Health News

In Massachusetts, increasing the number of insured patients is not tied to higher ICU usage

Date: Nov-27-2013
A multi-institution study led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has found that increasing the number of insured patients is not associated with higher intensive care unit (ICU) usage in Massachusetts.Because ICU care is expensive, concerns have been raised that increasing the number of insured patients would inevitably lead to significantly higher health care costs as more of these newly insured patients would be admitted to ICUs.

Care improved and costs reduced by customized palliative care models

Date: Nov-27-2013
For high-risk geriatric patients, improved palliative care that is matched to their changing needs at home can reduce emergency room visits, reduce health care costs, and improve overall care. Current gaps in policy and practice that block implementation of these beneficial customized care models are presented in the article "Research Priorities in Geriatric Palliative Care: Policy Initiatives," published in Journal of Palliative Medicine, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Journal of Palliative Medicine website.

Keeping astrocytes' phagocytic process from slowing has implications for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease

Date: Nov-27-2013
Stanford University School of Medicine neuroscientists have discovered a new role played by a common but mysterious class of brain cells.Their findings, published online in Nature, show that these cells, called astrocytes because of their star-like shape, actively refine nerve-cell circuits by selectively eliminating synapses - contact points through which nerve cells, or neurons, convey impulses to one another - much as a sculptor chisels away excess bits of rock to create an artwork.

Colonization with superbug CRE may be eliminated by Drug regimen

Date: Nov-27-2013
Orally administered, nonabsorbable antibiotics were effective in eradicating carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) colonization, according to a new study published in the December issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, a publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).Researchers at Rambam Health Care Campus, a 1,000-bed, tertiary care center in Haifa, Israel, examined isolates from 152 patients who were identified as CRE carriers (colonized with the organism, but not yet showing disease) over a 24-month period.

Enhancing mitochondrial function may negate resistance to radiation therapy

Date: Nov-27-2013
The resistance of some cancers to the cell-killing effects of radiation therapy may be due to abnormalities in the mitochondria - the cellular structures responsible for generating energy, according to an international team of researchers. Their findings are published in Developmental Cell.Maxim Frolov, associate professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and colleagues investigated the effects of a mutation in a gene called E2F, which controls other genes responsible for initiating programmed cell death, a normal function in most cells.

Genetic mutation associated with steroid-resistant nephritic syndrome identified

Date: Nov-27-2013
Patients with nephritic syndrome exhibit an array of symptoms that are associated with loss of kidney function, including excess protein in urine, swelling, and albuminuria. Many nephritic syndrome patients respond well to treatment with steroids; however, subsets of patients are resistant to steroid treatment and are at high risk of kidney failure. Recent studies have identified single gene mutations that are associated with development of steroid-resistant nephritic syndrome; however, these mutations account for approximately half of all steroid-resistant cases.

Improved understanding of type 2B von Willebrand disease

Date: Nov-27-2013
In response to blood vessel damage, von Willebrand factor (vWF) binds to the exposed extra cellular matrix, recruits platelets to the site of injury, and activates platelets, which promotes thrombis formation. Patients with von Willebrand disease type 2B (vWD-type 2B) produce a vWF protein that has a high binding affinity for platelets; however, these patients exhibit a bleeding tendency that is thought to be due to loss of vWF multimers.

Cell surface molecules involved in intra-islet communication may represent important clinical targets in type 1 diabetes

Date: Nov-27-2013
Pancreatic islet transplantation is a promising therapy for treating type 1 diabetes, but the majority of transplanted cells die soon after they are transplanted. Researchers interested in prolonging the life of these cells co-transplanted endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) along with pancreatic islet cells and found that the EPCs improved the engraftment of pancreatic islet cells in mouse models, thereby favorably impacting on the cure rate and glycemic control of transplanted islets.

Alternate pathway for drug development to fight HIV

Date: Nov-27-2013
A collaborative team led by a Northeastern University professor may have altered the way we look at drug development for HIV by uncovering some unusual properties of a human protein called APOBEC3G (A3G).In an article published in Nature Chemistry, Prof. Mark Williams and his graduate student Kathy Chaurasiya, along with several collaborators, show how these unusual properties help us to fight HIV infection.APOBEC3GIt is well known that in response to virus infection, the body makes specific antibodies to counteract the infection.

B cells can deliver potentially therapeutic bits of modified RNA

Date: Nov-27-2013
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have successfully targeted T lymphocytes - which play a central role in the body's immune response - with another type of white blood cell engineered to synthesize and deliver bits of non-coding RNA or microRNA (miRNA).