A study of 40 overweight children in Edmonton has revealed they all share something in common aside from being heavy: each one of them has high levels of apoB48, a structural protein found in intestinal cholesterol.The children displayed high levels of apoB48 even as their LDL cholesterol levels, which are typically high in overweight adults, remained in the normal range. [click link for full article]

Using mathematical theory, UC Irvine scientists have shed light on one of cancer’s most troubling puzzles — how cancer cells can alter their own genetic makeup to accelerate tumor growth. The discovery shows for the first time why this change occurs, providing insight into how cancerous tumors thrive and a potential foundation for future cancer treatments. [click link for full article]

“Size Matters: The Number of Prostitutes and the Global HIV/AIDS Pandemic,” PLoS One: John Talbott of Africans Against AIDS used cross-country linear and multiple regressions based on new [click link for full article]

University of Nottingham scientists have been instrumental in helping to establish a pioneering branch of chemistry in Ethiopia.They have helped to introduce Green Chemistry, an emerging field of sustainable science that will help African nations to meet the challenges of the 21st century. [click link for full article]

The number of abortions reported in England and Wales in 2006 increased 4% from 186,400 in 2005 to 193,700 last year, according to figures released Tuesday by the United Kingdom’s Department of Health, London’s Guardian reports (Ward, Guardian, 6/20). The figures show the overall rate of abortion is 18. [click link for full article]

New versions of drugs like buffered aspirin and Vioxx could produce fewer harmful side effects thanks to research being done at Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.K-State researchers are examining how nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, damage the tissue that lines the gastrointestinal tract. James Lillich, associate professor of clinical sciences, is leading the research. [click link for full article]

The Philippine Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case challenging new rules that extend the country’s ban on advertisements for infant formula that include a prohibition on ads for children ages two and younger, the AP/Boston Globe reports. [click link for full article]

US researchers who reviewed over a dozen studies on the effect of echinacea have concluded that the popular herbal remedy reduces a person’s chance of catching a cold by 58 per cent. And they found that it also cuts the duration of a cold by an average of 1.4 days.The study is published in the July edition of The Lancet Infectious Diseases. [click link for full article]

Polish officials on Tuesday said they plan to appeal a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights that ordered the government to award damages to a Polish woman who says that in 2000 she was denied an abortion despite warnings from physicians that she could become blind if she continued the pregnancy, [click link for full article]

Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Tuesday sent a letter to acting CMS Administrator Leslie Norwalk expressing concern about a proposed reduction in Medicare payments to hospitals by 2.4% in 2008 and 2009, [click link for full article]