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(Boston) – Dr. David Levin, Professor of Molecular & Cell Biology at Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine and Professor of Microbiology at Boston University School of Medicine discovered recently a novel, evolutionarily conserved mechanism for the regulation of gene expression. The study describing this work titled, "Mpk1 MAPK Association with the Paf1 Complex Blocks Sen1-Mediated Premature Transcription Termination," appears in the March 4 issue of Cell.

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Overweight adolescents already struggling with risk factors such as insulin resistance may need to add weak bones to their list of health concerns, researchers report.

A study of 143 overweight 14-18 year olds showed those with risk factors such as the precursor for diabetes and low levels of the blood-vessel protecting HDL cholesterol have less bone mass – an indicator of bone strength – than their overweight but otherwise healthy peers, according to researchers at Georgia Health Sciences University's Georgia Prevention Institute.

May vaccinations put too much strain on or weaken children's immune systems and are therefore harmful? Roma Schmitz and her colleagues from the Robert Koch Institute investigate exactly this research question in the current issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2011; 108(7): 105-11). Their data are based on the results of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS).

In nature and engineering, microcompartments — molecular shells made of proteins that can encapsulate cellular components — provide a tiny home for important reactions. In bacterial organelles, for example, microcompartments known as carboxysomes trap carbon dioxide and convert it into sugar as an energy source.

A new carbon model allows scientists to estimate sources and losses of organic carbon in surface waters in the United States. Study results indicate that streams act as both sources and sinks for organic carbon.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — March 4, 2011 — Cancer patients are willing to undergo many tests to receive advanced experimental treatment in clinical trials, according to a new study by Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale Healthcare and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen).

Researchers said patients' willingness to undergo tests bodes well for the future of personalized medicine, in which specific treatments are prescribed depending on the DNA genetic makeup of patients' tumors.

Optics researchers from the Universities of Glasgow and Bristol have developed an iPad application for accurate, easy and intuitive use of optical tweezers.

Optical tweezers, used to manipulate tiny particles through the use of highly focused laser beams, are the tool at the heart of much molecular biology – helping us to experiment with and better understand the microscopic processes of organisms.

Low physical activity increases kidney transplant patients' likelihood of dying early, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The results suggest that patients need to exercise to fend off an early death.

Not all racial and ethnic groups have equal access to kidney transplantation, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The results indicate that the reasons for these disparities are varied and that more focused efforts are needed to address them.

VERNON – Texas AgriLife Research scientists are trying to bring more beauty to the colder regions of the state by breeding winter-hardiness into a tropical ornamental plant, the angel's trumpet flower.

Dr. Dariusz Malinowski, AgriLife Research plant physiologist and forage agronomist in Vernon, along with Dr. Bill Pinchak and Shane Martin, both with AgriLife Research, and Steve Brown, program director for Texas Foundation Seed Service, began the project three years ago.

JUPITER, FL, March 3, 2011 – Borrowing a page from modern manufacturing, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have built a microscopic assembly line that mass produces synthetic cell-like compartments.

The new computer-controlled system represents a technological leap forward in the race to create the complex membrane structures of biological cells from simple chemical starting materials.

SOUTH VERONA, MS—When essential oils are extracted from plants through the process of steam distillation, wastewater is produced and subsequently released into rivers and streams. Finding new uses for these unused by-products could benefit essential oil crop growers and processors as well as the environment. A team of researchers has found that the residual distillation water of some aromatic plant species has a beneficial effect on yields and can increase essential oil content of peppermint and spearmint crops.

Athens, Ga. – New University of Georgia research has identified a protein that can be modified to improve the effectiveness of one of the most common drugs used to treat pancreatic cancer.

The burning, tingling pain of neuropathy may affect feet and hands before other body parts because the powerhouses of nerve cells that supply the extremities age and become dysfunctional as they complete the long journey to these areas, Johns Hopkins scientists suggest in a new study. The finding may eventually lead to new ways to fight neuropathy, a condition that often accompanies other diseases including HIV/AIDS, diabetes and circulatory disorders.

NEW YORK—March 3, 2011 — In an article to be published in the forthcoming issue of International Finance, Dr. Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve, issues a major analysis of the U.S. government's economic recovery and reform efforts since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008.

Greenspan calculates that long-term fixed corporate investment "is now at levels, relative to cash flow, that we have not experienced since 1940." This shortfall, he explains, accounts for much of the tepid recovery and current abnormally high levels of unemployment.