LA JOLLA, Calif., December 23, 2010 – Melanoma is one of the least common types of skin cancer, but it is also the most deadly. Melanocytes (pigment-producing skin cells) lose the genetic regulatory mechanisms that normally limit their number, allowing them to divide and proliferate out of control. One such regulator, called MITF, controls an array of genes that influence melanocyte development, function and survival. Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) and their collaborators recently used a melanoma mouse model, cell cultures and ...

Tomato plants use similar biochemical mechanisms to reject pollen from their own flowers as well as pollen from foreign but related plant species, thus guarding against both inbreeding and cross-species hybridization, report plant scientists at the University of California, Davis. The researchers identified a tomato pollen gene that encodes a protein that is very similar to a protein thought to function in preventing self-pollination in petunias. The tomato gene also was shown to play a role in blocking cross-species fertilization, suggesting that similar biochemical ...

BOSTON--By tweaking a single gene, scientists have mimicked in sedentary mice the heart-strengthening effects of two weeks of endurance training, according to a report from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). The genetic manipulation spurred the animals' heart muscle cells -- called cardiomyocytes -- to proliferate and grow larger by an amount comparable to normal mice that swam for up to three hours a day, the authors write in the journal Cell. This specific gene manipulation can't be done in humans, they say, but the findings ...

Use of electronic health records by hospitals across the United States has had only a limited effect on improving the quality of medical care, according to a new RAND Corporation study. Studying a wide mix of hospitals nationally, researchers found that hospitals with basic electronic health records demonstrated a significantly higher increase in quality of care for patients being treated for heart failure. However, similar gains were not noted among hospitals that upgraded to advanced electronic health records, and hospitals with electronic health records did not ...

LA JOLLA, CA—Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have discovered how AMPK, a metabolic master switch that springs into gear when cells run low on energy, revs up a cellular recycling program to free up essential molecular building blocks in times of need. In a paper published in the Dec. 23, 2010 edition of Science Express, a team led by Reuben Shaw, PhD., Howard Hughes Medical Institute Early Career Scientist and Hearst Endowment assistant professor in the Salk's Molecular and Cell Biology Laboratory, reports that AMPK activates a cellular recycling ...

Phosphorous levels plummet in kidney disease patients who stick to a vegetarian diet, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The results suggest that eating vegetables rather than meat can help kidney disease patients avoid accumulating toxic levels of this mineral in their bodies. Individuals with kidney disease cannot adequately rid the body of phosphorus, which is found in dietary proteins and is a common food additive. Kidney disease patients must limit their phosphorous intake, as high ...

WORCESTER, Mass. — Scientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the University of Texas at Austin have uncovered evidence that environmental influences experienced by a father can be passed down to the next generation, "reprogramming" how genes function in offspring. A new study published this week in Cell shows that environmental cues—in this case, diet—influence genes in mammals from one generation to the next, evidence that until now has been sparse. These insights, coupled with previous human epidemiological studies, suggest that paternal environmental ...

The cell signaling pathway known as Wnt, commonly activated in cancers, causes internal membranes within a healthy cell to imprison an enzyme that is vital in degrading proteins, preventing the enzyme from doing its job and affecting the stability of many proteins within the cell, researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have found. The finding is important because sequestering the enzyme, Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 (GSK3), results in the stabilization of proteins in the cell, at least one of which is known to be a key player in cancer, said Dr. Edward ...

FINDINGS: Whitehead Institute researchers have determined that heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) can create diverse heritable traits in brewer's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) by affecting a large portion of the yeast genome. The finding has led the researchers to conclude that Hsp90 has played a key role in shaping the evolutionary history of the yeast genome, and likely others as well. RELEVANCE: Over the past several years, Whitehead Member Susan Lindquist has built the case that heat shock proteins (Hsps), which are found across species from bacteria to humans, are ...

When prowling for a hook up, it's not always the good-looker who gets the girl. In fact, in a certain species of South American fish, brawn and stealth beat out colorful and refined almost every time. In a series of published studies of a South American species of fish (Poecilia parae), which are closely related to guppies, Syracuse University scientists have discovered how the interplay between male mating strategies and predator behavior has helped preserve the population's distinctive color diversity over the course of time. The third study in the series was published ...

Scientists from the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at Delft University of Technology and Eindhoven University of Technology in The Netherlands have succeeded in controlling the building blocks of a future super-fast quantum computer. They are now able to manipulate these building blocks (qubits) with electrical rather than magnetic fields, as has been the common practice up till now. They have also been able to embed these qubits into semiconductor nanowires. The scientists' findings have been published in the current issue of the science journal Nature (23 December). ...

A new study at the University of Haifa reveals: Emotional intelligence empowers positive attitudes and weakens negative behavior in the private sector; but does not have the same effect in the public sector "The results of this study emphasize the existence of significant behavioral differences between the sectors. Executives intending to carry out reforms or implement management plans in the public sector should be well aware of these differences," explains Dr. Galit Meisler who conducted the study. A new study from the University of Haifa shows that within the private ...

They'll drill through four ice ages, epic sandstorms, mankind's migration from Africa to the New World, and the biggest droughts in history. Tel Aviv University is heading an international study that for the first time will dig deep beneath the Dead Sea, 500 meters (about a third of a mile) down under 300 meters (about a fifth of a mile) of water. Drilling with a special rig, the researchers will look back in time to collect a massive amount of information about climate change and earthquake patterns. The study, led by Prof. Zvi Ben-Avraham of Tel Aviv University's Minerva ...

A study was carried out to examine the extent to which quercetin and trans-resveratrol (RSV) prevented inflammation or insulin resistance in primary cultures of human adipocytes treated with tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a)—an inflammatory cytokine elevated in the plasma and adipose tissue of obese, diabetic individuals. Cultures of human adipocytes were pretreated with quercetin and trans-RSV followed by treatment with TNF-a. Subsequently, gene and protein markers of inflammation and insulin resistance were measured. The authors report that quercetin, and to a lesser ...

Six years after the tsunami disaster of 26/12/2004, the set-up of the German-Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System for the Indian Ocean (GITEWS) has been completed. The project ends on 31 March 2011. After that, Indonesia accepts the sole responsibility for the overall system. "The innovative technical approach of GITEWS is based on a combination of different sensors, whose central element is a fast and precise detection and analysis of earthquakes, supported by GPS measurements," says Professor Reinhard Hüttl, Scientific Director of the GFZ German Research Centre for ...

Researchers at the University of Exeter have developed a new approach to studying potentially deadly disease-causing bacteria which could help speed up the process of finding vaccines. Dr Andrea Dowling, from the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at the university's Cornwall Campus, has pioneered a simple screen which can help isolate the virulent parts of the gene structures of pathogenic* bacteria. The screen allows researchers to simultaneously run thousands of tests where genes from the pathogen are pitted against the human blood cells that normally attack them. "By ...

Scientists at IRB Barcelona have discovered that some brain tumours in larvae of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster use the genetic programme of germline cells to grow. The removal of some of these genes leads to healthy brains. This finding demonstrates that these genes are crucial for tumour development. The study, headed by ICREA researcher Cayetano González, is published today in the prestigious journal Science. One of the characteristics of tumour cells is their immortality, a property that allows them to divide without obeying external signals. As a result, ...

COLLEGE STATION, Dec. 23, 2010 — An international team of researchers featuring Texas A&M University physicist Jairo Sinova has announced a breakthrough that gives a new spin to semiconductor nanoelectronics and the world of information technology. The team has developed an electrically controllable device whose functionality is based on an electron's spin. Their results, the culmination of a 20-year scientific quest involving many international researchers and groups, are published in the current issue of Science. The team, which also includes researchers from the ...

Health insurance has always been a concern for people who care about their health. The Forbes Insurance Agency introduces South Carolina Health Insurance plans from best health insurance companies to serve health interest all of South Carolina by advising and providing health insurance plans for individuals, families and the self-employed, indeed any South Carolina resident who is seeking medical coverage for himself, herself and or family. Ask for any type of health insurance plan to address any kind of health necessity, The Forbes Insurance Agency has it listed on ...

This online business opportunity is unique because a group of independent entrepreneurs have joined forces to to offer grants during the Christmas season to pay the start-up costs for an automated, online business opportunity. "The best Christmas gift we can give to others is to use the concept of the movie Pay it Forward. We help people by paying their cost to start an automated, online business opportunity and help them to run it. We help them every step of the way and never ask for any money to prove that what we offer is genuine," said James Crookston, a member of ...

WebItDesigns has announced the launch of their new venture, ColdAsIce.TV, to promote female professional skiers Grete Eliassen, Keri Herman, and Meg Olenick... and promote women's professional actions sports in general. ColdAsIce.TV has been sponsored by GoPro Cameras, the top action sports video equipment provider on the planet, who will be shooting on location at the Dew Tour in Breckenridge. GoPro will provide great HD video footage of top female skiers Grete Eliassen, Keri Herman, and Meg Olenick for the launch of ColdAsIce.TV Speaking on the venture and the strategic ...

Dr. Jane Robertson Westerfield is the author of three books on death and dying and is a Speaker/Performer, Director and Producer. Dr. Westerfield has some unique perspectives to offer those who are grieving during the holidays which she shares with us using her expertise in Music and Drama. Open to Hope Radio broadcasts every Thursday. To listen to this show, go to http://opentohope.com/. About Dr. Heidi Horsley Dr. Heidi Horsley, PsyD, LMSW, MS, is a bereaved sibling and a licensed psychologist and social worker. Dr. Heidi is the Co-Founder and Executive Director ...

BookWhirl.com, one of the leaders of the book marketing industry, caps the year 2010 with the unveiling of its first Social Media Book Advertisement Service. With a price of $120, self-published authors can avail of a more extensive promotional coverage. It's the company's first book marketing tool concentrating on social media. The Social Media Book Advertisement Service involves a creation of a book advertisement that will be posted on the Welcome page of a self-published author's Facebook Fan Page. The advertisement will contain the book's description, book cover ...

"Our mission is to take and deliver messages accurately, promptly, and professionally, every time" says Mr. Johnson of Focus Tele communication. Focus Tele communications provide their service in a wide area ranging from simple telephone answering service to call center service. Property management is one of their main focuses. They have been active associate members of both the Property Management Association and the Institute of Real Estate Management since 1989. They work on our website and answer each and every call with patience, and help us in growing our job. Focus ...

It's not hard to see why anyone would want to set up shop in the idylic town of Ilkley nestling in the Yorkshire Dales. It's a beautiful victorian town surrounded by beautiful countryside, but the centre of a UK-wide online art supplies business? Proud shop owner Tim Tennant is bucking the retailing trend with his burgeoning artist materials shop and sending art supplies uk wide with his newly revamped website at http://www.art-shoponline.co.uk Artshoponline.co.uk supply a huge range of materials for artists from the operation's headquarters in Ilkley. "We've gone from ...