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In the first large trial of its kind in the United States, researchers have shown that estrogen-lowering drugs can shrink tumors and reduce mastectomy rates for patients with stage 2 or 3 breast cancer.

Mild cognitive impairment, dementia, and their subtypes are common in the "oldest old" women, which includes those 85 years of age and older, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

When infants' tear ducts are blocked, the decision about when to intervene and the cost-effectiveness of doing so depend on how likely it is the problem will self-resolve, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Among Medicare beneficiaries, a large portion of colonoscopies for screening purposes are performed more frequently than recommended intervals. But among older patients treated at Veterans Affairs facilities, warranted follow-up colonoscopies for patients with positive fecal blood tests often do not occur, or cause burden when they do. These findings are from two reports posted online today that will appear in the August 8 print issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

The introduction of multidetector row computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) was associated with an apparent increase in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE), but with only minimal changes in mortality (death), suggesting the possibility of overdiagnosis, according to a report in the May 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. This article is part of the Less Is More series in the journal.

Commercial funding of continuing medical education (CME) and the potential for bias appear to concern many health care practitioners and researchers, but many reported being unwilling to pay higher fees to eliminate or offset commercial funding sources, according to a report in the May 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

When doctors give heart drugs to patients, the time of day can make a big difference, according to new research by University of Guelph scientists.

Many doctors prefer to give heart drugs to patients in the morning. But the study revealed that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors – commonly given to patients with high blood pressure or after a heart attack or during heart failure – improve heart structure and function when given at sleep time. In fact, when administered during wake time, ACE inhibitors are no more effective than a placebo, the study found.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A new study of U.S. veterans ages 70 and older finds that the healthiest get the most benefit from current colon cancer screening methods. However, for many less healthy veterans the burdens of screening may outweigh the benefits.

Every boat owner recognises the dilemma: environmentally friendly or effective. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have now found a way of reconciling these two almost unattainable aims. By using smart combinations of the most environmentally friendly biocides in the paint, it is possible to both reduce the total quantity of biocides and dramatically reduce the environmental impact.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - MIT researchers have created a new detector so sensitive it can pick up a single molecule of an explosive such as TNT.

To create the sensors, chemical engineers led by Michael Strano coated carbon nanotubes — hollow, one-atom-thick cylinders made of pure carbon — with protein fragments normally found in bee venom. This is the first time those proteins have been shown to react to explosives, specifically a class known as nitro-aromatic compounds that includes TNT.

ATHENS, Ohio (May 9, 2011)—While adult tyrannosaurs wielded power and size to kill large prey, youngsters used agility to hunt smaller game.

"It's one of the secrets of success for tyrannosaurs—the different age groups weren't competing with each other for food because their diets shifted as they grew," said Ohio University paleontologist Lawrence Witmer.

A new, promising marker for diagnosing prostate cancer has been discovered by Uppsala researchers with the aid of a unique method developed at the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology. The study, being published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, PNAS, can lead to more reliable diagnoses and fewer unnecessary operations.

Scientists at Royal Holloway, University of London and the University of Leicester have discovered animals searching for food do not stick to a complicated pattern of movement as previously thought but tend to wander about randomly.

It was previously believed that when searching for food, animals move in very peculiar way called a Lévy flight where they move small distances most of the time, but occasionally move a very long distance.

DALLAS – May 9, 2011 – Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered new clues about how the intestine maintains friendly relations with the 100 trillion symbiotic bacteria that normally live in the digestive tract.

New Rochelle, NY, May 9, 2011—Disorders of the eye are excellent targets for gene therapy because the ocular environment is readily accessible, relatively easy to monitor, and sequestered from the rest of the body. A series of articles available online ahead of print in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (www.liebertpub.com), highlight several exciting developments in ocular gene therapy.