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Researchers hope that a comprehensive new checklist will help guideline developers/organizations around the world create and implement better recommendations for health care. The guideline development checklist, created by an international team of researchers, is published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

(SALT LAKE CITY)—University of Utah researchers have discovered a naturally occurring genetic variation in mice that predisposes carriers toward developing severe, inflammatory arthritis. The finding implicates a new class of genes in arthritis progression, potentially opening doors to new treatment options. The study will be published ahead of print on Dec. 16 in the online issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation.

New Rochelle, NY, December16, 2013--Blue light has proven to have powerful bacteria-killing ability in the laboratory. The potent antibacterial effects of irradiation using light in the blue spectra have now also been demonstrated in human and animal tissues. A series of groundbreaking articles that provide compelling evidence of this effect are published in Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

DURHAM, N.C. – Researchers at Duke Medicine are giving people another reason to lose weight in the new year: obesity-related illnesses are expensive. According to a study published in the journal Obesity, health care costs increase in parallel with body mass measurements, even beginning at a recommended healthy weight.

The researchers found that costs associated with medical and drug claims rose gradually with each unit increase in body mass index (BMI). Notably, these increases began above a BMI of 19, which falls in the lower range of the healthy BMI category.

This news release is available in Portuguese.

CINCINNATI—Researchers with the Cincinnati Cancer Center (CCC) and the University of Cincinnati (UC) Cancer Institute have discovered a new regulation for the cancer-causing protein KRas which may help with the development of targeted therapies for patients with a KRas mutation.

Montreal, December 16, 2013 - Installing computer security software, updating applications regularly and making sure not to open emails from unknown senders are just a few examples of ways to reduce the risk of infection by malicious software, or "malware". However, even the most security-conscious users are open to attack through unknown vulnerabilities, and even the best security mechanisms can be circumvented as a result of poor user choices.

PRINCETON, NJ—It wasn't until 1967 – the peak of the Civil Rights Movement – that an African-American was elected mayor of a large U.S. city. The interracial mayoral races that followed were often heated, involving high voter turnout and close margins.

Now, a study by Princeton University takes an unprecedented look into the history of such mayoral elections, arguing that, while voter mobilization efforts took place across the country, they had a stronger effect in the South, where there was a large number of unregistered, unincorporated African-American voters.

Incorrectly positioned nuclei are not merely a sign but a possible cause of human congenital myopathies, a string of inherited muscle diseases, Victoria Schulman, graduate student at Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences, and Mary Baylies, Ph.D., developmental biologist at the Sloan Kettering Institute of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York City, will report on Monday, Dec. 16, at the American Society for Cell Biology annual meeting in New Orleans

Osteogeneis imperfecta (OI) is a congenital bone disease that causes stunted growth and repeated, painful fracturing. Ultrasound scans can reveal fractures already in the fetus, and now an international team of researchers from Sweden, Singapore and Taiwan have treated two babies in utero by injecting bone-forming stem cells. The longitudinal results of the treatment are published in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine.

HOUSTON – (Dec. 16, 2013) – Tests at two wastewater treatment plants in northern China revealed antibiotic-resistant bacteria were not only escaping purification but also breeding and spreading their dangerous cargo.

The method's high sensitivity lies in the customized environment for the substance of interest. Dresden's Adrian Keller and his colleagues have constructed a type of "golden trap" capable of capturing the molecules and thereby enabling their detection. To this end, they arranged two tiny gold particles onto a substrate at predetermined distances. Next, the scientists anchored molecules of a dye called TAMRA within these gaps. They then irradiated the sample using laser light, which yielded what is known as a Raman spectrum.

Researchers in Finland have implemented a classification system for emergency operations that allows for a fair and efficient way to manage a large volume of such surgery. The system is described in a special issue of the BJS (British Journal of Surgery) that focuses on emergency surgery. Other studies in the issue focus on topics ranging from advances in the use of surgery performed through natural orifices to the global burden of conditions requiring emergency surgery.

Poland's entry into the EU may have had the surprising consequence of increasing allergies in rural villages, according to a new study.Surveys show that the prevalence of atopy, a predisposition towards allergic reactions, jumped from seven per cent to 20 per cent in villages in southwest Poland between 2003 and 2012.

Scientists believe the rise is linked to changes in farming practices that occurred when Poland adopted of the EU Common Agricultural Policy. In 2003, many villagers kept cows or pigs on their land, but after joining the EU it became uneconomical to do so.

Antalya, Turkey, December 14, 2013 – The groundbreaking Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) today agreed to develop a set of assessments on pollination and food production, land degradation and invasive species aimed at providing policymakers with the tools to tackle pressing environmental challenges.