Health News

Tumors Start To Develop As A Result Of Specific Combinations Of Errors In The Processes That Safeguard Cell Integrity

Date: Jun-08-2012
A study by Travis H. Stracker, researcher at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona), in collaboration with scientists at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York, reveals new information about the origin of tumors...

Demonstrating Technique To Give Us Better Understanding Of Human Tissues Focuses On Eye Tissues

Date: Jun-08-2012
Research from North Carolina State University demonstrates that a relatively new microscopy technique can be used to improve our understanding of human tissues and other biomedical materials. The study focused specifically on eye tissues, which are damaged by scarring in diabetic patients. "Our findings are a proof of concept, showing that this technique is extremely effective at giving us the data we need on these tissues," says Dr. Albena Ivanisevic, co-author of a paper describing the research...

Cell Contents May Be Key To Controlling Toxicity Of Huntington's Disease Protein

Date: Jun-08-2012
New research into the cell-damaging effects of Huntington's disease suggests a potentially new approach for identifying possible therapeutic targets for treating the nerve-destroying disorder. Huntington's disease causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain and affects an individual's movement, cognition and mental state. Genetically, the disease is associated with a mutation in the Huntingtin gene that causes the huntingtin protein to be produced with an extended region containing the amino acid glutamine...

Healthcare Deficit Likely Responsible For Appalachian Infant Death Rates

Date: Jun-08-2012
Infant death rates in Appalachia remain significantly higher than much of the rest of the country, and are especially high in the central Appalachian region, according to Penn State health policy researchers. The percentage of infant deaths in the United States declined throughout the 20th century, including in Appalachia. However, according to recent data there continue to be more white infant deaths in Appalachia than throughout much of the rest of the nation...

Seizure Susceptibility In Angelman Syndrome May Be Due To Brain Cell Activity Imbalance

Date: Jun-08-2012
New research by scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine may have pinpointed an underlying cause of the seizures that affect 90 percent of people with Angelman syndrome (AS), a neurodevelopmental disorder. Published online in the journal Neuron, researchers led by Benjamin D. Philpot, PhD, professor of cell and molecular physiology at UNC, describe how seizures in individuals with AS could be linked to an imbalance in the activity of specific types of brain cells...

Steps To Improve Implementation Of Global Road Safety Recommend By Researchers

Date: Jun-08-2012
Road traffic crashes kill more than 1.2 million people each year, with 90 percent of those fatalities occurring in low- and middle-income countries. Yet despite a growing body of data to support effective and proven interventions, proportional funding for implementation in developing countries has not been forthcoming, leaving a gap between evidence and action...

Heart Aging Decreased On Calorie-Restricted Diet

Date: Jun-08-2012
People who restrict their caloric intake in an effort to live longer have hearts that function more like those in people who are 20 years younger. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that a key measure of the heart's ability to adapt to physical activity, stress, sleep and other factors that influence the rate at which the heart pumps blood, doesn't decline nearly as rapidly in people who have significantly restricted their caloric intake for an average of seven years. The study is available online in the journal Aging Cell...

Appetite Controlling Brain Receptor May Be Target For Anti-Obesity Medications

Date: Jun-07-2012
A brain receptor which is involved in regulating appetite has been detected by scientists at Columbia University Medical Center. The researchers reported in the journal Cell that this very druggable target could mean that a new medication for obesity may not be that difficult to find. The scientists focused on the hypothalamus, a small area of the brain that controls body temperature, thirst, sleep, fatigue, circadian cycles, and hunger. Previous studies had indicated that the regulatory mechanism is concentrated in neurons that express AgRP - a brain modulator, or neuropeptide...

10% Of TB Cases In China Are Drug-Resistant Strains

Date: Jun-07-2012
Drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) in China makes up about 1 in every 10 new cases, according to a report based on data from China's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and published in NEJM (New England Journal of Medicine). Experts say that more rapid testing of the estimated 9 million infected individuals each year globally is crucial. In China alone, there are at least 1 million new infections annually. The authors explained that they obtained their data from local and regional surveys in China...

Postherpetic Neuralgia - GlaxoSmithKline And XenoPort Receive FDA Approval For Horizant

Date: Jun-07-2012
FDA approval is always welcome news, especially to patients needing treatment and stockholders waiting patiently for a return. GlaxoSmithKline and Xenoport announced today that the FDA has approved its Horizant new drug for postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in adults. The drug, known pharmaceutically as gabapentin enacarbil, is given as extended release tablets for the painf that occurs as a complication of shingles and affects the nerve fibres and skin. Shingles could be termed as the adult version of the childhood disease chicken pox...