Scientists analyzing the data from the European Venus Express spacecraft now orbiting Earth's prodigal twin planet have been piecing together an understanding of why the climate on both worlds is so different.
What role do nanoparticles play in hardening of the arteries and in the formation of kidney stones? How may these super-small particles affect the body's physiology? Nanoparticles are a thousand times smaller than the bacteria, E. coli, but recent advances in microscopy have allowed researchers to watch them interact with cells in the body.
Tea drinkers who opt for black, oolong, green or white teas may find that these beverages offer health benefits. But what is -- and isn't -- known about the health effects of drinking tea? Black, oolong, green or white teas have a common origin. Each is produced from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis bush. The leaves are loaded with flavonoids and other polyphenols that work as antioxidants, possibly lowering the risk of some diseases.
Scientists have identified a mechanism controlling multidrug resistance in fungi, a discovery that could help advance treatments for opportunistic fungal infections that frequently plague individuals with compromised immunity, such as patients receiving chemotherapy, transplant recipients treated with immunosuppressive drugs, and AIDS patients.
Astronomers have, for the first time, detected a storm of shooting stars on Mars. The detections were made using predictions of when meteor showers should occur as the orbit of Mars intersects with debris from comet 79P/du Toit-Hartley. These predictions were cross-referenced with observations of activity in the Martian ionosphere.
Mild cognitive impairment -- a state between the normal forgetfulness that comes with aging and the more pronounced thinking deficits of dementia -- often progresses to Alzheimer's disease, but some people remain stable and others recover. New technology is improving the ability to determine who might fall into each category.
In the first experiment of its kind conducted in nature, evolutionary biologists have come up with strong evidence for one of Charles Darwin's cornerstone ideas -- adaptation to the environment accelerates the creation of new species.
Nipah virus is a new and deadly brain and lung disease that emerged from Singapore and Malaysia ten years ago. It is now spreading into rural India and Bangladesh killing up to three-quarters of the people who become infected in some outbreaks.
A family of small molecules called CFTR inhibitors show promising effects in slowing the progression of polycystic kidney disease, the most common genetic disease of the kidneys. Patients with PKD develop cysts on the kidneys, which progressively increase in size and number.
Some of the oxygen we breathe today is being produced because of viruses infecting micro-organisms in the world's oceans according to scientists. About half the world's oxygen is being produced by tiny photosynthesising creatures called phytoplankton in the major oceans.
A controversial physics theory may better explain some aspects of galaxy behaviour, an astronomer argues. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 5 Apr 2008 | 8:26 pm
