ScienceDaily Health Headlines
for Tuesday, October 26, 2010
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Chemotherapy plus radiation prevents bladder cancer recurrences, study finds (October 26, 2010) -- Adding chemotherapy to radiation therapy for muscle invasive bladder cancer allows 67 percent of people to be free of disease in their bladders two years after treatment. This compares to 54 percent of people who receive radiation alone, according to the largest randomized study of its kind. ... > full story
Unexpected findings of lead exposure may lead to treating blindness (October 26, 2010) -- Some unexpected effects of lead exposure that may one day help prevent and reverse blindness have been uncovered. A new study suggests that lead, or a new drug that acts like lead, could transform human embryonic retinal stem cells into neurons that would be transplanted into patients to treat retinal degenerations. ... > full story
Stop the bleeding: New way to restore numbers of key blood-clotting cells (October 26, 2010) -- Platelets are cells in the blood that have a key role in stopping bleeding. Thrombocytopenia is the medical term used to describe the presence of abnormally low numbers of platelets in the blood. Platelet transfusion is used to treat several causes of thrombocytopenia, but there is a shortage of donors. However, researchers have now identified a potential new approach to platelet replacement therapy that circumvents the problem of donor shortage. ... > full story
Peace of mind closes health gap for less-educated, study finds (October 26, 2010) -- Psychological well-being is powerful enough to counteract the pull of socioeconomic status on the long-term health of the disadvantaged, according to a new study. ... > full story
Radiation therapy improves painful condition associated with multiple sclerosis, study finds (October 26, 2010) -- Stereotactic radiation is an effective, long-term treatment for trigeminal neuralgia: a painful condition that occurs with increased frequency in patients with multiple sclerosis. Radiation is noninvasive and has less negative side effects than other treatments, according to the longest follow-up in a study of its kind. ... > full story
Molecular guardian of cell's RNA identified (October 26, 2010) -- When most genes are transcribed, the nascent RNAs produced are not quite ready to be translated into proteins -- they have to be spliced first, where non-coding sequences are removed and the remaining coding sequences are joined to form a final mRNA. U1, a splicing component, has a second, equally important role in gene expression: To enable sequences to be read out into their transcripts in their entirety, rather than prematurely stopped. ... > full story
Pathway drives spread of pediatric bone cancer (October 26, 2010) -- Researchers have identified an important signaling pathway that, when blocked, significantly decreases the spread of pediatric bone cancer. ... > full story
Why does lack of sleep affect us differently? Study hints it may be in our genes (October 25, 2010) -- Ever wonder why some people breeze along on four hours of sleep when others can barely function? It may be in our genes, according to new research. ... > full story
Listeria clever at finding its way into bloodstream, causing sickness (October 25, 2010) -- Pathogenic listeria tricks intestinal cells into helping it pass through those cells to make people ill, and, if that doesn't work, the bacteria simply goes around the cells, according to a new study. ... > full story
Statin use associated with statistically significant reduction in colorectal cancer (October 25, 2010) -- A systematic review of the medical literature supports the hypothesis that statins, cholesterol-lowering drugs used to prevent cardiac problems, are associated with reduced risk of colon and rectal cancers. A comprehensive analysis included 22 scientific studies with more than 2.5 million combined participants. ... > full story
Aspirin use associated with lower risk of cancer death for men with prostate cancer (October 25, 2010) -- Men with prostate cancer who take anticoagulants like aspirin in addition to radiation therapy or surgery may be able to cut their risk of dying of the disease by more than half, according to a large study. The study involved more than 5,000 men with localized cancer whose disease had not spread beyond the prostate gland. ... > full story
Exercising in the heat may improve athletic performance in cool and hot conditions, study suggests (October 25, 2010) -- Turning up the heat might be the best thing for athletes competing in cool weather, according to a new study by human physiology researchers. ... > full story
Genetic markers offer new clues about how malaria mosquitoes evade eradication (October 25, 2010) -- An international team of researchers reports the development and first use of a high-resolution microarray that features 400,000 genetic markers for the malaria mosquito, Anopheles gambiae, providing a vastly clearer picture of how the insect adapts to human interventions. The SNP array offers a powerful new tool to international efforts to eradicate the disease-carrying mosquito. ... > full story
Fighting wrinkles with lasers scientifically unraveled (October 25, 2010) -- Laser pulses enable skin rejuvenation, as research in the Netherlands has shown. Laser treatment introduces heat into the skin. Under the influence of heat shocks of 45°C, skin cells produce more collagen. This is the protein that gives the skin its firmness and elasticity. ... > full story
Common anxiety disorders make it tougher to quit cigarettes (October 25, 2010) -- Researchers may have pinpointed a reason many smokers struggle to quit. ... > full story
Increasing the efficiency of stem cells (October 25, 2010) -- A new technique for increasing the survival rates of human embryonic stem cells promises to revolutionize their use in drug discovery and therapy. ... > full story
Daily vibration may help aging bones stay healthy (October 25, 2010) -- A daily dose of whole body vibration may help reduce the usual bone density loss that occurs with age, researchers report. Twelve weeks of daily, 30-minute sessions in 18-month old male mice -- which equate to 55- to 65-year-old humans -- appear to forestall the expected annual loss that can result in fractures, disability and death. ... > full story
Obese children show signs of heart disease typically seen in middle-aged adults, researcher says (October 25, 2010) -- The blood vessels of obese children have stiffness normally seen in much older adults with cardiovascular disease, a Canadian researcher says. The clock is ticking and the shape of the 13 year-old-heart is changing -- for the worse, he argues. ... > full story
Tiny brained bees solve a complex mathematical problem (October 25, 2010) -- Bumblebees can find the solution to a complex mathematical problem which keeps computers busy for days. Scientists in the UK have discovered that bees learn to fly the shortest possible route between flowers even if they discover the flowers in a different order. Bees are effectively solving the 'Traveling Salesman Problem', and these are the first animals found to do this. ... > full story
Allergies and wheezing illnesses in childhood may be determined in the womb (October 25, 2010) -- A child's chances of developing allergies or wheezing is related to how he or she grew at vital stages in the womb, according to scientists. ... > full story
Crossing blood-brain barrier: New hope for new class of Alzheimer's disease drugs (October 25, 2010) -- Finding a drug that can cross the blood-brain barrier is the bane of drug development for Alzheimer's disease and other neurological disorders of the brain. A new study has found and tested in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease a class of drug that is able to enter the brain, where it stabilizes degenerating neurons and improves memory and learning. ... > full story
Marathons damage the hearts of less fit runners for up to three months, MRI data suggest (October 25, 2010) -- Is running a marathon good for you or can it damage the heart? A team of researchers and runners from the Heart and Stroke Foundation have come up with a practical way of answering the question. They used data from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to find out what is really going on in the marathoner's heart as the kilometers pile up. ... > full story
Sterilizing with fluorescent lights: New surface may kill antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria with fluorescent light (October 25, 2010) -- Scientists in New Mexico are working on a new type of antimicrobial surface that won't harm people or animals but is inhospitable to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- the bacterial cause of an estimated 19,000 deaths and -4 billion in health-care costs per year in the US. ... > full story
Falling in love only takes about a fifth of a second, research reveals (October 25, 2010) -- Falling in love can elicit not only the same euphoric feeling as using cocaine, but also affects intellectual areas of the brain. Falling in love only takes about a fifth of a second. The findings raise the question: "Does the heart fall in love, or the brain?" ... > full story
Synthetic FlexBone could help speed bone transplant recovery (October 25, 2010) -- With a failure rate as high as 50 percent, bone tissue grafts pose a significant obstacle to orthopedic surgeons attempting to repair complex fractures. Current synthetic substitutes rarely possess the bone-like properties needed for successful grafting and are often difficult for surgeons to manipulate in the operating room. In response to these challenges, researchers have developed a synthetic bone material called FlexBone. ... > full story
Computational model of swimming fish could inspire design of robots or medical prosthetics (October 25, 2010) -- Scientists have developed a computational model of a swimming fish that is the first to address the interaction of internal and external forces on locomotion. The research team simulated how the fish's body bends, depending on the forces from the fluid moving around it as well as the muscles inside. Understanding these interactions will help design medical prosthetics for humans that work with the body's natural mechanics. ... > full story
Proteins regulating water retention in salt-sensitive hypertension identified (October 25, 2010) -- Two proteins in the brain act as valves to turn the hormone that regulates water retention in the body on and off, researchers have discovered. Their findings may lead to advances in treatment for diseases like high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, and cirrhosis of the liver. ... > full story
Photovoltaic medicine: Miniature solar cells might make chemotherapy less toxic (October 25, 2010) -- Micro-scaled photovoltaic devices may one day be used to deliver chemotherapeutic drugs directly to tumors, rendering chemotherapy less toxic to surrounding tissue. ... > full story
Kryptonite superglue improving the quality of life in heart patients recovering from surgery (October 25, 2010) -- New research shows that a surgical procedure using a cutting-edge super glue pioneered a year ago by Canadian researchers can improve the recovery of heart patients recovering from open-chest surgery. ... > full story
Chain reactions identified within the brain (October 25, 2010) -- As anyone who as ever picked up a guitar or a tennis racket knows, precise timing is often an essential part of performing complex tasks. Now, by studying the brain circuits that control bird song, researchers have identified a "chain reaction" of brain activity that appears to control the timing of song. ... > full story
Gene therapy can reverse pulmonary hypertension, study suggests (October 25, 2010) -- Scientists have discovered what could be the first truly effective breakthrough in the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary hypertension, a devastating, life-threatening condition which results in an enlargement of the heart. ... > full story
Egg meets sperm: The female side of the story (October 25, 2010) -- Researchers can now describe the 3-D structure of a complete egg receptor that binds sperm at the beginning of fertilization. The results will lead to better understanding of infertility and may enable entirely new types of contraceptives. ... > full story
Discovery may help scientists boost broccoli’s cancer-fighting power (October 25, 2010) -- A new study has shown for the first time that sulforaphane, the powerful cancer-fighting agent in broccoli, can be released from its parent compound by bacteria in the lower gut and absorbed into the body. This discovery raises the possibility that scientists will be able to enhance the activity of these bacteria in the colon, increasing broccoli's cancer-preventive power. ... > full story
Eye test for neurological diseases in livestock developed (October 25, 2010) -- Researchers have discovered that the eyes of sheep infected with scrapie return an intense, almost-white glow when they're hit with blue light. That finding suggests technologies can be developed to quickly and non-invasively test for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, progressive and fatal neurological diseases such as mad cow disease. ... > full story
Discovery of taste receptors in the lungs could help people with asthma breathe easier (October 25, 2010) -- Taste receptors in the lungs? Researchers have discovered that bitter taste receptors are not just located in the mouth but also in human lungs. What they learned about the role of the receptors could revolutionize the treatment of asthma and other obstructive lung diseases. ... > full story
Gene mutation reveals new cause of rare neurological diseases (October 25, 2010) -- Scientists have discovered a new cause of spastic ataxia, and believe this cause is also a trigger for other mitochondrial diseases – neurological disorders that can lead to serious coordination, growth, visual, speech, and muscle defects. ... > full story
Childhood cancer survivors face long-term risk of GI complications, study finds (October 25, 2010) -- People treated for cancer when they were children have a higher-than-average risk of gastrointestinal problems -- some mild, some quite severe -- in the years following treatment, according to a new study. ... > full story
Parent-only treatment may be equally effective for children who are obese (October 25, 2010) -- New research indicates that parent-only treatments for childhood obesity work equally as well as plans that include parents and child, while at the same time more cost effective and potentially easier for families. ... > full story
Peripheral induction of Alzheimer's-like brain pathology in mice (October 25, 2010) -- Pathological protein deposits linked to Alzheimer's disease and cerebral amyloid angiopathy can be triggered not only by the administration of pathogenic misfolded protein fragments directly into the brain but also by peripheral administration outside the brain, according to a new study. ... > full story
Malaria research begins to bite: Molecular switches pinpointed in control of malaria parasite's life cycle (October 25, 2010) -- Scientists have pin-pointed the 72 molecular switches that control the three key stages in the life cycle of the malaria parasite and have discovered that over a third of these switches can be disrupted in some way. Their research is a significant breakthrough in the search for cheap and effective vaccines and drugs to stop the transmission of a disease which kills up to a million children a year. Until now little has been known about the cellular processes involved in the development of this deadly disease. The research involved the very first comprehensive functional analysis of protein kinases in any malaria parasite. It is also the largest gene knock-out study in Plasmodium berghei -- a malaria parasite infecting rodents. ... > full story
Virtual colonoscopy option could improve colorectal cancer screening rates, patient survey suggests (October 25, 2010) -- Providing computed tomography colonography -- otherwise known as virtual colonoscopy -- as an alternative to conventional colonoscopy could improve colorectal cancer screening rates, according to a new study. ... > full story
Parents experience difficulty with consent process in pediatric cancer trials, study suggests (October 25, 2010) -- Compared with adult cancer patients, parents of children with cancer were more likely to be dissatisfied with the informed consent process for participating in clinical trials, according to a new study. ... > full story
Physicians agree Medicare reimbursement is flawed, disagree on how to reform it (October 25, 2010) -- A national survey finds most physicians believe Medicare reimbursement is inequitable, but there appears to be little consensus regarding proposed reforms, according to a new report. ... > full story
Primary care physicians may earn lowest hourly wages (October 25, 2010) -- Clinician's wages appear to vary significantly across physician specialties and are lowest for those in primary care, according to a new report. ... > full story
Computer software helps new medical graduates prescribe safely (October 25, 2010) -- New computer software has recently been created for new graduate doctors to ensure they prescribe safely from day one on the wards. The SCRIPT (Standard Computerized Revalidation Instrument for Prescribing and Therapeutics) project has brought together a team of experts in the UK to create this innovative, e-learning toolkit. ... > full story
Contraband cigarettes main source of supply for Ontario youth, study finds (October 25, 2010) -- A new study has found that contraband tobacco accounts for 43 percent of all cigarettes consumed by Ontario high school daily smokers in grades 9 to 12. ... > full story
Even turtles need recess: Many animals -- not just dogs, cats, and monkeys -- need a little play time (October 24, 2010) -- Seeing a child or a dog play is not a foreign sight. But what about a turtle or even a wasp? Apparently, they play, too. New psychology research defines "play" in people and also in species not previously thought capable of play, such as fish, reptiles and invertebrates. ... > full story
Vitamin E in front line of prostate cancer fight (October 24, 2010) -- Survival rates of men with prostate cancer might soon be increased with a new vitamin E treatment which could significantly reduce tumor regrowth. ... > full story
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