New York University neuroscientists have identified the parts of the brain we use to remember the timing of events within an episode. The study, which appears in the latest issue of the journal Science, enhances our understanding of how memories are processed and provides a potential roadmap for addressing memory-related afflictions. Previous research has shown the brain's medial temporal lobe (MTL) has a significant role in declarative memory—that is, memory of facts and events or episodes. Past studies have shown that damage to the MTL causes impairment in memory for ...

Interest rate changes will affect you less with a bond ladder. Here's why: - If interest rates go down over the next few years, you will already have locked in higher rates--and the current market value of your fixed income portfolio will be rising. - If interest rates stay the same, you will be earning longer term yields, so your return should exceed what you would be earning if you left your investment short term. - If interest rates go up, the current market value of your fixed income portfolio will be falling. However, as each rung on the ladder matures, ...

New research finds that growing blood stem cells in the laboratory for about a week may help to overcome one of the most difficult roadblocks to successful transplantation, immune rejection. The study, published by Cell Press in the August issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell, may lead to more promising therapeutic strategies for transplanting blood stem cells. Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are cells that can give rise to all of the different types of blood cells. Transplantation of HSCs has been used to treat leukemia, lymphoma, and other types of cancer, as well as ...

Recent studies have shown that the heart contains cardiac stem cells that can contribute to regeneration and healing during disease and aging. However, little is known about the molecules and pathways that regulate these cells. Now, a new study utilizing a heart failure model is providing insight into one way to coax the cardiac stem cells into repairing the damaged heart. The research, published by Cell Press in the August 2011 issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell, finds that low doses of erythropoietin (EPO), a hormone best known for controlling the production of red blood ...

Scientists have identified a mutation that might underlie an extremely rare condition, called "adermatoglyphia," which causes people to be born without any fingerprints. The research, published by Cell Press online August 4th in The American Journal of Human Genetics, not only provides valuable insight into the genetic basis of adermatoglyphia and of typical fingerprint formation but also underscores the usefulness of rare genetic mutations as a tool for investigating unknown aspects of our biology. Human skin has ridges called dermatoglyphs that are present on the fingers, ...

Until very recently, it was unclear why infection with malaria causes fever and, under severe circumstances, an infectious death. Although the parasite has an abundance of potentially toxic molecules, no one knew which ones were responsible for the inflammatory syndrome associated with disease. Now, a new study identifies a novel DNA-sensing mechanism that plays a role in the innate immune response to the parasite that causes malaria. The findings, published online August 4th by Cell Press in the journal Immunity, provide new insight into how the immune system detects ...

Floods and droughts in East Africa are often unleashed by far-away events in the tropical Pacific—the warm (El Niño) or cool (La Niña) phases of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). A catastrophic drought is currently wreaking havoc in wide regions of Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia, affecting food security and putting millions of people in urgent need of assistance. Scientists have attributed the severe drying to La Niña conditions that prevailed from June 2010 to May 2011 in the Pacific. The waxing and waning of rainfall in eastern tropical Africa in unison ...

Why Use a Ladder? It's a Strategy for All Interest Rate Environments. Since a bond ladder enables you to reinvest your assets periodically over time, your portfolio will be less affected by interest rate volatility. This concept is similar to dollar cost averaging in stocks. As bonds come due, you are able to reinvest your principal into bonds of intermediate or longer term maturities, where the yields are higher.We started QuadCap Wealth Management, LLC to focus on a highly personalized comprehensive counseling program that is driven by dedicated personal service. ...

Italian researchers may have identified a genetic "signature" for dangerous plaque that leads to stroke. Reporting from their study published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, the researchers said a pattern of five microscopic bits of genetic material called microRNAs (miRNAs) — a genetic "signature" — were present only in the plaque from patients who had experienced a stroke. This is the first report to suggest that miRNAs may provide an important clue about which plaque in artery walls is the most dangerous. Plaque is made up of fat, cholesterol, ...

For the last 10,000 years, summer sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has been far from constant. For several thousand years, there was much less sea ice in The Arctic Ocean – probably less than half of current amounts. This is indicated by new findings by the Danish National Research Foundation for Geogenetics at the University of Copenhagen. The results of the study will be published in the journal Science. Sea ice comes and goes without leaving a record. For this reason, our knowledge about its variations and extent was limited before we had satellite surveillance or observations ...

Researchers at the NIH Chemical Genomics Center, administered by NHGRI, used robotic, ultra-high-throughput screening technology to test more than 2,800 chemical compounds for activity against 61 genetically diverse strains of lab-grown malaria parasites. They found 32 compounds that were highly effective at killing at least 45 of the 61 strains. Ten of these compounds had not previously been reported to have anti-malarial action, and seven were more active at lower concentrations than artemisinin, a widely used malaria drug. All the screened compounds are already registered ...

Another advantage of using the ladder strategy is that you can customize your ladder to suit your individual investment objectives, such as meeting future funding needs or fulfilling specific income requirements. Investment selection will also take into account such things as your tax liabilities, quality considerations and anticipated future changes in your financial situation. Ladders are typically built using a variety of the following types of fixed income securities: U.S. Treasury and government agency securities, tax-exempt municipal bonds, corporate bonds, zero-coupon ...

Researchers have demonstrated that cells of the innate immune system are capable of "memory", and of mounting rapid protection to an otherwise lethal dose of live vaccinia virus. The study, published in the Open Access journal PLoS Pathogens on August 4th, challenges previous thought that only B cells and T cells can store memory to ward off future infection. The finding, by researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and Hebrew University and Duke University, has potentially significant consequences for the design of future vaccines, ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- A discovery by scientists at Duke University Medical Center and Johns Hopkins University could increase the chances for an effective combination of drug therapy to treat the second most common type of brain tumor. For years scientists have been looking for the primary cancer genes involved in the development of oligodendrogliomas. Scientists knew the two chromosomes that held the probable mutations, but not the particular gene information. Now scientists at Duke and Johns Hopkins have discovered the most likely genetic mutations that researchers have ...

The percentage of graduating neurology residents comfortable treating stroke with a clot-busting drug has increased dramatically over the past 10 years, according to research published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. In a survey, the number of residents reporting feeling comfortable using tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) increased from 73 percent in 2000 to 94 percent in 2010. Furthermore, 95 percent in 2010 had used tPA compared to 80 percent in the earlier survey. Of the 95 percent who had used tPA, 59 percent reported delivering it at least ...

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have completed a comprehensive map of genetic mutations occurring in the second-most common form of brain cancer, oligodendroglioma. The findings, reported in the Aug. 4 issue of Science, also appear to reveal the biological cause of the tumors, they say. To create the map, the scientists sequenced protein-coding genes in seven oligodendroglioma tissue samples, and focused attention on recurring mutations in two genes not previously associated with these tumors – CIC and FUBP1. The investigators say that CIC and FUBP1 are ...

(NEW YORK, NY, (August 4, 2011) – Columbia University Medical Center researchers have for the first time directly converted human skin cells into functional forebrain neurons, without the need for stem cells of any kind. The findings offer a new and potentially more direct way to produce replacement cell therapies for Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Such cells may prove especially useful for testing new therapeutic leads. The study was published in the August 4 online issue of the journal Cell. In another first, the researchers used this method — called ...

PASADENA, Calif.—Stretching for thousands of miles beneath oceans, optical fibers now connect every continent except for Antarctica. With less data loss and higher bandwidth, optical-fiber technology allows information to zip around the world, bringing pictures, video, and other data from every corner of the globe to your computer in a split second. But although optical fibers are increasingly replacing copper wires, carrying information via photons instead of electrons, today's computer technology still relies on electronic chips. Now, researchers led by engineers at ...

Bond Ladders, a powerful tool for retirement. A bond ladder works by spreading investment dollars among bonds that will mature at various times between one and fifteen years from now. In a normal interest rate environment, shorter maturities will yield less than longer maturities. Think of the individual bonds as rungs on your ladder. As each individual bond matures, your principal is made available for reinvestment at current interest rates. The value of a ladder is the ability to reinvest the principal from the maturing bond into a new bond with a higher yield. The ...

This press release is available in French. By working with individuals suffering from a severe disorder that causes sensory neurons to degenerate, researchers at the University of Montreal Hospital and CHU Sainte-Justine Hospital have discovered how a specific genetic mutation causes their patients' condition, which in turn has revealed more information about the mechanisms in our bodies which enable us to sense pain. Genetic mutations are mistakes in our genetic code that can either be passed from parents to their children or created when DNA is replicated. Lead author ...

Honeywell Safety Products announces the new Miller ShockFusion Permanent Horizontal Lifeline (HLL) Roof System - a versatile surface-mounted lifeline system that accommodates most industrial and commercial roof designs including standing seam, membrane, built-up, metal sheathing, concrete and wood. - Attaches to the surface of existing roof structures - Quick, easy installation reduces costs by requiring minimal labor and eliminating the need for structural roof penetration and repair. - Significantly reduces system forces on the roof - In the event of a fall, the ...

New Haven, Conn.—Over one-third of the world's population already lives in areas struggling to keep up with the demand for fresh water. By 2025, that number will nearly double. Some countries have met the challenge by tapping into natural sources of fresh water, but as many examples – such as the much-depleted Jordan River – have demonstrated, many of these practices are far from sustainable. A new Yale University study argues that seawater desalination should play an important role in helping combat worldwide fresh water shortages – once conservation, reuse and other ...

DALLAS – Aug. 4, 2011 – Findings by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers may suggest new strategies for successful donor adult stem cell transplants in patients with blood cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma. The study, published Aug. 5 in Cell Stem Cell, showed for the first time that adult blood stem cells can be regulated to overcome an immune response that leads to transplant rejection. It also opens up further studies in stem cell immunology, said Dr. Chengcheng "Alec" Zhang, assistant professor of physiology and developmental biology at UT Southwestern ...

Drinking just one 4cl measure of spirits can increase the risk of an acute attack of pancreatitis, but wine or beer does not appear to have the same effect, according to a study published online by BJS, the British Journal of Surgery. Researchers from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden followed 84,601 people from 46 to 84 years of age from the general population in Vastmanland and Uppsala for a median of ten years. During that time 513 developed acute pancreatitis. "Our study revealed a steady increase between each measure of spirits a person drank on one occasion ...

For male houbara bustards sexual extravagance is the key to attracting mates in some of the world's harshest desert environments. However, new research in Ecology Letters reveals that males who perform the most extravagant sexual displays will suffer from premature biological aging and will pass their reproductive prime years earlier than their less ostentatious rivals. Houbara bustards, Chlamydotis undulata, are found across the deserts of the Southern Hemisphere, from the Persian Gulf to the Gobi Desert, and for six months of the year the males spend their days in elaborate ...