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Public release date: 30-Jan-2012
Share ] Contact: Emma Rayner
emma.rayner@nottingham.ac.uk
44-011-595-15793
University of Nottingham
A new family of proteins which regulate the human body's 'hypoxic response' to low levels of oxygen has been discovered by scientists at Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary, University of London and The University of Nottingham.
The discovery has been published in the international journal Nature Cell Biology. It marks a significant step towards understanding the complex processes involved in the hypoxic response which, when it malfunctions, can cause and affect the progress of many types of serious disease, including cancer.
The researchers have uncovered a previously unknown level of hypoxic regulation at a molecular level in human cells which could provide a novel pathway for the development of new drug therapeutics to fight disease. The cutting-edge work was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
Proteins are biochemical compounds which carry out specific duties within the living cell. Every cell in our body has the ability to recognise and respond to changes in the availability of oxygen. The best example of this is when we climb to high altitudes where the air contains less oxygen. The cells recognise the decrease in oxygen via the bloodstream and are able to react, using the 'hypoxic response', to produce a protein called EPO. This protein in turn stimulates the body to produce more red blood cells to absorb as much of the reduced levels of oxygen as possible.
This response is essential for a normal healthy physiology but when the hypoxic response in cells malfunctions, diseases like cancer can develop and spread. Cancer cells have a faulty hypoxic response which means that as the cells multiply they highjack the response to create their own rogue blood supply. In this way the cells can form large tumours. The new blood supply also helps the cancer cells spread to other parts of the body, called 'metastasis', which is how ultimately cancer kills patients.
The scientists have identified a new family of hypoxic regulator proteins called 'LIM domain containing proteins' which function as molecular scaffolds or 'adapters' bringing together or bridging two key enzymes in the hypoxic response pathway, namely PHD2 and VHL. Both of these are involved in down-regulating the master regulator protein called Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF1). The research has shown that loss of LIMD1 breaks down the bridge it creates between PHD2 and VHL and this then enables the master regulator to function out of control and thus contribute to cancer formation.
Molecular Oncologist, Dr Tyson Sharp, who carried out research for the project at The University of Nottingham's School of Biomedical Sciences, said: "The results from this research represent a significant advancement in our understanding of precisely how the hypoxic response works. It will help researchers develop better drugs to fight cancer and also other human diseases that are caused by low levels of oxygen within our body such as anaemia, myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke and peripheral arterial disease. Further work in this fascinating area is now continuing at Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary University of London and will form the basis of a whole new additional research theme for my group."
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 30-Jan-2012 Share ] Contact: Emma Rayner
emma.rayner@nottingham.ac.uk
44-011-595-15793
University of Nottingham
A new family of proteins which regulate the human body's 'hypoxic response' to low levels of oxygen has been discovered by scientists at Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary, University of London and The University of Nottingham.
The discovery has been published in the international journal Nature Cell Biology. It marks a significant step towards understanding the complex processes involved in the hypoxic response which, when it malfunctions, can cause and affect the progress of many types of serious disease, including cancer.
The researchers have uncovered a previously unknown level of hypoxic regulation at a molecular level in human cells which could provide a novel pathway for the development of new drug therapeutics to fight disease. The cutting-edge work was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
Proteins are biochemical compounds which carry out specific duties within the living cell. Every cell in our body has the ability to recognise and respond to changes in the availability of oxygen. The best example of this is when we climb to high altitudes where the air contains less oxygen. The cells recognise the decrease in oxygen via the bloodstream and are able to react, using the 'hypoxic response', to produce a protein called EPO. This protein in turn stimulates the body to produce more red blood cells to absorb as much of the reduced levels of oxygen as possible.
This response is essential for a normal healthy physiology but when the hypoxic response in cells malfunctions, diseases like cancer can develop and spread. Cancer cells have a faulty hypoxic response which means that as the cells multiply they highjack the response to create their own rogue blood supply. In this way the cells can form large tumours. The new blood supply also helps the cancer cells spread to other parts of the body, called 'metastasis', which is how ultimately cancer kills patients.
The scientists have identified a new family of hypoxic regulator proteins called 'LIM domain containing proteins' which function as molecular scaffolds or 'adapters' bringing together or bridging two key enzymes in the hypoxic response pathway, namely PHD2 and VHL. Both of these are involved in down-regulating the master regulator protein called Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF1). The research has shown that loss of LIMD1 breaks down the bridge it creates between PHD2 and VHL and this then enables the master regulator to function out of control and thus contribute to cancer formation.
Molecular Oncologist, Dr Tyson Sharp, who carried out research for the project at The University of Nottingham's School of Biomedical Sciences, said: "The results from this research represent a significant advancement in our understanding of precisely how the hypoxic response works. It will help researchers develop better drugs to fight cancer and also other human diseases that are caused by low levels of oxygen within our body such as anaemia, myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke and peripheral arterial disease. Further work in this fascinating area is now continuing at Barts Cancer Institute at Queen Mary University of London and will form the basis of a whole new additional research theme for my group."
###
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-01/uon-cot013012.php
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A century's worth of astronomical photographic plates have revealed a slew of new variable stars, many of which alter on timescales and in ways never before seen.
The discoveries come from a new analysis of the 500,000 plates made by the Harvard College Observatory from the 1880s through the 1980s, covering the whole sky. The trove of old-school data has offered astronomers an unprecedented look at how stars change over long timescales.
"The Harvard College observatory has the most wonderful, best collection [of photographic plates] in the world," said Harvard graduate student Sumin Tang, who works on the plate analysis program. "It's a very unique resource because it's over 100 years. No other data set could do this."
Blast from the past
The plates are relics from an earlier era, when researchers used glass surfaces coated with light-sensitive silver salts to record the visions seen by telescopes. The Harvard collection includes plates made with dozens of telescopes.
Starting in the 1990s, photographic plates were replaced with more sensitive CCDs (charge-coupled devices), which are digital light sensors. Smaller versions of these same devices power digital cameras. [Truth Behind the Photos: What the Hubble Space Telescope Really Sees]
Now scientists are trying to digitize the plate collection, basically using CCDs to image the plates, then applying an algorithm to quantify how bright stars appear and search for variations over time. The project, called Digital Access to a Sky Century@Harvard (Dasch), is headed by Harvard astronomer Jonathan Grindlay.
"In this way we can perform a systematic search for long-term variables," Tang told SPACE.com. "We don't need to use our eyes, because it would take forever."
Most of the stars in the plate collection were imaged between 500 and 1,500 times, providing ample evidence for some weird stellar behavior. So far, only 4 percent of the plates have been digitized, but that data set alone has turned up some new finds. The team hopes to digitize the whole collection over the next three to five years.
So far, though, the initial data yielded "wonderful results," Tang said. Some of the stars caught on the plates brighten and dim gradually for reasons unknown. "We've found several different new types of variables," she added.
Strange variables
For example, the astronomers discovered a group of stars that all vary in the same, weird way. These stars all happen to belong to a class called K giants, with temperatures of about 4,400 Kelvin (7,500 degrees Fahrenheit, or 4,100 degrees Celsius). Over decades they become brighter and dimmer by a factor of two.
"This kind of timescale is weird because it's just too long," Tang said.
The researchers think the stars can actually be divided into two classes: binary (double star) systems, and single stars, with two different mechanisms behind their variations.
The binary variables are possibly caused by strong magnetic activity stimulated by interactions between the two stars. "The other group, the single ones, are even more exotic," Tang said. "We guess it might be related to some gas processes. There must be something weird happening, but we don't know. That's the fun part."
Another weird set of variable stars discovered in the data are called symbiotic stars, which are pairs of stars where one is hot and the other cold ? for example, a red giant and a white dwarf star orbiting each other. Some process is causing some of these star systems to alter in brightness over decades, but astronomers aren't sure what. They suspect the phenomenon might be related to nuclear burning of hydrogen on the surface of the white dwarf star, or accretion of mass onto one of the stars.
Ultimately, the researchers hope the project reveals much more about how stars evolve over time.
"Astronomy is driven by observation," Tang said. "If you have unique data, you will make unique discoveries, there's no doubt about that."
Tang presented some of the new findings earlier this month at the 219th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Austin, Texas.
The project is supported by the National Science Foundation and the Cornel and Cynthia K. Sarosdy Fund for DASCH.
You can follow SPACE.com assistant managing editor Clara Moskowitz on Twitter @ClaraMoskowitz. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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LOS ANGELES ? A 911 recording revealed frantic efforts by friends of Demi Moore to get help for the actress who was convulsing as they gathered around her and tried to comfort her.
Moore was "semi-conscious, barely," according to a female caller on the recording released Friday by Los Angeles fire officials.
The woman tells emergency operators that Moore, 49, had smoked something before she was rushed to the hospital on Monday night and that she had been "having issues lately."
"Is she breathing normal?" the operator asks.
"No, not so normal. More kind of shaking, convulsing, burning up," the friend says as she hurries to Moore's side, on the edge of panic.
Another woman is next to Moore as the dispatcher asks if she's responsive.
"Demi, can you hear me?" she asks. "Yes, she's squeezing hands. ... She can't speak."
When the operator asks what Moore ingested or smoked, the friend replies, but the answer was redacted.
Asked if Moore took the substance intentionally or not, the woman says Moore ingested it on purpose but the reaction was accidental.
"Whatever she took, make sure you have it out for the paramedics," the operator says.
The operator asks the friend if this has happened before.
"I don't know," she says. "There's been some stuff recently that we're all just finding out."
Moore's publicist, Carrie Gordon, said previously that the actress sought professional help to treat her exhaustion and improve her health. She would not comment further on the emergency call or provide details about the nature or location of Moore's treatment.
The past few months have been rocky for Moore.
She released a statement in November announcing she had decided to end her marriage to fellow actor Ashton Kutcher, 33, following news of alleged infidelity. The two were known to publicly share their affection for one another via Twitter.
Moore still has a Twitter account under the name mrskutcher but has not posted any messages since Jan. 7.
Meanwhile, Millennium Films announced Friday that Sarah Jessica Parker will replace Moore in the role of feminist Gloria Steinem in its production of "Lovelace," a biopic about the late porn star Linda Lovelace. A statement gave no reason for the change. The production, starring Amanda Seyfried, has been shooting in Los Angeles since Dec. 20.
During the call, the woman caller says the group of friends had turned Moore's head to the side and was holding her down. The dispatcher tells her not to hold her down but to wipe her mouth and nose and watch her closely until paramedics arrive.
"Make sure that we keep an airway open," the dispatcher says. "Even if she passes out completely, that's OK. Stay right with her."
The phone is passed around by four people, including a woman who gives directions to the gate and another who recounts details about what Moore smoked or ingested. Finally, the phone is given to a man named James, so one of the women can hold Moore's head.
There was some confusion at the beginning of the call. The emergency response was delayed by nearly two minutes as Los Angeles and Beverly Hills dispatchers sorted out which city had jurisdiction over the street where Moore lives.
As the call is transferred to Beverly Hills, the frantic woman at Moore's house raises her voice and said, "Why is an ambulance not on its way right now?"
"Ma'am, instead of arguing with me why an ambulance is not on the way, can you spell (the street name) for me?" the Beverly Hills dispatcher says.
Although the estate is located in the 90210 ZIP code above Benedict Canyon, the response was eventually handled by the Los Angeles Fire Department.
By the end of the call, Moore has improved.
"She seems to have calmed down now. She's speaking," the male caller told the operator.
Moore and Kutcher were wed in September 2005.
Kutcher became a stepfather to Moore's three daughters ? Rumer, Scout and Tallulah Belle ? from her 13-year marriage to actor Bruce Willis. Moore and Willis divorced in 2000 but remained friendly.
Moore can be seen on screen in the recent films "Margin Call" and "Another Happy Day." Kutcher replaced Charlie Sheen on TV's "Two and a Half Men" and is part of the ensemble film "New Year's Eve."
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SIERRA BLANCA, Texas ? Nestled among the few remaining businesses that dot a rundown highway in this dusty West Texas town stands what's become a surprise destination for marijuana-toting celebrities: the Hudspeth County Jail.
Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg and actor Armie Hammer have been among the thousands of people busted for possession at a Border Patrol checkpoint outside town in recent years, bringing a bit of notoriety to one of Texas' most sparsely populated counties.
"Once I was in Arizona, and when I said where I was from, they said, `That's where Willie Nelson was busted,'" said Louise Barantley, manager at the Coyote Sunset souvenir shop in Sierra Blanca.
Hudspeth County cameos aren't only for outlaws: Action movie star Steven Seagal, who's already deputized in Louisiana and Arizona for his reality show "Steven Seagal Lawman" on A&E, has signed on to become a county officer.
Locals already have found ways to rub shoulders with their celebrity guests.
Deputies posed for pictures with Snoop Dogg after authorities said they found several joints on his bus earlier this month. When Nelson was busted here in 2010, the county's lead prosecutor suggested the singer settle his marijuana charges by performing "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" for the court. Nelson paid a fine instead, but not before county commissioner Wayne West played one of his own songs for the country music legend.
West acknowledged he's a big fan of Nelson and wanted to capitalize on a golden chance to perform for such a noted "captive audience."
"Willie loved the song, he is a real outgoing individual" he added.
The once-thriving town of Sierra Blanca began to shrink to its current 1,000-person population after the construction of nearby Interstate 10 ? a main artery linking cities from California to Florida ? offered an easy way to bypass the community.
Now the highway is sending thousands of drug bust cases Sierra Blanca's way, courtesy of a Border Patrol checkpoint just outside of town where drug-sniffing dogs inspect more than 17,000 trucks, travelers ? and tour buses ? daily for whiffs of contraband that may have made its wait inland from the border.
Hudspeth County Sheriff Arvin West, younger brother of the musically inclined commissioner, said his office handled about 2,000 cases last year, most of them having to do with drugs seized at the checkpoint.
Border Patrol agents say people busted with small amounts of pot often say they have medical marijuana licenses from California, Arizona or New Mexico ? three states along I-10 that, unlike Texas, allow for medicinal pot prescriptions ? and claim to believe the licenses were valid nationwide.
Nelson's publicists declined to comment about the specifics of the singer's case. Representatives for Snoop Dogg, who will pay a fine and court costs after being cited for possession of marijuana paraphernalia, did not return several messages seeking comment.
County authorities have not yet decided whether to prosecute or issue a citation for Hammer, who starred in the 2010 film "The Social Network" and more recently played FBI's number two man in "Edgar J." He was arrested in November after authorities said they found marijuana-laced brownies and cookies on his way to his wife's bakery in San Antonio. His attorney Kent Schaffer has called the case a "total non-issue."
Local officials say they're not on a celebrity witch hunt, but some residents are enjoying the publicity from the high-profile arrests. They say the once forgotten town of Sierra Blanca should take pride in not pandering to famous people caught breaking the law.
"We get attention because something is being done right," resident Adolfo Gonzalez said while shopping at a local convenience store. "It'd be worse if we'd let them go because they are celebrities."
That's not expected to change when Segal comes to town. Sheriff West insists the "Under Siege" star hasn't indicated any plans to film his show here ? but the sheriff isn't ruling it out.
"If he wants to, we can do it but that's not what he said this was about," West said.
West's spokesman, Rusty Flemming, said Seagal will patrol the area and train colleagues in martial arts and weapons techniques. The actor is expected to arrive in Hudspeth County within months, once he's done filming a new movie in Canada.
Segal's management agency did not return calls and emails seeking comment about his plans in Texas.
Commissioner West, meanwhile, is keeping his musical skills sharp ? just in case another performer pays a surprise visit to the county jail. The lead guitarist and vocalist of a local band, West said he regrets not having a chance to sing for Snoop Dogg, but wasn't sure if the rapper would have enjoyed the performance anyway.
"Our stuff is laid back," he said. "Mas o menos (more or less) country."
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BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan ? More than 1,000 prisoners in Kyrgyzstan have sewn their lips together, a grotesque act inmates describe as a protest of their dismal conditions, but which authorities blame on organized criminal gangs who resent attempts to break the power they wield in prisons.
Kyrgyzstan, a poor ex-Soviet nation of 5.3 million, holds around 7,600 inmates in its detention centers. The buildings are notoriously crowded and disease-ridden, and they have not escaped the reach of powerful criminal syndicates who also threaten the stability of the country, which hosts a key U.S. air base.
Over the years, prisoners have staged numerous protests ? until Saturday, the vast majority of the prisoners were on a 10-day-long hunger strike. But the sewing of lips has been one of the most unusual and brazen ways to bring attention to the prisoners' plight.
An Associated Press reporter who was allowed to visit a pre-trial detention facility recently saw several prisoners with their lips stitched together, leaving enough space to take in liquids, but not enough to eat food. Some prisoners used strands of coarse fiber or pieces of wire.
A 22-year-old, who gave his name only as Yevgeny, said awkwardly through his constricted lips that he was "suffering for justice."
But the facility's director, Mars Zhusupbekov, countered that the protest was a reaction to his own attempts to bring justice.
Zhusupbekov said he was appointed head of the facility in the capital Bishkek last month and soon learned that a group of 23 inmates was allowed to roam the prison freely, extorting money from others.
"Intimidated prisoners would call their relatives and ask them to sell their apartment or car, and then transfer the money to the gang in jail," he said.
So Zhusupbekov said he decided to launch raids on cells in mid-January to stamp out the thugs. About a week later, inmates started to sew their lips together, an act he said was forced on frightened prisoners by the criminal gang in his facility.
Crime experts say prison gangs in former Soviet nations are typically part of a complex hierarchical fraternity that extends across the penitentiary system and is ultimately subservient to criminal leaders beyond jail walls.
Almost 400 prisoners bound their lips at Zhusupbekov's jail, and as many as 800 others are believed to have done the same in other jails in what they say is an act of solidarity. Authorities say it is only the influence of organized crime that could have enabled protests on such a large scale.
Zhusupbekov was sanguine about the lip-sewing, describing it as a similar procedure to piercing, and dismissed complaints about poor prison conditions. "This is not a hotel, this is not a holiday resort, they should serve their time," he said.
Prisoners said the raids were an attempt by Zhusupbekov to brutally assert his authority.
"We were just decorating our cell when they threw in a smoke grenade and then they beat us all," said Ulan Sheraliyev, who is awaiting trial on charges of robbery. "And so we are starving and demanding this not happen again and that the perpetrator be punished."
Since Soviet times, underfunded police and galloping corruption have enabled local mafia groups engaged in narcotics trafficking and other crimes to flourish and authorities say the writ of crime gangs extends deep into the nation's jails.
But State Correctional Service chairman Sheishenbek Bayzakov says the system was rotten from the top down.
"I fired 80 percent of prison directors, because over the past few years, they created corrupt schemes and forged alliances with the criminal world," said Bayzakov, who appointed to the post last year. "They laundered money and instead of buying normal food, they would buy rotten and expired goods and just kept the money for themselves."
Bayzakov said several former penitentiary directors now face prosecution for alleged crimes that include running the prison drug trade.
The protests in Kyrgyzstan's prisons have caused international alarm.
Matteo Mecacci, chair of the human rights committee of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's parliamentary assembly, issued a statement in the past week calling for an easing of conditions in detention facilities.
Reforming the country's jails is seen as an urgent priority by President Almazbek Atamabayev's government, which is battling to maintain stability in the face of opposition from political rivals and organized crime syndicates.
Atambayev was elected last year amid vows he would rid the country of corruption, which prospered under former leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Bakiyev was thrown out of power in a violent street uprising in April 2010.
Signs of unrest are viewed with deep apprehension in the West because Kyrgyzstan hosts a U.S. air base that serves as an important transportation hub for military operations in nearby Afghanistan.
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PARIS ? President Nicolas Sarkozy says France and Afghan President Hamid Karzai will ask NATO to hand over all combat missions in Afghanistan to Afghan troops in 2013 ? a year earlier than planned.
Sarkozy also says France has informed U.S. President Barack Obama of the proposal and will present it at a meeting of NATO defense ministers early next month.
The move, if confirmed, comes at a time of widespread fatigue among European contributors to the 10-year allied intervention in Afghanistan, and would accelerate a gradual drawdown of NATO troops that Obama planned to see through until the end of 2014.
"We have decided in a common accord with President Karzai to ask NATO to consider a total handling of NATO combat missions to the Afghan army over the course of 2013," Sarkozy said.
News of the French-Afghan proposal comes one week after Sarkozy abruptly suspended France's training missions and joint military patrols with Afghan forces following the shooting death of four unarmed French troops by an Afghan soldier on Jan. 20.
Sarkozy announced that the French will resume their training mission as of Saturday and withdraw its own troops by the end of 2013.
With Karzai at his side, Sarkozy also said authority in the strategic province of Kapisa east of Kabul, where nearly all French troops are deployed, will be handed over to the Afghans in March.
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In a search for some books on traditional weaving techniques, I paid a visit to?Pets with Fez, a charmingly cluttered weaving studio Highland Park. Sadly for Angelenos, the shop is relocating to San Francisco this February and this is the last week to sort through the colorful selection of yarn, books and tchotchkes before they head north. Lots of beauty here! (thanks to Bea for suggesting I check it out!)
Source: http://lainbloom.blogspot.com/2012/01/pets-with-fez.html
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SEOUL, South Korea ? South Korea's Defense Ministry says its marines are conducting live-fire drills from a front-line island that was shelled by North Korea in 2010.
A ministry official says the drills are occurring Thursday at Yeonpyeong Island near the disputed sea border.
The official says the drills are routine firing exercises and there haven't been any suspicious activities by North Korea's military. He spoke on condition of anonymity, citing department rules.
Similar drills in 2010 triggered a North Korean artillery bombardment that killed four South Koreans.
The official says the artillery drills are the first at Yeonpyeong since North Korean leader Kim Jong Il died last month.
He says marines are holding similar drills from nearby Baengnyeong Island.
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President Barack Obama jogs toward a group of onlookers to shake hands after arriving at the airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
President Barack Obama jogs toward a group of onlookers to shake hands after arriving at the airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
President Barack Obama speaks about manufacturing jobs at the Conveyor Engineering & Manufacturing plant, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
President Barack Obama speaks about manufacturing jobs, at the Conveyor Engineering & Manufacturing plant, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
President Barack Obama is greeted after speaking about manufacturing jobs, at the Conveyor Engineering & Manufacturing plant, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
President Barack Obama is greeted by operations manager Jeff Baxter before speaking about manufacturing jobs at the Conveyor Engineering & Manufacturing plant, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) ? If President Barack Obama is showing some swagger, it shouldn't be a surprise.
His job approval ratings point to an uptick. The Navy SEAL unit that killed Osama bin Laden just pulled off a daring rescue that Obama authorized in Somalia. He's fresh off a big speech before Congress, and the Republicans who want his job are criticizing each other more than they are Obama.
As he hits the road for three days of travel to important political states, Obama is on a roll.
It could be a fleeting moment, however. While the economy is improving with indicators trending positively, unemployment remains high at 8.5 percent and international debt crises and tensions could unravel the gains.
Arriving in Iowa on Wednesday, he jogged, grinning, to a rope line of a couple of dozen supporters. He later expressed nostalgia for the days in 2007 when he was campaigning in Iowa and struck a defiant tone against congressional Republicans that was even sharper than the repudiation he offered Tuesday night in his State of the Union address.
"Our economy is getting stronger, and we've come too far to turn back now," he told workers and guests at a conveyor manufacturing plant in Cedar Rapids.
Speaking of Republicans, he said, "Their philosophy is simple: We're better off when everyone is left to fend for themselves and play by their own rules."
He added: "Well, I am here to say they are wrong."
Polls show slight improvement in his job approval ratings. A Washington Post/ABC poll last week showed a 48-48 on that question. A Gallup tracking poll has him even in recent surveys; a few months ago, more disapproved than approved.
Obama will be on the road through Friday following his prime-time address and use the power of the presidency to compete for headlines with leading Republican White House hopefuls Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich as they knock heads ahead of the Jan. 31 Florida primary.
He will try to promote a populist message of income equality that Obama's team believes can resonate with voters.
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