Phys.Org Newsletter Tuesday, Apr 17

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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for April 17, 2012:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Retroreflector transmits light with negligible power consumption
- Some stars capture rogue planets
- Escalating arms race: Predatory sea urchins drive evolution
- 'Sabpab' Trojan seeks out Mac OS X
- Orangutan nests reveal engineering expertise
- Nanocrystal-coated fibers might reduce wasted energy
- Nanotube electrodes improve solar cells, could yield low-cost, efficient alternative
- Study finds color naming conventions related to how our eyes work
- First blood test to diagnose major depression in teens
- Smartphones wallets going mainstream: survey
- Hubble's panoramic view of a turbulent star-making region
- Magnetic fields can send particles to infinity
- Group finds facial expressions not as universal as thought
- Ammonites found mini oases at ancient methane seeps
- Neutron generation: Going from tubes to chips

Space & Earth news

Direct drinking water recycling could prevent floods
The use of a more streamlined process to recycle wastewater could have saved Brisbane from severe flooding in 2011 and mitigated recent flood risks in New South Wales, a leading water expert says.

Team identifies water vulnerability in border region
The Arizona-Sonora region has been called the front line of ongoing climate change, with global climate models projecting severe precipitation decreases and temperature increases coupled with vulnerability from urbanization, industrialization and agricultural intensification.

The sea as a rubbish tip
Biologists have prepared guidelines for a more precise investigation into marine pollution from microplastic particles.

Report to UK government backs fracking
(AP) -- Exploratory work to extract gas by hydraulic fracturing in England should be allowed to resume even though the technique has caused earth tremors, a report commissioned by the government said Tuesday.

'No-till farming' revolution grows in Indiana
Indiana farmer Mike Starkey does not plow his fields and uses fertilizer only sparingly, but he is on the cutting edge of a growing trend in American agriculture.

Georgetown researcher on climate change: Reduce contribution, care for victims, advocate
Physicians and nurses have a role if not "a moral and professional responsibility to act" to help to reduce climate change and help those impacted, say the authors of "Climate Change & Health: Is There a Role for the Health Care Sector?," published by the Catholic Health Association of the United States. Its authors, including Laura Anderko, PhD, RN, the Robert and Kathleen Scanlon Chair in Values Based Health Care at the School of Nursing & Health Studies at Georgetown University Medical Center, explore the crossroads of climate change, the environment and health, and issue a call for action to coincide with Earth Day, April 22.

Square Kilometre Array site is already producing world-class astrophysics
CSIRO's Murchison Radioastronomy Observatory (MRO), located in remote Western Australia, is the site proposed by Australia and New Zealand to host the high-density core of the multi-billion dollar Square Kilometre Array (SKA), and is already producing world-class research that will be described at an international conference in the UK this week.

NOAA releases new views of Earth's ocean floor
NOAA has made sea floor maps and other data on the world’s coasts, continental shelves and deep ocean available for easy viewing online. Anyone with Internet access can now explore undersea features and obtain detailed depictions of the sea floor and coasts, including deep canyons, ripples, landslides and likely fish habitat.

The Sun spits out a coronal mass ejection
Ever squirted water out of your mouth when playing in a swimming pool or lake? This Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) release by the Sun on April 15, 2012 looks reminiscent of such water spouting.

Space shuttle Discovery lands at new museum home
(AP) -- The space shuttle Discovery went out in high-flying style.

Can sound science guide dispersant use during subsea oil spills?
Two years ago this week, oil began streaming from the seafloor into the Gulf of Mexico following the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon platform. All told, the disaster cost 11 lives, released 4.9 million barrels of crude oil, and caused still unspecified impacts to marine life and the Gulf economy.

The lives of stars, or astronomers as paparazzi
Stars live for a long time, with even the most massive stars having lifetimes measured in millions of years. But, for a mere few thousand years towards the end of their lives, some massive stars go through what astronomers call the yellow supergiant phase. This is remarkably short in astronomical terms, and, as a result, stars in this phase are incredibly rare. In a recent study, astronomers from Lowell Observatory have acted as "stellar paparazzi", managing to identify hundreds of these rare yellow supergiants, and their more long-lived descendants, the red supergiants in two neighboring galaxies. The Lowell astronomers use these newly identified populations to provide a stringent observational test for the theoretical models which describe how these stars change from blue, to yellow and then to red. These constraints are vital because the behavior of the models in this phase can influence many theoretical predictions, including something as “basic” as what type! s of stars explode as supernova.

As air pollution from fracking rises, EPA to set rules
The rush to capture natural gas from hydraulic fracturing has led to giant compressor stations alongside backyard swing sets, drilling rigs in sight of front porches, and huge flares at gas wells alongside country roads.

Oil safety weak two years after BP spill: studies
Offshore drilling safety and oversight is still lacking two years after the massive BP oil spill sullied the US Gulf Coast, two reports released Tuesday have found.

Ammonites found mini oases at ancient methane seeps
Research led by scientists at the American Museum of Natural History shows that ammonites—an extinct type of shelled mollusk that's closely related to modern-day nautiluses and squids—made homes in the unique environments surrounding methane seeps in the seaway that once covered America's Great Plains. The findings, published online on April 10 in the journal Geology, provide new insights into the mode of life and habitat of these ancient animals.

Cassini successfully flies over Enceladus
These raw, unprocessed images of Saturn's moons Enceladus and Tethys were taken on April 14, 2012, by NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

How the Pacific Ocean leaks (w /Video)
A state-of-the-art ocean model has been used in a new study to conduct the first detailed investigation of oceanic water flow between the Pacific and Indian Oceans via the south of Australia. 

Hubble's panoramic view of a turbulent star-making region
(Phys.org) -- Several million stars are vying for attention in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image of a raucous stellar breeding ground in 30 Doradus, located in the heart of the Tarantula nebula.

Some stars capture rogue planets
(Phys.org) -- New research suggests that billions of stars in our galaxy have captured rogue planets that once roamed interstellar space. The nomad worlds, which were kicked out of the star systems in which they formed, occasionally find a new home with a different sun. This finding could explain the existence of some planets that orbit surprisingly far from their stars, and even the existence of a double-planet system.

Technology news

Hollywood warms to China's new openness
(AP) -- There's a new breach in China's great cultural wall and Hollywood is cautiously moving in.

US journalist resigns amid cloud of plagiarism: report
A Washington Post journalist resigned after posting information that appears to be plagiarized and after being reprimanded for "a significant ethical lapse," two US media monitors reported Monday.

Police bust online narcotics 'Farmers Market'
US authorities announced the bust of an online narcotics "Farmers Market" where people around the globe could buy LSD, ecstasy and other illicit substances.

Electrical engineers develop LED 'Magic Wands'
Engineers from the University of Bristol have developed illuminating ‘magic wands’ that work by picking up radio signals from mobile devices. The wands, to be showcased on BBC’s Bang Goes the Theory [16 April], visualise how radio waves bounce around a city.

'Diesel Reloaded:' A vehicle for rethinking mobility rolls into Hannover Messe
Public can see the latest progress in a unique, ongoing electromobility research project during the international trade fair MobiliTec, which takes place April 23-27 at the Hannover Messe. Embodied in a sleek, Colani-designed tractor-trailer that looks more like a spaceship than a truck, the project "Diesel Reloaded" aims to demonstrate how paradigm shifts in automotive, energy, and information technologies can help to address major societal trends and needs. The research group, based at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen, is led by Prof. Dr. Gernot Spiegelberg, who has responsibility for electromobility initiatives at Siemens Corporate Technology and is a Rudolf Diesel Industry Fellow of the TUM Institute for Advanced Study.

Ukraine nuclear plant halts reactor as power fails
A reactor at a nuclear power station in Ukraine has been disconnected from the grid following an electrical failure but radiation levels were not elevated, authorities said on Tuesday.

Rebates to cut price of $60 LED bulb
(AP) -- How much would you pay for an amazing, state-of-the-art light bulb? Shoppers will be asking themselves that very question at Home Depot and other outlets starting Sunday - Earth Day - when the bulb that won a $10 million government contest goes on sale.

Oracle focuses on Google emails in Android trial
Oracle intends to rely heavily on Google's own internal emails to prove Google's top executives knew they were stealing a popular piece of technology to build the Android software that now powers more than 300 million smartphones and tablet computers.

New sensor sought to enable military missions in GPS-denied areas
Many U.S. Military systems, such as missiles, rely on the Global Positioning System (GPS) to provide accurate position, orientation and time information while in flight. When GPS is inaccessible, whether as a result of a malfunction or as a consequence of enemy action, information critical for navigation must be gathered using the missile's on-board sensors.

Amazon, Apple, Twitter score low on clean energy: study
Amazon, Apple and Twitter were graded poorly Tuesday in a Greenpeace study of technology titans' use of clean energy to power the mushrooming Internet cloud, but Facebook, Google and Yahoo! won praise.

The most fuel-efficient hybrid and electric cars
Which are the most fuel-efficient hybrid and/or all-electric cars available to consumers today?

Study: Location key to green benefits of electric vehicles
Apparently, location, location, location is the latest twist on electric vehicles and the environment: Whether an electric car such as the Nissan Leaf protects the atmosphere from greenhouse gases depends on where it's charged, according to a new study. Such a car is no better than a standard gasoline-powered subcompact such as a Hyundai Elantra in cities such as Denver and Wichita, but far exceeds even the best hybrids in Southern California.

Survey finds majority of Wikipedia articles about companies contain factual errors
Sixty percent of Wikipedia articles about companies contain factual errors, according to research published today in the Public Relations Society of America's (PRSA) scholarly publication, Public Relations Journal. Findings from the research will help establish a baseline of understanding for how public relations professionals work with Wikipedia editors to achieve accuracy in their clients' entries.

Gmail service stumbles for short time
Millions of Gmail users were unable to get to their messages for about an hour on Tuesday due to a disruption at Google's free Web-based email service.

Google says Oracle sued after own market failure
(AP) -- A Google lawyer is seeking to convince a jury that Oracle sued the search company for copyright infringement only after Oracle failed in its own attempts to build mobile software.

Another delay in domain name expansion
(AP) -- There's another delay in efforts to create hundreds of Internet address suffixes to join ".com" and others in use.

Oracle CEO mulled expansion into smartphones
(AP) -- Oracle CEO Larry Ellison says he wanted to compete against Google's Android software in the smartphone market before deciding to sue his potential rival instead.

November launch for new version of 'Halo' videogame
Microsoft on Tuesday announced that a new installment to the hit videogame "Halo" will be released in November, and predicted it would launch the next decade of the hugely popular franchise.

Can social media detect the changes in public mood?
New research has analysed the mood of Twitter users in the UK and detected various changes in the mood of the public. In particular, the researchers observed a significant increase in negative mood, anger and fear, coinciding with the announcement of spending cuts and last summer's riots together with a possibly calming effect during the royal wedding.

Oracle skewers Google as Android trial opens
Oracle began Monday trying to convince a jury that Google's top executives have long known that they stole a key piece of technology to build the Android software that now powers more than more than 300 million smartphones and tablet computers.

Smartphones wallets going mainstream: survey
Using smartphones or tablets as digital "wallets" will be common within a decade, largely replacing cash and credit cards, according to a Pew Research survey released on Tuesday.

'Sabpab' Trojan seeks out Mac OS X
(Phys.org) -- Three compelling reasons that Mac loyalists say justify their love for Macs have been that Macs are 1) the prettiest computers around (2) ideal for any new-age brain that prefers visually rich knowledge work and (3) their systems are far safer than Windows-based PCs, which have been sneered at as malware magnets. This year, life has got Mac-Liter as now they only have to brandish two good reasons. Researchers at major security companies such as Kaspersky Lab and Sophos say that the Mac has yet another Trojan attacker, following Flashback, that can steal information from a system once infected.

Retroreflector transmits light with negligible power consumption
(Phys.org) -- In free-space optical communications (FSO), data is wirelessly transmitted by light propagating through open space. Among their applications, FSO systems are used for communications between spacecraft and have the potential to serve as the “last mile” for fiber optics broadband services. However, one challenge they face is that the light sources used to encode the data require power, and a power supply is often limited. Devices that reflect light, called corner cube retroreflectors (CCRs), can overcome this problem because they can transmit data without their own light source, simply by reflecting incident light from a base station.

Medicine & Health news

HIV raises anal cancer risk in women, study says
(HealthDay) -- Women with HIV are at increased risk for anal cancer, a new study finds.

Sushi 'tuna scrape' blamed for US salmonella outbreak
A ground fish product known as "tuna scrape," imported to the United States from India, was blamed Monday for a salmonella outbreak that has sickened 116 people, US health authorities said.

Hong Kong's next leader to ban mainland babies
Hong Kong's next leader said Tuesday he plans to ban pregnant mainlanders from giving birth in the city and deny their children residency rights, in a bid to ease pressure on local hospitals.

Gender, BMI impact bladder perforation during resection
(HealthDay) -- For patients with bladder tumors, female gender, low body mass index, and tumor characteristics correlate with the risk of bladder perforation during transurethral resection, according to research published in the May issue of The Journal of Urology.

Five tips for a better night's sleep
There’s nothing like a good night’s sleep to get you going in the morning. Drexel’s Dr. Joanne Getsy offers some tips to jump start your body and mind.

Value of genomics and personalized medicine is wrongly downplayed
“Study Says DNA’s Power to Predict Illness Is Limited,” a New York Times online headline announced earlier this month. Your genome is not your destiny.  Who’d have thought?

Excessive weight gain during pregnancy a predictor for above-average birth weight
One out of every two women of reproductive age is overweight or obese. Researchers from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute, from the University of Ottawa (faculties of Medicine and Health Sciences) and from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute set out to discover if overweight or obese women are in fact more likely to give birth to above average weight babies, as reported in the Journal of Maternal Fetal and Neonatal Medicine.

New findings reported by Microbicide Trials Network researchers at HIV prevention meeting
An HIV prevention trial that pre-dates the shift to antiretroviral (ARV)-based approaches is nonetheless helping to answer some of the most relevant and topical questions the field is facing today. More than three years after reporting the primary results of HPTN 035, one of the last trials of the so-called first generation microbicides, researchers from the National Institutes of Health-funded Microbicide Trials Network (MTN) reported two new sets of findings gleaned from the study's trove of statistical data and laboratory specimens. The results of both analyses were presented at the International Microbicides Conference (M2012). The meeting, which started Sunday, April 15 and ends tomorrow, April 18, is being held in Sydney.

Feelings of immaturity accompany alcohol misuse into adulthood; discovery could improve treatments
Tipping back one too many cocktails during an individual's early 20s doesn't correlate to a personal sense of immaturity; however if this habit doesn't stop as they reach age 30, young adults can feel psychologically underdeveloped, according to a University of Missouri study. Helping young adults acknowledge their mental impulse to "sober up" as they mature can improve substance abuse intervention programs.

New radiation therapy reduces treatment of gynecologic cancers from 5 weeks to 3 days
About 71,500 women in the United States are diagnosed with a gynecologic cancer every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Researchers from University Hospitals Case Medical Center have developed a more effective way to treat gynecologic cancers, shortening radiation treatment time from five weeks to three days. The method will be published in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) on April 17.

New research suggests PIP implant failures significantly higher than previously thought
New research published in the Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery suggests that the failure rate of silicone breast implants manufactured by Poly Implant Prosthèse (PIP) could be as high as 33.8%.

Good intentions bring mixed results for Haiti's disabled people
A new evaluation by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine of the physical rehabilitation response after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, finds that many hands didn't always make light work.

Study examines adverse effects among different radiation therapies for prostate cancer
In an analysis of three different types of radiation therapy used to treat localized prostate cancer, compared with conformal radiation therapy, intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) was associated with fewer diagnoses of gastrointestinal adverse effects, hip fractures, and receipt of additional cancer treatments but more erectile dysfunction, while proton therapy was associated with more gastrointestinal adverse effects than IMRT, according to a study in the April 18 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on comparative effectiveness research.

Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy optimal for localized prostate cancer
A treatment for localized prostate cancer known as Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) is better than conventional conformal radiation therapy (CRT) for reducing certain side effects and preventing cancer recurrence, according to a study published in the April 18, 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. In 2012, approximately 241,740 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Cocaine and heroin users who received testing, counseling less likely to have unprotected sex
Voluntary testing and counseling (VT/C) for HIV or sexually transmitted infections (STI) among cocaine and heroin users who were treated in the emergency department (ED), accompanied by referral to drug treatment, was associated with reduction in unprotected sex acts and fewer sex acts while high according to researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC).

Need for greater patient and clinician involvement in comparative clinical effectiveness research
More involvement by patients, clinicians and others in the health care community in developing comparative clinical effectiveness research studies will make such studies far more useful in clinical decision-making, according to the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, in an article published in the April 18 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on comparative effectiveness research.

Some patients do not walk after surgery despite encouragement
(Medical Xpress) -- Despite the well-documented benefits of walking after surgery, some patients are reluctant to make an attempt even with the encouragement of medical staff. Loyola University Health System researchers reported these findings at the prestigious 38th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons in Baltimore.

Specialists must work together to prevent leg amputations, urge experts
A lack of cooperation between doctors is allowing the number of leg amputations to remain high, despite major advances in treatment, warn experts from Imperial College London at an international symposium at the College today. Researchers will highlight the need for early referral and interdisciplinary management at the CX Symposium, which is attended by 3,500 specialists in vascular medicine from across the world.

Employee assistance programs lack a comprehensive approach to addressing intimate partner violence
A new study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy and RTI International finds employee assistance programs (EAPs), a standard benefit offered to employees at most large companies, are failing to identify individuals who abuse or have the potential to abuse their intimate partner, despite well-known risk factors for intimate partner violence perpetration. While previous research has documented the extent to which EAPs offer workplace support for victims of intimate partner violence, this is the first study to examine the involvement of EAPs in screening and offering treatment to persons who perpetrate violence against their partners. The report is published in the current issue of Violence and Victims.

AANS: Stereotactic anterior cingulotomy viable for OCD
(HealthDay) -- Most people with obsessive-compulsive disorder manage their symptoms through talk therapy and medication. But for some, severe OCD can take over their lives. A few eventually turn to brain surgery, and a new study shows how they fared.

Diagnostic yield of colonoscopy for melena after nondiagnostic upper endoscopy is lower than previously reported
A new study from researchers in Oregon reports that the diagnostic yield of colonoscopy to investigate melena after a nondiagnostic upper endoscopy is lower, 4.8 percent, than previously reported. The rate of therapeutic intervention in this population is very low; therefore, patients with melena and a nondiagnostic upper endoscopy who are stable and without evidence of ongoing bleeding may be able to safely undergo elective colonoscopy. This study is the largest to-date to examine the diagnostic yield of colonoscopy to investigate melena after a nondiagnostic upper endoscopy in patients from a broad geographic distribution and a variety of clinical practice settings. The study appears in the April issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE).

Much work remains to be done to improve the lives of children with dyslexia
Scientific understanding and medical treatments for dyslexia have advanced over the past 5 years, but much work remains to be done to fully understand the causes of dyslexia and to improve the lives of children who struggle to learn to read, according to a Seminar published Online First in The Lancet. Indeed, most children are only diagnosed with dyslexia after they have experienced serious difficulties in school, at a time when it is much harder for them to master new skills, and this could be preventing children with dyslexia from achieving the best outcomes.

Dissolvable heart artery stents appear safe in study
(HealthDay) -- New long-term research now suggests that fully biodegradable stents are safe to use in heart arteries.

Alcohol use with opioids common even without abuse past
(HealthDay) -- Alcohol or sedative use during chronic opioid therapy (COT) for non-cancer pain puts patients at risk for adverse events such as respiratory depression or sedation, and the risk of concurrent use of central nervous system (CNS) depressants is not limited to patients with a history of substance abuse, according to a study published in the March issue of The Journal of Pain.

Liver insulin resistance correlates with cardiac risk
(HealthDay) -- Liver insulin resistance (IR) may be a significant indicator of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among men, and correlates more closely with risk factors than whole-body insulin sensitivity, according to a study published online April 5 in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

Study finds cancer related pain often undertreated
More than one third of patients with invasive cancer are undertreated for their pain, with minorities twice as likely to not receive analgesics, according to research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Depressed moms' behavior may play role in infants' sleep problems
Depressed mothers are more likely to needlessly wake up their infants at night than mothers who are not depressed, according to Penn State researchers.

Australia takes on big tobacco firms in court
Australia said it was confident of seeing off a court challenge Tuesday by big tobacco firms over plain-packaging for cigarettes, in a test case being watched by governments around the world.

Pre-pregnancy BMI important indicator of offspring obesity
(HealthDay) -- Maternal gestational weight gain (GWG) during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy correlates with body mass index (BMI)-based overweight/obesity and abdominal obesity at age 16, but maternal pre-pregnancy BMI is a stronger indicator of offspring obesity, according to a study published in the May issue of BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Immunization pain reduced using the five S's technique
(HealthDay) -- Use of the five S's intervention (swaddling, side/stomach position, shushing, swinging, and sucking) reduces pain scores and crying time following administration of routine immunizations for 2- and 4-month-old infants, according to a study published online April 16 in Pediatrics.

High SPF sunscreens assure protection from solar rays
(HealthDay) -- An application of water-resistant sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 70 or higher adequately protects people against skin cancer and photodamage even when applied irregularly, according to a study published online April 1 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

IL-32 expression upregulated in chronic rhinosinusitis
(HealthDay) -- Interleukin-32 (IL-32) mRNA expression is significantly higher in biopsies obtained from patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), compared to levels found in biopsies obtained from individuals without the condition, according to a study published online April 9 in Allergy.

Researchers find further evidence of disturbed immune system in autism
(Medical Xpress) -- A University of Kansas Medical Center study found significantly lower levels of several cytokines, the immune system’s messengers and regulators, in the plasma of children with autism disorder (AD) compared to that of unrelated healthy siblings from other families who had members with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The study was published in the April 2012 International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience.

Pain could be a good thing for heart attack patients
Feeling the pain of a heart attack could actually help the heart minimise damage, say academics in the University of Bristol's School of Clinical Sciences.

Identifying the bad guy
Flinders University psychologist Professor Neil Brewer is proposing a radical alternative to the traditional police line-up, arguing current eyewitness identification tests often fail to pick the culprit, or worse, wrongfully accuse innocent suspects.

Study recommends national standards for tobacco use treatment
A cancer diagnosis doesn’t automatically get people to stop smoking, but continuing to smoke shortens patients’ survival, increases their risk for a second tumor, and is associated with worse outcomes after cancer surgery. 

Rare emerging disease claims Texas girl's leg
A 14-year-old Texas girl was finally cured of an oft-fatal emerging disease when doctors amputated her lower leg, where the infection arose, after various antimicrobials proved ineffective. The culprit was Pythium insidiosum, a fungus-like microbe which rarely causes disease in humans and then primarily in Thailand. The case “clearly highlights the need for clinicians to have the best support possible from the clinical microbiology lab,” says Don Murphey of Cook Children’s Medical Center, who served as attending physician during the case. The case report is published in the April Journal of Clinical Microbiology.

Targeted therapy using sound-waves offers 'male lumpectomy' for prostate cancer
(Medical Xpress) -- A new type of prostate cancer treatment, which uses sound waves to selectively target individual cancer sites, could provide an alternative to traditional treatment with significantly fewer side effects, according to promising results from a clinical trial.

Nano-syringe delivers combination, targeted brain cancer therapy
Nanomedicine researchers at the Methodist Neurological Institute and Rice University have developed a way to selectively kill brain cancer cells by using a tiny syringe to deliver a combination of chemotherapy drugs directly into the cells. These findings will be published in the April 24 issue of the American Chemical Society journal ACS Nano.

Caffeine use may offer relief for millions of dry eye sufferers
Researchers at the University of Tokyo's School of Medicine have shown for the first time that caffeine intake can significantly increase the eye's ability to produce tears, a finding that could improve treatment of dry eye syndrome. This common eye condition affects about four million people age 50 and older in the United States. For many, dry eye syndrome is simply uncomfortable and annoying, but for others it escalates into a vision-threatening disease. All of the 78 participants in the new study produced significantly more tears after consuming caffeine than after taking a placebo. The study is available in Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Opioids associated with highest risk of death
People with an opioid addiction had the highest risk of death when compared with rates for alcohol and other drugs, according to a new study by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

Moderate alcohol consumption before and after heart attack associated with lower mortality
The Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS) is a prospective cohort study of 51,529 US male health professionals. During the follow up of these men between 1986 to 2006, published in the European Heart Journal, 1,818 men were confirmed with incident non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI) – a non fatal heart attack. Among heart attack survivors, 468 deaths were documented during up to 20 years of follow up. Repeated reports were obtained on alcohol consumption every four years. Average alcohol consumption was calculated prior to and then following the MI.

Lack of sleep is linked to obesity, new evidence shows
Can lack of sleep make you fat? A new paper which reviews the evidence from sleep restriction studies reveals that inadequate sleep is linked to obesity. The research, published in a special issue of the The American Journal of Human Biology, explores how lack of sleep can impact appetite regulation, impair glucose metabolism and increase blood pressure.

Study reveals major funding shortfall and high death rates for emergency laparotomy
Anaesthetists have identified a major shortfall in funding for emergency laparotomies in England and have called for a national database to establish a more accurate picture of outcomes and costs. Figures published in the May issue of Anaesthesia suggest a shortfall of £300 million per year for emergency midline general surgical laparotomies, 32% of the total cost of care.

Babies flick 'anti-risk switch' in women but not men
Unlike women, men don't curb certain risk-taking behaviours when a baby is present, a new psychology study at the University of Warwick suggests.

Study: Transport of trauma patients by helicopter costly but effective
Seriously injured trauma patients transported to hospitals by helicopter are 16 percent more likely to survive than similarly injured patients brought in by ground ambulance, new Johns Hopkins research shows.

Study examines drug regimen for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer among older patients
Analysis of a drug regimen approved by the F.D.A. in 2006 for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (bevacizumab added to the standard chemotherapy regimen carboplatin and paclitaxel) finds Medicare insured patients age 65 years and older who received this regimen did not have improved survival compared to patients who received the standard treatment of carboplatin and paclitaxel alone, according to a study in the April 18 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on comparative effectiveness research.

Kidney cancer patients do better when whole kidney is not removed
Kidney cancer patients who had only their tumor removed had better survival than patients who had their entire kidney removed, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Brain cancer vaccine proves effective
A new brain cancer vaccine tailored to individual patients by using material from their own tumors has proven effective in a multicenter phase 2 clinical trial at extending their lives by several months or longer. The patients suffered from recurrent glioblastoma multiforme—which kills thousands of Americans every year.

Study identifies trigger for alternate reproduction of HIV-related cancer virus
A research team led by Children's National Medical Center has identified a trigger that causes latent Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) to rapidly replicate itself. KSHV causes Kaposi's sarcoma, primary effusion lymphoma, and other cancers that commonly affect immunocompromised patients, including those with AIDS. Appearing in the online edition of the Journal of Virology, the study identifies apoptosis, or the programmed death of a virus' host cell, as the trigger for high-level viral replication.

Tai Chi wheelchair brings mobility, self-esteem, better health to practitioners
An innovative 13-postures Tai Chi designed for wheelchair users is described in the current issue of Technology and Innovation- Proceedings of the National Academy of Inventors.

Despite belief WIC improves infant health, new study finds no positive or negative impact
Existing scientific literature suggests the U.S. government nutritional program known as WIC improves birth outcomes of children, but new research is unable to find either a positive or negative impact on infant health.

One in three PIP implants may rupture: British surgeons
A pair of British plastic surgeons said Tuesday the rupture rate of PIP breast implants behind a global health scare may be as high as one in three, significantly more than previously thought.

Role of screening, monitoring in early kidney disease unclear
(HealthDay) -- At least one in 10 U.S. adults is estimated to have chronic kidney disease, but whether screening and monitoring people in the earlier stages of the disease provides a benefit just isn't clear, a new review of the available clinical trials revealed.

Hospitals try voice recognition for health records
If your doctor is talking to an iPad the next time you see her, she may actually be flipping through your file.

Experts see hopeful signs on eating disorders
April Dunlap was 17 and weighed 165 pounds when she began a diet and exercise regimen. After three months, the 5-foot-5 teen had lost the 20 pounds she had hoped to shed. But she kept going. "It was like a drug," she said. "I always wanted to lose a little more."

A common cholesterol medication may impact kidney health
Older patients taking a common cholesterol medication should be cautious of the impact on their kidney health. In a new study by Dr. Amit Garg, Scientist at the Lawson Health Research Institute and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES), and colleagues, one in 10 new older fibrate users experienced a 50 per cent increase in their serum creatinine.

Knee injuries in women linked to motion, nervous system differences
Women are more prone to knee injuries than men, and the findings of a new study suggest this may involve more than just differences in muscular and skeletal structure – it shows that males and females also differ in the way they transmit the nerve impulses that control muscle force.

Sunlight plus lime juice makes drinking water safer
Looking for an inexpensive and effective way to quickly improve the quality of your drinking water? According to a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, sunlight and a twist of lime might do the trick. Researchers found that adding lime juice to water that is treated with a solar disinfection method removed detectable levels of harmful bacteria such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) significantly faster than solar disinfection alone. The results are featured in the April 2012 issue of American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Bioethicists urge less regulatory burden for low-risk comparative effectiveness research
In an opinion article published in this week's theme edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association focusing on comparative effectiveness research, a team of Johns Hopkins University bioethicists argues forcefully for streamlining federal restrictions on at least some low-risk clinical comparative effectiveness research, instead of easing them – as is now proposed – solely for low-risk social and behavior research involving surveys, interviews and focus groups.

Early introduction of biologic therapy improves Crohn's disease outcomes
A large-scale study of medical claims data shows that introducing sophisticated biologic therapies early in the course of treatment for Crohn's disease improves response to medication and reduces the need for surgery.

Clinical trial: Intestinal gel reduces 'off' time in advanced Parkinson's disease
A levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) works better than standard oral levodopa-carbidopa in reducing "off" time in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. That's according to results of the phase three randomized, double-blind clinical trial of LCIG, to be presented as part of the Emerging Science program (formerly known as Late-Breaking Science) at the American Academy of Neurology's 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans April 21 to April 28, 2012. "Off" time occurs when Parkinson's symptoms like tremor, slowness, stiffness and walking difficulty return as the beneficial effects of oral treatments wear off.

Testosterone supplements may help heart failure patients
Testosterone supplements helped heart failure patients breathe better and exercise more, according to research in Circulation Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal.

Patients often stop taking heart drugs during Medicare coverage gaps
Patients who paid for heart medications solely through Medicare were 57 percent more likely to not take them during coverage gaps compared to those who had a Part D low-income subsidy or additional insurance, according to research published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal.

Parkinson's protein causes disease spread in animal model
Penn researchers have shown that brain tissue from a Parkinson's disease mouse model , as well as synthetically produced disease protein fibrils, injected into young, symptom-free PD mice led to spreading of PD pathology.

Nutrition, mobility predict early death in elderly cancer patients
(HealthDay) -- Low nutritional assessment scores, poor mobility, and advanced disease predict early death after chemotherapy initiation among elderly patients with cancer, according to a study published online April 16 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Brain changes may hamper decision-Making in old age
(HealthDay) -- The ability to make decisions in new situations declines with age, apparently because of changes in the brain's white matter, a new imaging study says.

Avastin no benefit to older lung cancer patients: study
(HealthDay) -- Medicare patients who have advanced non-small cell lung cancer appear to get no survival benefit from adding the drug Avastin to standard chemotherapy, researchers from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report.

Saliva test could dramatically increase detection of oral cancer
A Michigan State University surgeon is teaming up with a Lansing-area dental benefits firm on a clinical trial to create a simple, cost-effective saliva test to detect oral cancer, a breakthrough that would drastically improve screening and result in fewer people dying of the world's sixth most common cancer.

Neural stem cell transplants for spinal cord injury maximized by combined, complimentary therapies
Combined, complimentary therapies have the ability to maximize the benefits of neural stem cell (NSC) transplantation for spinal cord repair in rat models, according to a study carried out by a team of Korean researchers who published in a recent issue of Cell Transplantation (20:9), now freely available on-line.

Study reveals how anaesthesia causes jet-lag
(Medical Xpress) -- Researchers from The University of Auckland have discovered why people feel as though they have jet-lag after surgery, and the findings may have implications for post-operative recovery.

Study of half siblings provides genetic clues to autism
(Medical Xpress) -- When a child has autism, siblings are also at risk for the disorder. New research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows that the genetic reach of the disorder often extends to half siblings as well.

Study hints at why gums suffer with age
(Medical Xpress) -- New research from Queen Mary, University of London in collaboration with research groups in the USA sheds light on why gum disease can become more common with old age.

First blood test to diagnose major depression in teens
A Northwestern Medicine scientist has developed the first blood test to diagnose major depression in teens, a breakthrough approach that allows an objective diagnosis by measuring a specific set of genetic markers found in a patient's blood.

Study finds color naming conventions related to how our eyes work
(Medical Xpress) -- One of the big questions in philosophy is whether or not we all perceive the world around us in the same ways. For example, does everyone perceive the color red the same way as everyone else? Because individual perception is impossible to measure, there is no way to prove if everyone does or not. To get around such problems, researchers turn to phenomena that can be observed that might offer some insight into such difficult to define topics. In that vein, one small team made up of Vittorio Loretoa, Animesh Mukherjeeb, and Francesca Triab has been studying the ways words are developed among different peoples to describe different colors. They describe their study, using computer simulations to create a framework called a Category Game, using virtual agents, in their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Group finds facial expressions not as universal as thought
(Medical Xpress) -- For most of history, people have assumed that facial expressions are generally universal; a smile by someone of any cultural group generally is an expression of happiness or pleasure, for example. This whole line of thinking was backed up by Charles Darwin who proposed that all humans have six basic facial expressions, which correspond to six general types of emotions: anger, sadness, happiness, fear, disgust and surprise. Unfortunately, new research by a team looking into whether this common assumption is true has found, as they discuss in their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, that such perceptions are likely distorted by the fact that most studies on the subject don’t look at the differences between cultures, and that when subjected to study, don't appear to hold up under scrutiny.

Positive feelings may help protect cardiovascular health
Over the last few decades numerous studies have shown negative states, such as depression, anger, anxiety, and hostility, to be detrimental to cardiovascular health. Less is known about how positive psychological characteristics are related to heart health. In the first and largest systematic review on this topic to date, Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers found that positive psychological well-being appears to reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular events.

New genetically engineered mice aid understanding of incurable neuromuscular disease
A team of scientists from the University of Missouri created a genetically modified mouse that mimics key features of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, an inherited neuromuscular disease affecting approximately 150,000 people in the United States.

Scientists tailor cell surface targeting system to hit organelle ZIP codes
Scientists who developed a technology for identifying and targeting unique protein receptor ZIP Codes on the cellular surface have found a way to penetrate the outer membrane and deliver engineered particles - called iPhage - to organelles inside the cell.

Biology news

Climate change doubles cost of conserving nature
Climate change will make conservation of biodiversity, and all the associated human benefits such as clean water and clean air, more challenging and expensive, with costs increasing by more than 100 percent in some cases, according to three new studies by a group of international researchers convened by Conservation International. Researchers called the studies a "wake-up call" for cost-efficient biodiversity conservation and climate stabilization.

A stream is a stream is a stream... or is it?
Scientists supported by NSF SEES use everything from microscopes to deep-sea submersibles in their research. But how many SEES scientists need a machete?

Study amplifies understanding of hearing in baleen whales
For decades, scientists have known that dolphins and other toothed whales have specialized fats associated with their jaws, which efficiently convey sound waves from the ocean to their ears. But until now, the hearing systems of their toothless grazing cousins, baleen whales, remained a mystery.

Two new frog species found in Philippines
Two new species of frog have been discovered in fast-disappearing forests in the Philippines, boosting hopes for the survival of the country's rich but threatened wildlife, scientists said Tuesday.

Genetically modified corn affects its symbiotic relationship with non-target soil organisms
An increasing number of crops commercially grown today are genetically modified (GM) to resist insect pests and/or tolerate herbicides. Although Bt corn is one of the most commonly grown GM crops in the United States, little is known about its effects on the long-term health of soils. Although there are many benefits to using biotechnology in agriculture, such as potentially reducing insecticide use, there may be unintended side effects as well—does GM corn impact non-target soil organisms, such as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, or affect plants subsequently grown in the same field?

Hot new manufacturing tool: A temperature-controlled microbe
Many manufacturing processes rely on microorganisms to perform tricky chemical transformations or make substances from simple starting materials. The authors of a study appearing in mBio, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology, on April 17 have found a way to control a heat-loving microbe with a temperature switch: it makes a product at low temperatures but not at high temperatures. The innovation could make it easier to use microorganisms as miniature factories for the production of needed materials like biofuels.

Compounds shared by all worms may lead to parasite treatment
(Phys.org) -- Worms are important decomposers in soil and are great for fishing, but in humans, the slimy wrigglers spell trouble. Hookworms, whipworms, Ascaris, Guinea worms and trichina worms are just a few parasitic nematodes that infect some 2 billion people.

On the move for repair
Scientists from the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research have elucidated mechanisms that control DNA movement in the nucleus. They found that DNA with double-strand breaks moves more than undamaged DNA, thereby ensuring that breaks are properly repaired. Error-free double-strand break repair requires that the severed DNA finds a homologous sequence, which can serve as its repair template. Enhanced movement in the nucleus appears to facilitate the search for a proper template. Given that improperly repaired double-strand breaks can cause deleterious translocations that lead to cancer, this mechanism is important for maintaining cell integrity.

Can behavior be controlled by genes? The case of honeybee work assignments
What worker bees do depends on how old they are. A worker a few days old will become a nurse bee that devotes herself to feeding larvae (brood), secreting beeswax to seal the cells that contain brood and attending to the queen. 

Predicting the microbial 'weather'
New computer models are letting scientists forecast changes in the population of microbes in the English Channel up to a week in advance.

Getting to the root of genetics
For Manolis Kellis, a deep interest in biology arose partly from an immersion in multiple languages.

Intestinal flora of cockroaches and termites reflects these insects' family relationships, and divergent diets
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany, have compared the microbial ecosystems in the intestines termites and cockroaches, with fascinating results. The research is published in the April Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

Cyanobacterium demonstrates promise for biotechnology feedstock production
Harvard Medical School researchers have engineered a photosynthetic cyanobacterium to boost sugar production, as a first step towards potential commercial production of biofuels and other biotechnologically and industrially useful carbon compounds. As feedstock producers, cyanobacteria have advantages over plants, particularly land plants. They need little fertilizer. They don’t compete with food crops, because they can grow on marginal land. At commercial scale, the engineered cyanobacteria could potentially produce five times more sugar per acre than traditional crops, including sugarcane, says first author Daniel Ducat. The research is published in the April Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

Toxic menu: Marine worm feeds on carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulphide with the help of symbiotic bacteria
In a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen and Greifswald University, together with colleagues from Freiburg, Italy and the USA, have revealed that a small marine worm, faced with a scarce food supply in the sandy sediments it lives in off the coast of Elba, must deal with a highly poisionous menu: this worm lives on carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulphide.

Orangutan nests reveal engineering expertise
An innovative study looking at how orangutans build their nests has revealed that the apes use a high level of engineering know-how.

Escalating arms race: Predatory sea urchins drive evolution
(Phys.org) -- Nature teems with examples of evolutionary arms races between predators and prey, with the predator species gradually evolving a new mode of attack for each defensive adaptation that arises in the prey species.

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