fracture

(DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) Certain sizes of nanostructures may be more susceptible to failure by fracture than others.

In an approach that could become a new treatment for the 10 to 20 percent of people whose broken bones fail to heal, researchers have shown that transplantation of adult stem cells can improve healing of fractures.

For the first time ever, an extensive genome-wide search has been undertaken to find the genes linked to osteoporosis and fracture.

Five regions of interest have been identified that appear to warrant further scientific investigation.

The largest ice shelf in the Northern Hemisphere has fractured into three main pieces. During a recent patrol across the northernmost parts of Canada, researchers found a new 18 kilometer-long network of cracks running from the southern edge of the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf to the Arctic Ocean.

This accompanies a large central fracture that was first detected in 2002, and raises the concern that the remaining ice shelf will disintegrate within the next few years.