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Micro RNA Implicated as Molecular Factor in Alcohol Tolerance
7/31/2008
In recent years, a class of small molecules known as microRNAs have been found to play an important role in regulating gene products in most animal and plant species. A new study now indicates that microRNA may influence the development of alcohol tolerance, a hallmark of alcohol abuse and dependence. Researchers supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, report the findings in the July 31, 2008 issue of the journal 'Neuron.'

Increased Burden of Rare Genetic Variations Found in Schizophrenia
7/31/2008
People with schizophrenia bear an 'increased burden' of rare deletions and duplications of genetic material, genome-wide, say researchers supported in part by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Imaging Techniques Yield New Information on How HIV Infects Cells and Provides Clues to Vaccine Design
7/31/2008
The use of advanced imaging techniques has allowed researchers to visualize how a key part of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) changes shape after binding to immune system cells or to infection-fighting antibodies. Although scientists had been able to visualize individual components of this part of the virus, called the HIV spike, the new research characterizes, for the first time, the structure of the intact spike on virus particles, which is a crucial piece of knowledge that may aid the design of new vaccines or drugs to fight HIV infection. The research was conducted by scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The results were published online July 30, 2008, in 'Nature.'

Laboratory and Mouse Studies Show Targeted Drug Blocks the Growth of Breast Cancer Cells that Spread to the Brain
7/30/2008
Using laboratory and mouse models of human breast cancer, researchers have found that a small molecule capable of targeting specific proteins on the surface of breast cancer cells can inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells that migrate to the brain. The small molecule used in the studies was the drug lapatinib (Tykerb), which disrupts an important breast cancer metabolic process called the Her2/neu signaling pathway. Lapatinib inhibits the activation of growth signaling proteins and their signaling pathways as well as cell migration and proliferation. Using the mouse model, the drug reduced the number of brain lesions that resulted from the injection of human cells. The study, which appeared online July 29, 2008, in the 'Journal of the National Cancer Institute,' was conducted by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Older Treatment May Be More Effective in Preserving Sight for Some Patients with Diabetes
7/29/2008
A promising new drug therapy used to treat abnormal swelling in the eye -- a condition called diabetic macular edema -- proved less effective than traditional laser treatments in a study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The study, published online in July in the journal 'Ophthalmology,' demonstrates that laser therapy is not only more effective than corticosteroids in the long term treatment of diabetic macular edema, but also has far fewer side effects.

NIH Creates Global Health Program to Fight Chronic Diseases
7/29/2008
The Fogarty International Center, the global arm of the National Institutes of Health, today launched a $1.5 million-a-year grant program to fund domestic and overseas training of researchers to fight chronic diseases in developing nations.

NIDDK Publishes a Strategic Plan for Research into Benign Prostate Disease
7/26/2008
For the first time, a strategic plan for research into benign prostate disease, based on the latest scientific knowledge, has been published by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIDDK Prostate Research Strategic Plan is the culmination of discussions and meetings among experts over the past two years in an effort to outline a strategic vision for research into these elusive and multi-faceted diseases.

NHGRI Funds Next Step in Understanding Biological Roots of Common Diseases
7/26/2008
The National Human Genome Research Institute, one of the National Institutes of Health, today announced grants expected to total about $31 million over the next four years for research aimed at gaining a better understanding of how specific genetic variants act to influence the risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and other common diseases.

NIH Awards More Than $33 Million to Fund State-of-the-Art Research Equipment
7/26/2008
The National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today that it will provide $33.3 million for 20 High-End Instrumentation (HEI) grants to fund the latest generation of advanced research equipment.

Children's Physical Activity Drops From Age 9 to 15, NIH Study Indicates
7/26/2008
The activity level of a large group of American children dropped sharply between age 9 and age 15, when most failed to reach the daily recommended activity level, according to the latest findings from a long-term study by the National Institutes of Health.

Reading, Math Scores Up For 4th and 8th graders, Federal Report Shows
7/26/2008
The nation's fourth and eighth graders scored higher in reading and mathematics than they did during their last national assessment, according to the federal government's latest annual statistical report on the well-being of the nation's children. Not all the report's findings were positive; there also were increases in the adolescent birth rate and the proportion of infants born at low birthweight.

Scientists Define 21 New Genes Associated with Crohn's Disease
7/22/2008
A consortium of researchers from the United States, Canada, and Europe has identified 21 new genes for Crohn’s disease, a chronic disease of the large and small intestines. This discovery, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), brings the total number of known genes associated with Crohn's disease to more than 30 and advances understanding of causes and potential avenues to develop new treatments.

NIAID Will Not Move Forward With The Pave 100 HIV Vaccine Trial
7/18/2008
After soliciting and considering broad input from the scientific and HIV advocacy communities, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has determined that it will not conduct the HIV vaccine study known as PAVE 100. However, NIAID believes the vaccine developed by its Vaccine Research Center (VRC) is scientifically intriguing and sufficiently different from previously tested HIV vaccines to consider testing it in a smaller, more focused clinical study.

NHGRI Funds Next Step in Understanding Biological Roots of Common Diseases
7/18/2008
The National Human Genome Research Institute, one of the National Institutes of Health, today announced grants expected to total about $31 million over the next four years for research aimed at gaining a better understanding of how specific genetic variants act to influence the risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and other common diseases.

NIH Awards More Than $33 Million to Fund State-of-the-Art Research Equipment
7/17/2008
The National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today that it will provide $33.3 million for 20 High-End Instrumentation (HEI) grants to fund the latest generation of advanced research equipment.

Children's Physical Activity Drops From Age 9 to 15, NIH Study Indicates
7/16/2008
The activity level of a large group of American children dropped sharply between age 9 and age 15, when most failed to reach the daily recommended activity level, according to the latest findings from a long-term study by the National Institutes of Health.

Research Uncovers Little-Known Impacts of Smell and Taste on Health
7/16/2008
The senses of smell and taste may have greater bearing on health than is generally accepted by both doctors and patients. Recent research suggests that these senses and their influence on behavior have implications for nutrition, aging, mental health, obesity, diabetes and safety. Researchers supported by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), part of the National Institutes of Health, will be presenting their work at the International Symposium on Olfaction and Taste.

NIH Helps Advance Women in Biomedical Research Careers
7/15/2008
In an effort to advance talented women in leadership positions, including those from underrepresented backgrounds, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) published today a Request for Applications (RFA) to support research on causal factors and interventions that promote and support the careers of women in biomedical and behavioral science and engineering. The initiative will provide $2 to $3 million to fund up to eight R01 awards in fiscal year 2009.

Reading, Math Scores Up For 4th and 8th graders, Federal Report Shows
7/15/2008
The nation's fourth and eighth graders scored higher in reading and mathematics than they did during their last national assessment, according to the federal government's latest annual statistical report on the well-being of the nation's children. Not all the report's findings were positive; there also were increases in the adolescent birth rate and the proportion of infants born at low birthweight.

Common Mechanisms May Underlie Autism's Seemingly Diverse Mutations
7/11/2008
Many of the seemingly disparate mutations recently discovered in autism may share common underlying mechanisms, say researchers supported in part by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The mutations may disrupt specific genes that are vital to the developing brain, and which are turned on and off by experience-triggered neuronal activity.

What are the Secrets of a Long and Healthy Life?
7/8/2008
A new study, supported by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), aims to learn more about the secrets to long healthy life, and investigators are seeking long-lived families to help study this important question.

Researchers Develop a Method to Evaluate Variations Identified in Breast Cancer Susceptibility Genes
7/8/2008
Using mouse embryonic stem cells, researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a new method to evaluate which mutations, or changes, in a gene known to increase breast cancer susceptibility, may lead to cancer.

Resveratrol Found to Improve Health, But Not Longevity in Aging Mice on Standard Diet
7/4/2008
Scientists have found that the compound resveratrol slows age-related deterioration and functional decline of mice on a standard diet, but does not increase longevity when started at middle age. This study, conducted and supported in part by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, is a follow-up to 2006 findings that resveratrol improves health and longevity of overweight, aged mice.

Yeast-Based Vaccine Induces Immune Responses and Reduces Tumor Size in Mice
7/2/2008
Scientists have found that vaccination with a heat-killed, non-toxic yeast that is genetically engineered to manufacture a common tumor protein can induce specific and repeated anti-tumor immune responses in mice. Vaccination extends overall survival and reduces tumor size in mice that have been injected with cancer cells displaying the same protein that was engineered into the yeast. Results of this research by scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, can be found in the July 1, 2008 issue of 'Clinical Cancer Research'.

Broad Differences in Alcohol, Tobacco and Illegal Drug Use Across Countries
7/2/2008
A survey conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) research consortium found that the United States had among the highest lifetime rates of tobacco and alcohol use and led in the proportion of participants reporting cannabis (marijuana) or cocaine use at least once during their lifetime. The study, led by Dr. Louisa Degenhardt of the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia and colleagues, looked at patterns in the use of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and cocaine in 17 countries representing all six WHO regions (the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania). The study, funded in part by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is published in the July 1, 2008 issue of the open access journal 'PLoS Medicine'.

NIAID Announces Grants to Stimulate Food Allergy Research
7/1/2008
Twelve investigators have received grants totaling $5 million over two years to lead high-impact, innovative studies of food allergy, a significant public health concern. This program, called Exploratory Investigations in Food Allergy, is funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and two advocacy groups, the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) and the Food Allergy Project (FAP).

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