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Study findings support therapeutic approach for common form of MS

In an effort to develop therapeutic remedies for multiple sclerosis, scientists debate two possible interventional approaches - but they're on opposite sides of the spectrum. Researchers at Wayne State University's School of Medicine, however, have reached a definitive conclusion as to which approach is correct, putting an end to a long-disputed issue.

24 Feb 2011

Cerasome filled molecular-sized bubbles to target liver cancer cells

Nanotechnology may open a new door on the treatment of liver cancer, according to a team of Penn State College of Medicine researchers. They used molecular-sized bubbles filled with chemotherapy drugs to prevent cell growth and initiate cell death in test tubes and mice.

23 Feb 2011

Experimental vaccine appears to protect against pneumonia

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have developed an experimental vaccine that appears to protect against an increasingly common and particularly deadly form of pneumococcal pneumonia. Details of the new vaccine, which was tested in an animal model, are reported in a paper published today in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

22 Feb 2011

Life Technologies announces winners of European Ion Torrent PGM Sequencer Grants Program

Life Technologies Corporation, today announced Dr. Angel Carracedo and Dr. Mark Pallen as the winners of the European Ion Torrent Personal Genome Machine (PGM™) Sequencer Grants Program.

19 Feb 2011

Nasal spray vs. injection -- what would you prefer?

Adelaide researchers have taken a step closer to the development of a universal flu vaccine, with results of a recent study showing that a vaccine delivered by a simple nasal spray could provide protection against influenza.

19 Feb 2011

Researchers find blue-green algae may be responsible for producing estrogen-like compound in water

University of Tennessee, Knoxville, researchers have found that blue-green algae may be responsible for producing an estrogen-like compound in the environment which could disrupt the normal activity of reproductive hormones and adversely affect fish, plants and human health.

17 Feb 2011

Metallic copper surfaces kill bacteria on contact

Metallic copper surfaces kill microbes on contact, decimating their populations, according to a paper in the February 2011 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. They do so literally in minutes, by causing massive membrane damage after about a minute's exposure, says the study's corresponding author, Gregor Grass of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. This is the first study to demonstrate this mechanism of bacteriocide.

17 Feb 2011

Clinical trial finds atorvastatin may inhibit HIV progression, help in infection's management

A recent multicenter clinical trial of atorvastatin, a type of cholesterol-lowering drug, found that although the drug did not inhibit plasma HIV RNA levels, it did inhibit expression of cellular markers of immune activation and inflammation in patients with HIV infection.

17 Feb 2011

BD announces addition of new flow cytometry system for rapid microbial enumeration, detection

Industrial microbiologists now have a new tool that was designed specifically to help quality control laboratories rapidly screen raw materials, as well as in-process and finished goods, for the presence of microorganisms that can threaten product quality.

17 Feb 2011

NGDI-UBC, CDRD partner for drug development platform to treat neglected global diseases

The Centre for Drug Research and Development and the Neglected Global Diseases Initiative at the University of British Columbia today announced that they will collaborate on developing interventions for neglected global diseases and ensuring their delivery to those in need.

16 Feb 2011

New review of anthrax case discussed by review committee vice chair, Stanford bioterrorism expert

In 2001, a mystery perpetrator mailed a series of anthrax-laced letters to several locations, killing five people. In 2008, shortly after emerging as the prime suspect in an exhaustive investigation by the FBI, an Army microbiologist, Bruce Ivins, PhD, committed suicide. This morning, a National Academy of Sciences committee, charged in September 2008 with reviewing the scientific approaches used by the FBI in that investigation, released its report.

15 Feb 2011

Researchers use computers to capture chemical signal structure that triggers metastatic cancer

In cancer and other pathological diseases, researchers are discovering that packaging is important: specifically, how DNA - about two meters long when unwound and stretched - coils up and compacts neatly inside the nucleus of a cell.

15 Feb 2011

New study on mosquito genome sequences to identify 'transposable elements'

A team of scientists at the University of California, Riverside has begun working on a mosquito research project that, if successful, will provide valuable genetic resources capable of transforming the way mosquito research is conducted around the world.

14 Feb 2011

First evidence of human DNA fragment in bacterial genome

If a human cell and a bacterial cell met at a speed-dating event, they would never be expected to exchange phone numbers, much less genetic material. In more scientific terms, a direct transfer of DNA has never been recorded from humans to bacteria.

14 Feb 2011

RF-induced heat therapy could help treat common parasitic skin infection

Scientists are hoping that heat therapy could eventually replace a complex drug regimen as the first-line treatment of a parasitic skin infection common in tropical and subtropical regions of the world.

11 Feb 2011

Viral infection of Leishmania leads to increased pathogenicity

A parasite and a virus may be teaming up in a way that increases the parasite's ability to harm humans, scientists at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report this week in Science.

11 Feb 2011

Global Hygiene Council: Three simple steps to keep your family protected against infections

The Global Hygiene Council, a group of leading health and hygiene experts from around the world, convened in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss how proper hygiene plays a critical role in preventing the spread of illness and improving health around the world.

10 Feb 2011

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

Bacteria often attack with toxins designed to hijack or even kill host cells. To avoid self-destruction, bacteria have ways of protecting themselves from their own toxins.

9 Feb 2011

International research team receives AACR award for innovative, meritorious science

The Fifth Annual AACR Team Science Award will be given to a team of internationally renowned molecular biologists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians and clinicians from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington who have worked together on human papillomavirus for more than 20 years.

8 Feb 2011

Abbott's Ibis, PLEX-ID technologies identify causative organism of plague in Afghanistan

Today, at the American Society for Microbiology Conference on Biodefense and Emerging Diseases, scientists from Abbott Molecular presented data showing the unique power of the company's Ibis technology to identify and further characterize unknown disease-causing pathogens to help aid in the bioforensic analysis of pandemic outbreaks.

8 Feb 2011

Microbiology News and Research

Study findings support therapeutic approach for common form of MS

Cerasome filled molecular-sized bubbles to target liver cancer cells

Experimental vaccine appears to protect against pneumonia

Life Technologies announces winners of European Ion Torrent PGM Sequencer Grants Program

Nasal spray vs. injection -- what would you prefer?

Researchers find blue-green algae may be responsible for producing estrogen-like compound in water

Metallic copper surfaces kill bacteria on contact

Clinical trial finds atorvastatin may inhibit HIV progression, help in infection's management

BD announces addition of new flow cytometry system for rapid microbial enumeration, detection

NGDI-UBC, CDRD partner for drug development platform to treat neglected global diseases

New review of anthrax case discussed by review committee vice chair, Stanford bioterrorism expert

Researchers use computers to capture chemical signal structure that triggers metastatic cancer

New study on mosquito genome sequences to identify 'transposable elements'

First evidence of human DNA fragment in bacterial genome

RF-induced heat therapy could help treat common parasitic skin infection

Viral infection of Leishmania leads to increased pathogenicity

Global Hygiene Council: Three simple steps to keep your family protected against infections

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

International research team receives AACR award for innovative, meritorious science

Abbott's Ibis, PLEX-ID technologies identify causative organism of plague in Afghanistan

Microbiology eBook

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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