Health News

Moderate Consumption Of Alcohol In Early Pregnancy Has No Adverse Effects On Children Aged 5

Date: Jun-20-2012
Low and moderate weekly alcohol consumption in early pregnancy is not associated with adverse neuropsychological effects in children aged five, suggests a series of papers published today (20 June) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. However, high levels of alcohol per week were linked with a lower attention span among five year olds. The Danish researchers have produced five papers looking at the effects of low, moderate, high and binge drinking on five year olds. Women were recruited from the Danish National Birth Cohort at their first antenatal visit...

Prostate Cancer Risk Higher For Heavy Tea Drinkers

Date: Jun-20-2012
A new study from Scotland has found that men who are heavy tea drinkers may be at higher risk for prostate cancer. However, the researchers point out their study was not designed to find causes, so all they can say is that heavy tea drinking is linked to a higher risk for prostate cancer and not necessarily the cause of it...

Opening The Door For Use Of Cardiac Stem Cell Patches In Disease Research, Testing Of New Drug Treatments, Therapies To Repair Damaged Heart Muscle

Date: Jun-20-2012
A cutting-edge method developed at the University of Michigan Center for Arrhythmia Research successfully uses stem cells to create heart cells capable of mimicking the heart's crucial squeezing action. The cells displayed activity similar to most people's resting heart rate. At 60 beats per minute, the rhythmic electrical impulse transmission of the engineered cells in the U-M study is 10 times faster than in most other reported stem cell studies...

Protection Against Respiratory Infection Linked To Asthma From Dog-Associated House Dust

Date: Jun-20-2012
House dust from homes with dogs appears to protect against infection with a common respiratory virus that is associated with the development of asthma in children. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, present their findings today at the 2012 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology. "In this study we found that feeding mice house dust from homes that have dogs present protected them against a childhood airway infectious agent, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)...

Among University Students, Asymptomatic Rhinovirus Infection Outnumbers Symptomatic Infection 4 To 1

Date: Jun-20-2012
The common cold virus may be more common than previously thought in university students not reporting any symptoms. Rhinovirus, the virus responsible for the common cold was found at some point during an 8-week study period in an estimated 60% of university students that were asymptomatic. Researchers from Canada reported their findings at the 2012 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology...

RLIP76 Contributes To Pancreatic Cancer Cell Resistance To Chemotherapy And Radiation

Date: Jun-20-2012
Researchers at the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center have not only identified a protein that allows pancreatic cancer cells to resist therapy but also developed a way to block it, according to results presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, being held here June 18-21. "Cancer of the pancreas is notoriously difficult to treat because it usually presents at late stages due to minimal or nonspecific symptoms in the early stages...

Risk For Pancreatic Cancer Reduced By Sun Exposure And Sun-Sensitive Skin Type

Date: Jun-20-2012
High levels of ultraviolet radiation at an individual's birth location, sun-sensitive skin type and a history of skin cancer each decreased risk for pancreatic cancer, according to study results presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, being held here June 18-21. Rachel Neale, Ph.D...

Human Pancreatic Tumor Growth In Hypoxic Xenografts Reduced By A Combination Of TH-302 And Radiation

Date: Jun-20-2012
A combination of the prodrug TH-302 and radiation may provide an effective treatment strategy for pancreatic cancer, according to preclinical results presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, being held here June 18-21. "We found that the combination of TH-302 and ionizing radiation reduced pancreatic tumor growth in hypoxic xenografts," said Ines Lohse, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at the Ontario Cancer Institute at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, Canada...

Association Between Genetic Marker In Vitamin D Receptor Gene And Increased Pancreatic Cancer Survival

Date: Jun-20-2012
Pancreatic cancer patients with a genetic marker linked to increased expression of the receptor for vitamin D have higher rates of overall survival, according to findings presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, being held here June 18-21. "Based on these findings, we should refocus our attention on the role of the vitamin D pathway in pancreatic cancer because it may have an impact on the survival of patients," said Federico Innocenti, M.D., Ph.D...

Cancer Stem Cell Death In Pancreatic Cancer Cell Lines Caused By Metformin Treatment

Date: Jun-20-2012
Results of some preclinical trials have shown that low doses of the antidiabetic drug metformin may effectively destroy cancer stem cells, a group of cells that are considered to be responsible for tumor initiation and, because they are resistant to standard chemotherapies, tumor relapse...