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Clear link between male subfertility and lower risk of prostate cancer

Involuntary childlessness owing to reduced fertility is a concern for many men. However, these men do have one advantage - they run a significantly lower risk of suffering from prostate cancer. Researchers are interested in whether this phenomenon could be used in the fight against cancer.

2 Feb 2012

Brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle

Researchers at McMaster University have discovered a brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle.

1 Feb 2012

Singapore scientists lead in 3D mapping of human genome

Genome Institute of Singapore's (GIS) Associate Director of Genomic Technologies, Dr Yijun RUAN, led a continuing study on the human genome spatial/structural configuration, revealing how genes interact/communicate and influence each other, even when they are located far away from each other. This discovery is crucial in understanding how human genes work together, and will re-write textbooks on how transcription regulation and coordination takes place in human cells.

1 Feb 2012

New light on how superbugs become resistant to antibiotics

Scientists have shed new light on the way superbugs such as MRSA are able to become resistant to treatment with antibiotics

1 Feb 2012

Decaffeinated coffee may improve brain energy metabolism linked with type 2 diabetes

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have discovered that decaffeinated coffee may improve brain energy metabolism associated with type 2 diabetes.

1 Feb 2012

Researchers use liquid laser to diagnose genetic mutations linked with cancer

Using a liquid laser, University of Michigan researchers have developed a better way to detect the slight genetic mutations that might predispose a person to a particular type of cancer or other diseases.

1 Feb 2012

OPN-305 may improve survival outcomes for kidney transplant patients

New research published online in the FASEB Journal details a new antibody, called "OPN-305" that may significantly improve survival outcomes for those receiving donated kidneys and other organs.

1 Feb 2012

Fish intake can help pregnant women improve their progeny's intelligence

Can pregnant women improve their progeny's intelligence by eating fish? A study recently submitted to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and coordinated by the University of Granada professor Cristina Campoy Folgoso revealed that infants born to mothers who consumed more fish during pregnancy score higher in verbal intelligence and fine motor skill tests, and present an increased prosocial behavior.

1 Feb 2012

Peptides linked with internal flu viral structures can help develop universal vaccine

Researchers at the University of Southampton, University of Oxford and Retroscreeen Virology Ltd have discovered a series of peptides, found on the internal structures of influenza viruses that could lead to the development of a universal vaccine for influenza, one that gives people immunity against all strains of the disease, including seasonal, avian, and swine flu.

1 Feb 2012

Progenitor cells have potential to develop into RBCs

A study of the cells that respond to crises in the blood system has yielded a few surprises, redrawing the 'map' of how blood cells are made in the body.

1 Feb 2012

TGen, UA receive NFCR grant to study targeted pancreatic cancer therapies

The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and the University of Arizona (UA) have received a three-year, $600,000 grant to study targeted cancer therapies from the National Foundation for Cancer Research.

1 Feb 2012

Certain strains of P. aeruginosa cause WBCs to produce high levels of histamine

Could some cases of asthma actually be caused by an allergic reaction to a common environmental bacteria? New research findings published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that this idea may not be as far-fetched as it seems. In a research report appearing in the February 2012 print issue, researchers show a link between common environmental bacteria and airway inflammation.

1 Feb 2012

Specific gene mutation triggers development of NAFLD

A team of scientists from the University of Utah and the University of California at San Francisco has discovered that the mutation of a gene encoding a ketone body transporter triggers accumulation of fat and other lipids in the livers of zebrafish.

1 Feb 2012

Study finds no link between BDV and psychiatric illness

Over the past 30 years, numerous studies have linked Borna disease virus (BDV) with mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety disorder and dementia. Genetic fragments and antibodies to this RNA virus, which causes behavior disorders in a range of mammals and birds, have been found to be prevalent in psychiatric patients, but study results have been inconsistent. Now, the first blinded, case-control study to examine this issue finds no association between the virus and psychiatric illness.

1 Feb 2012

Scientists discover different brain regions cooperate during short-term memory

Holding information within one's memory for a short while is a seemingly simple and everyday task. We use our short-term memory when remembering a new telephone number if there is nothing to write at hand, or to find the beautiful dress inside the store that we were just admiring in the shopping window. Yet, despite the apparent simplicity of these actions, short-term memory is a complex cognitive act that entails the participation of multiple brain regions. However, whether and how different brain regions cooperate during memory has remained elusive.

1 Feb 2012

Crizotinib can treat ROS1-driven tumors

A report from investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center has defined the role of a recently identified gene abnormality in a deadly form of lung cancer. Tumors driven by rearrangements in the ROS1 gene represent 1 to 2 percent of non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLC), the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S.

1 Feb 2012

Scientists identify TDO enzyme as new target for cancer therapy

Scientists from the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR) in Brussels identified a new target for cancer therapy, an enzyme which prevents the immune system from recognizing and destroying certain types of tumors.

1 Feb 2012

Kras gene plays a role in continuous growth of pancreatic cancer

A mutant protein found in nearly all pancreatic cancers plays a role not only in the cancer's development but in its continued growth, according to a new study from University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers. The finding suggests a possible target for developing new ways to treat this deadly disease.

1 Feb 2012

Pneumonic plague bacteria transform lungs into a playground for microbes to flourish

Among medical mysteries baffling many infectious disease experts is exactly how the deadly pneumonic plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, goes undetected in the first few day of lung infection, often until it's too late for medical treatment.

1 Feb 2012

Nanosize titanates may inhibit growth of oral cancer and bacterial cell lines

Sometimes bigger isn't better. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River National Laboratory have successfully shown that they can replace useful little particles of monosodium titanate (MST) with even tinier nano-sized particles, making them even more useful for a variety of applications.

1 Feb 2012