Medical Research News

RSS

Reduce coronary heart disease by listing trans fats on food labels

British researchers say that in order to help reduce coronary heart disease, food labels should list trans fats as well as cholesterol and saturated fat.

30 Jul 2006

Medical technology fails to cope with obese patients

Researchers in the U.S. say that more and more Americans are missing out when it comes to receiving full medical care because they are too obese to fit into scanners or their fat is too dense for X-rays or sound waves to penetrate.

27 Jul 2006

Honey more effective than antibiotics

A household remedy millennia old is being reinstated: honey helps the treatment of some wounds better than the most modern antibiotics.

27 Jul 2006

How much and what the eye tells the brain

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine estimate that the human retina can transmit visual input at about the same rate as an Ethernet connection, one of the most common local area network systems used today.

26 Jul 2006

Multi-tasking adversely affects brain's learning

Multi-tasking affects the brain's learning systems, and as a result, we do not learn as well when we are distracted, UCLA psychologists report this week in the online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

26 Jul 2006

Poor sense of smell among alcoholics associated with prefrontal cognitive dysfunction

Prior research has shown that chronic alcoholism is associated with numerous olfactory deficits in odor judgment, odor identification, odor sensitivity, and the ability to qualitatively discriminate between odors.

26 Jul 2006

Research findings may speed the development of vaccines for Chlamydia and other STDs

Using a novel mouse model that allows scientists to study how the immune system’s fighter cells respond to invaders in the genital tract during the initial stage of infection, researchers have found a way to track immunity against Chlamydia trachomatis.

26 Jul 2006

New insights into how cells repair damaged DNA

Cancer researchers have discovered that a recently identified protein critical for repairing damaged genes uses an unusual mechanism to keep its repairs accurate.

26 Jul 2006

Vaccination with irradiated Listeria induced protective T cell immunity

Vaccines made with bacteria killed by gamma irradiation, rather than by standard methods of heat or chemical inactivation, may be more effective, say researchers.

26 Jul 2006

Using gamma radiation preserves T-cell responses in bacterial vaccine

Using gamma radiation to inactivate bacteria for the preparation of vaccines, instead of traditional heat or chemical methods of inactivation, appears to create a vaccine that is more effective than so-called "killed" vaccines against disease, and has the added advantage of a longer storage life than "live" vaccines.

26 Jul 2006

Disease-specific gene expression profiles in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

They sleep together, eat together, and most people find it impossible to tell them apart. Identical twins who grow up together share just about everything, including their genes.

26 Jul 2006

Research shows promising results and points out new priorities for adult malnutrition in developing countries

While a great deal of research has been conducted on child and adult malnutrition in developing countries, there are only a handful of studies on adolescent malnutrition.

26 Jul 2006

Irradiation preserves T-Cell responses in bacterial vaccine

Findings could result in more potent vaccines that are relatively inexpensive to produce, easy to store, and that can be transported without refrigeration.

25 Jul 2006

How does the immune system isolate and destroy intruders?

Dendritic cells are the body's "watchdogs". They recognize and then degrade pathogens, isolating characteristic fragments that are recognized by the immune system thus triggering targeted responses.

25 Jul 2006

Major genetic breakthrough in understanding of Wolbachia infection

Scientists have made a major breakthrough in understanding the genetics of the insect parasite that is being targeted by researchers as a way of preventing the spread of malaria.

25 Jul 2006

Gas bubbles used to block oxygen flow to tumors and deliver drugs

The process of blocking blood flow to a tumor is called embolization, and using gas bubbles is a new technique in embolotherapy.

25 Jul 2006

Discovery could help identify genes that cause human heart defects

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a group of fruit fly gene mutations responsible for "broken hearts" in the embryonic stages of development, a discovery that could help identify genes that cause human heart defects.

25 Jul 2006

3D computer simulation to aid treatment of collapsed lungs

The treatment of premature babies and adults who suffer from Respiratory Distress Syndrome could be boosted by new research at The University of Manchester, as published in the Journal of Biomechanical Engineering.

From The University of Manchester 25 Jul 2006

Belfer Foundation funds new translational cancer institute

The Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Foundation has pledged $8 million to create the Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Institute of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

25 Jul 2006

Birch bark compound may be potent prostate cancer fighter

A compound found in the bark of the white birch tree - betulonic acid, a derivative of betulinol - may finally have been rendered a water-soluble, bio-available drug, and is already showing the potential to be a possible agent against prostate cancer - in cell culture and in an animal model.

25 Jul 2006