ScienceDaily Health Headlines -- for Sunday, February 5, 2012

ScienceDaily Health Headlines

for Sunday, February 5, 2012

Welcome to another edition of ScienceDaily's email newsletter. You can change your subscription options or unsubscribe at any time.

Whole exome sequencing identifies cause of metabolic disease (February 3, 2012) -- Sequencing a patient's entire genome to discover the source of his or her disease is not routine, but geneticists are getting close. A case report shows how researchers can combine a simple blood test with an "executive summary" scan of the genome to diagnose a severe glycosylation disorder. ... > full story

Why do cells age? Discovery of extremely long-lived proteins may provide insight into cell aging and neurodegenerative diseases (February 3, 2012) -- One of the big mysteries in biology is why cells age. Now scientists report that they have discovered a weakness in a component of brain cells that may explain how the aging process occurs in the brain. ... > full story

A lonely heart can make you sick: Middle aged divorced women vulnerable to contracting HIV (February 3, 2012) -- Newly divorced middle aged women are more vulnerable to contract HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, according to new research, because they tend to let their guard down with new sexual partners and avoid using protection since they are not afraid of getting pregnant. ... > full story

Regular use of vitamin and mineral supplements could reduce the risk of colon cancer, study suggests (February 3, 2012) -- Could the use of vitamin and mineral supplements in a regular diet help to reduce the risk of colon cancer and protect against carcinogens? A study published in the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology found that rats given regular multivitamin and mineral supplements showed a significantly lower risk of developing colon cancer when they were exposed to carcinogens. ... > full story

The complex relationship between memory and silence (February 3, 2012) -- People who suffer a traumatic experience often don't talk about it, and many forget it over time. But not talking about something doesn't always mean you'll forget it; if you try to force yourself not to think about white bears, soon you'll be imagining polar bears doing the polka. A group of psychological scientists explore the relationship between silence and memories. ... > full story

Placebos and distraction: New study shows how to boost the power of pain relief, without drugs (February 3, 2012) -- Placebos reduce pain by creating an expectation of relief. Distraction -- say, doing a puzzle -- relieves it by keeping the brain busy. But do they use the same brain processes? Neuromaging suggests they do. When applying a placebo, scientists see activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. That's the part of the brain that controls high-level cognitive functions like working memory and attention -- which is what you use to do that distracting puzzle. ... > full story

Warfarin and aspirin are similar in heart failure treatment, study suggests (February 3, 2012) -- In the largest and longest head-to-head comparison of two anti-clotting medications, warfarin and aspirin were similar in preventing deaths and strokes in heart failure patients with normal heart rhythm, according to new research. ... > full story

Rare mutations may help explain aneurysm in high-risk families (February 3, 2012) -- An innovative approach to genome screening has provided clues about rare mutations that may make people susceptible to brain aneurysms, predisposing them to brain bleeds, according to preliminary research. ... > full story

New drug doesn't improve disability among stroke patients, researchers find (February 3, 2012) -- A new drug that showed promise in animal studies and an early clinical trial didn't improve disability among stroke patients, according to new research. ... > full story

Clopidogrel with aspirin doesn't prevent more small strokes, may increase risk of bleeding and death, researchers report (February 3, 2012) -- The anti-blood clot regimen that adds the drug clopidogrel (Plavix) to aspirin treatment is unlikely to prevent recurrent strokes and may increase the risk of bleeding and death in patients with subcortical stroke, according to new research. ... > full story

New device performs better than old for removing blood clots, research shows (February 3, 2012) -- An experimental blood clot-removing device outperformed the FDA-approved MERCI; retriever device, according to new research. ... > full story

Preference for fatty foods may have genetic roots (February 3, 2012) -- A preference for fatty foods has a genetic basis, according to researchers, who discovered that people with certain forms of the CD36 gene may like high-fat foods more than those who have other forms of this gene. ... > full story