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Drugs widely prescribed to treat facial paralysis in Bell's palsy are ineffective and are based on false notions of the cause of the condition, according to Cochrane Researchers. They say research must now focus on discovering other potential causes and treatments.

Between 11 and 40 people in every 100,000 are affected by the condition, which causes paralysis on one side of the face. Paralysis is usually temporary, but a third of people suffer ongoing problems including facial disfigurement, pain and psychological difficulties.

B-vitamin supplements should not be recommended for prevention of heart disease, say scientists. A Cochrane Systematic Review has shown these supplements do not reduce the risk of developing or dying from the disease.

More research is required to establish whether Chinese herbal medicines can reduce the likelihood of developing diabetes, according to Cochrane Researchers. Although herbal medicines are widely used in Asian countries to treat pre-diabetes (impaired glucose tolerance or IGT), the precursor of the disease, researchers say there is still not enough hard scientific evidence to confidently recommend their use.

A bacterium possibly linked to Crohn's disease could be lurking in wild animals. According to research published in the open access journal BMC Microbiology, Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (Map), can be transmitted between wildlife and domestic ruminants, supporting the theory of wildlife reservoirs of infection.

New Rochelle, NY, October 6, 2009—Guidelines derived from a recent Consensus Conference, including recommendations on the role of healthcare providers in the assurance of quality spiritual care to patients in a palliative care setting, are published in a comprehensive report in Journal of Palliative Medicine, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (www.liebertpub.com).

DURHAM, N.C. – A strain of yeast that thrives on turning sugar cane into ethanol for biofuel has had its genome completely sequenced by researchers at Duke University Medical Center.

"Understanding this microbe may enable more efficient biofuel production, and also will produce even more robust industrial organisms that are versatile and capable of producing advanced biofuels from non-food crops like switchgrass," said Lucas Argueso, Ph.D., lead author and research scholar in the Duke Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology.

A collaboration between scientists at Vanderbilt University and the University of California, San Francisco has led to the first direct information about the molecular structure of prions. In addition, the study has revealed surprisingly large structural differences between natural prions and the closest synthetic analogs that scientists have created in the lab.

Results of a phase two clinical trial published October 5th in the Journal of Clinical Oncology show that adding continuous daily doses of a targeted drug called imatinib mesylate to regular chemotherapy more than doubled three-year survival rates for children with a high risk type of blood cancer called Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL).

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2009-10/jaaj-mps100209.php">Chinese.

Very low birth-weight newborns who received the milk protein lactoferrin alone or in combination with a probiotic had a reduced incidence of late-onset sepsis, according to a study in the October 7 issue of JAMA.

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2009-10/jaaj-gvo100209.php">Chinese.

Among women with early stage breast cancer, genetic variation of a certain enzyme appears to be associated with clinical outcomes for women treated with tamoxifen, according to a study in the October 7 issue of JAMA.

MADISON — Using computer simulations, a team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers has identified some of the pathways through which single complementary strands of DNA interact and combine to form the double helix.

Present in the cells of all living organisms, DNA is composed of two intertwined strands and contains the genetic "blueprint" through which all living organisms develop and function. Individual strands consist of nucleotides, which include a base, a sugar and a phosphate moiety.

University of Alberta researcher Phil Bell has found 70 million year old evidence of dinosaur cannibalism. The jawbone of what appears to be a Gorgosaurus was found in 1996 in southern Alberta. A technician at the Royal Tyrell Museum found something unusual embedded in the jaw. It was the tip of a tooth from another meat-eating dinosaur.

Blacksburg, Va. -- Theresa M. Reineke, associate professor of chemistry in the College of Science, and colleagues in her lab at Virginia Tech and at the University of Cincinnati have developed a new molecule that can travel into cells, deliver genetic cargo, and packs a beacon so scientists can follow its movements in living systems.

"My lab has been trying to find a way to deliver genetic-based drugs into cells." said Reineke.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---A new investigation of a fossilized tracksite in southern Africa shows how early dinosaurs made on-the-fly adjustments to their movements to cope with slippery and sloping terrain. Differences in how early dinosaurs made these adjustments provide insight into the later evolution of the group.

The research, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, Argentina's Universidad de Buenos Aires, and the Iziko South African Museum in Cape Town, South Africa, will be published online Oct. 6 in the open-access journal PLoS ONE.

San Diego, CA – Drivers who frequently take to the road with the top down may be risking serious damage to their hearing, according to research presented at the 2009 American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO, in San Diego, CA.