Medicine

Highlights include Competition network of Asian Go players has a 'small-world', 'rich-club' structure, Intercropping maize and faba beans together can improve crop yields, Coordination polymers can trap otherwise unstable cores and more

UPM scientists are researching the possibility of using "tapai ubi", or fermented tapioca, as a prevention against cancer. Preliminary tests indicated that seven types of cancer, including cervical, ovarian, breast and leukaemia, could be prevented by eating tapai ubi.

The symposium focuses on genomics and bioinformatics of influenza viruses, influenza transmission, human influenza, diagnosis, vaccine production and development, and its impact on socio-economy.

The Global COE Program aims to support the establishment of world-class education and research centers within Japanese universities with an eye to raising their competitiveness to the highest world level.

Pertanika is an international peer-reviewed leading journal in Malaysia which began publication in 1978. The journal publishes in three different areas- Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science (JTAS); Pertanika Journal of Science and Technology (JST); and Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (JSSH).

The Middle East Journal of Internal Medicine is a new peer-reviewed journal to meet the needs of physicians, scientists, policymakers, and the patients and communities they serve in the Middle-East. The Journal will begin publication, online, in Oct 2007.

Researchers at Universiti Putra Malaysia have developed a molecular carrier for immunogenic peptides which can be used for the development of multicomponent vaccines, diagnostic reagents and the delivery of novel therapeutics or drugs

A University of Queensland scientist at the Queensland Brain Institute has uncovered evidence that could help to explain why some stroke patients have trouble maintaining a stable image of their visual world when they make eye movements.

Sarawak, Malaysia - UNIMAS and University of South Florida (UNIMAS-USF) education and research partnership was forged through a Memorandum of Understanding.

Studies can be on managerial, epidemiological or behavioral issues with respect to communicable diseases, including HIV/AIDS, but excluding clinical interventions. The deadline for submission of Expression of Interest is 28 June 2007

A baby girl of extremely low birthweight, born in Keio University Hospital on 25 October, 2006, was discharged from the hospital on 3 April in good health. Born weighing only 265 grams, she is the smallest baby ever survived in Japan, and the second smallest throughout the world.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Biophysics: Clustering key to membrane remodelling, Optical materials: Semiconducting nanocrystals light up the way, Evolution: Paddlefish clues to limb development

Tropical herbs which prevent cardiovascular related disorders have been developed into capsules.

The Research and Media Network is an online social network intended to be of value to journalists, scientists, press officers and others who communicate about research - whether on health, environment, water, energy, agriculture, sustainable development or communications.

Summaries of newsworthy papers published in Nature on 03 May 2007 including: Neuroscience: Mapping functional brain anatomy, Planetary science: Measuring Martian ice, Seismology: A new class of earthquake, Physics: Noisy magnets, Chemistry: Super-heavy elements stay with the group, Ecology: The water of life

Physicians have avoided recommending hormonal contraceptives like the ‘pill’ in women with rheumatic diseases because of the related risks of disease exacerbation or thrombosis. This is an important issue, as many women affected by rheumatic diseases are of childbearing age.

Variation in the gene called CDKAL1 is associated with risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a study to be published online this week in Nature Genetics.

Prof. Keiichi Fukuda of Keio University and others found that Sema3a, a type of intravital protein, is the key in determining the density and patterning of cardiac sympathetic innervation. Sema3a controls arrhythmia through sympathetic innervation patterning and unexplained sudden deaths may include cases of genetic defects of Sema3a.

TEN QUESTIONS SCIENCE CAN’T ANSWER (YET), PLEASURABLE KINGDOM ▪ SEX, DRUGS AND DNA ▪ LONESOME GEORGE

Dying cancer patients are buying a chemical called dichloroacetate (DCA) and using it to treat themselves, despite the fact that it hasn’t been approved for use in humans.

Researchers have discovered a pair of twins who are identical through their mother’s side, but share only half their genes on their father’s, reports a News Exclusive from [email protected].

Teen smokers who were also exposed to nicotine before birth show a dramatic reduction in attention capacities related to vision and hearing. The study also demonstrates that male and female attention capacities are affected by the exposure in different ways.

Keio University’s Center for Research Promotion held a symposium entitled “Toward Rapid Medical Applications of Basic Research in the Life Sciences, the panel discussion focused on what should be done by the government, academia, and industry to make translational research an entrenched part of the nation.

The parasite that leads to sleeping sickness can be lulled to sleep itself using a newly discovered pathway, according to research published online this week in EMBO reports. Trypanosoma brucei is a parasite that causes sleeping sickness resulting in neurological damage and death.

Hugo W. Moser and colleagues discuss recent clinical trial data indicating that Lorenzo’s Oil - the discovery of which was the subject of the 1992 film of the same name - can delay the onset of X-ALD symptoms.

ICARDA and its partners in Afghanistan are promoting mint and mint products as a profitable alternative to cultivation of opium poppies. Research focuses on mint production technologies, processing methods, value addition, training, and development of markets and trade capacity – and mint cultivation is expanding rapidly.

Los Baños, Philippines – The important role, and impact, of women in rice research has been highlighted with the awarding of the L'Oréal-UNESCO Women in Science awards for 2007

Nature Publishing Group (NPG) and AstraZeneca are delighted to announce the launch of Nature China (www.naturechina.com), a new web based publication promoting the best scientific research published in mainland China and Hong Kong.