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Kids with pets grow up to be snorers
A predisposition to adult snoring can be established very early in life. Research published today in BioMed Central's open access journal Respiratory Research describes possible childhood risk factors, including exposure to animals, early respiratory or ear infections and growing up in a large family.


Malaria researchers identify new mosquito virus
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Malaria Research Institute have identified a previously unknown virus that is infectious to Anopheles gambiae-the mosquito primarily responsible for transmitting malaria.




Genetics reveals big fish that almost got away
Researchers from the University of Hawaii, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, National Marine Fisheries Service and Projecto Meros do Brazil discovered a new species of fish-a grouper that reaches more than six feet in length and can weigh nearly 1,000 pounds. This newly discovered species can be found roaming the tropical reefs of the Eastern Pacific Ocean.


New clues to air circulation in the atmosphere
Air circulates above the Earth in four distinct cells, with two either side of the equator, says new research out today (21 August) in Science.


Cocaine: How addiction develops
Permanent drug seeking and relapse after renewed drug administration are typical behavioral patterns of addiction. Molecular changes at the connection points in the brain's reward center are directly responsible for this.


Hormone replacement therapy improves sleep, sexuality and joint pain in older women
One of the world's longest and largest trials of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has found that post-menopausal women on HRT gain significant improvements in quality of life.


Unique study shows oil, gas seismic work not affecting Gulf sperm whales
Noise can be irritating and possibly harmful for everything from mice to humans - and maybe even 60-foot whales in the Gulf of Mexico.


Tahitian vanilla originated in Maya forests, says UC Riverside botanist
he origin of the Tahitian vanilla orchid, whose cured fruit is the source of the rare and highly esteemed gourmet French Polynesian spice, has long eluded botanists. Known by the scientific name Vanilla tahitensis, Tahitian vanilla is found to exist only in cultivation; natural, wild populations of the orchid have never been encountered.


New virus threatens High Plains wheat crop
Triticum mosaic virus poses a new threat to Texas wheat, according to Texas AgriLife Research scientists in Amarillo.


Why a common treatment for prostate cancer ultimately fails
Some of the drugs given to many men during their fight against prostate cancer can actually spur some cancer cells to grow, researchers have found. The findings were published online this week in a pair of papers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.


Anti-tumor effects are enhanced by inhibiting 2 pathways rather than 1
Two independent research groups have found that simultaneous inhibition of two signaling pathways resulted in substantially enhanced antitumor effects in mouse models of prostate and breast cancer. In an accompany commentary, Steven Grant, at Virginia Commonwealth University Health Science Center, Richmond, discusses the clinical importance of these studies and highlights some of the questions that still need to be answered.


Obesity in elderly a ticking time bomb for health services
Research carried out at the Peninsula Medical School in the South West of England has discovered that obesity in later life does not make a substantial difference to risks of death among older people but that it is a major contributor to increased disability in later life - creating a ticking time bomb for health services in developed countries.


Accumulated bits of a cell's own DNA can trigger autoimmune disease
A security system wired within every cell to detect the presence of rogue viral DNA can sometimes go awry, triggering an autoimmune response to single-stranded bits of the cell's own DNA, according to a report in the August 22nd issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication.


Major study shows significant quality-of-life benefits from HRT
A major international study of the effects of HRT use on quality of life has shown that HRT use can significantly improve well-being in women with menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats.


U of M scholar and colleagues link tobacco industry's marketing to youth smoking
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) released a report today, co-edited by University of Minnesota professor Barbara Loken, that reaches the government's strongest conclusion to date that tobacco marketing and depictions of smoking in movies promote youth smoking.


UTMB researchers test new vaccine to fight multiple influenza strains
A universal vaccine effective against several strains of influenza has passed its first phase of testing, according to Dr. Christine Turley of the University of Texas at Galveston.


Senescence in liver cells is found by CSHL scientists to help limit acute tissue damage
Although post-reproductive life in humans is often associated with decline and a loss of powers, an analogous state in certain cells -- called senescence -- is proving to be one of ironic potency. Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) today reported that a particular class of senescent liver cells orchestrates a sequence of events in living mice that can limit fibrosis, a natural response of the liver to acute damage.


ETH Zurich study on salmonella self-destruction
ETH Zurich biologists, led by Professors Martin Ackermann and Wolf-Dietrich Hardt, in collaboration with Michael Doebeli of the University of British Colombia in Vancouver (CN), have been able to describe how random molecular processes during cell division allow some cells to engage in a self-destructive act to generate a greater common good, thereby improving the situation of the surviving siblings.


Measuring the auditory dynamics of selective attention
Call it the cocktail party effect: how an individual can participate in a one-on-one conversation within a cluster of people, switch to another, pick up important comments while tuning out others, change topics and return to the first conversation.


Earthquakes may endanger New York more than thought, says study
A study by a group of prominent seismologists suggests that a pattern of subtle but active faults makes the risk of earthquakes to the New York City area substantially greater than formerly believed.


Researchers uncover molecule that keeps pathogens like salmonella in check
Scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found a potential new way to stop the bacteria that cause gastroenteritis, tularemia and severe diarrhea from making people sick.


Insomnia: changing your bedtime habits could help
Many people sleep better when they are on holiday and wish that they could sleep as well all the time. But according to the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), it is not only being free of daily worries that can make a difference to sleep.


Positive thinking may protect against breast cancer
Feelings of happiness and optimism play a positive role against breast cancer. Research published today in the open access journal BMC Cancer suggests that while staying positive has a protective role, adverse life events such as the loss of a parent or close relative, divorce or the loss of a spouse can increase a woman's risk of developing the disease.


MIT zeroes in on Alzheimer's structures
MIT engineers report a new approach to identifying protein structures key to Alzheimer's disease, an important step toward the development of new drugs that could prevent such structures from forming.


Drugs to inhibit blood vessel growth show promise in rat model of deadly brain tumor
In a landmark study, Medical College of Wisconsin researchers in Milwaukee report that drugs used to inhibit a specific fatty acid in rat brains with glioblastoma-like tumors not only reduced new blood vessel growth and tumor size dramatically, but also prolonged survival. The study is the featured cover story of the August, 2008 Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism.


To protect against liver disease, body puts cells 'under arrest'
A stable form of cell-cycle arrest known to offer potent protection against cancer also limits liver fibrosis, a condition characterized by an excess of fibrous tissue, according to a new report in the August 22nd Cell, a Cell Press publication.


Carnegie Mellon MRI technology that non-invasively locates, quantifies specific cells in the body
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) isn't just for capturing detailed images of the body's anatomy. Thanks to novel imaging reagents and technology developed by Carnegie Mellon University scientist Eric Ahrens, MRI can be used to visualize - with "exquisite" specificity - cell populations of interest in the living body.


Cancer therapy: A role for MAPK inhibitors combined with mTORC1 inhibitors
Nearly a decade ago, while it was being tested as an immunosuppressive agent to prevent organ rejection in transplant patients, the drug rapamycin was also discovered to have anti-tumor properties. Since then, several rapamycin analogs known as mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) inhibitors have been tested in clinical trials for the treatment of various types of cancer.


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