ScienceDaily Health Headlines
for Wednesday, August 18, 2010
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Accomplice in breast cancer discovered (August 18, 2010) -- Scientists have discovered an accomplice in breast cancer -- a master control switch with the power to set off a cascade of reactions orchestrated by a cancer-causing gene (or oncogene) named Wnt1. ... > full story
Studying yeast to better understand male infertility (August 18, 2010) -- Men and yeast have something in common: they use the same molecular process to ensure the integrity of their gene pool during reproduction, according to researchers in France. The scientists are studying yeast in order to shed light on the numerous cases of male infertility related to the malfunction of this process during spermatogenesis ... > full story
Skin condition associated with depression, anxiety and suicidal feelings (August 18, 2010) -- Individuals with psoriasis appear to have an increased risk of depression, anxiety and suicidality, according to a new study. ... > full story
Evolution may have pushed humans toward greater risk for type 1 diabetes (August 18, 2010) -- Gene variants associated with an increased risk for type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis may confer previously unknown benefits to their human carriers, say researchers. As a result, the human race may have been evolving in the recent past to be more susceptible, rather than less, to some complex diseases, they conclude. ... > full story
B vitamins and the aging brain examined (August 18, 2010) -- Nutritionist are taking a closer look at the role the B vitamins may play in preventing decline in brain function. ... > full story
Genetic link to advanced fatty liver disease confirmed by new studies (August 18, 2010) -- Researchers have found that patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) who carry an allele of the PNPLA3 gene have an increased risk of developing advanced disease, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Another study validates these findings and further concludes that in pediatric patients, the same allele is associated with earlier disease presentation. ... > full story
Postnatal depression can be prevented by health visitors, study finds (August 18, 2010) -- Training health visitors to assess and psychologically support mothers after childbirth can prevent the development of depression over the following year, shows a new analysis of data from a full scale clinical trial in adults. ... > full story
Moderate chocolate consumption linked to lower risks of heart failure, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Middle-aged and elderly Swedish women who regularly ate a small amount of chocolate had lower risks of heart failure risks, according to a new study. ... > full story
Saving the brain's white matter with mutated mice (August 17, 2010) -- Scientists are developing laboratory mice which carry the Vanishing White Matter (VWM) mutation. This important new development allows for new research on VWM diseases such as multiple sclerosis, leading to a deeper understanding of the condition. ... > full story
Prevalence of hearing loss among US adolescents has increased significantly (August 17, 2010) -- Data from two nationally representative surveys indicates that the prevalence of hearing loss among US adolescents increased by about 30 percent from 1988-1994 to 2005-2006, with 1 in 5 adolescents having hearing loss in 2005-2006, according to a new study. ... > full story
High stress levels may delay women getting pregnant, study suggests (August 17, 2010) -- Healthy women trying for a baby may have reduced chances of becoming pregnant in any month if they are stressed, the results of a study suggest. ... > full story
Sports brain trauma may cause disease mimicking ALS, researchers find (August 17, 2010) -- New research provides the first pathological evidence that repetitive head trauma experienced in collision sports is associated with motor neuron disease, a neurological condition that affects voluntary muscle movements. The most common form of motor neuron disease is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease. ... > full story
Two types of bone marrow stem cells could work together to advance regenerative medicine (August 17, 2010) -- A unique "partnership" between two types of bone marrow stem cells could lead to advances in regenerative medicine. ... > full story
Marriage and committed romance reduce stress-related hormone production (August 17, 2010) -- Being married has often been associated with improving people's health, but a new study suggests that having that long-term bond also alters hormones in a way that reduces stress. Unmarried people in a committed, romantic relationship show the same reduced responses to stress as do married people. ... > full story
New drugs to treat chronic pain without numbing may be possible (August 17, 2010) -- Researchers have made a discovery that could lead to a brand new class of drugs to treat chronic pain caused by inflammatory conditions such as arthritis and back pain without numbing the whole body. ... > full story
Lung stem cells vital to lung repair associated with poor cancer prognosis when found in tumor (August 17, 2010) -- Adult stem cells that are vital for airway repair in the lung but that persist in areas where pre-cancerous lesions are found are associated with a poor prognosis in patients who develop cancer, even those with early stage disease, researchers have found. ... > full story
Heavy drug-use among bad boys curbed by parental monitoring and peers (August 17, 2010) -- Aggressive and hyperactive boys with low parental monitoring are more likely to befriend deviant peers and become heavy drug users as teens, according to a new study. Yet the investigation found that 'bad boys' can be protected from heavy substance use as teenagers if they are highly monitored and befriend 'good boys' as children. ... > full story
Nearly one million children in U.S. potentially misdiagnosed with ADHD, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Nearly one million children in the United States are potentially misdiagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder simply because they are the youngest -- and most immature -- in their kindergarten class, according to new research. ... > full story
New screen offers hope for copper deficiency sufferers (August 17, 2010) -- Copper deficiency diseases can be crippling, with symptoms ranging from neurodegeneration to skin pigmentation disorders, but virtually nothing is known about how our bodies use this essential nutrient. Scientists have developed a ground-breaking new screening technique to identify key genes in copper deficiency diseases. They identified mutations in a major cellular mechanism that could explain why some people are more vulnerable to copper deficiency than others. ... > full story
Many Americans are still clueless on how to save energy (August 17, 2010) -- Many Americans believe they can save energy with small behavior changes that actually achieve very little, and severely underestimate the major effects of switching to efficient, currently available technologies, says a new survey of Americans in 34 states. The study quizzed people on what they perceived as the most effective way to save energy. ... > full story
Preschoolers use statistics to understand others (August 17, 2010) -- Children are natural psychologists. By the time they're in preschool, they understand that other people have desires, preferences, beliefs and emotions. But how they learn this isn't clear. A new study finds that children figure out another person's preferences by using a topic you'd think they don't encounter until college: statistics. ... > full story
'Smart' adult stem cells repair hearts (August 17, 2010) -- Researchers have demonstrated that rationally "guided" human adult stem cells can effectively heal, repair and regenerate damaged heart tissue. ... > full story
Ozone and nicotine a bad combination for asthma (August 17, 2010) -- Researchers have demonstrated that ozone can react with the nicotine in secondhand tobacco smoke to form ultrafine particles that may become a bigger threat to asthma sufferers than nicotine itself. ... > full story
SPF on your plate: Researcher connects the Mediterranean diet with skin cancer prevention (August 17, 2010) -- New research shows that a diet rich in antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids, like the diet eaten in Mediterranean regions where melanoma rates are extremely low, can help protect us from skin cancer. A researcher in Israel has a simple prescription: "go Greek" with foods such as olive oil, fish, yogurt and colorful fruits and vegetables to fight the oxidizing effect of the sun. ... > full story
Presidential election outcomes directly influence suicide rates, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Change and hope were central themes to the November 2008 US presidential election. A new longitudinal study published in the September issue of Social Science Quarterly analyzes suicide rates at a state level from 1981-2005 and determines that presidential election outcomes directly influence suicide rates among voters. ... > full story
MRSA-killing paint created (August 17, 2010) -- Building on an enzyme found in nature, researchers have created a nanoscale coating for surgical equipment, hospital walls, and other surfaces which safely eradicates methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, the bacteria responsible for antibiotic resistant infections. ... > full story
UV-B treatment may improve psoriasis and vitamin D levels (August 17, 2010) -- Treatment with narrow-band UV-B rays may increase serum levels of vitamin D in the wintertime while clearing psoriasis, according to a new study. ... > full story
Gallbladder cancer may be linked to estrogens, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- A very aggressive disease with a poor prognosis, gallbladder cancer may be connected to higher exposure to estrogens, according to researchers. They show, for the first time, that the absence of liver X beta receptors in a complex interplay with estrogens, induces gallbladder cancer exclusively in female mice and that the elimination of estrogens prevents the development of tumors in this animal model. ... > full story
Reminding health-care staff to remove catheters reduces infections by half (August 17, 2010) -- Urinary catheters are often left in place longer than needed, and new research shows that reminder systems that encourage hospital staff to remove catheters promptly can reduce the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infections by 52 percent. ... > full story
Growing up without sibs doesn't hurt social skills, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Growing up without siblings doesn't seem to be a disadvantage for teenagers when it comes to social skills, new research suggests. A study of more than 13,000 middle and high school students across the country found that "only children" were selected as friends by their schoolmates just as often as were peers who grew up with brothers and sisters. ... > full story
Studies pinpoint key targets for MRSA vaccine (August 17, 2010) -- Two studies point to a new way to a vaccinate against drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- also known as MRSA -- the leading US cause of skin, soft tissue, bloodstream and lung infections, as well as deaths from infectious disease. One counteracts the bacteria's tools for evading the immune system; the other disrupts the germ's tissue-damaging mechanism. Each approach reduced the microbe's virulence in mice. The combination may protect people from MRSA and provide lasting immunity. ... > full story
Health impact of Gulf Coast oil spill hazardous but improving (August 17, 2010) -- The oil spill along the United States Gulf Coast poses health risks to volunteers, fishermen, clean-up workers and members of coastal communities, according to a new commentary by researchers who spent time in the region and are among the first to look into health problems caused by the oil spill. ... > full story
Scientists map epigenetic changes during blood cell differentiation; Potential application for stem cell therapies (August 17, 2010) -- Having charted the occurrence of a common chemical change that takes place while stem cells decide their fates and progress from precursor to progeny, scientists have produced the first-ever epigenetic landscape map for tissue differentiation. ... > full story
Gene that causes barnacles to avoid ship hulls identified (August 17, 2010) -- The substance medetomidine has proved effective in preventing fouling of ship bottoms. Researchers have now identified the gene that causes the barnacle to react to the substance, opening up the possibility of an anti-fouling paint that is gentle both on barnacles and on the environment. ... > full story
Obesity rates decline for many adolescents, but disparities worsen (August 17, 2010) -- Obesity rates have started to decline and level off for many adolescents, but continue to increase for certain racial and ethnic minorities, according to a new study. ... > full story
Genes associated with aggressive breast cancer (August 17, 2010) -- Researchers in Sweden have identified 12 genes that could be associated with aggressive breast tumors. The discovery could result in more reliable prognoses and better treatment strategies for patients. ... > full story
Novel role: EZH2 boosts creation of ovarian cancer blood vessels (August 17, 2010) -- A protein associated with cancer progression when abundant inside of tumors also unexpectedly regulates the creation of new blood vessels that feed the tumor outside, a research team reports. ... > full story
Disadvantaged adolescents prone to adult crime and substance abuse problems, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Early intervention among young adolescents with delinquency problems may help prevent the development of long-term crime and substance abuse problems, a new article suggests. ... > full story
Substantial costs associated with scientific misconduct should prioritize prevention efforts, experts argue (August 17, 2010) -- The estimated costs associated with a single investigation of scientific misconduct can be as high as US 5,000, and the costs of investigating the allegations of scientific misconduct annually reported in the United States to the Office of Research Integrity, could exceed 0 million, according to experts. ... > full story
Combined data for estimating insecticide-treated bed net coverage in Africa (August 17, 2010) -- In research published this week in PLoS Medicine Stephen Lim and colleagues (University of Washington) systematically estimate the changes in distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) across Africa between 2000 and 2008, and find that several countries have managed to scale up their ITN coverage from near zero to more than 60 percent. ... > full story
Probabilistic modeling of verbal autopsy data is best for public health decision making, study finds (August 17, 2010) -- Computer-based probabilistic models that are used to interpret verbal autopsy data -- information from interviews with family, friends and carers about deaths that are later interpreted into possible cause(s) of death -- are as effective as physician reviews of the data for establishing cause of death, according to new research. ... > full story
Health care system delay may increase risk of death for heart patients receiving reperfusion therapy (August 17, 2010) -- For patients with a certain type of heart attack, delay in the time between first contact with emergency medical service to initiation of therapy such as balloon angioplasty is associated with an increased risk of death. ... > full story
Prediction model may help determine risk of critical illness after out-of-hospital emergency care (August 17, 2010) -- A prediction score that included such factors as age, blood pressure, heart and respiratory rate for patients who received out-of-hospital emergency care was associated with the development of critical illness during hospitalization such as severe sepsis, the need for mechanical ventilation or death, according to a new study. ... > full story
MRSA policies differ among hospitals, study shows (August 17, 2010) -- Acute care hospitals in the United States varied in their policies and practices of screening and treating methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, but most were consistent with national guideline recommendations, according to researchers. ... > full story
Birth dates, school enrollment dates affect ADHD diagnosis rates, study shows (August 17, 2010) -- Rising rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and large differences in diagnosis rates have led to fears that the condition is often being misdiagnosed. A new study demonstrates that these concerns are justified. Researchers found large discrepancies in diagnosis and treatment rates based on small differences in children's dates of birth. ... > full story
Scientists successfully use human induced pluripotent stem cells to treat Parkinson's in rodents (August 16, 2010) -- Researchers have successfully used human induced pluripotent stem cells to treat rodents afflicted with Parkinson's disease. The research validates a scalable protocol that can be used to manufacture the type of neurons needed to treat the disease and paves the way for the use of iPSC's in various biomedical applications. ... > full story
Birth control pill equally effective for women regardless of their weight (August 16, 2010) -- The first study to compare the effectiveness of the birth control pill in women with marked weight differences has found that the pill works equally well in women with obesity and thinner women. This new finding by physician-scientists refutes a long-held conviction among many doctors that the pill may not reliably prevent pregnancy in women who are overweight or obese. ... > full story
New microneedle antimicrobial techniques may foster medical tech innovation (August 16, 2010) -- Researchers have developed two new approaches for incorporating antimicrobial properties into microneedles -- vanishingly thin needles that hold great promise for use in portable medical devices. Researchers expect the findings to spur development of new medical applications using microneedles. ... > full story
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