Health research :Nanoscientists develop safer, faster way to remove pollutants from water ♦New approach to help bones heal faster and better ♦ Obesity spells problems for trauma patients

Nanoscientists develop safer, faster way to remove pollutants from water A team of researchers from the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA has found a new way to use enzymes to remove pollutants from water that is cost- and energy-efficient, able to remove multiple pollutants at once

New approach to help bones heal faster and better A new type of drug is being developed that may help bones heal faster and better. Using bone samples from people undergoing hip replacement surgery, the researchers were able to show that the drug - a protein that activates a molecular pathway called the 'Wnt' pathway - causes stem cells found within bones to divide and to turn into more bone cells The Wnt pathway is found throughout the animal kingdom - from sponges to humans - and it plays a fundamental role in animal development and disease. It is involved in controlling the growth of stem cells, which are 'master cells' that help restore tissues after injury.

Obesity spells problems for trauma patients A link between obesity and a higher risk for surgery in orthopaedic trauma patients has been uncovered by new research. In addition, researchers found that patients with obesity had longer hospital stays and greater treatment costs

Sound deprivation leads to irreversible hearing loss Sound deprivation in adult mice causes irreversible damage to the inner ear. The findings suggest that chronic conductive hearing loss, such as that caused by recurrent ear infections, leads to permanent hearing impairment if it remains untreated.