ORLANDO, Fla. — Scientists have identified digoxin as a possible therapy for prostate cancer, using a combination of laboratory science and epidemiology that is unprecedented in its cooperative nature. "Epidemiologists and basic scientists often do not understand each other, as we often are only clear on our own strengths and the other's weaknesses," said Elizabeth Platz, Sc.D., M.P.H, professor of epidemiology and the Martin D. Abeloff, M.D., scholar in cancer prevention at Johns Hopkins University. For the current paper, published in Cancer Discovery, the newest ...

Dallas, TX (April 3, 2011) – A large, multi-year study of antibiotic use in Veterans Health Administration's acute care facilities demonstrates dramatically increased use of carbapenems, a powerful class of antibiotics, over the last five years. These drugs are often considered the last treatment option for severe infections with multi-drug resistant pathogens. The increased carbapenem use, which has also been described in non-VA facilities in the US, is alarming because carbapenem-resistant bacteria are becoming more common. Overuse of these drugs could weaken their efficacy, ...

A new way of understanding the structure of proteins, polymers, minerals, and engineered materials will be published in the May 2011 issue of the journal Nature Materials. The discovery by two Penn State University researchers is a new type of symmetry in the structure of materials, which the researchers say greatly expands the possibilities for discovering or designing materials with desired properties. The research is expected to have broad relevance in many development efforts involving physical, chemical, biological, or engineering disciplines including, for example, ...

Johns Hopkins scientists and their colleagues paired laboratory and epidemiologic data to find that men using the cardiac drug, digoxin, had a 24 percent lower risk for prostate cancer. The scientists say further research about the discovery may lead to use of the drug, or new ones that work the same way, to treat the cancer. Digoxin, made from the foxglove plant, has been used for centuries in folk medicine and for decades to treat congestive heart failure and heart rhythm abnormalities. It also emerged as a leading candidate among 3,000 drugs screened by the Johns ...

Boston, MA - Tiny particles only billionths of a meter in diameter—about two thousand would fit across the width of a human hair—could offer big hope in a small package to the many millions of people who are allergic to the nickel in everything from jewelry to coins and cell phones, say scientists at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH). In the April 3 online issue of Nature Nanotechnology, the team will report a new approach to preventing the common skin allergy. Approximately ten to fifteen percent of the US population, or over 30 to 45 million people, plus many more ...

Following a successful first year online delivering independent consumer news and reviews for UK online slots enthusiasts, BestSlots.co.uk has cemented its reputation for trustworthy content and service with recognition by eCOGRA (eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance) as one of its Reputable Portals. The eCOGRA organisation is a non-profit, independent regulatory body that was formed with a mission to protect players by addressing the need for fair gaming and responsible operator conduct, setting standards for the online gaming industry that are enforced ...

The Heart of New Ulm Project, which is merging environmental, peer leadership and individual interventions across an entire rural Minnesota community with the assistance of a healthcare system, worksites and the general community to prevent coronary heart disease, has shown a 24 percent reduction in the number of acute heart attacks in a five-quarter period, compared with the previous five-quarter period of evaluation. This study will be presented at the 60th annual American College of Cardiology (ACC) Scientific Sessions in New Orleans on April 3. “Hearts Beat Back: ...

Videogameprices.co.uk is a new online resource for PC and console gamers dedicated to helping them track down the best current prices on popular titles. Taking its cue from the huge success of UK price comparison sites such as gocompare.com and comparethemarket.com in the realms of finance and insurance products, Videogameprices.co.uk has set out to provide UK gamers with a streamlined service tailored specifically to their interests, aggregating the latest comparative prices from the most competitive, reputable games retailers. The company's founder, David Newstead, ...

LA JOLLA, CA – April 3, 2011 – In the constantly morphing field of protein structure, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute offer yet another surprise: a common "chaperone" protein in cells thought to help other proteins fold has been shown instead to loosen them. The study was published in the April 3 issue of Nature Structural & Molecular Biology. The research offers the first structural insights into the shape of a "client" protein in the presence of a helper or "chaperone" protein. Specifically, the study examined the client protein p53 tumor suppressor ...

CHICAGO — In the largest study of its kind, researchers from a consortium of 44 universities and research institutions in the United States, including Rush University Medical Center, identified four new genes linked to Alzheimer's disease. Each gene individually adds to the risk of having this common form of dementia later in life. The findings, published in the April issue of Nature Genetics, offer new insight into the underlying causes of Alzheimer's disease. "This is a major advance in the field thanks to many scientists across the country working together over ...

PHILADELPHIA – In the largest study of its kind, researchers from a consortium led by the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, the University of Miami, and the Boston University School of Medicine, identified four new genes linked to Alzheimer's disease. Each gene individually adds to the risk of having this common form of dementia later in life. These new genes offer a portal into what causes Alzheimer's disease and is a major advance in the field. The study, conducted by the Alzheimer's Disease Genetics Consortium, reports genetic analysis of more than 11,000 ...

Contact: John Ascenzi Ascenzi@email.chop.edu 267-426-6055 Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Rick Cushman Richard.Cushman@jefferson.edu 215-955-2240 Thomas Jefferson University Potential treatment found for debilitating bone disease in wounded soldiers and children Promising new research reveals a potentially highly effective treatment for heterotopic ossification (HO), a painful and often debilitating abnormal buildup of bone tissue. HO comes in two main forms—one that appears in children and is congenital, another that strikes wounded military personnel ...

After a successful 2010 campaign that saw buyers sail away in the stunning MARY-JEAN, a 2011 finalist at the World Superyacht Show as well as the classic ATHOS sailing yacht, YPI Group were again pleased to announce the delivery of a new 60m luxury yacht to a delighted owner. Patrick Renard was the yacht manager assigned to the project that saw him spending months overseeing the yacht's construction and exacting the buyers wishes, "after months on a project, especially of this size and nature, it is always a great feeling knowing that we were able to give the client ...

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — With the first observation of thermoelectric effects at graphene contacts, University of Illinois researchers found that graphene transistors have a nanoscale cooling effect that reduces their temperature. Led by mechanical science and engineering professor William King and electrical and computer engineering professor Eric Pop, the team will publish its findings in the April 3 advance online edition of the journal Nature Nanotechnology. The speed and size of computer chips are limited by how much heat they dissipate. All electronics dissipate heat ...

Murray, UT (4/03/11) – Fasting has long been associated with religious rituals, diets, and political protests. Now new evidence from cardiac researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute demonstrates that routine periodic fasting is also good for your health, and your heart. Today, research cardiologists at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute are reporting that fasting not only lowers one's risk of coronary artery disease and diabetes, but also causes significant changes in a person's blood cholesterol levels. Both diabetes and elevated ...

(NEW YORK, NY, April 3, 2011) – In the largest study of its kind, researchers from a consortium that includes Columbia University Medical Center identified four new genes linked to late-onset Alzheimer's disease. Each of these genes adds to the risk of developing this most common form of the disease, and together they offer a portal into the causes of Alzheimer's. Their identification will help researchers find ways to determine who is at risk of developing the disease, which will be critical as preventive measures become available, and to identify proteins and pathways ...

A leading UK scientist's search for factors that increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's has uncovered five new genes to help pinpoint what's going wrong in the brain. Professor Julie Williams from Cardiff University's MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics has identified an additional five new genes – bringing the total number of genes that increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's to ten. "What we did in this study is to follow-up previous work in around 20,000 people with Alzheimer's and 40,000 well individuals and identified a further ...

NEW YORK (April 3, 2011) – Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have developed a new way to stimulate neuron production in the adult mouse brain, demonstrating that neurons acquired in the brain's hippocampus during adulthood improve certain cognitive functions. In recent years, scientists have been exploring whether stimulating neurogenesis (the formation of new neurons) in the adult brain has a beneficial effect on cognition or mood. Until now, studies have relied on interventions, such as exercise and enriched environments, that affect numerous other processes ...

A team of researchers at the University of California, San Francisco has discovered a new way to predict breast cancer survival based on an "immune profile" – the relative levels of three types of immune cells within a tumor. Knowing a patient's profile may one day help guide treatment. Moreover, the UCSF team showed that they could use drugs to alter this immune profile in mice. Giving these drugs to mice, in combination with chemotherapy, significantly slowed tumor growth, blocked metastasis and helped mice live longer, suggesting that the approach may work in people. According ...

Frank A. Ashton was selected by the State of Florida to serve on the Commission that reviews and recommends candidates seeking to serve as judges for workers' compensation claims. Mr. Ashton who is a senior partner with the Jacksonville and Jacksonville Beach, Florida law firm of Hardesty, Tyde, Green & Ashton, P.A. focuses his work on medical malpractice claims and serious personal injury cases. Mr. Ashton possesses vast trial experience to include numerous multimillion dollar jury verdicts and settlements in civil cases as well as successfully prosecuting numerous ...

Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers are part of a consortium that has identified four new genes that when present increase the risk of a person developing Alzheimer's disease later in life. The findings appear in the current issue of Nature Genetics. The consortium also contributed to the identification of a fifth gene reported by other groups of investigators from the United States and Europe. "Mount Sinai has unique resources that we contributed to the study, having one of the largest brain banks for Alzheimer samples in the world," said lead Mount Sinai scientist, ...

Adult mice engineered to have more newborn neurons in their brain memory hub excelled at accurately discriminating between similar experiences – an ability that declines with normal aging and in some anxiety disorders. Boosting such neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus also produced antidepressant-like effects when combined with exercise, in the study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Researchers, for the first time, pinpointed the effects of enhanced adult neurogenesis by creating mice lacking a gene required for programmed cell death of newborn neurons ...

The United States Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently cited a Rochelle Park, N.J., contractor for four repeat violations and one serious violation because of unsafe scaffolding in renovation of the Somerville, N.J., train station. Federal workplace safety inspectors found the contractor put workers at risk of potential falls. OSHA has proposed fines of $69,300, although a company representative said the contractor plans to fight the charges, which it had 15 business days to do. History of Noncompliance The contractor, Beno ...

Teen drivers pose many dangers to themselves and others on the road. The data is disturbing, no matter how you approach it. Motor vehicle accidents are still the leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 15 and 20. That group is involved in fatal crashes at three times the rate of all other drivers. The federal government has been trying to address this challenge by offering guidelines on teen driver's licensing standards. Led by Ray LaHood, the Department of Transportation has also waged a proactive awareness campaign against distracted driving. AAA's ...

This past month's battle over high-speed rail funding has raised multiple questions, the most significant of which is: did Florida Governor Rick Scott overstep his executive authority by refusing federal funds for the Tampa-Orlando rail project? In a unanimous decision on March 4, 2011, the Florida Supreme Court answered: no. The debate began on February 16, when Gov. Scott announced that he was rejecting federal funding from the Obama administration's high-speed rail investment plan. He had concerns that the construction cost would exceed the 2.4 billion dollars of ...