Premature birth gene clue found

Identifying mothers is vital DNA differences which appear to affect the risk of giving birth early have been found by US scientists. The US National Institutes of Health study found the variants in both babies and mothers, a US conference was told. It is thought they may play a role in controlling immune responses which could theoretically trigger labour if they become too powerful. Premature birth - which accounts for 7% of UK births - is one of the biggest threats to The causes of premature birth are poorly understood, although infections and other medical complications are blamed in some cases. The study looked at 700 DNA variants in 190 genes in women who delivered early, and those who carried their baby to term. The cord blood of the babies was also tested for these variations. They narrowed the search down to a handful of gene variations found more often in the women who gave birth prematurely, and their babies. In particular, babies who carried the gene for the "Interleukin 6 receptor" were more likely to be born early. This was a good candidate gene because Interleukin 6 is produced by cells in response to infection and is involved in inflammation. High levels of Interleukin 6 in the amniotic fluid and foetal blood have been linked to the onset of premature labour. Baby threat Dr Roberto Romero, who led the study, said: "Our hypothesis is that the mother and/or the foetus signal the onset of preterm labour when the environment inside the uterus is unfavourable and threatens the survival of the maternal-foetal pair. "When there is an infection in the uterus, the onset of premature labour appears to have survival value - it would allow the mother to rid herself of infected tissue and preserve her ability to have future pregnancies." The chief executive of charity Bliss, Andy Cole, welcomed the study results. "In England alone, 54,000 babies are born prematurely each year, a third of these for no known reason," he said. "The development of a reliable test for identifying these mothers is vital in ensuring our most vulnerable babies have the best possible outcomes." baby's future health.

Hubble spots Pluto blushing in space

Despite any colour changes, Pluto remains ice-bound and inhospitable Nasa scientists say that dwarf planet Pluto, on the edge of our solar system, is becoming increasingly red. Images taken by the Hubble space telescope show that the planet is some 20% redder than it used to be. Experts say they believe this is because of changes in Pluto's surface ice as it enters a new phase of its 248-year-long orbit. The new images are said to show frozen nitrogen brightening in the north and becoming darker in the south. "These changes are most likely consequences of surface ice melting on the sunlit pole and then re-freezing on the other pole," Nasa's Space Telescope Science Institute said in a statement. But some astronomers have expressed shock at the changes. "It's a little bit of a surprise to see these changes happening so big and so fast," said Marc Buie, of the Southwest Research Institute. "This is unprecedented." In 2006, astronomers stripped Pluto of its status as a full planet, downgrading it to a dwarf planet. Further away and considerably smaller than the eight other "traditional" planets in our solar system, Pluto - at just 2,360km (1,467 miles) across - is smaller even than some moons. But the red tinge is not thought to have had a marked effect on Pluto's temperature: despite any redness, Pluto's surface temperature is incredibly cold at -233C (-382F).

Sperm sprint secrets 'may lead to new contraception'

Sperm need to delay their frantic dash until they are close to the egg A mechanism which starts sperm swimming when they get near the egg could one day lead to new forms of male contraception, scientists have said. Tiny pores on the sperm's surface allow it to change its internal pH, which in turn starts its tail movements. Researchers from the University of California in San Francisco said the study might also explain why marijuana makes men infertile. A UK expert said it could have a big effect on men's fertility. Limited resources Sperm do not start swimming from the moment of ejaculation - they have only limited resources, and to stand much chance of reaching the egg, need to delay their frantic dash until they are closer to the egg. Scientists have long known that a sperm's level of activity is governed by internal pH - how acid or alkaline its contents are - but the method which alters this at the right moment has proved elusive. In order to increase its pH and become more alkaline, the sperm needs to jettison protons, and the US scientists have found pores on its surface which allow it to do precisely that. Dr Yuriy Kirichok, who led the research, said: "The concentration of protons inside the sperm cell is 1,000 times higher than outside. "If you just open a pore, protons will go outside - we identify the molecule that lets them out." These pores, or Hv1 proton channels, as they have been termed, seem to be primed to open at precisely the right moment. They respond to a substance called anandamide, which is present in the female reproductive tract, and in particularly high levels near the egg. Cannabis theory Anandamide is an "endocannabinoid", a natural substance which can affect neurons, but it is possible that the cannabinoids found in marijuana may mimic some of its effects - which could explain why cannabis use has been associated with subfertility in men. Dr Kirichok said: "Marijuana likely activates sperm prematurely, leaving them burnt out in a matter of hours." He said that it was possible that the newly discovered channel could be exploited by a drug which hampered the proton release, leaving sperm stranded. He said: "All of these events are essential to fertilisation - you can imagine now that we know the molecule responsible we could block it to prevent activation and fertilisation as a kind of male contraception." Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in andrology at the University of Sheffield, said: "Although it seems obvious that sperm have to swim in order to find and fertilise an egg inside the female body, or in the dish during IVF, we are only just uncovering some of the molecular details that the sperm use when swimming" "Now that we know what this ion channel is, then it could lead us to either develop a novel contraceptive for men, or perhaps find a way to improve the sperm motility for men whose sperm don't swim as well as they should"

Experts stunned by swan 'divorce' at Slimbridge wetland

Staff were initially concerned when Sarindi arrived with a new mate

Experts have told of their surprise after witnessing a rare "divorce" between a pair of swans at a Gloucestershire wildfowl sanctuary.

The Bewick's swans have returned to winter at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust centre at Slimbridge - but both have brought new partners.

It is only the second time in more than 40 years that a "separation" has been recorded at the centre.

Staff have described the new couplings as "bizarre".

It is not unheard of for the birds, which usually mate for life, to find a new mate but it tends to be because one of the pair has died, they said.

During the past four decades 4,000 pairs of Bewick's swans have been studied at Slimbridge, with only one previous couple moving on to find new partners.

Normally loyal

First suspicions of the rare event were raised when male swan Sarindi turned up in the annual migration from Arctic Russia without his partner of two years Saruni and with a new female - newly-named Sarind - in tow.

The pair's arrival led conservationists to fear the worst for Saruni.

But shortly afterwards Saruni arrived at the wetlands site - also with a new mate, Surune.

And after observing them, the experts discovered the old relationship had ended and new ones had begun.

Julia Newth, wildlife health research officer at Slimbridge, said the situation had taken staff by surprise.

She said swans tended to have "real loyalties to one another" and long partnerships.

"As long as they are both still alive, they will try to stay together. If they have a change of mate it is perhaps because of mortality, not necessarily through choice," she said.

In this case, however, both swans and their new partners are now over-wintering in close proximity on the lake at Slimbridge.

Ms Newth said the old pair had not acknowledged each other with any signs of recognition or greeting - even though they are occupying the same part of the small lake.

As for why they may have split, she said: "Failure to breed could be a possible reason, as they had been together for a couple of years but had never brought back a cygnet, but it is difficult to say for sure."

Bewick's swans are the smallest and rarest of the three species found in the UK and each individual can be identified by their unique bill pattern.

Copenhagen 'fails forest people'

Deforestation is a major source of greenhouse gases

A multi-billion dollar deal tabled at the Copenhagen climate summit could lead to conflicts in forest-rich nations, a report has warned.

The study by the Rights and Resources Initiative said the funds could place "unprecedented pressure" on some areas.

Six nations offered $3.5bn as part of global plans to cut deforestation, which accounts for about 20% of all emissions from human activity.

Campaigners warn the scheme fails to consider the rights of forest people.

The money - tabled by Japan, Norway, Australia, France and the US and UK - was made available under the UN's Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (Redd) scheme.

However, delegates in the Danish capital failed to reach agreement on the mechanisms needed to monitor and manage the framework.

Decision time

"One of the things that the world has learned over the years is that Redd is far more difficult than many people imagined," said Andy White, co-ordinator of RRI, a US-based think-tank, and one of the report's lead authors.

"The forested areas of the world - by and large - have very high levels of poverty, low levels of respect for local rights, and a very low level of control among local people to shape and control their destiny.

"So the rather simplistic notion that money from the rich North can control or limit deforestation was unrealistic."

Redd was developed as a global concept that would provide developing countries with a financial incentive to preserve forests.

The Copenhagen conference was expected to finalise an international Redd finance mechanism for the post-2012 global climate change framework.

The RRI's report, The End of the Hitherlands, said that there would be "unparalleled" attention and investment in forests over the coming year.

It asked: "But who will drive the agenda and who will make the decisions?"

The authors said studies showed that there was the potential for "enormous profits", but this would lead to increased competition for forest resources between governments and investors on one hand, and local communities on the other.

Dr White told BBC News that the UN-Redd scheme still had "tremendous potential".

"It requires, from our perspective, that the governments who tabled the $3.5bn quickly get together and decide on the standards and mechanisms that they will set up," he suggested.

"This would send the necessary signals to the private sector, as well as forest-rich nations, about what is expected from them in order to comply with the policy.

"Sorting out the institution arrangements in developing nations in order to manage the forest market is a huge undertaking."

But the report said that the "unprecedented exposure and pressure" on forest regions was being met by a rise in local groups setting up co-operatives and representative bodies.

The authors added that it gave "nations and the world at large a tremendous opportunity to right historic wrongs, advance rural development and save forests".

Leukaemia cell 'breakthrough' offers treatment hope

T-ALL is a form of childhood leukaemia

Scientists believe they have made an important breakthrough in attempts to treat a form of childhood leukaemia.

In mice tests, Australian researchers found that a cell, which plays a key role in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, survives radiotherapy.

The Melbourne University team believes targeting this cell may help to stop this disease returning, but they warned much more research was needed.

UK experts said the findings may eventually lead to better care.

T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is a rare form of leukaemia which is most common in older children and adolescents, although adults can also be affected.

About a fifth of children suffer relapses after radiation therapy.

In the tests, the team found that 99% of cells in the thymus, a small organ in the upper chest which helps protect people from infections and as a result plays a key role in leukaemia, were killed by radiation.

Resistance

But the Lmo2 gene was able to recover because of its stem-cell like properties, suggesting it could be responsible for the disease, the Science journal reported.

Lead researcher Dr Matthew McCormack said: "The cellular origins of this leukaemia are not well understood.

"Our discovery that these cells are similar to normal stem cells explains why they are capable of surviving for long periods.

"It also explains why they are remarkably resistant to treatment."

The team is now planning to focus on novel treatment capable of killing these cells, but warns it is still many years away from clinical trials.

Ken Campbell, of Leukaemia Research, said: "This is an interesting piece of research that increases our understanding of this small sub-set of childhood leukaemia patients.

"However, while the research could reduce relapse rates in the future for this group, it is likely that current treatment regimes will continue to be used."

Microsoft patches Internet Explorer hole

Microsoft recommends that people upgrade to IE8

Microsoft has released a fix for a hole in Internet Explorer that was the weak link in a "sophisticated and targeted" cyber attack on Google.

Microsoft recommends that customers install the update as soon as possible or update to the latest version of the web browser for "improved security".

Microsoft normally issues patches monthly but the high-profile nature of the attacks led it to act more quickly.

The patch - MS10-002 - was released worldwide at 1000 PST (1800 GMT).

"It addresses the vulnerability related to recent attacks against Google and small subset of corporations, as well as several other vulnerabilities," the firm said.

"Once applied, customers are protected against the known attacks that have been widely publicised."

Microsoft has admitted that it has known about the vulnerability since "since early September" 2009 and had planned to patch it in February.

Trojan Horse

Google threatened to withdraw from the Chinese market following attacks on its infrastructure.

The hacks - thought to have originated in China - targeted the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists.

Following Microsoft's revelation that Explorer had been used in the attacks, the French and German governments advised their citizens to switch to a different browser until the hole had been closed.

The UK government downplayed the threat and said there was "no evidence that moving from the latest fully patched versions of Internet Explorer to other browsers will make users more secure".

However, Microsoft has taken the unusual step of patching the hole nearly three weeks ahead of its regular security update.

The new patch is available via the Microsoft Update site and will also be fed out to those who have their machines set to update automatically. All versions of Internet Explorer will receive the update.

Malicious code exploiting the weakness is known to be circulating on the web, said security experts.

If a web user were to visit a compromised site using a vulnerable browser, they could become infected with a "trojan horse", allowing a hacker to take control of the computer and potentially steal sensitive information.

Microsoft said on 18 January that the firm had only seen malicious code that targeted the older version of its browser, IE6 and that there were "very few" infected sites on the web.

But security firms had said they had seen "copycat" sites trying to exploit the vulnerability.

The bad publicity has allowed rivals such as Firefox to gain market share.

According to web analytics company StatCounter Firefox is now a close second to Internet Explorer (IE) in Europe, with 40% of the market compared to Microsoft's 45% share.

In some markets, including Germany and Austria, Firefox has overtaken IE, the firm said.

Mozilla, the foundation behind Firefox has just released the latest version (3.6) of the open-source browser.