Atlanta – DNA provides the instruction manual for all life forms. Occasionally, instructions are not carried out properly, and bad messages are sent leading to the creation of mutant proteins and possible tumor development.
Paul Doetsch…
Tag Archives | development
Nature Reviews Cancer article traces possible role of damaged DNA in tumor development
Researchers pinpoint genetic pathways involved in breast cancer
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Using recent advances in genomics, researchers have uncovered a genetic pathway that affects the development of breast cancer, work that could help predict which patients are at risk of relapse for the disease.
By st…
LAMMPS supercomputer code developer earns special recognition
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Sandia National Laboratories researcher Steve Plimpton, who led development of a widely used computer code that models how materials behave, has been invited to present a keynote lecture at the Feb. 27-March 3 Minerals, Mate…
Nature study: Jefferson researchers unravel protein’s elusive role in embryo and disease development
PHILADELPHIA — Reporting in Nature, scientists from Thomas Jefferson University have determined that a single protein called FADD controls multiple cell death pathways, a discovery that could lead to better, more targeted autoimmune disease and can…
Team delivers development aid via cell phone animations
CHAMPAIGN, lll. — A farmer in Niger learns how to protect his crops from insects. A resident of Port-au-Prince or a rural Haitian village learns how to avoid exposure to cholera. An entrepreneur in Mali gets step-by-step instructions on extra…
Immune molecule regulates brain connections
The number of connections between nerve cells in the brain can be regulated by an immune system molecule, according to a new study from UC Davis. The research, published Feb. 27 in the journal Nature Neuroscience, reveals a potential link between i…
Language patterns are roller-coaster ride during childhood development
Why, and when, do we learn to speak the way that we do? Research from North Carolina State University on African-American children presents an unexpected finding: language use can go on a roller-coaster ride during childhood as kids adopt and abando…
Common congenital defect a prickly problem for the kidney
One of the most common congenital defects in humans — it is detected in approximately 0.5% of fetuses analyzed by routine antenatal sonography — is a kidney abnormality known as hydronephrosis. Hydronephrosis arises because the flow of urine f…
Most New Jersey residents see global health as critical to state’s economy
WASHINGTON — February 16, 2011 — Despite the unpredictable economy, nearly three-quarters (73%) of New Jersey residents think spending money on research to improve health globally is important to jobs and incomes in the state, according to a new s…
Designing new molecular tools to study the life and death of a cancer cell
Basic and translational research on cancer, and development of new cancer therapeutics, has focused on different aspects of cancer cellular function. One area of focus is the life and death of a cancer cell. Apoptosis, also known as programmed cel…
Partnership of genes affects the brain’s development
The human brain consists of approximately one hundred billion nerve cells. Each of these cells needs to connect to specific other cells during the brain’s development in order to form a fully functional organism. Yet how does a nerve cell know w…
Common insecticide used in homes associated with delayed mental development of young children
February 9, 2011 — When the EPA phased out the widespread residential use of chlorpyrifos and other organophosphorus (OP) insecticides in 2000-2001 because of risks to child neurodevelopment, these compounds were largely replaced with pyrethroid in…
Putting trees on farms fundamental to future agricultural development
Nairobi, Kenya (9 February 2011) Trees growing on farms will be essential to future development. As the number of trees in forests is declining every year, the number of trees on farms is increasing. Marking the launch of the International Year …
New techniques for stapling peptides could spur development of drugs for cancer
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Researchers at the University at Buffalo have devised two new ways of “stapling” peptide helices to prevent these medically important molecules from losing their shape and degrading in the presence of enzymes.
The discovery could h…
Figuring out fetal alcohol syndrome in fruit flies
Drinking excess alcohol during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) due to the damaging effects of alcohol on a developing baby’s brain. Despite its harmful effects, pregnant mothers continue to drink alcohol — up to 3 in every 1000 ba…
Unexpected new mechanism behind rheumatoid arthritis
A team of researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, has identified an enzyme that protects against inflammation and joint destruction. Made when the researchers blocked production of the enzyme GGTase-I in transgenic mice, this unexpected…
Expanding drug development horizons: Receptor behaviors observed in living cell membranes
Kyoto, Japan — Unprecedented single molecule imaging movies of living cell membranes, taken by a research team based at Kyoto University and the University of New Mexico, have clarified a decades-old enigma surrounding receptor molecule behaviors. …
Child care quality key for children from disadvantaged homes
Decades of research have demonstrated the importance of the resources in children’s homes and the benefits of high-quality interactions with parents in supporting healthy development. High-quality child care plays a similar, albeit less powerful, ro…
All in the family: Lower back disease may be in your genes
— Symptomatic lumbar disc disease, a condition caused by degeneration or herniation of the discs of the lower spine, may be inherited, according to a new study published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS).
“Previous studies, includi…
Seeking social genes
In order understand the evolution of complex societies, researchers are sequencing the genomes of social insects. The most recent data, published this week in the Early Edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, come from several sp…
Can you teach an old doctor new tricks?
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — When it comes to changing the way physicians practice, guidelines and educational initiatives alone are not effective. An editorial by James A. Arrighi, M.D., a cardiologist with Rhode Island Hospital, explains the effecti…
More frequent drought likely in eastern Africa
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) — – The increased frequency of drought observed in Eastern Africa over the last 20 years is likely to continue as long as global temperatures continue to rise, according to UC Santa Barbara scientist Park Williams.
T…
Report offers solutions to address decline in US dental faculty
A new report by an Indiana University School of Dentistry department chair with researchers from six other U.S. dental schools is calling for quick and creative solutions to address the growing scarcity of full-time faculty members within the nation…
Small particles show big promise in beating unpleasant odors
Scientists are reporting development of a new approach for dealing with offensive household and other odors — one that doesn’t simply mask odors like today’s room fresheners, but eliminates them at the source. Their research found that a deodoran…
RAND study: No direct military benefit from use of alternative fuels by armed forces
If the U.S. military increases its use of alternative fuels, there will be no direct benefit to the nation’s armed forces, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
Any benefits from investment in alternative fuels by the U.S. Department of Def…
Go figure: Math model may help researchers with stem cell, cancer therapies
The difficult task of sorting and counting prized stem cells and their cancer-causing cousins has long frustrated scientists looking for new ways to help people who have progressive diseases.
But in a development likely to delight math teachers, U…
A nanoscale rope, and another step toward complex nanomaterials that assemble themselves
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have coaxed polymers to braid themselves into wispy nanoscale ropes that approach the structural complexity of biological materials.
Their work is t…
Killer paper for next-generation food packaging
Scientists are reporting development and successful lab tests of “killer paper,” a material intended for use as a new food packaging material that helps preserve foods by fighting the bacteria that cause spoilage. The paper, described in ACS’ journa…
New technology provides first view of DNA damage within entire human genome
New technology providing the first view of DNA damage throughout the entire human genome developed by Cardiff University scientists could offer a valuable new insight into the development and treatment of conditions like cancer.
Professor Ray Wat…
Being poor can suppress children’s genetic potentials
AUSTIN, Texas — Growing up poor can suppress a child’s genetic potential to excel cognitively even before the age of 2, according to research from psychologists at The University of Texas at Austin.
Half of the gains that wealthier children sho…