ScienceDaily Top Science Headlines
for Monday, July 26, 2010
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Rare and common genetic variations responsible for high triglyceride levels in blood (July 26, 2010) -- Scientists have shown that it's a combination of both common and rare variants or "misprints" in several genes that add up, and put a patient at risk of developing high levels of triglycerides in the blood, a disease called hypertriglyceridemia (HTG). HTG affects one in 20 people in North America. ... > full story
Parkinson's: New clues to alleviating gait disorders and falls (July 26, 2010) -- Drugs that target the mediator of nerve cell communication dopamine alleviate many of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease but not the gait disorders and falls that affect those with severe disease. New research indicates that drugs targeting nerve cells that communicate using the molecule acetylcholine in the PPN region of the brain might provide a way to alleviate these otherwise untreatable symptoms of Parkinson's disease. ... > full story
Concealed patterns beneath life's variety: Synthesis of studies of how biodiversity changes reveals trends over space and time (July 26, 2010) -- Although it is well known that there are more species in the tropics than in higher latitudes, it is hard to study how the species in a sampling change in time and across large distances. A synthesis based on multiple studies reveals some surprising trends that suggest ways to more effectively explore how ecosystems develop. ... > full story
Power outage: A loss of social power distorts how money is represented (July 26, 2010) -- Retail therapy can soothe the defeat of losing a major client, the rejection of not getting a promotion or even the embarrassment a high-powered executive might feel after receiving a speeding ticket. Spending money to uplift a damaged ego provides more than comfort; it restores the equilibrium of what lies at the foundation of Western culture -- power and social hierarchy. ... > full story
New epigenetic player implicated in mental retardation and facial birth defects (July 26, 2010) -- A subtle mutation affecting the epigenome --- a set of dynamic factors that influence gene activity -- may lead to an inherited form of mental retardation that affects boys, researchers have found The disorder, which also involves cleft lip or cleft palate, appears to hinge on an enzyme working in a biological pathway that may offer several potential drug targets. ... > full story
Straw residue helps keep nitrogen on the farm (July 26, 2010) -- A research study evaluated the potential for straw residue to retain legume-derived nitrogen in a corn cropping system. ... > full story
Confident teachers help preschoolers more with language and literacy skills (July 26, 2010) -- New research suggests that pre-school students may gain more language and literacy skills if they have teachers with higher levels of confidence in their abilities. However, in some cases students only saw gains when their teachers also had classrooms that emphasized emotional support for the children. ... > full story
Light and moderate physical activity reduces the risk of early death, study finds (July 25, 2010) -- A new study has found that even light or moderate intensity physical activity, such as walking or cycling, can substantially reduced the risk of early death. ... > full story
Morning test helps doctors save kidneys (July 25, 2010) -- A morning urine test is superior to all other tests for detecting declining kidney performance in patients with diabetic kidney disease, according to a new study. The results suggest that clinicians should monitor kidney function by measuring the albumin:creatinine ratio from a first morning urine sample. ... > full story
Researchers calculate the cost of CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, call for carbon tax (July 25, 2010) -- Researchers are calling on policymakers to encourage the transition from coal-based electricity production to a system based on natural gas through a carbon tax. ... > full story
Mental health woes grow while spending declines, study finds (July 25, 2010) -- As the current global economic crisis drives up the demand for mental health-care services, cash-strapped agencies are slashing mental health budgets, according to a new study. ... > full story
Starve a cancer: Calorie restriction as an anti-invasive therapy for malignant brain cancer (July 25, 2010) -- Researchers have found that reducing calorie intake can restrict the growth and spread of brain cancer. ... > full story
Test could predict which children with T-cell ALL are best candidates for clinical trials (July 25, 2010) -- A genetic clue uncovered by scientists enables doctors to predict, for the first time, which children with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) are unlikely to benefit from standard chemotherapy for the disease and should therefore be among the first to receive new treatments in future clinical trials. ... > full story
Predicting nanoparticle structures: Standard chemical reactions show the way (July 25, 2010) -- Scientists have discovered a way to predict the organization of nanoparticles in larger forms by treating them much the same as ensembles of molecules formed from standard chemical reactions. ... > full story
Disease genes that followed the Silk Road identified (July 25, 2010) -- Researchers have found susceptibility to Behcet's disease, a painful, inflammatory condition, to be associated with genes involved in the body's immune response. ... > full story
Gene may hold key to reducing spread of oral cancers (July 25, 2010) -- The spread of cancer cells in the tongue may be reduced if a gene that regulates cancer cell migration can be controlled, according to new research. ... > full story
Eye study finds two therapies slow diabetic eye disease progression (July 25, 2010) -- In high-risk adults with Type 2 diabetes, researchers have found that two therapies may slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy, an eye disease that is the leading cause of vision loss in working-age Americans. ... > full story
Hormonal contraceptives have mixed success among overweight women (July 25, 2010) -- As obesity continues to be a worldwide health risk, one of its "side effects" could include less effective birth control for overweight and obese women who use hormonal contraceptives. ... > full story
Microbicide containing engineered bacteria may inhibit HIV-1 (July 24, 2010) -- Researchers from the U.S. and abroad used bacteria inherent to the human vaginal tract to develop a live, topical microbicide that may induce production of HIV-1 protein inhibitors and ultimately prevent transmission of the virus. ... > full story
Chokeberry extract found to regulate weight gain, blood glucose, and inflammation in rats (July 24, 2010) -- A new study finds that chokeberry extract inhibits weight gain in insulin-resistant animals and modulates multiple genes associated with adipose tissue growth, blood glucose regulation, and inflammatory pathways. ... > full story
Cold-blooded mothers: Magpie parents seem to induce mortality of 'unwanted' chicks (July 24, 2010) -- A new pattern of nestling mortality was found in magpies' nests. Sons died more in the nests with more daughters and daughters died more in the nests with more sons. Researchers think that this pattern, that reinforces the original bias in brood sex composition, implies parental strategies being set as a "package," where specific initial sex composition of a brood is correlated with a specific parental "attitude" towards sons and daughters. ... > full story
Stem cells from surgery leftovers could repair damaged hearts (July 24, 2010) -- Scientists have for the first time succeeded in extracting vital stem cells from sections of vein removed for heart bypass surgery. ... > full story
Diabetes monitoring device benefits not just people but dogs and other animals, too (July 24, 2010) -- A researcher is using a continuous glucose monitoring device -- commonly used in humans with diabetes -- to help treat dogs and other animals. The device, which provides a detailed glucose picture of an animal over several days, will help pet owners manage their pets' diabetes. ... > full story
Academic language impedes students' ability to learn science, expert argues (July 24, 2010) -- Middle and high school students who read fluently in English class and on the Web may find that they cannot understand their science texts. And their science teachers may be ill-prepared to guide them in reading the academic language in which science information is presented. A professor of education and expert on language and literacy development makes the case that students need to be taught academic language to learn science and other subjects. ... > full story
Cancer-metabolism link runs deep in humans, novel network algorithm suggests (July 23, 2010) -- Eighty years ago, the medical establishment believed cancer was caused by a dysfunction of metabolism, but the idea went out of vogue. Now, scientists are again looking at metabolism and its role in cancer and other common diseases. ... > full story
Medicine from moss: Bioreactor technique may offer hope to people with age-related blindness (July 23, 2010) -- Biologists in Germany have used a moss bioreactor to produce a human protein, the absence of which leads to age-related blindness in 50 million people. ... > full story
Can I buy you a drink? Genetics may determine sensitivity to other people's drinking behavior (July 23, 2010) -- Your friend walks into a bar to meet you for happy hour. He sidles up to the bar and orders a drink -- does that make you more likely to get a drink yourself? According to new findings, genetics may determine the extent to which you are influenced by social drinking cues -- signals such as advertisements, drinks placed on a bar, and seeing other people around you drinking. ... > full story
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