Laboratory News and Research

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Scientists create sheets of protein-gold arrays

In groundbreaking research, scientists have demonstrated the ability to strategically attach gold nanoparticles -- particles on the order of billionths of a meter -- to proteins so as to form sheets of protein-gold arrays.

28 Jun 2007

Australian scientists discover new reovirus

CSIRO scientists have played a key role in discovering that bats are the likely host of a new virus that can cause a serious but apparently non-fatal respiratory tract illness in humans.

28 Jun 2007

New genetic test advances detection and diagnosis of muscular dystrophy

A new genetic test targeting the most common types of muscular dystrophy--those caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene--is far quicker with greater accuracy and sensitivity than existing tests.

28 Jun 2007

Summer's here so look out for Legionnaires disease

Summer's here and the living isn't always so easy especially if youre in the hospital. Patients who are vulnerable to infection run a greater risk of contracting Legionnaires disease, a severe form of pneumonia, during warm, humid weather, according to a study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

28 Jun 2007

CARS microscopy reveals clues to myelin damage

Researchers have discovered that calcium ions could play a crucial role in multiple sclerosis by activating enzymes that degrade the fatty sheath that insulates nerve fibers.

28 Jun 2007

Tularemia-specific antibodies protect mice from developing respiratory tularemia

The respiratory form of tularemia, a potentially serious bacterial disease, is a significant public health concern because it is highly infectious, it has a high mortality rate if untreated, and it could be introduced into a population in an intentional act of bioterror.

28 Jun 2007

15,000 children and adolescents in the United States are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes annually

Approximately 15,000 children and adolescents in the United States are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and about 3,700 youth are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes annually, according to estimates from a major national study called SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth.

27 Jun 2007

Breakthrough in understanding of noroviruses

A breakthrough announced this week by scientists at the University of Southampton's School of Medicine will lead to greater understanding of noroviruses, the most common cause of non-bacterial gastroenteritis around the world.

27 Jun 2007

Gene variant increases risk for alcoholism following childhood abuse

Girls who suffered childhood sexual abuse are more likely to develop alcoholism later in life if they possess a particular variant of a gene involved in the body's response to stress, according to a new study led by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

27 Jun 2007

Absence of a gene called CD38 is a protective barrier to obesity

A search for the molecular clues of longevity has taken Mayo Clinic researchers down another path that could explain why some people who consume excessive calories don't gain weight.

27 Jun 2007

Amphinase molecule from frog could provide first drug treatment for brain tumours

A synthetic version of a molecule found in the egg cells of the Northern Leopard frog (Rana pipiens) could provide the world with the first drug treatment for brain tumours.

27 Jun 2007

FDA approves rapid test for malaria

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared for marketing the Binax NOW Malaria Test, the first authorized U.S. rapid test for malaria, a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite. The test is intended for laboratory use.

27 Jun 2007

Threat of MRSA superbug under-estimated

According to the Center for Disease Control in the United States (CDC), MRSA (Methicillin-Associated Staphylococcus Aureus) infections continue to be a concern for hospitals worldwide and now account for more than 50% of hospital-acquired Staphylococcus aureus infections.

26 Jun 2007

New understanding of cancer inhibitor topotecan

Researchers in Delft University of Technology's Kavli Institute of Nanoscience in The Netherlands have cast new light on the workings of the important cancer inhibitor topotecan.

26 Jun 2007

Substance from lapacho tree could lead to new lung-cancer treatment

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have determined how a substance derived from the bark of the South American lapacho tree kills certain kinds of cancer cells, findings that also suggest a novel treatment for the most common type of lung cancer.

26 Jun 2007

Canada enhances capacity to fight infectious disease

Today representatives of all three levels of government and the Canada Foundation for Innovation turned the sod to launch construction of the International Vaccine Centre (InterVac) at the University of Saskatchewan, a $110.4-million project that will significantly enhance Canada's capacity to fight infectious disease in both animals and humans.

26 Jun 2007

Call for global push to advance research in synthetic biology

With research backgrounds ranging from materials engineering to molecular biophysics, seventeen leading scientists issued a statement announcing that, much as the discovery of DNA and creation of the transistor revolutionized science, there is a new scientific field on the brink of revolutionizing our approach to problems ranging from eco-safe energy to outbreaks of malaria.

26 Jun 2007

Protein C levels help predict severity of illness and risk of death in ICU patients

A simple laboratory test to measure protein C - a natural anti-blood-clotting substance that also reflects the level of inflammation in the body - may offer a useful new indicator of the severity of illness and risk of death among critically ill patients.

26 Jun 2007

SSRIs associated with lower bone density in older men and women

The class of antidepressant medications known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors may be associated with an increased rate of bone loss in older men and women, according to two articles in the June 25 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

26 Jun 2007