ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

---

• Substance P causes seizures in patients infected by pork tapeworm
• Most lethal known species of prion protein identified
• Chemists harvest light to create 'green' tool for pharmaceuticals
• Gene therapy boosts brain repair for demyelinating diseases
• Baby knows best: Baby-led weaning promotes healthy food preferences
• Physically abused children report higher levels of psychosomatic symptoms
• Secrets of immune response illuminated in new study
• Research finds ways that young couples experience less relationship stress, higher satisfaction
• Largest-ever gene study of Type 2 diabetes finds variants across many ethnic groups
• Obesity is associated with altered brain function
• Nanotube therapy takes aim at breast cancer stem cells
• Scientists sound alarm over threat of untreatable gonorrhea in United States
• New target for Alzheimer's drugs
• Continental mosquito with 'vector' potential found breeding in UK after 60 year absence
• Financial burden of prescription drugs is dropping, U.S. study finds
• Low dopamine levels during withdrawal promote relapse to smoking
• How DNA finds its match
• Stress pathway identified as potential therapeutic target to prevent vision loss
• Feast or famine? How appetite cells in the brain respond to fasting
• Roots of hunger and eating: Plasticity in the brain's wiring controls feeding behavior in mice
• High levels of cadmium or lead in blood linked to pregnancy delay
• Unusual alliances enable movement

Substance P causes seizures in patients infected by pork tapeworm Posted: 09 Feb 2012 02:28 PM PST A neuropeptide called Substance P is the cause of seizures in patients with brains infected by the pork tapeworm.

Most lethal known species of prion protein identified Posted: 09 Feb 2012 12:28 PM PST Scientists have identified a single prion protein that causes neuronal death similar to that seen in "mad cow" disease, but is at least 10 times more lethal than larger prion species.

Chemists harvest light to create 'green' tool for pharmaceuticals Posted: 09 Feb 2012 11:39 AM PST Researchers have created a new, "green" method for developing medicines. The researchers used energy from a light bulb to create an organic molecule that may be useful in the treatment of Alzheimer's and other brain diseases.

Gene therapy boosts brain repair for demyelinating diseases Posted: 09 Feb 2012 11:02 AM PST Our bodies are full of tiny superheroes -- antibodies that fight foreign invaders, cells that regenerate, and structures that ensure our systems run smoothly. One such structure is myelin, a material that forms a protective cape around the axons of our nerve cells so that they can send signals quickly and efficiently. But myelin becomes damaged in demyelinating diseases like multiple sclerosis, leaving neurons without their sheaths. Researchers now believe they have found a way to help the brain replace damaged myelin.

Baby knows best: Baby-led weaning promotes healthy food preferences Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:58 AM PST A new study has shown that babies who are weaned using solid finger food are more likely to develop healthier food preferences and are less likely to become overweight as children than those who are spoon-fed pureed food.

Physically abused children report higher levels of psychosomatic symptoms Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:53 AM PST Children who display multiple psychosomatic symptoms, such as regular aches and pains and sleep and appetite problems, are more than twice as likely to be experiencing physical abuse at home than children who do not display symptoms. Researchers who studied 2,510 children found a strong association between reported physical abuse and three or more psychosomatic symptoms. The association was highest in children who were physically abused and also witnessed intimate partner violence.

Secrets of immune response illuminated in new study Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:51 AM PST When disease-causing invaders like bacteria infect a human host, cells of various types swing into action, coordinating their activities to address the threat. Scientists have now investigated the coordination of a particular type of immune response, involving the release of of IFN-λ -- a cell-signaling protein molecule known as a cytokine.

Research finds ways that young couples experience less relationship stress, higher satisfaction Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:50 AM PST Young adults who easily engage in rewarding conversations with their partners are less likely to hold onto anger and stress and more likely to be satisfied with the relationship, according to new research. Researchers are also looking at factors that relate to positive dating relationships or problematic relationships.

Largest-ever gene study of Type 2 diabetes finds variants across many ethnic groups Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:50 AM PST The largest genetics study to date of Type 2 diabetes has identified new gene variants associated with risk for the common metabolic disease. An international scientific consortium, studying multi-ethnic populations, uncovered genes that may point to biological targets for developing more effective drugs for T2D.

Obesity is associated with altered brain function Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:14 AM PST Researchers have found new evidence for the role of the brain in obesity.

Nanotube therapy takes aim at breast cancer stem cells Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:14 AM PST Researchers have again shown that injecting multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) into tumors and heating them with a quick, 30-second laser treatment can kill them.

Scientists sound alarm over threat of untreatable gonorrhea in United States Posted: 09 Feb 2012 07:18 AM PST The threat of multi-drug resistant gonorrhea is rising. Cephalosporins, the last line of defense, are rapidly losing effectiveness. The likelihood of treatment failures in the United States calls for urgent action to control the spread of gonorrhea, medical research leaders say. Gonorrhea is the second most commonly reported communicable disease in the United States.

New target for Alzheimer's drugs Posted: 09 Feb 2012 07:18 AM PST UC Riverside biomedical scientists have identified a new link between a protein (beta-arrestin) and short-term memory that could open new doors for the therapeutic treatment of neurological disorders, particularly Alzheimer's disease. They show that if beta-arrestin is removed from neurons, short-term memory loss is prevented. But beta-arrestin is also required for normal learning/memory. The researchers argue that a fine balance needs to be established, one that could be achieved by pharmaceutical drugs in the future.

Continental mosquito with 'vector' potential found breeding in UK after 60 year absence Posted: 08 Feb 2012 07:02 PM PST A species of mosquito has been discovered breeding in the UK that has not been seen in the country since 1945. Populations of the mosquito, found across mainland Europe and known only by its Latin name Culex modestus, were recorded at a number of sites in the marshes of north Kent and south Essex in 2010 and 2011.

Financial burden of prescription drugs is dropping, U.S. study finds Posted: 08 Feb 2012 03:02 PM PST The financial challenge Americans face paying out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs has declined, but the costs remain a burden to many families, according to a new study. Despite the improvement, more than 8 million non-elderly Americans live in families with a high drug-cost burden.

Low dopamine levels during withdrawal promote relapse to smoking Posted: 08 Feb 2012 10:25 AM PST Mark Twain said, "Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I've done it thousands of times." Many smokers would agree that it's difficult to stay away from cigarettes. A new study now suggests that low dopamine levels that occur as a result of withdrawal from smoking actually promote the relapse to smoking.

How DNA finds its match Posted: 08 Feb 2012 10:23 AM PST It's been more than 50 years since James Watson and Francis Crick showed that DNA is a double helix of two strands that complement each other. But how does a short piece of DNA find its match, out of the millions of 'letters' in even a small genome? New work shows how it's done.

Stress pathway identified as potential therapeutic target to prevent vision loss Posted: 08 Feb 2012 10:22 AM PST A new study identifies specific cell-stress signaling pathways that link injury of the optic nerve with irreversible vision loss. The research may lead to new strategies that will help to protect vulnerable neurons in the retina after optic nerve damage and diseases.

Feast or famine? How appetite cells in the brain respond to fasting Posted: 08 Feb 2012 10:22 AM PST Previous work has shown that the AgRP neurons promote feeding and weight gain, while the POMC cells have been linked with appetite suppression and weight loss. Now a new study uncovers a neural pathway that links fasting with activation of AgRP neurons. The research provides valuable insight into the complex mechanisms that control food seeking behavior.

Roots of hunger and eating: Plasticity in the brain's wiring controls feeding behavior in mice Posted: 08 Feb 2012 10:22 AM PST Synaptic plasticity – the ability of the synaptic connections between the brain's neurons to change and modify over time -- has been shown to be a key to memory formation and the acquisition of new learning behaviors. Now researchers reveal that the neural circuits controlling hunger and eating behaviors are also controlled by plasticity.

High levels of cadmium or lead in blood linked to pregnancy delay Posted: 08 Feb 2012 07:27 AM PST Higher blood levels of cadmium in females, and higher blood levels of lead in males, delayed pregnancy in couples trying to become pregnant, according to a new study.

Unusual alliances enable movement Posted: 08 Feb 2012 07:27 AM PST Some unusual alliances are necessary for you to wiggle your fingers, researchers report. Understanding those relationships should enable better treatment of neuromuscular diseases, such as myasthenia gravis, which prevent muscles from taking orders from your brain. Scientists have now solved one of the riddles.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610