Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers and their colleagues have discovered one way in which the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wins its cat-and-mouse game with the body’s immune system.

The study, published in the March 20, 2003, issue of the journal Nature, shows that HIV-1, a common strain of the virus that causes AIDS, uses a strategy not seen before in other viruses to escape attack by antibodies, one of the immune system’s prime weapons against invading viruses and b

The human body has barriers such as skin and the lining of airways and gut that protect and separate us from the outside world. If these barriers are breached, our survival is threatened. Therefore it is critical that the cells that form these barriers have mechanisms that can instantly repair any injury.

University of Iowa researchers have discovered a surprisingly simple but effective repair system in airway barrier cells. The UI study shows that by placing a messenger molecule on one side

Research at Oxford University’s Institute of Molecular Medicine has identified a novel therapeutic regimen for the treatment of cancer that provides significant advantages over the existing methods of cancer treatment.

There are already a number of regimens available for treatment of cancer, including chemotherapy, which is commonly used to treat a number of different types of cancer. In most cases chemotherapeutic agents are given at the maximum tolerated dose (MTD), but at such doses the

Observations with the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) at the ESO Paranal Observatory (Chile) have provided the first-ever direct determination of the angular sizes of the disks of the solar-type stars Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B. As the two largest members of this triple stellar system that also includes the much smaller Proxima Centauri, they are the Sun’s nearest neighbours in space at a distance of just over 4 light-years. Together with photometric and asteroseismic observati

New research shows that a more effective method of genetic engineering could be used to eradicate or manipulate entire, wild populations of harmful species rather than simply small, managed populations, as is currently the case. The research,* to be published in Proceedings B, a learned journal produced by the Royal Society, shows in computer simulations how a single, ’selfish’ gene could be used to infect the host and eliminate ’problem’ genes, for example a gene allowing mosquit

With each new vehicle, the car industry faces a fresh battle to cut out the unwanted vibrations that cause irritating rattles and the metal fatigue that can cause parts to break, with potentially lethal consequences.

The complexity of the problems persuaded the German automobile giant BMW to team up with smaller partners to find a new way of designing new vehicles. It got together with Belgian companies LMS International, a world market leader in noise and vibration engineering, optics spec