Tech

Cardiac interventionalists and surgeons at University Clinic in Leuven, Belgium have achieved successful stent implantation and follow-up coarctectomy in premature infants suffering from aortic coarctation. Full findings are published in the March issue of Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions, the official journal of The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions.

Scientists working on a treatment for babies born with cleft palates have made a promising breakthrough and the first clinical trials are planned for early next year. Clefts are the most common birth defect in Britain, with one in every 700 babies affected; currently in severe cases radical surgery is required to correct the problem, and in addition future complications can occur as the child grows into an adult.

Atlanta, GA (March 18, 2010)—Researchers evaluating France's national infection control program for healthcare facilities found significant decreases in the rates of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) since 2004. The drop in HAIs, including MRSA and surgical site infections, could be attributed to important changes in the national infection control system. France's national, regional and local coordinating centers have been reorganized to help facilities throughout the country comply and conform with mandatory public reporting requirements and key program objectives.

Graphene—carbon formed into sheets a single atom thick—now appears to be a promising base material for capturing hydrogen, according to recent research* at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Pennsylvania. The findings suggest stacks of graphene layers could potentially store hydrogen safely for use in fuel cells and other applications.

A researcher from The University of Western Ontario has helped solve a 37-year old space mystery using lunar images released yesterday by NASA and maps from his own atlas of the moon.

Phil Stooke, a professor cross appointed to Western's Departments of Physics & Astronomy and Geography, published a major reference book on lunar exploration in 2007 entitled, "The International Atlas of Lunar Exploration."

DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke University researchers have devised a method to dry and preserve proteins in a glassified form that seems to retain the molecules' properties as workhorses of biology.

They are exploring whether their glassification technique could bring about protein-based drugs that are cheaper to make and easier to deliver than current techniques which render proteins into freeze dried powders to preserve them.

The use of prescribed burns to manage western forests may help the United States reduce its carbon footprint.

Results of a new study find that such burns, often used by forest managers to reduce underbrush and protect bigger trees, release substantially less carbon dioxide emissions than wildfires of the same size.

"It appears that prescribed burns can be an important piece of a climate change strategy," says Christine Wiedinmyer, a scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., and lead author of the new study.

Scientists have identified a mechanism that switches on an extremely important process for the proper functioning and survival of our body's cells. Specifically, the fast-track transportation pathway of 'cargo' to and from the surface of the cell. Defects in this trafficking pathway can have severe consequences, leading to numerous diseases such as high cholesterol, neuropathies, sterility and complications in immune response. Understanding the mechanisms underlying these disorders is crucial to developing possible treatments and new therapeutic strategies.

URBANA – Researchers at the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI) at the University of Illinois have discovered widespread occurrence of plant-parasitic nematodes in the first reported nematode survey of Miscanthus and switchgrass plants used for biofuels.

Lead researcher Tesfamariam Mekete, a U of I post-doctoral research associate, said the team's first step was to identify potential pathogenic nematodes of these top two energy-yielding cellulosic-ethanol feedstock plants.

BOULDER--The use of prescribed burns to manage Western forests may help the United States reduce its carbon footprint. A new study finds that such burns, often used by forest managers to reduce underbrush and protect bigger trees, release substantially less carbon dioxide emissions than wildfires of the same size.

Washington, DC—Researchers at Children's National Medical Center have discovered that African American children with asthma in metropolitan Washington, DC, are significantly more likely to have low levels of vitamin D than healthy African American children.

HOUSTON - A study from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports that cancer centers in the United States provide patients and their families with palliative care, though the depth, range and integration of programs and services widely vary.

The study, which is published in the March 17 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), was presented today at a special JAMA media briefing focused on cancer topics.

Crop and herbicide use history are more critical to herbicide efficacy and environmental safety than the timing and amount of irrigation water used, according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists.

ARS plant physiologists Dale Shaner and Lori Wiles made this discovery from ongoing experiments on two irrigated fields at Colorado State University (CSU) at Fort Collins, Colo. Shaner and Wiles work in the ARS Water Management Research Unit at Fort Collins.

Atlanta, Ga. (March 17, 2010)–Healthcare personnel influenza immunization rates have remained low, despite recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other leading healthcare organizations that all healthcare personnel receive annual flu vaccines. Experts say these levels are perilous. Increasing vaccination rates substantially improves patient safety, lowering flu deaths by 40 percent.

A programme of integrated care, directed at both the patient and the workplace, can help people with chronic low back pain return to work, on average, four months earlier than those receiving usual care, finds a study published on bmj.com today.

Back pain is a common problem in Western societies. Although the chance of returning to work is generally good, up to a quarter of patients with low back pain remain absent from work in the long term, causing 75% of the costs due to sickness leave and disability.