ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Earlier intervention for common form of heart attack linked to improved survival
• Flores bones show features of Down syndrome, not a new 'Hobbit' human
• Media exposure, sympathetic nervous system reactivity predict PTSD symptoms in adolescents
• Eating baked, broiled fish weekly boosts brain health, study says
• Inadequately managed allergies cause significant economic burden in Europe
• Patients with hypoventilation may need supplemental oxygen on-board flights
• Food safety social media guide developed by researchers
• New tools advance bio-logic
• Students cope well with healthier snacks
• Declining intelligence in old age linked to visual processing
• Cell plasticity may provide clues to origin of aggressive type of breast cancer
• Daylight is best medicine for nurses
• Repurposing a drug for abdominal cancer
• Survival increases with clinical team debriefing after in-hospital cardiac arrest
• Prenatal alcohol exposure alters development of brain function: Neural basis for symptoms of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders
• Phases of clinical depression could affect treatment
• Protein ZEB1 promotes breast tumor resistance to radiation therapy
• Making an IMPACT: Donation keeps innovative trials going
• Potential new predictor of stress-related illnesses found
• Becoming bad through video games: Risk-glorying video games to increases in teens' high-risk behavior
• Eating resistant starch may help reduce red meat-related colorectal cancer risk
• Implanted neurons become part of the brain, mouse study shows
• Weakness of leukemic stem cells discovered
• How 'biological spark plug' in biomolecular motors works
• Why adolescents carry meningitis-causing bacteria
• Eating less meat: Solution to reduce water use?
• Diabetes: Drug duo helps best, study finds
• Analysis of African plant reveals possible treatment for aging brain
• Should you add enzyme supplements to your shopping list? Expert explains pros, cons
• Lung cancer diagnosis tool shown to be safe and effective for older patients
• Tool to better visualize, analyze human genomic data developed
• Small DNA modifications predict brain's threat response
• Primary care telephone triage does not save money or reduce practice workload
• Uncovering 3-D structure of a key neuroreceptor

Earlier intervention for common form of heart attack linked to improved survival Posted: 04 Aug 2014 12:15 PM PDT Changes in the treatment of the most common form of heart attack over the past decade have been associated with higher survival rates for men and women regardless of age, race and ethnicity, according to an analysis. But the study also suggests that there is room for improvement in how current treatment guidelines are applied among specific patient groups.

Flores bones show features of Down syndrome, not a new 'Hobbit' human Posted: 04 Aug 2014 12:15 PM PDT In October 2004, excavation of fragmentary skeletal remains from the island of Flores in Indonesia yielded what was called 'the most important find in human evolution for 100 years.' Its discoverers dubbed the find Homo floresiensis, a name suggesting a previously unknown species of human.

Media exposure, sympathetic nervous system reactivity predict PTSD symptoms in adolescents Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:34 AM PDT Following the terrorist attack at the 2013 Boston marathon, adolescents with lower levels of sympathetic reactivity before the attack developed post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms only following high exposure to media coverage of the attack, a study that surveyed youth has found. Adolescents with high levels of sympathetic reactivity developed higher levels of post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms regardless of how much media coverage they saw.

Eating baked, broiled fish weekly boosts brain health, study says Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:33 AM PDT Eating baked or broiled fish once a week is good for the brain, regardless of how much omega-3 fatty acid it contains, according to researchers. The findings add to growing evidence that lifestyle factors contribute to brain health later in life. Scientists estimate that more than 80 million people will have dementia by 2040, which could become a substantial burden to families and drive up health care costs.

Inadequately managed allergies cause significant economic burden in Europe Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:33 AM PDT New research in Europe indicates that avoidable indirect costs per patient insufficiently treated for allergy equal 2,405.00 Euros per year due to absence from work and reduced working capacity. On the other hand, appropriate therapy is available at an average cost of 125 Euros per patient annually, which represents only 5 percent of the cost of untreated disease.

Patients with hypoventilation may need supplemental oxygen on-board flights Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:33 AM PDT Severely overweight people who suffer from hypoventilation can have abnormally low levels of oxygen in their blood during air travel as a result of reduced atmospheric pressure in the cabin of aircrafts.

Food safety social media guide developed by researchers Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:30 AM PDT To help protect public health, researchers have developed guidelines on how to use social media to communicate effectively about food safety. "In a crisis context, the framework can be used by health officials, businesses or trade organizations affected by foodborne illness to help them reach key audiences with information that could be used to reduce the risk of foodborne illness," says the lead author of the paper. Key audiences may include consumers, the food service industry, and corporate or government decision makers, among others.

New tools advance bio-logic Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:30 AM PDT Researchers are making modular genetic circuits that can perform more complex tasks by swapping protein building blocks. The modular genetic circuits engineered from parts of otherwise unrelated bacterial genomes can be set up to handle multiple chemical inputs simultaneously with a minimum of interference from their neighbors. The work gives scientists more options as they design synthetic cells for specific tasks, such as the production of biofuels, environmental remediation or the treatment of human diseases.

Students cope well with healthier snacks Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:30 AM PDT Students do not mind buying healthier snacks from vending machines, according to research. The findings could have implications for campus health initiatives as well as vendor profits. The study compared college students' perceptions and self-reported behavior regarding the food in vending machines before and after replacing a portion of the conventional food items with healthier foods, defined as having fewer calories, limited added sugar, lower fat, healthier fats, no trans fats, no artificial colors or flavors, and lower sodium.

Declining intelligence in old age linked to visual processing Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:30 AM PDT One of the basic processes that may help to explain why some people's thinking skills decline in old age has been uncovered by researchers. Age-related declines in intelligence are strongly related to declines on a very simple task of visual perception speed, the researchers report in a new article.

Cell plasticity may provide clues to origin of aggressive type of breast cancer Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:29 AM PDT Healthy breast cells may be able to reinvent themselves -- some have the flexibility to change after they are mature -- which leads researchers to postulate that similarities exist between this occurrence and the origins of a particularly aggressive type of breast cancer. Researchers report that healthy breast cells separated from their normal environment were able to transform into types of cells similar to those seen in metaplastic carcinoma, a form of triple negative breast cancer.

Daylight is best medicine for nurses Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:28 AM PDT For the health and happiness of nurses – and for the best care of hospital patients – new research suggests exposure to natural light may be the best medicine. Letting natural light into the nurses' workstations offered improved alertness and mood restoration effects, as measured by the study. "The increase in positive sociability, as measured by the occurrence of frequent laughter, was … significant," noted authors.

Repurposing a drug for abdominal cancer Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:26 AM PDT A repurposed drug originally used to treat ovarian cancer saw positive results for patients with advanced peritoneal cancers during a phase I clinical trial, researchers report. The drug, known under the brand name Nanotax, is a fine particle reformulation of paclitaxel, the standard treatment for ovarian cancer. It works by flipping the script on how paclitaxel is administered to patients and with how it's formulated, potentially making it a more effective and better tolerated treatment for ovarian and other abdominal cancers.

Survival increases with clinical team debriefing after in-hospital cardiac arrest Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:26 AM PDT Staff members who joined structured team debriefings after emergency care for children suffering in-hospital cardiac arrests improved their CPR performance and substantially increased rates of patients surviving with favorable neurological outcomes. More than 200,000 cardiac arrests occur every year in U.S. hospitals. And while survival outcomes have improved over the last ten years, still more than 60 percent of these patients will not make it out of the hospital alive. This fact highlights how important it will be to disseminate the team's successful findings.

Prenatal alcohol exposure alters development of brain function: Neural basis for symptoms of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders Posted: 04 Aug 2014 09:26 AM PDT Medical researchers have found that children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) showed weaker brain activation during specific cognitive tasks than their unaffected counterparts.

Phases of clinical depression could affect treatment Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:30 AM PDT New insights into clinical depression have been found that demonstrate there cannot be a 'one-size-fits-all' approach to treating the disease. Researchers have developed a new model for clinical depression that takes into account the dynamic role of the immune system. This neuroimmune interaction results in different phases of depression, and has implications for current treatment practices.

Protein ZEB1 promotes breast tumor resistance to radiation therapy Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:29 AM PDT One protein with the even more out-there name of ZEB1 (zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1), is now thought to keep breast cancer cells from being successfully treated with radiation therapy, researchers report. ZEB1 may actually be helping breast tumor cells repair DNA damage caused by radiation treatment by ramping up a first-line of defense known as DNA damage response pathway, they say.

Making an IMPACT: Donation keeps innovative trials going Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:29 AM PDT The method of treating cancer patients who have genomic abnormalities with drugs designed to target those abnormalities has resulted in higher response rates than previously seen. Often these discoveries are made as part of a clinical trial. Innovation of trial design and the need to streamline established processes for developing and executing these studies is more important than ever.

Potential new predictor of stress-related illnesses found Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:06 AM PDT Many scientists believe that the tendency to develop stress-related disorders is an inherited trait or is the result of exposure to traumatic events. In a new paper, scientists explain that a new factor -- that genes may change over time -- could cause depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and other stress-related illnesses.

Becoming bad through video games: Risk-glorying video games to increases in teens' high-risk behavior Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:03 AM PDT Previous studies show that violent video games increase adolescent aggressiveness, but new research finds for the first time that teenagers who play mature-rated, risk-glorifying video games are more likely subsequently to engage in a wide range of deviant behaviors beyond aggression, including alcohol use, smoking cigarettes, delinquency and risky sex.

Eating resistant starch may help reduce red meat-related colorectal cancer risk Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:03 AM PDT Consumption of a type of starch that acts like fiber may help reduce colorectal cancer risk associated with a high red meat diet, according to a study. "Red meat and resistant starch have opposite effects on the colorectal cancer-promoting miRNAs, the miR-17-92 cluster," said one researcher. "This finding supports consumption of resistant starch as a means of reducing the risk associated with a high red meat diet."

Implanted neurons become part of the brain, mouse study shows Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Scientists have grafted neurons reprogrammed from skin cells into the brains of mice for the first time with long-term stability. Six months after implantation, the neurons had become fully functionally integrated into the brain. This successful, lastingly stable, implantation of neurons raises hope for future therapies that will replace sick neurons with healthy ones in the brains of Parkinson's disease patients, for example.

Weakness of leukemic stem cells discovered Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Despite improved therapy, only one out of every two adult patients survive acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The mean survival time for this disease, which predominantly occurs in the elderly, is less than a year for patients over 65 years. It is assumed that leukemic stem cells, which cannot be completely eliminated during treatment, are the origin of relapse. However, as has been recently discovered, these cells do have a weakness: the enzyme 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) plays a significant role in the survival of leukaemic AML stem cells, it turns out.

How 'biological spark plug' in biomolecular motors works Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Using high-performance computers and quantum mechanical methods, researchers have simulated processes that reveal how the "biological spark plug" works in the biomolecular motors of cells. The investigations focused on the myosin protein, which, among other things, is responsible for muscle movement. The researchers' extensive simulations show how the release of energy is initiated in this complex motor.

Why adolescents carry meningitis-causing bacteria Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Scientists have shed new light on why teenagers and young adults are particularly susceptible to meningitis and septicaemia. N. meningitidis is a major cause of meningitis and septicaemia, and a leading cause of infectious disease among teenagers and young adults. While it is well known that these bacteria are found in large numbers in the upper respiratory tract among adolescents, the reasons for this are unknown.

Eating less meat: Solution to reduce water use? Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Eating less meat would protect water resources in dry areas around the world, researchers have found. Reducing the use of animal products can have a considerable impact on areas suffering scarce water resources, as meat production requires more water than other agricultural products, they say.

Diabetes: Drug duo helps best, study finds Posted: 04 Aug 2014 07:01 AM PDT Metformin and SGLT2 inhibitors together reduce the blood sugar levels of diabetics considerably more effectively than either drug alone. Scientists report that this is due to a synergetic mechanism.

Analysis of African plant reveals possible treatment for aging brain Posted: 04 Aug 2014 06:59 AM PDT A plant used for centuries by healers of São Tomé e Príncipe holds lessons for modern medicine, scientists report. A compound isolated from Voacanga africana protects cells from altered molecular pathways linked to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and the neurodegeneration that often follows a stroke, they say.

Should you add enzyme supplements to your shopping list? Expert explains pros, cons Posted: 04 Aug 2014 06:57 AM PDT Enzyme supplements available without a prescription are becoming increasingly popular, but should everyone add them to their shopping list? The author of a new paper explain the pros and cons of over-the-counter enzymes. "Fortunately, for most over-the-counter enzymes, unless you're taking super-high doses, the risks are pretty minimal," he explains.

Lung cancer diagnosis tool shown to be safe and effective for older patients Posted: 04 Aug 2014 03:59 AM PDT A procedure to take tissue samples from lung cancer patients can be used safely in the elderly – allowing doctors to make a more accurate diagnosis and to choose appropriate treatment, a recent study has found. Half of all lung cancer patients are over 70 years old when first diagnosed, but studies have shown that these older patients are less likely to receive an accurate diagnosis. A correct assessment of the stage of a patient's disease – how much their tumor has grown and spread – is key to ensuring they receive the right treatment.

Tool to better visualize, analyze human genomic data developed Posted: 03 Aug 2014 04:37 PM PDT A new, web-based tool that enables researchers to quickly and easily visualize and compare large amounts of genomic information resulting from high-throughput sequencing experiments has been developed by researchers. The free tool, called Epiviz, offers a major advantage over browsers currently available: Epiviz seamlessly integrates with the open-source Bioconductor analysis software widely used by genomic scientists, through its Epivizr Bioconductor package.

Small DNA modifications predict brain's threat response Posted: 03 Aug 2014 04:36 PM PDT Epigenetic changes to a gene that is well known for its involvement in clinical depression and posttraumatic stress disorder can affect the way a person's brain reacts to threats, according to a new study. The results may explain how the well-understood serotonin transporter leaves some individuals more vulnerable than others to stress and stress-related psychiatric disorders.

Primary care telephone triage does not save money or reduce practice workload Posted: 03 Aug 2014 04:36 PM PDT The potential value of telephone triage for patients and for the NHS have been the focus of a new English study. It concluded that patients who receive a telephone call-back from a doctor or a nurse following their request for a same-day consultation with a GP are more likely to require further support or advice when compared to patients who see a doctor in person.

Uncovering 3-D structure of a key neuroreceptor Posted: 03 Aug 2014 04:36 PM PDT The 3-D structure of a crucial neuroreceptor has been revealed by scientists for the first time. The achievement has great implications for understanding the basic mechanism of electrical signal transmission between neurons and might help to design novel medicines to treat various neurological diseases.

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