Researchers confirm whole-genome sequencing can successfully identify cancer-related mutations

06-Jan-2015 - UT Southwestern Medical Center cancer researchers have demonstrated that whole-genome sequencing can be used to identify patients' risk for hereditary cancer, which can potentially lead to improvements in cancer prevention, diagnosis, and care. This is the first study that has used whole-genome ...

Making the most of a shitty situation

What the “fecal prints” of microbes can tell us about Earth’s evolution

02-Jan-2015 - Everything that eats must excrete, and microbes are no exception. Microbes have dominated the Earth’s ecology for at least the past 3.5 billion years. They play a vital role in the planet’s carbon cycle by digesting organic matter. So their waste potentially carries information about how the ...

Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy: Computer Simulations Sharpen Insights into Molecules

01-Dec-2014 - The resolution of scanning tunnelling microscopes can be improved dramatically by attaching small molecules or atoms to their tip. The resulting images were the first to show the geometric structure of molecules and have generated a lot of interest among scientists over the last few years. ...

Magnetic fields and lasers elicit graphene secret

HZDR scientists discover extraordinarily strong electron redistribution in graphene

26-Nov-2014 - Scientists at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) have studied the dynamics of electrons from the "wonder material" graphene in a magnetic field for the first time. This led to the discovery of a seemingly paradoxical phenomenon in the material. Its understanding could make a new type ...

Major class of fracking chemicals no more toxic than common household substances

18-Nov-2014 - The "surfactant" chemicals found in samples of fracking fluid collected in five states were no more toxic than substances commonly found in homes, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis by researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder. Fracking fluid is largely comprised of water and sand, ...

Towards future lab-on-chip applications

14-Nov-2014 - Smart and portable medical equipment is essential for fast and easy point-of-care and point-of-use diagnostics. Lab-on-a-chip applications in hand-held devices can help to save time for laboratory medical analysis in emergency scenarios. The combination of sub-micrometer-thick light emitting ...

Failed Alzheimer’s test shows in which direction the research should continue

10-Nov-2014 - Disappointing results in clinical Alzheimer’s studies discourage doctors and scientists from continuing their research into ɣ-secretases and a possible treatment against Alzheimer’s disease. In Cell, the Alzheimer’s expert Bart De Strooper (VIB-KU Leuven) argues that these studies are not ...

VTT develops a simple but extremely sensitive magnetometer

Innovative magnetometer for applications such as medical imaging

07-Nov-2014 - VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed an innovative magnetometer that can replace conventional technology in applications such as neuroimaging, mineral exploration and molecular diagnostics. Its manufacturing costs are between 70 and 80 per cent lower than those of traditional ...

New tool could help reshape the limits of synthetic biology

The 'telomerator' reshapes synthetic yeast chromosome into more flexible, realistic form, redefining what geneticists can build

05-Nov-2014 - NYU Langone yeast geneticists report they have developed a novel tool — dubbed "the telomerator" — that could redefine the limits of synthetic biology and advance how successfully living things can be engineered or constructed in the laboratory based on an organism's genetic, chemical base-pair ...

Eppendorf Award for Young European Investigators 2015: Call for entries

24-Oct-2014 - Until 15 January 2015, young researchers working in Europe who are not older than 35 years are invited to apply for the Eppendorf Award for Young European Investigators. This prize acknowledges outstanding contributions to biomedical research in Europe based on methods of molecular biology, ...