identify the bacterium responsible for staph infections. This new test takes advantage of unique isotopic labeling combined with specific bacteriophage amplification to rapidly identify Staphylococcus aureus.

13 Jan 2012

TAMEST honors UT Southwestern scientist with Edith and Peter O'Donnell Award

Dr. Philipp Scherer, director of the Touchstone Center for Diabetes Research at UT Southwestern Medical Center, was recognized today as a rising star in Texas research by The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas.

13 Jan 2012

DNA may be used to predict lifespan: Study

Researchers may soon be able to predict how long a person will live based on their genetics. This could result from the discovery by a University of Glasgow team in Scotland showing that telomere length on the ends of DNA in their genes in early-life predicts life spans.

11 Jan 2012

Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation names 18 new Fellows

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on supporting innovative early career researchers, named 18 new Damon Runyon Fellows at its fall Fellowship Award Committee review.

11 Jan 2012

Research identifies several new means to potentially target cancer

Scientists at the University of Leicester have opened up a whole new approach to the therapeutic intervention for a family of anti-cancer drug targets, thanks to a completely new and unexpected finding.

11 Jan 2012

AnaptysBio enters new strategic alliances for antibody discovery

AnaptysBio, Inc., a privately-held therapeutic antibody company, today announced the initiation of new strategic alliances with two partners: Novartis and an undisclosed second pharmaceutical company.

7 Jan 2012

Researchers crack structure and function of malarial protein

A biology lab at Washington University has just cracked the structure and function of a protein that plays a key role in the life of a parasite that killed 655,000 people in 2010.

7 Jan 2012

Researchers discover that flatworm lacks centrosome

A tiny, freshwater flatworm found in ponds and rivers around the world that has long intrigued scientists for its remarkable ability to regenerate has now added a new wrinkle to biology.

6 Jan 2012

NovaSterilis awarded soft tissue processing patent

NovaSterilis Inc., specializing in developing applications for supercritical carbon dioxide, has been granted US Patent 8,034,288 B2. The patent, dated October 11, 2011 entitled “Method and Apparatus for Cleaning of Viable Donor Soft Tissue”, covers a new method for cleaning soft allograft tissue including tendon, fascia, and skin with a supercritical fluid, thus avoiding other harmful chemical solvents that may leave residual chemicals.

4 Jan 2012

Alteration in ISG15 pathway triggers breast cancer metastasis

Research led by Shyamal Desai, PhD, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, has discovered a key change in the body's defense system that increases the potential for breast cancer to spread to other parts of the body.

4 Jan 2012

Woman's ovarian cycle plays an important role in her susceptibility to infection

A new research report in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that a woman's ovarian cycle plays an important role in her susceptibility to infection.

4 Jan 2012

ASBMB names Yale scientist as winner of inaugural Alice and C.C. Wang award

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology has named Elisabetta Ullu, professor of internal medicine and cell biology at the Yale University School of Medicine, the winner of the society's inaugural Alice and C.C. Wang award.

29 Dec 2011

Researchers decode and characterize DNA repair mechanism

Oxidative stress is the cause of many serious diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's, arteriosclerosis and diabetes. It occurs when the body is exposed to excessive amounts of electrically charged, aggressive oxygen compounds. These are normally produced during breathing and other metabolic processes, but also in the case of ongoing stress, exposure to UV light or X-rays. If the oxidative stress is too high, it overwhelms the body's natural defences. The aggressive oxygen compounds destroy genetic material, resulting in what are referred to as harmful 8-oxo-guanine base mutations in the DNA.

28 Dec 2011

AAA announces recipients of Young Investigator Awards

The American Association of Anatomist's (AAA) Young Investigator Awards combine three long-standing AAA awards-Bensley, Herrick, and Mossman-with the recently established Morphological Sciences Award, all recognizing investigators in the early stages of their careers who have made important contributions to biomedical science through their research in cell/molecular biology, developmental biology, comparative neuroanatomy, or the morphological sciences.

26 Dec 2011

UCSF professor receives 2012 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize

Peter Walter, PhD, a professor in the Biochemistry and Biophysics Department within the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco has been awarded the 2012 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize for his "outstanding research achievements in the field of cell biology."

26 Dec 2011

Anti-cancer drugs may also fight antibiotic resistance

Drugs used to overcome cancer may also combat antibiotic resistance, finds a new study led by Gerry Wright, scientific director of the Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research at McMaster University.

23 Dec 2011

Study hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour

New research hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour. The study by academics at the University of Bristol suggests a new mechanism by which the level of myosin phosphorylation is regulated in the pregnant uterus.

22 Dec 2011