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Research highlights importance of starch in human beginnings

To think that world domination could have begun in the cheeks. That's one interpretation of a discovery, published online September 9 in Nature Genetics, which indicates that humans carry extra copies of the salivary amylase gene.

10 Sep 2007

New technique for growing cartilage from human embryonic stem cells

Rice University biomedical engineers have developed a new technique for growing cartilage from human embryonic stem cells, a method that could be used to grow replacement cartilage for the surgical repair of knee, jaw, hip, and other joints.

10 Sep 2007

Metformin could potentially improve pregnancy outcomes in women with insulin resistance

Women who are obese, have type 2 diabetes or a family history of type 2 diabetes could one day have more successful pregnancies because of a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

10 Sep 2007

Brain does most of the work in seeing the difference between colours, rather than the eye

Colour contrast is detected much earlier in the brain than previously thought, a new study shows. Scientists at Durham University have confirmed that colour contrast is first detected by part of the brain called primary visual cortex, which is located at the very back of the head where visual information first enters the cortex of the brain.

10 Sep 2007

Care reforms raise concerns over patient access to GP services

GP services could be compromised by new provisions enabling commercial companies to provide primary care through locally negotiated contracts, researchers warn.

10 Sep 2007

A chink in bacteria's armor

Biomedical researchers at Boston University's College of Engineering may have discovered the path toward developing better drugs capable of defeating so-called “superbugs,” bacteria that have developed resistance to common antibiotics. The researchers have discovered a previously unknown chain of events occurring in bacteria that opens to door to new avenues of research.

10 Sep 2007

Some with breast cancer stop taking aromatase inhibitors because of joint and muscle pain

More than 10 percent of women with breast cancer stopped taking a commonly prescribed drug because of joint and muscle pain, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

10 Sep 2007

Link found between a lack of vitamin D and pre-eclampsia

Researchers in the United States have found an association between vitamin D levels in pregnant women and the risk of pre-eclampsia; they say women who have a vitamin D deficiency early in their pregnancy are at risk from pre-eclampsia.

9 Sep 2007

U.S. dogs now rabies-free

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States has announced that canine rabies has disappeared from the United States.

9 Sep 2007

Two cases of anthrax in the U.S. from African animal hides

Two cases of anthrax have been reported in the U.S. and the culprit again appears to be African animal hides.

9 Sep 2007

Canadian's warned again about dodgy goods from China

Canadian consumers are being warned yet again about products from China.

9 Sep 2007

College athletes have exercise-induced asthma and often don't know

In a study of college athletes in the United States it has been discovered that many of them displayed the signs of exercise-induced asthma.

9 Sep 2007

Experts say screening families of heart attack victims could save many lives

Scottish researchers say by screening the relatives of middle-aged heart attack sufferers many lives would be saved.

9 Sep 2007

WHO warns about the impact of depression

A warning from the World Health Organistion (WHO) says that the impact of depression should not be underestimated.

9 Sep 2007

Teenage American girls' suicide rates soar by 76 percent

The latest figures on teenage suicide in the United States presents a worrying picture especially for young women.

9 Sep 2007

Link shown between ADHD, food colourings and additives

Suspicions about a link between food colourings and additives and hyperactivity have been established as a fact by British researchers.

9 Sep 2007

Scientists speed healing of bone damage

Blocking a naturally occurring inhibitor of bone formation accelerates healing of skull defects in mice, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. The finding advances the understanding of how the skeleton develops and opens new therapeutic avenues for many of the disorders that are expected to afflict aging baby boomers.

5 Sep 2007

FDA warns Melanocorp for illegal sale of Melanotan II

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a Warning Letter to Brian Manookian, owner of Melanocorp, Inc. in Hendersonville, Tenn. for the illegal sale and marketing of the product Melanotan II, which is not FDA-approved, on Melanocorp's Web site.

5 Sep 2007