PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Progress toward treating infections by silencing microbes' 'smart phones'

2010-10-21
(Press-News.org) So disease-causing bacteria in the body finally have multiplied to the point where their numbers are large enough to cause illness. What's next? They get out their "smart phones" and whisper "Let's roll!" That's how an article in ACS' monthly Chemical Reviews describes the substances — "smart phones of the microbial world" — that bacteria use to transmit chemical signals that launch infections and monitor their environment. The authors describe progress toward understanding and blocking this biochemical chitchat, a development that could lead to new treatments for the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant infections.

Marvin Whiteley and Holly Huse point out that bacteria use chemical signals to communicate with each other. These signals can trigger infections when their numbers reach a certain threshold — a process known as "quorum sensing." Scientists around the world are trying to find potential new drugs that garble or block those signals, and in doing so, fight infection. One prime target are the 4-quinolones, signaling molecules produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a common disease-causing microbe.

Their review of more than 60 years of research on 4-quinolones found promising indications that such a conversation-stopper will be developed. Scientists, for instance, now have evidence that a certain enzyme that modifies 4-quinolones can reduce infection. "These results are encouraging for the development of new therapeutics that target 4-quinolone signaling," the article noted.

INFORMATION: ARTICLE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE "4-Quinolones: Smart Phones of the Microbial World"

DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT ARTICLE http://pubs.acs.org/stoken/presspac/presspac/abs/10.1021/cr100063u

CONTACT:
Marvin Whiteley, Ph.D.
Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas 78712
Phone: 512-475-6981
Fax: 512-471-7088
Email: mwhiteley@mail.utexas.edu


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Girls with ovarian germ-cell tumors can safely skip chemotherapy unless disease recurs

2010-10-21
BOSTON – Researchers from Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center (DF/CHCC) have found that as many as 50 percent of young girls treated for germ-cell ovarian tumors might safely be spared chemotherapy using a "watch and wait" strategy to determine if the follow-up treatment is needed. In contrast to the current practice of administering chemotherapy to all patients following removal of these rare tumors, researchers said the study demonstrated that treatment could safely be delayed and given only if the cancer recurred. Data from the trial involving 25 young ...

Biodegradable foam plastic substitute made from milk protein and clay

2010-10-21
Amid ongoing concern about plastic waste accumulating in municipal landfills, and reliance on imported oil to make plastics, scientists are reporting development of a new ultra-light biodegradable foam plastic material made from two unlikely ingredients: The protein in milk and ordinary clay. The new substance could be used in furniture cushions, insulation, packaging, and other products, they report in the ACS' Biomacromolecules, a monthly journal. David Schiraldi and colleagues explain that 80 percent of the protein in cow milk is a substance called casein, which already ...

Black rice bran may help fight disease-related inflammation

2010-10-21
Scientists are reporting evidence that black rice — a little-known variety of the grain that is the staple food for one-third of the world population — may help soothe the inflammation involved in allergies, asthma, and other diseases. Their study appears in ACS' bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Mendel Friedman and colleagues point out that their previous research showed several potential health benefits of eating black rice bran. Bran is the outer husk of the grain, which is removed during the processing of brown rice to produce the familiar white ...

Traveling by car increases global temperatures more than by plane, but only in long term

2010-10-21
Driving a car increases global temperatures in the long run more than making the same long-distance journey by air according to a new study. However, in the short run travelling by air has a larger adverse climate impact because airplanes strongly affect short-lived warming processes at high altitudes. The study appears in ACS' Environmental Science & Technology, a semi-weekly journal. In the study, Jens Borken-Kleefeld and colleagues compare the impacts on global warming of different means of transport. The researchers use, for the first time, a suite of climate chemistry ...

Women fight the effects of chemotherapy long after treatment ends

Women fight the effects of chemotherapy long after treatment ends
2010-10-21
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- For some women, the effects of breast cancer, the most common cancer affecting women, do not end when they leave the hospital. Now, researchers in the University of Missouri School of Health Professions have studied the lives of breast cancer patients following chemotherapy and found that their environments and available support systems help determine the quality of their lives. "A lot of times people get mentally and emotionally ready to deal with chemotherapy and they receive a lot of support during that time," said Stephanie Reid-Arndt, an assistant ...

Behind-the-scenes advances underpin new super-strong plastics

2010-10-21
Long-awaited advances in reducing the cost of certain catalysts — substances that kick-start chemical reactions — have quietly led to production of super-strong forms of the world's most widely used plastics, according to the cover story of the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine. These upgraded forms of polyethylene have led to availability of stronger, more durable consumer products ranging from garbage bags to camping cookware. C&EN Senior Editor Alexander Tullo notes that the catalysts, called "metallocenes," engendered excitement ...

'Reaper' protein strikes at mitochondria to kill cells

2010-10-21
Our cells live ever on the verge of suicide, requiring the close attention of a team of molecules to prevent the cells from pulling the trigger. This self-destructive tendency can be a very good thing, as when dangerous precancerous cells are permitted to kill themselves, but it can also go horribly wrong, destroying brain cells that store memories, for instance. Rockefeller University scientists are parsing this perilous arrangement in ever finer detail in hopes that understanding the basic mechanisms of programmed cell death, or apoptosis, will enable them eventually ...

Obsessing over strep throat in kids

2010-10-21
A common infection in children, strep throat can lead to problems with a child's heart, joints or brain if left untreated. And when the brain is involved, motor and mental functioning may be compromised, leading to syndromes such as attention deficit disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). While scientists have speculated on a link between OCD and childhood infections like strep for more than two decades, Prof. Daphna Joel and her team of researchers at Tel Aviv University's Department of Psychology have now scientifically demonstrated that strep can lead to ...

Frontal lobe of the brain is key to automatic responses to various stimuli, say scientists

Frontal lobe of the brain is key to automatic responses to various stimuli, say scientists
2010-10-21
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– Some people may excel at riding a bike, tying a tie, or playing the piano, but those same people may find it difficult to explain or teach those skills to someone else. These motor skills are learned in one part of the brain, whereas classroom instruction and information read in a book are acquired in another area of the brain, explained F. Gregory Ashby, professor and chair of UC Santa Barbara's Department of Psychology. This second area of learning is the frontal cortex –– the area immediately behind the forehead –– where executive function ...

Harm reduction cigarettes can be more harmful than conventional brands, researchers report

Harm reduction cigarettes can be more harmful than conventional brands, researchers report
2010-10-21
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – To reduce the toxicity of cigarette smoke, tobacco companies have introduced "harm reduction cigarettes," often marketed as safer than conventional brands. But stem cell scientists at the University of California, Riverside have found that even sidestream smoke (which burns off the tip of a cigarette) from harm reduction cigarettes impairs growth of human embryonic stem cells more than sidestream smoke from a conventional brand. "Harm reduction products are not necessarily safer than their conventional counterparts," said Prue Talbot, the director ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

SwRI-built instruments to monitor, provide advanced warning of space weather events

Breakthrough advances sodium-based battery design

New targeted radiation therapy shows near-complete response in rare sarcoma patients

Does physical frailty contribute to dementia?

Soccer headers and brain health: Study finds changes within folds of the brain

Decoding plants’ language of light

UNC Greensboro study finds ticks carrying Lyme disease moving into western NC

New implant restores blood pressure balance after spinal cord injury

New York City's medical specialist advantage may be an illusion, new NYU Tandon research shows

Could a local anesthetic that doesn’t impair motor function be within reach?

1 in 8 Italian cetacean strandings show evidence of fishery interactions, with bottlenose and striped dolphins most commonly affected, according to analysis across four decades of data and more than 5

In the wild, chimpanzees likely ingest the equivalent of several alcoholic drinks every day

Warming of 2°C intensifies Arctic carbon sink but weakens Alpine sink, study finds

Bronze and Iron Age cultures in the Middle East were committed to wine production

Indian adolescents are mostly starting their periods at an earlier age than 25 years ago

Temporary medical centers in Gaza known as "Medical Points" (MPs) treat an average of 117 people daily with only about 7 staff per MP

Rates of alcohol-induced deaths among the general population nearly doubled from 1999 to 2024

PLOS One study: In adolescent lab animals exposed to cocaine, High-Intensity Interval Training boosts aversion to the drug

Scientists identify four ways our bodies respond to COVID-19 vaccines

Stronger together: A new fusion protein boosts cancer immunotherapy

Hidden brain waves as triggers for post-seizure wandering

Music training can help the brain focus

Researcher develop the first hydride ion prototype battery

MIT researchers find a more precise way to edit the genome

‘Teen’ pachycephalosaur butts into fossil record

Study finds cocoa extract supplement reduced key marker of inflammation and aging

Obesity treatment with bariatric surgery vs GLP-1 receptor agonists

Nicotinamide for skin cancer chemoprevention

Novel way to ‘rev up’ brown fat burns calories, limits obesity in mice

USC Stem Cell-led team makes major advance toward building a synthetic kidney

[Press-News.org] Progress toward treating infections by silencing microbes' 'smart phones'