ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News

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• Bioluminescent sensor causes brain cells to glow in the dark
• Senescent cells, atherosclerosis progression appear to be linked
• Vitamin d supplements for pregnant women should be customised to the individual to ensure benefits are felt
• Male birth control shots prevent pregnancy
• Research into basic workings of immune system points to way of improving therapies for cancer
• Mitochondria control stem cell fate
• Cause of phantom limb pain in amputees, and potential treatment, identified
• Enzyme is crucial for combatting antibiotic-resistant E. coli infections
• Concern that radiation may contribute to development of Alzheimer's
• Want to exercise more? Get yourself some competition
• Psychopathy increases risk of violence in romantic relationships
• Prognostic role of side where colon cancer occurs
• Study finds lack of benefit of cranberry in reducing urinary tract infections among older women
• Regular dental visits may help prevent pneumonia, study shows
• Natural compound reduces signs of aging in healthy mice
• New approach tests the strength of immunity
• Death vs. another hospital stay: Study suggests Medicare should weigh them equally when paying hospitals
• Is more, better? Finding the balance between nutritional supplements and eye health
• Prescription medication tragedies could be prevented by simple pictures
• Asthma study provides 'paradigm shift' in understanding of life-threatening condition
• Scientists illuminate key molecular player in both morphine addiction and rare disease
• 'Neighbour maps' reveal the genome's 3D shape
• Scientists get the upperhand in biological pathway that leads to heart formation
• Money can buy happiness but it's costly to bank on that without measuring debt
• Hexavalent chromium is widespread in North Carolina wells but not linked to coal ash
• Understanding essential tremor
• New gene-editing technology successfully cures a genetic blood disorder in mice
• Perception of e-cigarette harm growing among US adults

Bioluminescent sensor causes brain cells to glow in the dark Posted: 27 Oct 2016 01:43 PM PDT A new kind of bioluminescent sensor causes individual brain cells to imitate fireflies and glow in the dark. The probe is a genetically modified form of luciferase, the enzyme that a number of other species including fireflies use to produce light.

Senescent cells, atherosclerosis progression appear to be linked Posted: 27 Oct 2016 11:33 AM PDT Atherosclerosis is a disease in which arteries narrow due to plaques. That narrowing can lead to heart attacks and strokes — both of which are leading causes of death in the U.S. Now, in paper shows that senescent cells drive plaque formation in animal models of atherosclerosis.

Vitamin d supplements for pregnant women should be customised to the individual to ensure benefits are felt Posted: 27 Oct 2016 11:33 AM PDT Vitamin D supplements are less effective at raising vitamin D levels in pregnant women if they deliver their babies in the winter, have low levels of vitamin D early in pregnancy or gain more weight during pregnancy, a new study has shown.

Male birth control shots prevent pregnancy Posted: 27 Oct 2016 11:33 AM PDT Men can take birth control shots to prevent pregnancy in their female partners, according to a new study. Researchers are still working to perfect the combination of hormonal contraceptives to reduce the risk of mild to moderate side effects, including depression and other mood disorders.

Research into basic workings of immune system points to way of improving therapies for cancer Posted: 27 Oct 2016 11:23 AM PDT In people with chronic infections or cancer, disease-fighting T cells tend to behave like an overworked militia - wheezing, ill-prepared, tentative - in a state of "exhaustion" that allows disease to persist. In a new paper, researchers have found that in mice with chronic viral infection, exhausted T cells are controlled by a fundamentally different set of molecular circuits than T cells effectively battling infections or cancer -- a finding that suggests a way to increase the staying power of CAR T cells, a promising form of immunotherapy for cancer.

Mitochondria control stem cell fate Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:34 AM PDT If the powerhouse of the cell, mitochondria, is disrupted, stem cells in the gut suffer, researchers have discovered. The human intestinal system covers an area of approximately 300 to 500 square meters due to its many protrusions (villi). This inner intestinal wall full of tiny bumps renews itself completely once every four to five days, a process which is guided by stem cells. Mitochondria are the powerhouse of a cell and provide energy through respiration, and play a crucial part in this process.

Cause of phantom limb pain in amputees, and potential treatment, identified Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:33 AM PDT Researchers have identified the cause of chronic, and currently untreatable, pain in those with amputations and severe nerve damage, as well as a potential treatment which relies on engineering instead of drugs.

Enzyme is crucial for combatting antibiotic-resistant E. coli infections Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:31 AM PDT New research is expected to pave the way for new approaches to kill bacteria that no longer respond to conventional antibiotics.

Concern that radiation may contribute to development of Alzheimer's Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:27 AM PDT More humans than ever are exposed to higher levels of ionizing radiation from medical equipment, airplanes, etc. A new study suggests that this kind of radiation may be a confounding factor in the neurodegenerative disease Alzheimer's.

Want to exercise more? Get yourself some competition Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:25 AM PDT Competition is a far stronger motivation for exercise than friendly support, and in fact, giving people such support actually made them less likely to go to the gym less than simply leaving them alone, new research indicates.

Psychopathy increases risk of violence in romantic relationships Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:25 AM PDT People with higher levels of psychopathic tendencies are more likely to assault their romantic partners. They are also more likely to drink alcohol, a study has found.

Prognostic role of side where colon cancer occurs Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:23 AM PDT Does the location of colon cancer – left or right side – matter for survival? A new report reviewed medical literature to examine the prognostic role of a primary colon cancer tumor being located on the left vs. right side.

Study finds lack of benefit of cranberry in reducing urinary tract infections among older women Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:23 AM PDT Among older women residing in nursing homes, administration of cranberry capsules compared with placebo resulted in no significant difference in presence of bacteriuria plus pyuria (presence of bacteria and white blood cells in the urine, a sign of urinary tract infection [UTI]), or in the number of episodes of UTIs over l year, according to a study.

Regular dental visits may help prevent pneumonia, study shows Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:22 AM PDT That twice-yearly trip to the dentist could do more than keep teeth and gums healthy: It may decrease the risk of pneumonia by reducing bacteria in the mouth, suggests research.

Natural compound reduces signs of aging in healthy mice Posted: 27 Oct 2016 09:20 AM PDT Much of human health hinges on how well the body manufactures and uses energy. For reasons that remain unclear, cells' ability to produce energy declines with age, prompting scientists to suspect that the steady loss of efficiency in the body's energy supply chain is a key driver of the aging process. Now, scientists have shown that supplementing healthy mice with a natural compound called NMN can compensate for this loss of energy production, reducing typical signs of aging such as gradual weight gain, loss of insulin sensitivity and declines in physical activity.

New approach tests the strength of immunity Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:48 AM PDT A new method to determine how effectively immune cells kill their targets could help personalize immune therapies, report scientists.

Death vs. another hospital stay: Study suggests Medicare should weigh them equally when paying hospitals Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:48 AM PDT Medicare should focus more on how well hospitals do at actually keeping patients alive during the first 30 days after a hospitalization, in addition to how well they do at keeping patients from being readmitted, a new analysis suggests.

Is more, better? Finding the balance between nutritional supplements and eye health Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:46 AM PDT In the past decade, ophthalmologists have been prescribing nutritional supplements to be taken daily to prevent or slow vision loss from age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Now, using nutritional supplements for eye health has become more common. But does increasing the recommended dose increase your protection? A case report reveals what can happen when a patient takes more of a supplement than their body needs.

Prescription medication tragedies could be prevented by simple pictures Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:41 AM PDT New research reveals pictograms that will help seniors understand medication instructions, say investigators.

Asthma study provides 'paradigm shift' in understanding of life-threatening condition Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:39 AM PDT New research paves way for developing new treatments for asthma. Researchers have described their discovery as a 'paradigm shift' in understanding the life-threatening condition.

Scientists illuminate key molecular player in both morphine addiction and rare disease Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:36 AM PDT In a remarkable "two for one" discovery, scientists have illuminated a key molecular player in the addictive effects of morphine in animal models.

'Neighbour maps' reveal the genome's 3D shape Posted: 27 Oct 2016 06:35 AM PDT A three-dimensional computer model of the human genome has been created by researchers. The shape of DNA (as well as its sequence) significantly affects biological processes and is therefore crucial for understanding its function. This new study has provided a first three-dimensional, approximate but realistic, identikit of the human genome. Thanks to the characteristics of the new method, the structural reconstruction based on both experimental information and statistical methods will be refined as new experimental data become available.

Scientists get the upperhand in biological pathway that leads to heart formation Posted: 26 Oct 2016 02:04 PM PDT A pathway essential to heart formation has now been discovered by scientists. In addition, in the process, they have unveiled a mechanism that may explain how some previously puzzling segments of the genome work.

Money can buy happiness but it's costly to bank on that without measuring debt Posted: 26 Oct 2016 02:00 PM PDT Yes, money can lead to happiness, but how much debt one has should also be considered in the money-happiness equation, according to a new a study.

Hexavalent chromium is widespread in North Carolina wells but not linked to coal ash Posted: 26 Oct 2016 08:14 AM PDT Hexavalent chromium, a carcinogen made famous by the movie Erin Brockovich, is far more abundant in drinking water wells in North Carolina than previously thought, a new study finds.

Understanding essential tremor Posted: 26 Oct 2016 08:07 AM PDT Essential tremor affects nearly one per cent of the world's population, increasing to four per cent of those over 40. The involuntary shaking of hands is the most common symptom, but symptoms can also include shaking of the head and legs. Often misdiagnosed as Parkinson's disease, essential tremor has less severe health impacts, but does get worse over time and can have debilitating consequences. Until recently the genetic mechanism behind the disease remained unknown.

New gene-editing technology successfully cures a genetic blood disorder in mice Posted: 26 Oct 2016 08:06 AM PDT A next-generation gene-editing system has successfully cured a genetic blood disorder in living mice using a simple IV treatment. Unlike the popular CRISPR gene-editing technique, the new technology can be administered to living animals and it significantly decreases unwanted, off-target gene mutations. The findings offer a new therapeutic approach to treat genetic diseases of the blood like beta thalassemia and sickle cell disease by targeting faulty genes in hematopoietic stem cells.

Perception of e-cigarette harm growing among US adults Posted: 26 Oct 2016 07:54 AM PDT The proportion of American adults who perceive e-cigarettes to be equally or more harmful than traditional cigarettes has tripled over the last few years, highlighting the need for more accurate public health messaging, according to a study.

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