Health, Medicine & Diseases
Feeds updated every 4 hoursNegative effects of sleep restriction may linger after 1 night of recovery sleep
(American Academy of Sleep Medicine) Neurobehavioral impairments such as delayed reaction times accumulated across a period of five days when sleep was restricted to less than four hours per night. Measures of alertness improved significantly after a night of recovery sleep, with larger doses of sleep producing greater gains. Yet some neurobehavioral deficits continued to linger after the maximum recovery dose of 10 hours in bed, during which participants slept for an average of about nine hours.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 31 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Purple light means go, ultraviolet light means stop
(University of Rochester) A new membrane developed at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics blocks gas from flowing through it when one color of light is shined on its surface, and permits gas to flow through when another color of light is used. It is the first time that scientists have developed a membrane that can be controlled in this way by light.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 31 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Short and long sleep durations are independent risk factors for cardiovascular disease
(American Academy of Sleep Medicine) The risk of any cardiovascular disease for adults who reported sleeping five hours per day or less was more than two times higher than that of people who reported a daily sleep duration of seven hours (adjusted odds ratio = 2.20). Participants who reported sleeping nine hours or more per day also had an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease (adjusted OR = 1.57). Results were adjusted for potential confounders including smoking, diabetes, hypertension and depression.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 31 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
SIDS surprise: Study finds that infant boys are more easily aroused from sleep than girls
(American Academy of Sleep Medicine) At 2 to 4 weeks of age, the mean strength of a pulsatile air-jet stimulus that was required to induce arousal during quiet sleep was significantly lower in male infants than female infants. At 2 to 3 months of age when the SIDS risk peaks, this gender difference in arousal threshold was no longer significant. Results suggest that there are no gender differences in arousability that could increase the vulnerability of male infants to SIDS.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 31 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
First regional student food drive to fight hunger
High schools throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania are invited to join Shire's The Great Food Fight!, the first regional student food drive to fight hunger. The goal: to collect 25 tons of food - the equivalent of 50,000 meals - for Philabundance and the thousands of local families who rely on the food services they provide. Shire will present the school that collects the most food per student a grand prize of $10,000.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:55 am
Research findings point to new ways to improve quality of future trials through better training
Practitioners of clinical medicine are familiar with learning curves, and strategies like simulation are increasingly used to minimize learning-curve effects on clinical care. Because similar learning curves have been hinted at in some clinical trials, researchers at Duke University Medical Center studied the phenomenon in the data record of a large, multi-site clinical trial. Their findings point to ways to improve the quality of future trials through better training and simulation exercises.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:44 am
Complete Genomics files registration statement on Form S-1 with SEC
Complete Genomics, Inc. announced today that it has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the proposed initial public offering of shares of its common stock. The shares of common stock to be sold in this offering are proposed to be sold solely by Complete Genomics, Inc.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:39 am
Nathan Heron teams up with Healthy and Essential to launch Omega Ice Cream
Local ice cream entrepreneur Nathan Heron's popular ice cream concession on Blackpool's famous South Pier will see the launch of a world first - Omega Ice Creams. 'Blackpool is the world's No.1 ice cream eating city.' says Nathan, 'And I love coming up with new ideas - and making a great summer treat like an ice cream healthier with a squeeze of Omega-3 sauce is a great idea!'Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:36 am
Scientists receive 2010 Food Safety Innovation Award
bioMerieux, a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics, and Hyglos GmbH, the leader in applied phage protein technology, today announced that a team of scientists who developed a new diagnostic tool for food microbiologists is the recipient of the 2010 Food Safety Innovation Award given by the International Association of Food Protection.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:30 am
MBHS targets emerging healthcare markets of Russia, CIS
mBeach Software Inc. today announced a strategy of targeting new international market opportunities. In particular, the company has identified the emerging markets of Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:26 am
New study shows most injuries in youth ice hockey are caused by accident
Hockey fans likely would assume that body-checking -- intentionally slamming an opponent against the boards -- causes the most injuries in youth ice hockey. But they would be wrong.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:22 am
Kaiser Permanente workers to join NUHW
The National Labor Relations Board has scheduled a government-protected mail ballot election beginning Sept. 13 for nearly 44,000 Kaiser Permanente workers to join the National Union of Healthcare Workers and kick out the incumbent union SEIU.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:16 am
Path-O-Cide, Fiber Coat with Kevlar protect from major health issues: Prime Coat Coating Systems
The Annual ACA Convention attendees will be the first to see 2 new products from Prime Coat Coating Systems. Path-O-Cide and Fiber Coat with Kevlar will revolutionize the way that correctional facilities are constructed and refurbished for the near future.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:11 am
Reality TV shows take full advantage, tout teen happiness: Research
Teenage years have long been linked with a heightened concern with appearance. Some reality TV shows take full advantage and tout happiness as just a nip/tuck away. A Rutgers-Camden psychologist has found that teens fond of these kinds of programs are more likely to join the millions who go under the knife each year. For bodies - and minds - still in development, these drastic decisions could have implications way after prom.Source: THE MEDICAL NEWS | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:03 am
Gene variant role in Parkinson's uncovered
An RNA fragment known to be implicated in Parkinson's has been shown to cause the death of neurons in the brains of fruit fliesSource: New Scientist - Health | 31 Jul 2010 | 5:00 am
UT Southwestern researchers find key step in body's ability to make red blood cells
(UT Southwestern Medical Center) Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered a key step in the creation of new red blood cells in an animal study.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 30 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Red blood cells have a tiny but effective protector -- microRNA
(Children's Hospital of Philadelphia) Pediatric researchers have discovered a new biological pathway in which small segments of RNA, called microRNA, help protect red blood cells from injury caused by chemicals called free radicals. The microRNA seems to have only a modest role when red blood cells experience normal conditions, but steps into action when the cells are threatened by oxidant stress. The study illustrates how microRNA fine-tunes gene activity.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 30 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Missing Puma reveals cancer conundrum
(Walter and Eliza Hall Institute) Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers in Melbourne, Australia, have made a discovery that has upended scientists' understanding of programmed cell death and its role in tumor formation.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 30 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Vanishing bile duct syndrome secondary to anti-retroviral therapy in HIV
(World Journal of Gastroenterology) Vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS) is an important cause of jaundice, and results from destruction of bile ducts in the liver. However, this syndrome is rare in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection. Nevirapine, an anti-retroviral that is being increasingly used, was implicated as the cause of VBDS in a patient described in a recent report.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
MSU targets women's health research with $2.5 million grant
(Michigan State University) With the help of a $2.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, Michigan State University is creating a cross-discipline, mentored program designed to increase the number and diversity of researchers in women's health.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Emerging E. coli strain causes many antimicrobial-resistant infections in US
(Infectious Diseases Society of America) A new, drug-resistant strain of E. coli is causing serious disease, according to a new study, now available online, in the Aug. 1, 2010, issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 29 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
New approach to Alzheimer's therapy
(Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres) Researchers from the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat in Munich have shown that the ADAM10 protein can inhibit the formation of beta-amyloid, which is responsible for Alzheimer's disease. ADAM10 acts like a pair of molecular scissors to cut the protein from which beta-amyloid is formed, effectively preventing the formation of beta-amyloid. This makes ADAM10 a key molecule in Alzheimer's therapy.Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Regulation could save genome scanning, not kill it
The personal genomics industry has been bruised by the US Congress, but embracing sensible regulation could shift it to the heart of clinical medicineSource: New Scientist - Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 3:00 pm
Doctor gagged for doubting shaken baby syndrome
A pathologist in the UK who argues that symptoms of "shaken baby syndrome" can have an innocent cause has been prevented from testifying in courtSource: New Scientist - Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 5:28 am
Alzheimer's unlocked: New keys to a cure
Attempts to treat the world's most common form of dementia may have been attacking its symptoms, not its root causeSource: New Scientist - Health | 29 Jul 2010 | 4:26 am
Small increases in vaccine cost can cause large gaps in protection
(Harvard University) Public immunization efforts may be much more sensitive than previously realized to small changes in the perceived costs or risks of vaccination, scientists at Harvard University report this week. In some cases, the spread of vaccine avoidance via social networks can make the difference between a minor, localized outbreak and an epidemic four times as large.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 28 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
A breakthrough in tuberculosis research
(McGill University) The key to the fate of the macrophages is the balance between two kinds of eicosanoids. Eicosanoids are molecules that contribute to the control of our immune system. The genetic code of TB bacteria enables it to tip this balance in favor of necrosis, and human genetic analysis revealed that modification in eicosanoids production is associated with susceptibility or resistance to TB. Fortunately, drugs that target the production of eicosanoids are already in use for treating other inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 28 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Study finds respiratory symptoms more reliable indicator of H1N1, not fever alone
(Elsevier Health Sciences) New research shows that individuals with mild H1N1 infection may go undetected using standard diagnostic criteria, according to a study in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. The study concludes that coughing or other respiratory symptoms are more accurate in determining influenza infection than presence of a fever.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 28 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Mechanism uncovered behind Salmonella virulence and drug susceptibility
(University of Washington) Researchers have discovered a novel mechanism in Salmonella that affects is virulence and its susceptibility to antibiotics. The mechanism changes the bacteria's production of proteins in a previously unheard of manner. It allows Salmonella to selectively change its levels of certain proteins to respond to inhospital conditions. Although the mechanism had not been recognized before, scientists found evidence of a similar mechanism in all five kingdoms of life. The mechanism appears to have been conserved throughout the course of evolution.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 28 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Anti-vaccination website poses public health risk
Australian public health watchdog says campaigners' claims about vaccines are misleading, inaccurate and may be dangerous to public healthSource: New Scientist - Health | 27 Jul 2010 | 7:02 am
Why IVF pioneers were denied public money
The UK Medical Research Council saw test-tube baby researchers Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards as "publicity hounds" and their work as irrelevantSource: New Scientist - Health | 27 Jul 2010 | 6:10 am
Locked-in people could control wheelchairs by sniffing
A device that picks up a person's sniffs could help those with locked-in syndrome control wheelchairs or surf the webSource: New Scientist - Health | 27 Jul 2010 | 4:12 am
Mapping of neglected tropical diseases critical to control and elimination efforts
(Public Library of Science) To take full advantage of recent increased financial commitments from some governments, international agencies, and philanthropies, accurate and up-to-date mapping of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) needs to be implemented to help improve the precision of decision-making in NTD control and elimination, says a new editorial, "The Global Atlas of Helminth Infection: Mapping the Way Forward in Neglected Tropical Disease Control," published July 27 in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 26 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Listeriosis in the developing world may not follow usual pattern
(Public Library of Science) Rogier van Doorn and colleagues from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, present a Learning Forum article in this week's PLoS Medicine that describes three unusual cases of patients with listerial meningitis.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 26 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
A collaboration solves the herpes virus protein structure providing new drug therapy directions
(University of Pennsylvania) The mechanism by which a herpes virus invades cells has remained a mystery to scientists, but now researchers reveals the unusual structure of a key member of the protein complex that allows a herpes virus to invade cells. The new map details an essential piece of the herpes virus "cell-entry machinery," providing scientists with a new target for antiviral drugs.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 25 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
JCI table of contents: July 26, 2010
(Journal of Clinical Investigation) This release contains summaries, links to PDFs, and contact information for papers to be published July 26, 2010, in the JCI: "Reducing the health risks of obesity without serious side effects"; "Predicting drug responsiveness in cancer patients"; "Flushing out key limitations to a drug that protects against heart attack"; "Function of rare immune cell uncovered"; and "The protein Sema3E: the black sheep in the Sema3 family."Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 25 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Major funding awarded to improve treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis and HIV co-infection
(Albert Einstein College of Medicine) For the third time in four months, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health has awarded Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University a research grant aimed at helping people infected with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases | 25 Jul 2010 | 10:00 pm
Heart problem no problem for fliers
It's OK to fly even if you have serious heart problems, according to this week's advice from the British Cardiovascular SocietySource: New Scientist - Health | 24 Jul 2010 | 2:00 am
'Sleep control' cells allow blind mice to see
Mice lacking rod and cone cells can still navigate mazes. They must be using a third light receptor previously thought to have no role in visionSource: New Scientist - Health | 23 Jul 2010 | 9:44 am
Will a second attempt at IVF be worth the effort?
Using clinical and embryo data from a failed IVF attempt could better predict the likelihood of subsequent successSource: New Scientist - Health | 23 Jul 2010 | 8:54 am
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