Cooling The Brain Prevents Cell Death In Young Mice Exposed To Anesthesia (November 24, 2008) -- New research suggests cooling the brain may prevent the death of nerve cells that has been observed in infant mice exposed to anesthesia. The effects of anesthesia on human infants and young children have been debated among neuroscientists, but growing evidence suggests exposure to anesthetic drugs during brain development may contribute to behavioral and developmental delays. ... > full story
Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors: Study May Result In More Targeted Drugs (November 24, 2008) -- There is strong evidence that patients can have varying clinical responses to medications depending on the specific makeup of their cancer. A new study which focused on gastrointestinal stromal tumors, also called GIST, found that the genetic variations in their disease appear to determine which medications will be most effective. ... > full story
Intervention Program Boosts Survival In Breast Cancer Patients (November 24, 2008) -- A new study provides the best evidence to date that a psychological intervention program designed for breast cancer patients not only improves their health, it actually increases their chance of survival. Researchers here found that patients participating in an intervention program reduced their risk of dying of breast cancer by 56 percent after an average of 11 years. ... > full story
Genes Associated With Fat Metabolism Could Increase Kidney Cancer Risk (November 24, 2008) -- A team of international scientists has identified three genes associated with the body's processing of fats that may increase susceptibility to kidney cancer. ... > full story
Hope For Treating Relapse To Methamphetamine Abuse (November 24, 2008) -- A new study suggests that vigabatrin blocks drug-seeking behavior in animals previously trained to associate methamphetamine with a particular environment. ... > full story
Safety In Numbers For Community Hospitals Performing Emergency Angioplasty (November 24, 2008) -- Heart experts at Johns Hopkins have evidence that life-saving coronary angioplasty at community hospitals is safer when physicians and hospital staff have more experience with the procedure. ... > full story
Pharmaceutical Testing: Test Identifies Toxic Platinum And Palladium Without Time-consuming Sample Pretreatment (November 24, 2008) -- The painstaking process of detecting toxic species of platinum and palladium mixed in with the form of platinum essential to certain pharmaceuticals could be reduced to one simple step, researchers report. ... > full story
Money Motivates Doctors To Reduce Ethnic Differences In Heart Disease Treatments, UK Study Finds (November 24, 2008) -- Financial incentives for doctors can improve the management of coronary heart disease and reduce ethnic differences in quality of and access to care, according to public health experts in the UK. ... > full story
How Red Wine Compounds Fight Alzheimer's Disease (November 23, 2008) -- Scientists have discovered the mechanism behind how compounds in red wine called polyphenols slow the cognitive declines of Alzheimer's. ... > full story
Adults Need Vaccines, Medical Societies Urge (November 23, 2008) -- The American College of Physicians and the Infectious Diseases Society of America have released a joint statement on the importance of adult vaccination against an increasing number of vaccine-preventable diseases. The statement has been endorsed by 17 other medical societies representing a range of practice areas. ... > full story
Pregnant Women Who Do Aquarobics Have Easier Deliveries, Study Finds (November 23, 2008) -- A course of water aerobics classes has been shown to reduce the amount of pain-killing medication women request during labor. Research shows that, as well as being safe, the gentle exercise has the benefit of making it easier to give birth. ... > full story
Lactic Acid Found To Fuel Tumors (November 23, 2008) -- A team of researchers has found that lactic acid is an important energy source for tumor cells. In further experiments, they discovered a new way to destroy the most hard-to-kill, dangerous tumor cells by preventing them from delivering lactic acid. ... > full story
Drug Addiction: Environmental Conditions Play Major Role In Effective Treatment And Preventing Relapses, Animal Study Shows (November 23, 2008) -- Environmental conditions play a major role in treating drug addiction and in preventing relapses, according to new research. For the first time, researchers have shown that positive and stimulating environmental conditions make it easier to treat cocaine addiction. ... > full story
New Technologies Gearing Up To Meet Rising Demand For Vital Malaria Drugs (November 23, 2008) -- Three emerging technologies have the potential to significantly improve supplies of drugs to combat malaria, according to a new report. ... > full story
Fluorescence Used To Develop Method For Detecting Mercury In Fish (November 23, 2008) -- Researchers have developed a simple and quick method for detecting mercury in fish and dental samples, two substances at the center of public concern about mercury contamination. The technique involves a fluorescent substance that glows bright green when it comes into contact with oxidized mercury. ... > full story
Behavior Very Similar In Distracted Humans And Rats On Neurotransmitter Blocker (November 23, 2008) -- When picking through a basket of fruit, it doesn't seem very difficult to recognize a green pear from a green apple. This is easy, thanks to "feature binding" -- a process by which our brain combines all of the specific features of an object and gives us a complete and unified picture of it. ... > full story
Could Marijuana Substance Help Prevent Or Delay Memory Impairment In The Aging Brain? (November 23, 2008) -- Scientists are finding that specific elements of marijuana can be good for the aging brain by reducing inflammation there and possibly even stimulating the formation of new brain cells. Some research suggests that developing a legal drug that contains certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease. Though the exact cause of Alzheimer's remains unknown, chronic inflammation in the brain is believed to contribute to memory impairment. ... > full story
New Approach To Screen Individuals For Early Alzheimer's Disease (November 23, 2008) -- With millions of baby boomers entering late adulthood, the number of patients with Alzheimer's disease is expected to drastically rise over the next several decades. A team of national researchers, has developed a rapid screening test to detect mild cognitive impairment, often the earliest stage of AD. ... > full story
Ideal Time For Stem Cell Collection Defined For Parkinson's Disease Therapy (November 23, 2008) -- Researchers have identified a stage during dopamine neuron differentiation that may be an ideal time to collect human embryonic stem cells for transplantation to treat Parkinson's disease, according to new research. ... > full story
Methamphetamine Abuse Linked To Underage Sex, Smoking And Drinking (November 23, 2008) -- Teens who have never done drugs, but engage in other risky behaviours such as drinking, smoking and being sexually active, are more likely to use crystal meth, medical researchers have concluded. ... > full story
Blood Component That Turns Anthrax Bacteria Virulent Identified (November 22, 2008) -- Scientists have discovered the key chemical that signals Bacillus anthracis, the bacterium that causes anthrax, to become lethal. This finding opens up new avenues of exploration for the development of treatments for bacterial infections. ... > full story
Isolated Breast Cancer Cells In Sentinel Lymph Node Associated With Non-Sentinel Lymph Node Metastases (November 22, 2008) -- Women who are found to have isolated breast cancer cells upon sentinel lymph node biopsy have a risk of having metastases in other lymph nodes. ... > full story
Crafting Your Image For Your 1,000 Friends On Facebook Or MySpace (November 22, 2008) -- Students are creating idealized versions of themselves on social networking websites -- Facebook and MySpace are the most popular -- and using these sites to explore their emerging identities, psychologists report. Parents often understand very little about this phenomenon, they say. ... > full story
Forgotten But Not Gone: How The Brain Re-learns (November 22, 2008) -- Thanks to our ability to learn and to remember, we can perform tasks that other living things can not even dream of. However, we are only just beginning to get the gist of what really goes on in the brain when it learns or forgets something. What we do know is that changes in the contacts between nerve cells play an important role. But can these structural changes account for that well-known phenomenon that it is much easier to re-learn something that was forgotten than to learn something completely new? ... > full story
Widely Used Cancer Drug Associated With Significantly Increased Risk Of Blood Clots (November 22, 2008) -- The use of the cancer drug bevacizumab is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (blood clots in the deep veins of the legs or in the lungs), according to a new article. ... > full story
Evolution Of The Visual System Is Key To Abstract Art (November 22, 2008) -- Famous works of abstract art achieve popularity by using shapes that resonate with the neural mechanisms in the brain linked to visual information, a psychologist has discovered. ... > full story
Increased Nonfasting Triglyceride Levels Associated With Higher Risk Of Stroke (November 22, 2008) -- Elevated nonfasting triglyceride levels, previously associated with an increased risk for heart attack, also appear to be associated with an increased risk for ischemic stroke. ... > full story
Oh, What A Feeling! Regaining Ability To Interpret Emotions After Severe Brain Injury (November 22, 2008) -- People who have lost the ability to interpret emotion after a severe brain injury can regain this vital social skill by being re-educated to read body language, facial expressions and voice tone in others, according to a new study. ... > full story
Does Growth Hormone Drug Slow Alzheimer's Disease? (November 22, 2008) -- A new study shows that a drug that increases the release of growth hormone failed to slow the rate of progression of Alzheimer's disease in humans. ... > full story
Calcium Plus Vitamin D Supplementation Is Not Associated With A Reduced Breast Cancer Risk (November 22, 2008) -- Taking calcium and vitamin D supplements does not reduce breast cancer incidence in postmenopausal women, according to data from a randomized, doubled-blind, placebo-controlled trial published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. ... > full story
Race Guides Neighborhood Evaluation, Study Says (November 22, 2008) -- Race is a powerful determinant of how whites regard a neighborhood, according to a recent study. The investigation indicates that neighborhood evaluations are socially constructed and contribute to ongoing racial segregation. ... > full story
New Cause Of Fatal Brain Injury From Acute Viral Meningitis (November 21, 2008) -- What was once thought to be the culprit responsible for fatal brain damage in acute viral meningitis has now been found to be only an accomplice, say researchers at the Scripps Research Institute. ... > full story
Visual Impairment: Promising Treatment For Anti-VEGF And Retinopathy Of Prematurity Described (November 21, 2008) -- A clinical study offers a promising new treatment for retinopathy of prematurity. ROP is often difficult to resolve using current treatments and can result in permanent, severe visual impairment in premature infants when treatment is unsuccessful. ROP encompasses a series of damaging changes in the retina, the area at the back of the eye that relays images to the brain's visual center. ... > full story
DVR Fast-forwarding May Not Be Fatal To TV Advertising (November 21, 2008) -- With the advent of digital video recorders and products like TiVo, viewers can fast-forward past commercials while playing back their favorite shows. Researchers found that viewers can retain valuable brand information even from an ad glimpsed for a fraction of its actual length. However, they also found that ads with brand information located on the periphery of the TV screen are of virtually no value. ... > full story
Non-white Med Students Reject Therapies Associated With Their Culture, Study Finds (November 21, 2008) -- Non-white medical students are more likely to embrace orthodox medicine and reject therapies traditionally associated with their cultures. That is one finding from an international study that measures the attitudes of medical students toward complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). While seemingly counter-intuitive, white students view CAM more favorably than their non-white counterparts, the study authors say. ... > full story
Children Of Centenarians Live Longer, Have Lower Risk Of Heart Disease, Stroke, Diabetes (November 21, 2008) -- Centenarian offspring (children of parents who lived to be at least 97 years old) retain important cardiovascular advantages from their parents compared to a similarly-aged cohort. ... > full story
Calorie Restriction And Exercise Show Breast Cancer Prevention Differences In Postmenopausal Women (November 21, 2008) -- Scientists have identified pathways by which a reduced-calorie diet and exercise can modify a postmenopausal woman's risk of breast cancer. ... > full story
Uncertainty Can Be More Stressful Than Clear Negative Feedback (November 21, 2008) -- We are faced with uncertainty every day. Will our investments pay off? Will we get the promotions we are hoping for? When faced with the unknown, most people experience some degree of anxiety and discomfort. Exactly how much anxiety someone experiences during uncertain times depends on his or her personality profile. ... > full story
Simple Blood Test For Colon Cancer: New Early-warning Test Detects Polyps Before Cancer Sets In (November 21, 2008) -- Researchers in Israel have developed a simple early-warning test that can detect colon cancer in the blood. Using biomarkers, it is the first test on the market that can detect cells of colon polyps the precursors to colon cancer in the blood, with a very high degree of sensitivity and accuracy. ... > full story
Male Birth Defect Associated With Certain Genetic Mutations, Study Finds (November 21, 2008) -- A small percentage of males born with cryptorchidism (failure of one or both testicles to descend into the scrotum), the most frequent congenital birth defect in male children, are more likely to have genetic mutations, including for a syndrome that is a common genetic cause of infertility, according to new study. ... > full story
Brain Reorganizes To Adjust For Loss Of Vision (November 21, 2008) -- A new study shows that when patients with macular degeneration focus on using another part of their retina to compensate for their loss of central vision, their brain seems to compensate by reorganizing its neural connections. Age--related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly. The study appears in the journal Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience. ... > full story
Why Only Some Former Smokers Develop Lung Cancer (November 21, 2008) -- Canadian researchers are trying to answer why some smokers develop lung cancer while others remain disease free, despite similar lifestyle changes. ... > full story
Brain Compound 'Throws Gasoline Onto The Fire' Of Schizophrenia (November 21, 2008) -- New research has traced elevated levels of a specific compound in the brain to problem-solving deficits in patients with schizophrenia. The finding suggests that drugs used to suppress the compound, called kynurenic acid, might be an important supplement to antipsychotic medicines, as these adjuncts could be used to treat the disorder's most resistant symptoms -- cognitive impairments. ... > full story
Pluripotent Stem Cells Shown To Generate New Retinal Cells Necessary For Vision, Study Finds (November 21, 2008) -- Pluripotent stem cells -- those, like embryonic stem cells, that give rise to almost every type of cell in the body -- can be converted into the different classes of retinal cells necessary for vision, according to a new study. ... > full story
Misreading Of Damaged DNA May Spur Tumor Formation (November 21, 2008) -- Cells can turn on tumor-promoting growth circuits by falsely reporting critical genetic information during the process of transcription: making RNA from DNA. Damage to the DNA making up a gene can lead to a misreading of the gene as it is made into RNA, a process called transcriptional mutagenesis. Transcriptional mutagenesis could represent an additional way DNA damage contributes to tumor formation. ... > full story
Birds Singing In Slow Motion Help Reveal Brain Locations Responsible For Timing (November 21, 2008) -- As anyone who watched the Olympics can appreciate, timing matters when it comes to complex sequential actions. It can make a difference between a perfect handspring and a fall, for instance. But what controls that timing? Scientists are closing in on the brain regions responsible, thanks to some technical advances and some help from songbirds. ... > full story
Faster Test For Food Protein That Triggers Celiac Disease (November 21, 2008) -- Researchers are reporting development of a faster test for identifying the food protein that triggers celiac disease, a difficult-to-diagnose digestive disease involving the inability to digest protein called gluten that occurs in wheat, oats, rye, and barley. The finding could help millions of people avoid diarrhea, bloating, and other symptoms that occur when they unknowingly eat foods containing gluten. ... > full story
Stress Hinders Rats' Decision-making Abilities (November 21, 2008) -- A single exposure to uncontrollable stress impairs decision making in rats for several days, making them unable to reliably seek out the larger of two rewards. ... > full story
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