science wire

Los Alamos, New Mexico, July 28, 2009— Charles McMillan has been appointed the new principal associate director for Weapons Programs at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

July 28, 2009 — Coral Gables — A national fellowship program focused on expanding the role of nurses to lead change in the U.S. health care system has been awarded to Elias Provencio-Vasquez, Ph.D. N.P. F.A.A.N. F.A.A.N.P., associate professor at the University of Miami (UM) School of Nursing and Health Studies.

Scientists closer to making implantable bone material, thanks to new research Scientists are closer to understanding how to grow replacement bones with stem cell technology %0A " Imperial College Lon

Competition test skills of hazardous materials response teams Los Alamos, New Mexico, July 27, 2009—Seven hazardous materials response teams from New Mexico and Oklahoma will test their skills at the 13th annual Hazmat Challenge July 28-31 sponsored by Los Alamos National Laboratory.

PA 200/09 Researchers at The University of Nottingham are hoping to find out if inflammation of the knee could be an early sign of osteoarthritis — a condition which leads to pain, stiffness, swelling and disability. Up to six million people in the UK suffer from osteoarthritis in the knee. Now 200 patients, over the age of 55, from GP practices across Nottingham are to take part in a study led by research physiotherapist Michelle Hall in the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Physiotherapy.

UCL researchers have undertaken a study, published in The Lancet of 11 July, to ascertain whether the treatment of severe acute malnutrition could be improved through the use of new types of therapeutic foods.

UCL has appointed a new Clinical Senior Lecturer to lead the development of clinical trials relating to head and neck cancer, which account for six per cent of all cancers in the UK.

Funding will aid environmental cleanup and compliance Los Alamos, New Mexico, July 22, 2009—Los Alamos National Laboratory today announced plans to begin spending environmental cleanup funds made available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

BERKELEY — Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, are proving that a camera phone can capture far more than photos of people or pets at play.

BERKELEY — Researchers have identified a gene variant that carries nearly twice the risk of developing an increasingly common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a group of cancers that develops in the immune system's white blood cells.

Sparkling with success ? Diamond fellowship awarded to Imperial life scientist New professorial fellowship from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council %0A " By Danielle Reeves Mon

Is school closure effective in reducing the impact of flu pandemics? Closing schools may reduce the total number of flu cases, but there are costs, say scientists - %0A > Click here to read a brie

The University of Plymouth has just completed a year-long research project aimed at improving the health and well-being of Devon's carer community. The project tracked the needs of carers in five GP surgeries across Devon to identify how best to support them in their care-giving role whilst improving independence, health and well-being.

Scientists from UCL have created light-activated antimicrobial surfaces that could help fight the spread of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs).

Flu mortality formula is potentially misleading, say scientists Calculating the case fatality ratio is tricky, according to new research - %0A " Imperial College London News Release Under strict embargo for 00.

BERKELEY — Drugs that block a growth factor receptor on brain cells may prevent epilepsy after brain damage, according to a new study appearing in the July 15 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

Quartet of ministers put Imperial healthcare innovation in the spotlight - %0A " Tuesday 14 July 2009 By Abigail Smith The latest developments in personalised medicine were on show at Imperial today,

Blood vessel bends and branches put the brakes on statins First evidence that biomechanical forces may affect drug?s action - %0A > Under embargo until 00.01hrs British Summer Time Friday 1

PA 189/09 They are a group of drugs which millions of people rely on to keep pain at bay but they can have unwanted side-effects which are sometimes more serious than the original health problem. Now scientists at The University of Nottingham are taking part in the largest-ever study on the safety of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDS) that has ever been performed.

Researchers at the University of Birmingham and the Indian Institute of Technology (IITD) in Delhi have completed a preliminary simulation study of road accidents in India.

PA 186/09 An independent external validation of QRISK" - a new score for predicting a person's risk of heart disease - has shown that it performs better than the existing test and should be recommended for use in the United Kingdom by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). The University of Nottingham and leading healthcare systems supplier EMIS worked together, through the not-for-profit partnership QResearch, to develop the ground-breaking formula which has been strongly endorsed in new research published in the British Medical Journal.

Glutamic acid linked to lower blood pressure Glutamic acid may be a key blood pressure-lowering component of vegetables Imperial College London News Release Under strict embargo for 21.

A neuroscience laboratory based within UCL's Institute of Ophthalmology has developed the first audio-based game for the iPhone.

PA 187/09 Plant roots provide the crops we eat with water, nutrients and anchorage. Understanding how roots grow and how hormones control that growth is crucial to improving crop yields, which will be necessary to address food security and produce better biofuels. Now an international group of scientists, led by the Centre for Plant Integrative Biology at The University of Nottingham, has shed light on how a plant hormone is crucial in controlling the growth of plant roots.

Scientists at Karolinska Institutet and Linköping University are well on the way to creating the first artificial nerve cell that can communicate specifically with nerve cells in the body using neurotransmitters.

Moles hold the key to melanoma genes New study reveals genes for melanoma risk %0A " Press release issued by Kings College London Strictly embargoed for 18.00 hours British Summer Time Sunday

A UCL study has revealed a new laser technique that could lead to earlier diagnosis of bone disorders.

An experimental cancer therapy for prostate cancer may be able to treat men without surgery and offer fewer side effects, according to the results of a UCL-led study published in the British Journal of Cancer today. A group of 172 men with prostate cancer that had not spread were treated under general anaesthetic with High-Intensity-Focused Ultrasound (HIFU), which uses sound waves to kill cancer cells.

July 02, 2009 — Virginia Key — As the nation celebrates its birth on the 4th of July, Research Assistant Professor Diego Lirman and fellow Caribbean coral reef nursery scientists will be celebrating as well.

Mobile pollution monitors to be trialled across the UK today Scientists transform pedestrians, cyclists, buses and cars into mobile wireless sensors Under Strict Embargo Tuesday 30 June 2009 00:01BST

Current search for heart disease treatment may not be fruitful New research suggests C-reactive protein does not cause coronary heart disease - %0A " Imperial College London News Release Under strict embargo for 21.

Stress in the womb can last a lifetime, say researchers behind new exhibit Imperial scientists at the Royal Society Summer Exhibition show people why pregnant women should relax - %0A " Imperial Coll

Researchers at the University of Sheffield are using tropical fish to help understand human diseases such as heart disease, asthma and Parkinson´s disease.

UCL is delighted to announce three new appointments, which will shape the development of life and biomedical sciences at UCL in the coming years.

The Gatsby Charitable Foundation (Gatsby) and the Wellcome Trust (Wellcome) are collaborating for the purpose of developing a new research centre in neural circuits and behaviour, to be called the Sa

UCLA study finds that activities that get children 2 months to 48 months talking are most conducive to language acquisition Adult-child conversations have a more significant impact on language develo

PA179/09 It could mean the end of animal testing and eventually even clinical patient drug trials. The Virtual Physiological Human is a 21st century pan-European project that's gaining momentum and takes a major step forward this week at The University of Nottingham.

New trigger for chronic inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis discovered Signal molecule that triggers immune system into action may be important in the disease - %0A " Imperial College London News Re

Engineers, scientists and clinicians will improve the lives of those living with osteoarthritis, thanks to £11 million grant Imperial receives £11 million grant to establish a Centre of Excellence in Medical Engineering Solutions for Osteoarthritis ?

Gary Parkes, a GP who gained his PhD from UCL in March this year, has pipped his PhD supervisor Professor Trish Greenhalgh (UCL Primary Care & Population Sciences) into second place in the Royal College of General Practitioners? (RCGP) Research Paper of the Year Award 2009.

More than half of all deaths of people of working age in Russia are caused by alcohol, according to research by Oxford University and the Russian Cancer Research Centre in Moscow.

Michael Jackson was an icon of music and popular culture. His death has triggered an intense global response as well as legal questions about the future of his family and estate.