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Doctoral research without borders

The enabling of structured doctoral research within a collaborative scientific network has been the declared objective of the Research Training Group Programme, offered by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation), since its inception in 1990.

19 Jun 2007

Scientists discover proteins in blood that accurately identify colon cancer and precancerous polyps

Initial studies of the proteins, CCSA-3 and CCSA-4, suggest they could be used to develop a blood test to identify at-risk individuals.

19 Jun 2007

Embryos that are selected out as abnormal can undergo chromosomal modifications

Ms Tsvia Frumkin, from the Racine IVF unit, LIS Maternity Hospital, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Centre, Tel Aviv, Israel, will tell the conference that her team's findings meant that the results of preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) for chromosomal abnormalities were not always reliable and should be interpreted with caution.

19 Jun 2007

Cancer stem cells similar to normal stem cells thwart anti-cancer agents

Current cancer therapies often succeed at initially eliminating the bulk of the disease, including all rapidly proliferating cells, but are eventually thwarted because they cannot eliminate a small reservoir of multiple-drug-resistant tumor cells, called cancer stem cells, which ultimately become the source of disease recurrence and eventual metastasis.

19 Jun 2007

Fat oxidation during exercise and physical activity

In a paper published in The Journal of Physiology, Helge, Stallknecht, Richter, Galbo, and Keins from Copenhagen shed light on fat oxidation during exercise and physical activity.

19 Jun 2007

Researchers breach blood-brain barrier to deliver therapy

A major obstacle in the treatment of infections and other diseases of the brain is the blood-brain barrier, which prevents systemically delivered therapeutic drugs from reaching the brain.

19 Jun 2007

Autistic children have a capacity to understand other people through stereotypes

The research shows that autistic children are just as able as others to predict people's behaviour when stereotypes, such as gender and race, are the only available guide.

19 Jun 2007

Alzheimer's-associated enzyme beta-secretase can disrupt neural activity in the brain

An enzyme involved in the formation of the amyloid-beta protein associated with Alzheimer's disease can also alter the mechanism by which signals are transmitted between brain cells, the disruption of which can cause seizures.

19 Jun 2007

Wurst protein plays a decisive role in breathing

A newly discovered transmembrane protein called "Wurst" (sausage) appears to play a decisive role in breathing ? possibly in all animals, from flies to human beings.

18 Jun 2007

Researchers clarify alphaB-crystallin's role in multiple sclerosis

A protein found primarily in the lens of the eye could be the critical "tipping point" in the spiral of inflammation and damage that occurs in multiple sclerosis, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine report.

18 Jun 2007

Stroke and type 2 diabetes relationship

Individuals diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes are at double the risk of having a stroke compared to those without diabetes, according to new research from the University of Alberta.

18 Jun 2007

Research on rare women's lung disease may yield insights into common diseases

For many decades, medical research studies focused primarily on men and the results of countless studies were then applied to women.

18 Jun 2007

Antitumor vaccine

How can we induce the body to use its own weapon, the immune system, to battle cancer" In principle, by the same means used against infectious diseases: immunization.

18 Jun 2007

Scientists link cell's protein recycling systems

Many age-related neurological diseases are associated with defective proteins accumulating in nerve cells, suggesting that the cell's normal disposal mechanisms are not operating correctly.

17 Jun 2007

New mathematical model of sepsis

A new mathematical model of sepsis can help predict deaths, discharges, and disease progression in hospital patients with this serious bacterial blood infection. It's hoped the model, described in the online open access journal Critical Care, will help clinicians assess which interventions are likely to be best for their patients.

17 Jun 2007

Better understanding of how the body fights off mucosal pathogens

In a finding that could have important implications for HIV vaccine research, new research at Weill Cornell Medical College illuminates the ways in which the body prevents its mucosal surfaces from being overwhelmed by bacteria.

17 Jun 2007

Focus on motor neurone disease

Motor neurone disease (MND), also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a degenerative disease of unknown cause which causes patients to lose basic motor functions and has a devastating effect on them and their families.

17 Jun 2007

Synaptic dysfunction in Huntington's disease

Huntington's disease is a hereditary disorder that primarily affects the brain, leading to death within just over a decade.

17 Jun 2007

Researchers use 'genomic pathway' to predict Parkinson's

A new Mayo Clinic study provides strong evidence that the joint effects of common DNA variations in several genes that encode proteins within a well-defined biological pathway largely explain why some persons get Parkinson's disease while others don't, and even predict with great accuracy at what age people might develop their first symptoms.

17 Jun 2007

Many people fail to plan ahead when making dynamic decisions about their lives

More than half of the participants in experiments conducted at the University of York fail to plan ahead when making dynamic decisions about their lives, according to the findings of research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council that will have implications for policies on financial planning and pensions.

17 Jun 2007