Rising systolic blood pressure is the clearest indicator for increased risk of death compared to other blood pressure measurements, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Their evaluation of blood pressure measurements and mortality risk found that diastolic and pulse pressure measurements were weaker indicators of mortality risk and their effect was more dependent on age and other factors. The study appears in the November 4, 2003, edition of the Annals of I
The genes that influence the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease may vary over the course of an individual’s lifetime, a new study by Duke University Medical Center researchers finds. The team’s results revealed two chromosomal regions not previously known to influence Alzheimer’s disease: one linked to the disorder in families that first show symptoms early in life and another in families with very late onset of the disorder’s symptoms.
While earlier studies hav
A tiny electronic device which could prevent rail disasters will be showcased today – by scientists who created it less than a mile from where the railway revolution began.
Microlog, a highly advanced miniature data logger, weighs less than ten grammes and boasts a four megabyte memory, a powerful 16 byte microprocessor and satellite and mobile phone technology packed into one third of the size of a matchbox.
It has been developed by a father and son team at the University of Newc
Biomedical engineers at Purdue University have proven that bone cells attach better to metals with nanometer-scale surface features, offering hope for improved prosthetic hips, knees and other implants.
Conventional titanium alloys used in hip and knee replacements are relatively smooth – their surfaces possess bumps measured in microns – or millionths of a meter. Natural bone and other tissues, however, have rougher surfaces with bumps about 100 nanometers – or billionths of a meter – wide.
Treatment also slows development of other tumors
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have dramatically slowed the metastatic spread of a highly malignant tumor in mice by disabling platelets with an experimental drug.
Based on earlier experiments, scientists had hoped the drug, ML464, would block the spread of a melanoma cell line into bones. They were pleasantly surprised to find that not only did the treatment block bone metastases, it also
Thanks to a team of materials scientists at Northwestern University, molecular electronics may be one step closer to reality. The researchers, led by Mark Hersam, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, have become the first to measure a unique and versatile nanoelectronic effect — called resonant tunneling — through individual molecules mounted directly on silicon.
The findings were published online Nov. 1 by Nano Letters, a publication of the American Chemical Society.
The Wide-Field-Imager at La Silla Unveils Intricate Structures Illuminated by Hot Stars
The two best known satellite galaxies of the Milky Way, the Magellanic Clouds, are located in the southern sky at a distance of about 170,000 light-years. They host many giant nebular complexes with very hot and luminous stars whose intense ultraviolet radiation causes the surrounding interstellar gas to glow.
The intricate and colourful nebulae are produced by ionised gas that shines as
University of Leicester astronomers and biologists have patented a new way of analysing DNA from gene-chips, which may be used in laboratories and hospitals to diagnose diseases from a single drop of blood and compare gene expression in different samples.
The pioneering technique uses an instrument developed at the European Space Agency’s laboratories in Holland for the study of light from distant galaxies to overcome a problem that has previously dogged gene-chip research.
New work shows how the developing placenta may cause the potentially fatal condition pre-eclampsia to develop through attempts to take over the mother’s metabolism for the survival of the foetus.
Pre-eclampsia can strike up to 10% (around 75,000) of pregnancies each year. This condition strikes in the second half of pregnancy, developing rapidly to give high maternal blood pressure and protein in the urine. It can lead to fits, and even the death of mother and baby. At present, the only ‘cur
Variants of BMP2 gene as genetic risk factors for osteoporosis
Linking specific genes with common, complex diseases like osteoporosis is a tricky business. There are likely to be many genetic as well as environmental and lifestyle causes, and to find them researchers need large populations, abundant genetic markers, and extensive patient data. In addition to powerful genotyping resources, researchers at deCODE in Iceland can take advantage of a nationwide genealogical database of Icel
The way of life, physical and mental health, and financial and family circumstances of senior citizens are the core topics of the European Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) study, launched last year. Thanks to support from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) an Austrian group was able to join this long-term, international multidisciplinary research project at the start of 2003.
The survey, due to run for a minimum of four years, will involve at least six academic discipl
In a study that points to the importance of considering both mind and body in children’s health, researchers report today that they have found a clear link between childhood obesity and behavior problems.
Results published today in the journal Pediatrics show that children who have significant behavior problems, as described by their parents, are nearly three times as likely to be overweight as other children. In addition, children with behavior problems are as much as five times
Screening newborns for a rare but treatable genetic disease benefits families and society, according to a team of pediatricians and health care economists who analyzed patient records and data from mass screening programs in several states. The study appears in the November issue of Pediatrics.
The researchers, from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, analyzed the cost-effectiveness of screening for medium-chain acyl-CoA-
Children whose mothers are depressed after childbirth are at elevated risk for violence by age 11, especially if the mothers suffered repeated depression, according to new research involving British families. The study also finds that in contrast to their peers, children whose mothers had been depressed at three months postpartum showed more diverse and severe aggressive behaviors than other children. The findings appear in the November issue of Developmental Psychology, a journal published by the A
Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have determined that a medication commonly prescribed for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease (AD) appears to cause physical improvements in the hippocampus and other brain regions of patients with the disease. These improvements could explain why the drug, donepezil (trade name Aricept), a cholinesterase inhibitor, is beneficial in treating the symptoms of some Alzheimer’s patients, the researchers said.
The findings were made by usi
Trauma victims who showed immediate signs of both depression and post-traumatic stress disorder are more likely to have psychosomatic ailments a year later, according to a new study.
The combination of both afflictions increases the incidence of somatic complaints, although this is not the case for either condition standing alone, say Douglas F. Zatzick, M.D., and colleagues from the University of Washington School of Medicine. Psychosomatic symptoms are physical complaints that canno
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