New Zealand rescuers fail in bid to cut entangled humpback whale free from rope, likely death

NZ rescuers fail to cut rope from entangled whale

WELLINGTON, New Zealand – New Zealand rescuers Tuesday failed in a bid to cut free a humpback whale entangled in a heavy rope that officials said would likely cause its slow death.
Spotted close to North Island’s east coast by a fisherman on Monday, the large humpback had …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : New Zealand rescuers fail in bid to cut entangled humpback whale free from rope, likely death.

Complexity ‘allows organisms to adapt to environmental change’

WASHINGTON – A new study has revealed that instead of decreasing an organism’s ability to adapt to environmental changes, complexity in fact boosts it.

University of Michigan and Taiwan’s National Health Research Institutes researchers that complexity can, indeed, develop through evolutionary processes and best equips organisms to adapt to environmental change.

The study focused on a genetic …. Read the original article  : Complexity ‘allows organisms to adapt to environmental change’.

‘Gentle’ skin creams could give your baby eczema

LONDON – The modern-day bath oils and lotions are not good for a child’s skin-as they are apparently a reason for the increase in the number of newborns having eczema.

Eczema earlier affected four per cent of newborns, but now the figure is around 25 per cent.

New research by a leading expert has indicated that …. Source article  : ‘Gentle’ skin creams could give your baby eczema.

Viagra, anti-cancer drug combo shrinks tumors in vivo

WASHINGTON – Viagra when combined with doxorubicin, a powerful anti-cancer drug, enhances its anti-tumour efficacy in prostate cancer and also lessens the damage to the heart, a new study has suggested.

For more than four decades, the chemotherapeutic agent doxorubicin has been used to treat a number of human cancers, including that of the prostate. …. Source  : Viagra, anti-cancer drug combo shrinks tumors in vivo.

New approach to fight HIV could spur vaccine development

LONDON – By preventing shape-shifting in a key segment of protein from HIV, the immune system can be primed to develop antibodies against the virus, which in turn could pave way for an AIDS vaccine.

Such antibodies, elicited against specific protein segments, could one day serve as the basis for a vaccine to fight many different …. Read the original article  : New approach to fight HIV could spur vaccine development.

Family, culture decide whether intelligence leads to education

WASHINGTON – Intelligence indeed decides how much education a person gets, but family, culture, and other factors too play a big role in a person’s academic success, says a new study.

A new study compares identical and fraternal twins in Minnesota and Sweden to explore how genetic and environmental factors involved in educational differ in countries … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : Family, culture decide whether intelligence leads to education.

Agra wakes up to polythene menace, starts drains’ clean-up

AGRA – The Agra Municipal Corporation Tuesday launched a massive drive to clean up the city’s open drains of thousands of quintals of polythene bags, empty bottles and wrappers that had choked for the past four days the discharge of waste water into the Yamuna river.

“We have put up machines and men and are … Original source on Gaea Times at : Agra wakes up to polythene menace, starts drains’ clean-up.

Exercise ‘cuts risk of fractures in elderly’

WASHINGTON – Home-based exercises followed by voluntary home training could cut the risk of hip fractures among elderly women, says a new study.

Researchers found that exercise is apparently linked with long-term effects on balance and gait (manner of walking), and may help protect high-risk, elderly women from hip fractures, according to a report

“Falls are [..] Read the original article: here.

Surgery effective for aggressive prostate cancer patients

WASHINGTON – Surgery provides high survival rates for patients with aggressive prostate cancer, found a new study.

The study is one of the first to focus exclusively on the outcomes after treatment for patients with high-risk prostate cancer.

Collaborating researchers at Mayo Clinic and Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia discovered that patients with the most aggressive …. Source article  : Surgery effective for aggressive prostate cancer patients.

How nerve cells regenerate after injury

WASHINGTON – The peripheral nerves that connect our limbs and organs to the central nervous system have an astonishing ability to regenerate themselves after injury, unlike nerves of the spinal cord. And now researchers have revealed how this healing process works.

“We know a lot about how various cell types differentiate during development, but after [..] Read the original article: here.

Claims of sexual dysfunction in females overrated, says new book

LONDON – While experts aver that millions of women around the world suffer from sexual difficulty such as low libido and discomfort, a new book has said that all these claims are mere exaggerations to boost sales of ‘Viagra’ like drugs for what they call female sexual dysfunction (FSD).

Pharmaceutical companies have spent millions to … Original article on : Claims of sexual dysfunction in females overrated, says new book.

Protein could help in treatment of osteoporosis

WASHINGTON – Scientists at Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Japan have discovered a protein that could help in the development of approaches to treat age-related osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is characterized by reduced bone mass and increased risk of fracture – an imbalance created by decrease in formation of bone forming osteoblast cells from mesenchymal cells upon aging. …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Protein could help in treatment of osteoporosis.

Electronic circuits to ‘rewire brain connectivity post trauma’

WASHINGTON – Kansas University Medical Centre researchers are developing microelectronic circuitry that could rewire brain connections that get damaged by trauma.

Pedram Mohseni, and Randolph J. Nudo are trying to guide the growth of axons in a brain damaged by an exploding bomb, car crash or stroke. They believe repeated communications between distant neurons in the …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Electronic circuits to ‘rewire brain connectivity post trauma’.

Electric cars more promising for ‘cutting emissions and US oil imports’

WASHINGTON – A new research revealed that electric cars hold a greater promise for reducing emissions and lowering U.S. oil imports than a national renewable portfolio standard.

Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy found “the single most effective way to reduce U.S. oil demand and foreign imports would be an aggressive campaign to launch electric … Read more : Electric cars more promising for ‘cutting emissions and US oil imports’.

Vitamin supplements ‘up skin cancer risk’

LONDON – Scientists have revealed that millions of people who take daily vitamin pills could be putting themselves at risk of the deadliest form of skin cancer.

Research has revealed that supplements containing antioxidants and minerals appear to increase the chances of developing a malignant melanoma.

Volunteers given pills containing vitamin E, ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, selenium and …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Vitamin supplements ‘up skin cancer risk’.

Could a magnet on your head turn you from right to left-handed?

WASHINGTON – If you are a right-handed person, chances are you will use that hand to pick up a cup of coffee or write, but a new study shows that a magnet on your head could very well make you a leftie.

Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, applied transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to the … Read this article on Gaea Times at : Could a magnet on your head turn you from right to left-handed?.

Mindfulness meditation may alleviate fatigue, depression in MS patients

WASHINGTON – A new study has found that learning mindfulness meditation may help people who have multiple sclerosis (MS) with the fatigue, depression and other life challenges that commonly accompany the disease.

For the study, 150 people with mild to moderate MS were randomly assigned to receive either the eight-week meditation training or only usual medical …. Original source  : Mindfulness meditation may alleviate fatigue, depression in MS patients.

Solar rickshaw finds no takers

BANGALORE – A solar electric rickshaw launched with great fanfare by India’s Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) two years ago is yet to find any takers. While this is causing concern, a Pune engineer has claimed the CSIR copied his design.

The three-wheeled “soleckshaw” can in principle use solar panels to convert sunlight into …. Source  : Solar rickshaw finds no takers.

Women who smoke ‘four times more likely to have ectopic pregnancy’

LONDON – Women who smoke regularly are four times more likely to have ectopic pregnancy than those who don’t smoke, say scientists.

Researchers of the Edinburgh University have found a chemical in cigarette smoke that causes a reaction, which may lead to ectopic pregnancies.

The researchers said Cotinine triggered a …. Source article  : Women who smoke ‘four times more likely to have ectopic pregnancy’.

Acupuncture ‘does not aid in stroke recovery’

WASHINGTON – Acupuncture does not appear to help in stroke recovery, reveals a new study.

Acupuncture is often used to supplement traditional stroke rehabilitation, although its effectiveness is uncertain.

This study, perhaps the most comprehensive to date as it includes trials published in English language and Asian journals, was a systematic review conducted by researchers in South … Original source on Gaea Times at : Acupuncture ‘does not aid in stroke recovery’.