From: Newsletter Phys.org <not-for-reply@physorg.com>
Date: Mon, Jun 3, 2013 at 1:56 AM
Subject: Phys.org Newsletter Sunday, Jun 2
To: Pascal Alter <pascal.alter@gmail.com>
Dear Pascal Alter,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for June 2, 2013:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Researchers are one step closer to artificial livers- Printing innovations provide tenfold improvement in organic electronics
- WABIAN robot from Japan steps closer to human walk
- Oncogene mutation hijacks splicing process to promote growth and survival
- Growth factor responsible for triggering hair follicle generation during wound healing identified
- New method for mass-producing high-quality DNA molecules
- Vinegar cancer test saves lives, India study finds
- New cancer drug shows promise for treating advanced melanoma
- Push for US Internet 'wiretap' law faces tough road
- Reality catches up with sci-fi in storm drones
- Adamant Apple in court to fight ebook conspiracy
- Google nixes face-recognition features in Glass eyewear
- 10 years on, Europe salutes its Martian scout
- Motorola on authentication: We're talking tattoos and pills
- US judge orders Google to turn over data to FBI
Space & Earth news
NASA image: Agricultural fires in western Mexico
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite detected dozens of fires burning in western Mexico on May 30, 2013. The fires are outlined in red.
Canada's westernmost province rejects pipeline to Pacific
Canada's westernmost British Columbia province on Friday rejected a proposed pipeline to move crude from the oil sands of Alberta province to the Pacific coast, citing environmental concerns.
3 veteran storm chasers killed by Oklahoma tornado
Three veteran storm chasers were among the 10 people killed when a violent tornado barreled into the Oklahoma City metro area. Jim Samaras told The Associated Press on Sunday that his brother Tim Samaras, 54, of Bennett, Colorado, was killed Friday. Tim Samaras' son, 24-year-old Paul Samaras, also of Bennett; and another chaser, Carl Young, also died.
NASA satellites watch the demise of Hurricane Barbara
NOAA's GOES-14 satellite captured Hurricane Barbara's landfall in southwestern Mexico and movement across land, northward toward the Gulf of Mexico. This 43 second animation of NOAA's GOES-14 satellite observations from May 29 to 31, 2013, shows Barbara making landfall at the beginning of the animation, and moving toward the Gulf of Mexico by May 31. Credit: NASA GOES Project
Monsoon rains arrive in India, bring cheer to farmers
The annual monsoon, crucial to India's food output and economic growth, hit the southwest coast on Saturday, bringing cheer to farmers and boosting hopes for the struggling economy.
10 years on, Europe salutes its Martian scout
It was built on a relative shoestring, was completed in just five years and was designed to survive for just 687 days. Ten years later, after more than 12,000 swings around the Red Planet, Europe's Mars Express is still going strong.
Reality catches up with sci-fi in storm drones
At the time it premiered, the film "Twister" put forth a fantastical science fiction idea: Release probes into a storm in order to figure out which tornadoes could develop into killers. It's no longer fiction. Oklahoma State University researchers are designing and building sleek, Kevlar-reinforced unmanned aircraft—or drones—to fly directly into the worst storms and send back real-time data to first responders and forecasters.
Medicine & Health news
Internists respond to SFC with ideas on how to make improvements following repeal of SGR
The American College of Physicians (ACP) today provided 19 specific recommendations, supporting evidence and implementation details on how to improve the Medicare physician fee schedule and the fee-for-service (FFS) system overall in response to a request by the Senate Finance Committee (SFC) on May 10. ACP cited ways to provide stability for physician reimbursement and lay the necessary foundation for a performance-based payment system following the repeal of the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR).
ATS publishes clinical practice guidelines on sleep apnea and driving
The American Thoracic Society has released new clinical practice guidelines on sleep apnea, sleepiness, and driving risk on non-commercial drivers.
New law reignites debate over Germany's 'baby hatch'
Germany's "baby hatches", where women can safely leave their unwanted newborn, have come under fire as the government pushes a new law to guarantee a child the right to eventually know its mother's identity.
'Obamacare' improves Medicare funding outlook
Funding for Medicare health insurance has improved due to health care reforms, but the US Social Security trust fund was still expected to run out in 2033, the government reported Friday.
Hepatitis A outbreak linked to Ore. berry farm
(AP)—The Food and Drug Administration is investigating an outbreak of Hepatitis A linked to a frozen organic berry mix from a farm in Oregon.
Europe and electronic cigarettes
France said on Friday it would apply the same bans to electronic cigarettes as it does to tobacco but would not completely outlaw the popular smokeless product.
Cancer researchers warn US budget cuts block advances
Cancer researchers warned Friday that federal budget cuts enacted by the US Congress could block key advances in the fight against deadly disease.
UK doctors that are injured while treating unconscious patients cannot test them for HIV due to lack of legal protection
Doctors and nurses in the UK that are injured in the course of treating injured patients cannot currently test that patient for HIV without their consent. In emergency situations where the patient is unconscious, such consent cannot be given, putting healthcare staff at risk of subsequent legal action if they test the unconscious patient. In a session taking place at Euroanaesthesia (the annual congress of the European Society of Anaesthesiology [ESA]), senior UK anaesthetists will discuss the need for a change in the law to protect both patients and healthcare workers.
Major new initiative for patient safety in Europe unveiled
A major new initiative for patient safety in Europe is today launched by Professor Eberhard Kochs, President of the European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA). The new European Patient Safety Foundation, covering all aspects of patient safety was announced by Professor Kochs during his welcome address on Saturday 1 June at the ESA's annual European Anaesthesiology Congress in Barcelona, Spain (1-4 June).
Quintuplets born in Czech Republic for first time
A 23-year-old Czech woman has given birth to quintuplets for the first time in the Czech Republic.
Cytomegalovirus might speed brain-cancer growth
A virus that infects most Americans but that usually remains dormant in the body might speed the progression of an aggressive form of brain cancer when particular genes are shut off in tumor cells, new research shows. The animal study by researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) and at Dana Farber Cancer Institute suggests that cytomegalovirus (CMV) might significantly accelerate the development and progression of glioblastoma, a deadly form of brain cancer.
Study finds glioblastoma patients treated with bevacizumab experience reduced cognitive function and quality of life
Many glioblastoma patients treated with bevacizumab (Avastin) have significant deterioration in neurocognitive function, symptoms and quality of life. Not only that, the changes often predict treatment outcomes, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Procedures saving limbs of more peripheral arterial disease patients, study finds
Peripheral arterial disease is a common circulation problem in which reduced blood flow can lead to complications that jeopardize the limbs, possibly even requiring amputation. Procedures known as revascularization have reduced the need for amputations 40 percent over two decades, Mayo Clinic research shows. The findings were among several studies presented at the Society for Vascular Surgery annual meeting in San Francisco.
New technology makes breast cancer surgery more precise
(Medical Xpress)—Any breast cancer surgeon who regularly performs lumpectomies confronts the question "Did I get it all?" Thirty to 60 percent of the time in the U.S., the answer is "no," requiring the patient to undergo a second surgery to remove the remaining tumor.
Targeted therapy boosts lung cancer outcomes
–Thousands of patients with an advanced form of lung cancer that carries a specific dysfunctional gene are likely to fare better if treated with a targeted therapy than with traditional chemotherapy, report Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers and a team of international collaborators.
Russia's smokers flout new tobacco ban
Russia's smokers openly defied an ambitious new ban on public smoking as it went into effect Saturday, calling it unfair and casting doubt on the government's ability to enforce it.
New drug improves progression-free survival, shrinks tumors in rare cancer for first time
The experimental drug selumetinib is the first targeted therapy to demonstrate significant clinical benefit for patients with metastatic uveal melanoma, according to new Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center research presented on Saturday, June 1, at the 49th annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
No increased risk of infection for long-term sex partners of people with HPV-related oral cancers
Spouses and long-term partners of patients with mouth and throat cancers related to infection with the human papilloma virus (HPV) appear to have no increased prevalence of oral HPV infections, according to results of a multicenter, pilot study led by Johns Hopkins investigators. The study's results suggest that long-term couples need not change their sexual practices, say the scientists.
Drug can delay ovarian cancer relapses: study
A drug already approved for treating kidney cancer was successful at delaying the return of advanced ovarian cancer by an average of nearly six months, a clinical study released Saturday found.
When to start (and not stop) resuscitation efforts
One of the most difficult moments faced by anaesthetists and other healthcare staff is when to carry on attempts to resuscitate a person, and when those efforts should reasonably stop. This dilemma is the subject of a session at Euroanaesthesia, the annual congress of the European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA).
Test helps target glioblastoma patients most likely to benefit from bevacizumab
A new test may help identify newly diagnosed glioblastoma patients more likely to benefit from bevacizumab (Avastin), according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Bevacizumab offers no benefit for newly diagnosed glioblastoma, study finds
The angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab (Avastin) failed to increase overall survival (OS) or statistically significant progression-free survival (PFS) for glioblastoma patients in the frontline setting, according to research led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Saudi Arabia says three more die from new virus
Saudi Arabia has reported that three more people have died from a new respiratory virus related to SARS, bringing the total number of deaths in the kingdom to 24.
Therapy that heats and destroys bone tumors eases patients' pain
Patients with cancer that has spread to their bones are often treated with radiation therapy to reduce pain. But if that treatment doesn't work, or can't be used again, a second, effective option now exists. Results of a clinical trial on the new therapy, presented by a researcher at Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center, is being presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Targeted therapy sorafenib shows success in advanced differentiated thyroid cancer patients
The kidney and liver cancer drug sorafenib holds metastatic thyroid cancer at bay for nearly twice as long as a placebo, according to results of a randomized phase III trial, which will be presented today by a researcher from the Abramson Cancer Center and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in a plenary session during the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting (Abstract #4).
Some patients with treatment-resistant colorectal cancers may have a new option
A subset of colorectal cancers responds to anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (anti-EGFR) therapies, but develops resistance within months. Among cancers that develop resistance to anti-EGFR therapy, some showed overexpression of a gene called MET, according to a study published in the June issue of Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. Preliminary data published in this study showed human tumors with MET amplification, grown in mice, responded to MET inhibitor drugs.
Abnormalities in HER2 gene found in wide variety of advanced cancers
The HER2 growth-factor gene is known to be over-active in breast and gastro-esophageal cancers. But now, irregularities in the genes 's expression—among them mutations, amplifications, substitutions, and translocations—have been found in 14 different advanced solid tumors.
Oncologists report high career satisfaction, yet many suffer symptoms of burnout
Even though a majority of U.S. oncologists report satisfaction with their careers, many say they have experienced at least one symptom of burnout, a Mayo Clinic-led study has found. The study was released during the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Chicago.
Combination of drugs produces dramatic tumor responses in advanced melanoma patients
The combination of the immunotherapy drug ipilimumab and the investigational antibody drug nivolumab led to long-lasting tumor shrinkage in more than half of patients with metastatic melanoma, according to results from a Phase I trial simultaneously published online on Sunday, June 2, in The New England Journal of Medicine and presented by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center researchers at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Bevacizumab offers first hope for advanced cervical cancer
A new cervical cancer drug offers the first good hope of extending life for women with advanced stages of the disease, according to a study published Sunday.
Oncogene mutation hijacks splicing process to promote growth and survival
An international team of researchers – led by principal investigator Paul S. Mischel, MD, a member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine – has found that a singular gene mutation helps brain cancer cells to not just survive, but grow tumors rapidly by altering the splicing of genes that control cellular metabolism.
Enhanced white blood cells heal mice with MS-like disease
Genetically engineered immune cells seem to promote healing in mice infected with a neurological disease similar to multiple sclerosis (MS), cleaning up lesions and allowing the mice to regain use of their legs and tails.
New cancer drug shows promise for treating advanced melanoma
Researchers from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center report that a new drug in preliminary tests has shown promising results with very manageable side effects for treating patients with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.
Vinegar cancer test saves lives, India study finds
A simple vinegar test slashed cervical cancer death rates by one-third in a remarkable study of 150,000 women in the slums of India, where the disease is the top cancer killer of women.
Growth factor responsible for triggering hair follicle generation during wound healing identified
Researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have determined the role of a key growth factor, found in skin cells of limited quantities in humans, which helps hair follicles form and regenerate during the wound healing process. When this growth factor, called Fgf9, was overexpressed in a mouse model, there was a two- to three-fold increase in the number of new hair follicles produced. Researchers believe that this growth factor could be used therapeutically for people with various hair and scalp disorders. The study appears in an advance online publication of Nature Medicine.
Researchers are one step closer to artificial livers
Prometheus, the mythological figure who stole fire from the gods, was punished for this theft by being bound to a rock. Each day, an eagle swept down and fed on his liver, which then grew back to be eaten again the next day.
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