Scientists at the Babraham Institute have made significant advances in understanding schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a mental illness which has been estimated to affect over 1% of the population and costs the NHS over £2.5 billion per year. Babraham scientists have pinpointed a breakdown in mitochondria – the power stations of the cell – as a key factor.
The discovery, described in an article published in Molecular Psychiatry, was made by a team of scientists working in Dr Sabine Ba
An international team of scientists has traced the evolution of hearing in modern cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises). “This study of the early evolution of whales demonstrates the changes that took place in whales’ outer and middle ears, required for the transition from a land-based to a marine-based existence,” said Rich Lane, director of the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s geology and paleontology program, which funded the research. The findings are published in the Au
Simply sending reminder letters to physicians caring for heart attack patients saved lives and cut costs by increasing use of a recommended but underused drug, according to a new study.
The drug, called a beta-blocker, should be prescribed for many patients who have suffered a heart attack, according to national evidence-based guidelines. Beta-blockers improve survival and lessen chances of second heart attacks.
The research appears in the American Journal of Managed Care.
A newly designed endoscope, capable of providing sub-second polarized spectral images of tissue in vivo (in the body), allows physicians and surgeons to non-invasively survey and sample an entire area without actually removing tissue, and may offer hope as a new tool for detecting cancer early. Researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh describe the instrument’s capabilities and clinical applications in the July 2004 issue of Progres
USC study shows high rates of certain vision disorders among Mexican-Americans
Many Latinos have eye diseases that may potentially blind them or impair vision, according to the Los Angeles Latino Eye Study. Diabetic retinopathy, an eye complication of diabetes, and open-angle glaucoma, which damages the optic nerve, pose a particular problem among Latinos, according to researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California. Results appear in the June, J
New research from the University of Warwick examining return to school and classroom performance following head injury reveals that teachers are often unaware of the injury and that children only very rarely receive specialist help, despite having attention and memory problems.
The results show that regardless of injury severity many children have difficulties in retrieving and retaining information, and these impairments are particularly handicapping in the classroom. The stud
Researchers at Johns Hopkins have launched the first government-sponsored study to measure the effectiveness of a Web- and community-based home test kit for common sexually transmitted diseases, such as Chlamydia and gonorrhea.
The study will measure how many women make use of the kit, determine disease prevalence among respondents, record how effectively test results can be returned to the participants, and assess how well respondents who test positive follow through with therapy.
A new clinical study to determine how people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) evaluate improvements in disease symptoms will be carried out by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of Health. The study will examine how much of an improvement in pain, stiffness, function and other symptoms is needed before patients consider the change important.
The Clinically Important
Findings point to possible therapy for chronic symptoms of diabetes
Cardiovascular ailments related to kidney diseases possibly can be avoided by blocking a newly identified enzyme that, in excess amounts, raises blood cholesterol levels and promotes arteriosclerosis, according to a UC Irvine College of Medicine study.
In a study on rats, Dr. Nick Vaziri found that controlling levels of ACAT, an enzyme that plays a critical role in cholesterol processing, improved both kid
From Mazatlán to Tucson, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) is analyzing moisture-laden skies through September as part of the largest study yet of the North American Monsoon. Each year the midsummer arrival of quenching rains plays a vital role in dryland farming, ranching, and wildfire control across the southwest United States and northwest Mexico. The monsoon may also hold useful clues for predicting summer rainfall elsewhere in the United States.
“A long-term go
Researchers at the University of Washington will direct the largest study of its kind to explore the connection between air pollution and the No. 1 cause of death in the United States: cardiovascular disease.
“We’re going to be looking at questions vital to our understanding of the health effects of air pollution and cardiovascular disease,” said Dr. Joel Kaufman, principal investigator on the project and associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Hea
A study published today in the August edition of the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery reports that wavefront technology, a new way of measuring how vision is distorted by irregularities in the eye, offers a widely accepted means for corroborating cataract patients’ vision complaints, which may lead to earlier treatment with attendant enhanced patient safety and less loss of quality of life.
The study, Higher-Order Aberrations of Lenticular Opacities, by N. Sachdev, S
An international study with nearly 900 patients co-infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) has shown that HCV can be treated effectively and safely, without compromising the patient’s HIV therapy.
Currently, HCV and resulting end-stage liver disease is the major cause of hospitalization and death in the more than one-third of HIV patients who are co-infected with HCV. While potent anti-viral therapies have prolonged the lives of HIV patients, HCV
Swapping spectacles for contact lenses was once a right-of-passage for young teenagers. But new research suggests that 8- to 11-year-olds can handle the responsibility of contact lenses just as well as their older peers.
A three-month study included 10 nearsighted children who wore daily disposable contact lenses. By the end of the study, nine of the children had little to no problems with handling the lenses.
“Many parents don’t realize that their 8-year-old child can handle
A five-nation oceanographic team is taking the first steps in a $3.6 million project studying the major flow of ocean currents between Asia and Australia and how they influence rainfall across Southern Australia and Indonesia.
Scientists are investigating fluctuations in the flow of warm waters from the western Pacific Ocean draining through the Indonesian Archipelago into the Indian Ocean north of Australia.
“Our climate, and particularly the amount of rainfall across the
A study published in the July issue of the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society’s journal, Foot and Ankle International, found no significant difference in the incidence of stress fractures, ankle sprains or other foot problems between the users of expensive custom made foot orthoses and those who used prefabricated orthotic devices.
Foot orthoses are devices worn within shoes that allow the foot to function better. They are usually prescribed to treat specific existing foot condit
Feedback
