Austin, TX, USA.A team of scientists have confirmed a corelation between the beginning of DNA replication with RNA transcription, the process by which the information in DNA is transferred to RNA.

This is the first time that mathematical models created from data obtained by DNA microarrays (cf. molecular biology and medicine) can be used to correctly predict previously unknown cellular mechanisms. A DNA microarray is a glass slide that holds thousands of specific DNA sequences acting as probes for different genes, making it possible to record the activity of thousands of genes at once.

Making sense of the massive amount of data generated by DNA microarrays is a major challenge. "Thanks to the Human Genome Project, biology and medicine today may be at a point similar to where physics was after the advent of the telescope," said Orly Alter, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at The University of Texas at Austin.

Boston, MA, USA. Introduction. Genome Medicine is the clinical use of genomic diagnostics and therapeutics, bringing with it a wide range of challenging scientific, medical, ethical, social, and legal questions. Advancements in the field have accelerated in recent years, bringing new technologies and findings that have an impact on the understanding and management of human health and disease.

David G Nathan and Stuart Orkin are with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston, MA USA) and provide regular commentary that provide a perspective on the events and developments in the field.

Ann Arbor, MI, USA. Democrats and Republicans disagree on the recognition and management of medical conditions, with each group placing a different emphasis on the existence and/or importance of physical causes and the influence of societal factors. But what is the irreducible basis for agreement and what factors set them apart?

Increasing the public's awareness of social factors that impact health may not uniformly increase public support for action because some groups simply do not believe the types of information given are credible, according to the authors of a new study.

The results show that when given information on the genetic factors that cause a health condition (e.g., diabetes), both parties equally supported public health policies designed for prevention. But Republicans were less supportive of such policies after reading news reports that people with diabetes got their illness because of social or economic factors in which they live, such as lack of neighborhood grocery stores or safe places to exercise. It was different for Democrats: knowledge of the social factors actually increased their support.

Southampton, UK. New research demonstrates that it is possible for communication from person to person through the power of thought alone — with the help of electrodes, a computer and Internet connection.

A working Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) can capture brain signals and translate them into commands that allow humans to directly control (by thinking) devices such as computers, robots, rehabilitation technology and virtual reality environments. A recent experiment expands the limits of this known technology and shows the feasibility of more sophisticated brain-to-brain (B2B) communication.

The work has implications for developing new ways to continuously monitor brain activity from a very early stage of human development by mapping the patterns of electrical activity (generated by neurons and cells) to overt behavior. The findings have already influenced advanced designs for assisted living devices, such as wheelchairs.

Toronto, ONT, Canada. The anticipated onset of a second wave of the H1N1 influenza pandemic could present difficult medical ethics issues best considered in advance. In support, the Joint Centre for Bioethics (JCB) at the University of Toronto conducts the Canadian Program of Research on Ethics in a Pandemic (CanPREP). The CanPREP released a series of nine papers for public discussion. Topics include the duty of health care workers to work during a serious flu pandemic; government restrictions on individual freedoms and privacy and their responsibilities administering vaccination programs; how to allocate limited medical resources; and the obligation of rich countries to share with the less fortunate.

"While we hope there will not be a major second wave of the H1N1 flu, there is limited cause for optimism and we could well see the pandemic's full onset late this year or early next when the traditional flu season begins," says JCB Director Ross Upshur. "Now is the time to think through the serious ethical challenges societies may confront, not in the midst of crisis with line-ups at hospital doors. These issues and concerns, though drawn largely from a Canadian point of view, have relevance to countries everywhere."