ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Scientists show how antibiotics enable pathogenic gut infections
• Family history doubles aortic stenosis risk
• Droplet Digital PCR enables reproducible quantification of microRNA biomarkers
• Drug-Resistant TB's Surprising Family Tree
• Mycobacterium tuberculosis: Our African follower for over 70,000 years
• Scientists discover novel functions of platelets
• Harmonizing a broken heart: Stem cells keep cardiac beat in synchrony
• Mechanical chest compressions for cardiac arrest just as good as manual, study suggests
• Administering natural substance spermidin stopped dementia in fruit flies
• Anticoagulant does not reduce rate of ischemic events among certain patients undergoing PCI
• Move it and lose it: Every 'brisk' minute counts
• DNA 'cages' may aid drug delivery
• Multiple mutations often needed to make TB bacteria drug resistant

Scientists show how antibiotics enable pathogenic gut infections Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:41 PM PDT A new study could help pinpoint ways to counter the effects of the antibiotics-driven depletion of friendly, gut-dwelling bacteria. In the first 24 hours after administration of oral antibiotics, a spike in carbohydrate availability takes place in the gut, the study says. This transient nutrient surplus, combined with the reduction of friendly gut-dwelling bacteria due to antibiotics, permits at least two potentially deadly pathogens to get a toehold in that otherwise more forbidding environment.

Family history doubles aortic stenosis risk Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:41 PM PDT The risk of aortic stenosis doubles when a first degree relative had the disease, according to new research. The study of 4.2 million people from Danish registers also found that aortic stenosis risk increased by eight-fold in patients with ischemic heart disease and family history.

Droplet Digital PCR enables reproducible quantification of microRNA biomarkers Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:41 PM PDT MicroRNA can be reproducibly quantified using droplet digital PCR, paving the way for their further development as circulating biomarkers.

Drug-Resistant TB's Surprising Family Tree Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:40 PM PDT A new method of analyzing whole genome sequences of TB, applied to a massive set of strains of the bacteria collected from clinics around the world, has revealed 39 new genes associated with elevated drug resistance.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis: Our African follower for over 70,000 years Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:40 PM PDT One of the deadliest infectious diseases of humankind emerged in Africa 70,000 years ago, a new genetic analysis of 259 Tuberculosis bacterial strains has shown. According to the study, TB bacteria migrated out of Africa hand-in-hand with the first anatomically modern humans. Today's deadly features of TB may be a result of the common migratory path and changes in human live-styles. These evolutionary findings may impact the future developments of new drugs and vaccines.

Scientists discover novel functions of platelets Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:40 PM PDT A new understanding of novel functions of platelets could lead to new treatments to reduce bleeding in trauma and severe infections.

Harmonizing a broken heart: Stem cells keep cardiac beat in synchrony Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:39 PM PDT Stem cell therapy used to regenerate injured tissue in the heart restores synchronous pumping, shows new research. The study proposes a novel strategy of 'biological resynchronisation' in which stem cells repair heart muscle damage to reestablish correct cardiac motion.

Mechanical chest compressions for cardiac arrest just as good as manual, study suggests Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:39 PM PDT In the event of cardiac arrest outside of a hospital it is important to provide effective chest compressions without interruption. Creating blood flow reduces the risk of brain damage and improves the chances of survival. A new Swedish study shows that mechanical treatment yields results that are at least as good as manual treatment.

Administering natural substance spermidin stopped dementia in fruit flies Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:39 PM PDT Age-induced memory impairment can be suppressed by administration of the natural substance spermidin, a study in fruit flies suggests. Biologists were able to show that the endogenous substance spermidine triggers a cellular cleansing process, which is followed by an improvement in the memory performance of older fruit flies. At the molecular level, memory processes in animal organisms such as fruit flies and mice are similar to those in humans.

Anticoagulant does not reduce rate of ischemic events among certain patients undergoing PCI Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:33 PM PDT Use of the novel anticoagulant otamixaban did not reduce ischemic events compared with unfractionated heparin plus eptifibatide but increased bleeding among patients with non–ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes undergoing a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI; procedures such as balloon angioplasty or stent placement used to open narrowed coronary arteries), according to a new study.

Move it and lose it: Every 'brisk' minute counts Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:33 PM PDT New research shows even brief episodes of brisk physical activity can have as positive an effect on weight as does the current recommendation of 10 or more minutes at a time.

DNA 'cages' may aid drug delivery Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:33 PM PDT Nanoscale "cages" made from strands of DNA can encapsulate small-molecule drugs and release them in response to a specific stimulus, researchers report in a new study.

Multiple mutations often needed to make TB bacteria drug resistant Posted: 01 Sep 2013 12:33 PM PDT The gene mutation process that creates drug resistance in a tuberculosis-causing bacterium often requires more than one step. It is not just a single mutation, but a series, according to new research.

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