Scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and colleagues have discovered that a single monoclonal antibody--a protein that attacks viruses--isolated from a human Ebola virus disease survivor protected non-human primates when given as late as five days after lethal Ebola infection. The antibody can now advance to testing in humans as a potential treatment for Ebola virus disease. There are currently no licensed treatments for Ebola infection, which caused more than 11,000 deaths in the 2014-2015 outbreak in West Africa. The findings are described in two articles to be published online by Science on February 25.

In the 21st century science is growing more technical and complex, as we gaze further and further while standing on the shoulders of many generations of giants. At the same time the public has a hard time understanding research and its relevance to society.

A study published online ahead of print in the journal Medical Care shows that over a recent 10-year period, the rate of metastatic colorectal cancer patients older than age 75 receiving three or more treatments increased from 2 percent to 53 percent. During this period, 1-year treatment cost increased 32 percent to reach an estimated $2.2 billion annually. However, median survival for these patients increased by only one month.

Chimpanzees have an ancient common ancestor - or genetic 'Adam' - that lived over one million years ago, according to a new paper paper in the journal Genome Research.  

The research team led by Professor Mark Jobling from the University of Leicester's Department of Genetics determined the DNA sequences of a large part of the Y chromosome, passed exclusively from fathers to sons, in a set of chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas and orangutans. The study also looked at mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), passed from mothers to offspring, in the same set of animals, which allowed the construction of genealogical trees that could be compared between species and subspecies - and helped the researchers to discover that the genetic 'Adam' for chimpanzees lived so far back.

A new report describes how researchers analyzed a major 2011 Texas wildfire using a scientifically based post-fire data collection approach, a system they believe will lead to improved defensive measures and strategies for significantly reducing structural damage and property loss.

ITHACA, N.Y. - Just as the single-crystal silicon wafer forever changed the nature of communication 60 years ago, a group of Cornell researchers is hoping its work with quantum dot solids - crystals made out of crystals - can help usher in a new era in electronics.

The team, led by Tobias Hanrath, associate professor in the Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and graduate student Kevin Whitham, has fashioned two-dimensional superstructures out of single-crystal building blocks. Through a pair of chemical processes, the lead-selenium nanocrystals are synthesized into larger crystals, then fused together to form atomically coherent square superlattices.

Serious burn victims are immunocompromised and may be missing skin on parts of their body, and this makes them highly vulnerable to bacteria. Thanks to progress in intensive care, they are decreasingly likely to die from burn trauma. Death is more commonly the result of infections that can occur several months after being hospitalized. The bandages used to treat burns actually represent a real breeding ground for microbes.

(Vienna, Feb. 23, 2016) One in four cases of colorectal cancer (CRC) detected in a guiac faecal occult blood testing (gFOBT) programme are diagnosed within two years of a negative screening result, a study in the UEG Journal (1) has found, suggesting that gFOBT should be replaced by more sensitive screening methods to improve detection rates.

CRC is the most common type of digestive cancer in Europe (2) and annual incidence is predicted to rise by 12% by 2020 (3).

Archaeological and genetic analysis may indicate that three skeletons buried in medieval graves in France may have been Muslim, according to a study published February 24, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Yves Gleize from the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) and University of Bordeaux, France, Fanny Mendisco from University of Bordeaux, France, and colleagues.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The human brain has a remarkable defense system that filters bacteria and chemicals. For brain tumor patients, the barrier works almost too well by blocking most chemotherapy drugs.

Now, a team led by a University of Florida Health researcher has found that a laser system already used to kill brain tumors has another benefit: It opens a temporary "window" in the blood-brain barrier that enables crucial chemotherapy drugs to pass into the brain for up to six weeks. The findings are published today (Feb. 24) in the journal PLOS ONE.