UPI NewsTrack Health and Science News - November 29, 2007
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Thu, 29 Nov 2007 22:50:03 GMT |
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WASHINGTON, Nov. 29
Venusian lightning activity is confirmed
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 29 A U.S. scientist said the European Space Agency's Venus Express spacecraft has confirmed the presence of lightning on Venus.
"In addition to all the pressure and heat, we can confirm there is lightning on Venus -- maybe even more activity than there is here on Earth," said Christopher Russell of UCLA, a National Aeronautics and Space Administration-sponsored scientist on the ESA's Venus Express project.
Scientists know of only three other planetary bodies in the universe that generate lightning -- Earth, Jupiter and Saturn.
The discovery of lightning on Venus is important, scientists noted, since such electrical discharges can alter the chemistry of an atmosphere. Russell said the Venusian lightning is unique in that it's the only lightning known not to be associated with water clouds. Instead, on Venus, the lightning is associated with clouds of sulfuric acid.
The confirming measurements of the electrical discharges were made with data obtained by the Venus Express magnetometer. The measurements were taken once a day for 2 minutes, during a period when the spacecraft was closest to Venus. A Venusian day is about 117 Earth days long.
The discovery is detailed in the journal Nature.
Single-port laparoscopic surgery performed
CLEVELAND, Nov. 29 A U.S. surgeon has performed the world's first single-port laparoscopic surgeries, including kidney removal and four other procedures.
Cleveland Clinic urological surgeon Dr. Mihir Desai, head of the clinic's endourology department, performed a laparoscopic nephrectomy (complete kidney removal), bilateral pyeloplasty (uretero-pelvic junction repair), ileal ureter replacement, and psoas hitch uretero- neocystostomy (for ureteral obstruction).
Desai performed each ground-breaking surgery by inserting all necessary instruments through a single access port inserted into the patients' navels. No other incisions were created.
Cleveland Clinic officials said the procedures were enabled by the "r-Port," a surgical access device developed by Advanced Surgical Concepts Ltd. of Ireland.
"Trans-umbilical single-port, scar-free surgery is the next major advance in laparoscopic surgery," said Desai. "During traditional laparoscopy, 3-6 small abdominal incisions are made to insert a camera and instruments to perform surgical procedures.
"Our novel single-port approach, when performed trans-umbilically, leaves no visible skin scar, since the belly-button hides the incision site. Post-operative pain appears to be reduced, compared to traditional open or laparoscopic surgery," he added.
The surgeries are to be detailed in the British Journal of Urology International and will be the first peer-reviewed publication of single-port laparoscopy in the field of urology.
Australia marks launch of first satellite
ADELAIDE, Australia, Nov. 29 Australia celebrated the 40th anniversary Thursday of the launching of its first satellite.
Wresat -- named after the former Weapons Research Establishment -- was launched from Woomera in South Australia Nov. 29, 1967, as a joint venture of the WRE and the University of Adelaide.
"It was an incredible feat of organization," said the head of the university's physics department, John Carver, who was 9 years old at the time. "The satellite was launched using a modified Redstone rocket donated by the Americans, but there was only an 11-month window for the Australian team to use the rocket before the Americans had to leave.
"This gave the
team 11 months to plan, design, build, test and execute the launch of the satellite."
The 99-pound, 5-foot-long battery-operated satellite had only enough power to send data during its first 73 orbits. It re-entered the atmosphere Jan. 10, 1968, over the Atlantic and was incinerated.
The successful launch of Wresat meant Australia became the fourth nation to launch its own satellite into space from its own territory. Carver called that a significant achievement in itself, and a landmark in Australian science.
Study: Blood stem cells fight invaders
BOSTON, Nov. 29 U.S. scientists discovered that blood stem cells are capable of identifying and attacking invading pathogens as part of the innate immune response.
The research, led by Harvard Medical School Professor Ulrich von Andrian, overturns the long-held theory that blood stem cells reside primarily in the bone marrow and, for the most part, remain passive.
The new findings suggest blood stem cells' biological role is far more versatile and dynamic. Von Andrian and his colleagues found hematopoietic stem cells can travel from bone marrow, through the blood system and enter visceral organs where they perform "reconnaissance" in search of pathogenic invaders.
Upon encountering an invader they immediately synthesize a defense, divide and mature, producing new immune system cells such as dendritic cells and other leukocytes, the researchers said.
"This process changes the way we look at blood stem cells," said von Andrian. "That stem cells are actually a part of the immune system, rather than just giving rise to it, is a very provocative idea. This opens up a number of new avenues for us to explore ways that our bodies fight pathogens."
The research appears in the Nov. 30 issue of the journal Cell.
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