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Researchers discover smallest and fastest-known RNA switches

A University of Michigan biophysical chemist and his colleagues have discovered the smallest and fastest-known molecular switches made of RNA, the chemical cousin of DNA. The researchers say these rare, fleeting structures are prime targets for the development of new antiviral and antibiotic drugs.

8 Oct 2012

Translational Genomics Research Institute creates new center for rare childhood disorders

The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) today announced the creation of a new center that could have life changing effects on the lives of potentially thousands of children and their families.

6 Oct 2012

Improved battlefield transport and triage improves survival of severely wounded soldiers

Wounded soldiers who sustained chest injuries in Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq) had higher mortality rates than soldiers in Korea and Vietnam, according to a military trauma study presented at the 2012 American College of Surgeons Annual Clinical Congress.

6 Oct 2012

Social factors influence perceptual processing

Hate the Lakers? Do the Celtics make you want to hurl? Whether you like someone can affect how your brain processes their actions, according to new research from the Brain and Creativity Institute at USC.

6 Oct 2012

Skin's outmost layer is the first line of defense against UV radiation

Reinhold Dauskardt, PhD, of Stanford's Department of Materials Science and Engineering has been studying skin for years. But when he sent his students to look for data on the mechanical properties of skin, they came back empty-handed. A lot was known about skin structure and disease, but few papers actually talked about its mechanical function - its ability to stretch and resist tension without tearing.

6 Oct 2012

Researchers from three trials join to collaborate under European Dementia Prevention Initiative

Worldwide, the number of people with Alzheimer's disease will hit 115 million by 2050, according to the World Health Organization. Scientists, health officials, policymakers, and the public are asking if anything can slow down the disease.

6 Oct 2012

Opiate substitution therapies linked to reduced risk of HIV transmission

Methadone reduces the risk of HIV transmission in people who inject drugs (PWID), as reported by an international team of researchers in a paper published today in the online edition of the British Medical Journal. This team included Dr. Julie Bruneau from the CHUM Research Centre (CRCHUM) and the Department of Family Medicine at the Universit- de Montr-al.

6 Oct 2012

Benzodiazepine exposure for over-65s linked to increased risk of dementia

The results from comparative analysis of this population demonstrate the risk of developing dementia increased by 50% for subjects who consumed benzodiazepines during the follow-up period, compared with those who had never used benzodiazepines.

6 Oct 2012

Public health significance and societal consequences of pathological gambling

The panel discussion on the occasion of the 25th ECNP Congress in Vienna, Austria, will focus not only on medical issues of pathological gambling, but also on its public health significance and societal consequences.

6 Oct 2012

Progress toward preventing initial and recurrent episodes of C. diff infection

Surgeons are making progress toward preventing initial and recurrent episodes of clostridium difficile colitis (C. difficile or C. diff), a vicious bacterial infection that is estimated to affect about 336,000 people each year, typically patients on antibiotics.

6 Oct 2012

Decline in diabetic foot ulcers in clinical practice

The incidence of foot ulcers developing in diabetes patients is decreasing, particularly in Type 2 diabetes, say researchers.

5 Oct 2012

Time is of the essence in depressed diabetes patients

Among patients with diabetes and comorbid depression, the time point at which they developed depression may have important implications for their clinical management, say researchers.

5 Oct 2012

Long-term education for patients may futher improve diabetes outcomes

Although there have been significant advances in the provision of diabetes education since 2000, further improvements are still needed, say researchers.

5 Oct 2012

Physician warnings over fitness to drive improve road safety

Physician warnings to patients who are potentially unfit to drive may lead to substantial reductions in road crash trauma, report Canadian researchers.

5 Oct 2012

Pesticide exposure may trigger food allergies

Results from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey suggest that high exposure to dichlorophenols, chemicals found in pesticides and used for chlorinating water, may increase a person’s risk for developing food allergies.

5 Oct 2012

Major depression goes unnoticed in pregnant women

Healthcare professionals looking after pregnant women should maintain a high level of awareness for the possibility of major depressive disorder, say US researchers who found the condition frequently goes undetected.

5 Oct 2012

DPP-inhibitors reduce cardiovascular events in diabetes patients

Type 2 diabetes patients who are treated with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors have a significantly reduced risk for cardiovascular events, particularly myocardial infarction, compared with their peers who take placebo or other drugs, results of a meta-analysis show.

5 Oct 2012

GRID1 thalamo-cortical gene variations absent in schizophrenia

Genetic variation in the glutamate receptor delta 1 gene affects gray matter of the anterior thalamus and left lateral prefrontal cortex in healthy individuals but not among patients with schizophrenia, suggest findings published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research.

5 Oct 2012

Prefrontal-limbic network dysfunction in depressive BD

Study findings suggest that patients in the depressive phase of bipolar disorder show dysfunction in prefrontal-limbic networks and associated striatal systems, which can be measured using amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations.

5 Oct 2012