ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Expert task force recommends halving global fishing for crucial prey species
• The role of physics in the sinking of the Titanic
• Corals 'could survive a more acidic ocean'
• Picky females promote diversity
• New comparison of ocean temperatures reveals rise over the last century
• Molecular mechanism contributing to cardiomyopathy elucidated
• Transforming scar tissue into beating hearts: The next instalment
• Link between inflammation and breast cancer metastases identified, may be treatable
• Long-term use of estrogen hormone therapy linked to higher risk for breast cancer
• DNA sequencing lays foundation for personalized cancer treatment
• Gene variations linked to intestinal blockage in newborns with cystic fibrosis
• Epigenetic changes in twins of dieting mothers increases risk of obesity and diabetes
• New discovery may lead to effective prevention and treatment of graft-versus-host dsease
• Oxygen in tumors predicts prostate cancer recurrence
• Trials show promise of human virus to treat head and neck cancer patients
• Commonly used diabetes drug may help to prevent primary liver cancer, study suggests
• Metformin may lower risk for oral cancer development
• Metformin may protect against liver cancer
• Oral vitamin D supplements reduced levels of Ki67 in prostate cancer cells
• Metformin appeared to slow prostate cancer growth
• Declines in Caribbean coral reefs pre-date damage resulting from climate change

Expert task force recommends halving global fishing for crucial prey species Posted: 01 Apr 2012 04:57 PM PDT Fishing for herring, anchovy, and other "forage fish" in general should be cut in half globally to account for their critical role as food for larger species, recommends an expert group of marine scientists.

The role of physics in the sinking of the Titanic Posted: 01 Apr 2012 04:44 PM PDT A century on from the sinking of the Titanic, science writer Richard Corfield takes a look at the cascade of events that led to the demise of the "unsinkable" ship, taking into account the maths and physics that played a significant part.

Corals 'could survive a more acidic ocean' Posted: 01 Apr 2012 01:01 PM PDT Corals may be better placed to cope with the gradual acidification of the world's oceans than previously thought -- giving rise to hopes that coral reefs might escape climatic devastation.

Picky females promote diversity Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:53 AM PDT Picky females play a critical role in the survival and diversity of species, according to a new study. To date, biodiversity theories have focused on the role played by adaptations to the environment: the species best equipped to cope with a habitat would win out, while others would gradually go extinct. The new study presents the first theoretical model demonstrating that selective mating alone can promote the long-term coexistence of species -- such as frogs, crickets, grasshoppers and fish -- that share the same ecological adaptations and readily interbreed.

New comparison of ocean temperatures reveals rise over the last century Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:53 AM PDT A new study contrasting ocean temperature readings of the 1870s with temperatures of the modern seas reveals an upward trend of global ocean warming spanning at least 100 years. The research shows a .33-degree Celsius (.59-degree Fahrenheit) average increase in the upper portions of the ocean to 700 meters (2,300 feet) depth. Modern data is derived from the international Argo program.

Molecular mechanism contributing to cardiomyopathy elucidated Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:53 AM PDT Cardiomyopathy comprises a deterioration of the heart muscle that affects the organ's ability to efficiently pump blood through the body. Forms of the disease were tied to the alternative splicing of titin, a giant protein that determines the heart`s structure and biomechanical properties, but the molecular mechanism remained unknown. Scientists have now found that a gene tied to hereditary cardiomyopathy, regulates titin splicing. Their findings could lead to improve diagnosis and therapies.

Transforming scar tissue into beating hearts: The next instalment Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:53 AM PDT Scientists are continuing to work on transforming scar tissue resulting from myocardial infarction into viable heart muscle cells.

Link between inflammation and breast cancer metastases identified, may be treatable Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:49 AM PDT The incidence of breast cancer-associated metastasis was increased in animal models of the chronic inflammatory condition arthritis, according to results of a preclinical study. The results indicate that inflammatory cells known as mast cells play a key role in this increase and that interfering with mast cells reduces the occurrence of bone and lung metastases.

Long-term use of estrogen hormone therapy linked to higher risk for breast cancer Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:49 AM PDT In a landmark study, researchers have linked the long-term use of estrogen plus progesterone and estrogen-only hormone therapy with a higher risk for developing breast cancer.

DNA sequencing lays foundation for personalized cancer treatment Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:49 AM PDT Scientists are using powerful DNA sequencing technology not only to identify mutations at the root of a patient's tumor – considered key to personalizing cancer treatment – but to map the genetic evolution of disease and monitor response to treatment.

Gene variations linked to intestinal blockage in newborns with cystic fibrosis Posted: 01 Apr 2012 10:49 AM PDT The discovery by cystic fibrosis researchers offers the possibility of developing therapies to intervene in utero. Some of these genes may influence disease in other cystic fibrosis-affected organs.

Epigenetic changes in twins of dieting mothers increases risk of obesity and diabetes Posted: 01 Apr 2012 07:55 AM PDT Expectant mothers might feel a little better about reaching for that pint of ice cream: New research suggests that twins, and babies of mothers who diet around the time of conception and in early pregnancy, may have an increased risk of obesity and Type 2 diabetes. This study provides exciting insights into how behavior can lead to epigenetic changes in offspring related to obesity and disease.

New discovery may lead to effective prevention and treatment of graft-versus-host dsease Posted: 01 Apr 2012 07:54 AM PDT A new discovery in mice may lead to new treatments that could make bone marrow transplants more likely to succeed and to be significantly less dangerous. Scientists may have found a way to prevent the immune system from attacking transplant grafts and damaging the host's own cells after a bone marrow transplant.

Oxygen in tumors predicts prostate cancer recurrence Posted: 01 Apr 2012 07:54 AM PDT Low oxygen levels in tumors can be used to predict cancer recurrence in men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer even before they receive radiation therapy.

Trials show promise of human virus to treat head and neck cancer patients Posted: 01 Apr 2012 07:53 AM PDT A naturally-occurring harmless human virus may be able to boost the effects of two standard chemotherapy drugs in some cancer patients, according to early stage trial data. Cancers shrank for about one third of the patients who could be evaluated, and disease stabilized for a further third. For one patient, all signs of their cancer disappeared.

Commonly used diabetes drug may help to prevent primary liver cancer, study suggests Posted: 31 Mar 2012 12:19 PM PDT Metformin, a drug widely used to treat Type 2 diabetes, may help to prevent primary liver cancer, researchers report. The medication, which is derived from the French lilac, is being studied in connection with the prevention of a variety of cancers. This preclinical study is the first to focus on liver cancer.

Metformin may lower risk for oral cancer development Posted: 31 Mar 2012 12:11 PM PDT New findings suggest that metformin may protect against oral cancer.

Metformin may protect against liver cancer Posted: 31 Mar 2012 12:11 PM PDT Metformin, a widely used, well-tolerated drug prescribed for patients with diabetes, may protect against liver cancer, according to a new study.

Oral vitamin D supplements reduced levels of Ki67 in prostate cancer cells Posted: 31 Mar 2012 12:11 PM PDT Higher oral doses of plain vitamin D raised levels of calcitriol in prostate tissue. Higher prostate levels of calcitriol, a hormone made from vitamin D, corresponded with lower levels of the proliferation marker Ki67 and increased levels of cancer growth-inhibitory microRNAs in prostate cancer cells, according to new data.

Metformin appeared to slow prostate cancer growth Posted: 31 Mar 2012 12:11 PM PDT The use of metformin in men with prostate cancer before prostatectomy helped to reduce certain metabolic parameters and slow the growth rate of the cancer, according to new research.

Declines in Caribbean coral reefs pre-date damage resulting from climate change Posted: 30 Mar 2012 09:32 AM PDT The decline of Caribbean coral reefs has been linked to the recent effects of human-induced climate change. However, new research suggests an even earlier cause. The bad news – humans are still to blame. The good news – relatively simple policy changes regarding land use and fishing activity can hinder further coral reef decline.

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