ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Healthy living into old age can add up to six years to your life: Keeping physically active shows strongest association with survival
• Domestic coal use linked to substantial lifetime risk of lung cancer in Xuanwei, China
• Antibody prevents hepatitis C infection in animal model
• Urinary protein excretion -- even in the normal range -- raises diabetics' heart risks, study finds
• Moving toward regeneration
• Monogamy and the immune system: Differences in sexual behavior impact bacteria hosted and genes that control immunity
• Human and soil bacteria swap antibiotic-resistance genes
• Cancer gene family member functions key to cell adhesion and migration
• Chemical exposure in the womb from household items may contribute to obesity
• People merge supernatural and scientific beliefs when reasoning with the unknown, study shows
• Lyme retreatment guidance may be flawed
• Studying everyday eye movements could aid in diagnosis of neurological disorders
• Early activation of immune response could lead to better vaccines
• Potential new approach for improving quality of life for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients
• Potential treatment for cognitive effects of stress-related disorders, including PTSD
• Diverse metabolic roles for PML tumor suppressor gene
• New flexible electronics technology may lead to new medical uses
• Growing strong muscles without working out? 'Hulk' protein, Grb10, controls muscle growth
• Shedding new light on one of diabetes' most dangerous complications
• Bitter tastes quickly turn milk chocolate fans sour
• Malaria: Protein impedes microcirculation of malaria-infected red blood cells
• Early menopause: A genetic mouse model of human primary ovarian insufficiency
• Factors other than pain affect long-term use of strong pain medications after surgery
• Anesthesia for hand or face transplants -- initial guidelines
• Water pipe smoking has the same respiratory effects as smoking cigarettes
• What babies eat after birth likely determines lifetime risk of metabolic mischief and obesity, rat studies suggest
• Calorie Restriction Does Not Affect Survival: Study Of Monkeys Also Suggests Some Health Benefits
• Mechanism leading from trichomoniasis to prostate cancer identified
• Medical exemptions from school vaccination requirements across states explored
• Bacterium transforms into weapon against sleeping sickness
• New diagnostic biomarkers offer ray of hope for Alzheimer’s disease

Healthy living into old age can add up to six years to your life: Keeping physically active shows strongest association with survival Posted: 30 Aug 2012 04:10 PM PDT Living a healthy lifestyle into old age can add five years to women's lives and six years to men's, finds a new study.

Domestic coal use linked to substantial lifetime risk of lung cancer in Xuanwei, China Posted: 30 Aug 2012 04:10 PM PDT The use of "smoky coal" for household cooking and heating is associated with a substantial increase in the lifetime risk of developing lung cancer, finds a study from China.

Antibody prevents hepatitis C infection in animal model Posted: 30 Aug 2012 02:31 PM PDT A monoclonal antibody tested in an animal model prevents infection by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

Urinary protein excretion -- even in the normal range -- raises diabetics' heart risks, study finds Posted: 30 Aug 2012 02:31 PM PDT For patients with type 2 diabetes, any degree of measurable urinary protein excretion —- even in what is considered the normal range —- increases their risk of experiencing heart problems, according to a new study. More than 300 million people worldwide have type 2 diabetes.

Moving toward regeneration Posted: 30 Aug 2012 12:23 PM PDT Scientists have shown how pluripotent stem cells mobilize in wounded planarian worms, to better understand stem cell behavior in regeneration and disease.

Monogamy and the immune system: Differences in sexual behavior impact bacteria hosted and genes that control immunity Posted: 30 Aug 2012 11:14 AM PDT Researchers examined the differences between two species of mice -- one monogamous and one promiscuous -- on a microscopic and molecular level. They discovered that the lifestyles of the two mice had a direct impact on the bacterial communities that reside within the female reproductive tract. These differences correlate with enhanced diversifying selection on genes related to immunity against bacterial diseases.

Human and soil bacteria swap antibiotic-resistance genes Posted: 30 Aug 2012 11:13 AM PDT Soil bacteria and bacteria that cause human diseases have recently swapped at least seven antibiotic-resistance genes, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report Aug. 31 in Science.

Cancer gene family member functions key to cell adhesion and migration Posted: 30 Aug 2012 11:13 AM PDT Scientists have used sophisticated technologies to identify and describe the protein interactions that distinguish each member of the WTX family. They found that unlike WTX and FAM123C, FAM123A interacts with a specific set of proteins that regulates cell adhesion and migration, processes essential to normal cell functioning and which, when mutated, contribute to human diseases such as cancer or Alzheimer's.

Chemical exposure in the womb from household items may contribute to obesity Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:53 AM PDT Pregnant women who are highly exposed to common environmental chemicals -- polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) -- have babies that are smaller at birth and larger at 20 months of age, according to a new study. PFCs are used in the production of fluoropolymers and are found widely in protective coatings of packaging products, clothes, furniture and non-stick cookware. They are persistent compounds found abundantly in the environment and human exposure is common. PFCs have been detected in human sera, breast milk and cord blood.

People merge supernatural and scientific beliefs when reasoning with the unknown, study shows Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:53 AM PDT A new psychology study finds adults are more likely than children to find supernatural explanations for existential questions.

Lyme retreatment guidance may be flawed Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:53 AM PDT A new statistical review calls into question studies that have been taken as proof that antibiotic retreatment for chronic Lyme disease is futile. That misunderstanding has led to medical guidance that discourages retreatment and insurance coverage for it. Instead, the authors of the review suggest, the proper reading of the studies and their data is that they prove nothing.

Studying everyday eye movements could aid in diagnosis of neurological disorders Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:53 AM PDT Researchers have devised a method for detecting certain neurological disorders through the study of eye movements.

Early activation of immune response could lead to better vaccines Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:51 AM PDT Researchers have discovered a new "first response" mechanism that the immune system uses to respond to infection. The findings challenge the current understanding of immunity and could lead to new strategies for boosting effectiveness of all vaccines.

Potential new approach for improving quality of life for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:51 AM PDT Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS, is a devastating, rapidly advancing disease of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. But researchers have identified a new target for slowing the deterioration of physical function for which the disease is so well known.

Potential treatment for cognitive effects of stress-related disorders, including PTSD Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:51 AM PDT Researchers have identified a potential medical treatment for the cognitive effects of stress-related disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The study, conducted in a PTSD mouse model, shows that an experimental drug called S107, one of a new class of small-molecule compounds called Rycals, prevented learning and memory deficits associated with stress-related disorders.

Diverse metabolic roles for PML tumor suppressor gene Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:04 AM PDT Two articles shed new light on the genetic mechanisms underlying cellular energy and metabolism and, at the same time, highlight both the challenges and opportunities of genetic approaches to cancer treatment.

New flexible electronics technology may lead to new medical uses Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:04 AM PDT Researchers have developed technology that opens new possibilities for health care and medical applications of electronic devices.

Growing strong muscles without working out? 'Hulk' protein, Grb10, controls muscle growth Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:04 AM PDT Scientists may soon help people grow strong muscles without needing to hit the weight room. Researchers discovered that by blocking the function of the protein Grb10 in mice in the womb, they developed as more muscular than their normal counterparts. This presents important implications for a range of conditions that are worsened by, or cause muscle wasting, such as injury, muscular dystrophy, and Type 2 diabetes.

Shedding new light on one of diabetes' most dangerous complications Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:00 AM PDT For many diabetics, monitoring their condition involves much more than adhering to a routine of glucose sensing and insulin injections. It also entails carefully monitoring the ongoing toll this disease takes on their body. An innovative new optical diagnostic tool may soon make it easier to diagnose and monitor one of the most serious complications of diabetes, peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Bitter tastes quickly turn milk chocolate fans sour Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:00 AM PDT Dark chocolate lovers can handle a wider range of bitter tastes before rejection compared to milk chocolate fans, according to food scientists.

Malaria: Protein impedes microcirculation of malaria-infected red blood cells Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:54 AM PDT A certain protein significantly reduces the malaria-infected cells' ability to squeeze through tiny channels compared to healthy cells.

Early menopause: A genetic mouse model of human primary ovarian insufficiency Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:54 AM PDT Scientists have established a genetic mouse model for primary ovarian insufficiency (POI), a human condition in which women experience irregular menstrual cycles and reduced fertility, and early exposure to estrogen deficiency. POI affects approximately one in a hundred women. In most cases of primary ovarian insufficiency, the cause is mysterious, although genetics is known to play a causative role.

Factors other than pain affect long-term use of strong pain medications after surgery Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:52 AM PDT Non-pain-related factors—including previous use of pain medications, high perceived risk of addiction, and symptoms of depression—increase the risk of continuing to use strong pain-relieving drugs several months after surgery, according to a new study.

Anesthesia for hand or face transplants -- initial guidelines Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:52 AM PDT Hand and facial transplants are still rare, but experience so far has produced some suggested guidelines for anesthetic management in patients undergoing these complex "composite" transplant procedures, according to a pair of articles.

Water pipe smoking has the same respiratory effects as smoking cigarettes Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:28 AM PDT Water pipe smoking, such as hookah or bong smoking, affects lung function and respiratory symptoms as much as cigarette smoking, new research shows.

What babies eat after birth likely determines lifetime risk of metabolic mischief and obesity, rat studies suggest Posted: 30 Aug 2012 07:27 AM PDT Rats born to mothers fed high-fat diets but who get normal levels of fat in their diets right after birth avoid obesity and its related disorders as adults, according to new research. Meanwhile, rat babies exposed to a normal-fat diet in the womb but nursed by rat mothers on high-fat diets become obese by the time they are weaned.

Calorie Restriction Does Not Affect Survival: Study Of Monkeys Also Suggests Some Health Benefits Posted: 30 Aug 2012 05:51 AM PDT Scientists have found that calorie restriction -- a diet composed of approximately 30 percent fewer calories but with the same nutrients of a standard diet -- does not extend years of life or reduce age-related deaths in a 23-year study of rhesus monkeys. However, calorie restriction did extend certain aspects of health.

Mechanism leading from trichomoniasis to prostate cancer identified Posted: 30 Aug 2012 03:58 AM PDT Researchers have identified a way in which men can develop prostate cancer after contracting trichomoniasis, a curable but often overlooked sexually transmitted disease. Previous studies have teased out a casual, epidemiological correlation between the two diseases, but this latest study suggests a more tangible biological mechanism.

Medical exemptions from school vaccination requirements across states explored Posted: 30 Aug 2012 03:58 AM PDT In states where medical exemptions from vaccination requirements for kindergarten students are easier to get, exemption rates are higher, potentially compromising herd immunity and posing a threat to children and others who truly should not be immunized because of underlying conditions, according to a new study.

Bacterium transforms into weapon against sleeping sickness Posted: 30 Aug 2012 03:57 AM PDT Scientists have opened a new front against the cause of sleeping sickness. This parasite is transmitted between humans by tsetse flies. The researchers learned a bacterium living in those flies how to produce antibodies against the parasite. Application in the field is still a long way of, but the technique shows quite some promise.

New diagnostic biomarkers offer ray of hope for Alzheimer’s disease Posted: 30 Aug 2012 03:57 AM PDT Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the most common brain disorders, with an estimated 35 million people affected worldwide. In the last decade, research has advanced our understanding of how AD affects the brain. However, diagnosis continues to rely primarily on neuropsychological tests which can only detect the disease after clinical symptoms begin.

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