The premier online source for science news since 1996. A service of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. http://www.eurekalert.org en-us Copyright 2013 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fri, 17 May 2013 17:19:00 EDT EurekAlert! http://www.eurekalert.org/images/logo.gif http://www.eurekalert.org The premier online source for science news since 1996. A service of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 1440 webmaster@eurekalert.org (EurekAlert!) Flu in pregnant mothers has been linked to a nearly fourfold increased risk that their child might develop bipolar disorder in adulthood. The findings add to mounting evidence of possible shared underlying causes and illness processes with schizophrenia, which some studies have also linked to prenatal exposure to influenza. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/niom-fip051313.php Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/niom-fip051313.php Findings from the first large-scale sequencing analysis of congenital heart disease bring us closer to understanding this most common type of birth defect. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nhla-rti051013.php Sun, 12 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nhla-rti051013.php A team of NIH scientists has developed a new tool to identify broadly neutralizing antibodies capable of preventing infection by the majority of HIV strains found around the globe, an advance that could help speed HIV vaccine research. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nioa-nsc050713.php Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nioa-nsc050713.php Scientists funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, have established an inheritable bacterial infection in malaria-transmitting Anopheles mosquitoes that renders them immune to malaria parasites. Specifically, the scientists infected the mosquitoes with Wolbachia, a bacterium common among insects that previously has been shown to prevent malaria-inducing Plasmodium parasites from developing in Anopheles mosquitoes. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nioa-bii050613.php Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nioa-bii050613.php Adding omega-3 fatty acids did not improve a combination of nutritional supplements commonly recommended for treating age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a major cause of vision loss among older Americans, according to a study from NIH. The plant-derived antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin also had no overall effect on AMD when added to the combination; however, they were safer than the related antioxidant beta-carotene. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nei-nsp050213.php Sun, 05 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nei-nsp050213.php NIH-funded researchers at the University of California at San Francisco used a mouse model of epilepsy to show that transplanting new born inhibitory nerve cells can quiet seizures. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nion-mab043013.php Sun, 05 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nion-mab043013.php National Institutes of Health researchers used the popular anti-wrinkle agent Botox to discover a new and important role for a group of molecules that nerve cells use to quickly send messages. This novel role for the molecules, called SNARES, may be a missing piece that scientists have been searching for to fully understand how brain cells communicate under normal and disease conditions. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nion-nsu050213.php Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nion-nsu050213.php Two studies from the Cancer Genome Atlas program reveal details about the genomic landscapes of acute myeloid leukemia and endometrial cancer. Both provide new insights into the molecular underpinnings of these cancers with the potential to improve treatment. These studies represent the sixth and seventh in a series of genomes of at least 20 major cancers. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nci-eaa050113.php Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/nci-eaa050113.php IH-supported scientists used lab-grown human lung cells to study the cells' response to infection by a novel human coronavirus (called nCoV) and compiled information about which genes are significantly disrupted in early and late stages of infection. The information about host response to nCoV allowed the researchers to predict drugs that might be used to inhibit either the virus itself or the deleterious responses that host cells make in reaction to infection. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-crt043013.php Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-crt043013.php Endocytosis lets cells absorb nutrients, import growth factors, prevent infections and accomplish many other vital tasks. This study suggests that, in contrast to earlier theories, dynamin proteins and membrane lipids work together synergistically. Also, GTP completes the final act of separation (membrane fission) not through brute force, but by encouraging the highly stressed membrane to relax. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/niog-mrw042913.php Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/niog-mrw042913.php An atomic-level snapshot of a respiratory syncytial virus protein bound to a human antibody represents a leap toward developing a vaccine for a common -- and sometimes very serious -- childhood disease. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-nso042513.php Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-nso042513.php Scientists have discovered a potential strategy for developing treatments to stem the disease process in Alzheimer's disease. It's based on unclogging removal of toxic debris that accumulates in patients' brains, by blocking activity of a little-known regulator protein called CD33. Too much CD33 activity may promote late-onset Alzheimer's by preventing support cells from clearing out toxic plaques. Future medications that impede CD33 activity might help prevent or treat the disorder. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/niom-spm042313.php Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/niom-spm042313.php National Institutes of Health scientists studying an emerging coronavirus have found that a combination of two licensed antiviral drugs, ribavirin and interferon-alpha 2b, can stop the virus from replicating in laboratory-grown cells. These results suggest that the drug combination could be used to treat patients infected with the new coronavirus, but more research is needed to confirm this preliminary finding. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-tfn041613.php Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/nioa-tfn041613.php