Science

Four cancer breakthroughs clear way for drugs that block tumor growth

"Researchers at the University College London announced Sunday in a study published by the journal Nature Cell Biology that they’ve observed for the first time ever how cancer spreads throughout the body and metastasizes, which causes about 90 percent of all cancer deaths. Meanwhile, another major breakthrough in recent days should give hope to breast cancer patients. Scientists at the Duke Cancer Institute announced on Saturday that a drug already on the market in Europe, approved to treat osteoporosis, has the added benefit of stopping late-stage breast cancer growth in its tracks." Continue reading →

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Doctor claims breakthrough in race for spinal cord injury ‘cure’

"After progress in a second round of tests using stem cells to regrow nerve fibres, the China Spinal Cord Injury Network (ChinaSCINet) has applied for regulatory approval in China for a third and final phase, which it hopes to start in the autumn. 15 out of 20 patients in the Chinese city of Kunming, who received umbilical cord blood cell transplants and intensive walking therapy, were on average able to walk with minimal assistance seven years after complete spinal cord injury. The treatment involves injecting umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells into patients’ damaged spines to help regenerate nerves, while lithium is used to promote the growth of the nerve fibres." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDoctor claims breakthrough in race for spinal cord injury ‘cure’

Scientists switch off chromosome that causes Down’s syndrome

"Gene scientists on Wednesday said that in lab-dish cells, they had found a way to switch off the rogue chromosome that causes Down’s syndrome. The breakthrough opens up the tantalising goal of therapy for Down’s, they said, cautioning that years of work lie ahead before this aim is reached — if, in fact, it is attainable. Down’s syndrome is the world’s leading genetically caused mental disease, accounting for around one in 600 live births in the United States. It is the first time that correction has been achieved for an entire chromosome, a coil of DNA that is studded with hundreds of genes, the protein-making codes to build and sustain life." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingScientists switch off chromosome that causes Down’s syndrome

‘Safe’ sugar levels in humans are toxic to mice

"Sugar is toxic for mice in dosages that in humans would equal a 'safe' diet that includes three cans of soda per day, scientists said Tuesday. Mice fed a diet in which sugar contributed a quarter of their daily calories did not become obese or ill, yet died younger and had fewer babies than animals on a healthy diet, said the team — raising red flags about 'added sugar' levels some consider safe for humans. 'Added sugar' is a term used for the refined stuff that is added to sweet drinks, baked goods and candy rather than the natural sugars found in fruit, vegetables and milk products. Sugar consumption in the American diet had increased by 50 percent since the 1970s." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Safe’ sugar levels in humans are toxic to mice

New IRIS telescope sends stunning images of sun to befuddled scientists

"A new solar observatory is revealing remarkably fine details about a little-explored region of the sun's atmosphere, where temperatures leap from tens of thousands of degrees Fahrenheit at the sun's surface to to millions of degrees in its extended atmosphere. Dubbed the interface region by the observatory's science team, this first 2,000 to 3,000 miles of the sun's atmosphere is thought to play a key role in a range of processes, including those that power solar flares and even more potent coronal-mass ejections. These events can endanger satellites, disrupt radio communication and GPS navigation, as well as disrupt the power grid on Earth." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew IRIS telescope sends stunning images of sun to befuddled scientists

‘Mini Lisa’: Georgia Tech researchers create world’s tiniest da Vinci reproduction

"Using a tiny heated probe, a team of scientists have 'painted' a grayscale replica of the Mona Lisa that is more than 25,000 times smaller than the original. The 'Mini Lisa,' as it is known, is just 30 millionths of a meter wide. That's roughly 0.001 inches, or one third of the width of a human hair. The team created it using a powerful microscope and a process known as ThermoChemical NanoLithography, or TCNL. Each 'pixel' was 125 billionths of a meter wide – smaller than the smallest known bacteria – and Carroll and the rest of the research team went pixel-by-pixel to create the reproduction." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Mini Lisa’: Georgia Tech researchers create world’s tiniest da Vinci reproduction

Carnegie Mellon research shows cellphone use may not cause more car crashes

"For almost 20 years, it has been a wide-held belief that talking on a cellphone while driving is dangerous and leads to more accidents. However, new research from Carnegie Mellon University and the London School of Economics and Political Science suggests that talking on a cellphone while driving does not increase crash risk. Additionally, the researchers analyzed the effects of legislation banning cellphone use, enacted in several states, and similarly found that the legislation had no effect on the crash rate." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCarnegie Mellon research shows cellphone use may not cause more car crashes

MIT researches find gold can control blood clotting

"Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists, funded by the US National Science Foundation, have come up with a new technique to control blood clotting by using gold. The method involves small particles of gold and the use of infrared laser light. According to the researchers, who published their findings in the PLoS One journal, one of the main advantages of this method is that coagulation can be turned on or off as needed. Wound healing, surgery and other conditions require handling this process, mainly through the use of anticoagulants such as heparin or warfarin. However, reversing the effects of these drugs is difficult." Continue reading →

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Woolly mammoth DNA may lead to a resurrection of the ancient beast

"The pioneering scientist who created Dolly the sheep has outlined how cells plucked from frozen woolly mammoth carcasses might one day help resurrect the ancient beasts. The notional procedure – bringing with it echoes of the Jurassic Park films – was spelled out by Sir Ian Wilmut, the Edinburgh-based stem-cell scientist, whose team unveiled Dolly as the world's first cloned mammal in 1996. Though it is unlikely that a mammoth could be cloned in the same way as Dolly, more modern techniques that convert tissue cells into stem cells could potentially achieve the feat, Wilmut says in an article today for the academic journalism website, The Conversation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWoolly mammoth DNA may lead to a resurrection of the ancient beast

Scientists cook world’s first lab-grown, in-vitro hamburger

"The in-vitro burger, cultured from cattle stem cells, will be fried in a pan and tasted by two volunteers. The burger is the result of years of research by Dutch scientist Mark Post, a vascular biologist at the University of Maastricht, who is working to show how meat grown in petri dishes might one day be a true alternative to meat from livestock. The meat in the burger has been made by knitting together around 20,000 strands of protein that has been cultured from cattle stem cells in Post’s lab. The tissue is grown by placing the cells in a ring, like a donut, around a hub of nutrient gel, Post explained." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingScientists cook world’s first lab-grown, in-vitro hamburger