Health News

Biological component of "prosocial" behavior linked to social anxiety

Date: Oct-16-2013
Scientists increasingly are uncovering answers for human behavior through genetic research. Now, a University of Missouri researcher has found that prosocial behavior, such as volunteering and helping others, is related to the same gene that predisposes individuals to anxiety disorders. Helping such individuals cope with their anxiety may increase their prosocial behavior, the researcher said...

Disaster preparedness in Michigan emergency departments

Date: Oct-16-2013
Emergency Departments across Michigan are better prepared to handle a disaster today than they were seven years ago, according to a Henry Ford Hospital study. The study found that 84 percent of emergency departments said they are more prepared to handle a terrorist attack or natural disaster than they were in 2005. They've also enhanced their preparedness efforts by adding decontamination rooms, stockpiling antidotes for nerve gas and cyanide, and storing more respiratory protection supplies...

Kids in rural poverty score lower on visual, higher on verbal tests of working memory than urban counterparts

Date: Oct-16-2013
Studies have long shown a difference in cognitive ability between high- and low-income children, but for the first time, scientists have found a difference between low-income children growing up in rural areas and those growing up in urban environments. Researchers at Dartmouth College have found that children growing up in rural poverty score significantly lower on visual working memory tests than their urban counterparts. However, children in urban poverty score slightly lower on tests of verbal working memory...

Despite recent FAST awareness campaign, only a minority of stroke victims seen by doctors within recommended timeframe

Date: Oct-16-2013
In a study, published online in the journal Age and Ageing, of over 270 patients newly diagnosed with minor strokes or transient ischaemic attack (TIA), only a minority sought medical help within the timeframe recommended by the Royal College of Physicians. This is despite the high profile FAST campaign, which was taking place at the time that the study was conducted. Rapid assessment and treatment of patients with TIA or minor stroke reduces the risk of early recurrent stroke...

Dependency and ADHD

Date: Oct-16-2013
People with ADHD and substance dependence rarely respond as they should to ADHD medication. A randomised study from Karolinska Institutet now shows that it is possible to obtain the desired efficacy by administering the drug in higher doses. The results of the study are published in the scientific journal Addiction. ADHD is much more common in people who use drugs than in the population at large. ADHD can be treated with methylphenidate, a CNS stimulant used for both children and adults...

Identifying neural circuits that regulate feeding behavior could lead to therapies that promote or decrease appetite

Date: Oct-16-2013
Scientists at the University of Washington have used genetic engineering to identify a population of neurons that tell the brain to shut off appetite. Their study, "Genetic identification of a neural circuit that suppresses appetite," was published in Nature. To identify these neurons, or cells that process and transmit information in the brain, researchers first considered what makes an animal lose its appetite. There are a number of natural reasons, including infection, nausea, pain or simply having eaten too much already...

Machine speeds concentration step in food-pathogen detection

Date: Oct-16-2013
Researchers have developed a system that concentrates foodborne salmonella and other pathogens faster than conventional methods by using hollow thread-like fibers that filter out the cells, representing a potential new tool for speedier detection. The machine, called a continuous cell concentration device, could make it possible to routinely analyze food or water samples to screen for pathogens within a single work shift at food processing plants...

Biomedical research improved by better understanding of the movements of C. elegans

Date: Oct-16-2013
One might wonder why researchers would even care about the nuances of the one-millimeter long nematode worm, let alone take the time to study them. But the answer is simple: they can provide powerful insights into human health and disease. New research performed at Texas Tech University and published in the journal Physics of Fluids demonstrates just that. By studying how this tiny worm swims, the researchers hope to provide insights into applications from drug screening to setting the stage for designing smart soft robots...

Retinitis pigmentosa identified by simple blood or urine test

Date: Oct-16-2013
Research led by physician-scientists at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine has produced a breakthrough discovery in diagnosing retinitis pigmentosa, a blinding disease that affects about 1 in 4,000 people in the United States. Rong Wen, M.D., Ph.D., and Byron Lam, M.D., professors of ophthalmology at Bascom Palmer, in collaboration with biochemist Ziqiang Guan, Ph.D...

Link suggested between nervous system, certain thyroid cancers

Date: Oct-16-2013
A specific protein once thought to exist only in the brain may play a crucial role in a deadly form of thyroid cancer, as well as other cancers, and provide a fresh target for researchers seeking ways to stop its progression, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers report in Cancer Cell. The scientists found that over-activation of a certain protein in hormone-secreting cells helps fuel medullary thyroid cancer cells in mice as well as in human cells, making the protein a potentially good target for therapies to inhibit the growth of these cancer cells...