CORVALLIS, Ore. – Scientists have just identified a new reason why some curry dishes, made with spices humans have used for thousands of years, might be good for you. New research at Oregon State University has discovered that curcumin, a compound found in the cooking spice turmeric, can cause a modest but measurable increase in levels of a protein that's known to be important in the "innate" immune system, helping to prevent infection in humans and other animals. This cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide, or CAMP, is part of what helps our immune system fight off various ...

OAKLAND, Calif., May 25, 2012 – Among women with gestational diabetes mellitus, referral to a telephone-based nurse management program was associated with lower risk of high baby birth weight and increased postpartum glucose testing, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers. Investigators for the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research examined the associations between referral to telephone-based nurse consultation and outcomes in 12 Kaiser Permanente medical centers with variation in the percent of patients referred to telephonic nurse management. ...

Originally endemic to the Atlantic Coast of North America, over the past 30 years Dyspanopeus sayi has been involuntarily introduced in the UK, France, the Netherlands, the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea. A study shows that in recent years the sea crab has established itself along the Western Mediterranean Coast. A team of Spanish and German researchers have recorded the first American Dyspanopeus sayi sea crab in the bay of Els Alfacs in the Ebro Delta (Spain). Both sexes were captured along with many ovigerous females (carrying eggs) in different areas and different ...

Recent work in mice suggested that the immune system is involved in removing beta-amyloid, the main Alzheimer's-causing substance in the brain. Researchers have now shown for the first time that this may apply in humans. Researchers at the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Exeter with colleagues in the National Institute on Aging in the USA and in Italy screened the expression levels of thousands of genes in blood samples from nearly 700 people. The telltale marker of immune system activity against beta-amyloid, a gene called CCR2, emerged as ...

How processes below a volcano are linked to seismic signals at the surface is described by scientists from the petrology group of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum and their colleagues from Bristol in a paper published today in Science. They analyzed the growth of crystals in the magma chamber and used results obtained from the monitoring of seismic signals. The research could ultimately help to predict future volcanic eruptions with greater accuracy. Like tree rings: Crystals in a magma chamber A few kilometers below the volcano a liquid reservoir exists, the magma chamber, ...

VIDEO: Depicting each copy of COPI as a triangle, the different arrangements of these building blocks become easier to spot. Click here for more information. These spheres may look almost identical, but subtle differences between them revealed a molecular version of the robots from Transformers. Each sphere is a vesicle, a pod that cells use to transport materials between different compartments. The images, produced by Marco Faini from John Briggs' lab at the European Molecular ...

On a marble plate, measuring 40 by 60 centimetres, the name "Yehiel" can be read, followed by further letters which have not yet been deciphered. The Jena Archaeologists believe that the new discovery might be a tomb slab. Antlers, which were found very close to the tomb slab in the rubble gave a clue to the age determination. "The organic material of the antlers could be dated by radiocarbon analysis with certainty to about 390 AD," excavation leader Dr. Dennis Graen of the Jena University explains. "Therefore we have a so-called 'terminus ante quem' for the inscription, ...

VIDEO: Contraceptive use in Spain during the first sexual encounter is similar to other European countries. However, there are some geographical differences between Spanish regions: women in Murcia use contraceptives less... Click here for more information. Contraceptive use in Spain during the first sexual encounter is similar to other European countries. However, there are some geographical differences between Spanish regions: women in Murcia use contraceptives less (55.8%) ...

The blueprint of all living beings is stored in their genetic material. In higher organisms this is stored in the well-protected cell nucleus. "Here a kind of copier works around the clock to make copies of the information needed at the time," says first author Jan Peter Siebrasse from the Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry at the University of Bonn. The copies contain the information which the cells need to produce vital enzymes or other cell building materials. These copies consist of messenger RNA which travels on random paths to the membrane of the cell ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A small inherited change in DNA is largely responsible for overactivating a gene linked to poor treatment response in people with acute leukemia. The study by researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) focused on a gene called BAALC. This gene is often overactive, or overexpressed, in people with acute myeloid or acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and it indicates that the disease is likely to respond poorly to standard therapy. This study ...

Geneva, Switzerland – May 25, 2012 – Ministers of Health from 194 countries at the Sixty-fifth World Health Assembly today endorsed a landmark Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP), a roadmap to prevent millions of deaths by 2020 through more equitable access to existing vaccines for people in all communities. The GVAP was coordinated by the Decade of Vaccines Collaboration, a group of leading international vaccine experts, and represents the collective vision of hundreds of global health stakeholders to extend the full benefits of immunization to all people, regardless of ...

Chromosomal deletions in DNA often involve just one of two gene copies inherited from either parent. But scientists haven't known how a deletion in one gene from one parent, called a "hemizygous" deletion, can contribute to cancer. A research team led by Stephen Elledge, a professor in the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, and his post-doctoral fellow Nicole Solimini, has now provided an answer. The most common hemizygous deletions in cancer, their research shows, involve a variety of tumor suppressing genes called STOP genes (suppressors of tumorigenesis ...

AMHERST, Mass. – Using camera traps, wildlife researchers including doctoral candidate Jennifer McCarthy and environmental conservation professor Todd Fuller of the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently captured photographs of one of the rarest animals on earth, the Sumatran striped rabbit. They say it may now be found only in two remote national parks on the Indonesian island. Their pictures and other observations are reported in the current issue of Oryx, The International Journal of Conservation. The rare rabbit was first photographed in Kerinci Seblat National ...

ALEXANDRIA, VA, May 25, 2012 – A new study published in Spine shows that early treatment by a physical therapist for low back pain (LBP), as compared to delayed treatment, was associated with reduced risk of subsequent healthcare utilization and lower overall healthcare costs. Using a national database of employer-sponsored health plans, researchers examined a sample of 32,070 patients who were newly consulting a primary care physician for low back pain. Patients were identified and categorized based on their use of physical therapist services within 90 days of the ...

Ferret.com (www.ferret.com), an online retailer based out of Pennsylvania, that sells a vast variety of ferret products, is the most recent corporation to make a donation to assist in the making of the independent feature film, The Ferret Squad. Ferret.com is a subsidiary of TABcom LLC. TABcom LLC, founded in 1969, is the parent company to a wide variety of pet-related websites, including Dog.com, Bird.com, Horse.com, Ferret.com, Fish.com and StateLineTack.com. All sites provide a broad range of competitively priced pet supplies, as well as community forums and partnerships ...

VIDEO: This animation from a computer model shows how forces from proteins in the larger pre-platelet form the barbell-shaped pro-platelet. Proplatelets form platelets of the correct size and shape.... Click here for more information. UC Davis mathematicians have helped biologists figure out why platelets, the cells that form blood clots, are the size and shape that they are. Because platelets are important both for healing wounds and in strokes and other conditions, a better ...

NASA satellites are providing rainfall, temperature, pressure, visible and infrared data to forecasters as Hurricane Bud is expected to make a quick landfall in western Mexico this weekend before turning back to sea. NASA's TRMM and Aqua satellites have been flying over Bud as it nears the Mexican coast. NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite passed above Hurricane Bud early this morning, May 25 at 0429 UTC (12:49 a.m. EDT/U.S.). A large area of moderate to heavy rainfall with rates of over 30mm/hr (~1.2 inches) was revealed in Bud by TRMM's Microwave ...

According to a recent article from ABC News, President Obama is indicating the recovery of American manufacturing as a leap toward an "economy built to last".(1). In conjunction with this and their 40th Anniversary in business, the National Mail Order Association (NMOA) commences their national Made in America Hot Product Contest beginning on June 1, 2012. NMOA is looking for as many American manufacturers as possible to have the chance to enter their product for the world to see. NMOA's Made in America Hot Product Contest has one main goal: helping the thousands ...

AEGIS Power Systems Inc., a custom power supply designer and manufacturer has released and made immediately available its latest VME Power Converter Card. The VME550 Series of ruggedized industrial power converters are designed for mil-cots, defense, aerospace, telecom, and industrial applications. This newest VME power converter card family is available in a single slot 6U x 4hp x 160mm conduction cooled card, VME550; or in a dual slot 6U x 8hp x 160mm air cooled card with heat-sink, VME550A. The VME550 series operates with a nominal input of 28VDC (22VDC - 33VDC) and ...

Boast Capital is proud to announce a partnership with Plug and Play Tech Center in Silicon Valley to launch Startup Camp Canada, an initiative to support and grow the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector in Alberta. The hybrid accelerator program will provide startups with acceleration time in both Canada and Silicon Valley with access to over 180 Silicon Valley venture capital (VC) firms and angel investors such as Accel Partners and Sand Hill Angels, world-class entrepreneurs from companies such as YouTube and Skype, and a community of leading universities ...

VIDEO: This animation of Typhoon Sanvu was created from 3-D images of TRMM satellite data during the week of May 21, 2012, as the storm moved through the western North Pacific... Click here for more information. Infrared and visible imagery from NASA's Aqua satellite taken on May 25, 2012, showed an impressive Typhoon Sanvu already affecting the islands of Iwo To and Chichi Jima, Japan. The typhoon is expected to run into cooler waters and become extra-tropical over the ...

Beaumont Hotel & Spa commemorates its 125th Anniversary with a new restaurant and lounge inside the hotel called Ore House Bar & Grill and Luella's Lounge. The festivities will continue from 11am to 4pm June 2, 2012. During the event, guests will enjoy an unusual Victorian-Era Fashion Show, live music, a ribbon cutting for the restaurant, free hotel tours and free massages in the spa & A Tribute to Fallen Miners will honor the miners of old Ouray. Prizes include a priceless & rare bottle of wine, spa services, dinners, a stay at the hotel, and so much more. ...

To address a glaring hole in the market of entrepreneurial growth resources for coaches, consultants, and professional service providers, Strategic Advisor Ron Wilder has announced a four-part course and a two-day live intensive that will provide business owners the tools and skills they need to ensure long-term business growth. "Business difficulties can often be traced back to problems with pricing—and few businesses have a firm grasp on when and how to set—and raise—prices," says Strategic Advisor Ron Wilder, CEO of Aligned Action. "Once a business ...

Athens, Ga. – Human breast milk is the best source of food for infants. University of Georgia researchers have found what may be a new second best—formula made from hazelnut oil. Casimir Akoh, a UGA distinguished research professor of food science and technology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, developed a new nutrient based on hazelnut oil that better mimics the structure of mother's milk, which makes it better suited to nourish infants. The results of his study were published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry on May 23. "Human ...

HOUSTON –HER2 and its epidermal growth factor receptor cousins mobilize a specialized protein to activate a major player in cancer development and sugar metabolism, scientists report in the May 25 issue of Cell. This chain of events, the scientists found, promotes Herceptin resistance in breast cancer and activation of glucose metabolism (glycolysis), which cancer cells primarily rely on to fuel their growth and survive. Their research focused on Skp2 E3 ligase, a protein that binds to and tags other proteins with molecules called ubiquitins, in this case to activate ...