ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• How nerve cells flexibly adapt to acoustic signals
• Brain cell discovery could open doors to targeted cancer therapies
• Development of new cell models that report circadian clock function
• Protein researchers closing in on the mystery of schizophrenia
• Taking iron improves women's exercise performance, study shows
• Immunotherapy could help tackle tough liver cancer
• Viral hepatitis more deadly than HIV in Europe
• Positive outcomes for hepatitis C transplant patients
• Sensitive balance in immune system: How one molecule can affect health outcomes
• Young athletes from higher income families more likely to suffer serious overuse injuries
• Splice variants reveal connections among autism genes
• Global poverty could be up to a third higher than reported
• Scientists grow cartilage to reconstruct nose
• 3-D printing cancer cells to mimic tumors
• New drug, molecular insight into triple negative breast cancers
• Scientists report success growing cartilage to reconstruct nostrils and implanting tissue-engineered vaginal organs into humans
• Drug provides health benefits to diabetics with kidney disease
• Common virus may cause anemia in patients with kidney disease
• Laboratory-grown vaginas implanted in patients
• Policy recommendations for reducing gun-related injuries, deaths in US
• Medicare's flawed adjustment methodology poor way to spend billions
• For sick, elderly patients, surgical decision making 'takes a village'
• Possible new target to attack flu virus identified
• Getting to the root of Parkinson's disease
• Vigilance for kidney problems key for rheumatoid arthritis patients, study finds
• Phone call from pharmacist can reduce some hospital admissions

How nerve cells flexibly adapt to acoustic signals Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:31 AM PDT Nerve cells flexibly adapt to acoustic signals, research has shown. Depending on the input signal, neurons generate action potentials either near or far away from the cell body. Nerve cells ensure that the various kinds of input signals are optimally processed -- and thus allow us to perceive both small and large acoustic arrival time differences well, and thereby localize sounds in space.

Brain cell discovery could open doors to targeted cancer therapies Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:31 AM PDT Fresh insights into the processes that control brain cell production could pave the way for treatments for brain cancer and other brain-related disorders. Researchers have focused on a RNA molecule, known as miR-9, which is linked to the development of brain cells, known as neurons and glial cells. They have shown that a protein called Lin28a regulates the production of miR-9, which in turn controls the genes involved in brain cell development and function.

Development of new cell models that report circadian clock function Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:31 AM PDT The development of robust new liver and fat cell models that report circadian clock function have been developed by scientists. The consequences of modern life -- eating and staying up later, shift work, cell phone addiction, travel -- all disturb internal clocks. These clocks are found in the brain where they regulate sleep, and also throughout the body, where they regulate much of our physiology and metabolism. Disrupting these clocks is called circadian misalignment which has been linked to metabolic problems. These new cellular clock models could help scientists find new drugs that reset or help restore robust rhythms to metabolic clocks.

Protein researchers closing in on the mystery of schizophrenia Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:31 AM PDT Schizophrenia is a severe disease for which there is still no effective medical treatment. In an attempt to understand exactly what happens in the brain of a schizophrenic person, researchers have analyzed proteins in the brains of rats that have been given hallucinogenic drugs. This may pave the way for new and better medicines.

Taking iron improves women's exercise performance, study shows Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:23 AM PDT Women who take iron supplements experience a marked improvement in their exercise performance, a new study shows. Iron supplementation improved women's exercise performance, in terms of both the highest level they could achieve at 100% exertion (maximal capacity) and their exercise efficiency at a submaximal exertion. Women who were given iron were able to perform a given exercise using a lower heart rate and at a higher efficiency.

Immunotherapy could help tackle tough liver cancer Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:18 AM PDT Significant new data indicate that liver cancer may be treated by adoptive T cell therapy. This new therapeutic approach in the treatment of HCC could be very important as without treatment the 5 year survival rate is just 5%. Globally, HCC accounts for 746,000 deaths, and in the UK alone is responsible for over 4,000 deaths per year.

Viral hepatitis more deadly than HIV in Europe Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:18 AM PDT Mortality from viral hepatitis is significantly higher than from HIV/AIDS across EU countries, according to study results. Globally, deaths from both viral hepatitis and HIV increased from 1990-2010 with HIV/AIDS ranking 6th (1.47 million deaths) and viral hepatitis B and C combined ranking 9th, with 1.29 million deaths in 2010.

Positive outcomes for hepatitis C transplant patients Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:18 AM PDT There is new hope for the notoriously difficult-to-treat population of liver transplant patients with recurring hepatitis C, researchers have announced. Hepatitis C infection is a common cause of liver transplantation, with virus-related diseases comprising 40% of primary indications for liver transplantation in Europe among patients with cirrhosis. More than 5,500 liver transplantations are currently performed in Europe per year.

Sensitive balance in immune system: How one molecule can affect health outcomes Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:18 AM PDT The protein c-FLIPR plays a key role in controlling a 'cellular suicide' process named 'apoptosis.' Scientists have described the significance of c-FLIPR for the immune system in detail: In the presence of an excess of this molecule, mice can fight infectious diseases better, but they develop autoimmune diseases as they get older. The inhibitory effect of c-FLIPR on apoptosis is the underlying cause in both cases.

Young athletes from higher income families more likely to suffer serious overuse injuries Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:13 AM PDT Young athletes from higher income families are more likely to specialize in one sport, and also more likely to suffer serious overuse injuries such as stress fractures, according to the first study of its kind. The rate of serious overuse injuries in athletes who come from families that can afford private insurance is 68 percent higher than the rate in lower-income athletes who are on public insurance (Medicaid), the study found.

Splice variants reveal connections among autism genes Posted: 11 Apr 2014 06:13 AM PDT A new aspect of autism has been discovered, revealing that proteins involved in autism interact with many more partners than previously known. The scientists isolated hundreds of new variants of autism genes from the human brain, and then screened their protein products against thousands of other proteins to identify interacting partners. Proteins produced by alternatively-spliced autism genes and their many partners formed a biological network that produced an unprecedented view of how autism genes are connected.

Global poverty could be up to a third higher than reported Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT With over one billion people in the world living on less than $1.25 per day, the World Bank aims to end 'extreme poverty' by 2030. But new research suggests that global poverty figures could be underestimated by up to a third, and calls for more robust measurement in the future. The World Bank figures are widely used by the international community and play a significant role in international strategies to reduce poverty.

Scientists grow cartilage to reconstruct nose Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT Scientists report first ever successful nose reconstruction surgery using cartilage grown in the laboratory. Cartilage cells were extracted from the patient's nasal septum, multiplied and expanded onto a collagen membrane. The so-called engineered cartilage was then shaped according to the defect and implanted.

3-D printing cancer cells to mimic tumors Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT A 3-D model of a cancerous tumor using a 3-D printer has been successfully created by researchers. The model consists of a grid structure, 10 mm in width and length, made from gelatin, alginate and fibrin, which recreates the fibrous proteins that make up the extracellular matrix of a tumor. "With further understanding of these 3D models, we can use them to study the development, invasion, metastasis and treatment of cancer using specific cancer cells from patients. We can also use these models to test the efficacy and safety of new cancer treatment therapies and new cancer drugs," the lead author stated.

New drug, molecular insight into triple negative breast cancers Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:46 PM PDT Scientists have showcased a new drug active against triple-negative breast cancer, and through analysis of the drug's mechanism of action, offer increased understanding of the biology of this very aggressive form of breast cancer.

Scientists report success growing cartilage to reconstruct nostrils and implanting tissue-engineered vaginal organs into humans Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:43 PM PDT Two new articles report the first ever successful operations in humans to reconstruct the alar wings of the nose (nostrils), and to implant tissue-engineered vaginal organs in women with a rare syndrome that causes the vagina to be underdeveloped or absent, in both cases using the patients' own tissue.

Drug provides health benefits to diabetics with kidney disease Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:43 PM PDT Low doses of atrasentan, an endothelin receptor A inhibitor, lowered urinary protein excretion by 36% in patients with diabetes and kidney disease in a new study. Atrasentan also lowered blood pressure and cholesterol levels without causing major side effects.

Common virus may cause anemia in patients with kidney disease Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:43 PM PDT Kidneys from most patients with chronic kidney disease in a new study were positive for active cytomegalovirus infection. Patients with higher levels of anti-cytomegalovirus antibodies in their blood had lower number of red blood cells. Cytomegalovirus blocks a protein needed to make a hormone that in turn stimulates red blood cell production.

Laboratory-grown vaginas implanted in patients Posted: 10 Apr 2014 04:43 PM PDT Scientists reported the first human recipients of laboratory-grown vaginal organs. They have described long-term success in four teenage girls who received vaginal organs that were engineered with their own cells.

Policy recommendations for reducing gun-related injuries, deaths in US Posted: 10 Apr 2014 12:36 PM PDT Nine strategies to address the societal, health care, and regulatory barriers to reducing firearms-related violence, injuries, and deaths in the United States has been developed. Principal among the strategic imperatives is the recommendation to approach firearm safety as a public health issue so that policy decisions are based on scientific evidence.

Medicare's flawed adjustment methodology poor way to spend billions Posted: 10 Apr 2014 12:36 PM PDT The methodology Medicare uses to adjust the billions of dollars it pays health plans and hospitals to account for how sick their patients are is flawed and should be replaced, according to a new study that weighed the performance of Medicare's methodology against alternatives. Medicare payments to Medicare Advantage plans are projected to surpass $154 billion in 2014, and account for more than a fourth of total Medicare spending, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

For sick, elderly patients, surgical decision making 'takes a village' Posted: 10 Apr 2014 12:36 PM PDT Surgery for sick, elderly patients can be very risky. Decision making surrounding a possible surgical procedure should be orchestrated by a multidisciplinary team, including the patient, his or her family, the surgeon, primary care physician, nurses and non-clinicians, such as social workers, advocates say.

Possible new target to attack flu virus identified Posted: 10 Apr 2014 12:36 PM PDT A protein produced by the influenza A virus helps it outwit one of our body's natural defense mechanisms, researchers have found. That makes the protein a potentially good target for antiviral drugs directed against the influenza A virus. When an influenza virus infects a human cell, it uses some of the host's cellular machinery to make copies of itself, or replicate. In this study, the researchers discovered that a protein produced by human body cells, DDX21, blocks this replication process.

Getting to the root of Parkinson's disease Posted: 10 Apr 2014 09:19 AM PDT Working with human neurons and fruit flies, researchers have identified and then shut down a biological process that appears to trigger a particular form of Parkinson's disease present in a large number of patients. The new research builds on a growing body of knowledge about the origins of Parkinson's disease, whose symptoms appear when dopamine-producing nerve cells in the brain degenerate.

Vigilance for kidney problems key for rheumatoid arthritis patients, study finds Posted: 10 Apr 2014 05:33 AM PDT Rheumatoid arthritis patients are likelier than the average person to develop chronic kidney disease, and more severe inflammation in the first year of rheumatoid arthritis, corticosteroid use, high blood pressure and obesity are among the risk factors, new research shows. Physicians should test rheumatoid arthritis patients periodically for signs of kidney problems, and patients should work to keep blood pressure under control, avoid a high-salt diet, and eliminate or scale back medications damaging to the kidneys, says the senior author.

Phone call from pharmacist can reduce some hospital admissions Posted: 09 Apr 2014 10:43 AM PDT Pharmacist-patient telephone consultations appear to reduce hospitalizations in patients who are least at risk, finds a new study. Providing medication management via phone calls from pharmacists to patients is one strategy being used to reduce medication errors, adverse reactions and drug interactions, all of which contribute to costly hospitalizations and harm to patients. The cost of medication-related illness and death in the United States was estimated to be more than $290 billion in 2009.

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