Systems Biology Provides First Global Analysis Of Prion Disease In A Mouse Model (Medical News Today) Researchers at the Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) in Seattle and the McLaughlin Research Institute in Great Falls, Montana, published in Molecular Systems Biology a ground-breaking study which modeled the progression of degenerative brain diseases, one of which is "mad cow disease," that are caused by misfolded proteins called "prions". The paper can be accessed at http://www.nature. [News Source]

Vet shortage plagues farms (Billings Gazette) HARDIN - It is finger-numbing cold outside in a cow shed east of nowhere. Farm veterinarian Betsy Bialon is donning a pair of cheap shoulder-length disposable gloves, which she clips with surgical clamps to a poncho made from a brown leaf bag. [News Source]

NDP: Consumer Confidence Slips in Supermarket Food Safety (Progressive Grocer) Although the majority of Americans believe the foods in supermarkets are safe, the percentage that feels this way has decreased over the last five years, according to new research from The NPD Group, a leading market research company. [News Source]