With increasing consumer pressure on both farmers and supermarkets to minimize the use of chemical pesticides in fruit and vegetables, a new study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) looks at why there is currently little use of biological alternatives in the UK.

The research suggests that consumer concerns about toxic residues could undermine the recommended ‘five a day’ target for the consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables. Supermarkets have responded to consumer pressure by banning some approved pesticides, but have been slow to embrace biopesticides.

Biopesticides, can play a significant role in a more sustainable food chain as chemical pesticides are withdrawn due to resistance problems or because they are no longer commercially viable, according to the research. Chemicals also endanger workers’ health and can contaminate groundwater.

Honey may reduce healing times in patients suffering mild to moderate burn wounds., according to a systematic review by Cochrane Library Researchers who concluded that honey might be useful as an alternative to traditional wound dressings in treating burns.

Honey has been used in wound treatment since ancient times. The mechanism of action is unclear. While honey may help the body remove dead tissue and provide a favourable environment for the growth of new, healthy tissue, current interest in medicinal honey focuses largely on its antibacterial effects.

New research provides support for the use of St. John’s wort extracts in treating major depression - Cochrane Systematic Review backs up previous research that showed the plant extract is effective in treating mild to moderate depressive disorders.

Extracts of the plant Hypericum perforatum, commonly known as St. John’s wort, have long been used in folk medicine to treat depression and sleep disorders. The plant produces a number of different substances that may have anti-depressive properties, but the whole extract is considered to be more effective.

Scientists at the University of Leicester, where genetic 'fingerprinting' was invented by Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys, say they are developing techniques which may one day allow police to work out someone’s surname from DNA alone.

Research by Turi King has shown that, unsurprisingly, men with the same British surname are highly likely to be genetically linked even in today's multicultural world. The results of her research have implications in the fields of forensics, genealogy, epidemiology and the history of surnames.

On Wednesday 8th October Dr King will present the key findings of her Ph.D. research in which she recruited over two and a half thousand men bearing over 500 different surnames to take part in the study. Carried out in Professor Mark Jobling’s lab, Dr Turi King’s research involved exploring this potential link between surname and Y chromosome type.

ANTONY, France, October 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Stallergenes S.A. today announced that they have entered into an exclusive agreement with Catalent for the promotion and distribution in Europe of adrenaline autoinjector, ADREFLEX(R), co-developed and co-manufactured by Catalent and The Medical House PLC.

ADREFLEX(R) consists of a syringe pre-filled with adrenaline, which will be available for adult and paediatric use (0.3 and 0.15 mg), in an autoinjector device. The Medical House has designed this totally new device to improve the safety and the ease-of-use for patients.

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 7 /PRNewswire/ -- When asked about the effect of the current financial crisis on currency markets, ACM Chief Market Analyst sounded very positive. From a trading perspective the "current crisis is actually bolstering our online trading activities" said Rosenstreich. "We are seeing a significant migration of investors, leaving the stock market and investing in the most appealing market of the moment; the Foreign Exchange Market.

Unlike any structured product, the FX spot market contains no hidden risk. Trading on the spot market implies buying or selling the so called "underlying" asset itself.

BRUSSELS, October 7 /PRNewswire/ -- A key part of the EU's climate change policy - the Emission Trading System (ETS) - could destroy the economic viability of Europe's aluminium industry. The European Parliament's Environment Committee recognised the impact of CO2 costs passed into electricity prices (indirect effects) as one of the criteria for carbon leakage, as it has a large negative effect on the competitiveness of energy intensive industries. Therefore, it is inexplicable that the Committee failed to adopt provisions for a legal mechanism to address this problem.

SAO PAULO, Brazil, October 7 /PRNewswire/ --

- There are more than 1.5 million open source Insigne OS users on PCs manufactured by SEMP Toshiba, Kelow, Kennex, Mirax and Qbex, and the expectation is to reach 2 million in 2008

When Brazil announced its Digital Inclusion program called "Computador para Todos" (Computer for Everyone) in November 2005, the goal was to offer the population computers with a free operating system and computer programs for Internet access, sending/receiving e-mails, and listening and recording music, among others.

Insigne, the first company to offer a free OS for home desktops since 2002, is the key player in "Computador para Todos" with the Insigne OS, which has contributed to the creation of the "Popular PC" in Brazil.

LONDON, October 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Online chat forums are fast becoming the coffee morning equivalent for UK mums, and the Bounty parenting club is predicting that its new online TV channel, http://www.bounty.tv will become the ante-natal class equivalent for time-poor, information - and support - hungry mums.

Bounty TV's parenting programmes, available on-demand at http://www.bounty.tv, offer a mix of expert advice, practical/instructional help, commentary by real-life mums and dads, as well as reality TV clips following couples as they experience parenthood.