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First-of-its-kind wearable low vision aid helps visually impaired

"Even with a cane or a guide dog, low-vision people can have a difficult time identifying obstacles that can be hazardous," said Eric Seibel, research assistant professor in mechanical engineering at the lab, who for the past four years has overseen the student team that developed the device. "This is another set of eyes looking out for them."

27 May 2004

Discovery may help to define the limits for life on Earth, as well as elsewhere in the universe

The discovery of millions of micro-microbes surviving in a 120,000-year-old ice sample taken from 3,000 meters below the surface of the Greenland glacier was announced by Penn State scientists today (May 26) at the General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in New Orleans, La. The discovery may help to define the limits for life on Earth, as well as elsewhere in the universe, such as on cold planets like Mars.

27 May 2004

Link between oral bacterium and premature babies

For years, scientists have noticed a particular oral bacterium can be found in the amniotic fluid of about 20 percent of women with premature babies.

27 May 2004

Scientists have taken the first steps towards producing a sustainable and pure source of the healthy fats found in oily fish

Eating such fish is encouraged as part of a healthy diet as their oils are rich in very long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLCPUFAs). However, views on the health-promoting nature of VLCPUFAs have to be balanced against the marine pollution that can cause fish, and the oils extracted from them, to be contaminated with heavy metals and dioxins, and the fact that fish stocks are in global decline.

20 May 2004

Researchers demonstrate wearable electronics to aid health and fashion

Soon you may be wearing your computer, or elements of it, according to a team of researchers and designers at Arizona State University. The era of smart bodysuits is about to begin.

17 May 2004

Biochip technology to revolutionise the pharmaceutical industry

Advancements in biotechnology have culminated in its integration with semiconductor technologies such as micro-electromechanical systems, resulting in the evolution of biochips. Biochips provide pharma companies with sophisticated tools for speedy development of drugs and accurate diagnosis and understanding of biological mechanisms.

13 May 2004

A strengthened cement has been devised specifically for facial reconstructive surgery

A strengthened cement has been devised specifically for facial reconstructive surgery. Materials Scientists at the University of Birmingham's School of Dentistry have discovered that by adding sodium citrate to the liquid phase, calcium phosphate cement is more than three times stronger.

12 May 2004

Gene therapy helps alcoholic rats

As a follow up to previous work showing that gene therapy can reduce drinking in rats trained to prefer alcohol, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have used the same technique to cut drinking in rats with a genetic predisposition for heavy alcohol consumption.

5 May 2004

New research could reduce risk of strokes in younger people

The study published in this month's edition of the international journal Stroke is the first to provide evidence that blood vessels elsewhere in the body, apart from the brain, in CADASIL sufferers are abnormal in over-constricting in response to the hormone Angiotensin II.

1 May 2004

Funding for new biomaterials for spinal disc repair and regeneration

Orthonics, Inc., an Atlanta start-up company developing new biomaterials for spinal disc repair and regeneration, has received initial funding from Viscogliosi Brothers, LLC, a New York-based closely held venture capital/private equity and merchant banking firm focused on the musculoskeletal/orthopedics industry. Terms of the funding were not disclosed.

30 Apr 2004

Space technology may help fertility of a woman with cancer

Using technology borrowed from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), scientists at the University of Pittsburgh's McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine have taken the first steps toward successfully preserving ovarian tissue from rats and mice in culture, including immature egg follicles, according to a study in the current issue of the journal Tissue Engineering.

29 Apr 2004

Researchers have discovered the cause of one form of retinitis pigmentosa, a type of genetically inherited blindness

Saint Louis University researchers have discovered the cause of one form of retinitis pigmentosa, a type of genetically inherited blindness.

28 Apr 2004

Sun and MedicTouch roll out world's first wearable health and wellness devices

MedicTouch LLC, developer of the first cellular wearable health and wellness devices, and Sun Microsystems, Inc., the creator and leading advocate of Java(TM) technology, today announced the launch of the Pulse Meter mobile health solution for Java (TM) technology-enabled mobile phones.

21 Apr 2004

Functional genomics provide improved drug discovery

Functional genomics and proteomics have been quite successful in identifying functions of potential therapeutic targets such as encoded proteins.

20 Apr 2004

Two recent innovations look set to revolutionize biomedical treatment.

The first innovation is probably the world’s first multiple drug-eluting biodegradable stent for use in any part of the body where fluid flow, including blood, is disrupted.

19 Apr 2004

Scientists will debate E.coli and the adaption by micro-organisms to modern day drugs

This debate will centre around why humans are constantly under attack from infectious diseases such as E.coli despite medical advances in vaccinations and antibiotics, and how micro-organisms that cause disease evolve and adapt quickly to the many barriers that our bodies' anti-infection strategies and our drugs industry throw at them.

16 Apr 2004

Intensive diabetes management yields positive results

Increasing diabetes awareness and integrating a multi-faceted, approach to improve patient care and education, results in significantly improved patient outcomes, according to a report in the April issue of Clinical Diabetes, a publication of the American Diabetes Association.

7 Apr 2004

Innovation that could help sufferers of Raynaud's Phenomenon

A student will display his "smart gloves" as part of the University of Dundee's annual exhibition of honours and research projects for students of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, Physics and Mechanical Engineering on Wednesday 31st March.

31 Mar 2004

Discovery of gender difference in cartilage cells may help spinal disc repair

When biologist Barbara Boyan discovered science’s first proof of biochemical differences between male and female cartilage cells, she began to question the approaches she and other researchers were taking to study cells. Was their thinking biologically relevant?

30 Mar 2004

Newly formed FAS Center for Systems Neuroscience

Harvard has long been recognized for its strength in neuroscience: Researchers in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) are leaders in studies of behavior, perception, and brain development, while Harvard Medical School (HMS) was the first in the nation to establish a department of neurobiology.

29 Mar 2004