Health News

MRI shows long-term effect of blast-induced brain injuries

Date: Dec-02-2013
New research being presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago, IL, this week shows how a highly sensitive type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can reveal the long-term impact of blast-induced brain injuries in soldiers.Called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), the MRI method identifies tiny injuries in the structure of white matter in the brain. White matter consists almost entirely of signal-carrying nerve fibers or axons.

New treatment hope for children as young as two suffering from a debilitating form of juvenile arthritis

Date: Dec-02-2013
RoActemra® (tocilizumab) has been launched as a specific treatment option for pJIA, the form of juvenile arthritis with the worst prognosis.1 This decision heralds a less frequent dosing regimen than currently available treatments for many of the estimated one thousand plus children1 who have failed with methotrexate (MTX) and whose childhood could be affected by pJIA, which can make simple, everyday activities such as walking and playing with friends both painful and challenging.

Improving disease monitoring in remote locations: American Chemical Society podcast

Date: Dec-02-2013
The latest episode in the American Chemical Society's (ACS') award-winning Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions podcast series features an advance in smartphone-based imaging that could help physicians in resource-limited locations monitor their patients' health. The development converts smartphones into powerful mini-microscopes that, for the first time, can detect individual viruses.Based on a report by Aydogan Ozcan, Ph.D., in the journal ACS Nano, the new podcast is available without charge at iTunes and here.

In Parkinson's disease, Chinese medicines that tonify the kidney inhibit dopaminergic neuron apoptosis

Date: Dec-02-2013
Parkinson's disease is a common neurodegenerative disease in the elderly, which is pathologically characterized by selective loss of dopaminergic neurons. Compound preparations of Chinese medicines that can tonify the kidney have been reported to significantly improve symptoms of Parkinson's disease. However, the mechanism of action remains unclear. To investigate whether Chinese medicines that tonify the kidney can protect in vitro cultures of dopaminergic neurons, a recent study published in Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No.

The presence of male roundworms may shorten females' lifespan

Date: Dec-02-2013
Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered that males of the laboratory roundworm secrete signaling molecules that significantly shorten the lifespan of the opposite sex.The scientists speculate that, if carried out after reproduction, this "male-induced demise" could serve to conserve precious resources for a male's offspring or to decrease the supply of mates for other males.For several years, it's been known that the presence of some male worms and flies can shorten the lifespan of their female or hermaphroditic counterparts.

Gut feeling could prevent unhappy marriage

Date: Dec-02-2013
Although newlyweds may not be completely aware of it, they may know whether their march down the aisle will result in wedded bliss or an unhappy marriage, according to new study led by a Florida State University researcher.Associate Professor of Psychology James K. McNulty and his colleagues studied 135 heterosexual couples who had been married for less than six months and then followed up with them every six months over a four-year period. They found that the feelings the study participants verbalized about their marriages were unrelated to changes in their marital happiness over time.

Angiogenesis and cancer growth controlled by methylation signaling

Date: Dec-02-2013
A study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) demonstrates a new mechanism involving a signaling protein and its receptor that may block the formation of new blood vessels and cancer growth. The findings are published in the December issue of Science Signaling.Angiogenesis creates new blood vessels in a process that can lead to the onset and progression of several diseases such as cancer and age-related macular degeneration.

Potential target identified for malaria drugs

Date: Dec-02-2013
Researchers have identified the protein in malaria-causing Plasmodium parasites that is inhibited by a newly discovered class of anti-malarial compounds known as imidazopyrazines. The protein, phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase (PI4K), is the first potential malaria drug target shown to be essential to all stages of the Plasmodium life cycle; imidazopyrazines impede its activity throughout this process. Led by Elizabeth Winzeler, Ph.D., of the University of California, San Diego and Novartis Research Foundation, the research was published online in Nature.

The sound of a hundred thousand soccer fans - acoustics of the caxirola

Date: Dec-02-2013
Mention vuvuzela to soccer fans, and they may cringe. The plastic horn rose to prominence during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where tens of thousands of those instruments blared in packed stadiums. The loud, buzzing noise soon became a major annoyance, disrupting players and even fans watching on TV.Now, for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, organizers have introduced the maraca-like caxirola as the official instrument of the event. The caxirola, based on the African caxixi, was invented by Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown to be more subdued than the vuvuzela.

Beware of rip currents - they claim more lives than other natural hazards

Date: Dec-02-2013
Rip currents claim more lives in Australia on average each year than bushfires, floods, cyclones and sharks combined, UNSW research shows.Rip currents are the cause of an average 21 confirmed human fatalities per year, compared with 5.9 for bushfires, 4.3 for floods, 7.5 for cyclones and 1 for sharks."Rips account for greater overall loss of human life than other high profile natural hazards. Yet they do not get anywhere near as much attention and dedicated funding," says Dr Rob Brander, a coastal geomorphologist at UNSW, and lead author of the study.