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$Fetal fraction of cfDNA does not vary significantly among pregnant women regardless of trisomy risk$

Fetal fraction of cfDNA does not vary significantly among pregnant women regardless of trisomy risk

A study published in The Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine demonstrates that the fraction of fetal cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in maternal blood is unaffected by the mother's presumed risk for trisomy, offering support for the use of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) for detecting genetic conditions such as Down syndrome in a broad patient population.

28 Aug 2012

EphA4 receptor may be promising target for future ALS drug

Leuven scientists (VIB/KU Leuven) are using zebrafish as a model in their search for genes that play a role in the mechanism of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). As a result, they have identified a molecule that could be the target for a future ALS treatment.

28 Aug 2012

Researchers now add electronic sensors to tissue scaffolds

To control the three-dimensional shape of engineered tissue, researchers grow cells on tiny, sponge-like scaffolds. These devices can be implanted into patients or used in the lab to study tissue responses to potential drugs.

28 Aug 2012

Control of siRNA could aid regenerative medicine, cancer therapy

Some of the body's own genetic material, known as small interfering RNA (siRNA), can be packaged then unleashed as a precise and persistent technology to guide cell behavior, researchers at Case Western Reserve University report in the current issue of the journal, Acta Biomaterialia.

28 Aug 2012

Nicotinamide may combat antibiotic-resistance staph infections

A new study suggests that nicotinamide, more commonly known as vitamin B3, may be able to combat some of the antibiotic-resistance staph infections that are increasingly common around the world, have killed thousands and can pose a significant threat to public health.

28 Aug 2012

Allegro Diagnostics announces results from BronchoGen genomic test trial on lung cancer

Allegro Diagnostics today announced that results from its AEGIS (Airway Epithelium Gene Expression In the Diagnosis of Lung Cancer) clinical trials, to determine the accuracy of the BronchoGen genomic test, have been accepted for an oral presentation during the late-breaking abstract session at CHEST 2012 on Tuesday, October 23, 2012 at 4:30 p.m. The abstract will also be published in a supplement of the October 2012 issue of CHEST.

28 Aug 2012

Leg compressions after stroke appear to trigger natural protective mechanisms that reduce damage

Successive, vigorous bouts of leg compressions following a stroke appear to trigger natural protective mechanisms that reduce damage, researchers report.

28 Aug 2012

Study explains how breast milk fosters colonies of microbiotic flora in a newborn's intestinal tract

The benefits of breast milk have long been appreciated, but now scientists at Duke University Medical Center have described a unique property that makes mother's milk better than infant formula in protecting infants from infections and illnesses.

28 Aug 2012

BioTime amends license agreement with University of Utah for HyStem technology

BioTime, Inc. announced that the company has amended its license from the University of Utah to expand the field of use for which BioTime is licensed to produce and market products covered by the core patents underlying HyStem technology.

27 Aug 2012

Bode launches Rapid DNA Service to provide near real-time analysis

The Bode Technology Group, Inc. (Bode), a leading provider of innovative forensic DNA services, announced today the launch of their Rapid DNA Service to provide near real-time DNA analysis.

27 Aug 2012

Taiwan approves RBC Life Sciences' Stem-Kine for importation and sale

RBC Life Sciences, Inc. announced today that the Company's stem cell supplement, Stem-Kine, has been approved for importation and sale in Taiwan. Stem-Kine is marketed in Taiwan under the name SK Plus.

27 Aug 2012

New method helps engineer tissues with embedded nanoscale networks

A multi-institutional research team has developed a method for embedding networks of biocompatible nanoscale wires within engineered tissues. These networks—which mark the first time that electronics and tissue have been truly merged in 3D—allow direct tissue sensing and potentially stimulation, a potential boon for development of engineered tissues that incorporate capabilities for monitoring and stimulation, and of devices for screening new drugs.

27 Aug 2012

Regulating microbes could help prevent diseases associated with obesity

Vaccines and antibiotics may someday join caloric restriction or bariatric surgery as a way to regulate weight gain, according to a new study focused on the interactions between diet, the bacteria that live in the bowel, and the immune system.

27 Aug 2012

Healthy intake of micronutrients may boost sperm DNA quality in older men

A new study led by scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) found that a healthy intake of micronutrients is strongly associated with improved sperm DNA quality in older men.

27 Aug 2012

New device can measure mass of individual molecules one at a time

A team led by scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have made the first-ever mechanical device that can measure the mass of individual molecules one at a time.

27 Aug 2012

XJB-5-131 prevents secondary damage of severe traumatic brain injury

Treatment with an agent that blocks the oxidation of an important component of the mitochondrial membrane prevented the secondary damage of severe traumatic brain injury and preserved function that would otherwise have been impaired, according to a research team from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Graduate School of Public Health and Department of Chemistry in a report published online today in Nature Neuroscience.

27 Aug 2012

Profilin-1 gene influences survival time in Lou Gehrig's disease

A team of scientists, including faculty at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), have discovered a gene that influences survival time in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease).

27 Aug 2012

People with guanine version of rs55705857 SNP more likely to develop gliomas

People who carry a "G" instead of an "A" at a specific spot in their genetic code have roughly a six-fold higher risk of developing certain types of brain tumors, a Mayo Clinic and University of California, San Francisco study has found. The

27 Aug 2012

Appeals Court upholds federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research

Family Research Council (FRC) expressed disappointment in today's Appeals Court ruling that upholds the Obama administration's efforts to use taxpayer funds for human embryonic stem cell research.

27 Aug 2012

New molecular mechanism plays a crucial role in inhibiting TGF-beta signaling

Researchers headed by Maria Macias an ICREA researcher at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and Joan Massagu-, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York, have identified a new molecular mechanism that plays a crucial role in the control of the activation of certain genes associated with cancer.

27 Aug 2012