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Insight into mechanism H. pylori uses to evade the immune system

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is the causal agent of chronic gastritis, ulcer and gastric cancer. It has the potential to persist in the human stomach for decades, sometimes causing neither harm nor clinical symptoms. Nevertheless, on some occasions, depending on the host immune system and the strain causing the infection, the outcome can be very serious. To maintain the infection, the bacterium must adapt to survive the host defences. One way to accomplish this is to sequentially change the external proteins on the bacterial surface.

10 Feb 2010

Renowned experts explore latest key development in nuclear medicine and molecular imaging at 2010 SNM summit

Educators, researchers, physicians, technologists and medical experts from across the country converged on Albuquerque, N.M., last week to explore topics in nuclear medicine, molecular imaging, nanomedicine and clinical trials during SNM's 2010 Conjoint Mid-Winter Meetings.

10 Feb 2010

Brain researchers explore link between emotion and memory

In a novel study that used historical tape of a thrilling overtime basketball game between Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, brain researchers at Duke have found that fans remember the good things their team did much better than the bad.

10 Feb 2010

Researchers find that mutation in single gene can cause endometrial cancer

A mutation in a single gene can cause endometrial cancer that is responsive to a specific drug therapy, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in an animal study.

10 Feb 2010

Study may pave way for more refined treatments for brain tumors

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown once again that "ready, fire, aim," nonsensical though it may sound, can be an essential approach to research.

10 Feb 2010

Study of complement reaction can help eliminate reperfusion injuries

Researchers have teased out the molecular process that can shut down a marauding, often deadly immune response that kills thousands each year who suffer battlefield casualties, heart attacks, strokes, automobile accidents and oxygen deprivation, according to an article published in the January edition of Molecular Immunology.

10 Feb 2010

HairDX introduces improved genetic baldness test, incorporates maternal and paternal influences

HairDX, developer of the first genetic test for predicting the risk of male and female pattern hair loss (Androgenetic Alopecia) today announced it is now able to provide doctors with an improved prediction by looking at genetic variants inherited from the mother combined with the risk for baldness attributed by the father.

10 Feb 2010

Sequenom CMM licenses rights from Optherion to develop and commercialize AMD diagnostic tests

Sequenom, Inc., today announced an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Optherion, Inc. Under the agreement, Sequenom's CAP accredited and CLIA-certified laboratory, Sequenom Center for Molecular Medicine (Sequenom CMM), obtained the rights to develop and commercialize diagnostic tests to predict genetic predisposition to late stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

10 Feb 2010

Study shows lactobacillus is effective in improving H. pylori-infected diseases

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) are considered to be the most important etiological agents of chronic gastritis. The eradication of H. pyloridepends on the combination of antibiotics and acid suppression drugs.

10 Feb 2010

BBSRC supports innovative research on limb control

New research at the University of Leicester into how the brain controls the movements of limbs could prompt major advances in understanding the human brain and the development of prosthetic limbs.

10 Feb 2010

Mutations that enable Pseudomonas to thrive in cystic fibrosis lung secretions may also guard them against antibiotics

People with cystic fibrosis, an inherited disease that clogs airways with thick mucous, frequently have lung infections that defy treatment. While the life expectancy for children with cystic fibrosis has increased over the past few decades, many lives are still shortened in young adulthood by the ravages of lung infections.

10 Feb 2010

Maternal obesity increases offspring's risk of developing inflammation-related disorders

As if there are not enough reasons for obese people to lose weight, a new research report published online in The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org), adds several more. In a study involving rats, researchers from Duke University found that obesity in mothers causes cellular programming in utero that predisposes offspring to inflammation-related disorders (such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, type 2 diabetes, stroke, heart disease, and more) from the day that they are born, regardless of whether or not the offspring are obese themselves.

10 Feb 2010

Research suggests a potential means of circumventing drug resistance in breast cancer patients

Overexpression of low-molecular-weight (LMW-E) forms of the protein cyclin E renders the aromatase inhibitor letrozole ineffective among women with estrogen-receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancers, researchers from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in Clinical Cancer Research.

10 Feb 2010

Data provide key information about epigenetic profiles for gastric cancer

Gastric cancer, one of the most common types of cancer, is associated with high mortality rates. In the last decades, a decrease in the worldwide incidence has been observed with some changes in the therapeutic and diagnostic options.

10 Feb 2010

Study: New mechanism may allow bacteria to develop resistance to antibiotics

Scientists have shown that cells' DNA-reading machinery can skim through certain kinds of damaged DNA without skipping any letters in the genetic "text." The studies, performed in bacteria, suggest a new mechanism that can allow bacteria to develop resistance to antibiotics.

10 Feb 2010

Study could lead to new therapeutic strategies for Parkinson's disease

A new study from The Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro - at McGill University is the first to discover a molecular link between Parkinson's disease and defects in the ability of nerve cells to communicate.

10 Feb 2010

MHI researchers receive $4.8M as grants for genetics and genomic medicine research projects

Two research teams led by Dr. Christine Des Rosiers and Dr. John D. Rioux, both researchers at the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) and professors at the Universit- de Montr-al, have been awarded grants of $2.5 million and $2.3 million, respectively, to finance research projects on genetics and genomic medicine.

10 Feb 2010

IgM/IgG ratio is useful in diagnosing primary biliary cirrhosis

Previous studies have shown that assessment of immunoglobulin subclasses in plasma cells by immunohistochemistry (IHC) may be useful in the histopathologic evaluation of autoimmune liver diseases. However, further studies are necessary in order to validate the diagnostic utility of IgM and IgG immunohistochemistry in this specific scenario.

10 Feb 2010

New study finds enhanced brain activity in expert sports players

A study conducted by scientists at Brunel University and at the University of Hong Kong has found that expert sportsmen are quicker to observe and react to their opponents' moves than novice players, exhibiting enhanced activation of the cortical regions of the brain.

9 Feb 2010

Gene linked to PMDD and other maladies during menstrual cycle

Scientists have identified a gene they say is a strong candidate for involvement in premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and other maladies associated with the natural flux in hormones during the menstrual cycle. In a paper to be published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Rockefeller University researchers detail experiments in mice showing that a common human variant of the gene increases anxiety, dampens curiosity and tweaks the effects of estrogen on the brain, impairing memory.

9 Feb 2010