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New model suggests role of low vitamin D in cancer development

In studying the preventive effects of vitamin D, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, have proposed a new model of cancer development that hinges on a loss of cancer cells' ability to stick together.

Tone language is key to perfect pitch

Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Sinatra and Hendrix ? these and many other of the world's most famous musicians have had "perfect" or "absolute" pitch. The ability, defined as recognizing the pitch of a musical note without having to compare it to any reference note, is quite rare in the U.S. and Europe, where only about one person in 10,000 is thought to have it.

Dental researchers ID new target in fight against osteoporosis, periodontitis

Osteoporosis and periodontitis are common diseases whose sufferers must cope with weakness, injury and reduced function as they lose bone more quickly than it is formed. While the mechanism of bone destruction in these diseases is understood, scientists have had less information about how bone formation is impaired.

The future of personalized cancer treatment: An entirely new direction for RNAi delivery

In technology that promises to one day allow drug delivery to be tailored to an individual patient and a particular cancer tumor, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, have developed an efficient system for delivering siRNA into primary cells. The work will be published in the May 17 in the advance on-line edition of Nature Biotechnology.

Study compares formulations of three aspirin types

For many years, it has been known that aspirin is beneficial to patients suffering heart attacks and near-heart attacks. But which of the many different types of aspirin is likely to help the most?

Immunotherapy effective against neuroblastoma in children

A phase III study has shown that adding an antibody-based therapy that harnesses the body's immune system resulted in a 20 percent increase in the number of children living disease-free for at least two years with neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma, a hard-to-treat cancer arising from nervous system cells, is responsible for 15 percent of cancer-related deaths in children.

Researchers identify key proteins needed for ovulation

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health and other institutions have identified in mice two proteins essential for ovulation to take place.

The finding has implications for treating infertility resulting from a failure of ovulation to occur as well as for developing new means to prevent pregnancy by preventing the release of the egg.

Islands top a global list of places to protect

Rare and unique ecological communities will be lost if oceanic islands aren't adequately considered in a global conservation plan, a new study has found. Although islands tend to harbor fewer species than continental lands of similar size, plants and animals found on islands often live only there, making protection of their isolated habitats our sole chance to preserve them.

Study suggests left-side bias in visual expertise

Facial recognition is not as automatic as it may seem. Researchers have identified specific areas in the brain devoted solely to picking out faces among other objects we encounter.

Novel role of protein in generating amyloid-beta peptide

A defining hallmark of Alzheimer's disease is the accumulation of the amyloid ? protein (A?), otherwise known as "senile plaques," in the brain's cortex and hippocampus, where memory consolidation occurs. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified a novel protein which, when over-expressed, leads to a dramatic increase in the generation of A?.

New biomarker may predict leukemia aggressiveness

Scientists at the University of California, San Diego and the Moores UCSD Cancer Center have evidence of a potential new biomarker to predict the aggressiveness of an often difficult-to-treat form of leukemia.

Reversing effects of altered enzyme may fight brain tumor growth

An international team of scientists from the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, the University of North Carolina and several institutions in China have explained how a gene alteration can lead to the development of a type of brain cancer, and they have identified a compound that could staunch the cancer's growth.

Protein helps immune cells to divide and conquer

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified a key protein that is required for immune cells called B lymphocytes to divide and replicate themselves. The rapid generation of large numbers of these immune cells is critical to the body's antibody defense mechanism.

New explanation for a puzzling biological divide along the Malay Peninsula

Ecologists at the University of California, San Diego, offer a new explanation for an apparently abrupt switch in the kinds in of mammals found along the Malay Peninsula in southeast Asia - from mainland species to island species - in the absence of any geographical barrier.

Federal climate change research program should realign focus to both understandstand climate change and inform response strategies

The federal government's climate change research program should broaden its focus to include research that would support actions needed to cope with climate change-related problems that will impact society, while building on its successful research to improve understanding of the causes and processes of climate change, says a new report from the National Research Council. As the U.S.



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