Today, three U.S. researchers were awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Australian-American researcher Elizabeth Blackburn, Carol Greider and Jack Szostak, won the prize for their discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the role of an enzyme called telomerase in maintaining or stripping away this molecular shield.

Scientists from the Burnham Institute for Medical Research have determined that the Caspase-8 protein - a primary player in pre-programmed cell death, or apoptosis - also helps to relay signals that enable cancer cells to thrive.

Liwei Chen, MD, PhD, of the LSU Health Sciences Center, is the lead author on a paper demonstrating that weight gain and obesity are more linked to an increase in liquid calories than from solid food.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the hundreds of bacteria that colonize the human intestinal tract, usually causing no apparent harm - perhaps even being beneficial to its host. However, once the immune system of the host is weakened by an illness or surgical procedure - P. aeruginosa can cause infection, inflammation, sepsis and death.

Researchers from the Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins have discovered evidence that genetic changes occurring outside nuclear DNA may cause more than half of all cancers. Hypermethylation - the build up of chemical bonds on certain cancer-promoting genes - has been proven to turn healthy cells cancerous by disrupting the stop growth signals built into the genes.

Yale University researchers have found cause to believe that an 'angry heart' can lead to sudden death. The latest research links changes brought on by anger or other strong emotions to future cardiac arrhythmia and sudden cardiac arrests.

Reported this week at the Association for Research in Otolaryngology's annual conference in Baltimore, researchers have discovered that vitamin supplementation may be the key to preventing hearing loss.

UC San Diego researchers have published the first comprehensive paper on statins' adverse effects. The research provides evidence for reported side effects of this class of cholesterol lowering medications - including muscle and cognitive problems.

A new research study coming out of Durham University in the United Kingdom demonstrated that individuals with higher caffeine intake are more likely to report hallucinatory episodes - such as hearing and seeing things that are not really there - than those who consume caffeine in greater moderation.

Berkeley researchers have identified a new enzyme that plays a major role in controlling the breakdown of fat in mice. The study is published in the January 11 edition of the journal Nature Medicine.