Researchers have identified 25 genes regulating lifespan in two organisms separated by about 1.5 billion years in evolutionary change. At least 15 of those genes have very similar versions in humans, suggesting that scientists may be able to target those genes to help slow down the aging process and treat age-related conditions.

The two organisms used in this study, the single-celled budding yeast and the roundworm C. elegans, are commonly used models for aging research. Finding genes that are conserved between the two organisms is significant, researchers say, because the two species are so far apart on the evolutionary scale -- even farther apart than the tiny worms and humans. That, combined with the presence of similar human genes, is an indication that these genes could regulate human longevity as well.

PARIS, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

- Further Profit Growth

- Sales up 16% - Profit Before R&D up 19%

- Net Profit (Group Share) up 12%

- Acceleration of R&D Expenditure

The Board of Directors, meeting on 11 March 2008 under the chairmanship of Albert Saporta, approved the 2007 consolidated financial statements:

HOUSTON, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

Water Standard Company (WSC) today announced that it has received commitments of up to US$250 million in equity to develop its Seawater Desalination Vessels, whose environmentally focused technology can help ease the world's growing water crisis and bring needed water to disaster-stricken areas.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080312/LAW064LOGO )

This pledge of equity, believed to be the largest initial funding of a startup in the water industry, is unprecedented in the desalination sector. It gives WSC the capability to bring proven desalination processes -- which can produce up to 300,000 cubic meters of water per day on the ocean-going Seawater Desalination Vessels -- to a worldwide market.

Grammar is a complex human ability yet by the age of three most children can make grammatically correct sentences. Kids with a specific language impairment(SLI), however, continue to make grammatical errors, sometimes even into adulthood. As teenagers they might make errors that other children rarely make after age five; for example, when asking a question they might say “Who Joe see someone?” rather than “Who did Joe see?”.

SLI affects about seven percent of children and is a major cause of children not reaching their educational potential but it's never been clear if these children struggle to process language or just grammar.

Researchers at University College London may have some answers. They have discovered that a system in the brain for processing grammar is impaired in some children with SLI but that these children compensate with a different brain area.

CORVALLIS, Oregon, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

MyStrands, a leading developer of social recommendation technologies, today announced the Strands US$100,000 Call for Recommender Startups. The Call seeks to identify the best early-stage start-up or project in the area of recommendation technologies. The Winner will be offered an investment of US$100,000 from Strands, Inc., the parent company of MyStrands.

"More than anything, the future of the recommender industry is a business that will continue to grow," said Francisco J. Martin, chief executive officer of MyStrands. "We are looking to assist other entrepreneurs in the recommendation field, as we wish we had been assisted in our earlier years."

WASHINGTON, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

- This World Water Day - March 22 - Innovative 'Clean Water' Non-Profit, PlayPumps International Recognizes 5 'Heroes' Including Coke Africa, Save the Children & One Water

In recognition of World Water Day - a day designated by the United Nations as a reminder of the escalating global water crisis - PlayPumps International honors five individuals and organizations that have been instrumental 'heroes' in the effort to bring clean drinking water to some of the more than 1.1 billion people who lack it.

LONDON, March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- The Road Haulage Association welcomes today's announcement by the Chancellor that the 2 pence per litre fuel duty increase is to be deferred until October 2008.

"Yes of course we welcome today's news," said RHA Chief Executive Roger King. "It is encouraging to know that we have a Chancellor who has listened to what we have to say. However, this deferment is essentially a short term fix. Ours is an industry that is now in desperate need of a long term solution, not just a deferment of a fuel duty increase in October 2008 and another proposed 1.84 pence per litre in April 2009.

"The price of fuel continues to rise on what seems to be a daily basis and the costs for the UK haulage industry rise in line with each increase.

There are ten key questions we have to answer this century, says a new report by the National Research Council. The questions represent where earth science stands, how it arrived at this point, and where it may be headed.

"With all the advancements over the last 20 years, we can now get a better picture of Earth by looking at it from micro- to macro-perspectives, such as discerning individual atoms in minerals or watching continents drift and mountains grow," said Donald J. DePaolo, professor of geochemistry at the University of California at Berkeley and chair of the committee that wrote the report. "To keep the field moving forward, we have to look to the past and ask deeper fundamental questions, about the origins of the Earth and life, the structure and dynamics of planets, and the connections between life and climate, for example."

MILPITAS, California, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

JDSU today announced that its service assurance test solutions have been selected by Deutsche Telekom to support delivery of its IPTV service.

JDSU's NetComplete service assurance system and associated IP test probes will be deployed in Deutsche Telekom's network. The NetComplete solution also includes software that enables monitoring of service quality from central network operations centers, increasing efficiency and reducing the need to deploy technicians to the field. It ensures early recognition of changes in the quality of the streaming video signals, including any decrease in signal strength, prioritizes issues based on alarm levels, identifies the cause of service quality problems and provides reporting tools.

PHILADELPHIA and LONDON, March 12 /PRNewswire/ --

- Osaka's Shizuo Akira Ranks Among The Hottest for Fourth Year; Once Again, United States Accounts for More Than Half of the Top Researchers

Thomson Scientific today announced the results of its annual roundup of the "hottest" researchers and research papers. In the March/April issue of Science Watch (www.sciencewatch.com), Thomson Scientific identifies the top 10 authors who fielded the highest number of Hot Papers in 2006-2007. The annual Science Watch roundup also lists the scientific reports published during 2007 (aside from reviews) that were most cited by year's end.