Body

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Conventional wisdom among many ecologists is that industrial-scale agriculture is the best way to produce lots of food while preserving biodiversity in the world's remaining tropical forests. But two University of Michigan researchers reject that idea and argue that small, family-owned farms may provide a better way to meet both goals.

An extremely small RNA molecule created by a University of Colorado at Boulder team can catalyze a key reaction needed to synthesize proteins, the building blocks of life. The findings could be a substantial step toward understanding "the very origin of Earthly life," the lead researcher contends.

Irvine, Calif. – A new strain of mosquitoes in which females cannot fly may help curb the transmission of dengue fever, according to UC Irvine and British scientists.

Dengue fever causes severe flulike symptoms and is among the world's most pressing public health issues. There are 50 million to 100 million cases per year, and nearly 40 percent of the global population is at risk. The dengue virus is spread through the bite of infected female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, and there is no vaccine or treatment.

One year post-surgery, patients who underwent Descemet's stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) experienced greater cell loss overall compared to those who underwent penetrating keratoplasty (PKP), according to a new analysis of data collected from the Cornea Donor Study (CDS) Investigator Group's 2008 Specular Microscopy Ancillary Study (SMAS). However, the study, published in the March issue of Ophthalmology, showed that cell loss in DSAEK patients plateaued more quickly than in those who underwent PKP.

In recent years, DNA evidence has added important new tools for scientists studying the human past. Now, a collection of reviews published by Cell Press in a special issue of Current Biology published online on February 22nd offers a timely update on how new genetic evidence, together with archaeological and linguistic evidence, has enriched our understanding of human history on earth.

While the majority of children who were affected by consuming toxic melamine-contaminated products in China recovered, kidney abnormalities remained in 12% of the affected children, according to an article http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj091063.pdf in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) (pre-embargo link only) www.cmaj.ca.

Ovarian and breast cancer treatments being developed that mix a protein inhibitor and traditional anticancer drugs are showing signs of success, according to a new review for Faculty of 1000 Biology Reports.

Susan Bates and Christina Annunziata looked at several recent papers on this form of treatment, which takes advantage of the synthetic lethality of BRCA (breast cancer susceptibility genes) and poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) proteins to attack cancerous cells whilst sparing healthy ones.

Montreal, February 22, 2010 – Moving to Canada could be hazardous for the health of young immigrants. A new study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health has found that over time, immigrant children from multiethnic, disadvantaged, inner-city neighbourhoods are up to 3.5 times more likely to smoke. The findings are important since an estimated 45,000 school-aged children immigrate to Canada with their parents each year.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The business culture that companies emphasize has an effect on new product ideas that bubble back up from the workforce, a University of Illinois marketing study found.

Groundbreaking ideas spring most from companies that stress technology, rather than customer needs or staying ahead of competitors, according to research that will appear in the Journal of Product Innovation Management.

Thanks to the introduction of various non-native species to Australia throughout history, the country is overrun with feral animals. A new application developed by ecologists at the University of Adelaide to be published in the first issue of Methods in Ecology and Evolution, the new journal from the British Ecological Society, aims to improve the success of wildlife managers tasked with eradicating such problems.

Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden and Karolinska Institutet have used novel technology to reveal the different genetic patterns of neuroblastoma, an aggressive form of childhood cancer. This discovery may lead to significant advances in the treatment of this malignant disease, which mainly affects small children.

Researchers from the Peninsula Medical School in Plymouth (UK), the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, Cornell University in New York, Weil Medical College in New York and the Center for Neural Tumour Research in Los Angeles, have for the first time identified a key mechanism that makes certain cells become tumorous in the brain. The resulting tumours occur most often spontaneously but can also occur in numbers as part of the inherited disease Neurofibromatosis type 2.

The research is published in the highly respected journal, Cell.

Have you seen a spotted plaice? Probably. However, marine biologistHelen Nilsson Sköld at the University of Gothenburg is the firstperson to research the spotted insides of plaice.

Many species of animal have skin or fur with intricate pigmentationpatterns, which they use for camouflage, communication, regulation ofbody heat and protection against the sun. A study conducted byresearchers at the Department of Marine Ecology at the University ofGothenburg has found that several species of fish also havehighly-coloured internal pigmentation.

Adapts to its surroundings

Australia's Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is showing an extraordinary range of benefits from the network of protected marine reserves introduced there five years ago, according to a comprehensive new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The scientific team, a 'who's-who' of Australian coral reef scientists, describe the findings as "a globally significant demonstration of the effectiveness of large-scale networks of marine reserves".

Significant new research from Warwick Business School and Queen Mary, University of London, warns that delays and variability in the approvals process for clinical research could be causing pharmaceutical companies to look outside the UK and risks the country losing some of its most experienced researchers.