Toxin News and Research

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Sandia develops portable microfluidic platform to detect biotoxins

Of all the threat scenarios facing emergency responders around the country, the release and spread of a dangerous biotoxin in a large public space is one of the most troubling.

27 Sep 2007

Caffeine and acetaminophen don't mix well

Consuming large amounts of caffeine while taking acetaminophen, one of the most widely used painkillers in the United States, could potentially cause liver damage, according to a preliminary laboratory study reported in the Oct. 15 print issue of ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology, a monthly journal.

27 Sep 2007

Snake venom composition may change according to the victim

A snake's intended prey might affect the type and evolution of toxins in their venom, research published in the online open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology shows.

27 Sep 2007

Paracetamol and coffee after a big night not such a good idea

That paracetamol along with the morning coffee after a big night may not be such a good idea after all.

27 Sep 2007

Rochester receives $1.2 million to battle rare childhood disease

"For an orphan disease like Batten, which has such a clear-cut course of deterioration and no present cure, this grant is transformative both for these families and for us, as clinicians and researchers."

12 Sep 2007

Novel insecticidal toxins from bacteria

A light-emitting strain of bacteria and a nematode worm, which work together to prey on soil-dwelling insects, use insecticidal toxins to kill their insect hosts.

5 Sep 2007

Prevalence of algatoxin in the marine environment appears to be increasing

If ingested, for example in seafood, these toxins can lead to discomfort or even illness. The algatoxin yessotoxin (YTX), which is found in both mussels and scallops in Norway, may be a potential disease risk factor in the consumption of seafood. "We don't know the long-term effects of YTX on people", says Monica Suarez Korsnes of the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science (NVH).

30 Aug 2007

New understanding of what makes a major global bacterial infection deadly

Researchers believe they have discovered why a bacterial lung infection is so lethal in the early stages, and it's not what medical authorities had thought, according to research published in the journal Immunity.

28 Aug 2007

Bacterial toxins and perforins have a common ancestor

Human immune proteins crucial for fighting cancer, viruses and bacterial infections belong to an ancient and lethal toxin family previously only found in bacteria, Australian researchers have found.

24 Aug 2007

EPA awards grants for ultraviolet technologies to treat water contaminated by blue-green algae

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded grants for research projects totaling almost $1 million to the University of Cincinnati, Ohio State University and the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio.

21 Aug 2007

Toy recall fuels concern over lead poisoning in children

The recall by toy manufacturer Mattel of millions of Chinese-made toys containing lead paint and small, powerful magnets has turned the spotlight back onto lead poisoning in children.

15 Aug 2007

Latest food scare in the U.S. - canned green beans

The latest food scare to hit North America again involves canned food; this time the culprit is green beans.

6 Aug 2007

Scientists find why red beans and rice can be nauseating

Scientists have discovered how lectins, a family of proteins believed to be a natural insecticide that is abundant in undercooked legumes and grains, can make you feel temporarily miserable.

3 Aug 2007

Folic acid protects againts exposure to bisphenol A in the womb

Experiments in animals have provided additional and tantalizing evidence that what a pregnant mother eats can make her offspring more susceptible to disease later in life.

1 Aug 2007

New FDA food inspection standards - will they make food safer?

In the midst of the continuing botulism scare, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. have released guidelines outlining how food safety experts should inspect U.S. businesses that make, process and package food.

31 Jul 2007

Scientits devise dimmer swith to regulate gene expression in mammal cells

Three Boston University biomedical engineers have created a genetic dimmer switch that can be used to turn on, shut off, or partially activate a gene's function. Professor James Collins, Professor Charles Cantor and doctoral candidate Tara Deans invented the switch, which can be tuned to produce large or small quantities of protein, or none at all.

27 Jul 2007