Body

Researchers step closer to treatment of virulent hospital infection

Clostridium difficile is a health problem that affects hundreds of thousands of patients and costs $10 billion to $20 billion every year in North America. Researchers from the University of Calgary and the National Research Council of Canada say they are gaining a deeper understanding of this disease and are closer to developing a novel treatment using antibodies from llamas.

Scientists find candidate for new TB vaccine

Scientists have discovered a protein secreted by tuberculosis (TB) bacteria that could be a promising new vaccine candidate, they report today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The protein could also be used to improve diagnosis of TB.

TB is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), which infects the lungs and spreads through the air as a result of coughing. There are 9 million new cases of TB each year, killing 4,700 people a day worldwide.

Scientists find a key to maintaining our DNA

DNA contains all of the genetic instructions that make us who we are, and maintaining the integrity of our DNA over the course of a lifetime is a critical, yet complex part of the aging process. In an important, albeit early step forward, scientists have discovered how DNA maintenance is regulated, opening the door to interventions that may enhance the body's natural preservation of genetic information.

Mandibular changes produced by skeletal anchorage assisted orthopedic traction

San Diego, Calif., USA – Today, during the 89th General Session & Exhibition of the International Association for Dental Research, held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research and the 35th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, lead researcher T. Nguyen will hold an oral presentation on a study titled "Mandibular Changes Produced by Skeletal Anchorage Assisted Orthopedic Traction."

Novel approaches to bacterial caries management: An efficacious solution in view?

San Diego, Calif., USA – Saturday, March 19, during the 89th General Session & Exhibition of the International Association for Dental Research, held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research and the 35th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, a symposium titled "Novel Approaches to Bacterial Caries Management: an Efficacious Solution in View?" will take place. This symposium will occur from 8 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. in room 7AB of the San Diego Convention Center.

Validation of salivary-biomarkers for Sjogren's syndrome detection in US population

San Diego, Calif., USA – Saturday, March 19, during the 89th General Session & Exhibition of the International Association for Dental Research, held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research and the 35th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, lead researcher A.N.M.

Fairy wrens: Accountants of the animal kingdom

A puzzling example of altruism in nature has been debunked with researchers showing that purple-crowned fairy wrens are in reality cunningly planning for their own future when they assist in raising other birds' young by balancing the amount of assistance they give with the benefits they expect to receive in the future.

New blood analysis chip could lead to disease diagnosis in minutes

Berkeley — A major milestone in microfluidics could soon lead to stand-alone, self-powered chips that can diagnose diseases within minutes. The device, developed by an international team of researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, Dublin City University in Ireland and Universidad de Valparaíso Chile, is able to process whole blood samples without the use of external tubing and extra components.

Ecologists use 70-year-old pressed plants to chart city's vanishing native flora

More than half of the world's population now lives in cities, yet we know little about how urbanization affects biodiversity. In one the first studies of its kind, ecologists in Indianapolis, USA have used 70 year-old dried plant specimens to track the impact of increasing urbanization on plants. The results are published this week in the British Ecological Society's Journal of Ecology.

Life expectancy rising in UK and Europe despite obesity epidemic

Life expectancy in Europe keeps increasing despite the obesity epidemic, with people in Britain reaching an older age than those living in the US, according to an analysis of trends over the last 40 years.

These striking findings counteract concerns that the rising life expectancy trend in high income countries may be coming to an end in the face of health problems arising from obesity.

New study adds weight to diabetes drug link to heart problems

A new study published on bmj.com today adds to mounting evidence that rosiglitazone - a drug used to treat type 2 diabetes - is associated with an increased risk of major heart problems.

It finds that rosiglitazone is associated with significantly higher odds of congestive heart failure, heart attack and death compared with a similar drug (pioglitazone).

Daily home dialysis makes 'restless legs' better

For dialysis patients, performing daily dialysis at home can help alleviate sleep problems related to restless legs syndrome (RLS), according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). RLS, a common and troublesome problem for dialysis patients, affects hemodialysis patients about four times as often as people in the general population.

A mutation causing wrinkled skin of Shar-Pei dogs is linked to periodic fever disorder

An international investigation has uncovered the genetics of the Shar-Pei dog's characteristic wrinkled skin. The researchers, led by scientists at Uppsala University and the Broad Institute, have connected this mutation to a periodic fever disorder and they propose that the findings could have important human health implications. Details appear on March 17 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

A new evolutionary history of primates

A robust new phylogenetic tree resolves many long-standing issues in primate taxonomy. The genomes of living primates harbor remarkable differences in diversity and provide an intriguing context for interpreting human evolution. The phylogenetic analysis was conducted by international researchers to determine the origin, evolution, patterns of speciation, and unique features in genome divergence among primate lineages. This evolutionary history will be published on March 17 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

Experimental philosophy opens new avenues into old questions

Philosophers have argued for centuries, millennia actually, about whether our lives are guided by our own free will or are predetermined as the result of a continuous chain of events over which we have no control.

On the one hand, it seems like everything that happens has come kind of causal explanation; on the other hand, when we make decisions, it seems to us like we have the free will to make different decisions.