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Stem Cell Advance Boosts Prospects for Retina Treatment

Blind mice have been able to see once more in a laboratory exploit that marks a further boost for the fast-moving field of retinal therapy, according to a study published on Sunday.

Scientists in Britain used stem cells -- early-stage, highly versatile cells -- taken from mice embryos, and cultured them in a lab dish so that they differentiated into immature photoreceptors, the light-catching cells in the retina.

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In U.S, Television Injuries on the Rise

Television sets injure one child every 30 minutes in America, and the rate of emergency room visits is increasing with the popularity of flat-screen TVs, a study said Monday.

Just over half (52 percent) of all TV injuries for those under 18 from 1990 to 2011 were due to the equipment falling and hitting the patient, said the study in the journal Pediatrics.

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New Case of H7N9 Bird Flu Confirmed in China

A 61-year-old woman from northern China was confirmed Saturday as having contracted the deadly H7N9 bird flu virus, state media reported.

The woman, from the city of Langfang in Hebei province, developed a cough and fever on July 10 and four days later was given a diagnosis of severe pneumonia, the official Xinhua news agency reported, citing a Beijing municipal health bureau statement.

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EU Bans Raft of Dangerous Chemicals from Toys

Childrens' toys need to comply as of Saturday with a new Europe-wide ban on dozens of chemical substances scientists say could trigger cancer, harm fertility or unleash allergies, the European Commission said.

"Substances which are carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic to reproduction as well as 55 allergenic fragrances are now banned from use in toys," the EU's executive arm said Friday.

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Thyroid Cancer Risk for 2,000 Fukushima Workers

Around 2,000 people who have worked at Japan's wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant face a heightened risk of thyroid cancer, its operator said Friday.

Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) said 1,973 people -- around 10 percent of those employed in emergency crews involved in the clean-up since the meltdowns -- were believed to have been exposed to enough radiation to cause potential problems.

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Alcohol Deaths of UK Women in 30s See 'Worrying Rise'

Alcohol-related deaths of women born in the 1970s have "disproportionately increased" in the last decade, according to a study of three cities in England and Scotland published Friday.

Researchers called for urgent action to tackle what they said was a "worrying trend" in rising deaths from alcohol misuse by women in their 30s and 40s, unseen among men of the same age group.

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French Study: Huge Viruses May Open 'Pandora's' Box

These viruses are so big they might just be your ancestors.

Two newly discovered viruses are twice as large as the previous record-holders and may represent a completely new life form, French scientists reported in the U.S. journal Science.

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China H7N9 Survivor Gives Birth

A Chinese woman who spent five weeks in intensive care with H7N9 bird flu has given birth to a girl in what was described as a "miracle" first, state media said Friday.

Qiu Yan, 25, was five months pregnant when she was diagnosed with the virus in April, early in China's human outbreak of the disease.

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New Zealand Clamps Down on 'Legal' Highs

New Zealand introduced a new law on Thursday which bans the use of drugs offering so-called "legal" highs unless manufacturers can provide clinical evidence that they are safe.

The law imposes strict controls on products such as synthetic cannabis and legal "party pills", which mimic the effects of drugs like ecstasy without using illicit substances.

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'Intelligent' Knife Can Tell Tumor from Healthy Tissue

A new kind of surgical knife can tell cancerous from healthy tissue in seconds and may help improve tumor removal in the operating room, according to research published Wednesday.

Known as the iKnife, the tool analyzes the vapor given off as surgeons use electrical current to cut away tissue -- and it reports in real time whether the tissue is cancerous or not.

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