ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Repopulation of countryside is essential tool to avoid major fires, Spanish experts say
• Higher-math skills entwined with lower-order magnitude sense
• Yeast model offers clues to possible drug targets for Lou Gehrig's disease, study shows
• Mechanism found for destruction of key allergy-inducing complexes, researchers say
• Primates' brains make visual maps using triangular grids
• Novel genes that may drive rare, aggressive form of uterine cancer identified
• Test developed to detect early-stage diseases with naked eye: Prototype ultra sensitive disease sensor developed
• Uncertainty of future South Pacific Island rainfall explained
• Looking beyond space and time to cope with quantum theory
• Pushing genome data analysis one step forward
• Key discovered to how chemotherapy drug causes heart failure
• Drop in testosterone tied to prostate cancer recurrence
• Scientists block toxic protein that plays key role in Lou Gehrig's disease
• Influenza vaccine may reduce risk of heart disease and death: Flu shot may reduce risk of major cardiac event by 50 percent
• Cause of high cholesterol discovered
• Routine electrocardiograms predict health risks for patients with atrial fibrillation
• Genetic research may advance understanding of ethnic differences in breast cancer
• Microgravity research coming of age on the International Space Station

Repopulation of countryside is essential tool to avoid major fires, Spanish experts say Posted: 28 Oct 2012 01:06 PM PDT A preliminary report on the major fires Valencia, Spain suggests that repopulation of the countryside is an essential tool to avoid major forest fires, and points out alternative solutions such as biological firewalls that involve developing pastures.

Higher-math skills entwined with lower-order magnitude sense Posted: 28 Oct 2012 12:49 PM PDT The ability to learn complex, symbolic math is a uniquely human trait, but it is intricately connected to a primitive sense of magnitude that is shared by many animals, finds a new study.

Yeast model offers clues to possible drug targets for Lou Gehrig's disease, study shows Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, is a devastatingly cruel neurodegenerative disorder that robs sufferers of the ability to move, speak and, finally, breathe. Now researchers have used baker's yeast -- a tiny, one-celled organism -- to identify a chink in the armor of the currently incurable disease that may eventually lead to new therapies for human patients.

Mechanism found for destruction of key allergy-inducing complexes, researchers say Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT Researchers have learned how a synthetic molecule destroys complexes that induce allergic responses -- a discovery that could lead to the development of highly potent, rapidly acting interventions for a host of acute allergic reactions.

Primates' brains make visual maps using triangular grids Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT Scientists have identified grid cells, neurons that fire in repeating triangular patterns as the eyes explore visual scenes, in the brains of rhesus monkeys. This is the first time grid cells have been detected directly in primates. The finding has implications for understanding how humans form and remember mental maps of the world, as well as how neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's erode those abilities.

Novel genes that may drive rare, aggressive form of uterine cancer identified Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT Researchers have identified several genes that are linked to one of the most lethal forms of uterine cancer, serous endometrial cancer. The researchers describe how three of the genes found in the study are frequently altered in the disease, suggesting that the genes drive the development of tumors.

Test developed to detect early-stage diseases with naked eye: Prototype ultra sensitive disease sensor developed Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT Scientists have developed a prototype ultra-sensitive sensor that would enable doctors to detect the early stages of diseases and viruses with the naked eye.

Uncertainty of future South Pacific Island rainfall explained Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:23 AM PDT With greenhouse warming, rainfall in the South Pacific islands will depend on two competing effects -- an increase due to overall warming and a decrease due to changes in atmospheric water transport -- according to a new study. In the South Pacific these two effects sometimes cancel each other out, resulting in highly uncertain rainfall projections.

Looking beyond space and time to cope with quantum theory Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:22 AM PDT Physicists have proposed an experiment that could force us to make a choice between extremes to describe the behaviour of the Universe.

Pushing genome data analysis one step forward Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:22 AM PDT Due to the exponential increase in sequencing capacity, efficient tools for data analysis are becoming essential to process the vast amount of biological data. Scientists have now developed a tool for the interpretation of genomic data that is several times faster and much more accurate than other tools currently being used.

Key discovered to how chemotherapy drug causes heart failure Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:22 AM PDT Doxorubicin, a 50-year-old chemotherapy drug still in widespread use against a variety of cancers, has long been known to destroy heart tissue, as well as tumors, in some patients. Scientists have now identified an unexpected mechanism via the enzyme Top2b that drives the drug's attack on heart muscle, providing a new approach for identifying patients who can safely tolerate doxorubicin and for developing new drugs.

Drop in testosterone tied to prostate cancer recurrence Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:17 AM PDT Men whose testosterone drops following radiation therapy for prostate cancer are more likely to experience a change in PSA levels that signals their cancer has returned, according to new research.

Scientists block toxic protein that plays key role in Lou Gehrig's disease Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:17 AM PDT Scientists have discovered how modifying a gene halts the toxic buildup of a protein found in nerve cells. These findings point to a potential new tactic for treating a variety of neurodegenerative conditions, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Influenza vaccine may reduce risk of heart disease and death: Flu shot may reduce risk of major cardiac event by 50 percent Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:17 AM PDT The influenza vaccine could be an important treatment for maintaining heart health and warding off cardiovascular events like strokes and heart attacks.

Cause of high cholesterol discovered Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:17 AM PDT A protein called resistin, secreted by fat tissue, causes high levels of "bad" cholesterol, increasing the risk of heart disease.

Routine electrocardiograms predict health risks for patients with atrial fibrillation Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:17 AM PDT Routine electrocardiogram results for patients with atrial fibrillation can help doctors identify those at higher risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes, including death.

Genetic research may advance understanding of ethnic differences in breast cancer Posted: 28 Oct 2012 11:16 AM PDT For the first time, researchers have provided a direct comparison of gene expression profiles from African-American and East African breast tissue samples, according to new results.

Microgravity research coming of age on the International Space Station Posted: 28 Oct 2012 05:52 AM PDT They say that necessity is the mother of invention, so when humans decided to build and inhabit a laboratory in the harsh environment of space, it was only natural that innovations would follow. The creators of these developments sought patents to protect their intellectual property, giving a way to gauge microgravity advancements. A recently published paper looks back at the more than 818 patents granted since 1981, as related to the term "microgravity."

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