Scientists map human odours for diagnostics, crime prevention

October 12th, 2009 BHOPAL - Two senior scientists of the Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE) in Gwalior, who allegedly tried to kill their junior colleague in a human sacrifice bid, will be interrogated as soon they return from leave, police said Monday. "We can't say anything right now.

October 11th, 2009 BHOPAL - A case has been slapped against two senior scientists of the Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE), Gwalior, who were accused of attempting to use their junior colleague as a human sacrifice, police said Sunday. Shradha Sharma, wife of Sushil Kumar, a junior scientist at the DRDE, in her complaint to the police Saturday night accused two senior scientists at the DRDE of being involved in witchcraft and attempting to make a human sacrifice of her husband.

September 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The central government in close coordination with states has intensified measures against human trafficking and crime against women, Minister of State for Home Ajay Maken said Saturday. The home ministry along with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), would be organising a workshop for training of trainers of all stakeholders against human trafficking by the end of this year, he said in a statement.

September 6th, 2009 LONDON -Ever wondered why some people are bitten less than others by mosquitoes and midges? Well, the answer is: their sweet-smelling sweat. In a new study, boffins have discovered key differences in the body odours produced by people who are more prone to insect bites compared to those who seem resistant.

August 27th, 2009 LONDON - In a lab study on fruit flies, entomologists led by an Indian origin scientist at the University of California, Riverside, have discovered a novel class of compounds that could help in developing inexpensive and safe mosquito repellents for combating West Nile virus and other deadly tropical diseases. Under stress, fruit flies emit carbon dioxide (CO2) that serves as a warning to other fruit flies that danger or predators could be nearby.

July 31st, 2009 PATNA - The Bihar government Friday admitted that there has been a marked increase in the number of women and children being smuggled from the state since the launch of its Human Trafficking Prevention Programme in 2007. Bihar Water Resources Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav told IANS that over 50 cases of human trafficking had been registered till July this year.

July 24th, 2009 LONDON - Police officials in Hertfordshire, England, are reportedly taking crime-prevention tips from 12 prolific burglars in return for not being jailed. Cops are being aided by the robbers, who are said to have committed thousands of break-ins, as part of the Choices and Consequences project, which is aimed at reducing burglaries.

July 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists in Japan have developed a faster, cheaper and better DNA test for criminal investigations, diagnostics and other applications, according to the latest research. They reported a superior version of the fabled polymerase chain reaction (PCR) a DNA test, that works by amplifying "previously undetectable traces of DNA almost like photo-copiers produce copies of documents," noted Naohiro Noda and colleagues.

June 19th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A single drop of blood could soon be able to identify various blood related metabolites-such as sugars, fatty acids, amino acids and other organic substances-from plant or animal tissue samples. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena and their colleagues from the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague have developed a new method to quickly and reliably detect metabolites from only a drop of blood.

May 25th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Shedding new light on how humans choose their partners, a Brazilian scientist has revealed that people have an inherent tendency to get attracted towards genetically opposite individuals. Professor Maria da Graca Bicalho, head of the Immunogenetics and Histocompatibility Laboratory at the University of Parana, has said that people with diverse major histocompatibility complexes (MHCs) were more likely to choose each other as mates than those whose MHCs were similar.

May 13th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The World Health Organization is investigating an Australian researcher's claim that the swine flu virus circling the globe may have been created as a result of human error. According to Bloomberg News, Adrian Gibbs, 75, said that he intends to publish a report suggesting the new strain may have accidentally evolved in eggs that scientists use to grow viruses and drugmakers use to make vaccines.

May 12th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists from University of Florida have shed light on how small pox affects immune system. The research team have come across a particular interaction between the proteins produced by smallpox virus in concert with human proteins that disables one of the body's first responders to injury - inflammation.

April 7th, 2009 WASHINGTON - There is no fooling the female nose when it comes to sniffing out vital information about you. Scientists say women are more attuned to get biologically relevant information in sweat that may guide them in choosing a mate.

March 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have discovered that the elephant shark, a primitive deep-sea fish that belongs to the oldest living family of jawed vertebrates, can see color much like humans can. This discovery may enhance scientists' understanding of how color vision evolved in early vertebrates over the last 450 million years of evolution.

March 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - British singer Sir Elton John is set to speak at an upcoming convention of international scientists. John, 61, will be addressing 20,000 people at the Biotechnology Industry Organisation's annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia, in May this year.