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Geneticist Develops Tool To Identify Genes Important In Disease And For Tailoring Individual Treatment
Date: May-03-2012Though the human genome has been sequenced, scientists are still trying to figure out how the accomplishment can help people, for example, how it can be used to treat disease. As University of Massachusetts Amherst geneticist Jacob Mayfield notes, "It was easy to think of the human genome as the big prize, but what we realize now is, it's just a foot in the door." "What we're beginning to understand is that the information we're interested in knowing lies in comparisons between genomes," he adds. As society moves to personalized, genome-based medicine, "much work remains for us to grasp what...
Ouchless Bandages Made From Inexpensive, Abundant Starch Fibers
Date: May-03-2012A process that spins starch into fine strands could take the sting out of removing bandages, as well as produce less expensive and more environmentally-friendly toilet paper, napkins and other products, according to Penn State food scientists. "There are many applications for starch fibers," said Lingyan Kong, graduate student, food science, "Starch is the most abundant and also the least expensive of natural polymers." Kong, who worked with Greg Ziegler, professor of food science, used a solvent to dissolve the starch into a fluid that can then be spun into long strands, or fibers. These...
Genetic Systems Disrupted In Autistic Brain
Date: May-03-2012Autism has a strong genetic basis, but so far efforts to identify the responsible genes have had mixed results. The reason for this is that autism is influenced by many different genes, and different genes are involved in different individuals, making it hard to find the common genetic ground between patients. Now, research conducted at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has shown that despite this fact, the different genes involved in autism tend to be involved in specific processes in the brain. This can explain, on the one hand, similarities in the behavioral symptoms of different...
Natural Does Not Equal Safe: The Risks Of Mixing Drugs And Herbal Supplements
Date: May-03-2012Herbal, dietary, and energy or nutritional supplements may offer specific health benefits, but they can also have harmful and even life-threatening effects when combined with commonly used medications. Clinicians need to be aware of and educate their patients about the potential risks of mixing supplements and therapeutic agents, since their interaction can diminish or increase drug levels. This timely topic is explored in a provocative article in Alternative and Complementary Therapies, published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The article is available free on the Alternative and Complementary...
Stunning Inner Space Observations Could Impact Treatment Of Down Syndrome, Lissencephaly Or Cancer
Date: May-03-2012Scientists using high-powered microscopes have made a stunning observation of the architecture within a cell - and identified for the first time how the architecture changes during the formation of gametes, also known as sex cells, in order to successfully complete the process. The findings by the international team led by the University of Leicester could impact on the treatment of disorders caused by a misregulation of cellular structures called microtubules. These disorders include Down's Syndrome, lissencephaly (a brain formation disorder) or cancer. Researching yeast cells, the scientists...
Irreversible Damage To Teeth Caused By Sports And Energy Drinks
Date: May-03-2012A recent study published in the May/June 2012 issue of General Dentistry, the peer-reviewed clinical journal of the Academy of General Dentistry, found that an alarming increase in the consumption of sports and energy drinks, especially among adolescents, is causing irreversible damage to teeth - specifically, the high acidity levels in the drinks erode tooth enamel, the glossy outer layer of the tooth. "Young adults consume these drinks assuming that they will improve their sports performance and energy levels and that they are 'better' for them than soda," says Poonam Jain, BDS, MS, MPH,...
Youth Exposure To Alcohol Marketing Needs To Be Addressed
Date: May-03-2012Reducing youth exposure to alcohol advertising and marketing is a missed opportunity for states to improve public health, according to a new review of state alcohol advertising laws from the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The report examines the extent to which states' alcohol advertising laws incorporate eight different best practices to reduce youth exposure to alcohol advertising and marketing, and finds only eleven states use more than one of the eight and no state uses more than five. The report is available on CAMY's...
Keeping Teens Substance Free
Date: May-03-2012During high school the parents of teenagers' friends can have as much effect on the teens' substance use as their own parents, according to prevention researchers. "Among friendship groups with 'good parents' there's a synergistic effect - if your parents are consistent and aware of your whereabouts, and your friends' parents are also consistent and aware of their (children's) whereabouts, then you are less likely to use substances," said Michael J. Cleveland, research assistant professor at the Prevention Research Center and the Methodology Center, Penn State. "But if you belong to a...
Clean Drinking Water For Everyone
Date: May-03-2012Nearly 80 percent of disease in developing countries is linked to bad water and sanitation. Now a scientist at Michigan Technological University has developed a simple, cheap way to make water safe to drink, even if it's muddy. It's easy enough to purify clear water. The solar water disinfection method, or SODIS, calls for leaving a transparent plastic bottle of clear water out in the sun for six hours. That allows heat and ultraviolet radiation to wipe out most pathogens that cause diarrhea, a malady that kills 4,000 children a day in Africa. It's a different story if the water is murky, as...
Weekend Home Repair Warriors And Construction Workers Travel Long Distances For Common Surgeries And Follow-Up Care
Date: May-03-2012Wrist, hand and finger trauma are the most common injuries presenting to emergency departments nationwide, yet only 7 percent of Tennessee hospitals have a hand specialist on call 24/7 to treat these patients, according to a Vanderbilt study published online today in the Annals of Plastic Surgery. Patients from Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama are traveling long distances to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment and follow-up care. Wesley Thayer, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of Plastic Surgery, and of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation, surveyed 119 Tennessee...
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