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COPENHAGEN, DENMARK (11 December 2009)—In the face of reports about the ills livestock generate for the climate, environment and health, a new study published in the December issue of the journal Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability emphasizes that livestock production in developing and developed countries are very different animals.

Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC (Dec 11, 2009) – If you've been waiting for the day to arrive when computers actually start performing surgery, that moment might soon be upon us. A French team has developed a computerized 3D model that allows surgeons to use robotics to operate on a beating heart, according to a report in The International Journal of Robotics Research, published by SAGE.

Despite free public healthcare, Italy's poor are more likely to end up in hospital with avoidable conditions, new research shows. This pattern, reported today in the online open access journal BMC Public Health, mirrors findings from a number of different healthcare systems around the world, although to date fewer studies have been completed in Europe.

20 mph traffic speed zones reduce casualties by 41.9% with the greatest reduction in child casualties, according to research published today in the British Medical Journal.

Road traffic injuries are a leading cause of death and disability worldwide and are projected to make an increasingly important contribution to public health burdens over the coming decades, especially in low- and middle-income settings.

MAYWOOD, Il. -- Chemotherapy generally improves survival in postmenopausal breast cancer patients, according to a landmark study led by Dr. Kathy Albain of Loyola University Health System.

However a second study, also headed by Albain, found that a multigene test on a breast tumor can identify a subset of women who may not benefit from chemotherapy.

The related studies were published simultaneously online, ahead of print, Dec. 10 in the journals Lancet and Lancet Oncology.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Chemotherapy added to tamoxifen can improve outcomes for postmenopausal breast cancer patients, according to a landmark study by the Southwest Oncology Group.

But a related study presented today at the 2009 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium finds that a multigene test on tumors can identify a subset of patients who may not benefit from that chemotherapy.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Name all the venomous animals you can think of and you probably come up with snakes, spiders, bees, wasps and perhaps poisonous frogs. But catfish?

A new study by University of Michigan graduate student Jeremy Wright finds that at least 1,250 and possibly more than 1,600 species of catfish may be venomous---far more than previously believed. The research is described in a paper published online Dec. 4 in the open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology.

A team of Princeton University scientists has produced a systematic listing of the ways a particular cancerous cell has "gone wrong," giving researchers a powerful tool that eventually could make possible new, more targeted therapies for patients.

KNOXVILLE, TN—New varieties of plants marketed as "disease-resistant" or "insect-resistant" are becoming more accessible to consumers. Available through local garden centers and catalogues, these attractive ornamentals often come with guarantees that offer amateur gardeners the promise of lower maintenance or the need for fewer pesticides.

HAMMOND, LA – Rapid population growth and urbanization have raised concerns over stormwater runoff contamination. Studies on watersheds indicate that excess nutrients, specifically nitrate–nitrogen and soluble reactive phosphorus are found in stormwater runoff in many new urban areas. These pollutants degrade water quality and have an impact on the downstream ecosystem by contributing to the growth and decomposition of oxygen-depleting microorganisms.

RALEIGH, NC –Vermicomposting, the practice of using earthworms to turn waste into nutrient-rich fertilizer, can be an economical, organic waste management practice. During vermicomposting, earthworms and microorganisms stabilize organic waste in an aerobic, moist environment. The resulting product, called vermicompost (VC), or worm castings, provides commercial and amateur growers an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional substrate additives for producing many varieties of container-grown plants.

DALLAS – Dec. 10, 2009 – Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found that a molecule produced naturally by muscles in response to nerve damage can reduce symptoms and prolong life in a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

"We believe we can apply this research toward drug development," said Dr. Eric Olson, chairman of molecular biology at UT Southwestern and senior author of the study, which appears in the Dec. 11 issue of Science.

Paleontologists, aided by amateur volunteers, have unearthed a previously unknown meat-eating dinosaur from a fossil bone bed in northern New Mexico, settling a debate about early dinosaur evolution, revealing a period of explosive diversification and hinting at how dinosaurs spread across the supercontinent Pangaea.

A live embargoed webcast with the scientists will be held in advance of publication for credentialed reporters on Dec. 9. See details below.

Scientists have discovered a signaling pathway that tuberculosis bacteria use to coerce disease-fighting cells to switch allegiance and work on their behalf. Epithelial cells line the airways and other surfaces to protect and defend the body. Tuberculosis bacteria co-opt these epithelial cells into helping create tubercles: the small, rounded masses characteristic of TB. The tubercles enable the bacteria to expand their numbers and spread to other locations.

It's no secret that the emissions leaving a car tailpipe or factory smokestack affect climate and air quality. Even trees release chemicals that influence the atmosphere. But until now, scientists have struggled to know where these organic molecules go and what happens to them once they leave their source, leading to models for predicting climate and air quality that are incomplete or less than accurate.