Press monitoring
Scientists tap tree genomes to discover adaptation strategies
6.1.2015 | Press monitoring
After decades of extrapolating about gene function in trees based on gene function in a tiny, less complex plant, a team of scientists has sequenced whole genomes -- determined the DNA sequence of all the genes -- from 544 unrelated trees of the same species. The study identified gene sequences from Populus trichocarpa, to understand how trees...
More effective diet pill: Imaginary meal tricks the body into losing weight
5.1.2015 | Press monitoring
Salk researchers have developed an entirely new type of pill that tricks the body into thinking it has consumed calories, causing it to burn fat. Unlike most diet pills on the market, this new pill, called fexaramine, doesn't dissolve into the blood like appetite suppressants or caffeine-based diet drugs, but remains in the intestines, causing...
Researchers use optogenetics to trigger REM sleep in mice
2.1.2015 | Press monitoring
Getting enough of the right kind of sleep is crucial for keeping both body and mind healthy. Now a team of researchers at MIT has moved a step closer to being able to produce natural sleep patterns. To develop better approaches to creating natural sleep, researchers need to study the extent to which the various sleep stages can be created first...
Gelatin nanoparticles could deliver drugs to the brain
1.1.2015 | Press monitoring
Stroke victims could have more time to seek treatment that could reduce harmful effects on the brain, thanks to tiny blobs of gelatin that could deliver the medication to the brain noninvasively. University of Illinois researchers and colleagues in South Korea, led by U. of I. electrical and computer engineering senior research scientist Hyungsoo...
Cancer treatment potential discovered in gene repair mechanism
31.12.2014 | Press monitoring
Case Western Reserve researchers have identified a two-pronged therapeutic approach that shows great potential for weakening and then defeating cancer cells. The team's complex mix of genetic and biochemical experiments unearthed a way to increase the presence of a tumor-suppressing protein which, in turn, gives it the strength to direct cancer...
Bacteria could be rich source for making terpenes
30.12.2014 | Press monitoring
If you've ever enjoyed the scent of a pine forest or sniffed a freshly cut basil leaf, then you're familiar with terpenes. The compounds are responsible for the essential oils of plants and the resins of trees. Since the discovery of terpenes more than 150 years ago, scientists have isolated some 50,000 different terpene compounds derived from...
Rudimentary egg and sperm cells made from stem cells
29.12.2014 | Press monitoring
Israeli and UK researchers have created human sperm and egg precursor cells in a dish, starting from a person's skin cells. The achievement is a small step towards a treatment for infertility, although one that could face significant controversy and regulatory hurdles. The experiment recreates in humans parts of a procedure first developed in...
FDA approves blood test that predicts risk of coronary heart disease
26.12.2014 | Press monitoring
Coronary heart disease (CHD) kills more than 385,000 people in the United States each year, and more than half of those who die suddenly have no previous symptoms. A new blood test that could reduce CHD-related illness and mortality by predicting the risk of future heart disease has been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The...
Optogenetics captures neuronal transmission in live mammalian brain
25.12.2014 | Press monitoring
Swiss scientists have used a cutting-edge method to stimulate neurons with light. They have successfully recorded synaptic transmission between neurons in a live animal for the first time. Neurons, the cells of the nervous system, communicate by transmitting chemical signals to each other through junctions called synapses. This "synaptic...
BioP3 technology could be an alternative to bioprinting organs
24.12.2014 | Press monitoring
When we hear about projects that may someday make it possible to create internal organs on demand, they usually incorporate 3D bioprinting. This typically involves depositing successive layers of cell-seeded material one on top of another, to form the finished organ. While the technology definitely holds a lot of promise, a device known as the...
