Medical Research News

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Jumping gene may contribute to Cockayne syndrome

Scientists have identified a fusion protein that may contribute to Cockayne syndrome, a devastating disease characterized by developmental defects, neurodegeneration, severe wasting, and premature aging.

24 Mar 2008

Discovery of new effect for insulin

Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center have shown that insulin has a previously unknown effect that plays a role in aging and lifespan, a finding that could ultimately provide a mechanism for gene manipulations that could help people live longer and healthier lives.

24 Mar 2008

How humans make up for an 'inborn' vitamin C deficiency

A new study appears to explain how humans, along with other higher primates, guinea pigs and fruit bats, get by with what some have called an “inborn metabolic error”: an inability to produce vitamin C from glucose.

24 Mar 2008

Brains are hardwired to act according to the Golden Rule

Wesley Autrey, a black construction worker, a Navy veteran and 55-year-old father of two, didn't know the young man standing beside him.

24 Mar 2008

Are dual cord blood banks the answer to increasing stem cell demand?

In this week's BMJ, two senior doctors, Professors Nicholas Fisk and Rifat Atun, analyse the UK's growing cord blood banking industry and the potential impact of a new bank that provides blood for both personal and public use.

24 Mar 2008

Tug of war in the cells

Transport processes in the cells of our body resemble the transport of goods on the roads.

20 Mar 2008

When it comes to what we eat, men and women really are different

...according to scientific research presented (March 19) at the 2008 International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta, Georgia. In general, men are more likely to report eating meat and poultry items and women are more likely to report eating fruits and vegetables.

20 Mar 2008

Near-infrared light used to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease

A team of researchers in Bedford, Mass. has developed a way of examining brain tissue with near-infrared light to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease.

20 Mar 2008

Neuronal regulators offer potential targets for cancer

Being too brainy can be a bad thing in a junior high cafeteria, where the social hierarchy favors other traits. "Braininess" also causes problems for cells.

20 Mar 2008

More efficient gene targeting improves prospects for gene therapy

The Nobel prize-winning MRC scientist Sir Aaron Klug and a team from an American company, Sangamo BioSciences, have announced a new way to target genes that may revolutionise medical research and pave the way for new treatments.

20 Mar 2008

First detailed look at the molecular pathways underlying sleep apnea

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have provided, for the first time, a detailed look at the molecular pathways underlying sleep apnea, which affects more than twelve million Americans, according to the National Institutes of Health.

20 Mar 2008

Disruption of the Contactin 4 gene on chromosome 3 may be linked to autism spectrum disorder

Eli Hatchwell, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Pathology at Stony Brook University Medical Center, and colleagues have found that a disruption of the Contactin 4 gene on chromosome 3 may be linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

20 Mar 2008

Russell Berrie Foundation donates $28 million for diabetes research

The Russell Berrie Foundation has donated $28 million to Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, as part of a focused effort to provide comprehensive care to diabetes patients while working, through concentrated research initiatives, toward a cure, the Medical Center gratefully announced today.

20 Mar 2008