Medicine

Tapping into the power of natural ingredients for safer treatment is the next frontier in the battle against cancer. A recent breakthrough from HKPolyU uses tiger milk mushroom to prepare anti-tumor nanoparticles is bringing us one step closer.

Two independent studies published in Nature this week identify specific subsets of cells in mouse tumours that seem to be responsible for the re-growth of tumours. These findings shed new light on the controversial issue of whether cancer stem cells exist in growing tumours and may have implications for potential therapies.

Exploiting the early immune response in Chikungunya fever promises to provide protection.

How do individuals conceive their world and their place in it? In an attempt to identify the worldview of the Batek tribe, a team of researchers from the Academy of Language Studies at the Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) embarked on a comprehensive study to document the characteristics and elements found in Batek folklore.

The discovery of a new drug for liver cancer by researchers of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and local medical practitioner has borne fruit. After completing clinical trials locally, the new drug known as "BCT-100" has become Hong Kong's first "Investigational New Drug" (IND) granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

An efficient method of producing the biofuel ethanol from oil palm waste is published in the Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science. Researchers first separated glucose from cellulose in the plant matter, and then used it as a substrate for ethanol production.

This month’s article is “A Road Toward Sustainable Recovery”, looking at the proposal to establish a large-scale biobank in North East Japan.

A comprehensive analysis of endangered species threat records and of international trade patterns shows how consumers in developed countries drive biodiversity threats in developing countries. The study reveals that, excluding invasive species, 30% of global species threats are due to international trade.

Singapore, 30 May 2012: Hitachi and Data Storage Institute (DSI), a research institute of A*STAR are devising a data compression technique to tackle the increasing volume of genome sequencing data generated by the healthcare and biomedical industry.

Nature News has gained access to an independent report that offer a comprehensive assessment of radiation doses received by workers following last year's meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. Independent experts contacted by Nature say that the risk presented by the doses described in each report are low.

Planned Parenthood is important for women’s health and welfare, but recently it has become a heated topic in Congress. The services it provides and its historical role in women’s rights should be remembered, the Editors write in this month’s Scientific American Science Agenda column.

To mark the completion of the first two phases of the Project P.A.T.H.S., more than 900 academics, school principals, teachers, social workers, health care professionals, and university students are attending the international conference on "Youth Development in the Global Context: Emergent Issues and Responses" held from 3 to 4 May 2012.

Observations of a star being sucked into a supermassive black hole are reported in Nature this week. The data allow the mass and type of the ill-fated star and the timing of this event to be determined. Suvi Gezari and colleagues recount the discovery of a flare of radiation from a star being torn apart and consumed by a supermassive black hole.

APMEN is pleased to announce two new Partner Institutions to join the Network: The Mahidol Vivax Research Center and the Malaria Research Centre, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak.

The latest news from Nature 25 April 2012

Team hopes findings will bolster practice’s reputation as a nonpharmacolgical treatment

The latest news from Scientific American 17 Apriil 2012

Evidence that the most deadly species of malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, is becoming resistant to the front line treatment for malaria on the border of Thailand and Myanmar is reported in The Lancet today. This increases concern that resistance could now spread to India and then Africa. Eliminating malaria might then prove impossible.

This earthquake and the tsunami claimed the lives of a large number of persons with disabilities.

The Minister of Health and Family Welfare in India, Gulam Nabi Azad, recently opened the new Medical School building at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in collaboration with Karnatak Lingayat Education (KLE) Society,

The students of the School of Graduate Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) known as the Peer Support Group (PSG) have organised an international seminar entitled "Managing the Research Journey" to help graduate students conduct an effective research methods.

An international seminar is being organised by Universiti Kuala Lumpur Royal College of Medicine Perak (UniKLRCMP) to discuss current trend and development in the medical programme for the improvement of the community as a whole.

Yoshikuni Edagawa from Waseda University examines the bright and dark sides of dietary supplements.

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) to strengthen cooperation of over 10 years with Mount Miriam Cancer Hospital (MMCH) through a memorandum of agreement (MoA) signed between the two parties.

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) has signed an MoU with the government of Malacca to establish the Cancer Center at the Putra Specialist Hospital, Malacca, and work together to promote and implement green technology in Malacca by Hang Tuah Jaya Corporation.

Latest news from Nature 15 March 2012

Have we given a thought to the nurses' anxiety and pressure at workplace? Researchers at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in Malaysia have been studying how being burnt out at work affects nurses' job performance.

The Speech Therapy Unit newly set up by the Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies (CBS) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) was officially opened on 3 March. The opening ceremony was followed by the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Tung Wah Group of Hospitals (TWGHs) on the PolyU campus.

More than 100 social workers, occupational/rehabilitation therapists, medical/nursing personnel, researchers and clothing designers gathered at Hotel ICON on 26 February to attend the Symposium and Workshop on Apparel for the Elderly and the Disabled with Special Needs, organized by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU).

Latest news from Nature 01 March 2012