Body

Ovarian cancer often remains undetected until it is at an advanced stage. Despite positive responses to initial treatment, many patients are at risk of tumor recurrence.

LA JOLLA, CA – August 15, 2013 – Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered the molecular mechanism by which the deadly Ebola virus assembles, providing potential new drug targets. Surprisingly, the study showed that the same molecule that assembles and releases new viruses also rearranges itself into different shapes, with each shape controlling a different step of the virus's life cycle.

Research led by scientists from the University of California, San Diego has decoded the genetic basis of chronic mountain sickness (CMS) or Monge's disease. Their study provides important information that validates the genetic basis of adaptation to high altitudes, and provides potential targets for CMS treatment. It will be published online August 15 in advance of print in the September 5 issue of American Journal of Human Genetics.

Researchers at King's College London have for the first time highlighted the natural regenerative capacity of a group of stem cells that reside in the heart. This new study shows that these cells are responsible for repairing and regenerating muscle tissue damaged by a heart attack which leads to heart failure.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (August 15, 2013) – By studying the planarian flatworm, a master of regenerating missing tissue and repairing wounds, Whitehead Institute Member Peter Reddien and his lab have identified an unexpected source of position instruction: the muscle cells in the planarian body wall.

Investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have described another link in the chain of events that connect acute viral infections to the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Their discovery points to a new therapeutic target for COPD, an extremely common disease of the lower airways that is seen in chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

All organs in our body rely on stem cells in order to maintain their function. The skin is our largest organ and forms a shield against the environment. New research results from BRIC, University of Copenhagen and Cambridge University, challenge current stem cell models and explains how the skin is maintained throughout life. The results have just been published in the recognized journal Cell Stem Cell.

New knowledge challenge stem cell models

PHILADELPHIA – Cancer metastasis requires tumor cells to acquire properties that allow them to escape from the primary tumor site, travel to a distant place in the body, and form secondary tumors. But first, an advance team of molecules produced by the primary tumor sets off a series of events that create a network of nurturing blood vessels for arriving primary tumor cells to set up shop.

August 15, 2013, Shenzhen, China--An international team, consisting of scientists from University of California San Diego, BGI and other institutes, has investigated the entire DNA code of Andean individuals with chronic mountain sickness (CMS), or Monge's disease to unravel the puzzle of genetic mutations associated with CMS from whole-genome level. The study published online today in American Journal of Human Genetics, provides evidence to support whole-genome sequencing as an ultimate approach to advance the understanding of the genetic basis of CMS and its treatment.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Despite taking a tailored risk assessment tool that factors in family history and personal habits, nearly 20 percent of women did not believe their breast cancer risk, according to a new study from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Most of the women who didn't believe their risk numbers said they did not feel it took into account their family history of cancer or their personal health habits. The tool did ask relevant questions about the individual's family and personal history.

Observed in the wild, tucked away in museum collections, and even exhibited in zoos around the world;there is one mysterious creature that has been a victim of mistaken identity for more than 100 years. A team of Smithsonian scientists, however, uncovered overlooked museum specimens of this remarkable animal, which took them on a journey from museum cabinets in Chicago to cloud forests in South America to genetics labs in Washington, D.C.

Researchers at the MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton, have demonstrated that the degree to which a gene related to vitamin D action is switched on or off, when measured at birth, predicts bone density of the child at four years of age.

NEW YORK -- A study spearheaded by the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Minnesota has shown that the world's largest owl -- and one of the rarest -- is also a key indicator of the health of some of the last great primary forests of Russia's Far East.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Three elements commonly found at elevated levels in an Appalachian river polluted by runoff from mountaintop coal mining have distinctive chemistries that can be traced back to their source, according to a Duke University-led study.

The distinctive chemistries of sulfur, carbon and strontium provide scientists with new, more accurate ways to track pollution from mountaintop mining sites and to distinguish it from contamination from other sources.

Observed in the wild, tucked away in museum collections, and even exhibited in zoos around the world--there is one mysterious creature that has been a victim of mistaken identity for more than 100 years. A team of Smithsonian scientists, however, uncovered overlooked museum specimens of this remarkable animal, which took them on a journey from museum cabinets in Chicago to cloud forests in South America to genetics labs in Washington, D.C. The result: the olinguito (Bassaricyon neblina)--the first carnivore species to be discovered in the Western Hemisphere in 35 years.