ScienceDaily Health Headlines -- for Saturday, July 9, 2011

ScienceDaily Health Headlines

for Saturday, July 9, 2011

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Brain stimulation preserves a memory when other memories interfere (July 8, 2011) -- A new study suggests that specific brain areas actively orchestrate competition between memories, and that by disrupting targeted brain areas through transcranial magnetic stimulation, you can preserve memory -- and prevent forgetting. ... > full story

Why patients with epidermolysis bullosa suffer extreme pain (July 8, 2011) -- For patients suffering from epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a hereditary skin disease, even a gentle touch is extremely painful. Now researchers have discovered the causes underlying this disease. Due to a genetic defect, individuals with EB cannot form laminin-332, a structural molecule of the skin that in healthy individuals inhibits the transduction of tactile stimuli and neuronal branching. ... > full story

Heart disease and stroke worldwide tied to national income (July 8, 2011) -- An analysis of heart disease and stroke statistics collected in 192 countries by the World Health Organization shows that the relative burden of the two diseases varies widely from country to country and is closely linked to national income, according to researchers. ... > full story

How memory is read out in the fly brain: MB-V2 nerve cells enable the read-out of associative memories (July 8, 2011) -- What happens if you cannot recall your memory correctly? You are able to associate and store the name and face of a person, yet you might be unable to remember them when you meet that person. In this example, the recall of the information is temporarily impaired. How such associative memories are "read out" in the brain remains one of the great mysteries of modern neurobiology. Now, scientists have taken the first step to unravel this mechanism. ... > full story

Stem cell injections may offer hope to angina patients with no other options (July 8, 2011) -- Injecting the hearts of untreatable angina patients with their own stem cells reduced chest pain frequency and improved exercise capability, according to new research. The treatment could offer hope to many of the 850,000 Americans whose chest pain doesn't subside even with medicine, angioplasty or surgery. Future trials are needed to confirm the findings and investigate an enzyme change that is normally viewed as a heart attack signal, but caused no pain or heart test changes in most patients in whom it occurred. ... > full story

Indoor air pollution linked to cardiovascular risk (July 8, 2011) -- An estimated two billion people in the developing world heat and cook with a biomass fuel such as wood, but the practice exposes people -- especially women -- to large doses of small-particle air pollution, which can cause premature death and lung disease. ... > full story

How decision-makers complicate choice (July 8, 2011) -- A new study demonstrates the existence of "complicating choice" -- the process that decision-makers unintentionally initiate when making certain decisions -- and the underlying psychological mechanisms that cause the phenomenon. ... > full story

New strategy to prevent infertility, birth defects (July 8, 2011) -- A strategy that has been shown to reduce age-related health problems in several animal studies may also combat a major cause of age-associated infertility and birth defects. Investigators have shown that restricting the caloric intake of adult female mice prevents a spectrum of abnormalities, such as extra or missing copies of chromosomes, that arise more frequently in egg cells of aging female mammals. ... > full story

Half-matched transplants widen pool of donors for leukemia and lymphoma (July 8, 2011) -- Identifying a suitable donor for leukemia and lymphoma patients who need bone marrow transplants may be far easier now that results of two clinical trials show transplant results with half-matched bone marrow or umbilical cord blood are comparable to fully matched tissue, thanks in large part to the availability of effective antirejection drugs and special post-transplant chemotherapy. The finding means that nearly all patients in need of a transplant can find donors, according to scientists who participated in the trials. ... > full story

Chips hold the key to understanding the human brain (July 8, 2011) -- Scientists have taken a key step towards producing a high-performance computer which aims to create working models of human brain functions. ... > full story

Body's natural marijuana-like chemicals make fatty foods hard to resist (July 8, 2011) -- Recent studies have revealed potato chips and french fries to be the worst contributors to weight gain -- and with good reason. Have you ever wondered why you can't eat just one chip or a single fry? It's not just the carbohydrates at fault. ... > full story

To combat deadly brain cancer, target the stem cells (July 8, 2011) -- Researchers have uncovered a new target that could stop the growth of glioblastoma, a deadly form of brain cancer. A new study identifies an enzyme found in glioma stem cells that allows them to grow and seed tumors. Importantly, normal stem cells, including those in the brain, don't appear to share that same dependency. ... > full story