Researchers have developed the first animal model of the infection caused by chikungunya virus, an emerging arbovirus associated with large-scale epidemics. Using this mouse model scientists determined which tissues and cells are infected by the virus in both the mild and severe forms of the disease it causes.
Pregnant women who suffer from the high risk condition pre-eclampsia -- which leads to the death of hundreds of babies every year -- are putting the lives of their unborn children at significantly increased risk if they continue to smoke during pregnancy.
Earth scientists have found that carbon dioxide has been naturally stored for more than a million years in several gas fields in the Colorado Plateau and Rocky Mountains of the United States. Researchers say lessons learned from these natural gas fields will help to find sites suitable for injecting carbon dioxide captured from power station chimneys.
The first direct evidence of how and when tectonic plates move into the deepest reaches of the Earth is published in Nature. Scientists hope their description of how plates collide with one sliding below the other into the rocky mantle could potentially improve their ability to assess earthquake risks. Contrary to common scientific predictions, dense plates tend to be held in the upper mantle, while younger and lighter plates sink more readily into the lower mantle.
A study conducted on 346 19-month-old twins reveals that the genetic and environmental bases of hormonal response to stress depend on the context in which a child grows up. This is the first time such an effect has been reported in young humans.
Although it's too soon to sound the death knell for the "senior moment," it appears that memory loss and thinking problems are becoming less common among older Americans. A new nationally representative study shows a downward trend in the rate of "cognitive impairment" -- the umbrella term for everything from significant memory loss to dementia and Alzheimer's disease -- among people aged 70 and older. The prevalence of cognitive impairment in this age group went down by 3.5 percentage points between 1993 and 2002 -- from 12.2 percent to 8.7 percent, representing a difference of hundreds of thousands of people.
A better understanding of how memory works is emerging from a newfound ability to link a learning experience in a mouse to consequent changes in the inner workings of its neurons. Researchers have developed a way to pinpoint the specific cellular components that sustain a specific memory in genetically engineered mice. Remarkably, this research demonstrates a way to untangle precisely which cells and connections are activated by a particular memory, according to researchers.
As oceans warm and become more acidic, ocean creatures are undergoing severe stress and entire food webs are at risk, according to molecular ecologists. Biologists have just returned from a research mission to Antarctica where they collected pteropods, tiny marine snails the size of a lentil, that one biologist refers to as the "potato chip" of the oceans because they are eaten widely by so many species.
Scientists have found new evidence, using innovative techniques, to support the growing body of literature that indicates kava may have a negative effect on the liver. Kava is a plant native to the South Pacific that has been used as a ceremonial beverage in the region for thousands of years, and, more recently, as a natural treatment for medical conditions such as anxiety. In recent years, serious concerns about the dangers of kava and the effects on the liver have resulted in regulatory agencies, such as the US Food and Drug Administration and Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration, banning or restricting the sale of kava and kava products.
New compounds with the potential for antidepressant activity have been found. A chemist has synthesized new molecules which affect two brain targets which are considered to be keys in the development of processes of depression. One of these is the serotonin transporter, whose reuptake reduction has already been shown to improve mood; the other is the serotoninergic receptor 5-HT7, a therapeutic target for serotonin whose modulation can provoke anti-depressant effects.
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan launched an experimental communications satellite on Saturday as part of an ambitious space program that could help ensure super high-speed Internet access in remote parts of Japan and elsewhere in Asia.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A high-tech "virtual fence" on part of the U.S. border with Mexico is finally ready for service and the technology can fight illegal crossings all along the frontier, the Homeland Security chief said on Friday.
MONACO (Reuters) - Energy storage is an unglamorous pillar of an expected revolution to clean up the world's energy supply but will soon vie for investors attention with more alluring sources of energy like solar panels, manufacturers say.
Scientists find the fossilised remains of mammals that were related to present-day rabbits and hares. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 22 Feb 2008 | 6:53 pm
A forensic study supports the controversial theory that two shooters were involved in the killing of Robert F Kennedy in 1968 Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 22 Feb 2008 | 6:37 pm
Biofuels should only be produced if they meet strict environmental standards, say international lawmakers. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 22 Feb 2008 | 6:35 pm
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - People indigenous to Siberia have strong genetic links to native peoples in the Americas, according to a study further supporting the theory that humans first entered the Americas over a land bridge across the Bering Strait.
UK livestock farms will again be at risk from bluetongue from the second half of April, predict scientists. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 22 Feb 2008 | 3:40 pm
Computer software can diagnose Alzheimer's disease from brain scans more reliably than clinical experts, new research published today by the journal Brain suggests Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 22 Feb 2008 | 12:42 pm
