DURHAM, N.C. – Most doctors are spending a good deal of time counseling their patients about diet and weight loss, but for the most part, it isn't making any difference, according to a new study appearing in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Duke University Medical Center researchers recorded the conversations between 40 primary care physicians and 461 of their overweight or obese patients over an 18-month period. Investigators didn't tell them what they were listening for – only that they wanted to record the encounters to see how doctors talked about health. ...

PROVIDENCE, RI -- New research from Rhode Island Hospital found that reduced levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein in the brain that encourages growth of neurons, may be a trait marker for individuals with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES) (seizures that are psychological in origin). The findings are published in the October 4, 2010, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Past studies have shown decreased levels of BDNF in the serum of patients with psychiatric disorders such as major depressive disorder ...

The system has been designed by scientists from this Madrid university for Núcleo CC, a company which develops surveillance systems for the maritime and aeronautic sectors. The first prototype will be used in the near future in Cape Verde (Africa). Two types of sensors have been deployed there: a set of radars and a series of AIS (Automatic Identification System), which allow ships to communicate their position and give other relevant data on their location and characteristics. These two types of sensors offer complementary data which can be fused in order to obtain better ...

LONDON, UK—After a decade of joint work and scientific adventure, marine explorers from more than 80 countries, including six scientists from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), today delivered the first global Census of Marine Life revealing what, where, and how much lives and hides in the world's oceans. In one of the largest scientific collaborations ever conducted, more than 2,700 scientists spent over 9,000 days at sea on more than 540 expeditions gathering the data. As a result of these efforts the scientists discovered that there may be up to 1 billion kinds ...

WASHINGTON — The system put in place by the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 -- which gives universities significant control over intellectual property associated with the results of federally funded research at their institutions – has been more effective than the pre-1980 system in making research advances available to the public and spurring innovation, says a new report from the National Research Council. Nevertheless, the current system needs improvement, said the committee that wrote the report. "The public investment in research universities has led to a great deal of new ...

A new research study published in The FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) may change how sports injuries involving muscle tissue are treated, as well as how much patient monitoring is necessary when potent anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed for a long time. That's because the study shows for the first time that inflammation actually helps to heal damaged muscle tissue, turning conventional wisdom on its head that inflammation must be largely controlled to encourage healing. These findings could lead to new therapies for acute muscle injuries caused by trauma, chemicals, ...

Post-doctoral researchers see their role as being vital in technology transfer where scientific findings become useful to the local economy, but most have little interest in running their own business once their research fellowship ends. That's the surprising finding of a study published in the International Journal of Knowledge-Based Development. Edmund Zolnik, a public policy specialist at the George Mason University, in Arlington, Virginia, has surveyed postdoctoral fellows in the US National Capital Region. He found that most saw technology transfer as an important ...

A researcher from the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Alberta has discovered a mechanism underlying some forms of obesity and addictions which could lead to a treatment for both diseases. When a hungry animal finds food in the wild, it is a rewarding stimulus for the animal and is recognized by the brain by the release of the chemical messenger dopamine. Because narcotics such as cocaine, heroin and amphetamines, and even tasty and highly-caloric foods also cause the release of dopamine and therefore make people feel rewarded, it's clear that dopamine ...

The roots of cassava (Manihot esculenta) serve as the primary source of carbohydrates in the diets of people in many arid regions of the world, including more than 250 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. Unfortunately the roots of commercial cassava cultivars are quite low in micronutrients, and micronutrient deficiencies are widespread in these regions. In addition to programs designed to deliver vitamin supplements, there has been considerable effort aimed at biofortification; that is, increasing the amounts of available micronutrients in staple crops such as cassava. ...

HACKENSACK, N.J. (October 4, 2010) — James C. Wittig, M.D. and colleagues will conduct a total of eight research presentations at the upcoming 96th Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons and the 65th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Dr. Wittig, an orthopedic oncologist with extensive experience in performing limb-sparing surgeries, is Chief of the Division of Skin and Sarcoma Cancer of the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center. The presentations will focus on unique surgical techniques ...

Irvine, Calif. — Freshwater is flowing into Earth's oceans in greater amounts every year, a team of researchers has found, thanks to more frequent and extreme storms linked to global warming. All told, 18 percent more water fed into the world's oceans from rivers and melting polar ice sheets in 2006 than in 1994, with an average annual rise of 1.5 percent. "That might not sound like much – 1.5 percent a year – but after a few decades, it's huge," said Jay Famiglietti, UC Irvine Earth system science professor and principal investigator on the study, which will be published ...

BOZEMAN, Mont. -- Montana State University researchers have discovered a rare oasis of life in the midst of hundreds of geothermal vents at the bottom of Yellowstone Lake. A colony of moss, worms and various forms of shrimp flourishes in an area where the water is inky black, about 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and a cauldron of nutrients, gases and poisons, the researchers reported in the September issue of Geobiology. The vent is close to 100 feet below the surface of Yellowstone Lake and a third of a mile offshore in the West Thumb region. The worms and shrimp live among ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic is making it easier for industry sponsors and investigators at sites across the country to collaborate with Mayo on complex and groundbreaking research studies and clinical trials. In a move aimed at optimizing accuracy, speed and efficiency in clinical research, Mayo Clinic has implemented a front-line system of technology for electronic data capture and management, according to Gloria Petersen, Ph.D., Mayo Clinic associate dean for research informatics. "Mayo's Clinical Trials Management System (CTMS) will eliminate the duplication, delays ...

SEQUIM, Wash. – Most toxic pollution falling onto Puget Sound's waters has decreased – some by as much as 99 percent – below earlier estimates, according to a region-wide study. Despite the overall decline, the study found that industrial areas like Tacoma still have the Puget's Sound's highest air-deposited contamination levels. The study, by researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Texas A&M University at Galveston, found the amount of trace metals like arsenic, lead and copper falling onto the Tacoma region have decreased significantly ...

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 4, 2010 -- Supercomputer simulations at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are helping scientists unravel how nucleic acids could have contributed to the origins of life. A research team led by Jeremy Smith, who directs ORNL's Center for Molecular Biophysics and holds a Governor's Chair at University of Tennessee, used molecular dynamics simulation to probe an organic chemical reaction that may have been important in the evolution of ribonucleic acids, or RNA, into early life forms. Certain types of RNA called ribozymes ...

Researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston have identified a new type of cell in mice that dampens the immune system and protects the animal's own cells from immune system attack. This "suppressor" cell reduces the production of harmful antibodies that can drive lupus and other autoimmune diseases in which the immune system mistakenly turns on otherwise healthy organs and tissues. The discovery, published in the September 16 issue of Nature (H Kim, et al.; Vol 467 in Letters), resulted from Lupus Research Institute funding to Harvey Cantor, MD, and ...

Fairbanks, Alaska—The Census of Marine Life, a ten-year initiative to describe the distribution and diversity of ocean life, draws to a close today with a celebration, symposium and press conference in London. At the press conference, scientists revealed the results of the census, including the discovery of new species, new patterns of biodiversity and more. Scientists at the University of Alaska Fairbanks have played a major role in what the census calls its "decade of discovery." UAF scientists have led two multi-year projects as part of the census. Both projects—the ...

Voters across the country are entering the season of ballot measures. In Washington, this fall's nine statewide ballot measures include two competing liquor initiatives, a bond measure for school upgrades, and a much-debated push for the state's first income tax since the 1930s. Into this fray enters an online experiment created by the University of Washington in partnership with the Seattle civic nonprofit CityClub. The Living Voters Guide (www.livingvotersguide.org) aims to spark a civil and objective discussion among Washington voters by letting them work together ...

Clinical depression puts pregnant women at increased risk of delivering prematurely and of giving birth to below-normal weight infants, according to a report published Oct. 4 in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Being born too soon and weighing too little at birth can jeopardize the immediate survival and long-term health of babies. Preterm birth and low birth weight are leading causes worldwide of infant and early childhood mortality, respiratory distress, neurological and developmental impairment, cerebral palsy, blindness, hearing loss and other disabilities. Depression ...

The frigid ice of Jupiter's moon Europa may be hiding more than a presumed ocean: it is likely the scene of some unexpectedly fast chemistry between water and sulfur dioxide at extremely cold temperatures. Although these molecules react easily as liquids—they are well-known ingredients of acid rain—Mark Loeffler and Reggie Hudson at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., now report that they react as ices with surprising speed and high yield at temperatures hundreds of degrees below freezing. Because the reaction occurs without the aid of radiation, it could ...

(Cincinnati, OH) – In a study published today in the Journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, an international team of researchers based in the U.S. and UK revealed that they were able to halt the potentially lethal, breath holding episodes associated with the neurological disease Rett syndrome. Rett syndrome is a disorder of the brain that affects around 1 in 10,000 young girls. On October 4, 1999, a groundbreaking study was published showing that the disease is caused by a spontaneous mutation in the gene methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2). The gene ...

A deep, stationary trough of low pressure parked over the Ohio and Tennessee valleys west of the Appalachians drew a steady stream of tropical moisture, including the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole, up the East Coast. The results were heavy rain and flooding from Florida to the coastal Carolinas up into the Chesapeake Bay region and NASA's TRMM satellite captured rainfall from the event. Rain first broke out across the U.S. Southeast as a slow moving front approached from the northwest. The front then became stationary along the eastern seaboard, providing a focus ...

UVALDE – Texas AgriLife Research scientists have recently completed a two-year study on the impact of deficit irrigation and plant density on the growth, yield and quality of short-day onions. Deficit irrigation is a strategy in which water is applied to a crop during its drought-senstitive stages of development and is either applied sparingly or not at all during other growth stages, particularly if there is sufficient rainfall, reducing the overall amount of irrigation through the crop cycle. According to crop production experts, the strategy is particularly helpful ...

WASHINGTON, DC, October 4, 2010—As public concern heightens over current completion rates for students at America's community colleges, a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher has systematically examined 25 years of rigorous research in search of explanations of success and remedies for dropouts. Sara Goldrick-Rab, Assistant Professor of Educational Policy Studies and of Sociology, points to key contributions made by institutional practices and to the important role that federal and state resources and policies play in shaping colleges' capacity to increase graduation ...

From Earth, the Sun looks like a calm, placid body that does little more than shine brightly while marching across the sky. Images from a bit closer, of course, show it's an unruly ball of hot gas that can expel long plumes out into space – but even this isn't the whole story. Surrounding the Sun is a roiling wind of electrons and protons that shows constant turbulence at every size scale: long streaming jets, smaller whirling eddies, and even microscopic movements as charged particles circle in miniature orbits. Through it all, great magnetic waves and electric currents ...