A new study shows that Kineret (anakinra), a medication approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, is effective in stopping the progression of organ damage in people with neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID). This rare and debilitating genetic disorder causes persistent inflammation and ongoing tissue damage. The research was performed by scientists at the National...

Geologists have a new tool to study how earthquakes change the landscape--down to a few inches. It's giving scientists insights into how earthquake faults behave. In this week's issue of the journal Science , a team of scientists from the United States, Mexico and China reports the most comprehensive before-and-after picture yet of an earthquake zone, using data from the magnitude 7.2 eve...

Athens, Ga. Researchers at the University of Georgia have taken a major step in the ongoing effort to find sources of cleaner, renewable energy by mapping the genomes of two originator cells of Miscanthus x giganteus , a large perennial grass with promise as a source of ethanol and bioenergy. Changsoo Kim, a postdoctoral research associate in the UGA Plant Genome Mapping Laboratory, i...

HOUSTON (Feb. 9, 2012) -- A Rice University undergraduate will depart with not only a degree but also a possible patent for his invention of an efficient way to create protein libraries, an important component of biomolecular research. Rice senior Manan Mehta discovered a method to create libraries of "circularly permuted" proteins at the suggestion of his mentor, bioengineer Jonathan Sil...

Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a new method for creating scaffolds for tissue engineering applications, providing an alternative that is more flexible and less time-intensive than current technology. A paper describing the results, "Low-Pressure Foaming: A Novel Method for the Fabrication of Porous Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering," was featured in the February issue...

USC faculty and community experts are slated to convene on March 9 at the USC Occupational Science Symposium to share research and perspectives on autism and autism spectrum disorders with an audience of university colleagues and students, health professionals and public advocates. The 2012 Occupational Science Symposium, titled "Autism in Everyday Life: Interdisciplinary Research Perspecti...

February 10th, 2012, Copenhagen, Denmark, and Shenzhen, China BGI, the world's largest genomics organization, today opens its first European Genome Research Center located in Copenhagen Bio Science Park (COBIS). This research center is about 1,200 square meters and equipped with 10 Illumina HiSeq 2000 sequencers. The center aims to establish collaborations to better accelerate the innovation...

WASHINGTON Georgetown University hosts a panel discussion and open public forum about the recent request by the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), which advises the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to two premier scientific journals that they redact key information from unpublished manuscripts describing "dual use research" science that could have bot...

TORONTO, ON., Feb. 10, 2012--St. Michael's Hospital and King Saud University have received their first joint U.S. patent to use the BRCA1 gene as a therapy for cardiovascular disease. Dr. Subodh Verma, a cardiac surgeon at St. Michael's, and Dr. Mohammed Al-Omran, a vascular surgeon at the largest university in Saudi Arabia, are named as inventors on patent US 8, 110,185 B2 issued Feb. 7...

The group of Prof. Dr. Ralf Erdmann at the Ruhr-Universitt Bochum (Faculty of Medicine, Department of Systems Biochemistry) discovered a connection of peroxisomal protein import and receptor export. In the Journal of Biological Chemistry , they disclosed that enzymes only get imported into certain cell organelles (peroxisomes) upon coupling of their import to the recycling of their transpor...

Three faculty members in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering have been elected to the National Academy of Engineering. Peter C. Farrell, founder, chairman and CEO of ResMed, and a member of the Council of Advisors of the Dean of the Jacobs School, also was elected to the academy. "Election to the Nat...

Clarksburg, MD"In the last eight days, scientists have delivered a powerful one-two punch in the fight to defeat Alzheimer's disease," said Stacy Pagos Haller, President and CEO of the American Health Assistance Foundation (AHAF), a nonprofit that identifies and funds exceptionally high-impact research worldwide through its Alzheimer's Disease Research program. "We are excited about to...

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 10, 2012 /- Trovagene, Inc. (Pink Sheets: TROV.PK), a developer of transrenal molecular diagnostics, has announced that Stephen Zaniboni has been named Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Zaniboni's experience includes raising more than $500 million through venture financing and IPO proceeds.  Mr. Zaniboni previously served as Chief Financial Officer...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., − The Forsyth Institute announced today that it will receive a tuberculosis (TB) biomarkers grant through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Grand Challenges in Global Health program, an initiative which seeks to overcome persistent bottlenecks in creating new tools that can radically improve health in the developing world. Antonio Campos-Neto, MD, PhD, Head of the G...

The largest genetics study to date of type 2 diabetes (T2D) has identified new gene variants associated with risk for the common metabolic disease. An international scientific consortium, studying multiethnic populations, uncovered genes that may point to biological targets for developing more effective drugs for T2D. Multiple genes and environmental factors interact with T2D, which affect...

New Rochelle, NY, February 9, 2012Applying 21st century tools and technologies to manage land use, maximize biomass production, and increase the efficiency of processes for extracting energy from renewable resources will enable the biofuels industry to overcome current challenges in bioenergy production, according to a comprehensive review article published in Industrial Biotechnology...

When disease-causing invaders like bacteria infect a human host, cells of various types swing into action, coordinating their activities to address the threat. In new research appearing in this month's issue of the journal Nature Immunology , Roy Curtiss, director of the Center for Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, along with i...

Boulder CO SomaLogic, Inc., announced today that it will receive a tuberculosis (TB) biomarkers grant through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Grand Challenges in Global Health program, an initiative that seeks to overcome persistent bottlenecks in creating new tools that can radically improve health in the developing world. Urs Ochsner, head of the Infectious Diseases Research Group at...

A new research initiative launched today (09 February) aims to bring academic researchers together with industry in order to deliver bigger yields of better quality fruits and vegetables for the consumer through more sustainable farming practices. Fruits and vegetables are a vitally important part of a healthy diet. Increasing yields and reducing waste will be crucial if we are to ensure...

What could be fresher? On his way home from the office, the computer scientist harvests tomatoes from his company's rooftop greenhouse. The plants growing there thrive on the building's purified waste water and waste heat. Plantation systems such as this are still unheard-of in Germany. But they may make their debut soon: "In our inFarming project which is short for 'integrated farming'...