Body

It has long been believed that the appearance of complex multicellular life towards the end of the Precambrian (the geologic interval lasting up until 541 million years ago) was facilitated by an increase in oxygen, as revealed in the geological record. However, it has remained a mystery as to why oxygen increased at this particular time and what its relationship was to 'Snowball Earth' – the most extreme climatic changes the Earth has ever experienced – which were also taking place around then.

What if there were a way to make chemotherapy and radiation more effective as cancer treatments than they are today, while also getting rid of debilitating side effects that patients dread? A new study led by Alexey Ryazanov, a professor of pharmacology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and member of the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, suggests the day that happens could be getting closer.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – February 27, 2014 – A panel of leading health, economics and policy experts today discussed the prospects for a future where cancers are rendered manageable or even eradicated and the variables affecting progress toward that goal so that cancer patients are able to lead normal, productive lives – and thus be "free from" their cancers. The forum was hosted by Research!America and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. The event, titled, "A World Free from Cancers: Probable, Possible, or Preposterous?" was held at the New York Academy of Sciences.

People who feel intimidated by math may be less able to understand messages about genetically modified foods and other health-related information, according to researchers.

"Math anxiety, which happens when people are worried or are concerned about using math or statistics, leads to less effort and decreases the ability to do math," said Roxanne Parrott, Distinguished Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences and Health Policy and Administration. "Math anxiety also has been found to impair working memory."

The much-talked-about Google Glass — the eyewear with computer capabilities — could potentially save lives, especially in isolated or far-flung locations, say scientists. They are reporting development of a Google Glass app that takes a picture of a diagnostic test strip and sends the data to computers, which then rapidly beam back a diagnostic report to the user. The information also could help researchers track the spread of diseases around the world.

Göttingen-based scientists working at DESY's PETRA III research light source have carried out the first studies of living biological cells using high-energy X-rays. The new method shows clear differences in the internal cellular structure between living and dead, chemically fixed cells that are often analysed. "The new method for the first time enables us to investigate the internal structures of living cells in their natural environment using hard X-rays," emphasises the leader of the working group, Prof. Sarah Köster from the Institute for X-Ray Physics of the University of Göttingen.

AMHERST, Mass. ¬– Scoffing at or cutting funds for basic biological research on unusual animal adaptations from Gila monster venom to snail sex, though politically appealing to some, is short-sighted and only makes it more likely that important economic and social benefits will be missed in the long run, say a group of evolutionary biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

CHICAGO (February 27, 2014) – For almost a year now, surgeons and first responder organizations have been working to increase the number of survivors of an active shooter or mass casualty incident.

Babies born by caesarean section are more likely to be overweight or obese as adults, according to a new analysis.

The odds of being overweight or obese are 26 per cent higher for adults born by caesarean section than those born by vaginal delivery, the study found (see footnote).

The finding, reported in the journal PLOS ONE, is based on combined data from 15 studies with over 38,000 participants.

A diverse team of scientists from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has developed an experimental treatment that eradicates an acute type of leukemia in mice without any detectable toxic side effects. The drug works by blocking two important metabolic pathways that the leukemia cells need to grow and spread.

The study, led by Dr. Caius Radu, an associate professor of molecular and medical pharmacology at UCLA, and Dr. David Nathanson, an assistant professor of molecular and medical pharmacology, was published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

An international team of researchers led by an endocrinologist at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich has identified genetic mutations that result in uncontrolled synthesis and secretion of the stress hormone cortisol.

Cortisol is a hormone that is produced by the adrenal gland in response to stressful events, and modulates a whole spectrum of physiological processes. An international research collaboration has now identified genetic mutations that lead to the production and secretion of cortisol in the absence of an underlying stressor.

It might seem too good to be true, but dark chocolate is good for you and scientists now know why. Dark chocolate helps restore flexibility to arteries while also preventing white blood cells from sticking to the walls of blood vessels. Both arterial stiffness and white blood cell adhesion are known factors that play a significant role in atherosclerosis. What's more, the scientists also found that increasing the flavanol content of dark chocolate did not change this effect.

Researchers at the Buck Institute have identified and categorized thousands of protein interactions involving huntingtin, the protein responsible for Huntington's disease (HD). To use an analogy of a human social network, the identified proteins are like "friends" and "friends of friends" of the HD protein. The network provides an invaluable resource for identifying targets to treat the disease and has been used to implicate a particular signaling pathway involved in cell motility.

The question of why an individual would actively kill itself has been an evolutionary mystery. Death could hardly provide a fitness advantage to the dying individual. However, a new study has found that in single-celled algae, suicide benefits the organism's relatives.

"Death can be altruistic – we showed that before – but now we know that programmed cell death benefits the organism's relatives and not just anybody," says Dr Pierre Durand from the Department of Molecular Medicine and Haematology and the Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience (SBIMB) at Wits University.

Almost ten years ago, the group led by Erwin Wagner, currently at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), developed genetically modified mice showing symptoms very reminiscent to psoriasis. After publishing this discovery in Nature, the researchers decided to use this mouse model to study the underlying molecular pathways involved in disease development, and to look for innovative and efficient therapies. Now the group has discovered two possible novel treatments, based on existing pharmacological compounds, which are likely to cause fewer side effects.