Researchers funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)-led Integrated Biorefining Research and Technology (IBTI) Club have identified an enzyme in bacteria which could be used to make biofuel production more efficient. The research is published in the 14 June Issue of the American Chemical Society journal Biochemistry. This research, carried out by teams at the Universities of Warwick and British Columbia, could make sustainable sources of biofuels, such as woody plants and the inedible parts of crops, more economically viable. The ...

Can dogs read our minds? How do they learn to beg for food or behave badly primarily when we're not looking? According to Monique Udell and her team, from the University of Florida in the US, the way that dogs come to respond to the level of people's attentiveness tells us something about the ways dogs think and learn about human behavior. Their research1, published online in Springer's journal Learning & Behavior, suggests it is down to a combination of specific cues, context and previous experience. Recent work has identified a remarkable range of human-like social ...

A team from the University of Sheffield's School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR) has developed a new index to measure hospital mortality rates that has been accepted for use by the Department of Health. Led by Professor Michael Campbell, the team, including Drs Richard Jacques and James Fotheringham, were commissioned in January 2011 by the Department of Health to develop and test a new index to look at deaths following a hospital admission. In the past this has mainly been done by a company called Dr Foster, which produced the Hospital Standardised Mortality ...

A research breakthrough has proven that it is possible to reprogram mature cells from human skin directly into brain cells, without passing through the stem cell stage. The unexpectedly simple technique involves activating three genes in the skin cells; genes which are already known to be active in the formation of brain cells at the foetal stage. The new technique avoids many of the ethical dilemmas that stem cell research has faced. For the first time, a research group at Lund University in Sweden has succeeded in creating specific types of nerve cells from human ...

During the financial turmoil of the past several years, no issue has troubled American families more than the possibility of losing their homes. Many have turned to debt relief attorneys for advice about how to stop foreclosure by pursuing a loan modification, short sale or other strategy. One important related issue -- wrongful foreclosures -- received little attention until late last year. Suddenly, cases from around the country began to reveal that employees of lenders and loan servicers were signing legal documents that attested to personal knowledge of a mortgage ...

Bonn 8 June Evidence from benchmark sites across the tropics is proving that an integrated, multifunctional approach that allows for land-use sharing in agriculture, forests and other functions can achieve good results in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and raising food production levels. It provides more realistic solutions than the popular view on sparing land for forests through agricultural intensification. Agricultural intensification, also known as the Borlaug hypothesis, means increasing yields per unit area of land regardless of the emissions caused, expecting ...

Cancers of the gut, stomach and pancreas could be detected much sooner with a simple urine test, research suggests. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have identified key proteins in the urine of patients with advanced cancers. The findings could help the detection of these cancers in people who have not yet started to show symptoms of the disease. This would enable patients to be diagnosed much earlier, leading to improved survival rates. Only around 10 per cent of patients with these cancers – known as cancers of the upper gastrointestinal tract – are ...

Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new technique for using multi-core chips more efficiently, significantly enhancing a computer's ability to build computer models of biological systems. The technique improved the efficiency of algorithms used to build models of biological systems more than seven-fold, creating more realistic models that can account for uncertainty and biological variation. This could impact research areas ranging from drug development to the engineering of biofuels. Computer models of biological systems have many uses, from ...

(Baltimore, MD) – In a study published today in the Clinical Neuropsychologist (e-publication ahead of print), researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute found differences in the brain development of preschool children with symptoms of Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Results showed the region of the brain important for cognitive and motor control was smaller in these children than in typically developing children. Novel for its use of neuroimaging in very young, preschool age children with early symptoms of ADHD, this study's examination of brain differences ...

The Kabbalah Centre, a Los-Angeles based, not-for-profit spiritual organization that studies Jewish mysticism, is under investigation for federal tax evasion by the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) of the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS' investigation comes on the heels of a couple lawsuits accusing the Kabbalah Centre of committing financial fraud. The Kabbalah Centre, well-known for its A-list celebrity adherents and supporters, including Madonna, has been led by the Berg family for the past 40 years. A story in the Los Angeles Times noted that, while applying ...

Whether it is a deterioration of civility in the culture of sports, or even a reflection of society at large, in recent years there have been a number of high-profile confrontations between players and fans, and fights between fans. These clashes have resulted in a rash of sports fan injuries. In 2004, Frank Francisco, then a member of the Texas Rangers baseball team, reacted to a disturbance in the Rangers bullpen between a player and a fan by throwing a folding chair into the stands. The chair struck the wife of the Oakland A's fan, breaking her nose. An investigation ...

BOSTON (June 9, 2011) − Mice born to mothers who are fed a diet supplemented with B vitamins are less likely to develop intestinal tumors, report scientists at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University. Previous research in humans and mice suggests that B vitamins, particularly folate, play a role in the prevention of colorectal cancer. Using a mouse model of naturally occurring colorectal cancer, the USDA HNRCA scientists examined whether a mothers' B vitamin intake impacts her offspring's cancer risk. Mothers ...

This release is available in Spanish. Factory trials conducted by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists have led to recommendations for controlling or preventing starch buildup in processed raw sugars and products made with those sugars. The study was led by chemist Gillian Eggleston with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Commodity Utilization Research Unit in New Orleans, La. ARS is USDA's chief intramural scientific research agency. Eggleston has been studying sugarcane that comes into factories containing too much field leafy residue called trash. ...

Molton Brown has announced the launch of the new re-charge black pepper antiperspirant stick, a welcome addition to the brand's most popular men's collection. Madagascan black pepper mixed with the fusion of essential oils - ranging from Egyptian Basil and Haitian Vetiver to Russian Coriander, Italian Bergamot and Lemon - creates the distinctive warm and richly spiced aroma. Specially designed to guarantee long-lasting protection, eliminating both odours and moisture, the men's deodorant ensures all day freshness. The added andriboa oil extract, a rare ingredient ...

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision could have a great deal of significance for employees and retirees with a private pension plan, a University of Illinois elder law expert says. According to law professor Richard L. Kaplan, an expert on taxation and retirement issues, the high court's ruling in Cigna Corp. v. Amara paves the way for monetary damages when companies misrepresent changes they make to employee pension plans. "The ruling says that when an employer changes its retirement plan, an employee who has been harmed can ask a court to enforce ...

Macdonald Manchester and Macdonald Townhouse hotels have taken business support to the next level with the launch of the Trainers' Club. The launch of the new loyalty programme follows Macdonald Manchester being ranked 6th on the Best for Business Travel List, making it one of the top hotels for business travellers in Europe. This exclusive club and loyalty programme for trainers and training facilitators in the meetings industry offers added value benefits to the trainers' experience. Free wifi, a dedicated on site event manager, porter assistance to unload materials, ...

Savvy career minded individuals have known for some time that ingratiating oneself to the boss and others – perhaps more commonly known as 'sucking up'– can help move them up the corporate ladder more quickly. However, a recent study published in the Journal of Management Studies suggests that politically savvy professionals who use ingratiation as a career aid may also avoid the psychological distress that comes to others who are less cunning about their workplace behavior. This new research shows that when politically savvy professionals use the coping skill of ingratiation, ...

VIDEO: This Father’s Day, dad’s choice of where to eat could literally tip the scales on his children’s health. A father’s use of restaurants and his perceptions of family meals carry more... Click here for more information. COLLEGE STATION – This Father's Day, dad's choice of where to eat could literally tip the scales on his children's health. A father's use of restaurants and his perceptions of family meals carry more weight, so to speak, than mothers', according ...

The Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the fastest growing hotel companies worldwide, announces the Radisson Blu Golden Horn Hotel, Istanbul. The new property featuring 133 guest rooms is scheduled to open in Q1 2013. The building is owned by Dilek Holding which also owns the Radisson Blu Sisli in Istanbul. "Our core brand Radisson Blu is the largest upper upscale brand in Istanbul - our portfolio now comprises 5 hotels with 1,000 rooms in operation and under development. Istanbul and Turkey overall are important markets for us as they offer considerable opportunities ...

Bigmouthmedia, global digital media company, has announced the appointment of Mike Mason as director of product portfolio. Underlining the company's commitment to high quality client service, Mike's role will see him take operational responsibility for delivering a programme of best practice and continuous improvement to services across the entire bigmouthmedia client roster. Mike will also take ownership of the day-to-day running of a broad range of services including search engine optimization, PPC, performance marketing, usability and reporting & analytics for ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Sulforaphane, one of the primary phytochemicals in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables that helps them prevent cancer, has been shown for the first time to selectively target and kill cancer cells while leaving normal prostate cells healthy and unaffected. The findings, made by scientists in the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, are another important step forward for the potential use of sulforaphone in cancer prevention and treatment. Clinical prevention trials are already under way for its use in these areas, particularly prostate ...

Amsterdam, NL, 9 June 2011 – Few treatments for Parkinson's disease (PD) restore function for extended periods. In a new study published today in the inaugural issue issue of the Journal of Parkinson's Disease, an international group of researchers report that platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) restored function in rodents and shows promise as a clinical candidate drug for treatment of PD. Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting 1𔃀% of the population over the age of 65. It is characterized by loss of brain cells ...

Amsterdam, NL, 9 June 2011 – In a new study published today in the inaugural issue of the Journal of Parkinson's Disease, Israeli researchers report that by tracking pharmacy purchases of anti-Parkinson drugs they could estimate the number of Parkinson's disease (PD) cases in a large population. The study identified a sharp rise in PD prevalence from 170/100,000 in 2000 to 256/100,000 in 2007 in Israel, which warrants further investigation. Surprisingly, much of the world lacks accurate figures for the percentage of the population (prevalence) with PD and the rate of ...

The idea is simple, says Kevin Moeller, PhD, and yet it has huge implications. All we are recommending is using photovoltaic cells (clean energy) to power electrochemical reactions (clean chemistry). Moeller is the first to admit this isn't new science. "But we hope to change the way people do this kind of chemistry by making a connection for them between two existing technologies," he says. To underscore the simplicity of the idea, Moeller and his co-authors used a $6 solar cell sold on the Internet and intended to power toy cars to run reactions described in an article ...

Confused.com has revealed that 56% of UK drivers have at some point, forgotten where they have parked their car, and 3% have picked up the phone to ask their breakdown service to help them find it. More than 50 in 2,000 drivers in the UK admit to making that call according to a new survey by car insurance comparison site Confused.com. The Confused.com survey has revealed some of the gaffes of UK drivers, which have led them to phone for their breakdown service, like 25% of drivers have locked their keys in the car and 10% of drivers have had to call for their breakdown ...