Tag Archives: infection

Replacing Body Parts Now More Than ‘Science Fiction’

If Dr. Laura Niklason has her way, vascular surgeons will someday be able to pull human veins off a shelf, whenever they want, to save lives.

Niklason is a pioneer in the science — and art — of tissue-engineered replacement of human body components. Last year, she led a research team that successfully implanted tissue-engineered lungs, cultured in vitro, in adult rats. For short intervals of time, the engineered lungs exchanged oxygen and carbon dioxide similarly to natural lungs. (more…)

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Research Suggests HIV Causes Rapid Aging in Key Infection-fighting Cells

In the early years of the AIDS epidemic, being infected with the virus that causes the disease was considered a virtual death sentence. But with the development of antiretroviral therapy, many with HIV are now living much longer. In fact, it is estimated that by 2015, about half of all HIV-positive individuals will be older than 50.  (more…)

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Plants Play Larger Role Than Thought in Cleaning up Air Pollution

*Chemicals known as oxygenated volatile organic compounds (oVOCs) affect environment, human health*

About the image: Poplars, aspens, other trees provide extensive “ecosystem services.” Image credit: USDA

Vegetation plays an unexpectedly large role in cleansing the atmosphere, a new study finds. (more…)

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Spread of Malaria Still a Looming Problem

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—There are hundreds of millions of new cases of malaria annually, but much of what scientists believe about preventing the spread of malaria in urban settings is mistaken, a new University of Michigan study suggests.

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