Want To Kick The Bottle? Science Has Found a Way.

                Targeting a network of neurons in the brain may completely reverse alcohol dependence. We can completely reverse alcohol dependence By targeting a network of neurons. The findings built on previous studies showing that frequent alcohol use can activate specific groups of neurons. The more a person drinks, the more they reinforce activation in the neuronal “circuit”, which then drives further alcohol use and addiction. It is as if the brain carves a special path between alcohol and reward. For the new study, the researchers investigated whether there was a way to influence only the select neurons that form these circuits. In both humans and rats, these neurons make up only about five percent of the neurons in the brain’s central amygdala.

Twin Stars Hosting Giant Planets Found

                Scientists have discovered three giant planets in a binary star system composed of stellar “twins” that are also effectively siblings of our Sun. One star hosts two planets and the other hosts the third. The system represents the smallest separation binary in which both stars host planets that has ever been observed. The findings may help explain the influence that giant planets like Jupiter have over a solar system’s architecture.

DNA Sequenced in Space For First Time

                NASA has successfully conducted the first genome sequencing in space aboard the International Space Station. The ability to Sequence the DNA of living organisms in space opens a whole new world of scientific and medical possibilities. For the first time ever, DNA was successfully sequenced in microgravity as part of the Bimolecular Sequencer experiment performed by NASA astronaut Kate Rubins. With a way to sequence DNA in space, astronauts could diagnose as illness, or identify microbes growing in the ISS and determine whether or not they represent a health threat. A space based DNA sequence would be an important tool to help protect astronaut health during long duration missions on the journey to Mars.

Most Breast Cancer Patients May Not Need Chemo

                When is it safe for a woman with breast cancer to skip chemotherapy? A new study helps answer that question, based on test of gene activity in tumours. It found that nearly half of women with early stage breast cancer who would traditionally receive chemo can avoid it, with little risk of the cancer coming back or spreading in the next five years. The so called genomic test measures the activity of genes that control the growth and spread of cancer, and can identify women with a low risk of recurrence and therefore little to gain from chemo.

                More and more evidence is mounting that there is a substantial number of women with breast cancer who will not need chemotherapy to do well. The researchers estimated that their findings, would apply to 35,000 to 40,000 women a year in the United States, and 60,000 to 70,000 in Europe. They are patients with early disease who because of tumours size, cancerous lymph nodes and other factors would normally be prescribed chemo. Genomic tests, which doctors gave been using for about 10 years in some breast cancer patients, are part of a growing effort to spare women from chemo and its harsh side effects whenever it is safe to do so. But the decision to forgo a potentially lifesaving treatment is never taken lightly, and doctors have been eager for more data to make sure they are on the right path.

                The new study is one of the largest and most rigorous trials of genomic testing, and offers reassurance to doctors and patients that the technology can be trusted to help identify patients who do not need chemo. But an editorial accompanying the report said the study was not the final word, and additional research now underway would provide more clarity. Although women who skipped chemo had low recurrence rates, their rates were slightly higher than those of women who had chemo.