Health News

Weill Cornell scientists find gene implicated in progression and relapse of deadly breast cancer

Date: Mar-26-2014
Scientists from Weill Cornell Medical College and Houston Methodist have found that a gene previously unassociated with breast cancer plays a pivotal role in the growth and progression of the triple negative form of the disease, a particularly deadly strain that often has few treatment options. Their research, published in Nature, suggests that targeting the gene may be a new approach to treating the disease.About 42,000 new cases of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) are diagnosed in the United States each year, about 20 percent of all breast cancer diagnoses.

Recreational drug users who switch from ecstasy to mephedrone don't understand the dangers

Date: Mar-26-2014
Contrary to popular belief among recreational drug users, mephedrone has several important differences when compared with MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy. These differences mean that mephedrone could leave a user with acute withdrawal symptoms and indicate that it may have a higher potential for developing dependence than MDMA according to a study published in British Journal of Pharmacology.

IU researchers identify key molecular factors in heart development, related birth defects

Date: Mar-26-2014
Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine have identified a series of molecular signals that control a crucial process of heart development spanning a period from shortly before birth into the post-natal period.The research reveals for the first time how the wiring for the body's sympathetic nervous system - the so-called "fight or flight" system" - gets installed into the still-developing newborn heart and the important role it plays in heart function. The research was published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

IU researchers identify key molecular factors in heart development, related birth defects

Date: Mar-26-2014
Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine have identified a series of molecular signals that control a crucial process of heart development spanning a period from shortly before birth into the post-natal period.The research reveals for the first time how the wiring for the body's sympathetic nervous system - the so-called "fight or flight" system" - gets installed into the still-developing newborn heart and the important role it plays in heart function. The research was published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Elderly women may benefit from higher amounts of protein

Date: Mar-26-2014
Elderly women could benefit from consuming 29 percent more protein than the current nutrition guidelines recommend, according to new research from Purdue University."Our data suggests that the current dietary protein requirement estimate may be too low and reinforces that more research is needed to identify accurate protein amounts for older adults," said nutrition science professor Wayne W. Campbell, an expert on dietary protein and human health.

Elderly women may benefit from higher amounts of protein

Date: Mar-26-2014
Elderly women could benefit from consuming 29 percent more protein than the current nutrition guidelines recommend, according to new research from Purdue University."Our data suggests that the current dietary protein requirement estimate may be too low and reinforces that more research is needed to identify accurate protein amounts for older adults," said nutrition science professor Wayne W. Campbell, an expert on dietary protein and human health.

New enhanced microbial killing discovered in neutrophils

Date: Mar-26-2014
Case Western Reserve University researchers have discovered a novel population of neutrophils, which are the body's infection control workhorses. These cells have an enhanced microbial killing ability and are thereby better able to control infection. Neutrophils, the body's most abundant type of white blood cells, have long been regarded as first responders that kill fungi, bacteria, and other pathogens. In a study published in Nature Immunology, Case Western Reserve researchers explain that they have found the mechanism of action of a newly discovered population of neutrophils.

New enhanced microbial killing discovered in neutrophils

Date: Mar-26-2014
Case Western Reserve University researchers have discovered a novel population of neutrophils, which are the body's infection control workhorses. These cells have an enhanced microbial killing ability and are thereby better able to control infection. Neutrophils, the body's most abundant type of white blood cells, have long been regarded as first responders that kill fungi, bacteria, and other pathogens. In a study published in Nature Immunology, Case Western Reserve researchers explain that they have found the mechanism of action of a newly discovered population of neutrophils.

Protein called YAP gives blood vessels strength and shape

Date: Mar-26-2014
When yes-associated protein, or YAP, is deleted from vascular smooth muscle cells during development, the protein makes thin-walled blood vessels that over-dilate in response to the usual pressure of blood flow, said Dr. Jiliang Zhou, vascular biologist at the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University."The thickness of the arterial wall decreases from three or four layers of smooth muscle cells to one or two layers," said Zhou, corresponding author of the study featured on the cover of the American Heart Association journal, Circulation Research.

Leading surgeons warn against media hype about tracheal regeneration

Date: Mar-26-2014
Reports of the two earliest tissue-engineered whole organ transplants using a windpipe, or trachea, created using the patient's own stem cells, were hailed as a breakthrough for regenerative medicine and widely publicized in the press. However, two leading transplant surgeons in Belgium warn of the dangers of media attention, and urge that tracheal bioengineering be demonstrated as both effective and safe before further transplants take place.