News Briefs, September 1996

Edited by Joe Olivares

	S OUTH AFRICA GEARS UP FOR ANTI-POLIO FIGHT South African President Nelson Mandela launched a World Health Organization(WHO) project to rid Africa of polio by the year 2000. The 29 participating countries aim to vaccinate 80 million children over the next 18 months. Mandela will head a WHO anti-polio committee.
	N EW ADVANCES IN OIL SPILL CLEAN-UP METHODS Researchers say a new technology called electrokinetic soil processing could help nature clean soil devastated by oil spills. Electrokinetic soil processing works by applying an electric field to contaminated soil to enhance the delivery of injected nutrients that aid the natural biological organisms in breaking down the hydrocarbons that make up the oil's molecular structure.
	S ECOND NICOTINE PATCH READY FOR PUBLIC USE The Food and Drug Administration(FDA) has approved a second nicotine patch for public use obtainable without a doctor's prescription. NicoDerm skin patches, marketed by SmithKline Beecham, have been on the market since 1991. Distributors will also include an audio tape with tips on how to stop smoking.
	I NSOMNIA A WORLD WIDE EPIDEMIC? Researchers say more than one-quarter of the world's population appears to have or suffer from some form of insomnia. The study was based on the observation of 26,000 primary care patients in 15 countries representing all six United Nations regions. The study, published in the journal Sleep, found 27 percent had trouble falling or staying asleep.
	N EW LINK DISCOVERED IN CANCER CELLS AND ORGAN TRANSPLANT DRUGS In the Journal of Biological Chemistry researchers at Duke University say they have found a link between drugs that can stop organ transplant rejection and cancer cells. The same drugs that stop organ transplant rejection can also partially reverse drug resistance in some cancer cells. Such resistance to chemotherapy drugs is a major cause of death among cancer patients.
	C ANADIAN SCIENTISTS WORK TO CREATE SYNTHETIC BONE Three Toronto scientists are working on a synthetic bone substitute they hope will help in treating people with severe bone-loss problems. The synthetic bone is made from biodegradable calcium polyphosphate powders processed to form an absorbent product that can stimulate bone growth.
	S CIENTISTS MAY HAVE FOUND CHEAP CLEAN WAY TO PRODUCE HYDROGEN FROM SUGAR Teams of British and American scientists claim to have created molecular hydrogen from simple glucose with the use of enzymes created by extremophilic organisms. Extremophilic organisms are bacteria that live under extreme environmental conditions. The first type of bacteria used in the experiment exists at 140 degrees Fahrenheit while the other at 212 degrees, both were found near hot sea-floor vents. Glucose itself is a basic component of plants and grass and a relatively cheap substance. "What we have done is taken glucose and we have oxidized it with an enzyme," biochemist Michael Danson said. " It produced molecular hydrogen." This discovery comes at a time where hydrogen is being considered as the fuel source to replace fossil fuels and atomic energy. " We are certainly aiming to generate hydrogen as a fuel for vehicles in the 21st century, " American researcher Jonathan Woodward said,"Rather than you sort of shovel grass clippings into the tank, you would more realistically have a station to fill vehicles...But if you could do that, it would be very nice because sometimes you can look long and hard for a place to stick your grass clippings."
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