ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

Common Cold Symptoms Caused By Immune System -- Not The Cold Virus Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT Scientists confirm that it is how our immune system responds, not the rhinovirus itself, that causes cold symptoms. Of more than 100 different viruses that can cause the common cold, human rhinoviruses are the major cause.

Allergies May Protect Against Certain Types Of Cancer Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT A new article provides strong evidence that allergies are much more than just an annoying immune malfunction. They may protect against certain types of cancer.

World's Smallest Hand-held Instrument For Detecting Health And Safety Threats Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT Researchers in Indiana are describing development of the world's smallest complete mass spectrometer (MS), a miniature version of a standard lab device -- some of which would dominate a living room -- to identify tiny amounts of chemicals in the environment.

Cholesterol-lowering Drugs May Also Lower PSA, But Whether They Cut Cancer Risk Is Still Not Known Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT Popular cholesterol-busting drugs -- statins -- appear to lower men's PSA values along with their cholesterol levels, according to researchers. But whether the drugs prevent prostate cancer growth or just mask it is not known yet.

Predicting Boom And Bust Ecologies Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT While scholars may be a long way from predicting the ins and outs of the economy, biologists have uncovered fundamental rules that may govern population cycles in many natural systems.

Gender Affects Perceptions Of Infidelity Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 PM CDT A new study explored how men and women perceive online and offline sexual and emotional infidelity. When given the choice, men were more upset by sexual infidelity and women were more upset by emotional infidelity.

Methane Gas Levels Begin To Increase Again Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT The amount of methane in Earth's atmosphere shot up in 2007, bringing to an end a period of about a decade in which atmospheric levels of the potent greenhouse gas were essentially stable, according new research.

New Drug Target In Obesity: Fat Cells Make Lots Of Melanin Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT As millions of Americans gear up for the Thanksgiving holiday, a new report may provide some relief for those leery second helpings. Researchers describe a discovery that may allow some obese people avoid common obesity-related metabolic problems without losing weight: they make a common antioxidant, melanin, in excess. Even more promising is that some of the antioxidant drugs that can mimic the melanin effect are FDA-approved and available.

New Gene Responsible For Puberty Disorders Identified Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT A new gene responsible for some puberty disorders has been identified. Scientists found that the gene mutated in CHARGE syndrome – a multi-system disorder characterized by diverse problems from heart defects to hearing loss to cleft lip and palate and mental retardation – also accounts for about 6 percent of two puberty disorders.

Vaginal/Caesarean Combo Delivery Of Twins Safe, Study Suggests Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT Doctors need not go straight to Caesarean section when delivering twins, but can start with vaginal delivery of the first twin in many cases, researchers have found in a new study.

Methylmercury Warning Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT Recent studies hint that exposure to the toxic chemicals, such as methylmercury can cause harm at levels previously considered safe. A new analysis of the epidemiological evidence in the International Journal of Environment and Health, suggests that we should take a precautionary approach to this and similar compounds to protect unborn children from irreversible brain damage.

Facing Fears Early May Reduce Childhood Anxiety Posted: 30 Oct 2008 10:00 AM CDT Helping children face their fears may be more productive than focusing on other techniques to help them manage their anxieties, according to new research.

Programmable Genetic Clock Made Of Blinking Florescent Proteins Inside Bacteria Cells Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT Bioengineers have created the first stable, fast and programmable genetic clock that reliably keeps time by the blinking of fluorescent proteins inside E. coli cells. The clock's blink rate changes when the temperature, energy source or other environmental conditions change, a fact that could lead to new kinds of sensors that convey information about the environment through the blinking rate.

New Chemical Key Could Unlock Hundreds Of New Antibiotics Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT Chemistry researchers have found a novel signaling molecule that could be a key that will open up hundreds of new antibiotics unlocking them from the DNA of the Streptomyces family of bacteria.

Catching Earthquake Details With Ordinary Laptop Computers Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT Inside your laptop is a small accelerometer chip, there to protect the delicate moving parts of your hard disk from sudden jolts. It turns out that the same chip is a pretty good earthquake sensor, too -- especially if the signals from lots of them are compared, in order to filter out more mundane sources of laptop vibrations, such as typing.

Improved Rodent Trials Can Speed Cancer Drug Development, Expert Suggests Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT Better design of rodent trials could reduce the cost and time required for cancer drug development, according to an expert.

Pervasive Network Discovered Driving Protein Production And Placement In Cells Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT Researchers have uncovered what appears to be an extensive, but until now barely noticed, network of regulatory interactions that influence what proteins are made inside a cell, and when and where.

Abducted Children: Conventional Photos Alone Don't Aid The Search Posted: 30 Oct 2008 07:00 AM CDT People's ability to recognize abducted children is impaired when they view a photo of a smiling, clean child, but come into contact with the same child whose appearance is very different because he or she is upset, crying, disheveled or unkempt.

Real Robinson Crusoe: Evidence Of Alexander Selkirk’s Desert Island Campsite Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT An archaeological dig unearths evidence of the campsite of castaway Alexander Selkirk, the model for Robinson Crusoe.

Hurdles For Muscular Dystrophy Therapy Cleared Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT Boys with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy will usually lose the ability to walk by their teens and typically die before the age of 30. For years, scientists have studied the use of gene therapy as a possible way to correct the muscle deterioration, but hurdles such as the need to treat all muscles in the body, including both skeletal muscle and heart muscle, have challenged researchers looking for an effective therapy until now. New studies demonstrate an effective way to deliver gene therapy and scientist show that therapy can be beneficial for the heart.

Why Some Marine Algae Are Shaped Like Crumpled Paper Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT What is the connection between crumpled paper and marine algae? Saddle-like shapes similar to those found in an Elizabethan "ruff" collar, say physicists in a new article.

HIV-infected Patients Should Start HAART Sooner, Study Suggests Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT Under current treatment guidelines, highly active antiretroviral therapy should be considered for HIV-infected patients when their CD4+ T-cell counts fall below 350 cells per cubic millimeter (mm3). However, new epidemiological research suggests that patients with HIV may have less risk of dying if they begin HAART sooner.

New Supercomputer Can Do 50 Trillion Operations Per Second Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT In less time than the blink of an eye, the Translational Genomics Research Institute's new supercomputer at Arizona State University can do operations equal to every dollar in the recent Wall Street bailout. That would be 700 billion computations in less than 1/60th of a second.

Strengthen Restrictions On Off-label Promotion By Pharmaceutical Companies, Researchers Urge Posted: 30 Oct 2008 04:00 AM CDT Researchers are asking for tougher penalties and fines for pharmaceutical companies that market drugs for "off label" promotion, according to a new study. Researchers describe ways that the pharmaceutical industry uses marketing to encourage "the unmonitored, potentially dangerous use of drugs by patients for whom risks and benefits are unknown."

Climate Change Seeps Into The Sea Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT Good news has turned out to be bad. The ocean has helped slow global warming by absorbing much of the excess heat and heat-trapping carbon dioxide that has been going into the atmosphere since the start of the Industrial Revolution. All that extra carbon dioxide, however, has been a bitter pill for the ocean to swallow. It's changing the chemistry of seawater, making it more acidic and otherwise inhospitable, threatening many important marine organisms.

New Hormone Data Can Predict Menopause Within A Year Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT For many women, including the growing number who choose later-in-life pregnancy, predicting their biological clock's relation to the timing of their menopause and infertility is critically important.

Progress Toward New Storage Media: Reliable Nanopatterns On Chips Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT Scientists have produced reliable nanopatterns of a spin-transition compound on silicon oxide chips. This is a decisive step toward a new generation of molecular storage media.

MRSA Screening Downplayed As Effective Infection Control Intervention Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT Epidemiologists are downplaying the value of mandatory universal nasal screening of patients for MRSA, arguing that proven, hospital-wide infection control practices can prevent more of the potentially fatal infections.

Computer Scientists Seek New Framework For Computation Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT There have been several revolutions during the 60 year history of electronic computation, such as high level programming languages and client/server separation, but one key challenge has yet to be fully resolved. This is to break down large complex processes into small more manageable components that can then be reused in different applications.

Racial And Ethnic Disparities Detected In Patient Experiences Posted: 30 Oct 2008 01:00 AM CDT A study surveying patients in more than 1,500 physician practices has found racial and ethnic disparities in patient experiences, with minority patients having worse experiences than white patients. The findings suggest that while all doctors should be attentive to differences in patient experiences, Hispanic, Native American, and black patients are often visiting physician practices that are less patient-centered.

Statins Associated With Lower Risk Of Death From Pneumonia Posted: 29 Oct 2008 10:00 PM CDT Individuals who take cholesterol-lowering statins before being hospitalized with pneumonia appear less likely to die within 90 days afterward, according to a new report.

Toward Non-invasive Disease Diagnosis With Wellness Cards Posted: 29 Oct 2008 10:00 PM CDT Scientists are reporting development of a device that could serve as the electronic "reader" for a coming generation of "wellness cards," specimen holders used to diagnose disease from a drop of a patient's saliva or blood.

Exercise-induced Fatigue In Muscular Dystrophies Explained Posted: 29 Oct 2008 10:00 PM CDT A new study suggests that the prolonged fatigue after mild exercise that occurs in people with many forms of muscular dystrophy is distinct from the inherent muscle weakness caused by the disease. The research identifies a faulty signaling pathway that appears to cause exercise-induced fatigue in mouse models of muscular dystrophy and shows that Viagra can overcome the signaling defect and relieve the fatigue.

Reduce Computer Power Usage? Silicon Optical Fiber Made Practical Posted: 29 Oct 2008 10:00 PM CDT Scientists have, for the firsts time, been able to make a practical optical fiber with a silicon core.

New Understanding Of How We Remember Traumatic Events Posted: 29 Oct 2008 10:00 PM CDT Neuroscientists have discovered a new way to explain how emotional events can sometimes lead to disturbing long term memories.

NASA's Phoenix Mission Faces Survival Challenges Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT In a race against time and the elements, engineers with NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander mission hope to extend the lander's survival by gradually shutting down some of its instruments and heaters, starting this week.

In Mice, Anxiety Is Linked To Immune System Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT Scientists reveal that immune cells in the brain influence how mice respond to stressful situations.

'Cheshire Cat' Escape Strategy In Response To Marine Viruses Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT A novel defense strategy displayed in response to marine viruses by some of the most abundant unicellular organisms found in our oceans has recently been demonstrated. The results enable a clearer understanding of the origin of, and reasons for, sexual reproduction in eukaryotes.

Glutamate: Too Much Of A Good Thing In Schizophrenia? Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT Is schizophrenia a disorder of glutamate hyperactivity or hypoactivity? While the predominant hypothesis for many years was that schizophrenia was a glutamate deficit disorder, there is growing evidence of glutamate hyperactivity as well.

Virtual Screening Leads To Real Progress In Drug Design Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT Around 150 thousand people per year get the parasitic disease African sleeping sickness, but the only medicines to treat it are either difficult to administer, expensive, or toxic. Now a team of scientists has put computers to work to find a solution.

A Face By Any Other Name: Seeing Racial Bias Posted: 29 Oct 2008 07:00 PM CDT If Barack Obama had taken his mother's surname and kept his childhood nickname, American voters might literally see "Barry Dunham" as a quite different presidential candidate, a new study suggests. A name significantly changes our perception of someone's face and race, according to research in the journal Perception.

Amphibians' Ability To Predict Changes In Biodiversity Confirmed By New Study Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT Biologists have long suspected that amphibians, whose moist permeable skins make them susceptible to slight changes in the environment, might be good bellwethers for impending alterations in biodiversity during rapid climate change.

Women's Voices Become More High-pitched During Ovulation Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT A new study adds to mounting evidence that human ovulation -- a state once thought to be undetectable without medical equipment -- actually prompts a range of subtle but observable behaviors aimed at attracting the best possible mate.

Monitoring Broken Bones Without Using Electronics: Wireless Bone Monitor Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT The novel sensor is intended one day to help doctors monitor broken bones as they grow back together. Depending on the values of the forces measured by the sensor, they can decide whether the healing process is progressing normally or whether there is a danger that the fracture or implants might be overloaded. Until now doctors have used expensive and complicated electronic devices which sent the measured data to the outside world as radio signals.

Vaccinating Family Members Offers Important Flu Protection To Newborns Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT Vaccinating new mothers and other family members against influenza before their newborns leave the hospital creates a "cocooning effect" that may shelter unprotected children from the flu, a virus that can be life-threatening to infants, according to researchers at Duke Children's Hospital.

How Toxic Environmental Chemical DBT Affects The Immune System Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT Scientists have issued a report on the mechanism of toxicity of a chemical compound called Dibutyltin (DBT). DBT is part of a class of high toxic and widely distributed chemical compounds called organotins, DBT is most commonly used as an anti-fouling agent in paint, for example in the fishing and shipbuilding industries. It is also used in the production of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic tubes and bottles.

Methamphetamine Abuse Linked To Underage Sex, Smoking And Drinking Posted: 29 Oct 2008 04:00 PM CDT Children and adolescents who abuse alcohol or are sexually active are more likely to take methamphetamines, also known as 'meth' or 'speed.' New research reveals the risk factors associated with MA use, in both low-risk children (those who don't take drugs) and high-risk children (those who have taken other drugs or who have ever attended juvenile detention centers).

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