Scientists have identified a new genetic marker of risk for breast cancer. Women with this DNA variation are at a 1.4 times greater risk of developing breast cancer compared to those without the variation.
Positive results have been found in a pilot clinical trial of a treatment for amblyopia, or "lazy eye." The treatment was effective on 20-year-old subjects. Amblyopia is normally considered mostly irreversible after age eight. Many amblyopes, especially in developing countries, are diagnosed too late for conventional treatment with an eye patch. The disorder affects about nine million people in the U.S. alone.
Scientists have for the first time succeeded in monitoring electron transfer by Complex I in real time. In the future, this work might, for example, have medical relevance, because most of the maternally inherited so-called mitochondrial diseases are caused by dysfunction of Complex I.
Nuclear power has advantages, but, if this method of making power is to be viable long term, discovering new solutions to radioactive waste disposal and other problems are critical. Chemists are now focusing on metal sulfide materials as a possible source for nuclear waste remediation methods. The new material is extremely successful in removing strontium from a sodium-heavy solution, which has concentrations similar to those in real liquid nuclear waste.
Older men with lower free testosterone levels in their blood appear to have higher prevalence of depression, according to a new article. Women are more likely to be depressed than men until age 65, when sex differences almost disappear. Several studies have suggested that sex hormones might be responsible for this phenomenon.
One of the most comprehensive investigations done to date on aromatherapy failed to show any improvement in either immune status, wound healing or pain control among people exposed to two often-touted scents. While one of two popular aromas touted by alternative medicine practitioners -- lemon -- did appear to enhance moods positively among study subjects, the other -- lavender -- had no effect on reported mood, based on three psychological tests.
In the ever more complex world of computer games, developers are constantly looking for new ways to make the playing experience more life-like. One problem that had remained unsolved was how to quickly simulate the gradation of shadows caused by indirect light bouncing off objects -- until a recent breakthrough. A new method can be used to model the path of light as it bounces off surfaces. Graphics are now far more realistic, with more variation in shade on an object, and hues of reflected light adding extra detail.
Researchers have designed a small molecule that is highly effective in cell cultures at inhibiting the interaction between the protein p53 and another protein that inactivates p53 in cancer. The new molecule is ideal for drug development as it can be given orally as a pill and it appears to be safe for use in animals.
A small, three-week trial of tamoxifen, a drug typically used to treat breast cancer, indicates that it also may decrease symptoms of mania in patients with bipolar disorder, according to a new article.
A toxic pollutant spread by oil spills, forest fires and car exhaust is also present in cigarette smoke, and may represent a second way in which smoking delays bone healing, according to new research.
Scientists believe they have uncovered a key reason why flu viruses tend to strike in cold weather. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Mar 2008 | 11:18 am
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China is developing weapons that would disable its enemies' space technology such as satellites in a conflict, the Pentagon said in a report released on Monday.
CHICAGO (Reuters) - A monitoring device that cut TV and computer time in half helped young, overweight children eat less and lose weight, U.S. researchers said on Monday.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - He was the Albert Einstein of his time -- aside from the fact that this long-extinct critter weighed about an ounce (28 grams), measured three inches long and munched on bugs and berries.
Medical researchers have tracked David Ward since his birth in 1946. The findings shed fascinating light on the impact of childhood on health in later years Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 4 Mar 2008 | 12:09 am
Leader: There was something pleasing about the effort by Walsall's Barr Beacon school yesterday afternoon to reach for the stars Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 4 Mar 2008 | 12:06 am
Stopping children from watching TV really does make them healthier and less fat, according to a study. By James Randerson Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 4 Mar 2008 | 12:04 am
Japan looks for new supporters for its pro-hunting position, ahead of a major meeting on whaling. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 3 Mar 2008 | 3:04 pm
James Randerson and the team discuss the controversy over Prozac. Plus, Polly Toynbee on organ donation. And the greatest science songs of all time Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 3 Mar 2008 | 1:57 pm
Science writer Matt Ridley introduces physicist Alan Sokal's talk on the science of enquiry as part of the Sense About Science lecture series Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 3 Mar 2008 | 1:11 pm
MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish breeder of fighting bulls has decided to clone his favorite stud rather than risk buying a traditionally bred replacement.
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Defects in working memory -- the brain's temporary storage bin -- may explain why one child cannot read her history book and another gets lost in algebra, new research suggests.
A huge cloud of "yellow dust" settles on South Korea and Japan as the year's first sand storm blows in from China. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 3 Mar 2008 | 11:45 am
