Health News

Stem cell combination therapy improves traumatic brain injury outcomes

Date: Mar-24-2014
Umbilical cord cell and growth factor treatment tested in animal models could offer hope for millions, including U.S. war veterans with traumatic brain injuries Traumatic brain injuries (TBI), sustained by close to 2 million Americans annually, including military personnel, are debilitating and devastating for patients and their families. Regardless of severity, those with TBI can suffer a range of motor, behavioral, intellectual and cognitive disabilities over the short or long term. Sadly, clinical treatments for TBI are few and largely ineffective.

Genetic influences on parenting

Date: Mar-24-2014
Scientists have presented the most conclusive evidence yet that genes play a significant role in parenting.A study by two Michigan State University psychologists refutes the popular theory that how adults parent their children is strictly a function of the way they were themselves parented when they were children.While environmental factors do play a role in parenting, so do a person's genes, said S. Alexandra Burt, associate professor of psychology and co-author of a study led by doctoral student Ashlea M. Klahr.

Cognitive function and oral perception in independently-living octogenarians

Date: Mar-24-2014
At the 43rd Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the American Association for Dental Research (AADR), held in conjunction with the 38th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, Kazunori Ikebe, from Osaka University, Japan, presented a research study titled "Cognitive Function and Oral Perception in Independently-living Octogenarians."In this study, researchers hypothesized that the decline of cognitive impairment is involved in oral perceptions since its preclinical stage.

Facial features linked to DNA

Date: Mar-24-2014
DNA can already tell us the sex and ancestry of unknown individuals, but now an international team of researchers is beginning to connect genetics with facial features, degrees of femininity and racial admixture."By jointly modeling sex, genomic ancestry and genotype, the independent effects of particular alleles on facial features can be uncovered," the researchers state in PLOS Genetics.

Insights at cellular level may explain patterns in developing embryos

Date: Mar-24-2014
Johns Hopkins biologists have discovered that when biological signals hit cells in rhythmic waves, the magnitude of the cells' response can depend on the number of signaling cycles - not their strength or duration. Because such so-called "oscillating signaling cycles" are common in many biological systems, the scientists expect their findings in single-celled organisms to help explain the molecular workings of phenomena such as tissue and organ formation and fundamental forms of learning.

Implementation of Massachusetts health care law led to a small increase in emergency room use

Date: Mar-24-2014
Emergency department usage in Massachusetts rose slightly both during and immediately after implementation of a 2006 state law expanding health care access, a sign that broader availability of insurance may increase use of the ED, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center researchers report in a study published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.The review of 13.

Defective gene could suggest a genetic basis for IBS

Date: Mar-24-2014
A joint team of researchers from Sweden, Italy, Greece and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota claim to have unearthed a clue to a genetic basis for irritable bowel syndrome.Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common intestinal disorder that affects about 15-20% of the Western world. In some countries, such as Sweden, IBS is the second highest cause of work absenteeism, after common colds.Symptoms of IBS include cramping, abdominal pain, bloating gas, diarrhea and constipation.

Mechanism discovered to reset body clock

Date: Mar-24-2014
Researchers from The University of Manchester have discovered a new mechanism that governs how body clocks react to changes in the environment.And the discovery, which is being published in Current Biology, could provide a solution for alleviating the detrimental effects of chronic shift work and jet-lag.The team's findings reveal that the enzyme casein kinase 1epsilon (CK1epsilon) controls how easily the body's clockwork can be adjusted or reset by environmental cues such as light and temperature.

How parents can teach their children to be safer

Date: Mar-24-2014
As parents, we've all been there: Watching our children teeter on a chair, leap from the sofa, or careen about the playground, fearing the worst. And, we all wonder, how can we teach them to be safer?Such was the goal of a team of researchers at the University of Iowa, who analyzed in a new study how children take stock of various real-life scenarios, and how mothers can help them assess potential hazards. Their conclusions: Children and mothers regularly don't see eye-to-eye on situational dangers.

Weight-regulating hormones may be impaired by childhood abuse

Date: Mar-24-2014
Childhood abuse or neglect can lead to long-term hormone impairment that raises the risk of developing obesity, diabetes or other metabolic disorders in adulthood, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).The study examined levels of the weight-regulating hormones leptin, adiponectin and irisin in the blood of adults who endured physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect as children. Leptin is involved in regulating appetite and is linked to body-mass index (BMI) and fat mass.