Body

Physicists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) are gearing up for experimental tests of findings they arrived at through theoretical considerations: that electrochemical reactions take place more rapidly on isolated, nanometer-scale electrodes than on their familiar macroscopic counterparts, and that this surprising behavior is caused by thermal noise. Prof. Katharina Krischer and Dr. Vladimir Garcia-Morales published their results earlier this year in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

CHICAGO (June 6, 2010) – Newly reported results from a major clinical trial show that adding bevacizumab (Avastin) to standard frontline chemotherapy for women with advanced ovarian cancer and then continuing a maintenance dose of the drug afterwards significantly extends progression-free survival. Women receiving the new treatment regimen saw no worsening of their disease for 14.1 months, compared to 10.3 months for women receiving standard therapy.

It is often striking how little we know about our closest neighbour. Until now, it was assumed that cockroaches forage on their own to find food and water. However, this work shows how groups of the insects seem to make a collective choice about the best food source, explaining why we so commonly find them feeding en masse in the kitchen late at night.

(PHILADELPHIA) A gene shown to play a role in the aging process appears to play a role in the regulation of the differentiation of embryonic stem cells, according to researchers from the Center for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and the Department of Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University.

HOUSTON -- Two drugs approved for treatment of drug-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia provide patients with quicker, better responses as a first therapy than the existing front-line medication, according to two studies published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.

CHICAGO - Dasatanib, a medication currently approved as treatment for drug-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), provided patients with quicker, better responses as a first therapy than the existing front-line drug, according to researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

CHICAGO - Selenium, a supplement taken daily by millions in hopes of protection against cancer and a host of other diseases, has proven to be of no benefit in reducing a patient's risk of developing lung cancer - either a recurrence or second primary malignancy, according to results of an international Phase III clinical trial.

WESTCHESTER, Ill. – According to new research that will be presented on Saturday, June 5, at the 19th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, nasendoscopy may help dentists predict oral appliance therapy success in sleep apnea patients. Nasendoscopy involves a flexible endoscope being inserted through the nasal cavity. The tip of the scope is placed at the level of the velopharynx and oro-/hypopharynx.

WESTCHESTER, Ill. – According to new research that will receive the Graduate Student Research Award on Saturday, June 5, at the 19th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, the ratio between tongue volume and bony enclosure size in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may help dentists calculate oral appliance treatment success.

Although mandibular advancement splints (MAS) have been shown to be a safe and effective treatment for OSA, predicting efficacy in individual patients is problematic.

HOUSTON - When combined with standard chemotherapy, an international Phase III trial has shown that the oral targeted therapy vandetanib improves progression-free survival for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer, according to research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

The size of the black breast bib – the badge - and bill colour of male House Sparrows change over the course of the year. Such ornaments usually signal quality and dominance of a male to his conspecifics and are correlated with his testosterone levels. These levels are generally higher before and during breeding season than for example during moult in autumn. A team of scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen, Germany, recently demonstrated in a detailed study that only bill colour was correlated with the amount of testosterone in the blood.

With the rapid and continuous advances in biotechnology, scientists are better able to see inside the nucleus of a cell to unlock the secrets of its genetic material. However, what happens outside of the nucleus has, in many ways, remained a mystery. Now, researchers with the National Institutes of Health are closer to understanding how activity outside of the nucleus determines a cell's behavior. They looked at mouse immune cells and examined the types, amount, and activity of microRNAs, genetic components that help regulate the production of proteins.

CHICAGO, IL. (June 7, 2010)––Patients with HER2-positive cancers can have dramatic responses to HER2-targeted drugs but eventually develop resistance to the agents. With that problem in mind, Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers are testing a novel type of antibody called MM-111 in patients with HER2-positive disease who have progressed on standard therapy.

HACKENSACK, N.J. (June 3, 2010) —The John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center announced today important research findings that will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting taking place June 4 – 8, 2010 in Chicago. Research highlights include a comparison of first-line treatments for an aggressive form of lymphoma, the efficacy and safety of a new genetically engineered cancer therapy, and the value of a commonly used tool for staging lymphoma.

It is a question asked by marine scientists from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Barrier Reef; how best to restore coral reefs and marine habitat once it has been damaged or even killed? Now research published in Restoration Ecology reveals how 'transplantation' may be a cheap and simple solution that can be used by conservation volunteers to repair damaged reefs.