Washington, Apr 30 : In a novel study, researchers at Columbia University Medical Centre have identified a trio of molecules that are responsible for killing brain cells in Parkinson’s patients.

They have showed that three molecules – the neurotransmitter dopamine, a calcium channel, and a protein called alpha-synuclein – act together to kill the neurons.

The symptoms of Parkinson''s – including uncontrollable tremors and difficulty in moving arms and legs – are blamed on the loss of neurons from the substantia nigra region of the brain.

Washington, Apr 30 : School-based drug education programmes can significantly curb risky behaviour and drug abuse in teenagers, suggests a new study.

The researchers found that young adults who had been exposed to a popular drug abuse prevention program as adolescents were less likely to engage in risky sexual behavior five to seven years later.

Washington, Apr 30 : How the brain gives meaning to letters on a page has been a mystery for scientists. Now, a new study has tried to solve the puzzle.

Neuroscientists at Georgetown University Medical Center have found that an area known to be important for reading in the left visual cortex contains neurons that are specialized to process written words as whole word units.

Washington, April 30 : A new study examining the mechanisms underlying transmission of combined avian-human viruses has shed light on how virus outbreaks like that of the current swine flu come about.

The study, conducted by University of Maryland researchers, suggests that the ease with which a dangerous avian influenza virus can cause a human flu pandemic may be greater than previously thought.

In his study, associate Professor Daniel Perez from the University of Maryland has shown that after an avian and human-like virus combine, the virus requires relatively few mutations to spread rapidly between mammals by respiratory droplets.

London, April 30 : A new study, conducted by researchers at the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI), has found that adding the anti-viral drug telaprevir to a standard treatment for hepatitis C can shorten the duration of therapy and increase the number of patients who can be cured of their disease.

Jakarta - Indonesia, the country worst hit by bird flu, on Thursday warned its citizens against travelling to Mexico and eight other countries that have been hit by an outbreak of swine flu.

Authorities were also tightening control at all entry points to prevent the spread of swine flu to the country, said Bayu Krisnamurthi, head of Indonesia's commission dealing with bird flu.