Body

Jerusalem, April 22, 2009 -- Muscle deterioration in patients with lung diseases might be a direct consequence of high carbon dioxide levels in their blood, an international team of researchers headed by Prof. Yosef Gruenbaum of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has found.

The incidence of lung diseases continues to increase in the world's populations. For example, one in seven persons in the UK is affected by some form of chronic lung disease, most commonly chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma.

Philadelphia, PA, April 23, 2009 – During the past several years, significant progress has been made in identifying susceptibility genes for nicotine dependence through genetic linkage and association analyses. Although a large number of genes have been associated with tobacco smoking, only a very limited number of genetic variants are considered to be causative. How to find these functional variants and then characterize them remains challenging in the field of human genetics.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — In sub-Saharan Africa, the issue of infertility is often obscured by the region's high fertility rates. Though problematic, particularly for women, little is known about how different regions understand and respond to infertility or how coping mechanisms differ. New research by Marida Hollos, a Brown University anthropologist, investigates the cultural context and consequences of infertility within two high-fertility populations in Nigeria.

Marine scientists say they are astonished at the spectacular recovery of certain coral reefs in Australia's Great Barrier Reef Marine Park from a devastating coral bleaching event in 2006.

That year high sea temperatures caused massive and severe coral bleaching in the Keppel Islands, in the southern part of the GBR. The damaged reefs were quickly smothered by a single species of seaweed – an event that can spell the total loss of the corals.

Copenhagen, Denmark, Thursday 23 April: Liver disease is the most prevalent cause of alcohol-related deaths, followed by car accidents and cancer, according to new research conducted in Portugal and presented today at EASL 2009, the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Liver in Copenhagen, Denmark. The study also showed that alcohol-related diseases account for 1.25% of the health expenditure in Portugal.

Copenhagen, Denmark, Thursday 23 April: The first-proof-of-concept for a DNA-based therapeutic vaccination against chronic hepatitis C was announced today at EASL 2009, the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver in Copenhagen, Denmark.

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2009-04/sfeb-roc042209.php">Chinese.

New research provides evidence for a link between vitamin D insufficiency and asthma severity.

Serum levels of vitamin D in more than 600 Costa Rican children were inversely linked to several indicators of allergy and asthma severity, including hospitalizations for asthma, use of inhaled steroids and total IgE levels, according to a study that will appear in the first issue for May of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Conservation experts from 24 world-leading organisations including the WWF, Conservation International and Birdlife International have identified one hundred key scientific questions that, if answered, would help conserve global biodiversity. Scientists say if the questions are answered swiftly, it could stem massive biodiversity loss.

When legal therapies let them down, some teens turn to cannabis. A new study, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Substance Abuse, Treatment, Prevention and Policy suggests that around a third of teens who smoke cannabis on a regular basis use it as a medication, rather than as a means of getting high.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Can a grape-enriched diet prevent the downhill sequence of heart failure after years of high blood pressure?

A University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study suggests grapes may prevent heart health risks beyond the simple blood pressure-lowering impact that can come from a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. The benefits may be the result of the phytochemicals – naturally occurring antioxidants – turning on a protective process in the genes that reduces damage to the heart muscle.

CORAL GABLES, FL (April 22, 2009)--Do personal traits predict success in school? If so, which dimension of one's outward appearance can tell the most about academic achievement? The answers to these questions are found in a new study by researchers from the University of Miami Health Economics Research Group. The study is the first to demonstrate that non-cognitive traits play an important role in the assignment of grades in high school.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---A concrete material developed at the University of Michigan can heal itself when it cracks. No human intervention is necessary---just water and carbon dioxide.

A handful of drizzly days would be enough to mend a damaged bridge made of the new substance. Self-healing is possible because the material is designed to bend and crack in narrow hairlines rather than break and split in wide gaps, as traditional concrete behaves.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that patients with high cholesterol receive better care when physicians use a variety of tools to learn and apply a clinical practice guideline for treating the condition.

Most young students do not enjoy homework. However, after being told that good grades will help them get into college and lead to a better life, most students eventually buckle down and start studying. But what if college is not an option? If a student thinks they won't be able to afford a higher education – if the path towards college feels closed to them – they may conclude that studying and homework are a waste of time.