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Vitamin D levels low in African Americans with multiple sclerosis

In the first major study exploring the connection between vitamin D and multiple sclerosis in African Americans, a team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has discovered that vitamin D levels in the blood are lower in African Americans who have the disease, compared to African Americans who do not.

30 May 2011

The Economist examines lack of attention to Plasmodium vivax malaria parasite

The Economist profiles Plasmodium vivax, a type of malaria that affects between 80 million to 390 million people worldwide annually with a cost to sufferers between $1.4 billion and $4 billion each year.

27 May 2011

Scientists add four proteins to skin cells to create functional neurons

The New York Stem Cell Foundation - a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing cures for major diseases through stem cell research - today applauded the announcement by Stanford University scientists, led by NYSCF - Robertson Investigator Dr. Marius Wernig, that they directly converted skin cells of humans into functional neurons.

27 May 2011

Bacteria that infect cystic fibrosis patients could help combat MRSA

A bacteria which infects people with cystic fibrosis could help combat other antibiotic-resistant microbes, according to a team from Cardiff and Warwick Universities.

27 May 2011

Stem cell pluripotency depends on E-cadherin molecule

Researchers of the Max Delbr-ck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch have discovered what enables embryonic stem cells to differentiate into diverse cell types and thus to be pluripotent. This pluripotency depends on a specific molecule - E-cadherin - hitherto primarily known for its role in mediating cell-cell adhesion as a kind of "intracellular glue".

27 May 2011

New ways to replicate what happens to stents tucked inside blood vessels

If by chance you should have a stent inserted in a clogged coronary artery, you can probably count on it staying around for a very long time. So it's important to know what will happen to it.

27 May 2011

Molecular mechanism of selected autophagy elucidated

Salmonella is widely prevalent in the animal kingdom. The reason we do not suffer from severe intestinal infections very often is due to our body's defence system, which manages to digest invading bacteria. This is why, generally speaking, a healthy human being will only fall ill if he consumes more than 100.000 salmonella bacteria via a contaminated food source, such as eggs or meat.

27 May 2011

Karolinska researchers study four siblings affected by early-onset Alzheimer's disease

Four siblings in a family affected by early-onset Alzheimer's have been studied by a group of researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. This has been a unique opportunity to make comparative studies and to monitor the development of the disease over a prolonged period of time.

27 May 2011

Possible defense for community-acquired pneumonia among the elderly

Community-acquired pneumonia is the leading cause of infectious death among the elderly. Newly published research from The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio suggests why older people are vulnerable and offers a possible defense.

27 May 2011

Life Technologies launches new genomic analysis software

Addressing the issue of data overload from next-generation sequencers, Life Technologies Corporation today launched its LifeScope 2.0 Genomic Analysis Software, a significantly enhanced bioinformatics system for analyzing data from genomic sequencing instruments to study human disease such as cancer.

27 May 2011

Transgenomic secures exclusive license from Montefiore for cancer predictive markers

Transgenomic, Inc. announced today that it has acquired an exclusive worldwide license to Montefiore Medical Center's patent application, "Method of Determining the Sensitivity of Cancer Cells to EGFR Inhibitors including cetuximab, panitumumab and erlotinib".

27 May 2011

Lactate shuttle also exists in human tumors

Researchers at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson have shed new light on the longstanding conundrum about what makes a tumor grow-and how to make it stop. Interestingly, cancer cells accelerate the aging of nearby connective tissue cells to cause inflammation, which ultimately provides "fuel" for the tumor to grow and even metastasize.

27 May 2011

BioDiscovery, Affymetrix enter co-marketing agreement for OncoScan FFPE Express Service

Affymetrix, Inc. today announced a co-marketing agreement naming BioDiscovery, Inc. its preferred software provider for Affymetrix OncoScan FFPE Express Service data analysis.

27 May 2011

Recombinant partners with U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in genomic research program

Recombinant Data Corp., a Massachusetts-based healthcare data warehousing and clinical intelligence solutions provider, today announced its continued contributions to innovative IT tools for clinical research, through the company's key role in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' Million Veteran Program (MVP).

27 May 2011

Size of bodies has a profound effect on perception of surrounding space

Imagine shrinking to the size of a doll in your sleep. When you wake up, will you perceive yourself as tiny or the world as being populated by giants? Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden may have found the answer.

27 May 2011

Researchers convert human skin cells directly into functional neurons within four to five weeks

Human skin cells can be converted directly into functional neurons in a period of four to five weeks with the addition of just four proteins, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

27 May 2011

'Spongy' silicon biosensor shows promise for medical, security applications

Vanderbilt University engineers have created a "spongy" silicon biosensor that shows promise not only for medical diagnostics, but also for the detection of dangerous toxins and other tiny molecules in the environment.

27 May 2011

Difficulty to learn maths linked to neurocognitive disorder

Students who struggle to learn mathematics may have a neurocognitive disorder that inhibits the acquisition of basic numerical and arithmetic concepts, according to a new paper by University of Minnesota and British researchers. Called developmental dyscalculia, the disorder affects roughly the same number of people as dyslexia but has received much less attention (and research funding).

27 May 2011

Research provides new understanding of how heroin affects the brain

New research from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health suggests that our understanding of how heroin affects the brain should be changed. A new report shows that heroin is metabolised to 6-MAM which then crosses the blood-brain barrier to cause the intoxicating effects that arise shortly after heroin administration.

27 May 2011

Insight into new prion formation

Unlocking the mechanisms that cause neurodegenerative prion diseases may require a genetic key, suggest new findings reported by University of Illinois at Chicago distinguished professor of biological sciences Susan Liebman.

27 May 2011