Tech

The recent increase in area burned by wildfires in the Western United States is a product not of higher temperatures or longer fire seasons alone, but a complex relationship between climate and fuels that varies among different ecosystems, according to a study conducted by U.S. Forest Service and university scientists. The study is the most detailed examination of wildfire in the United States to date and appears in the current issue of the journal Ecological Applications.

For those who are caring for elderly parents, peace of mind is hard to come by. And, for their parents, dignity is hard to retain. But a team of University of Houston researchers hopes to ease worries and frustrations by designing an affordable in-home health-monitoring system that will notify caregivers, via smartphones or PDAs, if their loved ones need attention.

An emergency rule intended to reduce the number of deaths and injuries associated with Hawaiian air tours was followed by a 47 percent reduction in sightseeing crashes, according to a new study by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Center for Injury Research and Policy.

PHILADELPHIA (June 25, 2009)—Reviewing the records of 577 breast cancer patients, Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers found that women with newly diagnosed breast cancer who receive a breast MRI are more likely to receive a mastectomy after their diagnosis and may face delays in starting treatment. The study demonstrates that, despite the lack of evidence of their benefit, routine use of MRI scans in women newly diagnosed with breast cancer increased significantly between 2004 and 2005, and again in 2006.

DURHAM, NC—According to a new study from researchers at Duke University, total knee arthroplasty (TKA) procedures performed in older patients with osteoarthritis of the knee result in long-term, significant improvement of physical functioning and motor skills when compared to patients who do not receive TKA.

MADISON - President Barack Obama's signature on a bill this week to grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory authority over tobacco was historic, and represents a step in the march to eliminate tobacco use in this country by 2047, two national tobacco experts said today (June 25).

In a review in Science, a University of Rochester Medical Center researcher sorts out the controversy and promise around a dangerous subtype of cancer cells, known as cancer stem cells, which seem capable of resisting many modern treatments.

The article proposes that this subpopulation of malignant cells may one day provide an important avenue for controlling cancer, especially if new treatments that target the cancer stem cell are developed and combined with traditional chemotherapy and/or radiation.

Stroke patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) who undergo treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) following their stroke may substantially reduce their risk of death, according to Spanish research to be published in the July 1 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

In the bustling economy of the cell, little bubbles called vesicles serve as container ships, ferrying cargo to and from the port - the cell membrane. Some of these vesicles, called post-Golgi vesicles, export cargo made by the cell's protein factory. Scientists have long believed that other, similar vesicles handle the reverse function, importing life-supporting nutrients and proteins through an independent process.

COLLEGE PARK, M.D.. June 25 –– Fast and green. That's what it takes to get to the winner's circle in a new type of auto racing.

Called green racing, it's a meshing of the fast and furious world of auto racing with the quest for cleaner-burning fuels and more energy efficient engines. But make no mistake about it, being green does not mean being slow.

John C. Glenn, an environmental specialist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), described green racing here today at the 13th Annual ACS Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference.

Baltimore, MD—Scientists working at the Carnegie Institution's Department of Embryology, with colleagues, have overturned previous research that identified critical genes for making muscle stem cells. It turns out that the genes that make muscle stem cells in the embryo are surprisingly not needed in adult muscle stem cells to regenerate muscles after injury. The finding challenges the current course of research into muscular dystrophy, muscle injury, and regenerative medicine, which uses stem cells for healing tissues, and it favours using age-matched stem cells for therapy.

Baltimore, MD, and Christchurch, NZ – June 25, 2009 – Veritide Ltd., a developer of innovative biological identification and detection solutions, today reported that new independent data to be presented at the Biodetection Technologies 2009 conference confirm the exceptional accuracy of its Ceeker™ (pronounced "seeker") portable bacterial detection device in discriminating between anthrax spores and similar-looking hoax substances.

Cincinnati, OH, June 25, 2009 -- Many parents worry about their child's exposure to phthalates, the chemical compounds used as plasticizers in a wide variety of personal care products, children's toys, and medical devices. Phthalate exposure can begin in the womb and has been associated with negative changes in endocrine function. A new study soon to be published in the Journal of Pediatrics examines the possibility that in utero phthalate exposure contributes to low birth weight in infants.

In addition to providing fundamental insights into the early evolution of the estrogen receptor, research by a team at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine may lead to a contraceptive for female lampreys – a jawless fish considered an invasive pest species in the Great Lakes region of the United States. This could prove important to the Great Lakes region, where lampreys aggressively consume trout, salmon, sturgeon and other game fish.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco Center for Excellence in Primary Care, as lead authors on commentaries in two of the nation's leading medical journals this week, call for a national effort to revive primary care as part of health care reform legislation.