Although cystic fibrosis patients in clinical trials had more severe illness, worse lung function, a lower weight level and more respiratory infection than non-participants, their involvement in research studies resulted in less lung function decline over a 7-year period.
The research results appeared in the first issue for January 2006 of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, published by the American Thoracic Society.
Christopher H. Goss, M.D.
Ethnic minority groups must be included in European health research
Despite the knowledge that ethnicity matters in cardiovascular disease, most studies of cardiovascular disease risk have not been designed to yield results that apply to different ethnic groups, report Meghna Ranganathan and Raj Bhopal (of Edinburgh University) in a new study in the international open-access medical journal PLoS Medicine.
To ensure that the results of research studies can be applied
Scientists working at the WiCell Research Institute, a private laboratory affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, have developed a precisely defined stem cell culture system free of animal cells and used it to derived two new human embryonic stem cell
The new work, which is reported today (Jan. 1, 2006) in the journal Nature Biotechnology, helps move stem cells a small step closer to clinical reality by completely ridding the culture medium in which they are grown
To detect invasive lung cancer in its early stages, researchers urge current and former smokers who have a strong family history of the disease to take a lung function test and undergo screening with spiral computed tomography. The test is especially important should the previously diagnosed relative be young (around 50).
These findings appear in an article on familial lung cancer in the first issue for January 2006 of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, publish
Findings highlight need for screening and treatment
According to a study that appears in the January 1 issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and the University of Minnesota found that night eating syndrome is a common disorder among psychiatric outpatients and is associated with substance use and obesity.
Night eating syndrome is a condition that is characterized by two main features: excessive eat
Northwestern Memorial Hospital research shows that cancer patients benefit from one-hour art sessions
A study published today in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management found that art therapy can reduce a broad spectrum of symptoms related to pain and anxiety in cancer patients. In the study done at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, cancer patients reported significant reductions in eight of nine symptoms measured by the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) after spending an
Long-term, population-based study challenges FDA advisory
The risk of serious suicide attempts or death by suicide generally decreases in the weeks after patients start taking antidepressant medication, according to a new study led by Group Health Cooperative researchers and published in the January issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry. The study also found that the risk of suicidal behavior after starting 10 newer antidepressant medications is less than the risk posed by ol
Phase one of a four-phase, six-year study on treatments for depression – the largest of its kind and led by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center – showed nearly half fully recovered from their symptoms or had major improvement after treatment with an antidepressant medication.
Results of the study, involving nearly 3,000 patients at 41 sites, appear in the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, include: A third of patients with major depress
Initial results of the nation’s largest clinical trial for depression have helped clinicians to track “real world” patients who became symptom-free and to identify those who were resistant to the initial treatment. Participants treated in both medical and specialty mental health care settings experienced a remission of symptoms in 12 to 14 weeks during well-monitored treatment with an antidepressant medication. The study, funded by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Insti
Prostaglandins – the fat-derived compounds linked to pain, inflammation, reproduction and cancer – can add another biological function to their extensive catalog.
A new study by Vanderbilt researchers reveals that prostaglandins help choreograph the intricate cell movements during early embryonic development in zebrafish, highlighting how perturbations in this pathway might influence human development and the spread of cancer. The results also may point to new molecular targets f
While use of home remedies is common among people 65 and older, blacks and Native Americans tend to make much greater use of them than whites, according to a study from Wake Forest University School of Medicine.
And the explanation seems to be cultural differences rather than access to health care, economic hardship or health status, said Joseph G. Grzywacz, Ph.D., and colleagues, writing in the January-February issue of the American Journal of Health Behavior.
In the January 1 issue of Genes & Development, Dr. Mary Ellen Perry and colleagues validate the p53 inhibitor, Mdm2, as a promising target for cancer therapies.
The p53 tumor suppressor plays a critical role in cancer formation, and many anticancer strategies aim to activate p53 in order to curb tumor formation. Mdm2 is a key inhibitor of p53 and therefore an attractive target to modulate p53 activity in cells. However, conflicting evidence exists regarding whether or not p53-mediate
A single unifying physics theory can essentially describe how animals of every ilk, from flying insects to fish, get around, researchers at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering and Pennsylvania State University have found. The team reports that all animals bear the same stamp of physics in their design.
The researchers show that so-called “constructal theory” can explain basic characteristics of locomotion for every creature — how fast they get from one place to anoth
First air-breathing, liquid fuel-powered scramjet takes flight
Before the sun had even risen over Wallops Island, Va., on 10 December 2005, a joint Office of Naval Research/Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency vehicle achieved a world first. At an altitude of 63,000 feet, the Freeflight Atmospheric Scramjet Test Technique (FASTT) vehicle became the first air-breathing, liquid hydrocarbon fuel-powered scramjet engine to fly.
After launching from the NASA Wallops Fligh
If heart disease and diabetes aren’t bad enough, now comes another reason to watch your weight. According to a study just released, packing on too many pounds can increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
A team led by researchers at the Farber Institute for Neurosciences at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and Edith Cowan University in Joondalup, Western Australia has shown that being extremely overweight or obese increases the likelihood of developing Alzh
Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found two genes that are essential for the proper development of muscle.
Their findings are in the latest online edition of the journal Nature Genetics.
The genes are among a recently discovered group of genes known as microRNAs (miRNAs), which were first discovered in worms 12 years ago. Only in the past few years have they become recognized as essential gene regulators in many multicellular organisms, incl
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