Health News

Seeing into the center of a cell using spinning-disk microscope

Date: Oct-11-2013
A new method of imaging cells is allowing scientists to see tiny structures inside the 'control centre' of the cell for the first time. The microscopic technique, developed by researchers at Queen Mary University of London, represents a major advance for cell biologists as it will allow them to investigate structures deep inside the cell, such as viruses, bacteria and parts of the nucleus in depth...

Promising new strategy to treat multiple sclerosis

Date: Oct-11-2013
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a set of compounds that may be used to treat multiple sclerosis (MS) in a new way. Unlike existing MS therapies that suppress the immune system, the compounds boost a population of progenitor cells that can in turn repair MS-damaged nerve fibers. One of the newly identified compounds, a Parkinson's disease drug called benztropine, was highly effective in treating a standard model of MS in mice, both alone and in combination with existing MS therapies...

Older women with invasive breast cancer afforded some protection by multivitamins and minerals

Date: Oct-11-2013
Findings from a study involving thousands of postmenopausal women suggest that women who develop invasive breast cancer may benefit from taking supplements containing both multivitamins and minerals. The new research, published in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, found that the risk of dying from invasive breast cancer was 30 percent lower among multivitamin/mineral users compared with nonusers...

Quality of patient care drives physician job satisfaction

Date: Oct-11-2013
Being able to provide high-quality health care is a primary driver of job satisfaction among physicians, and obstacles to quality patient care are a source of stress for doctors, according to a new RAND Corporation study. While physicians note some advantages of electronic health records, physicians complain that the systems in use today are cumbersome to operate and are an important contributor to their dissatisfaction, the study found...

Dizziness and spatial disorientation

Date: Oct-11-2013
Johns Hopkins researchers say they have pinpointed a site in a highly developed area of the human brain that plays an important role in the subconscious recognition of which way is straight up and which way is down. The finding, described online in the journal Cerebral Cortex, may help account for some causes of spatial disorientation and dizziness, and offer targets for treating the feelings of unsteadiness and "floating" people experience when the brain fails to properly integrate input from the body's senses...

Mechanism meant to maintain efficiency of brain network involved in neurodegenerative disease

Date: Oct-11-2013
Scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital-The Neuro, McGill University, have made important discoveries about a cellular process that occurs during normal brain development and may play an important role in neurodegenerative diseases. The study's findings, published in Cell Reports, a leading scientific journal, point to new pathways and targets for novel therapies for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases that affect millions of people world-wide...

Contaminated water breeds low-weight babies, sometimes born prematurely

Date: Oct-11-2013
Pregnant women living in areas with contaminated drinking water may be more likely to have babies that are premature or with low birth weights (considered less than 5.5 pounds), according to a study based at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Featured in the Canadian Journal of Economics, the study shows that the effects of contaminated water - which include numerous cognitive and developmental impairments - are particularly significant for babies born to less-educated mothers...

No trace of viral cause for breast cancer and glioblastoma

Date: Oct-11-2013
A major study conducted at the Sahlgrenska Academy has now disproved theories of a viral cause for breast cancer and the brain tumour, glioblastoma. The study, which was based on over seven billion DNA sequences and which is published in Nature Communications, found no genetic traces of viruses in these forms of cancer. It has been scientifically proven that about 15 per cent of all cancer cases are the result of viral infection, but many researchers believe that even more cancers could be caused by viruses...

Sleep-disordered breathing a possible risk factor for Alzheimer's disease

Date: Oct-11-2013
Alzheimer's disease (AD) affects millions of people worldwide. As a result of an increase in life expectancy, the number of patients with dementia is expected to increase dramatically. Due to the lack of effective treatments that can slow down or reverse the progression of AD, preventive measures to lower the prevalence rate of AD by means of managing potential or actual risk factors is a reasonable clinical strategy. In this respect, identifying treatable factors which are able to promote cognitive deterioration would have important practical implications...

Appetite decreased by snacking on almonds, no increase in body weight

Date: Oct-11-2013
A new study published in the October issue of the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that study participants eating 1.5 ounces of dry-roasted, lightly salted almonds every day experienced reduced hunger and improved dietary vitamin E and monounsaturated ("good") fat intake without increasing body weight.[i] Snacking has become nearly universal behavior in the United States, with an estimated 97% of Americans consuming at least one snack per day.[ii] In light of increasing snacking frequency[ii] and snack size[iii] among U.S...