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An international team -- led by researchers at McMaster University and the University of Tubingen in Germany -- has sequenced the entire genome of the Black Death, one of the most devastating epidemics in human history.

This marks the first time scientists have been able to draft a reconstructed genome of any ancient pathogen, which will allow researchers to track changes in the pathogen's evolution and virulence over time. This work -- currently published online in the scientific journal Nature -- could lead to a better understanding of modern infectious diseases.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Oct. 12, 2011) — Scientists have sequenced the complete genome of the naked mole rat, a pivotal step to understanding the animal's extraordinarily long life and good health. A colony of more than 2,000 naked mole rats at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio contributed to the findings, published today in the journal Nature.

A University of Minnesota team of researchers has overcome a major hurdle in the quest to design a specialized type of molecular sieve that could make the production of gasoline, plastics and various chemicals more cost effective and energy efficient. The breakthrough research, led by chemical engineering and materials science professor Michael Tsapatsis in the university's College of Science and Engineering, is published in the most recent issue of the journal Science.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- A field of flowers may seem innocuous — but for the birds and bees that depend on it for sustenance, that floral landscape can be a battlefield mined with predators and competitors. The more efficient a pollinator is in feeding, the less chance it has of becoming food itself.

MAYWOOD, Ill. -- A Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine study could lead to improved gene therapies for conditions such as heart disease and cancer as well as more effective vaccines for tuberculosis, malaria and other diseases.

Senior author Christopher Wiethoff, PhD, and colleagues report their findings in the October issue of the Journal of Virology. Editors spotlighted the report as one of the "articles of significant interest." Journal of Virology is the leading journal of the study of viruses.

(Boston) - Pediatric researchers from Boston Medical Center (BMC), in partnership with Children's HealthWatch investigators in Boston, Minneapolis, Little Rock, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, have found that higher benefit amounts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) protected the health and well-being of very young, low-income children during a period of great financial hardship for many families in America. These findings were released as a policy brief on Oct. 12.

Can teenagers' relationship with their mother protect them from the negative effects that television has on their sexual attitudes? It depends on their gender, according to a new study by Laura Vandenbosch and Steven Eggermont, from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium. For girls, a good relationship with mom is protective. For boys, however, a strong attachment to mom increases the likelihood that they will have stereotypical sexual attitudes, as portrayed on television. The work is published online in Springer's journal Sex Roles.

Scientists from the Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology at the RUB have published a report in the Journal of Biological Chemistry explaining why enzymes used for the production of hydrogen are so sensitive to oxygen. In collaboration with researchers from Berlin, they used spectroscopic methods to investigate the time course of the processes that lead to the inactivation of the enzyme's iron center.

Bethesda, MD—If you smoke cigarettes, you have more in common with someone who has cystic fibrosis than you think. A new research report appearing online in the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) shows that smoking cigarettes affects the lungs in a way that is very similar to cystic fibrosis, a life threatening disease affecting the lungs and other organs.

Bethesda, MD -- Why are some people prone to severe infections, while others handle them with less difficulty? A new research report appearing online in the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) attempts to answer this question by shedding light on the genetic differences that influence our ability to fight off bacterial infections.

Scientists are reporting development of the first fast and reliable scientific method to determine the age and authenticity of priceless silk tapestries and other treasures -- such as Civil War General Phillip Sheridan's famous red-and-white battle flag -- in museums and other collections around the world. A report on their work appears in ACS' journal Analytical Chemistry.

A new University of British Columbia study finds that Black Canadians with darker skin are more likely to report poorer health than Black Canadians with lighter skin. The study also suggests that a mismatched racial identity can negatively affect health.

The study, published online in the current issue of Social Science & Medicine journal, provides the first Canadian evidence of the health effects of "colourism," discrimination targeted more strongly at darker-skinned than lighter-skinned people of colour, says the author.

In a literal walk through time along the Ucayali River near Contamana, Peru, a team of researchers found rodent fossils at least 41 million years old – by far the oldest on the South American continent.

The remains – teeth – showed these mouse- and rat-size animals are most closely related to African rodents, confirming the hypothesis that early rodents of South America had origins in Africa, said Darin Croft, an anatomy professor at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and member of the research team.

The prevalence and under-reporting of conflicts of interest by members of guideline panels in the United States and Canada are high, finds a study published in BMJ today. The study exposes the problem of incomplete disclosure and highlights the important relationship between sponsorship of guidelines and presence of conflict of interest.

The prevalence of conflict of interest (COI) between clinicians and industry has been a topic of concern for the medical profession for more than two decades.

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that conflicts of interest (COI) are prevalent and potentially underreported among individuals participating in the development of clinical practice guidelines, which inform standards of patient care. The findings provide further evidence of the potential influence of industry on medical practice recommendations. The study is published online Oct. 12 in BMJ: The British Medical Journal.