Health News

Promising tool identified for cardiac stem cell grafting

Date: Dec-09-2013
New research by University of Vermont Associate Professor of Medicine Jeffrey Spees, Ph.D., and colleagues has identified a new tool that could help facilitate future stem cell therapy for the more than 700,000 Americans who suffer a heart attack each year. The study appeared online in Stem Cells Express.Stem cells, which can come from embryos, fetal tissue and adult tissues, have the potential to develop into a variety of cell types in the body, such as muscle cells, brain cells and red blood cells. These cells also possess the ability to repair human tissues.

High-school seniors' use of crack and powder cocaine

Date: Dec-09-2013
The use of crack and powder cocaine both varies and overlaps among high school seniors, researchers at New York University and NYU Langone Medical Center have found. Their findings, which appear in the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, point to the need to take into account both common and different at-risk factors in developing programming and messaging to stem cocaine use.

Promising tool identified for cardiac stem cell grafting

Date: Dec-09-2013
New research by University of Vermont Associate Professor of Medicine Jeffrey Spees, Ph.D., and colleagues has identified a new tool that could help facilitate future stem cell therapy for the more than 700,000 Americans who suffer a heart attack each year. The study appeared online in Stem Cells Express.Stem cells, which can come from embryos, fetal tissue and adult tissues, have the potential to develop into a variety of cell types in the body, such as muscle cells, brain cells and red blood cells. These cells also possess the ability to repair human tissues.

Inflammation in prostate biopsies 'indicates reduced cancer risk'

Date: Dec-09-2013
Researchers say that men who show signs of inflammation in their initial prostate biopsies may have a reduced risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer from future biopsies. This is according to a study published in the journal Cancer.Investigators from the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System in New Hyde Park, NY, led by Dr. Daniel Moreira, say their findings suggest that since inflammation has a "predictive value," it should be regularly reported from prostate biopsies.

Re-purposing mobile phone camera into mini-microscope for low-cost diagnostics

Date: Dec-09-2013
Microscopy, being relatively easy to perform at low cost, is the universal diagnostic method for detection of most globally important parasitic infections. Methods developed in well-equipped laboratories are, however, difficult to maintain at the basic levels of the health care system due to lack of adequately trained personnel and resources.

Inflammation in prostate biopsies 'indicates reduced cancer risk'

Date: Dec-09-2013
Researchers say that men who show signs of inflammation in their initial prostate biopsies may have a reduced risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer from future biopsies. This is according to a study published in the journal Cancer.Investigators from the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System in New Hyde Park, NY, led by Dr. Daniel Moreira, say their findings suggest that since inflammation has a "predictive value," it should be regularly reported from prostate biopsies.

Air pollution 'kills at levels well below EU guidelines'

Date: Dec-09-2013
Exposure to air pollution has long been associated with the development of serious health issues, such as lung cancer. The European Union set air quality limits, stating that air pollution must not exceed 25 micrograms per cubic meter. But new research suggests exposure to air pollution can kill at levels well below these limits.To reach their findings, published in the Lancet, a team of international researchers reviewed data spanning almost 20 years from 367,251 residents of large cities over 13 European countries.

Never turn your back on a shark

Date: Dec-09-2013
Caribbean reef sharks can tell if a human is facing toward them. They prefer to sneak up from behind, study shows."Never turn your back on a shark" is the take home message from an article published in Springer's journal Animal Cognition. Erich Ritter of the Shark Research Institute and Raid Amin of the University of West Florida in the US contend that sharks can comprehend body orientation and therefore know whether humans are facing them or not. This ability helps sharks to approach and possibly attack their prey from the blind side - a technique they prefer.

Air pollution 'kills at levels well below EU guidelines'

Date: Dec-09-2013
Exposure to air pollution has long been associated with the development of serious health issues, such as lung cancer. The European Union set air quality limits, stating that air pollution must not exceed 25 micrograms per cubic meter. But new research suggests exposure to air pollution can kill at levels well below these limits.To reach their findings, published in the Lancet, a team of international researchers reviewed data spanning almost 20 years from 367,251 residents of large cities over 13 European countries.

New insights into the functioning of the brain from recurring memory traces

Date: Dec-09-2013
While the human brain is in a resting state, patterns of neuronal activity which are associated to specific memories may spontaneously reappear. Such recurrences contribute to memory consolidation - i.e. to the stabilization of memory contents. Scientists of the DZNE and the University of Bonn are reporting these findings in the current issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The researchers headed by Nikolai Axmacher performed a memory test on a series of people while monitoring their brain activity by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).