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Low-income men are more likely to present with advanced prostate cancers, most likely because they don't receive screening services shown to reduce the diagnosis of later-stage cancers, a UCLA study found.

A new study conducted in three developing countries—Kenya, the Philippines, and Bangladesh—finds that people with cataract-induced visual impairment are more likely to live in poverty than those with normal sight. The study is published in the open access international health journal PLoS Medicine.

Plants come in all shapes and sizes, from grand Redwood trees to the common Snowdrop. Although we cannot see them, under the ground plants rely on a complex network of roots. What determines the pattern of root growth has been a mystery, but a new paper published this week in PLoS Biology shows that the shape of the existing root can determine how further roots branch from it – because shape determines hormone concentration.

Flies expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) in their retina cells or other tissues can be tracked by specially modified video cameras, creating a real time computer record of movement and gene expression. The new technique, described in the open access journal BMC Biotechnology, will allow detailed analyses of correlations between behavior, gene expression and aging.

Scientists investigating the 2006 Northwick Park drug-trial disaster that left six healthy volunteers hospitalised say they have developed new pre-clinical tests that could have stopped the trial from ever going ahead.

But Dr Stephen Poole, speaking at the British Pharmacological Society's Winter Meeting in Brighton today (Tuesday), said that research is still "ongoing" to understand why the drug had such an adverse effect in the clinic but not in pre-clinical testing.

A secondary analysis of a large, multicenter clinical trial has shown that a diet loaded with fruits, vegetables and fiber and somewhat lower in fat compared to standard federal dietary recommendations cuts the risk of recurrence in a subgroup of early-stage breast cancer survivors – women who didn't have hot flashes – by approximately 31 percent. These patients typically have higher recurrence and lower survival rates than breast cancer patients who have hot flashes.

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) -- A secondary analysis of a large, multicenter clinical trial has shown that a diet loaded with fruits, vegetables and fiber and somewhat lower in fat compared to standard federal dietary recommendations cuts the risk of recurrence in a subgroup of early-stage breast cancer survivors – women who didn't have hot flashes – by approximately 31 percent. These patients typically have higher recurrence and lower survival rates than breast cancer patients who have hot flashes.

The number of female doctors in cardiology nearly doubled in the last decade, and male and female cardiologists both report a high level of job satisfaction, according to findings from a 10-year follow-up survey published in the December 16/23, 2008, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is an inherited disease sometimes known as 'Boy in the bubble syndrome', because the patient lacks one or more type of immune cell, making them very susceptible to infections. Dik van Gent and colleagues, at Erasmus Medical Center, The Netherlands, have now identified a new genetic cause of SCID characterized by a lack of T cells and B cells (T–B– SCID). Specifically, they identified a patient with T–B– SCID who has a mutation in the gene DNA-PKcs.

Birth defects characterized by malformation of the limbs are relatively common. New insight into one form of the birth defect synpolydactyly, where individuals have 1 or more digit (finger or toe) duplicated and 2 or more digits fused together, has now been provided by Stefan Mundlos and colleagues, at Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany, who studied a mouse model of the condition.

Montréal, December 15, 2008 – Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death in Canada. Although it is an incurable chronic disease, effective treatments exist to relieve symptoms and improve the course of the illness.

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Diversity is valuable socially, economically and now environmentally.

Research by Michigan State University scientists has found that growing more corn to produce ethanol – creating less diverse landscapes – reduces the ability of beneficial insects to control pests, a loss valued at about $58 million per year in the four states studied (Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin).

New York, NY, December 15, 2008—Interruptions in Medicaid coverage are associated with a higher rate of hospitalization for conditions that can often be treated in an ambulatory care setting, including asthma, diabetes, and hypertension, according to a new study in today's issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. The analysis, which examines interrupted Medicaid coverage and hospitalization rates, finds that increased risk for hospitalization is highest in the first three months after an interruption in Medicaid coverage.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Dec. 15, 2008) — Whitehead Institute researchers have greatly simplified the creation of so-called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, cutting the number of viruses used in the reprogramming process from four to one. Scientists hope that these embryonic stem-cell-like cells could eventually be used to treat such ailments as Parkinson's disease and diabetes.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Can a patient-centered, care management program utilizing nurse care managers and interdisciplinary teams, supported by electronic tracking and care coordination systems reduce the rate of deaths and hospitalizations among chronically ill older adults? The answer – based on a three-year study involving more than 3,400 chronically ill seniors led by Oregon Health & Science University researcher David A. Dorr, M.D. – appears to be "yes."