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Discovery of gene associated with epilepsy

A University of Iowa-led international research team has found a new gene associated with the brain disorder epilepsy.

18 Nov 2008

Gut check reveals vast multicultural community of bugs in bowels

Mention the phrase "diverse ecosystem," and it conjures images of tropical rainforests and endangered coral reefs.

18 Nov 2008

Exercise increases brain growth factor and receptors, prevents stem cell drop in middle age

A new study confirms that exercise can reverse the age-related decline in the production of neural stem cells in the hippocampus of the mouse brain, and suggests that this happens because exercise restores a brain chemical which promotes the production and maturation of new stem cells.

18 Nov 2008

Why HIV treatment makes people more susceptible to metabolic complications

Clinicians have known for some time that people treated for HIV also become much more susceptible to diabetes and heart disease.

17 Nov 2008

Why only some former smokers develop lung cancer

Canadian researchers are trying to answer why some smokers develop lung cancer while others remain disease free, despite similar lifestyle changes.

17 Nov 2008

Palladin may play important role in metastasis of breast cancer cells

If scientists knew exactly what a breast cancer cell needs to spread, then they could stop the most deadly part of the disease: metastasis.

17 Nov 2008

Time, surgery appear to reduce episodes of dizziness in patients with Ménière's

Episodes of dizziness tend to become less frequent over time in patients with Ménière's disease, a condition characterized by vertigo, hearing loss and ringing in the ears, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.

17 Nov 2008

Study helps clarify role of vitamin D in cancer therapy

A colon cancer cell isn't a lost cause. Vitamin D can tame the rogue cell by adjusting everything from its gene expression to its cytoskeleton.

17 Nov 2008

Study helps identify beachgoers at increased risk of skin cancer

Identifying the sun-protection practices and risk profiles of beachgoers may help determine those who would benefit from targeted interventions intended to reduce the risk of skin cancer, according to a study in the November issue of Archives of Dermatology.

17 Nov 2008

Sleep helps the mind learn complicated tasks

Sleep helps the mind learn complicated tasks and helps people recover learning they otherwise thought they had forgotten over the course of a day, research at the University of Chicago shows.

17 Nov 2008

Scientists discover new cause of fatal brain injury from acute viral meningitis

In a November 16 advance, online publication of the journal Nature, the researchers say their discovery revamps common beliefs about how such potentially lethal infections may be ravaging the brain and suggests the possibility of new treatments.

17 Nov 2008

Researchers find deadly protein that acts as a cancer master switch

Two critical properties of cancer cells are their ability to divide without restraint and to spread away from the primary tumor to establish new tumor sites.

17 Nov 2008

A link found between nicotine addiction and autism

Scientists have identified a relationship between two proteins in the brain that has links to both nicotine addiction and autism.

17 Nov 2008

Smoking causes bladder cancer

The Great American Smokeout is this Thursday, and the American Urological Association (AUA) gives smokers another good reason to quit: Smoking causes bladder cancer.

17 Nov 2008

Pain and itch regulated by different molecular mechanisms

Historically, scientists have regarded itching as a less intense version of the body's response to pain, but researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have determined that pain and itch actually are regulated by different molecular mechanisms.

17 Nov 2008

New evidence on how proteins help cells fix broken DNA

Aucott et al. report the first in vivo experiments on the heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) family, which sidles up to silent DNA.

17 Nov 2008

Non-white med students reject therapies associated with their culture

Non-white medical students are more likely to embrace orthodox medicine and reject therapies traditionally associated with their cultures.

17 Nov 2008

Study suggests Siemens non-invasive blood test may have a role in monitoring breast cancer patients' response to Herceptin

Siemens Healthcare announced that data from a new study published in the American Cancer Society journal Cancer, supports using the Siemens Serum HER-2/neu test to monitor patients with an aggressive type of metastatic breast cancer.

17 Nov 2008

Microarray analysis improves prenatal diagnosis

A "chip" or array that can quickly detect disorders such as Down syndrome or other diseases associated with chromosomal abnormalities proved an effective tool in prenatal diagnosis in a series of 300 cases at Baylor College of Medicine, said researchers in a report that appears in the current issue of the journal Prenatal Diagnosis.

17 Nov 2008

Scientists identify dangerous 'two-faced' protein crucial to breast cancer spread and growth

Two critical properties of cancer cells are their ability to divide without restraint and to spread away from the primary tumor to establish new tumor sites.

17 Nov 2008