Australian scientists are investigating new ways to mass-produce the active ingredients found in the herbal medicines – Echinacea, Ginseng and Gynostemma.
Extracts from these plants are commonly used to stimulate the immune system, alleviate cold and flu symptoms and boost energy levels.

“During winter many people will take herbal medicines to fight off colds and flu. There is an increasing demand for traditional sources of some popular medicinal herbs. Some of these plants grow very s

Australian scientists have developed a permanent contact lens to improve poor vision.

The synthetic lens can be surgically implanted to provide permanent, but reversible, correction of refractive error.

The CRC for Eye Research and Technology believe the new lens will enable some people to do away with the need to wear glasses.

The lens is designed to fit just under the top surface of the cornea, the clear covering at the front of the eye.

The synthetic materi

There is no evidence that MMR or single measles vaccines are associated with autism or inflammatory bowel disease, researchers announced today.

Their conclusion follows the most in-depth analysis of the scientific literature to date, and provides clear reassurance for parents and health professionals regarding the safety of MMR vaccination.

Their findings will be published in Clinical Evidence, the international source of the best available evidence for effective health care, publis

Copolymer 1, also called glatiramer acetate, is an unusual therapeutic compound, a heterogeneous mix of polypeptides containing the four amino acids Y, E, A, and K in definite ratios but with no uniform sequence. Although its mode of action remains controversial, this preparation clearly helps retard the progression of human multiple sclerosis (MS) and of the related autoimmune condition, studied in mice, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Copolymer 1 is presented on class II MHC molecu

IBM supercomputers connected via high-speed, optical-fiber network

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue University and Indiana University have succeeded in linking their IBM supercomputers in a computational grid via the universities’ high-speed optical network, creating a facility capable of performing a trillion operations per second.

The process works by breaking complex programs into small segments, which are then “distributed” across hundreds of separate processors contain

University at Buffalo scientists working with ice cores have solved a mystery surrounding sunspots and their effect on climate that has puzzled scientists since they began studying the phenomenon.

The research, published in a paper in the May 15 issue of Geophysical Research Letters, provides striking evidence that sunspots — blemishes on the sun’s surface indicating strong solar activity — do influence global climate change, but that explosive volcanic eruptions on Earth can complet