Health News

"Female" X chromosome has role in sperm production

Date: Jul-23-2013
Researchers have discovered that large portions of the X chromosome - long thought to be the "female" version of the male Y chromosome - have evolved to play a specialized role in sperm production. The study, published in the journal Nature Genetics, reveals that although the X chromosome has a "reputation" of being the most stable chromosome of the genome, it has rapidly evolved. Researchers from the Whitehead Institute say the results mean that the medical and biological importance of the X chromosome needs to be reevaluated...

"More harm than good" from red grape antioxidant

Date: Jul-23-2013
A natural antioxidant found in red grapes, resveratrol, may not be as beneficial as previously thought. New research in older men suggests that it may counteract the benefits of cardiovascular exercise. The study comes from researchers at the University of Copenhagen, who suggest that eating an antioxidant-rich diet may hinder the health benefits of exercise, such as lower blood pressure and cholesterol...

Absence of specific enzyme in cartilage can lead to benign tumors in mice

Date: Jul-23-2013
Rhode Island Hospital researchers have found that the absence of the Shp-2 enzyme near specialized cartilage cells can lead to the development of multiple benign cartilage tumors in mice, a model that recapitulates the rare human tumor syndrome metachondromatosis. Shp2 is an enzyme in the cell that regulates the activity of other proteins and signaling pathways. Mice lacking Shp2 formed two types of tumors: enchondromas and osteochondromas, and also developed deformed joints. The study is published online in advance of print in the journal Nature...

Tailored interventions may help caregivers of those with dementia

Date: Jul-23-2013
Rhode Island Hospital researchers have found that multiple factors contribute to the burden felt by caregivers of people living with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. These factors include the direct impact of providing care upon the caregivers' lives, guilt, and frustration or embarrassment. The study is published online in advance of print in American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. The study, conducted by Beth A. Springate, Ph.D, and Geoffrey Tremont, Ph...

Strategy developed that may help researchers design a future vaccine against HIV/AIDS

Date: Jul-23-2013
Designing an effective HIV/AIDS vaccine is something of a paradox: a good vaccine would be safe and look enough like HIV to kick-start the immune system into neutralizing the virus - but the problem is that this is exactly what the human immune system has trouble doing even when it's exposed to the real thing. Now a team of researchers led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif. has developed a strategy for inducing a key part of an effective immune response to HIV...

Easily searchable facebook-like networks that could speed the development of new drugs and designer materials

Date: Jul-23-2013
Social media has expanded to reach an unlikely new target: molecules. Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have created networks of molecular data similar to Facebook's recently debuted graph search feature. While graph search would allow Facebook users to find all their New York-living, beer-drinking buddies in one quick search, the NIST-designed networks could help scientists rapidly sift through enormous chemical and biological data sets to find substances with specific properties, for example all 5-ring chemicals with an affinity for enzyme A...

Transcranial ultrasound improves mood

Date: Jul-23-2013
University of Arizona researchers have found in a recent study that ultrasound waves applied to specific areas of the brain appear able to alter patients' moods. The discovery has led the scientists to conduct further investigations with the hope that this technique could one day be used to treat conditions such as depression and anxiety. Dr...

Gingival stem cells offer potential for use in tissue regeneration

Date: Jul-23-2013
The International and American Associations for Dental Research (IADR/AADR) have published a paper titled "Gingivae Contain Neural-crest- and Mesoderm-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells." The paper, written by lead author Songtao Shi, Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology, Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA, is published in the Online First portion of the IADR/AADR Journal of Dental Research. Gingivae represent a unique soft tissue that serves as a biological barrier to cover the oral cavity side of the maxilla and mandible...

Gene expression in the human retina

Date: Jul-23-2013
Investigators at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Harvard Medical School have published the most thorough description of gene expression in the human retina reported to date. In a study published in the journal BMC Genomics, Drs. Michael Farkas, Eric Pierce and colleagues in the Ocular Genomics Institute (OGI) at Mass. Eye and Ear reported a complete catalog of the genes expressed in the retina. The retina is the neural tissue in the back of the eye that initiates vision...

Topiramate helps curb cocaine addictions

Date: Jul-23-2013
The drug topiramate, typically used to treat epilepsy and more recently weight loss, may also help people addicted to both cocaine and alcohol use less cocaine, particularly heavy users, researchers in the department of Psychiatry at Penn Medicine report in a new study published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence. Results from the double-blind, placebo-controlled trial adds to the growing body of evidence supporting topiramate as a promising medication to treat addiction...