Calcium News and Research

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Calcium, the most abundant mineral in the body, is found in some foods, added to others, available as a dietary supplement, and present in some medicines (such as antacids). Calcium is required for muscle contraction, blood vessel expansion and contraction, secretion of hormones and enzymes, and transmitting impulses throughout the nervous system. The body strives to maintain constant concentrations of calcium in blood, muscle, and intercellular fluids, though less than <1% of total body calcium is needed to support these functions.

The remaining 99% of the body's calcium supply is stored in the bones and teeth where it supports their structure. Bone itself undergoes continuous remodeling, with constant resorption and deposition of calcium into new bone. The balance between bone resorption and deposition changes with age. Bone formation exceeds resorption in growing children, whereas in early and middle adulthood both processes are relatively equal. In aging adults, particularly among postmenopausal women, bone breakdown exceeds formation, resulting in bone loss that increases the risk of osteoporosis over time.

Scientists discover amyloid accumulation in young human brains

Amyloid -- an abnormal protein whose accumulation in the brain is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease -- starts accumulating inside neurons of people as young as 20, a much younger age than scientists ever imagined, reports a surprising new Northwestern Medicine study.

2 Mar 2015

Scientists combine principles of butterfly effect and computer simulation to predict heart disease

Scientists from Cardiff and Swansea Universities are combining the principles of the butterfly effect and computer simulation to explore new ways of predicting and controlling the beginnings of heart disease.

23 Feb 2015

Discovery could help scientists treat heart problems

The average heart beats 35 million times a year - 2.5 billion times over a lifetime. Those beats must be precisely calibrated; even a small divergence from the metronomic rhythm can cause sudden death. For decades, scientists have wondered exactly how the heart stays so precisely on rhythm even though it contains so many moving parts.

21 Feb 2015

Researchers demonstrate clinical efficacy of gallopamil in severe asthma patients

A team of Inserm researchers from the Cardio-Thoracic Research Centre of Bordeaux (Inserm/University of Bordeaux and Bordeaux University Hospital) has demonstrated the clinical efficacy of gallopamil in 31 patients with severe asthma. This chronic disease is characterised by remodelling of the bronchi, which exacerbates the obstruction of the airways already seen in "classic" asthma.

20 Feb 2015

Study: Most risk calculators used by clinicians overestimate risk of heart attack

Most "risk calculators" used by clinicians to gauge a patient's chances of suffering a heart attack and guide treatment decisions appear to significantly overestimate the likelihood of a heart attack, according to results of a study by investigators at Johns Hopkins and other institutions.

17 Feb 2015

Widely used clinical calculators overrate heart attack risk

16 Feb 2015

$Eisai announces FDA approval of LENVIMA (lenvatinib) for treatment of RAI-refractory DTC$

Eisai announces FDA approval of LENVIMA (lenvatinib) for treatment of RAI-refractory DTC

Eisai Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the company's receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor LENVIMA (lenvatinib) for the treatment of locally recurrent or metastatic, progressive, radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RAI-R DTC).

13 Feb 2015

Andor Zyla sCMOS Camera enables instantaneous imaging of neuronal activity across whole organism for the first time

The speed, resolution and sensitivity of the Andor Zyla sCMOS camera has allowed the Vaziri research group in Vienna, Austria, to simultaneously image neuronal activity across an entire organism for the first time.

10 Feb 2015

People living beside the sea have higher vitamin D levels

People living close to the coast in England have higher vitamin D levels than inland dwellers, according to a new study published in the journal Environment International.

10 Feb 2015

IOM report says white potatoes should be allowed under WIC Nutrition Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture should allow white potatoes as a vegetable eligible for purchase with vouchers issued by the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Woman, Infants, and Children (WIC), says a new report.

4 Feb 2015

Pancreatic cancer cells know a way to sidestep chemotherapy, reveal Fox Chase researchers

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms of the disease. The American Cancer Society's most recent estimates for 2014 show that over 46,000 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and more than 39,000 will die from it. Now, research led by Timothy J. Yen, PhD, Professor at Fox Chase Cancer Center, reveals that one reason this deadly form of cancer can be so challenging to treat is because its cells have found a way to sidestep chemotherapy.

30 Jan 2015

AP39 compound could help lower heart rate, blood pressure, and blood vessel stiffness

A gas that gives rotten eggs their distinctive odour could one day form the basis of new cardiovascular therapies.

29 Jan 2015

Pollinator decline could increase risk of malnutrition, disease

A new study shows that more than half the people in some developing countries could become newly at risk for malnutrition if crop-pollinating animals -- like bees -- continue to decline.

28 Jan 2015

Investigators make medical breakthrough in repairing tracheal damage

Investigators at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research have made a medical breakthrough using 3D printing on a MakerBot Replicator 2X Experimental 3D Printer to create cartilage designed for tracheal repair or replacement.

28 Jan 2015

Study finds relationship between menopausal symptoms, bone health in postmenopausal women

The first large prospective cohort study to examine the relationship between menopausal symptoms and bone health in postmenopausal women has found that those who experience moderate to severe hot flashes and night sweats during menopause tend to have lower bone mineral density and higher rates of hip fracture than peers with no menopausal symptoms.

23 Jan 2015

Microscopic spheres of calcium phosphate linked to AMD development

Microscopic spheres of calcium phosphate have been linked to the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a major cause of blindness, by UCL-led research.

21 Jan 2015

Understanding heart mutations that cause sudden cardiac arrest

New biosciences research at the University of Kent could point the way to greater understanding of the heart mutations that cause sudden cardiac arrest.

20 Jan 2015

Tiny lumps of calcium phosphate may trigger age-related macular degeneration

New research from scientists at the University of Maryland School of Medicine has found that tiny lumps of calcium phosphate may be an important triggering factor for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a degenerative eye disease that can cause severe vision loss and blindness.

20 Jan 2015

Researchers examine how terpenes can inhibit growth of liver cancer cells

As main component of essential oils, terpenes can inhibit the growth of different cancer cells. Researchers from the Ruhr-University Bochum headed by Prof Dr Dr Dr Hanns Hatt have analysed this process in liver cancer cells in detail.

19 Jan 2015

Tree nut consumption linked to better nutrient adequacy, diet quality in adults

A new study, published this week in the open access journal Nutrients, compares the nutrient adequacy and diet quality of those who consume tree nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios and walnuts), and non-tree nut consumers in a nationally representative population.