Cockroaches could be more of a health benefit than a health hazard according to scientists from the University of Nottingham, who have discovered powerful antibiotic properties in the brains of cockroaches and locusts. Simon Lee, a postgraduate researcher who is presenting his work at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting in Nottingham, describes how the group identified up to nine different molecules in the insect tissues that were toxic to bacteria. These substances could lead to novel treatments for multi-drug resistant bacterial infections. The group ...

Coughing and wheezing patients could someday benefit from quicker, more accurate diagnosis and treatment for respiratory infections such as flu, through a simple blood test, according to scientists. Dr. Aimee Zaas, presenting her work at the Society for General Microbiology's autumn meeting in Nottingham describes how simply looking at an individuals blood 'signature' can be used to quickly diagnose and treat ill patients and could even predict the onset of a pandemic. The team, from the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy and Duke University Medical Center ...

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 6, 2010) – In the first human study of its kind to be published in more than 35 years, researchers found psilocybin, an hallucinogen which occurs naturally in "magic mushrooms," can safely improve the moods of patients with advanced-stage cancer and anxiety, according to an article published online today in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Patients enrolled in the study at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) demonstrated improvement of mood and reduction of anxiety up to six months after undergoing ...

Risky sexual behavior among members of a subset of the gay community is still adding to the spread of HIV. Research published in the open access journal BMC Infectious Diseases has found that young white homosexual men have an important contribution in the local spread of HIV. Despite increased education and awareness of HIV in the Western world, the number of new infections continues to rise each year. To try and understand this phenomenon, researchers from Ghent University in Belgium compared the genetic information of viruses isolated from more than 500 patients – ...

A fixation on geometric patterns may be associated with autism in children as young as 14 months, according to a report published online today that will appear in the January 2011 print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "It is undeniable that early treatment can have a significant positive impact on the long-term outcome for children with an autism spectrum disorder," the authors write as background information in the article. "Early treatment, however, generally relies on the age at which a diagnosis can be made, thus pushing ...

A pilot study suggests the hallucinogen psilocybin may be feasible and safe to administer to patients with advanced-stage cancer and anxiety, with promising effects on mood, according to a report published online today that will appear in the January 2011 print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "In recent years, there has been a growing awareness that the psychological, spiritual and existential crises often encountered by patients with cancer and their families need to be addressed more vigorously," the authors write as background ...

The association between psychotic disorders and living in urban areas appears to be a reflection of increased social fragmentation present within cities, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "There is a substantial worldwide variation in incidence rates of schizophrenia," the authors write as background in the article. "The clearest geographic pattern within this distribution of rates is that urban areas have a higher incidence of schizophrenia than rural areas." Characteristics of neighborhoods ...

Patients with early-stage schizophrenia who receive a combination of medication and a psychosocial intervention appear less likely to discontinue treatment or relapse—and may have improved insight, quality of life and social functioning—than those taking medication alone, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Antipsychotic drugs are the mainstay of therapy for patients with schizophrenia, but long-term therapy is associated with adverse effects and poor adherence, according to background information ...

Children and teens with higher blood levels of chemicals used in the production of non-stick cookware and waterproof fabrics appear more likely to have elevated total and LDL cholesterol levels, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Humans are exposed to the man-made compounds known as perfluoroalkyl acids—including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS)—through drinking water, dust, food packaging, breast milk, cord blood, microwave popcorn, air and occupational ...

Insufficient amounts of nighttime sleep among infants and preschool-aged children may be a significant risk factor for developing childhood obesity, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Additionally, napping does not appear to be an adequate substitute for nighttime sleep in terms of preventing obesity. "Obesity – defined as having age- and sex-specific body mass index (BMI; calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) at or above the 95th percentile ...

More than one-third of mothers and about one-fifth of fathers in the United Kingdom appear to experience an episode of depression between their child's birth and 12th year of age, with the highest rates in the first year after birth, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the November print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "Depression in parents is associated with adverse behavioral, developmental and cognitive outcomes in their children," the authors write as background information in the ...

SALT LAKE CITY, Sept. 7, 2010 – In an early step toward letting severely paralyzed people speak with their thoughts, University of Utah researchers translated brain signals into words using two grids of 16 microelectrodes implanted beneath the skull but atop the brain. "We have been able to decode spoken words using only signals from the brain with a device that has promise for long-term use in paralyzed patients who cannot now speak," says Bradley Greger, an assistant professor of bioengineering. Because the method needs ...

OAK BROOK, Ill. – Using ultrasound and a minimally-invasive procedure, radiologists can identify and treat patients who engage in a disturbing self-injury behavior known as self-embedding, according to a new study published in the online edition and October print issue of the journal Radiology. "This is a new way for radiologists to impact public and mental health," said the study's senior author, William E. Shiels II, D.O., chairman of the Department of Radiology at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and president of The Children's Radiological Institute. ...

St. Louis, MO, September 7, 2010 – Food manufacturers advertise a variety of foods on grocery store shelves by using nutrient claims on the front of packaging. A study in the September/October issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior evaluates how consumers are interpreting certain carbohydrate-related content claims and the effects of claims on consumer perceptions of food products. Findings from this study reveal that consumers misinterpret low carbohydrate claims to have health benefits and weight loss qualities beyond their nutrition facts. In the ...

The United States must focus on conserving the use of antibacterial drugs, or face a public health crisis from rapidly rising rates of antibiotic-resistant infections, according to an analysis out today. Evidence indicates that our nation's supply of antibiotics is being depleted by resistance, which occurs when infection-causing microbes mutate or change so that they no longer respond to widely-used treatments. Most proposals to solve this problem focus on giving pharmaceutical companies financial incentives to develop new drugs that could replace those that are no longer ...

About 17 percent of all visits to hospital emergency departments across the United States could be treated at retail medical clinics or urgent care centers, potentially saving $4.4 billion annually in health care costs, according to a new RAND Corporation study. Conditions that could be treated safely outside hospitals include minor infections, strains, fractures and lacerations, according to findings published in the September edition of the journal Health Affairs. "Patient traffic to hospital emergency departments has been growing, but a significant proportion of ...

Chevy Chase, MD—Today, The Endocrine Society released a new clinical practice guideline on the diagnosis and treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). The guideline features a series of evidence-based clinical recommendations developed by an expert task force. The guideline, published in the September 2010 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), a publication of The Endocrine Society, is endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Pediatric Endocrine Society, the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology, the European Society ...

Mr. Tay Hun Kiat will be responsible for strategic marketing and business development of IPS Securex Pte Ltd business in Singapore and overseas. Prior to joining IPS Securex, he was CEO (Infrastructure) of USEL Group in India from 2008 to 2010. He spearheaded the investment and development of New Kolkata International Development (NKID), a US$6b public-private-partnership project in West Bengal, and was responsible for a portfolio of real estate and industrial development in West Bengal and Gujarat. Before joining USEL, he was with the Singapore's Temasek Group of ...

One of the most-requested Jimdo features has arrived at Jimdo today: drag-and-drop website creation. But if you're picturing that Jimdo's just added a way to move basic parts of a page around, you're in for a surprise. As always, Jimdo's creators set the bar much higher for their product (www.jimdo.com): they've made it even simpler, even clearer, and put Jimdo a step ahead of the competition. Drag-and-Drop Clipboard The real innovation for this feature is the Dragand-Drop Clipboard. This new tool makes it possible for users to move multiple elements onto a clipboard, ...

Deal flow in the first two quarters of 2010 suggests the North American M&A market is beginning to stabilize after years of extreme volatility. Deal Drivers North America H1 2010, a comprehensive review of M&A activity across the US, Canada and Latin America, identifies strong private equity exit activity and heightened competition among strategic and financial buyers as signs of improved market sentiment. The report also cites sector-specific regulatory developments and a pipeline of lucrative deals as two of the many factors driving increased M&A through the second half ...

Sudhakar Pennam is an active member of the Telugu Association of North America (TANA), one of the largest Indo-America national-level organizations, with over 32,000 members across the USA and Canada. The organization was formed to promote and sustain the cultural heritage of the Telugu-speaking people in North America. TANA in collaboration with several key business organizations is launching an initiative for the Indian Diaspora in Dallas - a forum on Science & Technology. It is a free networking platform where key trends, issues, challenges and opportunities ...

Registration for vendors, exhibitors and leaders in the beauty industry is now being accepted for the cosmetology studentâEUR s Educational Forum 2010, scheduled Oct. 24 and 25 in Fort Worth, Texas. Vendor participation is limited and conducted on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration and information is available online at http://www.eduforum2010.com/. Forum coordinators invite leading artists and industry leaders to showcase their latest trends in hair, skin and makeup, on and off stage, to some of the top cosmetology students in the U.S. On stage demonstrations ...

WorldSharp Technologies, Inc. today announced the availability of the 2010 version of WorldSharp 1099 Preparation System. It is ready to ship with the new form changes and the IRS electronic reporting and correction specifications for 2010. The system now has even easier importing capabilities. When ordered, the software can be downloaded or shipped on CD. The system is priced very competitively at $89.95 for a single user version. A 10-license version is $249.95. When talking to customers searching for 1099 software, the WorldSharp representative said that the biggest ...

CommunityService101 (CS101) is a Chicago based organization which provides volunteer management services for a variety of non-profit organizations. Their main program centers around a password protected website created to make it easier for Workers, Non-Profit Site Managers and County Employees to keep track of court ordered community service hours and also provides a platform to match meaningful projects with non-profit agencies and organizations. Dan Myers "Community Services Manager" for CS101 announced today that the two organizations will be working together to ...

Despite a recent announcement from the Postal Service that they intend to raise postage rates again, there are those in the direct mail industry remaining optimistic. The hike would take the price of a first-class stamp from 44 cents to 46 cents while also affecting all other postage rates to a similar degree. With such a dark cloud looming over their heads, one would expect the leaders of the direct mail industry to be up in arms. For the most part, that's an accurate picture, but there is one industry heavyweight who doesn't seem concerned. Joy Gendusa, Founder ...