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. When people have malaria, they are infected with Plasmodium parasites, which enter the body from the saliva of a mosquito, infect cells in the liver, and then spread to red blood cells. Inside the blood cells, the parasites replicate and also begin to expose adhesive proteins on the cell surface that change the physical nature of the cells in the bloodstream. http://www.physorg.com/news178174676.html Biology Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:10:05 EST news178174676 (PhysOrg.com) -- A team led by Penn State's Ross Hardison, T. Ming Chu Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, has taken a large step toward unraveling how regulatory proteins control the production of gene products during development and growth. Working with collaborators including Drs. Mitchell Weiss and Gerd Blobel at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, they focused specifically on the complex process of producing red blood cells (erythrocytes). These cells contain large amounts of hemoglobin, a molecule essential for transporting oxygen throughout the body. Abnormalities in hemoglobin figure in many serious diseases, such as sickle-cell disease, and abnormalities in producing blood cells can lead to leukemias. The work will be published in the December 2009 issue of the journal Genome Research. http://www.physorg.com/news177865776.html Medicine & Health Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:40:21 EST news177865776 If you're watching the complex processes in a living cell, it is easy to miss something important -especially if you are watching changes that take a long time to unfold and require high-spatial-resolution imaging. But new research makes it possible to scrutinize activities that occur over hours or even days inside cells, potentially solving many of the mysteries associated with molecular-scale events occurring in these tiny living things. http://www.physorg.com/news177763702.html Nanotechnology Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:00:03 EST news177763702 Oil from soybeans modified through biotechnology increased levels of omega-3 eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in red blood cells according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2009. http://www.physorg.com/news177621068.html Medicine & Health Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:50:01 EST news177621068 Medications frequently given to cancer patients to reduce their risk of anemia are associated with an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism, according to new research led by Dawn Hershman, M.D, M.S., co-director of the breast cancer program at the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. The findings will be published online on Nov. 10, 2009 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (ahead of the Dec. 2, 2009 print edition). http://www.physorg.com/news177097215.html Medicine & Health Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:50:01 EST news177097215 Researchers have transplanted genetically modified hematopoietic stem cells into mice so that their developing red blood cells produce a critical lysosomal enzyme -preventing or reducing organ and central nervous system damage from the often-fatal genetic disorder Hurler's syndrome. http://www.physorg.com/news177004585.html Biology Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:00:36 EST news177004585 (PhysOrg.com) -- An Arizona State University engineering student may have found the tiniest - yet most cleverly inventive - way to show school spirit. http://www.physorg.com/news176106977.html Technology Fri, 30 Oct 2009 08:00:01 EST news176106977 St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators were recently awarded a $23 million federal grant to launch a national study of the drug hydroxyurea to prevent first strokes in children and adolescents with sickle cell anemia (SCA). http://www.physorg.com/news175955305.html Medicine & Health Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:00:01 EST news175955305 Red blood cells, which make up 45 percent of blood, normally take the shape of circular cushions with a dimple on either side. But they can sometimes deform into an asymmetrical slipper shape. A team of physicists have used simulations to explore how fluid flow might be responsible for this deformation, as well as how the deformation in turn affects blood flow. The insights could help understand the mechanisms involved in arterial disease and other blood flow-related ailments. Their research is reported in Physical Review Letters and highlighted with a Viewpoint in the October 26 issue of Physics. http://www.physorg.com/news175781298.html Physics Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:08:56 EST news175781298 An extract in red grape skin may be a new treatment for sickle cell disease, Medical College of Georgia researchers say. http://www.physorg.com/news175458089.html Medicine & Health Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:00:01 EST news175458089 Babesiosis is a potentially dangerous parasitic disease transmitted by ticks and is common in the Northeast and the upper Midwest. Babesia lives inside of red blood cells, meaning it can also be transmitted through a blood transfusion from an infected but otherwise asymptomatic blood donor. http://www.physorg.com/news175269843.html Medicine & Health Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:50:01 EST news175269843 (PhysOrg.com) -- Erythropoetin, abbreviated EPO, has gained a scandalous reputation as a doping agent for racing cyclists. The name is derived from the ancient Greek erythros "red" and poiein `to make`, a fitting designation for this important growth factor, which is responsible for the formation of red blood cells in the body. Biotechnologically produced erythropoetin, aside from its implementation as a drug for cyclists, is primarily used to treat anemia in dialysis patients after aggressive chemotherapy. http://www.physorg.com/news175144857.html Chemistry Mon, 19 Oct 2009 04:22:30 EST news175144857 (PhysOrg.com) -- A gene with a significant effect on regulating hemoglobin in the body has been identified as part of a genome-wide association study, which looked at the link between genes and hemoglobin level in 16,000 people. The research was carried out by scientists from Imperial College London and published in Nature Genetics today. It shows a strong association between a gene known as TMPRSS6 and the regulation of hemoglobin. http://www.physorg.com/news174490051.html Medicine & Health Sun, 11 Oct 2009 14:28:41 EST news174490051 Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) researchers are one step closer to finding new ways to treat Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), a bone marrow disease that strikes up to 15,000 people each year in the United States, and that sometimes results in acute myeloid leukemia. Researchers found that the gene RhoB is important to the disease's progression and could prove to be a therapeutic target for late-stage MDS. http://www.physorg.com/news173368197.html Medicine & Health Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:00:01 EST news173368197 Severe trauma patients requiring a major transfusion are twice as likely to die if they receive red blood cells stored for a month or longer, according to research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Critical Care. The increased rate of death was measured up to six months post transfusion which is consistent with previous reports in cardiac surgery patients. http://www.physorg.com/news172818735.html Medicine & Health Tue, 22 Sep 2009 06:30:02 EST news172818735 Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), a group of blood disorders that can lead to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in some patients, often cause severe anemia (when the body lacks a sufficient number of functional red blood cells). While certain treatments can help manage the symptoms of anemia, some studies have suggested that they may lead to complications. A new study, however, demonstrates that MDS patients with anemia may benefit from treatment with an erythropoietin (EPO)-based regimen plus supportive care without added complications as compared with those receiving supportive care alone. The study will appear in the September 17 issue of Blood, the official journal of the American Society of Hematology. http://www.physorg.com/news172423955.html Medicine & Health Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:20:03 EST news172423955 A network of proteins underlying the plasma membrane keeps epithelial cells in shape and maintains their orderly hexagonal packing in the mouse lens, say Nowak et al. The study will appear in the September 21, 2009 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology (online September 14). http://www.physorg.com/news172145515.html Biology Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:12:44 EST news172145515 Children in Africa with sickle cell anaemia are dying unnecessarily from bacterial infections, suggests the largest study of its kind, funded by the Wellcome Trust. The results are published today in the journal the Lancet. The study has prompted calls for all children in Africa to receive vaccinations against the most common bacterial infections. http://www.physorg.com/news171743469.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:50:05 EST news171743469 Scientists in the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) Laboratory of Bioengineering and Physical Science have developed a new technique that allows researchers to visualize fine details of cell structure three-dimensionally in thick sections, thus providing greater insight into how cells are organized and how they function. The work is described in a report published online this week in Nature Methods. http://www.physorg.com/news171195158.html Biology Thu, 03 Sep 2009 11:30:01 EST news171195158 A chemical compound found in unpasteurised food has been detected in unusually high levels in the red blood cells of pregnant women with the condition pre-eclampsia. http://www.physorg.com/news170420742.html Medicine & Health Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:50:03 EST news170420742 Victorian stem cell scientists from Monash University have modified a human embryonic stem cell (hESC) line to glow red when the stem cells become red blood cells. http://www.physorg.com/news170333155.html Biology Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:00:02 EST news170333155 Malaria kills anywhere from one to three million people around the world annually and affects the lives of up to 500 million more. Yet until now, scientists did not fully understand exactly how the process that caused the disease's severe hallmark fevers began. http://www.physorg.com/news170052624.html Medicine & Health Fri, 21 Aug 2009 06:20:01 EST news170052624 Israeli scientists have developed new technology to fight biological identity theft after realising that DNA evidence found at crime scenes can be easily falsified. http://www.physorg.com/news169959943.html Biology Thu, 20 Aug 2009 04:07:23 EST news169959943 In a study to be published in the next issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, in Portugal, show that an anti-oxidant drug can protect against the development of deadly forms of malaria. These findings have direct implications for the treatment of this devastating disease, caused by the parasite Plasmodium, and still one of the main causes of death worldwide. http://www.physorg.com/news169744349.html Medicine & Health Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:40:01 EST news169744349 (PhysOrg.com) -- Because the new device, called a "spaser," is the first of its kind to emit visible light, it represents a critical component for possible future technologies based on "nanophotonic" circuitry, said Vladimir Shalaev, the Robert and Anne Burnett Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University. http://www.physorg.com/news169649724.html Physics Sun, 16 Aug 2009 13:56:15 EST news169649724 Chronic kidney disease (CKD) can significantly lessen patients' quality of life, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). Certain types of patients -women, diabetics, and those with a history of heart complications -are most affected. These findings indicate that medical care for CKD patients should include strategies to lessen the negative impact of CKD on quality of life. http://www.physorg.com/news168198229.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Jul 2009 20:50:01 EST news168198229 It takes a spleen to mend a broken heart - that's the conclusion of a surprising new report from researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Systems Biology, directed by Ralph Weissleder, MD, PhD. In the July 31 issue of Science the team reports how, in following up an intriguing observation, they discovered an unexpected reservoir of the immune cells called monocytes in the spleen and went on to show that these cells are essential to recovery of cardiac tissue in an animal heart attack model. http://www.physorg.com/news168183304.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:10:05 EST news168183304 In a daring experiment in Europe, scientists used mosquitoes as flying needles to deliver a "vaccine" of live malaria parasites through their bites. The results were astounding: Everyone in the vaccine group acquired immunity to malaria; everyone in a non-vaccinated comparison group did not, and developed malaria when exposed to the parasites later. http://www.physorg.com/news168110116.html Medicine & Health Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:30:01 EST news168110116 Walter and Eliza Hall Institute scientists have created a weakened strain of the malaria parasite that will be used as a live vaccine against the disease. The vaccine, developed in collaboration with researchers from the US, Japan and Canada, will be trialled in humans from early next year. http://www.physorg.com/news168020667.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:25:13 EST news168020667 (PhysOrg.com) -- 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. They have now developed a cell phone microscope, or CellScope, that not only takes color images of malaria parasites, but of tuberculosis bacteria labeled with fluorescent markers. http://www.physorg.com/news167458162.html Biology Wed, 22 Jul 2009 05:10:00 EST news167458162