Algerian researchers explored the use of orange peel in the removal of acidic dyes from industrial effluent from manufacturers of dyes, paper printers, textile dyers, color photography and petroleum products. The research demonstrates that absorption time depends on the initial concentration of the dyes as well as the chemical structures of the particular dyes being tested, but absorption can occur at just 25 Celsius rather than elevated temperatures. However, strong dyes including Nylosane Blue, Erionyl Yellow, Nylomine Red, and Erionyl Red were absorbed at between 40 and 70 milligrams per gram of orange peel from the samples.

"In laboratory-scale studies, the data show that orange peel has a considerable potential for the removal of dyes from aqueous solutions over a wide range of concentrations," Benaïssa says. "Orange peel may be used as a low-cost, natural and abundant source for the removal of dyes, and it may be an alternative to more costly materials. It may also be effective in removing other harmful or undesirable species present in the waste effluents."
Their findings have been published in the International Journal of Environment and Pollution.

Scientists have identified a receptor molecule present in the intestinal wall called Gpr4, that, when activated by wastes of gut bacteria, controls the movement of food through the intestine, thus regulating nutrient absorption and subsequently, gain weight.

The researchers disrupted communication between the bacteria and the hosts in two ways: raising normal mice under germ-free conditions so they lacked the bacteria, and genetically engineering other mice to lack Gpr41 so they were unable to respond to the bacteria.

In both cases, the mice weighed less and had a leaner build than their normal counterparts even though they all ate the same amount.

The researchers also found that in mice without Gpr41, the intestines passed food more quickly. They hypothesized that one action of Gpr41 is to slow down the motion that propels food forward, so that more nutrients can be absorbed. Thus, if the receptor cannot be activated, food is expelled more quickly, and the animal gets less energy from it.

The researchers suggest that the Gpr41 receptor may be a likely target for drugs that can fight a certain kind of obesity by slowing down the absorption of energy from the gut.

deCoODE Genetics launched deCODE BreastCancer™, a new non-invasive tool for assessing risk of the common forms of breast cancer.

The deCODE BreastCancer™ test measures seven widely replicated single-letter variations (SNPs) in the human genome that deCODE and others have linked to risk of breast cancer. These SNPs contribute to the incidence of an estimated 60 percent of all breast cancers. The test integrates data from discovery and replication studies published in major peer-reviewed journals and involving nearly 100,000 breast cancer patients and healthy volunteers from many populations, principally of European descent. deCODE and other organizations are conducting replication studies to validate these markers in populations of other continental ancestries.

Note that this test measure genetic predisposition to breast cancer. It can identify the roughly 5 percent of women who are at a greater than 20 percent lifetime risk of the common forms of breast cancer (about twice the average risk in the general population), and the 1 percent of women whose lifetime risk is roughly 36 percent (about three-times average). These cases are different from the common forms of breast cancer comprising 95 percent of all breast cancers that result from the interplay of genetic as well as environmental and lifestyle factors.

Researchers have developed a new prenatal blood test that accurately detected Down syndrome and two other serious chromosomal defects in a small study of 18 pregnant women. The test scan fetal DNA present in the mother's blood to detect chromosomal anomalies, particularly with chromosomes 21, 18, and 13, which are associated with severe birth defects.

Employing a "shotgun sequencing" strategy using a high-throughput gene sequencing technology to identify millions of unique sequence "tags" in the fetal DNA, the scientists were able to correctly identify the 12 women who carried aneuploid fetuses and the six whose pregnancies were normal. Their results matched those of amniocentesis or CVS test that were done on the women.

The research group is now planning a larger scale study. The cost of the test is estimated to be about $300, with DNA sequencing accounting for the majority of the overall cost.

Source

Researchers have found in a pilot study that Chlorella crude extract (CCE) may help in the treatment of short bowel syndrome, a condition characterized by diarrhea, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, malabsorption, and progressive malnutrition related to a wide resection of the small intestine.

In an article published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology, CCE has been shown to have beneficial effects on the intestinal adaptation of rats which had undergone short bowel syndrome.

In rats receiving CCE, villus lengthening, crypt depth, mucosal DNA and protein levels, intestinal proliferation, and serum citrulline, protein and albumin levels were found to be significantly higher than those in control group. Apoptosis in CCE treated rats was significantly reduced when compared to EN group rats.

The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)will launch a new journal focusing on the interface between molecular biology and clinical research. The EMBO Molecular Medicine journal, to be released starting 2009, will publish studies on molecular insights into cellular and systemic processes underlying defined human diseases as well as potential clinical applications for diagnosis, prevention and therapy.

"EMBO Molecular Medicine offers a unique opportunity to broadly distribute new findings in biomedical research and to strengthen links between clinicians and molecular biologists," said Hermann Bujard, EMBO Director. "We hope that published papers will lead to advances that will improve the detection, diagnosis and clinical management of diseases." Submissions are invited from research groups at universities, independent research laboratories and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide.

Research groups from universities, independent research institutions and pharma/biotech companies are invited to submit their manuscripts for publication. The journal offers free access to all content for the first two years of publication.