Drugs :: Scientists use nanoparticle to discover disease-causing proteins
A complex molecule and snake venom may provide researchers with a more reliable method of diagnosing human diseases and developing new drugs.
Laboratory
Tuberculosis :: How badger culling creates conditions for spread of bovine TB
A stable social structure may help control the spread of bovine tuberculosis (TB) among badgers, ecologists have found. The findings ? published online in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Animal Ecology ? have important implications for the role of badger culling as part of the strategy to control bovine TB in the UK.
Weight Loss :: Pork preserve lean body mass during weight loss
Reducing daily caloric intake is typically the first approach that dieters take to shed those unwanted pounds.
Blood :: High blood pressure drug can reverse iron overload
We all know that iron deficiencies are dangerous, but also too much iron is bad for our health. Our body stores excess iron in various tissues, where it can lead to organ failure and even death if not treated before irreversible damage has occurred.
Health :: Saliva to diagnose health and disease
Innovative saliva-based health diagnostic tools will be developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin through a $6 million, multi-institutional grant from the National Institutes of Health.
Vitamin K :: Update on Tufts Vitamin K Research
Seniors aren’t consuming enough vitamin K, notes a review, and studies should continue to examine non-dietary factors related to vitamin K status, like effects of estrogen on vitamin K metabolism.
Bird Flu :: Turkey bird flu update – 4 children in hospital
Turkey’s farm ministry confirmed an outbreak of bird flu in the southeast of the country. Four children suffering from bird flu like symptoms are under observation in hospitals.
Norovirus :: Increase in Norovirus Infection
Infectious disease surveillance systems at the Rhode Island Department of Health are detecting widespread circulation of norovirus gastroenteritis through reports of absenteeism from schools, clusters in nursing homes, hospital outbreaks, and alerts from emergency departments.
Gene :: New gene prevents multiple types of cancer
A decades-old cancer mystery has been solved by researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL). “We not only found a critical tumor suppressor gene, but have revealed a master switch for a tumor suppressive network that means more targeted and effective cancer therapy in the future,” said CSHL Associate Professor Alea Mills, Ph.D. The study, headed by Mills, was published in the February issue of Cell.
Vitamin B :: Folate and B12 may influence cognition in seniors
Folate may protect cognition in seniors, but only with adequate levels of vitamin B12. In an epidemiological study, low B-vitamin status was associated with anemia and cognitive impairment. Low vitamin B12 status was especially linked to these conditions if seniors also had high folate in the blood.