http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (AP) -- NASA has begun the launch countdown for space shuttle Discovery. http://www.physorg.com/news170137460.html Space & Earth Sat, 22 Aug 2009 06:00:01 EST news170137460 (AP) -- The weather is looking good for Tuesday's launch of space shuttle Discovery. http://www.physorg.com/news170073578.html Space & Earth Fri, 21 Aug 2009 11:50:03 EST news170073578 (PhysOrg.com) -- The Flight Readiness Review for space shuttle Discovery's STS-128 mission has concluded, setting the launch date for Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 1:36 a.m. EDT. http://www.physorg.com/news169912101.html Space & Earth Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:48:51 EST news169912101 Computational biologists at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have shown that proteins have an intrinsic ability to change shape, and this is required for their biological activity. This shape-changing also allows the small molecules that are attracted to a given protein to select the structure that permits the best binding. That premise could help in drug discovery and in designing compounds that will have the most impact on protein function to better treat a host of diseases. http://www.physorg.com/news169904936.html Chemistry Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:17:09 EST news169904936 (PhysOrg.com) -- Chemists at the University at Buffalo have used rational drug design to synthesize small, cell-permeable molecules that are effective in vitro against two common types of myotonic muscular dystrophy, a result that has implications for potentially curing muscular dystrophy, as well as other diseases. http://www.physorg.com/news168876812.html Chemistry Fri, 07 Aug 2009 15:30:01 EST news168876812 Researchers at the University of Toronto Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering (IBBME) and Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH), led by U of T's Professor J.E. Davies, have made important progress in stem cell research that will allow for numerous applications of multi-faceted stem cells known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). This research will advance the selection of specific cells to target specific diseases, ultimately enabling clinicians to "personalize" treatment for patients. http://www.physorg.com/news168615746.html Biology Tue, 04 Aug 2009 15:00:02 EST news168615746 Understanding the structure of proteins is a vital first step in developing new drugs, but to date, researchers have had difficulty studying the large number of proteins that are normally embedded in the cell membrane, a family of proteins that includes those involved in cancer-related signaling processes. However, using nanoparticles, scientists from the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom have found a way to preserve membrane proteins intact, enabling detailed analysis of their structure, molecular functions, and interaction with potential anticancer agents. http://www.physorg.com/news167412954.html Nanotechnology Fri, 24 Jul 2009 16:40:01 EST news167412954 A newly identified gene appears to be highly predictive of not only the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, but also the approximate age at which the disease will begin to manifest itself, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center. http://www.physorg.com/news166724392.html Medicine & Health Mon, 13 Jul 2009 19:50:01 EST news166724392 Whitehead Institute scientists have developed a rapid, inexpensive drug-screening method that could be used to target diseases that until now have stymied drug developers, such as Parkinson's disease. This technique uses baker's yeast to synthesize and screen the molecules, cutting target discovery and preliminary testing time to a matter of weeks. http://www.physorg.com/news166712777.html Chemistry Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:06:47 EST news166712777 A new computer model developed at MIT can help solve a problem that has plagued drug companies trying to develop promising new treatments made of antibodies: Such drugs have a relatively short shelf life because they tend to clump together, rendering them ineffective. http://www.physorg.com/news165514408.html Medicine & Health Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:13:57 EST news165514408 A revolutionary new protein stabilisation technique has been developed by scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council which could lead to 30 per cent more proteins being available as potential targets for drug development - opening up exciting possibilities in drug discovery. http://www.physorg.com/news165148787.html Nanotechnology Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:40:17 EST news165148787 Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have discovered two biochemical pathways that the Ebola virus relies on to infect cells. Using substances that block the activation of those pathways, they've prevented Ebola infection in cell culture experiments - potentially providing a critical early step in developing the first successful therapy for the deadly virus. http://www.physorg.com/news164997495.html Medicine & Health Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:39:10 EST news164997495 Researchers from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) have developed Distributed Drug Discovery (D3), a new low-cost strategy to accelerate the discovery of drugs to treat neglected diseases such as tuberculosis, leprosy, leshmaniasis, dengue fever, and Chagas disease. http://www.physorg.com/news164290841.html Chemistry Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:21:27 EST news164290841 The US space agency has postponed Saturday's launch of the space shuttle Endeavour due to a hydrogen leak -- in a setback for a mission aimed at completing the 100-billion-dollar International Space Station. http://www.physorg.com/news164080816.html Space & Earth Sat, 13 Jun 2009 03:00:35 EST news164080816 (PhysOrg.com) -- First motion is almost always a big event in the world of space exploration. Whether the first motion is of a wheel beginning to rotate or a rocket lifting off the pad, first motion means things are definitely changing. On day four of the upcoming shuttle servicing mission of the Hubble Space Telescope, there will be another such significant first motion. It will begin when a bolt that has been frozen in place for a decade and a half completes its 20th counterclockwise rotation. http://www.physorg.com/news161276505.html Space & Earth Mon, 11 May 2009 16:02:16 EST news161276505 The Hubble space telescope, the object of NASA's fifth and last servicing mission next week, is a veritable time machine that has revolutionized humankind's vision and comprehension of the universe. http://www.physorg.com/news161142870.html Space & Earth Sun, 10 May 2009 02:55:16 EST news161142870 "The 'foot' structures that we found in the Jordan valley are the first sites that the People of Israel built upon entering Canaan and they testify to the biblical concept of ownership of the land with the foot," said archaeologist Prof. Adam Zertal of the University of Haifa, who headed the excavating team that exposed five compounds in the shape of an enormous "foot", that it were likely to have been used at that time to mark ownership of territory. http://www.physorg.com/news158234124.html Other Sciences Mon, 06 Apr 2009 10:55:46 EST news158234124 (AP) -- Shuttle Discovery and its crew of seven returned to Earth on Saturday and successfully wrapped up a construction mission that left the international space station with all its solar wings and extra electrical power. http://www.physorg.com/news157481732.html Space & Earth Sat, 28 Mar 2009 17:55:57 EST news157481732 (AP) -- Shuttle Discovery and its crew of seven aimed for a Saturday afternoon touchdown at NASA's spaceport to wrap up a successful space station construction mission. http://www.physorg.com/news157452505.html Space & Earth Sat, 28 Mar 2009 09:49:34 EST news157452505 (AP) -- Their mission almost complete, space shuttle Discovery's astronauts checked out their ship's flight systems Friday to ensure a safe return to NASA's spaceport. http://www.physorg.com/news157376663.html Space & Earth Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:45:01 EST news157376663 (PhysOrg.com) -- The space shuttle Discovery's crew is expected to complete its mission to the International Space Station with a landing at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:43 p.m. EDT on Saturday, March 28. The return to Earth will conclude a 13-day flight. Nine of those days were spent docked to the station. http://www.physorg.com/news157224348.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:26:26 EST news157224348 (AP) -- After eight days together, space shuttle Discovery pulled away from the international space station Wednesday, beaming down stunning photos of the orbiting outpost, finally balanced and boasting all its solar wings. http://www.physorg.com/news157218168.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:43:26 EST news157218168 (AP) -- President Barack Obama says he is extraordinarily proud of the astronauts aboard the linked shuttle-space station complex. http://www.physorg.com/news157113500.html Space & Earth Tue, 24 Mar 2009 11:38:35 EST news157113500 (AP) -- Two astronauts who were teaching math and science to middle school students just five years ago went on a spacewalk together Monday, their path cleared of dangerous orbiting junk that had threatened the space station and shuttle. On Sunday, the linked shuttle-station complex had to move out of the way of a 4-inch piece of debris that had been projected to come perilously close during the spacewalk. http://www.physorg.com/news157032900.html Space & Earth Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:47:30 EST news157032900 A Purdue University aerospace researcher helped shape plans to install a new experiment currently on the space shuttle Discovery to collect data for controlling deadly friction and heating in the design of future spacecraft. http://www.physorg.com/news157033602.html Physics Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:27:29 EST news157033602 (AP) -- Shuttle Discovery's astronauts have one last spacewalk ahead of them. http://www.physorg.com/news157001483.html Space & Earth Mon, 23 Mar 2009 04:34:40 EST news157001483 Discovery astronauts prepared for a third and final spacewalk Monday, with a busy to-do list that may include unsticking a jammed restraint pin used to clamp a toolbox to the outside of the International Space Station. http://www.physorg.com/news156957555.html Space & Earth Sun, 22 Mar 2009 16:20:45 EST news156957555 (AP) -- The astronauts aboard the orbiting station-shuttle complex are finally getting a break. http://www.physorg.com/news156913388.html Space & Earth Sun, 22 Mar 2009 04:03:59 EST news156913388 The seven astronauts onboard the space shuttle Discovery had an unexpected companion during their liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center earlier this week, the US space agency said. http://www.physorg.com/news156611285.html Space & Earth Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:08:30 EST news156611285 (PhysOrg.com) -- At 5:19:53: p.m. EDT, space shuttle Discovery docked to the Pressurized Mating Adaptor on the front of the International Space Station's Harmony module. http://www.physorg.com/news156536256.html Space & Earth Tue, 17 Mar 2009 19:17:55 EST news156536256