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Researchers at Uppsala University, together with colleagues at the Karolinska Institute and the Sanger Institute, have now found all the genes the determine the dosage of the blood-thinning drug warfarin. The findings are published in the scientific journal PLoS Genetics.

Breathing during sleep is often impaired in patients with atrial fibrillation. In the current edition of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2009; 106(10): 164-70), Thomas Bitter and his coauthors from the Ruhr University in Bochum investigate how often sleep-disordered breathing occurs in this form of cardiac arrythmia and what the different types are.

March 2009 - A new study published in the journal Soil Use and Management attempts for the first time to measure the extent and severity of land degradation across the globe and concludes that 24% of the land area is degrading – often in very productive areas.

The traditional view is that hepatocyte necrosis is the main feature of fulminant hepatic failure, but increasing evidence implicates a dominant role for hepatocyte apoptosis in this pathogenesis. It is not known if cathepsin B-mediated hepatocyte apoptosis is involved in the pathogenesis of fulminant hepatic failure. To ascertain its pathogenic role in hepatic failure, the research examined the protective effect of a cathepsin B inhibitor (CA-074Me) on fulminant hepatic failure in mice.

With the advancement of imaging techniques, the accuracy of preoperative rectal cancer staging has increased dramatically, and the preservation of physical function in rectal cancer patients has become a very important aim of research. A research article to be published on March 14, 2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology evaluates the prognostic factors for 5-year survival after local excision of rectal cancer, and examines the therapeutic efficacy and surgical indications for this procedure.

SALT LAKE CITY – When locked in mortal combat with infection, some mature white blood cells have a formidable weapon: they literally cast a DNA net—called a neutrophil extracellular trap (NET)—that captures and kills bacteria that invade the human body. But the ability to form this "death" NET is missing in the white blood cells of newborn infants, born either at term or prematurely, and that, in part, may explain why millions of newborns worldwide are at higher risk for a potentially deadly blood infection, University of Utah medical researchers have discovered.

San Diego, CA (March 20, 2009) –A rigorous environmental cleaning intervention can reduce the transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and other multidrug-resistant organisms in hospital intensive care units (ICUs), according to a new study released today at the annual meeting of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA). Researchers found that following an enhanced cleaning protocol reduced the spread of MRSA to patients exposed to rooms in which the prior occupant had been colonized or infected.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---How does human knowledge expand over time? Intriguing as the question is, it's not easy to investigate, due to the difficulty of measuring knowledge and its spread.

Genes determining the optimal dose of therapeutic warfarin have now been identified in a large-scale, genome-wide association scan (GWAS) of this pharmacogenetic trait. Researchers from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Uppsala University Hospital, and the Karolinska Institute have found common sequence variants in three genes – VKORC1, CYP2C9 and CYP4F2 – that explain over 40% of the variability in the warfarin dose needed to achieve proper blood thinning.

(Boston) – Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have, for the first time, identified a gene variant on chromosome 4 that may be a potential risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). These findings will be published in PLoS Genetics on March 20th.

Researchers have identified a novel pathway that may contribute to the high mortality associated with severe malaria in sub-Saharan African children. The study, published March 20 in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens, reports that severe Plasmodium falciparum infection results in disruption of the endothelium, causing release of ultra-large von Willebrand factor (VWF) protein. Together with reduced levels of VWF-specific cleaving enzyme ADAMTS13, this finding may contribute to our knowledge of the pathophysiology of malaria.

Biologists at the University of Leicester have published results of a new study into plant sex – and discovered that a particular gene switches on 'the essence of male'.

The study takes to a new level understanding of the genes needed for successful plant reproduction and seed production.

Professor David Twell and colleagues in the Department of Biology at the University of Leicester reported the discovery of a gene that has a critical role in allowing precursor reproductive cells to divide to form twin sperm cells.

DURHAM, N.C. – Scientists at Duke University Medical Center have discovered two genetic markers that appear to put some smokers at significantly higher risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

The findings come from the first-ever genome-wide association study of COPD and suggest that those who carry the markers may be able to reduce their risk if they quit smoking before the first symptoms of COPD occur.

Larval (maggot) therapy has similar health benefits and costs compared with a standard treatment for leg ulcers, find two studies published on bmj.com today.

Leg ulcers are chronic wounds most commonly caused by diseased veins in the legs. Debridement (the removal of dead tissue from the ulcer surface) is a common part of ulcer management and is widely viewed as having a role in promoting wound healing.

Google needs better control of its advertisements and suggested links to avoid web pages that contain worrying medical claims, warn doctors in an article published on bmj.com today.

Dr Marco Masoni and colleagues at the University of Florence in Italy suggest that, as the internet is not well policed and regulated, it is up to members of the medical community to be vigilant and to suggest improvements.