Obtaining kidney transplants abroad carries certain medical risks

Tweet

People traveling to other countries to receive kidney transplants experience more severe post-transplant complications with a higher incidence of acute rejection and severe infections, according to a study appearing in the November 2008 issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The findings suggest that such "transplant tourism" by Americans may not be as safe as receiving transplants in the United States.

First tunable, 'noiseless' amplifier may boost quantum computing, communications

Tweet

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and JILA, a joint institute of NIST and the University of Colorado (CU) at Boulder, have made the first tunable “noiseless” amplifier. By significantly reducing the uncertainty in delicate measurements of microwave signals, the new amplifier could boost the speed and precision of quantum computing and communications systems.

Gold nanostars outshine the competition

Tweet

Novel nanoparticles being tested at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have researchers seeing stars. In a recent paper,* NIST scientists used surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to demonstrate that gold nanostars exhibit optical qualities that make them superior for chemical and biological sensing and imaging. These uniquely shaped nanoparticles may one day be used in a range of applications from disease diagnostics to contraband identification.

Polio could be wiped out in Nigeria thanks to improved vaccine, says study

Tweet

A recently introduced polio vaccine is four times more effective at protecting children than previous vaccines and has the potential to eradicate type 1 polio in Nigeria if it reaches enough children, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Genetic 'fingerprint' shown to predict liver cancer's return

Tweet

Traumatic aortic injury -- New England Journal of Medicine review

Tweet

A blunt traumatic injury to the aorta, the body's main artery, is one of the leading causes of death following a vehicle crash. If it is not treated rapidly, the patient is at serious risk for artery rupture, which is nearly always fatal. Surgeons from the University of Maryland Medical Center have evaluated various treatments for this type of traumatic aortic injury, including a newer, less invasive procedure that enables them to fix the artery without making an incision. Their review appears in the October 16, 2008 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Genetic analysis predicts whether liver cancer likely to recur

Tweet

Researchers are poised to unlock the genetic secrets stored in hundreds of thousands of cancer biopsy samples locked in long-term storage and previously thought to be useless for modern genetic research. With the aid of a new technique developed by Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers, scientists can now reconstruct thousands of genes that are "shredded" into tiny pieces when tissue samples are treated with a chemical fixative and stored in wax – a protocol that is commonly used to preserve the samples.

Researchers identify promising gene target for neuroblastoma therapy

Tweet

BOSTON--Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified a set of previously unknown mutations in a single gene in 8 percent of neuroblastomas, tumors of the nervous system that occur in young children and account for approximately 15 percent of all childhood cancer deaths.

Kidney donation Web sites raise ethical concerns

Tweet

Scientists discover quantum mechanical 'hurricanes' form spontaneously

Tweet

University of Arizona scientists experimenting with some of the coldest gases in the universe have discovered that when atoms in the gas get cold enough, they can spontaneously spin up into what might be described as quantum mechanical twisters or hurricanes.

The surprising experimental results agree with independent numerical simulations produced by collaborating scientists at the University of Queensland in Australia. The Arizona and Queensland researchers are reporting the results of the research in today's issue (Oct. 16) of the journal Nature.