BODY BRIEFS: New wonder broccoli

BREAKTHROUGH OF THE WEEK

SEVEN years ago South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-suk claimed to have created stem cells from cloned human embryos, but was found to have faked the evidence.

Now the cells seem to have been made for real by Dieter Egli and Scott Noggle of the New York Stem Cell Foundation Laboratory in New York City.

They did this by fusing skin cells with unfertilised human eggs. This was grown to produce an early embryo. But there's one problem: the cells contain an extra set of chromosomes, which means they could never be used to grow tissues for transplantation from a patient's own cells - the ultimate goal.

But having shown that there is no block to making cloned human stem cells, biologists are optimistic it should be possible to find a solution to the chromosome problem. (Source: www. newscientist.com)

BIZARRE OF THE WEEK

ACCORDING to a study in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, African women who take injectable hormone contraceptives - which are given every three months, and are the most popular form of contraception for women in eastern and southern Africa - have biological properties that appear to increase the risk of getting or transmitting HIV.

The study also found that the male partners of HIV-positive women who used these were twice as likely to contract HIV than the male partners of HIV-positive women who used no birth control.

This study has led the World Health Organisation to schedule a meeting in January to discuss whether women should be advised that injectable contraception may increase their risk of getting or transmitting HIV. - Staff reporter

NUTRITION BITE

A NEW super broccoli known as Beneforte was made available to the public in the UK last week.

It looks the same as normal broccoli, but research suggests it contains two to three times more glucoraphanin (a phytonutrient that boosts antioxidant enzyme levels) than standard broccoli. This nutrient reportedly protects the body from cancer and heart disease.

Beneforte was developed by British scientists using conventional breeding techniques rather than genetic engineering.

The project began after a wild broccoli variety was discovered in 1983 with naturally raised levels of glucoraphanin. - Staff reporter

IF YOU DO ONE THING FOR YOUR HEALTH

EXERCISE at least three hours per week to reduce the risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia and erectile dysfunction. The Health Professions Council conducted a study to examine the relationship between erectile dysfunction, benign prostatic hyperplasia and exercise. They found that men who ran for 90 minutes or did three hours of rigorous outdoor work per week were 20% less likely to develop these conditions than those who didn't exercise at all.

Interestingly, regardless of the level of exercise, men who were overweight or obese had a greater risk than men with an ideal body mass index.