News From The American Chemical Society June 11, 2008
Coffee's aroma kick-starts genes in the brainDrink coffee to send a wake-up call to the brain? Or just smell its rich, warm aroma? An international group of scientists is reporting some of the first evidence that simply inhaling coffee aroma alters the activity of genes in the brain.
Brandeis Research Has Implications For Understanding Disease Vectors, Mechanisms Of Pain And Inflammation
Flies, unlike humans, can't manipulate the temperature of their surroundings so they need to pick the best spot for flourishing. New Brandeis University research in this week's Nature reveals that they have internal thermosensors to help them.Biologist Paul Garrity and his colleagues have discovered that the fruitfly Drosophila has four large heat-responsive neurons located in its brain.
Invention To Prevent Surgical Adhesions Wins Kaye Award
A material designed to prevent adhesions following surgery has won, for Hebrew University Prof. Daniel Cohn of the Casali Instititue of Applied Chemistry, first prize in this year's Kaye Awards for Innovation. The awards were presented during the recent 71st meeting of the Hebrew University Board of Governors.
Bone Growth Aided By Nanoparticles
In the first study of its kind, bioengineers and bioscientists at Rice University and Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands, have shown they can grow denser bone tissue by sprinkling stick-like nanoparticles throughout the porous material used to pattern the bone.
Conference On Personalized Medicine Hosted By American Association For The Advancement Of Science, June 20
Better knowledge of the body's genetic and molecular machinery is pointing toward new drugs and treatments that are custom-designed for each individual. But this emerging era of personalized medicine, in which doctors aim to prescribe the right medicine in the right amount for the right patient, also brings concerns about genetic privacy, adequacy of insurance coverage and industry marketing strategies.
Parts Of Earliest Genetic Material May Have Come From The Stars
Scientists have confirmed for the first time that an important component of early genetic material which has been found in meteorite fragments is extraterrestrial in origin, in a paper published on 15 June 2008.The finding suggests that parts of the raw materials to make the first molecules of DNA and RNA may have come from the stars.
Researchers At Carnegie Mellon Improve Assessments Of Aortic Aneurysms
Carnegie Mellon University's Ender Finol has received a two-year, $602, 000 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop methodologies for accurately evaluating the risk of aneurysms rupturing in the human body's main artery, which carries more than 5, 000 quarts of blood daily through the human body.
Novel Model Of Osteosarcoma
In the June 15th issue of G&D, Dr. Stuart Orkin (HHMI, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Children's Hospital Boston) and colleagues present a new mouse model of osteosarcoma.Osteosarcoma is the most common type of malignant bone cancer, and one of the most lethal: The 5-year survival rate is only about 60%, and this statistic drops steeply once the cancer spreads.
Medical Research On Ice
New medical equipment recently delivered to the Antarctic station Concordia will help understand how our bodies physically adapt to this extreme environment - knowledge which could help prepare for a future human mission to Mars. ESA is currently looking for a candidate with a medical background to support projects at the research base.
Unexpected Finding Of Molecule's Dual Role In Mice May Open New Avenue To Cholesterol Reduction
Researchers have discovered an unknown regulator of fat and cholesterol production in the liver of mice, a significant finding that could lead to new therapies for lowering unhealthy blood levels of cholesterol and fats.