ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Brain glia cells increase their DNA content to preserve vital blood-brain barrier
• Obese nurses more stressed, less active
• Wearing contact lenses can affect glaucoma measurements
• Energy within the cell: Energy-saving chaperon Hsp90
• Protection of the heart at a distance
• 'Good' HDL cholesterol can also be 'bad'
• Office workers spend too much time at their desks
• Monitored heart bracelets may prevent sudden death in sport
• Cancer sequencing project identifies potential approaches to combat aggressive leukemia
• Gene identified as a new target for treatment of aggressive childhood eye tumor
• Concept of 'overactive bladder' serves commercial interests rather than patient interests, experts say
• Opioids erase memory traces of pain
• Parabens in breast tissue not limited to women who have used underarm products
• Participating in marathons, half-marathons not found to increase risk of cardiac arrest
• New information on the waste-disposal units of living cells
• Stenting for stroke prevention becoming safer in high-risk patients, study suggests
• Two new standard reference materials for monitoring human exposure to environmental toxins
• Promoting vaccines in office-based medical settings is needed to boost adult immunization rates, experts say
• Advance toward an imaging agent for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease
• Why coffee drinking reduces the risk of Type 2 diabetes
• Boost for health? Researchers isolate protein linking exercise to health benefits

Brain glia cells increase their DNA content to preserve vital blood-brain barrier Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:10 PM PST Scientists report that as the developing larval fruit fly brain grows by cell division, it instructs subperineurial glia (SPG) cells that form the blood-brain barrier to enlarge by creating multiple copies of their genomes in a process known as polyploidization.

Obese nurses more stressed, less active Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:08 PM PST Job stress and shift work have a lot more to do with obesity among nurses than previously thought, according to a new study.

Wearing contact lenses can affect glaucoma measurements Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:06 PM PST Wearing contact lenses can affect measurements to detect glaucoma, a new study has found.

Energy within the cell: Energy-saving chaperon Hsp90 Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:06 PM PST A special group of proteins, the so-called chaperons, helps other proteins to obtain their correct conformation. Until now scientists supposed that hydrolyzing ATP provides the energy for the large conformational changes of chaperon Hsp90. Now a research team has demonstrated that Hsp90 utilizes thermal fluctuations as the driving force for its conformational changes.

Protection of the heart at a distance Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:03 PM PST Novel avenues to treat a heart attack have been developed: in patients, who have a blood pressure cuff several times briefly inflated before they undergo coronary artery surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, the heart is protected from damage.

'Good' HDL cholesterol can also be 'bad' Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:02 PM PST Generally speaking, a distinction has been made so far between "good" HDL cholesterol and "bad" LDL cholesterol. LDL contributes to cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and stroke, while the "good" HDL protects against them. Now, however, experts have discovered that the anti-inflammatory effect of HDL was not detected in patients on renal dialysis.

Office workers spend too much time at their desks Posted: 13 Jan 2012 06:02 PM PST In a typical working week, people spend on average 5 hours and 41 minutes per day sitting at their desk and 7 hours sleeping at night. Prolonged sitting at your desk is not only bad for your physical health, but potentially your mental well-being, experts say.

Monitored heart bracelets may prevent sudden death in sport Posted: 13 Jan 2012 05:56 PM PST The use of heart bracelets connected via ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) to a system of tracking and monitoring could prevent cases of sudden death in sports activities. It could also enable an early detection of cardiac abnormalities, the prevention of certain muscle injuries and the improvement in health care times to the athlete.

Cancer sequencing project identifies potential approaches to combat aggressive leukemia Posted: 13 Jan 2012 05:56 PM PST Researchers have discovered that a subtype of leukemia characterized by a poor prognosis is fueled by mutations in pathways distinctly different from a seemingly similar leukemia associated with a much better outcome. The findings highlight a possible new strategy for treating patients with this more aggressive cancer.

Gene identified as a new target for treatment of aggressive childhood eye tumor Posted: 13 Jan 2012 05:54 PM PST New findings help solve mystery of retinoblastoma's rapid growth in work that also yields a new treatment target and possible therapy.

Concept of 'overactive bladder' serves commercial interests rather than patient interests, experts say Posted: 13 Jan 2012 05:54 PM PST Experts question the concept of the 'overactive bladder syndrome'. According to researchers, the definition of this syndrome is mostly beneficial to those with commercial interests, while from the patient perspective and for the development of treatments, it may be detrimental.

Opioids erase memory traces of pain Posted: 13 Jan 2012 05:49 PM PST Medical researchers have discovered a previously unknown effect of opioids. The study shows that opioids not only temporarily relieve pain, but at the right dose can also erase memory traces of pain in the spinal cord and therefore eliminate a key cause of chronic pain.

Parabens in breast tissue not limited to women who have used underarm products Posted: 11 Jan 2012 07:33 PM PST New research into the potential link between parabens and breast cancer has found traces of the chemicals in breast tissue samples from all of the women in the study. Parabens are commonly used as preservatives in cosmetics, food products and pharmaceuticals. As the research shows that parabens are measurable in the tissue of women who do not use underarm cosmetics the parabens must enter the breast from other sources.

Participating in marathons, half-marathons not found to increase risk of cardiac arrest Posted: 11 Jan 2012 07:33 PM PST A new study finds that participating in marathons and half-marathons is associated with a relatively low risk of cardiac arrest, compared to other forms of athletics. The study also identifies bystander-initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation as a key factor in patient survival.

New information on the waste-disposal units of living cells Posted: 11 Jan 2012 12:40 PM PST Researchers have provided the most detailed look ever at the "regulatory particle" used by the proteasome - one of the most critical protein machines in living cells - to identify and degrade proteins marked for destruction. This new information holds implications for a broad range of vital biochemical processes, including transcription, DNA repair and the immune defense system.

Stenting for stroke prevention becoming safer in high-risk patients, study suggests Posted: 11 Jan 2012 12:36 PM PST Placing a stent in a key artery in the neck is safer than ever in patients ineligible for the standard surgical treatment of carotid artery disease, according to a new study.

Two new standard reference materials for monitoring human exposure to environmental toxins Posted: 11 Jan 2012 10:40 AM PST Scientists have developed two new standard reference materials for measurements of human exposure to environmental toxins. The new reference materials replace and improve older versions, adding measures for emerging environmental contaminants such as perchlorate, a chemical that the Environmental Protection Agency has targeted for regulation as a contaminant under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Promoting vaccines in office-based medical settings is needed to boost adult immunization rates, experts say Posted: 11 Jan 2012 10:40 AM PST Promoting immunizations as a part of routine office-based medical practice is needed to improve adult vaccination rates, a highly effective way to curb the spread of diseases across communities, prevent needless illness and deaths, and lower health care costs, according to a new study.

Advance toward an imaging agent for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease Posted: 11 Jan 2012 10:40 AM PST Scientists are reporting development and initial laboratory tests of an imaging agent that shows promise for detecting the tell-tale signs of Alzheimer's disease in the brain -- signs that now can't confirm a diagnosis until after patients have died.

Why coffee drinking reduces the risk of Type 2 diabetes Posted: 11 Jan 2012 10:39 AM PST Why do heavy coffee drinkers have a lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, a disease on the increase around the world that can lead to serious health problems? Scientists are now offering a new solution to that long-standing mystery,

Boost for health? Researchers isolate protein linking exercise to health benefits Posted: 11 Jan 2012 10:35 AM PST Scientists have isolated a natural hormone from muscle cells that triggers some of the key health benefits of exercise. The hormone, named irisin, switches on genes that convert white fat into "good" brown fat. The researchers call irisin a highly promising candidate for development as a novel treatment for diabetes, obesity and perhaps other disorders, including cancer.

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