On 14 November ECSITE has launched BIONET (www.bionetonline.org), a European collaborative project to present for public debate controversial ethical, legal and social issues in contemporary Life Sciences.

Based on a multi-lingual website and a programme of linked events, BIONET has been developed by 8 European science centres and museums with funding from the European Commission.

The website introduces 6 current Life Science issues that raise profound ethical, legal and social dile

“In Denmark, 67 per cent of mothers of children under 16 are in full-time employment; in the Netherlands the proportion is only 11 per cent.”

New ESRC research highlights the diversity of employment patterns in the European Union. The study, specially commissioned to be presented at the ESRC’s sixth national social science conference was prepared by Richard Berthoud and Maria Iacovou, of the Essex University’s Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER). It is largely

Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic pathogen with a diverse battery of virulence factors, each of which can act alone or in concert in the development of persistent and sometimes lethal infections such as sepsis, toxic shock syndrome, food poisoning and severe skin diseases.

Staphylococcal infections begin when the organism gains access to host tissues or the adjoining blood supply through breaches in the skin. More than 20% of healthy humans are natural carriers of S. aureus, 10%-20%

Most cancer patients are not killed by their primary tumors but succumb to metastatic disease. The most common human cancers–lung, breast, and prostate–frequently spread to bone, causing suffering and morbidity through pain, fractures, and nerve compression syndromes.

Tumor cells enter bones through blood and lymphatic vessels. In order to establish bone metastases, they have to influence bone metabolism. Most breast cancers that spread to bone express high levels of parathyroid hormone r

The future of nanoelectronics looks promising. Built with nanotubes and various self-assembling molecular structures, this technology may revolutionize the electronic world by replacing the silicon transistor in approximately ten years.

Chemically synthesized nano building blocks are expected to replace semiconductor logic and memory devices and target niche applications over the next decade.

“In 20 to 50 years, we will likely see wide-ranging use of self-assembly,” says Technical I

UCSF-led scientists have identified the first “master” molecule in the cell nucleus that controls the action of hundreds of different genes at once through its action on enzymes. The broad-acting molecule affects enzymes that restructure chromosomes, exposing genes to proteins that can then trigger key gene processes, including the start of protein production and copying and repairing of genes.

The molecule’s broad effect on a number of genes may allow organisms – including humans — to