Scientists have discovered a gene that carries a protein linked to liver cancer, paving the way for treatment targeting the pro-inflammatory protein.

Researchers from Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Centre found that laboratory mice bred without the gene lacked a protein called TREM-1 which protected them from developing liver cancer after exposure to carcinogens.

"We have long suspected that chronic inflammation is a very powerful tool in the initiation of cancer, and also in progression or metastasis of cancer," lead researcher Dr Anatolij Horuzsko, said.

"We (looked) at the molecules that control inflammatory responses to gain a better understanding of how this process works. One important triggering receptor for inflammation is TREM-1," he said. TREM-1's role in promoting inflammation is useful in cases such as battling viral or bacterial infections and maintaining normal tissue function.

The team found in abnormal conditions such as liver damage due to alcohol abuse or other irritants, production of TREM-1 goes haywire.

The team hopes the findings will be applicable to other cancers as well.

The study was published in journal Cancer Research.

Denton County officials say the continually growing number of West Nile virus cases is the reason for a county health emergency declaration and imminent aerial spraying to combat the outbreak.

Officials are waiting on responses from Denton County cities to see what municipalities want to be sprayed and which do not, so they can give the word to state officials who then can begin the next phase of fighting the virus.

During a Thursday news conference, Bing Burton, the Denton County Health Department director, said there were six new cases confirmed Thursday, bringing the total to 118, including one death. He believed that to be the highest per capita in the state.

"It's a dubious honor we're not real proud of," Burton said.

Of the county cases, 82 have been diagnosed as West Nile fever, while 36 were found to be the more serious neuro-invasive disease.

Burton said the previous calculation of 16 cases per 100,000 people would have to be adjusted to factor in the new cases.

He said officials are not taking the virus lightly.

"Many of those people will fully recover; for many it will be a life-changing event," Burton said.

He said municipalities have been doing a good job of ground spraying, and the aerial spraying would just add to those efforts.

Decisions on spraying unincorporated areas have not yet been made, Burton said.

Spraying would take place between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. from planes that would fly out of Denton Airport. Spraying could begin as early as Thursday, but it depends on how quickly cities are able to pass their decisions along to the Commissioners Court.

Pilot Point officials already have approved spraying there, while Providence Village and Shady Shores leaders have said they do not want to be sprayed.

County Judge Mary Horn said officials are hoping to have a list of cities opting in at the next news conference, scheduled for 3 p.m. Tuesday in the Commissioners Courtroom.

City officials in Denton have not yet scheduled a meeting to discuss whether to request aerial spraying.

The county will use Clarke, which is the same pesticide company Dallas County used, to oversee its aerial operation.

University of North Texas biology professor James Kennedy, who supervised the study that first detected West Nile virus in Denton County in 2002, couldn't say whether aerial spraying would have an effect on the virus this year because "the horse is already out of the barn."

Kennedy also supervises the city's monitoring program. From the first traps in May, mosquitoes were testing positive for West Nile. It wasn't until the first week of August that the city had its first week where none of the traps - the UNT crew sets out about 40 all around the city where problems are known - held West Nile-positive mosquitoes.

"In the last couple of weeks, only one site, or two, showed up positive," Kennedy said.

Denton has seen a decline in the virus in the traps just as Dallas County began its aerial spraying program, he said.

While evidence of the effectiveness of spraying could be argued either way, he says the recent decline in positive mosquitoes is more likely explained by the very hot weather during that time.

Biologists know that Culex quinquefasciatus, the mosquito species that carries West Nile in this area, doesn't do well in extreme heat. They also know the insect overwinters in culverts and under bridges, Kennedy said. Last winter was mild, with only a few frosts and freezing days, and the mosquitoes were out early.

Spraying in those areas where mosquitoes are known to overwinter could be more efficient, he said.

"We don't do that currently," Kennedy said.

Pilot Point resident Buddy Cole, who suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is less concerned about the pesticide in the spray than the spraying itself, which is atomized into droplets so small it takes more than 800 of them to line up an inch long.

"DEET for protection is OK, but breathing the spray is not," Cole said in an e-mail. "It does come in wipes or [you can] get someone to spray a cloth for you if you have breathing problems."

Jody Gonzalez, Denton County's emergency management coordinator, said he thinks the spray, which has been ruled harmless to pets and people, will indeed work well against the mosquitoes and the spread of the virus.

"Based on what the state told us previously and what we were told today, one night of aerial spray is as good as 40 spray trucks," Gonzalez said.

He said the planes would use the same pesticide that ground sprayers use, but in a more diluted form.

Horn said the county is trying to stay ahead of the virus outbreak.

"This is something to be taken serious, and I certainly do," she said. "Hopefully this proactive approach will lessen the impact to Denton County citizens."

A traditional herbal tea may hold the key to fighting breast cancer, claim scientists.

Extracts from the plant known as virgin's mantle, which is used as a medicinal tea in some countries, can kill cancerous cells in the test tube.

The plant-based tea is already drunk by women in rural Pakistan who have breast cancer, but until now its use as a treatment has been regarded as folklore.

Research by scientists at Aston University, Birmingham, and Russells Hall Hospital, Dudley, suggests it contains potent anti-cancer agents that act singly or in combination against the proliferation of cancer cells.

Laboratory tests showed they arrested the growth of cells within five hours of application and caused them to die within 24 hours.

The plant, which has the botanical name Fagonia cretica, is found in arid, desert regions of Pakistan, India, Africa and parts of Europe.

Professor Helen Griffiths and Professor Amtul R Carmichael, who headed the study, found herbal tea made from the extract of the plant destroys cancer cells but, unlike conventional chemotherapy, treatment does not damage normal breast cells, thus reducing side effects.

Reports from breast cancer sufferers in Pakistan suggest the plant extract does not trigger any serious side effects such as loss of hair, drop in blood count or diarrhoea.

The research, published in the science journal PloS One, found the plant extract had a novel mechanism which could remedy defects in cell DNA that would normally resist tumour growth.

An impaired DNA response not only allows the cancer to flourish, it also inhibits the way chemotherapy works which reduces its effectiveness.

Professor Carmichael said a small hospital 100 miles north of Lahore in Pakistan started using the herbal tea 40 years ago to treat breast cancer patients.

She said: 'It appears to keep them in remission, although we can't use the word cure at this stage.

'However, they live for a long time without losing their hair or putting on a large amount of weight, or experiencing other toxic side effects associated with chemotherapy, so we are confident this extract has something to contribute.'

She said stringent safety tests would be needed in developing a drug based on the extract.

At present the herbal tea is being used to treat Asians but there might be different effects in Caucasian patients, she added.

Professor Griffiths said more research is needed to establish the role of the extract in cancer management, and it now needs to be demonstrated that this extract is as effective in killing cancer cells inside the body as it is within a laboratory.

She said the next steps are to identify which element of the plant is responsible for killing the cancer cells with a view to eventually running trials with cancer patients.

Dr Caitlin Palframan, policy manager at Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: 'Some of the most important cancer-fighting drugs are originally derived from plants.

'As this research is at the very earliest stage, we won't know for quite some time whether drugs derived from this plant will be effective in treating breast cancer but we look forward to seeing any progress.

'We would advise women with breast cancer who are considering using any herbal remedies to discuss this with their doctor first as some may interfere with ongoing cancer treatment.'

Emma Pennery, clinical director of Breast Cancer Care, said: 'Much more research would be needed to build on this small-scale laboratory work to date.'

In India, researchers have developed a noninvasive approach to test cholesterol levels in patients who are at a greater risk for heart disease. The total cholesterol test uses a digital camera to take a photo of the back of the patient's hand. The image is then cropped and compared in a database with images of known cholesterol levels.

The approach, developed by N.R. Shanker and his colleagues of the Sree Sastha Institute of Engineering and Technology, is based on a large database of cholesterol levels recorded by standard blood tests and matched with a photo of the hand of each patient. Cholesterol is seen in the crease of one's finger. The researchers created an image processing computer program that compares a patient image with thousands of entries in the database until one matches to a specific cholesterol reading.

Measuring cholesterol is an important factor in determining risks for cardiovascular disease. Excess cholesterol can build up as a waxy plaque that reduces the blood flow - which can cause heart problems and increase the risk of cerebral stroke.

Total cholesterol can be a useful indicator, but a different test must be done to differentiate between LDL ("bad cholesterol") and HDL ("good cholesterol") for a more accurate assessment.

An inexpensive and noninvasive test for cholesterol screening can allow this risk factor to be found in larger populations without painful and costly blood tests. This same team of researchers will be publishing results of classifying cholesterol type using their approach.

An apple a day can keep high blood pressure and hypertension away, as long as you don't remove its peel, scientists say.

Scientists in Canada have found that it is more effective than other "superfoods" including green tea and blueberries as a source of antioxidants and chemical compounds called flavonoids that combat the potentially life-threatening condition.

For the outer layer contains up to six times the amount of chemical ingredients that can combat potentially life threatening high blood pressure.

Apples have long been known as natural source of antioxidants and chemical compounds called flavanoids, all of which are good for the heart, the 'Telegraph' reported.

But peeling apples first before eating means missing out on most of the health benefits, said researchers from Nova Scotia in Canada.

Scientists tested the peel and the fleshy fruit of apples separately on samples of an enzyme called ACE which is known to cause hypertension and high blood pressure in humans.

The peel was significantly much more effective in inhibiting ACE in living organisms, the researchers from Nova Scotia Agricultural College told the journal Food Chemistry.

Researchers in Nova Scotia tested the peel and the fleshy fruit of apples separately.

The peel was found to be up to six times more effective, according to the team's results in the journal Food Chemistry.

The researchers from Nova Scotia Agricultural College said: "Apples are one of the most popular and frequently consumed fruits in the world."

"Apple peel is a rich source of flavonoids which provide numerous health benefits apple peel flavonoids inhibited the ACE, an enzyme associated with hypertension" they said.