Forest scientists at Oregon State University have used genetic modification to successfully manipulate the growth in height of trees, showing that it’s possible to create miniature trees that look similar to normal trees – but after several years of growth may range anywhere from 50 feet tall to a few inches.

A major obstacle in the treatment of infections and other diseases of the brain is the blood-brain barrier, which prevents systemically delivered therapeutic drugs from reaching the brain. Grantees of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, have now shown that a short protein (peptide) from the rabies virus can carry a strip of therapeutic material into the brain via intravenous administration. Once delivered to the nerve cells of the brain, the strip, called a small interfering RNA (siRNA), was shown to protect mice from infection caused by the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV).

A unique nanoparticle made in a laboratory at the University of Central Florida is proving promising as a drug delivery device for treating glaucoma, an eye disease that can cause blindness and affects millions of people worldwide.

While many may be familiar with potato late blight, the plant disease responsible for widespread potato shortages, the lesser known potato wart has the potential to be as devastating to economies that depend on potato production, say plant pathologists with The American Phytopathological Society (APS).

A preliminary study suggests that a blood clot-dissolving medication that is administered to some patients following a stroke or heart attack may help to reduce the risk of amputation following severe frostbite, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.