ScienceDaily Health Headlines -- for Monday, February 6, 2012

ScienceDaily Health Headlines

for Monday, February 6, 2012

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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

New procedure repairs severed nerves in minutes, restoring limb use in days or weeks (February 3, 2012) -- Scientists believe a new procedure to repair severed nerves could result in patients recovering in days or weeks, rather than months or years. The team used a cellular mechanism similar to that used by many invertebrates to repair damage to nerve axons. ... > full story

Schizophrenia: When hallucinatory voices suppress real ones, new electronic application may help (February 3, 2012) -- When a patient afflicted with schizophrenia hears inner voices something is taking place inside the brain that prevents the individual from perceiving real voices. A simple electronic application may help the patient learn to shift focus. ... > full story

Using immune cells from healthy people to fight cancer (February 3, 2012) -- Immune cells from healthy individuals can be the new immune cure for cancer. This treatment can kill cancer cells without destroying neighboring cells. The hope is to eradicate cancer for ever. ... > full story

Breastfeeding linked to improved lung function at school-age, especially with asthmatic mothers (February 3, 2012) -- Breastfeeding is associated with improved lung function at school age, particularly in children of asthmatic mothers, according to a new study. ... > full story

New 'biopsy in a blood test' to detect cancer (February 2, 2012) -- Scientists and cancer physicians have successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of an advanced blood test for detecting and analyzing circulating tumor cells -- breakaway cells from patients' solid tumors -- from cancer patients. The findings show that the highly sensitive blood analysis provides information that may soon be comparable to that from some types of surgical biopsies. ... > full story

Malaria kills nearly twice as many people than previously thought, but deaths declining rapidly (February 2, 2012) -- Malaria is killing more people worldwide than previously thought -- 1.2 million -- but the number of deaths has fallen rapidly as efforts to combat the disease have ramped up, according to new research. Researchers say that deaths from malaria have been missed by previous studies because of the assumption that the disease mainly kills children under age five. ... > full story

How to tell apart the forgetful from those at risk of Alzheimer’s disease (February 2, 2012) -- It can be difficult to distinguish between people with normal age-associated memory loss and those with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). However people with aMCI are at a greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and identification of these people would mean that they could begin treatment as early as possible. New research shows that specific questions, included as part of a questionnaire designed to help diagnose AD, are also able to discriminate between normal memory loss and aMCI. ... > full story

U.S. counties with thriving small businesses have healthier residents (February 2, 2012) -- U.S. counties and parishes with a greater concentration of small, locally-owned businesses have healthier populations — with lower rates of mortality, obesity and diabetes — than do those that rely on large companies with “absentee” owners, according to a national study. ... > full story

New RNA-based therapeutic strategies for controlling gene expression (February 2, 2012) -- Small RNA-based nucleic acid drugs represent a promising new class of therapeutic agents for silencing abnormal or overactive disease-causing genes, and researchers have discovered new mechanisms by which RNA drugs can control gene activity. ... > full story

Football findings suggest concussions caused by series of hits (February 2, 2012) -- A two-year study of high school football players suggests that concussions are likely caused by many hits over time and not from a single blow to the head, as commonly believed. ... > full story

Triglyceride levels predict stroke risk in postmenopausal women (February 2, 2012) -- The traditional risk factors for stroke – such as high cholesterol – are not as accurate at predicting risk in postmenopausal women as previously thought. Instead, researchers say doctors should refocus their attention on triglyceride levels to determine which women are at highest risk of suffering a devastating and potentially fatal cardiovascular event. ... > full story

New technique successfully dissolves blood clots in brain and lowers risk of brain damage after stroke, study suggests (February 2, 2012) -- Neurologists report success with a new means of getting rid of potentially lethal blood clots in the brain safely without cutting through easily damaged brain tissue or removing large pieces of skull. ... > full story

Untangling the mysteries of Alzheimer's (February 2, 2012) -- Researchers have found new evidence that confirms the significance of a protein that neuroscientists call tau to the development of Alzheimer's disease. While earlier studies have focused on tau's aggregation into twisted structures known as "neurofibrillary tangles," the new work emphasizes intermediary steps between single protein units and the much larger tangles – small assemblages of two, three, four or more proteins, which the investigators believe are the most toxic entities in Alzheimer's. ... > full story

DNA test that identifies Down syndrome in pregnancy can also detect trisomy 18 and trisomy 13 (February 2, 2012) -- A recent study shows that a new DNA test that identifies Down syndrome in pregnancy can also detect trisomies 18 and 13. ... > full story

Elevated glucose associated with undetected heart damage (February 2, 2012) -- A new study suggests that hyperglycemia injures the heart, even in patients without a history of heart disease or diabetes. The high-sensitivity test they used detected levels of cTnT tenfold lower than those found in patients diagnosed with a heart attack. ... > full story

Rituximab possible treatment option for patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (February 2, 2012) -- An open-label study of rituximab, a monoclonal antibody for human CD20, was shown to be safe in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis who had an incomplete response to the standard ursodeoxycholic acid therapy. Rituximab was successful in reducing the level of alkaline phosphatase -- a protein used to measure liver injury, according to the new study. ... > full story

Food poisoning: Understanding how bacteria come back from the 'dead' (February 2, 2012) -- Salmonella remains a serious cause of food poisoning, in part due to its ability to thrive and quickly adapt to the different environments in which it can grow. New research has taken a detailed look at what Salmonella does when it enters a new environment, which could provide clues to finding new ways of reducing transmission through the food chain and preventing human illness. ... > full story

Gene regulator in brain's executive hub tracked across lifespan (February 2, 2012) -- Scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain's executive hub. Genes implicated in schizophrenia and autism are among those in which regulatory activity peaks during an environmentally-sensitive critical period in development. The mechanism, called DNA methylation, abruptly switches from off to on within the human brain's prefrontal cortex during this pivotal transition from fetal to postnatal life. ... > full story

Probable mechanism underlying resveratrol activity uncovered: Chemical found in red wine and other foods (February 2, 2012) -- Researchers have identified how resveratrol, a naturally occurring chemical found in red wine and other plant products, may confer its health benefits. The authors present evidence that resveratrol does not directly activate sirtuin 1, a protein associated with aging. Rather, the authors found that resveratrol inhibits certain types of proteins known as phosphodiesterases (PDEs), enzymes that help regulate cell energy. ... > full story

Coffee consumption reduces fibrosis risk in those with fatty liver disease, study suggests (February 2, 2012) -- Caffeine consumption has long been associated with decreased risk of liver disease and reduced fibrosis in patients with chronic liver disease. Now, new research confirms that coffee caffeine consumption reduces the risk of advanced fibrosis in those with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. New findings show that increased coffee intake, specifically among patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, decreases risk of hepatic fibrosis. ... > full story

Zap of cold plasma reduces harmful bacteria on raw chicken (February 2, 2012) -- A new study demonstrates that plasma can be an effective method for killing pathogens on uncooked poultry. ... > full story

Sickle cell anemia stroke prevention efforts may have decreased racial disparities (February 2, 2012) -- The disparity in stroke-related deaths among black and white children dramatically narrowed after prevention strategies changed to include ultrasound screening and chronic blood transfusions for children with sickle cell anemia, according to new research. ... > full story

Erratic heart rhythm may account for some unexplained strokes (February 2, 2012) -- Occasional erratic heart rhythms appear to cause about one-fifth of strokes for which a cause is not readily established. ... > full story

Anemia may more than triple your risk of dying after a stroke (February 2, 2012) -- Being anemic could more than triple your risk of dying within a year after having a stroke, according to new research. ... > full story

Men behaving nicely: Selfless acts by men increase when attractive women are nearby (February 2, 2012) -- Men put on their best behavior when attractive ladies are close by. When the scenario is reversed however, the behavior of women remains the same. ... > full story

Human immune cells react sensitively to 'stress' (February 2, 2012) -- Scientists have demonstrated for the first time that certain cells circulating in human blood -- so-called monocytes -- are extremely sensitive to reactive oxygen species (ROS). They were also able to clarify the reason for this: ROS are aggressive forms of oxygen that are generated during states of "oxidative stress" and play a significant role in various diseases. ... > full story

Eating together? Simply a matter of adapting (February 2, 2012) -- Women dining together finely tune their eating behavior to that of their dining partner. Rather than eating at their own pace, they tend to take bites at the same time as the person sitting across the table. ... > full story

Young children exposed to anesthesia multiple times show elevated rates of ADHD (February 2, 2012) -- Researchers have found that multiple exposures to anesthesia at a young age are associated with higher rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ... > full story

Rearranging the cell's skeleton: Small molecules at the cell’s membrane enable cell movement (February 2, 2012) -- Cell biologists have identified key steps in how certain molecules alter a cell’s skeletal shape and drive the cell’s movement. ... > full story

Facebook is not such a good thing for those with low self-esteem, study finds (February 1, 2012) -- In theory, the social networking website Facebook could be great for people with low self-esteem. Sharing is important for improving friendships. But in practice, people with low self-esteem seem to behave counterproductively, bombarding their friends with negative tidbits about their lives and making themselves less likeable, according to a new study. ... > full story

Here is what real commitment to your marriage means (February 1, 2012) -- What does being committed to your marriage really mean? A psychology professors answer this question in a new study based on their analysis of 172 married couples over the first 11 years of marriage. ... > full story

Powering pacemakers with heartbeat vibrations (February 1, 2012) -- Aerospace engineers have developed a prototype device that could power a pacemaker using a source that is surprisingly close to the heart of the matter: vibrations in the chest cavity that are due mainly to heartbeats. ... > full story

Same genes linked to early- and late-onset Alzheimer's (February 1, 2012) -- The same gene mutations linked to inherited, early-onset Alzheimer’s disease have been found in people with the more common late-onset form of the illness. The discovery may lead doctors and researchers to change the way Alzheimer’s disease is classified. ... > full story

Massage is promising for muscle recovery: Researchers find 10 minutes reduces inflammation (February 1, 2012) -- Researchers have discovered a brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle. As a non-drug therapy, massage holds the potential to help not just bone-weary athletes but those with inflammation-related chronic conditions, such as arthritis or muscular dystrophy. While massage is well accepted as a therapy for relieving muscle tension and pain, the researchers delved deeper to find it also triggers biochemical sensors that can send inflammation-reducing signals to muscle cells. ... > full story

'Life and activity monitor' provides portable, constant recording of vital signs (February 1, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a type of wearable, non-invasive electronic device that can monitor vital signs such as heart rate and respiration at the same time it records a person's activity level, opening new opportunities for biomedical research, diagnostics and patient care. ... > full story

New technology shows molecules and cells in action (February 1, 2012) -- A new affinity capture device provides a platform for viewing cancer cells and other macromolecules in dynamic, life-sustaining liquid environments. ... > full story