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Using tracer viruses, researchers found that contamination of just a single doorknob or table top results in the spread of viruses throughout office buildings, hotels, and health care facilities. Within 2 to 4 hours, the virus could be detected on 40 to 60 percent of workers and visitors in the facilities and commonly touched objects, according to research presented at the 54th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), an infectious disease meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

The best defense is a good offense, especially when it comes to the immune system. The troops that respond to an infection are split into two squadrons, and, until recently, it seemed that the two were independent, without much interaction.

Now, in a paper published this week in Nature Immunology, a team of scientists from the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and the University of Alabama at Birmingham say that the immunology boot camp is more communication-intensive than initially thought — a discovery that could help efforts to produce more effective vaccines.

Demand for better care by women linked with the expansion of basic services, rather than political pressure, has helped to improve midwifery services in low to middle-income countries, according to international research involving the University of Southampton.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – A total facial rejuvenation that combines three procedures to address the multiple signs of an aging face and neck can be performed safely at one time, a new study shows.

Total facial rejuvenation, which combines an extensive facelift to tighten skin and muscle; specialized, midface implants to restore fullness; and laser resurfacing to reduce skin's irregular texture and discoloration, can be safely performed at one time, reports Dr. Achih H. Chen, facial plastic surgeon.

The information encoded in our genes is translated into proteins, which ultimately mediate biological functions in an organism. Messenger RNA (mRNA) plays an important role, as it is the molecular template used for translation. Scientists from the Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen and the Technische Universität Muenchen, in collaboration with international colleagues, have now unraveled a molecular mechanism of mRNA recognition, which is essential for understanding differential gene regulation in male and female organisms.

Chemists at ETH-Zürich and ITbM, Nagoya University have developed a new method to build large libraries of bioactive molecules – which can be used directly for biological assays – by simply mixing a small number of building blocks in water.

Singapore, 04 September 2014 – The mature results from a trial conducted by the Asia-Pacific Hepatocellular Carcinoma Trials Group led by the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) and Singapore General Hospital (SGH) have shown that patients who suffer from inoperable advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) may have a chance to live significantly longer by using a combined therapy.

Revolutionary nanotechnology method could help improve the development of new medicine and reduce costs. Researchers from the Nano-Science Center and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Copenhagen have developed a new screening method that makes it possible to study cell membrane proteins that bind drugs, such as cannabis and adrenaline, while reducing the consumption of precious samples by a billion times.

TORONTO, Sept. 8, 2014—Vulnerable populations in ethnically diverse Toronto reported more discrimination by health care workers based on their housing status, mental health or substance abuse issues than race, a new study has found.

Forty-two per cent of people surveyed reported at least one form of perceived discrimination by health care workers, lead author Dr. Vicky Stergiopoulos wrote in a paper published today in the journal BMC Health Services Research.

Dementia trials could be failing because they all-too-often overlook the physical health of patients – according to new research from the University of East Anglia and Aston University.

More than 60 per cent of people with dementia are estimated to have three or more other conditions (co-morbidities).

The research shows how the combined effects of co-morbidities including diabetes, lung disease, arthritis and chronic heart failure are not being adequately described in dementia trials.

Raw honey has been used against infections for millennia, before honey - as we now know it - was manufactured and sold in stores. So what is the key to its' antimicrobial properties? Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have identified a unique group of 13 lactic acid bacteria found in fresh honey, from the honey stomach of bees. The bacteria produce a myriad of active antimicrobial compounds.

Munich, Germany: A baby has a greater risk of asthma if his or her father smoked prior to conception.

The research, presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress in Munich today (08 September 2014), is the first study in humans to analyse the link between a father's smoking habits before conception and a child's asthma. The findings add to growing evidence from animal studies which suggest that the father's exposures before parenthood can harm his child.

Munich, Germany: The temperature of exhaled breath could be used to diagnose lung cancer, according to a new study.

The research, presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress in Munich today (8 September 2013), suggests that testing the temperature of breath could be a simple and noninvasive method to either confirm or reject the presence of lung cancer.

Many research teams have been looking at the possibility of using breath tests for a number of cancers. This is the first study looking at breath temperature as a marker in lung cancer.

As the world population continues to grow, by about 1 billion people every 12 to 14 years since the 1960s, the global food supply may not meet escalating demand – particularly for agriculturally poor countries in arid to semi-arid regions, such as Africa's Sahel, that already depend on imports for much of their food supply.

A new University of Virginia study, published online in the American Geophysical Union journal, Earth's Future, examines global food security and the patterns of food trade that – until this analysis – have been minimally studied.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- An Indiana University study has found that three easy -- one could even say slow -- 5-minute walks can reverse harm caused to leg arteries during three hours of prolonged sitting.