Issue 499 (16 March 2009)

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What matters to women considering stem cell research using aborted fetuses?

15 March 2009 - by Professor Naomi Pfeffer

This January, ReNeuron Group Plc announced that the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) had granted permission for a Phase I clinical trial of its ReN001 stem cell therapy in the treatment of patients left disabled by an ischaemic stroke, the most common form of the condition. The...[Read More]

Cancer cells destroyed by gene therapy

15 March 2009 - by Adam Fletcher

A new technique, published last week in the journal Cancer Research, has suggested an alternative approach to destroying cancer cells. Carried out in London, UK, by scientists at Cancer Research UK (CRUK), the work is the first anti-cancer therapy based on nanotechnology. Currently showing promising signs in...[Read More]

Stem cell 'scaffold' aids formation of brain tissue

16 March 2009 - by Lorna Stewart

Scientists have developed a scaffolding system for keeping stem cells in place in damaged brain areas. Work published last week in the journal Biomaterials demonstrated that damaged tissue in rat brains could be replaced within a week by this method. Principal investigator of the study, Dr Mike...[Read More]

Google co-founder pledges millions to new Parkinson's study

16 March 2009 - by Dr Rebecca Robey

Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, has pledged millions of dollars to fund a new research project investigating genetic and environmental factors that contribute to the development of Parkinson's disease. Mr Brin will pay for 10,000 Parkinson's sufferers to have their genomes sequenced by the company 23andMe, a...[Read More]

Brain speed and intelligence is linked to our genes

16 March 2009 - by Will Fletcher

A new type of brain scanner has revealed that inherited genes have a much greater effect on intelligence than was previously thought. The scanner measures how well nerve fibres are encased in protective and insulating fatty myelin, a good covering of which results in faster nerve impulses...[Read More]

Study finds link between older fathers and lower IQ scores in children

16 March 2009 - by Katy Sinclair

A study by researchers at the University of Queensland, Australia, appearing in the journal PLoS Medicine, has found that children of older fathers perform less well in a range of cognitive tests than children born to younger fathers. The research, led by John McGrath, studied data from...[Read More]

Gene discovery sheds light on cause and prevention of Alzheimer's

16 March 2009 - by Ailsa Stevens

A gene mutation linked to the accumulation of the peptide beta-amyloid in the brain - thought to cause Alzheimer's - has been shown to trigger the disease when individuals carry two copies and help protect against the disease when they carry only one, according to a study published in...[Read More]