Snippets
Doctor beware!
Doctors may be unwittingly spreading infections through their ties, warn US researchers. The New York Hospital Queens team found nearly half of the ties worn by medical workers harboured disease-causing bacteria. The potential for ties to transmit the bacteria to patients must be considered, say the researchers.

Dr Steven Nurkin reported his findings at a meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

The researchers analysed ties worn by physicians, their assistants, medical students and security staff working at their hospital. Almost half (47.6%) of the ties worn by clinicians were found to harbour bacteria that can cause disease.

A spokesman from the British Medical Association said: "Ties are frequently handled but infrequently washed which means they can spread infection.
"Doctors should not have to wear them when seeing patients."

Gene to blame for unruly hair
Researchers say that if you are having a bad hair day, it might not be your fault. They have identified a gene - called frizzled 6 - which controls hair patterns. It may explain why some people have kiss-curls and some bushy eyebrows.

The research, led by Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Although the gene was discovered in mice, the researchers believe it could well do the same job in humans. To study exactly how it worked, the scientists bred genetically modified mice that lacked the gene.

They found that although the animals were normal and healthy, they had unusual whirling patterns in the hair on their head, chest and hind feet. Some also had tufts and ridges in the hair on their head. The researchers examined the seemingly unruly hair follicles under a microscope, and found that they had a normal appearance.

They believe that the direction of hair growth seems to be controlled by skin cells around the base of the hair - rather than the hair root itself.