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New vaccine can prevent bacterial infection of orthopaedic implants

Methicillin resistant staph aureus (MRSA) infections are resistant to antibiotics and can cause a myriad of problems -- bone erosion, or osteomyelitis, which shorten the effective life of an implant and greatly hinder replacement of that implant. MRSA can result in prolonged disability, amputation and even death.

15 Feb 2012

UPV/EHU biologist analyzes genetic and environmental causes of obesity in Romani families

Esther Rebato is a well-known figure in the field of Physical Anthropology. She not only holds the prestigious Alex Hrdli-ka academic medal of the Czech Republic, but she is also the Chair of the Spanish Association of Physical Anthropology. This lecturer at the Department of Genetics, Physical Anthropology and Animal Physiology of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) has carried out numerous pieces of work into nutritional habits, life quality and other associated aspects.

15 Feb 2012

UBC community to take part in 2012 AAAS annual meeting

The University of British Columbia community has come out in full force to take part in the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the largest general scientific gathering in the world.

15 Feb 2012

Study confirms increased risk of cancers linked with Lynch syndrome

People with Lynch syndrome have a genetic mutation that gives them a high risk of several types of cancer including bowel cancer. The genes that are damaged can't repair any errors that occur in our DNA.

15 Feb 2012

New clinical guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of DVT

A researcher at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City is part of a select panel of international experts to help develop new evidence-based clinical guidelines used by physicians worldwide for the diagnosis and treatment of blood-clotting disorders, one of the most common cardiovascular diseases in the United States.

15 Feb 2012

Antibiotic prescriptions do not reduce sinus symptoms

Antibiotics that doctors typically prescribe for sinus infections do not reduce symptoms any better than an inactive placebo, according to investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

15 Feb 2012

AGS honors IU professor for outstanding achievement in geriatric care

In recognition of his significant contributions to the health care of older adults, Regenstrief Institute investigator Malaz Boustani, M.D., MPH, associate professor of medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine, will receive the 2012 American Geriatrics Society Outstanding Scientific Achievement for Clinical Investigation Award.

15 Feb 2012

Study: ACL injury mechanism involves combination of factors

Landing from a jump can cause a non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. But evidence presented at the Orthopaedic Research Society 2012 Annual Meeting demonstrates that the injury mechanism that causes that ACL injury involves a combination of factors rather than a single factor as some have claimed.

15 Feb 2012

House Republicans propose separating payroll tax extension from 'doc fix,' unemployment debate

Congressional Republicans backed down on Monday from a demand that a payroll tax rollback be paid for with reductions in other programs, clearing the way for an extension of the tax cut for 160 million Americans through 2012. After months of partisan confrontation that left the tax break hanging in the balance, Republicans suddenly offered to extend the two-percentage-point cut while continuing to haggle over added unemployment benefits and a measure to prevent a drop in fees paid to doctors by Medicare.

14 Feb 2012

Penn State researchers develop new app for caffeine drinkers

Caffeinated drinks such as coffee and soda are the pick-me-ups of choice for many people, but too much caffeine can cause nervousness and sleep problems.

14 Feb 2012

Study shows how malaria parasite changes into banana form before sexual reproduction

New research from the University of Melbourne shows how the malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum) changes into a banana shape before sexual reproduction, a finding that could provide targets for vaccine or drug development and may explain how the parasite evades the human immune system.

14 Feb 2012

Scientists identify and describe molecular mechanism behind holoprosencephaly

Researchers of the Max Delbr-ck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch have now identified and described a molecular mechanism underlying the most common malformation of the brain in humans. In holoprosencephaly (HPE), the forebrain (prosencephalon) is only incompletely formed.

14 Feb 2012

American Physical Society commends President's 2013 budget

The American Physical Society (APS) commends President Obama's Fiscal Year 2013 budget, which prioritizes scientific research, spurs innovation and keeps the nation on a path toward economic prosperity.

14 Feb 2012

First large-scale investigation into diabetes risk among young people in South Asia

Scientists at King's College London and the National Diabetes Centre (Sri Lanka) have found evidence of a high number of risk factors for type 2 diabetes among the young urban population in Sri Lanka. The study is the first large-scale investigation into diabetes risk among children and young people in South Asia, and provides further evidence that the region is rapidly becoming a hotspot in the growing international diabetes epidemic.

14 Feb 2012

Cartilage graft can stimulate bone regeneration

A person has a tumor removed from her femur. A soldier is struck by an improvised explosive device and loses a portion of his tibia. A child undergoes chemotherapy for osteosarcoma but part of the bone dies as a result.

14 Feb 2012

Diffusion-weighted MRI may effectively indicate response to ovarian cancer treatment

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have determined that a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique, which measures the movement of water molecules within the tumour, may be the best way to monitor how women with late-stage ovarian cancer are responding to treatment. The study is published in the journal Radiology today.

14 Feb 2012

Nilvadipine phase III trial for Alzheimer's launches in Europe

A research team today announced the launch of a European large-scale clinical trial of Nilvadipine, an Alzheimer's disease drug developed at the Roskamp Institute in Sarasota.

14 Feb 2012

State roundup: Mass. small biz co-ops start, Miss. Medicaid changes, R.I. hospital overbilling Medicare

Thousands of small businesses will be offered discounts of at least 20 percent on health insurance rates under a new group purchasing cooperative, formed by the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, that will begin enrolling members this week. The co-op is the first permitted to do business under a 2010 Massachusetts law that allows small employers to band together in large groups and negotiate for better-priced health coverage.

14 Feb 2012

Canada organ donation rates plateau

A report released Monday by the Canadian Institute for Health Information reveals that public awareness campaigns and stories of grateful organ recipients have not done much to improve the number of organ donations in Canada. Donor rates have stagnated in the country since 2006 while thousands of Canadians continue to languish on wait lists for organs, the report adds.

14 Feb 2012

Brain tissue created from human skin cells

British scientists have successfully generated brain tissue from human skin. The team has for the first time generated a crucial type of brain cells in the laboratory by reprogramming skin cells. They say it could speed up the hunt for new treatments for conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy and stroke.

14 Feb 2012