String test: Effective and inexpensive method for detecting helicobacter pylori

Swallowing a string may offer a simple and effective alternative to costly and invasive techniques used for detecting Helicobacter pylori in patients say researchers from the U.S. and abroad. They report their findings in the March 2006 issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology. more  

Ebola virus vaccine may protect against Sudan and Zaire species

Researchers from South Carolina and Maryland have developed a bivalent vaccine that may protect against both the Sudan and Zaire species of Ebola virus. Their findings appear in the March 2006 issue of the Journal of Virology. more

Statistical tool may assist in determining virulence factors for microbes

A well established statistical tool known as multivariate linear regression may offer a new approach in determining contributions of multiple virulence factors to the overall virulence of pathogenic microbes say researchers from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York and Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah. Their findings appear in the March 2006 issue of the journal Infection and Immunity. more  

Chronic tinnitus and its impact on demanding cognitive tasks

Individuals with chronic, moderate tinnitus do more poorly on demanding working memory and attention tests than those without tinnitus, according to research conducted at the University of Western Sydney. more

Seizure research heats up with new molecular clues 

It's one of those unavoidable facts of life — kids get sick and have fevers. Usually, those elevated internal temperatures cause only temporary discomfort, but in some small children they spark convulsions called “febrile seizures.” more

Red wine components modulate tissue damage induced by bacteria in gum diseases  

Researchers are finding that components found in red wine can help in preventing and treating inflammatory periodontal diseases. Periodontitis is a progressive infectious disease affecting the gums and bone that surround and support teeth, often causing tooth movement and leading to permanent tooth loss. About 15% of adults between 21 and 50 years of age and 65% of adults over 50 are affected by this disease. more

Doernbecher researchers to study effectiveness of stem cell transplant in human brain

Researchers in Doernbecher Children's Hospital at Oregon Health & Science University will begin a Phase I clinical trial using stem cells in infants and children with a rare neurodegenerative disorder that affects infants and children. The groundbreaking trial will test whether HuCNS-SC(TM), a proprietary human central nervous stem cell product developed by StemCells, Inc. is safe, and whether it can slow the progression of two forms of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL), a devastating disease that is always fatal. NCL is part of a group of disorders often referred to as Batten disease. more