Life Sciences & Biotechnology Update articles from February 2000

Life Sciences & Biotechnology Update archives from February 2000

EFFECTS OF WORKPLACE HAZARDS ON FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH.(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health)
February 1, 2000... This (NIOSH) report looks at the many factors that can affect a woman's reproductive health and her ability to produce healthy children. We know that the health of an unborn child can suffer if a woman fails to eat right, smokes, or drinks...

EMBRYOGENESIS AND EVOLUTION: GENETIC REGULATORY NETWORKS.
February 1, 2000... This (Marine Biological Laboratory) report introduces a series of papers that were originally presented at a workshop titled Genetic Regulatory Network in Embryogenesis and Evaluation. The contents include: Evolution of cleavage programs in...

MEDICINES FOR PEOPLE WITH DIABETES.(National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse)
February 1, 2000... This (National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse) report addresses medicines for people with diabetes. Its Table of Contents is as follows: Sulfonylureas; Biguanides; Alpha-glucosidase Inhibitors; Thiazolidinediones; Meglitinides; Insulins....

VALIDATION STUDIES OF ILLNESS AMONG PERSIAN GULF WAR VETERANS.
February 1, 2000... This (University of Iowa) report details a population- based, cross-sectional telephone survey of 4,886 military personnel to compare the prevalence of self-reported symptoms and illnesses among military personnel either deployed, or eligible...

GULF WAR VETERANS: THE PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF STRESS.
February 1, 2000... This (Georgetown University) report addresses the physiological effects of stress in Gulf War veterans. The cause of Gulf War Illnesses (GWI) remains unclear. Although the precise reason for GWI remains unknown, symptoms nearly identical to...

CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF OBESITY IN CHILDREN.(a Department of Agriculture document)
February 1, 2000... This (Department of Agriculture) document contains the proceedings of a symposium on childhood obesity (1998, Washington, DC). Childhood obesity is likely to persist into adult life, and puts individuals at risk for stroke, hypertension,...

EPIDEMIOLOGY OF HEPATITIS C.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2000... This report from Canada (Health Canada) details an expert panel's meeting to conduct a comprehensive assessment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection associated with transfusion, with blood, and with blood components, excluding fractionated...

WORLD POPULATION PROFILE, WITH A SPECIAL CHAPTER ON HIV/AIDS IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2000... This edition of the (Census Bureau) World Population Profile series provides a comprehensive assessment of world demographic prospects at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. It highlights: major demographic trends; the...

MARIJUANA, ALCOHOL, AND ACTUAL DRIVING PERFORMANCE.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2000... This translation of a study from the Netherlands (Institute for Human Psychopharmacology) empirically determines the separate and combined effects of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and alcohol on actual driving performance. This is the...

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL TRENDS IN DRUG ABUSE.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2000... This (National Institute on Drug Abuse) report looks at epidemiological trends in drug abuse. The Community Epidemiology Work Group (CEWG) is a network composed of researchers from 21 major metropolitan areas of the U.S. and selected foreign...

AN INTEGRATED VIRUS DETECTION SYSTEM USING MS-2 BACTERIOPHAGE.
February 1, 2000... This (Edgewood Chemical Biological Center) work concerns the characterization of the integrated virus detection system using MS-2 bacteriophage. The detection and analysis of viruses have been goals of science for more than 70 years,...

BETA CATENIN-REGULATED GENES IN BREAST CANCER.
February 1, 2000... This (Georgetown University) paper concerns beta catenin-regulated genes in breast cancer. Mutations of the APC tumor-suppressor gene are linked to a number of hyperplastic events in humans and in mice, including breast cancer. Recent...

PEROXISOMAL OXIDATION IN THE NORMAL AND TUMORAL HUMAN BREAST.
February 1, 2000... The peroxisomal enzyme catalase protects aerobic organisms from free radical damage by converting hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to molecular oxygen and water before it can decompose to form the highly reactive hydroxyl radical. In this manner...

FAMILY INTERVENTION FOR YOUNG WOMEN HAVING BREAST CANCER.
February 1, 2000... Breast cancer in young women with spouses and children increases the risk of psychological morbidity, not only for the patient but also for the family due to the substantial mutual effects of each family member's adjustment to the diagnosis...

NOTCH4 LIGANDS IN MAMMARY GLAND DEVELOPMENT AND TUMORGENISES.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2000... In order to identify and characterize Notch4 ligand, this (Columbia University) study obtained several candidate genes and are in the process of testing these genes for their ability to interact with, and activate, Notch4 receptor. The study...

USING NOVEL VITAMIN D ANALOGS FOR BREAST CARCINOMA CELL TARGETED THERAPY.
February 1, 2000... This University of Illinois) report concerns a program showing that 1-alpha (OH)D5, a novel vitamin D analog, has both cell-differentiating and growth-inhibitory effects in selected human breast carcinoma cell lines. The work observes enhanced...

POOR SURVIVAL, RATHER THAN INCREASED INCIDENCE, IS THE REASON FOR ELEVATED BREAST CANCER MORTALITY IN THE NORTHEASTERN U.S.
February 1, 2000... This (University of Texas) study examines the relative contributions of incidence, treatment, and survival, to the elevated mortality from breast cancer in older women in the northeast region of the U.S. Algorithms to determine incident...

BREAST CARCINOMA PROGRESSION REGULATION BY THE INTEGRINS.
February 1, 2000... During the first year of this (Beth Israel Hospital) research, progress has been made in determining the contribution of the alpha-6 integrin receptors to breast carcinoma progression. Previous work had established that the alpha-6-Beta-1...

EARLY DETECTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF BREAST CANCER USING TOMOSYNTHESIS BREAST IMAGING.
February 1, 2000... Tomosynthesis is a method of obtaining tomographic images of the breast. This (Massachusetts General Hospital) report concerns a program that has developed a method for breast tomosynthesis, using a full-field digital mammography system....

DIETARY FATTY ACIDS MOLECULAR MECHANISMS ON BREAST CANCER DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH.
February 1, 2000... The link between diet and cancer has long been postulated, and recently extensively investigated. However, elucidation of the mechanism between this link has remained elusive. Recently, a cellular receptor, called the peroxisomal...

RESISTANCE TO ANTIFUNGAL DRUGS: THE ANTIFUNGAL TARGET SITE IN THE STEROL PATHWAY OF THE YEAST CANDIDA AND SACCHAROMYCES.
February 1, 2000... Resistance to antifungal drugs is a major reason for the increase in fungal infections. Coupled with medical advances which allow access to pathogens, chemotherapies, and diseases which reduce the efficacy of the immune system, we have a...

PHOSPHOLIPIDS IN MONOLAYERS AND BILAYERS.
February 1, 2000... This translation from Finland (Helsinki University of Technology) presents a literature review of phospholipids in monolayers and bilayers. Understanding of the biological membrane structure has been an important aim for many research teams in...

EFFECTS OF GLUTAMINE FEEDING ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM.
February 1, 2000... This report from England (Oxford University) studies the effects of long-term supplementary feeding of glutamine versus a placebo on: some aspects of immune cell function; the incidence of infections; and on mood. Highly trained U.S. Air...

EFFECTS OF ANTIHISTAMINE, AGE, AND GENDER, ON TASK PERFORMANCE.
February 1, 2000... This (University of Oklahoma) investigation is designed to study the effects of the antihistamine, chlorpheniramine maleate, as well as the influence of age and gender, singly and in combination with chlorpheniramine maleate, on selected types...

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO WITHDRAWLS FROM PRIVATE MEDICARE-MANAGED CARE PLANS.
February 1, 2000... Last fall, shortly before the start of the Medicare+Choice program, nearly 100 private Medicare- managed health-care plans announced that they would not renew their Medicare contracts, or that they would reduce the geographic area they served....

MEDICARE MANAGED CARE: GREATER OVERSIGHT IS NEEDED TO PROTECT THE RIGHT OF BENEFICIARIES.
February 1, 2000... The appeals process helps safeguard Medicare beneficiaries' right to covered services from managed- care health plans. This (GAO) study assesses the adequacy of the process, including the recently instituted expedited process. The report...