ScienceDaily Health Headlines
for Tuesday, April 5, 2011
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Pneumonia death rate lower among people who take statins, study suggests (April 5, 2011) -- Taking statins could help prevent people dying from pneumonia, according to a new study. ... > full story
Call of the riled: Stress signal in cancer cells triggers similar response in other cells, aiding tumor growth (April 5, 2011) -- Researchers say a "stress response" mechanism used by normal cells to cope with harsh or demanding conditions is exploited by cancer cells, which transmit the same stress signal to surrounding cells, triggering an inflammatory response in them that can aid tumor growth. ... > full story
Measuring oxidative stress can predict risk of atrial fibrillation (April 5, 2011) -- Measuring oxidative stress may help doctors predict the risk of developing atrial fibrillation, the most common heart beat irregularity. Research has identified a connection between oxidative stress and enlargement of the heart's left atrium, which leads to atrial fibrillation. ... > full story
Autism: Exceptional visual abilities explained (April 5, 2011) -- Researchers have determined that people with autism concentrate more brain resources in the areas associated with visual detection and identification, and conversely, have less activity in the areas used to plan and control thoughts and actions. This might explain their outstanding capacities in visual tasks. ... > full story
Early work indicates drug used to treat alcoholism may help those with Fragile X and autism (April 5, 2011) -- In small, early clinical trials, adults and children with autism and Fragile X syndrome have shown improved communication and social behavior when treated with acamprosate, according to new research. ... > full story
Tumors resistant to radiation therapy may be controlled by the MET oncogene (April 5, 2011) -- Ionizing radiation treats many cancers effectively, but in some patients a few tumor cells become resistant to radiation and go on to cause relapse and metastasis. A growth factor-receptor protein called MET may be a key player in these cells' resistance to radiation, and drugs targeting MET may help to prevent radiation-induced metastasis, according to a new study. ... > full story
Novel compounds for fighting against parasitic diseases (April 5, 2011) -- Parasites of the Trypanosomatidae family cause a number of serious human diseases. Researchers have now published the identification of novel anti-parasitic compounds targeting an enzyme unique to the parasites. These compounds are promising for the development of drugs with fewer side-effects than current medical treatments. ... > full story
Partner controlling behaviors appear to be associated with relationship violence (April 5, 2011) -- Having a significant other who exhibits controlling behaviors appears to be associated with increased physical and sexual relationship violence, according to a new study. However, young women experiencing these behaviors are more hesitant to answer questions about relationship violence. ... > full story
Dangerous blood pressure increases during exercise can be blocked, researchers find (April 4, 2011) -- Researchers have identified one reason people with hypertension experience an even greater increase in their blood pressure when they exercise, and they've learned how to prevent the rise. ... > full story
Safer CT scanning for children developed in Sweden (April 4, 2011) -- A research team in Sweden has developed a method that allows the lowest possible dose of radiation for children having a CT scan while still obtaining good image quality. ... > full story
Low income associated with mental disorders and suicide attempts, study finds (April 4, 2011) -- Low levels of household income are associated with several lifetime mental disorders and suicide attempts, and a decrease in income is associated with a higher risk for anxiety, substance use, and mood disorders, according to a new study. ... > full story
Prevalence of 'flattened head' in infants and young children appears to be increasing (April 4, 2011) -- The prevalence of plagiocephaly, a condition marked by an asymmetrical, flattening of the skull, appears to be increasing in infants and young children, according to a new study. ... > full story
Repetitive, high-impact sports linked to stress fractures in girls (April 4, 2011) -- Children are urged to participate in sports at younger and younger ages and at greater levels of intensity. While weight-bearing activity is generally thought to increase bone density, a new study finds that for preadolescent and adolescent girls, too much high-impact activity can lead to stress fractures. If these are detected too late in children and adolescent athletes, they pose a risk of true fracture, deformity or growth disturbance requiring surgical treatment, say the researchers. ... > full story
Teens who choose music over books are more likely to be depressed, study finds (April 4, 2011) -- Adolescents who spend more time listening to music are far more likely to have major depressive disorder, while young people who spend more time reading books are far less likely to have such a diagnosis, according to a new study. ... > full story
Common variant of p53 tumor suppressor gene linked to increased inflammatory responses (April 4, 2011) -- New findings link a common variant of the powerful anticancer gene p53 to increased inflammatory responses following DNA damage. The results may help explain why African Americans, who more frequently possess this variant, tend to be more susceptible to certain kinds of inflammation-related diseases and cancers, such as type II diabetes and colorectal cancer. ... > full story
High dose of oxygen enhances natural cancer treatment, researchers find (April 4, 2011) -- An environment of pure oxygen at three-and-a-half times normal air pressure adds significantly to the effectiveness of a natural compound already shown to kill cancerous cells, according to new research. ... > full story
Got up on the wrong side of the bed? Your work will show it (April 4, 2011) -- A new study of telephone customer service representatives shows just how important it is for employees to start the workday in a good mood. Researchers found that employees' moods when they clocked in tended to affect how they felt the rest of the day. Early mood was linked to their perceptions of customers and to how they reacted to customers' moods. ... > full story
Herpes linked to Alzheimer's disease: 'Cold sores' connected to cognitive decline (April 4, 2011) -- New research using a new technique to observe herpes simplex virus type 1 infections inside cells, finds that re-activation and growth of HSV1 infections contribute to cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's disease. ... > full story
Potassium channel gene modifies risk for epilepsy (April 4, 2011) -- Researchers have identified a new gene that can influence a person's risk for developing epilepsy. The findings could improve molecular diagnostic tools and point to novel therapeutic targets for epilepsy. ... > full story
Nurturing newborn neurons sharpens minds in mice (April 4, 2011) -- Adult mice engineered to have more newborn neurons in their brain memory hub excelled at accurately discriminating between similar experiences -- an ability that declines with normal aging and in some anxiety disorders. Boosting such neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus also produced antidepressant-like effects when combined with exercise. The study pinpointed effects of enhanced adult neurogenesis by creating mice lacking a gene required for programmed cell death of newborn neurons in the adult hippocampus. ... > full story
New hope for tiny hearts (April 4, 2011) -- Scientists are making advances in imaging methods for both ultrasound and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. One benefit will be an enhanced ability to discover heart defects in newborns. ... > full story
'Last resort' antibiotics use on the rise, study suggests (April 4, 2011) -- A study of antibiotic use demonstrates increased use of carbapenems, over the last five years. These drugs are often considered the last treatment option for severe infections with multi-drug resistant pathogens. The increased carbapenem use is alarming because carbapenem-resistant bacteria are becoming more common. ... > full story
Magnesium deficiency: Not always a nutritional problem (April 4, 2011) -- Scientists have identified a genetic cause for magnesium deficiency. The study ascertained changes in a gene which is involved in the regulation of magnesium processes involved in the kidney. This research opens the way for possible future medicinal treatment of genetically caused magnesium deficiencies. ... > full story
Lambs provide crucial link in understanding obesity (April 4, 2011) -- The question of whether children born to obese mothers will become obese themselves is one step closer to being answered as a result of new research which studied lambs born to overweight sheep. ... > full story
Four new genes for Alzheimer's disease risk identified (April 4, 2011) -- Researchers have identified four new genes linked to Alzheimer's disease. Each gene individually adds to the risk of having this common form of dementia later in life. The findings offer new insight into the underlying causes of Alzheimer's disease. ... > full story
Avoiding or controlling diabetes may reduce cancer risk and mortality (April 4, 2011) -- Diabetes is associated with lower risk of prostate cancer in men but with higher risk of other cancers in both men and women, according to new research. The data also showed an association between diabetes and higher cancer mortality rates. ... > full story
The five hospital factors that affect heart attack survival (April 4, 2011) -- A new study looks at why there is such a big difference in the mortality rates among patients treated for heart attacks in hospitals across the United States. ... > full story
New research demonstrates language learners' creativity (April 4, 2011) -- New research shows that language learning goes well beyond simple imitation, and in fact that language learners are quite creative and remarkably smart. Not only are learners able to generalize grammatical restrictions to new words in a category -- in this case, made-up adjectives -- but they also do not learn these restrictions in situations where they can be attributed to some irrelevant factor. ... > full story
Metabolic syndrome may increase risk for liver cancer (April 4, 2011) -- Scientists have confirmed that metabolic syndrome, a constellation of conditions that increases the risk of heart disease and diabetes, may also increase the risk of the two most common types of liver cancer. ... > full story
Cholesterol regulator plays key role in development of liver scarring, cirrhosis (April 4, 2011) -- Researchers have demonstrated that a key regulator of cholesterol and fat metabolism in the liver also plays an important role in the development of liver fibrosis -- the build-up of collagen scar tissue that can develop into cirrhosis. ... > full story
ADHD and prenatal alcohol exposure: Comparing profiles of learning and memory impairments in two groups of children (April 4, 2011) -- A new study has compared the verbal learning and memory performance of children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) with that of children with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The children with PAE had initial problems with learning information, reflecting inefficient encoding of verbal material. The children with ADHD had difficulty retaining information over time, reflecting a deficit in retrieval of learned material. ... > full story
Chasing the pot of gold: Gambling subtypes and treatment outcomes (April 4, 2011) -- Approximately two million adults in the United States meet criteria for pathological gambling, and another four to six million are considered problem gamblers, according to the National Council on Problem Gambling. A new study reveals that gambling addiction treatment is not one-size-fits-all, but it is difficult to predict which style of treatment is best for the various forms of gambling addiction. ... > full story
Student confidence correlated with academic performance, horticultural science class study finds (April 4, 2011) -- The psychological construct of "confidence" was the foundation of new research that examined university students' confidence levels, then correlated these levels to academic performance. Students were asked to record their confidence levels related to course content at the beginning of a horticultural science class, then again at the end of the course. Researchers found that assessment results compared with the students' academic performance showed that change in confidence was an indication of student learning. ... > full story
How do neurons in the retina encode what we 'see'? (April 3, 2011) -- The moment we open our eyes, we perceive the world with apparent ease. But the question of how neurons in the retina encode what we "see" has been a tricky one. A key obstacle to understanding how our brain functions is that its components -- neurons -- respond in highly nonlinear ways to complex stimuli, making stimulus-response relationships extremely difficult to discern. Now a team of physicists has developed a general mathematical framework that makes optimal use of limited measurements, bringing them a step closer to deciphering the "language of the brain." ... > full story
Vitamin D levels linked with health of blood vessels (April 3, 2011) -- A lack of vitamin D, even in generally healthy people, is linked with stiffer arteries and an inability of blood vessels to relax, researchers have found. ... > full story
‘SKIP’-ing splicing forces tumor cells to undergo programmed cell death (April 3, 2011) -- When cells find themselves in a tight spot, the cell cycle regulator p21 halts the cell cycle, buying cells time to repair the damage, or if all else fails, to initiate programmed cell death. In contrast to other stress-induced genes, which dispense with the regular transcriptional entourage, p21Cip1 still requires SKIP, a transcription elongation factor that also helps with the editing of transcripts, to be expressed, found researchers. ... > full story
More organs for transplant when ICU docs help take care of brain dead donors, study finds (April 3, 2011) -- More than twice as many lungs and nearly 50 percent more kidneys could be recovered for transplant operations if intensive care physicians were to work with organ procurement organization coordinators to monitor and manage donor bodies after brain death has occurred, according to a new analysis. ... > full story
Heart drug cuts prostate cancer risk, holds potential for therapeutic use (April 3, 2011) -- New research suggests that men using the cardiac drug, digoxin, have a 24 percent lower risk for prostate cancer. The scientists say further research about the discovery may lead to use of the drug, or new ones that work the same way, to treat the cancer. ... > full story
DNA of 50 breast cancer patients decoded (April 3, 2011) -- In the single largest cancer genomics investigation reported to date, scientists have sequenced the whole genomes of tumors from 50 breast cancer patients and compared them to the matched DNA of the same patients' healthy cells. They uncovered incredible complexity in the cancer genomes, but also got a glimpse of new routes toward personalized medicine. ... > full story
New lung cancer staging system (TNM 7) better predicts local/regional recurrence, study shows (April 3, 2011) -- The new TNM 7 lung cancer staging system seems to be a better predictor of local or regional recurrence of lung cancer following surgery, according to a new study. ... > full story
When washing becomes a compulsion (April 3, 2011) -- Obsessive-compulsive disorder is often diagnosed too late in children and adolescents. Experts point out that appropriate early recognition and treatment can positively affect the course of the disease. ... > full story
Engineered protein fragment blocks the AIDS virus from entering cells (April 2, 2011) -- In what could be a potential breakthrough in the battle against AIDS and a major development in the rational design of new drugs, scientists have engineered a new protein that prevents the virus from entering cells. ... > full story
Skywalker enzyme ensures optimal communication between neurons (April 2, 2011) -- Scientists have discovered the mechanism that ensures neurons can continue to send the right signals for long consecutive periods -- a process that is disrupted in neurological diseases such as Parkinson's. They discovered that an enzyme called Skywalker controls the subtle balance in communication. ... > full story
Soy increases radiation's ability to kill lung cancer cells, study shows (April 2, 2011) -- A component in soybeans increases radiation's ability to kill lung cancer cells, according to a new study. ... > full story
Manage biological invasions like natural disasters, biologists say (April 2, 2011) -- Biological invasions are often more economically damaging than natural disasters and warrant correspondingly large investments in preparedness and response planning, according to biologists. Such measures seem absent in most developed nations. ... > full story
Older and stronger: Progressive resistance training can build muscle, increase strength as we age (April 2, 2011) -- It's often thought that older adults must tolerate the strength and muscle loss that come with age. But analyses of current research reveal that not only can we fight the battle of strength and muscle loss as we age, we can even build muscle and strength well into our golden years. ... > full story
Insulin could be Alzheimer's therapy (April 2, 2011) -- A low dose of insulin has been found to suppress the expression in the blood of four precursor proteins involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, according to new clinical research. ... > full story
Surprising finding from smoke inhalation study (April 2, 2011) -- A new study includes some unexpected findings about the immune systems of smoke-inhalation patients. Contrary to expectations, patients who died from their injuries had lower inflammatory responses in their lungs than patients who survived. ... > full story
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