42 States Hit By Salmonella
from Time magazine
Federal officials have not yet identified the cause of a salmonella outbreak striking almost 400 people in 42 states, but state officials in Minnesota said they believe peanut butter may be involved. The Minnesota Department of Health said preliminary laboratory testing found salmonella bacteria in a 5-pound container of King Nut brand creamy peanut butter. More

Gene Fusions May Drive Certain Cancers
from The Washington Post
Researchers say they have discovered genes in prostate cancer cells that fuse when their chromosomes trade places with each other, an occurrence that may initiate the development of some cancers. The mutations, identified by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, appear only in cancer cells, a finding that may serve as a marker for diagnosing cancer or a target for future treatment drugs. More

Director of Disease Control Centers Resigns
from The Associated Press via The New York Times
Dr. Julie L. Gerberding has resigned as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and will be replaced on an interim basis by a deputy as of Jan. 20. Her resignation was announced in an e-mail message to employees. Gerberding, the first woman to direct the agency, led the C.D.C. through a post-Sept. 11 world of bioterrorism fears and was considered an effective communicator with legislators and the public. More

High Insulin Levels Raise Risk of Breast Cancer in Postmenopausal Women
from Science Daily
Higher-than-normal levels of insulin place postmenopausal women at increased risk of breast cancer, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University report. Their findings, published in the Jan. 7 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, suggest that interventions that target insulin and its signaling pathways may decrease breast cancer risk in these women. More

Stem Cell Discovery Could Mean Faster Healing
from CNN International
Researchers have found a way to prompt bone marrow to release a flood of certain stem cells which could help heart attack patients recover faster. The technique could also be adapted to speed up the repair of broken bones and to treat patients suffering autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis. More

Women Can Smell a Man's Intentions
from U.S. News & World Report
The twinkle in his eye, his swagger, that sexy smile — all are clear signs he's in the mood. And, at least subconsciously, a woman can also tell by the scent of his sweat, according to new research. More

Study Finds More Effective Treatment for Pneumonia Following Influenza
from Infection Control Today
Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have demonstrated a more effective treatment for bacterial pneumonia following influenza. They found that the antibiotics clindamycin and azithromycin, which kill bacteria by inhibiting their protein synthesis, are more effective than a standard first-line treatment with the "beta-lactam" antibiotic ampicillin, which causes the bacteria to lyse, or burst. The finding is important because pneumonia, rather than the influenza itself, is a principal cause of death from influenza in children and the elderly. More

Smarter Men Have More Sperm
from U.S. News & World Report
Women tend to like smart men because they're usually more successful and better providers. But here's another reason: Their sperm is better, a new study says. The smarter the men were, the more sperm they produced and the better their wee ones swam — and it didn't matter how old the men were or whether they smoked, drank or were obese. More

Tuberculosis Bacteria Co-opt Body's Defenses to Gain Foothold
from Infection Control Today
Tuberculosis bacteria can commandeer the body's defenses in the early stages of infection and redirect them for their own offensive strategies, according to results reported in the scientific journal Cell. The dense granulomas characteristic of TB were originally thought to thwart infection by walling-off newly invading tuberculosis bacteria and preventing their spread. More

CCTA Bests Traditional Risk Assessment Tools for Predicting Plaque Burden
from Health Imaging & IT
Coronary risk stratification using a risk factor only-based scheme is a weak discriminator of the overall atherosclerotic plaque burden in individual patients compared to coronary CT angiography, according to a study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology. More