The risk of ischemic stroke – which results when a blood clot travels to the brain – increases with a rise in particulate air pollution, according to a study in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. Led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), the findings are described in the October 27, 2005 on-line rapid access issue of the journal.
The study, which examined the air quality on a total of 37,0
A collaboration of researchers, led by Dr. Martine Roussel (St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital), has developed a novel mouse model of medulloblastoma — the most prevalent malignant pediatric brain tumor — that the researchers hope will more accurately represent the genetic changes involved in human brain tumor development.
Their study will be published in the November 15th issue of Genes & Development, but will also be made available online ahead of print on 10/31.
Another study demonstrates benefits of colon cancer screening in elderly populations
A new study of gender and risk factors for colorectal cancer reveals that while both tobacco and alcohol increase risk for colorectal cancer, women who smoke are at higher risk. Researcher Anna L. Zisman, M.D. of Evanston Northwestern Health Care presented these findings at the 70th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology. Another study presented at ACG of patients
Published Oct. 20 in the online edition of the peer-reviewed journal Health Services Research, the study finds that the average $1,583 cost of substance abuse treatment is offset by monetary benefits such as reduced costs of crime and increased employment earnings totaling $11,487.
The researcher team used detailed data from 2,567 clients admitted to 43 treatment providers in 13 California counties during 2000 and 2001. The information was gathered via an automated system operated
Research demonstrates that the hormone PYY can inhibit eating in the morning, but not in the evening
Research at the Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC) at Oregon Health & Science University has demonstrated that a hormone found naturally in the body has the ability to cause limited weight loss. Specifically, the research revealed that peptide YY (PYY) can reduce food consumption in the morning, leading to a mild level of weight loss in the short term. The research is
A new study has found wild-type measles virus in tissues from patients who died of a fatal brain infection, providing evidence against the notion that the strain of virus in the measles vaccine caused the infection. The study, in the November 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online, also concludes that vaccination against measles could prevent many more cases of the disease, known as subacute sclerosing panencephalitis, or SSPE, than previously thought.
The daily routines of one in ten American in Vermont, Alaska, Maine and other northern states will change for the worse on Oct. 30.
The alterations start every year around October just after the end of daylight savings time. For most, the clock shift just adds an hour to the weekend — but for sufferers of seasonal affective disorder, a syndrome involving recurring bouts of depression during fall and winter months, it marks the beginning of a difficult time of year when many f
New research shows that repeated treatments of botulinum toxin type A (BoNTA) over one year after a stroke can improve muscle tone and reduce pain in the arms and hands, making it easier for patients to dress themselves and perform personal hygiene.
“The treatment resulted in sustained and meaningful functional improvement that makes a difference in the daily lives of stroke patients and the people who care for them,” said Allison Brashear, M.D., professor and chairman of neuro
The International HapMap Project was initiated with the primary goal of facilitating medical studies and understanding the genomic basis for human diseases. To coordinate with the journal Nature’s publication describing the HapMap, the journal Genome Research is announcing a special issue entitled “Human Genome Variation,” which is entirely devoted to studies using these data to provide insight into human biology and disease.
Predicting pregnancy success
Succ
When it comes to focusing on a task amid distractions, some folks more than 60 years old are as mentally sharp as 22-year-olds. Others struggle. Researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have shed some light on why that is.
Reporting in the current issue (September) of the quarterly journal Psychology and Aging, the scientists say there is less white matter in the frontal lobes of those who struggle
First study of its kind extends linkage beyond North America and Europe
Even in an Asian nation where people generally have higher levels of physical activity on the job than is typical in North America or Europe, those who walk more or engage in regular sports activity tend to have lower levels of ischemic stroke and coronary heart disease, according to a new study in the Nov. 1, 2005, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
“The strength of the p
Researchers from Imperial College London believe that when species become asexual they could be on their way to extinction.
The research, published in PLoS Pathogens, looks at the genetic structure of Penicillium marneffei, an asexual fungus. The researchers found that although P. marneffei spores were able to spread over large distances on currents of air, they were not able to ‘invade’ the new environments in which they landed.
P. marneffei is a fungus which causes di
People living in deprived areas or working in manual occupations are less likely to receive cholesterol and blood pressure-lowering treatment than more affluent people, according to a paper published today [28 October] in the November issue of the British Journal of General Practice.
This is because the method used to assess an individual’s risk of getting heart disease underestimates the true level of coronary heart disease risk associated with elevated risk factor levels in thes
Because of 1988 and 1990 amendments to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, off-label distribution or provision of human growth hormone to treat aging or age-associated illnesses is illegal in the United States, according to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The findings, which were peer-reviewed by independent experts and by the journal’s legal counsel, appear in the Oct. 26 issue.
A team of three noted health researchers revealed a largely
Nature’s finesse revealed in quality surveillance system
With their latest discovery, researchers have significantly advanced the understanding of how human cells protect themselves from constant and potentially destructive changes in gene expression. According to an article published in this month’s Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, the research is important because the protection itself can contribute to disease, and the ability to side-step it may lead to new treat
A study in youth who are missing part of a chromosome is further implicating a suspect gene in schizophrenia. Youth with this genetic chromosomal deletion syndrome already had a nearly 30-fold higher-than-normal risk of schizophrenia, but those who also had one of two common versions of the suspect gene had worse symptoms. They were more prone to cognitive decline, psychosis and frontal lobe tissue loss by late adolescence, when schizophrenia symptoms begin to emerge, found the study, which was
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