Washington, Mar 13 : Taking a major step towards AIDS research, Rutgers scientists have almost created an HIV vaccine that shows promise in stopping an unusually diverse set of HIV isolates or varieties.

AIDS researchers Gail Ferstandig Arnold and Eddy Arnold and their colleagues took a piece of HIV that is involved with helping the virus enter cells, put it on the surface of a common cold virus, and then immunized animals with it.

Washington, Mar 13 : Certain gene variations in some women may protect them against cervical cancer, according to scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

The researchers say that if the presence or absence of such genetic variants is known, doctors can easily tailor treatment strategies.

Virtually all cases of cervical cancer are caused by persistent infections from several of the human papillomaviruses (HPV) - a family of viruses that also cause common skin warts and genital warts.

Washington, Mar 13 : Giving up smoking before surgery can almost half the risk of post-op complications, says a new study.

"Smokers are prone to developing a number of complications after surgery, ranging from impaired wound and bone healing to life-threatening pulmonary and cardiovascular problems" said Dr Omid Sadr Azodi from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.

"This is why it is so important to find feasible, financially attractive and effective ways to help patients stop smoking before surgery," the expert added.

During the study, the researchers randomly assigned 117 patients who were due to undergo general or orthopaedic surgery to an intervention and control group.

Washington, Mar 13 : Researchers from University of Alberta have identified certain genes responsible for spinal disc degeneration.

Michele Crites-Battie and Tapio Videman, in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, have discovered eight genes linked to lumbar disc degeneration.

"We found more genes associated with disc degeneration than was discovered in 30 prior studies. This is very exciting," said Videman.

Washington, Mar 13: Extremely concerned by the political crisis in Pakistan, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Admiral Michael Mullen, believes that there is no probability of military coup in that country as Pervez Musharraf did in October 1999.

In an interview with PBS’s Charlie Rose, Admiral Mullen said he doesn’t believe there is a “high probability right now” of the crisis prompting Pakistan’s military to intervene.

He said his Pakistani counterpart, General Ashfaq Kayani, is “committed to a civilian government” and doesn’t want to take over as his predecessor Musharraf did in 1999.

Mullen said General Kayani is stanch supporter of democracy and does not want a military coup in the country.

Washington, March 13 : Scientists at Caltech University, US, have discovered that fruit flies have evolved a specialized population of neurons in their antennae that let them know not only when the wind is blowing, but also the direction from which it is coming.

The behavior of fruit flies in the face of a stiff breeze is remarkable in and of itself, according to David J. Anderson, the Roger W. Sperry Professor of Biology at Caltech, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator.