Cancer treatment potential discovered in gene repair mechanism
• Cancer • • Genetics • Dec 31 14
Case Western Reserve researchers have identified a two-pronged therapeutic approach that shows great potential for weakening and then defeating cancer cells. The team’s complex…
Enzyme’s alter ego helps activate the immune system
• Immunology • Dec 29 14
Already known to cut proteins, the enzyme SPPL3 turns out to have additional talents, according to a new study from Johns Hopkins. In its…
Text messaging reminders increase second dose influenza vaccinations in children
• Children's Health • • Immunology • Dec 29 14
Researchers at the Mailman School of Public Health and Columbia University Medical Center studied the impact of text message reminders for the second dose…
Comparing analgesic effect of manual vs laser acupuncture for lateral epicondylalgia
• Neurology • • Pain • Dec 29 14
A team of researchers from China Medical University and Da-Chien General Hospital in Taiwan (R.O.C.) recently compared the analgesic effect of laser acupuncture and…
Binge drinking disrupts immune system in young adults, study finds
• Immunology • • Psychiatry / Psychology • Dec 29 14
Binge drinking in young, healthy adults significantly disrupts the immune system, according to a study led by a researcher now at Loyola University Chicago…
High-fat diet, obesity during pregnancy harms stem cells in developing fetus
• Dieting • • Obesity • • Pregnancy • Dec 26 14
Physician-scientists at OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital reveal a high-fat diet and obesity during pregnancy compromise the blood-forming, or hematopoietic, stem cell system in the…
Project pinpoints 12 new genetic causes of developmental disorders
• Children's Health • • Genetics • • Neurology • Dec 26 14
The first results to emerge from a nationwide project to study the genetic causes of rare developmental disorders have revealed 12 causative genes that…
Optogenetics captures neuronal transmission in live mammalian brain
• Brain • • Neurology • Dec 26 14
Neurons, the cells of the nervous system, communicate by transmitting chemical signals to each other through junctions called synapses. This “synaptic transmission” is critical…
Resistance to anti-viral drug may be more likely in cystic fibrosis patients
• Infections • • Respiratory Problems • Dec 19 14
A drug called ganciclovir is given to lung transplant patients to protect against a life-threatening virus that is common after transplantation.
Internet addiction affects 6 percent of people worldwide
• Psychiatry / Psychology • • Gambling addictions • Dec 19 14
Internet addiction is an impulse-control problem marked by an inability to inhibit Internet use, which can adversely affect a person’s life, including their health…
Subtle but important memory function affected by preterm birth
• Brain • • Childbirth • Dec 18 14
A new study has found that children born prematurely show differences in a subtle but important aspect of memory: the ability to form and…
Weigh-in Once a Week or You’ll Gain Weight
• Dieting • • Weight Loss • Dec 18 14
Stepping on the scale is common among dieters but how does the frequency of weigh-ins impact weight? A new study in PLOS ONE showed…
Occasional heroin use may worsen HIV infection
• AIDS/HIV • • Tobacco & Marijuana • Dec 15 14
Researchers at Yale and Boston University and their Russian collaborators have found that occasional heroin use by HIV-positive patients may be particularly harmful to…
Patients Don’t Understand Risks of Unnecessary Antibiotics, GW Study Shows
• Drug Abuse • Dec 15 14
Over prescription of antibiotics is a major factor driving one of the biggest public health concerns today: antibiotic resistance. In a first-of-its-kind study, research…
Non-Gluten proteins identified as targets of immune response to wheat in celiac disease
• Immunology • Dec 15 14
Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have found that, in addition to gluten, the immune systems of patients with celiac disease react to specific…
Vitamin C may help people who suffer from respiratory symptoms after exercise
• Physical activity -exercise • • Respiratory Problems • Dec 08 14
Physical activity increases oxidative stress, and therefore, as an antioxidant vitamin C might have particularly evident effects on people who are participating in vigorous…
Three Drugs Top Two in Relapsed Multiple Myeloma
• Neurology • Dec 08 14
Patients with relapsed multiple myeloma had a 9-month improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) when they received the proteasome inhibitor carfilzomib (Kyprolis) in addition to…
Pain Complaints, Opioid Use Higher With Epilepsy
• Epilepsy • • Pain • Dec 08 14
Individuals with epilepsy had insurance claims for opioid prescriptions and diagnoses of painful conditions that were substantially more common than in a control group…
Family Hx Still Independent Risk Factor for RA
• Arthritis • • Rheumatic Diseases • Dec 08 14
The familial risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) cannot be explained fully by established genetic and environmental RA risk factors, so family history remains an…
People with mental illness more likely to be tested for HIV, Penn Medicine study finds
• AIDS/HIV • • Psychiatry / Psychology • Dec 05 14
People with mental illness are more likely to have been tested for HIV than those without mental illness, according to a new study from…
Obesity may shorten life expectancy up to 8 years
• Obesity • Dec 05 14
Tis the season to indulge. However, restraint may be best according to a new study led by investigators at the Research Institute of the…
Higher birth weight indicates better performance in school
• Children's Health • • Childbirth • Dec 05 14
It’s no secret that low-birth-weight babies face significantly greater risks for certain health problems early on, such as respiratory distress or infection. Now, a…
How Red Wine Prevents Cancer
• Cancer • • Food & Nutrition • Dec 04 14
Alcohol use is a major risk factor for head and neck cancer. But an article published in the November issue of the journal Advances…
Study discovers RX approach that reduces herpes virus infection
• Infections • Dec 04 14
A multi-institutional study reports an effective treatment approach to inhibit and keep latent viruses like herpes simplex from reactivating and causing disease. The work,…
Why does physical activity during childhood matter?
• Children's Health • • Physical activity -exercise • Dec 03 14
Over the past thirty years, physical activity among children has declined markedly. The public health implications of this decline include a growing prevalence of…