Men who have a diet rich in soya products, beans and sunflower seeds run a much lower risk of contracting prostate cancer. New findings from Karolinska Institutet show that foods rich in phytoestrogens – plant-produced oestrogens – protect against the most common form of cancer in the western world.

Some 10,000 men develop prostate cancer in Sweden each year. Just why prostate cancer is so common is still something of a mystery, but age, ethnicity and genes are usually consider

Researchers at the North West Lung Centre, run by The University of Manchester and based at Wythenshawe Hospital, have discovered that vacuum cleaners with ‘high-efficiency particulate air’ or HEPA filters are no more effective than standard models at reducing exposure to dust-mites.

The team compared nasal air samples taken before and during vacuum cleaning using both HEPA and non-HEPA vacuum cleaners. They found a small increase in exposure to dust-mite during vacuuming with either type

Digital Healthcare, a Cambridge company that is the UK’s leading supplier of software for diabetic retinal screening programmes and ophthalmology, has scooped a top prize at the Microsoft Healthcare Users Group (MS-HUG) Annual Awards 2006, which recognise outstanding technology innovations that improve patient healthcare.

Digital Healthcare has won the Best in Class Partner Award in the Acute Care – Clinical/Patient Information Systems Category for OptoMize iP its innovative software sys

The Use of Irradiation for Food Quality and Safety

The Institute of Food Science and Technology, through its Public Affairs and Technical and Legislative Committees, has authorised the following Information Statement, dated February 2006, replacing that of 11 December 1998.

The following is a summary. The full text may be accessed at www.ifst.org/hottop11.htm

Summary

Irradiation, carried out under conditions of Good Manufacturing Practice, i

Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have shown that a blood test previously found useful for diagnosing heart failure and determining prognosis in several cardiovascular conditions can also predict the risk of death among patients coming to hospital emergency departments with shortness of breath. Their report in the Feb. 14 Archives of Internal Medicine describes how measuring levels of a protein called NT-proBNP was the most powerful predictor of whether patients would die w

Estrogen therapy does not appear to reduce the risk of heart attack or coronary death in healthy postmenopausal women, although some data suggest a lower coronary heart disease risk in women aged 50 to 59 years, according to a new article in the February 13 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) included two large clinical trials that evaluated whether hormone therapy with estrogen reduces the risk of coronary he

Development projects designed to improve maternal and child welfare in Africa may incur unexpected costs associated with increases in family size if they do not include a component of family planning, according to new research from the University of Bristol into rural communities in Ethiopia.

The research, published today in Public Library of Science: Medicine, is the first study to demonstrate a link between a single technological development intervention (in this case, a tapped

Diuretics reduce the risk of death, delay heart deterioration and improve exercise capacity in patients with congestive heart failure, a new review of studies shows.

Although widely used for quick relief of CHF symptoms — cough, shortness of breath and swelling in the feet, legs and ankles — up until now it was not known whether diuretics had a more substantial effect in treating CHF.

“The available data from several small trials show that in patients with chronic heart

More pediatricians should counsel children and their parents about preventing skin cancer, according to dermatology researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. A review of research literature confirmed that prevention should begin in childhood, yet found that the topic is discussed at less than 1 percent of well-child visits.

“Children should be encouraged to use sunscreen, wear appropriate clothing and avoid both the strongest midday sun levels and indoor tann

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) – shock treatment –improves quality of life in patients with major depression, and that improved quality of life continues for six months, according to a report in the February Journal of Affective Disorders.

The study was conducted in seven hospitals in New York City – two private psychiatric hospitals, three community hospitals and two academic medical centers, said W. Vaughn McCall, M.D., M.S., the lead author and professor and chairman of the D

At the Campus Vienna Biocenter research has begun into environmental stress-induced changes to the plant genome supported by the Austrian genome program (GEN-AU). A EUR 1.3 million budget has been allocated to the three-year project. Two task groups at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences and five at the Campus will investigate how extreme environmental conditions impact on the plant genome. It is also hoped that evidence will be found to support the hypothesis that inheri

The latest issue of The Biochemist looks at stem cells, their potential in medicine and the ethical questions to which they give rise.

As part of the Biochemical Journal centenary, the issue carries an exclusive interview with Mike Berridge and Bob Michell and a review of signalling. We interview Sir Philip Cohen, the new president of the Society, on his career in biochemistry and the role of science.

Contents include:

Stem cell research: ethics and geography

Indiana University School of Medicine has begun unique clinical trial

Indiana University School of Medicine scientists have begun a unique clinical trial using stem cell injections as a treatment that could offer hope to tens of thousands of people who face sores, ulcers and even amputations due to severe peripheral artery disease.
An estimated 10 million Americans are affected by the poor blood circulation — generally in the legs — of peripheral artery disease (PAD). It i

A Florida State University scientist used a gene transfer technique to block the expression of a gene associated with clinical depression in a new study of mice that could lead to better treatment of human beings with this condition.

Carlos Bolanos, an assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience, was among a team of researchers that identified the role of a gene called Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) in the development of social aversion. Mice treated with a tra

Based on laboratory research, scientists at Georgetown University Medical Center have a new theory as to why people with Alzheimer’s disease have trouble performing even the simplest memory tasks, such as remembering a family member’s name.

That’s because they discovered a physical link between apolipoprotein E (APOE), the transport molecules known to play a role in development of the disease, and glutamate, a brain chemical necessary for establishing human memory.

In

They may not be able to make love last, but a team of University of Florida researchers has figured out how to at least make the flowers go the distance.

A UF environmental horticulturist has developed ways to extend flower quality and vase life by three or more days through post-harvest techniques so consumers see a difference in the flowers they purchase – not only on Valentine’s Day but throughout the year.

“Our research has shown that keeping flowers cold as they mov