An international research consortium today announced the 1000 Genomes Project, an ambitious effort that will involve sequencing the genomes of at least a thousand people from around the world to create the most detailed and medically useful picture to date of human genetic variation.
RNA interference represents an innovative new strategy for using small RNA molecules to silence specific genes associated with disease processes, and a series of review articles describing the state-of-the-art and potential therapeutic applications of RNAi and microRNAs in Human Gene Therapy.
A parasitic infection common in China and Southeast Asia could be effectively reduced by controlling snail populations, according to research. Infection with schistosomes of various species affects some 200 million people worldwide, and can cause serious chronic illnesses, including liver failure.
Findings from a new study in Zanzibar pave the way for the World Health Organization to recommend the mass co-delivery of three antiparasitic drugs for the first time. The study shows the safety of delivering three drugs simultaneously -- ivermectin, albendazole and praziquantel -- in order to tackle three diseases, elephantiasis, soil-transmitted worms, and schistosomiasis.
Scientists are establishing a facility to screen for potential new antibiotics. The aim of the project is to build a highly focused natural products drug discovery operation that will address the urgent need for bringing new antibiotic compounds to market.
Same-sex couples are just as committed in their romantic relationships as heterosexual couples, say researchers who have studied the quality of adult relationships and healthy development. Their finding disputes the stereotype that couples in same-sex relationships are not as committed as their heterosexual counterparts and are therefore not as psychologically healthy.
Denizens of oceans, lakes and even wet soil, diatoms are unicellular algae that encase themselves in intricately patterned, glass-like shells. Curiously, these tiny phytoplankton could be harboring the next big breakthrough in computer chips.
Evidence supports drinking cranberry juice -- a familiar home remedy --- to treat urinary tract infection. People have used cranberries, especially cranberry juice, for decades to prevent and treat UTIs. The fruit contains organic substances, such as quinic acid and citric acid, which act as antibacterial agents to help eliminate bacteria from the bladder.
Researchers have assessed the financial costs of environmental damage caused by human activities in high-, middle- and low-income nations, and where those costs fall. As expected, the rich nations disproportionately impact poor nations, but the results allows the researchers to estimate the total cost. Altogether, poor nations are burdened by a cost that exceeds what they owe the rich nations.
Preliminary research indicates that obese patients with type 2 diabetes who had gastric banding surgery lost more weight and had a higher likelihood of diabetes remission compared to patients who used conventional methods for weight loss and diabetes control, according to a new study.
Virtually everyone stands to benefit from the more pervasive use of computer technology. But while adding microchips to more everyday objects can make lives easier – and even save them – the approach creates some unique problems of its own. “Palpable” rather than “ubiquitous” computing promises a solution. “Palpable computing” refers to pervasive computer technology that is also tangible and comprehensible to its users.
Children undergoing PAS are manipulated by their custodial parent, who tries to turn them against their father/mother, arousing in them feelings of hatred and contempt for the other parent. Children usually not only reject the noncustodial parent, but also his or her family and close friends.
The first of two advanced microscopes has been installed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. TEAM 0.5 is the world's most powerful transmission electron microscope and is capable of producing images with half-angstrom resolution, less than the diameter of a single hydrogen atom.
Brittle tendons in mice reveal the potential downside of myostatin inhibitor drugs that are attracting interest as possible treatments for muscular dystrophy and as illicit performance-enhancing drugs for athletes. A new animal study raises doubts about one approach to treating muscular dystrophy.
