BBC Medical Science — Scientists say they have taken a big step towards blocking a chemical vital to the growth of many cancers. They have unpicked the structure of telomerase, an enzyme which, when active, helps keep cells in an “immortal” state. The chemical is at work in more than nine out of ten types of tumour.

Researchers from Philadelphia’s Wistar Institute, writing in the journal Nature, say their efforts could lead to drugs which switch it off. All cells in the body have a natural clock – the telomeres – which shorten every time the cell divides. After a fixed number of divisions in most cells, the telomeres are reduced to a certain length, and the cell cannot continue dividing. This change is responsible for changes within the ageing body, as cell division slows down.

Some cells, such as stem cells within the embryo, use the chemical telomerase to maintain telomere length. Many tumours have hijacked the telomerase system to fuel their uninhibited growth.

The Wistar team has found a new way to map the structure of the most active part of the chemical. Dr Emmanuel Skordalakes said that this detailed picture would help provide molecular targets for drugs. “Telomerase is an ideal target for chemotherapy because it is active in almost all human tumours, but inactive in most normal cells. That means that a drug that deactivates telomerase would likely work against all cancers, with few side effects.”

Professor Rob Newbold, from Brunel University in Uxbridge, said it was a “very important” achievement. (09/01/08)
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The Telegraph / NE – The Dutch intelligence service, the AIVD, has called off an operation aimed at infiltrating and sabotaging Iran’s weapons industry due to an assessment that a US attack on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program is imminent, according to a report in the country’s  De Telegraaf newspaper on Friday.

The report claimed that the Dutch operation had been “extremely successful,” and had been stopped because the US military was planning to hit targets that were “connected with the Dutch espionage action.”

The impending air-strike on Iran was to be carried out by unmanned aircraft “within weeks,” the report claimed, quoting “well placed” sources.

According to the report, information gleaned from the AIVD’s operation in Iran has provided several of the targets that are to be attacked in the strike, including “parts for missiles and launching equipment.”

“Information from the AIVD operation has been shared in recent years with the CIA,” the report said. (09/01/08)
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There is no single solution to the energy crisis. There are many partial solutions. Believe it or not, you may already have much of what you need to
save money at the gas pump. And you could reduce your carbon dioxide
emissions at the same time.

It’s as easy as subtly changing your driving habits and adjusting your maintenance techniques.

Today’s autos are about more than getting you safely from point A to point B. They’re computers on wheels – and what’s known as “EcoDriving” provides easy tips for getting the most mileage out of
your vehicle. And because burning gasoline produces carbon dioxide,
saving fuel helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions – which helps address
climate change. (09/01/08)
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