ScienceDaily: Top Health News

---

• Why do some people never forget a face?
• Scalable amounts of liver and pancreas precursor cells created using new stem cell production method
• A natural dye obtained from lichens may combat Alzheimer's disease
• Tumor-targeting compound points the way to new personalized cancer treatments
• Cell surface mutation protects against common type of malaria

Why do some people never forget a face? Posted: 02 Dec 2011 12:57 PM PST "Face recognition is an important social skill, but not all of us are equally good at it," says a cognitive psychologist. But what accounts for the difference? A new study provides the first experimental evidence that the inequality of abilities is rooted in the unique way in which the mind perceives faces.

Scalable amounts of liver and pancreas precursor cells created using new stem cell production method Posted: 02 Dec 2011 12:55 PM PST Scientists in Canada have overcome a key research hurdle to developing regenerative treatments for diabetes and liver disease with a technique to produce medically useful amounts of endoderm cells from human pluripotent stem cells. The research can be transferred to other areas of stem cell research helping scientists to navigate the route to clinical use known as the "valley of death."

A natural dye obtained from lichens may combat Alzheimer's disease Posted: 02 Dec 2011 12:55 PM PST A red dye from lichens that has been used for centuries to color fabrics and food and a related substance appear to reduce the abundance of small toxic protein aggregates in Alzheimer's disease. Further research with animal models is needed to determine whether this new approach will be useful for therapy development.

Tumor-targeting compound points the way to new personalized cancer treatments Posted: 01 Dec 2011 01:35 PM PST One major obstacle in the fight against cancer is that anticancer drugs often affect normal cells in addition to tumor cells, resulting in significant side effects. Yet research into development of less harmful treatments geared toward the targeting of specific cancer-causing mechanisms is hampered by lack of knowledge of the molecular pathways that drive cancers in individual patients.

Cell surface mutation protects against common type of malaria Posted: 01 Dec 2011 07:54 AM PST A mutation on the surface of human red blood cells provides protection against malaria caused by the parasite Plasmodium vivax, new research shows. The investigators found the change makes it harder for the parasite to lock onto the cell and gain entry.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Health News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610