Body

The Human Microbiome Project (HMP) today published an analysis of 178 genomes from microbes that live in or on the human body. The researchers discovered novel genes and proteins that serve functions in human health and disease, adding a new level of understanding to what is known about the complexity and diversity of these organisms.

Birds flock. Fish gather in schools. Bees swarm. Even amoebae clump together in mystifyingly clever constellations.

Montreal, May 20, 2010 – The results of a major clinical study carried out at the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) by Dr. Jean-Claude Tardif are now available in the journal Circulation Cardiovascular Imaging. Dr. Tardif is a cardiologist and director of the MHI Research Centre, as well as a professor in the faculty of medicine and holder of the atherosclerosis research chair at the Université de Montréal.

Security systems could be more effective if officials looked at how organisms deal with threats in the natural world, University of Arizona researchers suggest in the May 20 edition of the journal Nature.

The nutritional benefits of organic food have always been tenuous - in science, 'organic' means something very different than in culture, where the process of making organic food leads people to imply it is somehow nutritionally different and make money selling it. Birds don't watch television, though, and new research shows wild garden birds prefer conventional seed to that which has been 'organically' grown.

EPFL Laboratory of Multiscale Modeling of Materials, in Switzerland, has developed a flowing 3D model of the cardiovascular system that should allow for predictions of certain heart diseases before they become dangerous.

If you smoke, your breath contains 2,5-dimethylfuran. A team of Catalan researchers have proved that the presence of this chemical compound indicates that a person has smoked in the last three days. This substance does not appear in the breath of non-smokers, unless they have been in direct contact with tobacco smoke for a long time.

Researchers from the University of Sheffield have found that female damselflies prefer hot males.

The study, which was published in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, found that hot male damselflies, who have warmed their bodies in the sun, are more attractive to their female counterparts.

Using experiments involving a mechanical shaker and a robotic frog, researchers reporting online on May 20th in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, have found new evidence that male red-eyed treefrogs communicate with one another in aggressive contests by using vibrations they send through their plant perches. The findings open the door to further study of what has been a neglected channel for vertebrate communication.

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., May 20, 2010 -- Scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are improving strains of microorganisms used to convert cellulosic biomass into ethanol, including a recent modification that could improve the efficiency of the conversion process.

NEW YORK, NY. (May 20, 2010) – The 57 million Americans currently living with "pre-diabetes" could benefit from a group weight loss program, like Weight Watchers, according to a new study published in this month's American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. Researchers found that after a 6-month Weight Watchers group program, overweight or obese adults who attended at least two thirds of the weekly sessions, not only lost weight, but also significantly reduced fasting glucose and insulin levels – important indicators of diabetes risk.

The world's most ancient frogs may soon be mined to extinction, if the New Zealand government's plans to open up a conservation area for mining go ahead.

The primitive Archey's frog (Leiopelma archeyi) and Hochstetter's frog (Leiopelma hochstetteri) are two of the species that inhabit the area of 'high conservation value' on New Zealand's North Island where the mining is planned to take place.

In a study published today in the journal Addiction, researchers have determined that treatment for smoking dependence is as effective among people with severe mental illnesses as it is for the general population. Importantly, they also found that offering such treatments does not appear to cause deterioration in mental health.

Racial disparities in readmissions for heart failure are mainly seen at the site at which care is provided, researchers report.

Using national Medicare data from 2006-07, researchers designated hospitals as "minority-serving" based on the proportion of black patients treated. In the study, 40 percent of all black patients and 5 percent of all white patients were cared for at minority-serving hospitals.

The researchers found: