Bethesda, MD (Scicasts) – In women at high risk for breast cancer, a long-term drug treatment can cut the risk of developing the disease in half.

Sydney, Australia (Scicasts) – UK and Australian scientists have been able to show ways in which we can markedly improve drug targeting of solid tumours, using tiny ‘biosensors’ along with new advanced imaging techniques.



St. Louis, MO (Scicasts) – Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have measured a significant and potentially pivotal difference between the brains of patients with an inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease and healthy family members who do not carry a mutation for the disease.

Chicago, IL (Scicasts) – Slowdowns in the transport and delivery of nutrients, proteins and signalling molecules within nerve cells may contribute to the development of the neurodegenerative disorder ALS, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine.

Gaithersburg, MD (Scicasts) – It's not reruns of "The Jetsons", but researchers working at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new microscopy technique that uses a process similar to how an old tube television produces a picture―cathodoluminescence―to image nanoscale features.

Washington, DC (Scicasts) – Spit. Drool. Dribble. Saliva is not normally a topic of polite conversation, but it may be the key to explaining the age and sex bias exhibited by influenza and other diseases, according to a new study.

Berkeley, CA (Scicasts) – Researchers at UC Berkeley have developed an easier and more effective method for inserting genes into eye cells that could greatly expand gene therapy to help restore sight to patients with blinding diseases ranging from inherited defects like retinitis pigmentosa to degenerative illnesses of old age, such as macular degeneration.

Baltimore, MD (Scicasts) – Pyrazinamide (PZA)―a frontline tuberculosis (TB) drug―kills dormant persister bacteria and plays a critical role in shortening TB therapy. PZA is used for treating both drug susceptible and multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) but resistance to PZA occurs frequently and can compromise treatment.

Toronto, ON, Canada (Scicasts) – A University of Toronto team – including researchers from Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Institute of Biomaterials & Biomedical Engineering – has created an electronic chip that can analyze blood and other clinical samples for infectious bacteria with record-breaking speed.



Zurich, Switzerland (Scicasts) – Motivated by extraordinary requirements for neuroscience, IBM Research, EPFL, and ETH Zürich through the Swiss National Supercomputing Center CSCS, are exploring how to combine different types of memory – DRAM, which is standard for computer memory, and flash memory that is akin to USB sticks – for less expensive and optimal supercomputing performance.

La Jolla, CA (Scicasts) – Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found evidence that an emotion-related brain region called the central amygdala―whose activity promotes feelings of malaise and unhappiness―plays a major role in sustaining cocaine addiction.

San Antonio, TX (Scicasts) – A protein secreted by the chlamydia bug has a very unusual structure, according to scientists in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio.

La Jolla, CA (Scicasts) – Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified key triggers of an important cancer-blocking mechanism in cells.

Birmingham, AL (Scicasts) – An experimental treatment that combines a cell-killing radioactive particle with an antibody that homes in on cancer cells is safe in the treatment of cancers spreading through patients’ abdomens, according to data from a first-in-human study presented June 10 at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging annual meeting in Vancouver.

Daejeon, Republic of Korea (Scicasts) –  Today's technological innovation enables smartphone users to diagnose serious diseases such as diabetes or lung cancer quickly and effectively by simply breathing into a small gadget, a nanofibre breathing sensor, mounted on the phones.

Oeiras, Portugal (Scicasts) – One of the most remarkable anatomical differences among vertebrate bodies is the relative size of their neck, trunk and tail. This can be illustrated by comparing the bodies of a typical snake and of a long tailed lizard.

San Francisco, CA (Scicasts) – A new UC San Francisco-led study looks at the close link between diabetes and dementia, which can create a vicious cycle.