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Researchers uncover how the inhaled form of anthrax disarms bacteria-fighting white blood cells before they can fend off the disease

The lethal toxin in anthrax paralyzes neutrophils, the white blood cells that act as the body's first defense against infection, by impairing how they build tiny filaments that allow them to crawl throughout the body and eat invading bacteria.

6 Sep 2005

Diet rich in soy protein may alleviate fatty liver

A group of researchers from Mexico has discovered that a diet rich in soy protein may alleviate fatty liver, a disease which often accompanies diabetes. The details of their findings appear in the September issue of the Journal of Lipid Research, an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology journal.

6 Sep 2005

First national study shows black immigrants' health erodes the longer they live in the US

In the first national study of its kind, a UC Irvine sociologist finds that black immigrants who arrive in America from black-majority regions of the world are healthier than those from white-majority regions

6 Sep 2005

Long hours equal to alcohol in impairing young doctors

Fatigued medical residents' performance on attention tests and on a driving simulator is comparable - or worse - than their performance after drinking three to four cocktails, according to research from Brown Medical School and University of Michigan.

6 Sep 2005

Part of largest randomised international trial program ever conducted in atrial fibrillation (AF) discontinued

Study treatments for the ACTIVE W trial of the ACTIVE (Atrial Fibrillation Clopidogrel Trial with Irbesartan for Prevention of Vascular Events) program have been discontinued due to a significant difference in efficacy, in favour of the standard oral anticoagulation (OAC) over antiplatelet therapy (clopidogrel plus aspirin).

6 Sep 2005

Exposure to toxin domoic acid might negatively affect unborn children

Duke University Medical Center researchers have found that the naturally occurring marine toxin domoic acid can cause subtle but lasting cognitive damage in rats exposed to the chemical before birth. Humans can become poisoned by the potentially lethal, algal toxin after eating contaminated shellfish.

6 Sep 2005

Killer secondhand smoke campaign flares up in the UK

According to new research by the National Health Service (NHS), 60 per cent of smokers light up and smoke without asking for permission, despite the fact that most non-smokers mind if other people are smoking nearby.

6 Sep 2005

Results of a new survey into the exercise routines of African-American

...found two key factors that increased their motivation to take a brisk walk, ride a bike or get involved in other leisure-time physical activity.

6 Sep 2005

My body, my drugs, my world awarded for outstanding science

Melbourne researchers have been recognised for their major study of injecting drug use and hepatitis C risk in rural Australia.

6 Sep 2005

Researchers to study information technology impact on children

Michigan State University researchers will use a $750,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to better understand the nature and extent of children's information technology (IT) use and how using IT is affecting them.

6 Sep 2005

Fine-tuning fertility testing with take-home technology

A take-home fertility-testing kit under development in a Massey University laboratory will give women and couples further control over pregnancy planning.

6 Sep 2005

Exposure to secondhand smoke kills as many women in China as does smoking

The study estimated that in 2002, 48,400 women in China died from lung cancer and ischemic heart disease attributed to passive smoking compared with 47,300 lung cancer and heart disease deaths from "active" smoking.

6 Sep 2005

Anorexia nervosa linked with alteration of the activity of serotonin in their brain

Women who have had a certain type of anorexia nervosa show an alteration of the activity of a chemical in their brain that is widely associated with anxiety and other affective disorders more than one year after recovery, according to a study in the September issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

6 Sep 2005

Ambulances - weak link in the fight against MRSA

Targets, time and money pressures create a lethal cocktail that could allow superbugs to thrive in our ambulances said UNISON, the UK's largest health union, this week.

6 Sep 2005

Education research ignites Dyslexia debate

A Professor at Durham University's School of Education has sparked a major debate about the status of dyslexia and the value of labelling of some people with reading problems as "dyslexic".

6 Sep 2005

Does growing up without a dad at home change a woman's life?

Single-parent families headed up by lone mothers are the fastest growing family in Australia. Now researchers at the University of Western Sydney ask: Does growing up without a dad at home change a woman's life, particularly the way she forms relationships with men?

6 Sep 2005

British Heart Foundation gene research helped by thousands of brothers and sisters

An unusual British Heart Foundation (BHF) 'DNA database' from brothers and sisters across the UK has enabled researchers to pinpoint six genetic 'hotspots' that can double the risk of developing early heart disease.

6 Sep 2005

Relationship between complexity of main lifetime occupation and risk for Alzheimer's disease

Publishing in the September issue of the Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, University of South Florida School of Aging Studies researcher Ross Andel and James Mortimer, professor, USF College of Public Health, examined the relationship between complexity of main lifetime occupation and risk for Alzheimer's disease and dementia in general.

6 Sep 2005

Generex Biotechnology awarded Australian patent

Generex Biotechnology Corporation today announced that it has been granted a patent by the Australian Patent Office titled "Mixed Micellar Pharmaceutical Delivery System and Method of Preparation."

6 Sep 2005

Human embryonic stem cell lines accumulate changes in their genetic material over time

The findings do not limit the utility of the cells for some types of research or for some future clinical applications, the researchers say, but draw attention to the need to closely monitor stem cell lines for genetic changes and to study how these alterations affect the cells' behavior.

6 Sep 2005