Peer Reviewed

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Fog lifts over Europe, Social isolation as a model of depression, Altering alkaloids in periwinkle, Cold season ozone production, Halting Hedgehog, Inheritance extends beyond the DNA sequence and Sleep on it

In the Asia Media Forum this week - Journos Vow to Carry on Slain Editor's Legacy, 'Sunday Leader' Pays Tribute to Murdered Journalist, Israeli Attacks on Gaza Escape Global Media Scrutiny, Corporate Fraud Needs a More Vigilant Media, Global Group Launches Safety Service, Code for Journos

Researchers working in Japan have developed a new theory that may explain the activity of two unusual, but vitally important, enzymes that were discovered over 40 years ago.

A novel numerical technique permits researchers to study the interaction between elementary particles within a material without approximations

Synthetic genetic circuits enable researchers to uncover the mechanisms by which cells set their internal clocks

The Casimir force between objects in a vacuum shows a complex dependence on temperature

How will be the Obama administration influence the rest of the world? – What Burden-sharing will This Cool Realist Demand? –

Summaries of newsworthy papers include The legacy of the Bush presidency, 50 years of pheromones, Polaritons go with the flow and Ancient braincase helps reveal jawbone origins

SERDANG, Malaysia 10 Jan – Mathematical Research Institute (INSPEM) Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) has established collaboration on mathematical research with Institute of Mathematics, Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology (IM-VAST).

Summaries of newsworthy papers including Photonics: One-way photonic street, Genetics: Common mutation underlying epilepsy identified, Geoscience: Is the acceleration of Greenland’s glaciers short-lived?, Physics: Long-range quantum manipulation, and Nature: Natural killer cells never forget.

RIKEN researchers have produced healthy cloned mice from cells taken from bodies frozen for 16 years. Wakayama and his team are making a name for themselves by developing techniques that could help rescue life from unlikely sources.

Japanese researchers have identified two SNPs, which significantly increases susceptibility to the autoimmune diseases rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythmatosus (SLE).

A recently discovered protein works behind the scenes to confer much-needed stabilization to an essential developmental pathway

Computing based on photons rather than electrons, on the other hand, promises significantly faster computation and information processing. An international team of researchers has now developed a theoretical system that would allow single photons to be controlled reliably.

A receptor, induced on the surface of macrophages under stressful conditions, can detect tissue injury, stimulating inflammation and possibly repair, a RIKEN-led team of molecular biologists has discovered. Their work could provide new leads for anti-inflammatory drugs and healing.

Also in Asia Media Forum this week - Singapore Gov’t on Facebook – Reaching Out or More Control?, Outrage, Helplessness at Editor's Murder, Can Google Save the Print Media?, Al Jazeera English Beats Israel Ban on Gaza Coverage, China Purges Cyberspace of Porn and 41 Journalists Killed in 2008

The Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Research and Development presents the patented inventions and registered utility models of faculty-researchers of the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Stars add weight to planetary ‘law’, New theory of blood cell development, Early crust formation on asteroids? and Repulsive interactions

Scitable provides students with free online access to more than 180 overviews of key genetics concepts. The overviews are evidence-based and have been vetted by Nature Publishing Group staff.

This was a send-off game held immediately before the mobilization of students to war, held under the feeling of “everything is coming to an end”. The game occupies a clear position in the historical process of the Asia-Pacific War, and in continuing to transmit the game to future generations.

Published for the first time last year, the new Michelin Tokyo, 2009 was released on November 28, 2008. Prof. Ikuhiro Fukuda who has been using the original Michelin France for more than 20 years gives his opinion on Michelin Tokyo and points out major differences between European and Japanese food culture.

The phrase “corporate governance” spread rapidly throughout Japan from around the late 1990s. When looking at newspaper articles, the frequency of usage for the phrase “corporate governance” suddenly increased in 1997, in the midst of a worsening bank crisis and bad debt problems.

Waseda University was the first private university to be selected by Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) for the "Super Centre of Excellence" program. This is a review article for the program which ends in 2009.

The Clearinghouse for Tobacco Control (C-Tob) at the National Poison Centre in Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) is to undertake a pilot project to monitor the quality of air in public areas in Penang. This is in line with C-Tob's call for Penang to be made smoke-free now that George Town has been accorded World Heritage Site status by UNESCO.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Arrestin’ insulin resistance and New mechanism for genetic hair loss

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), this country's first APEX University has been selected to host the Right Livelihood College, which brings together all the winners of the Right Livelihood Award, popularly known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize". The MoU will be signed on 8 January 2009.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Nature goes 3D, How Dark is Your Sky?, Evolution gems, Trapping and transport on a tiny scale, Cell-cycle restriction helps leukaemia stem cells keep going, Squeezed to the limit, Hijacked pathway contributes to cancer spread and power of reputation

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) begins a new era this year in welcoming Professor Timothy W. Tong as new President with effect from 1 January 2009.

A unique model may describe the genetic switch that controls whether a T cell becomes a helper or a killer

New work by researchers from RIKEN in Japan has demonstrated the dynamic process of controlling stress responses in plants. To survive, plants must react quickly to environmental hazards such as drought, cold and salt.