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MGH researchers identify rare gene mutations that appear to cause late-onset AD

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers have identified and validated two rare gene mutations that appear to cause the common form of Alzheimer's disease (AD) that strikes after the age of 60.

25 Sep 2013

Researchers identify molecular pathway linking ICU ventilation to brain damage

At least 30 percent of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) suffer some form of mental dysfunction as reflected in anxiety, depression, and especially delirium. In mechanically-ventilated ICU patients, the incidence of delirium is particularly high, about 80 percent, and may be due in part to damage in the hippocampus, though how ventilation is increasing the risk of damage and mental impairment has remained elusive.

25 Sep 2013

Simple traffic light test helps reduce drinking rates in people with risk of liver disease

A simple 'traffic light' test that detects hidden liver fibrosis and cirrhosis in high risk populations could reduce harmful drinking rates and potentially prevent hundreds of alcohol-related deaths a year.

25 Sep 2013

DASH diet improves heart function, lowers blood pressure in heart failure patients

Diet can dramatically lower hypertension and improve heart function in patients with a common type of heart failure, according to research presented at today's Heart Failure Society of America meeting in Orlando, Fla.

25 Sep 2013

$Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women$

Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women

Australian researchers have demonstrated a strong association between the FTO (fat and obesity) gene and hip fracture in women. While the gene is already well known to affect diabetes and obesity, this is the first study to show that its high-risk variant can increase the risk of hip fracture by as much as 82%.

25 Sep 2013

miR-31 in primary tumor cells predicts lymph node metastasis in NSCLC patients

Determining whether a patient's lung cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes is critical for identifying the most effective therapy, but it usually requires surgery. A new study suggests, however, that measuring levels of a particular molecule in a sample of tumor tissue might accurately answer the question.

25 Sep 2013

Study shows how deadly Candida albicans might be rendered harmless

Candida albicans is a double agent: In most of us, it lives peacefully, but for people whose immune systems are compromised by HIV or other severe illnesses, it is frequently deadly. Now a new study from Johns Hopkins and Harvard Medical School shows how targeting a specific fungal component might turn the fungus from a lion back into a kitten.

25 Sep 2013

Environmental enrichment protects against atrophy in chronic stages of TBI

For the first time, scientists at Toronto Rehab have found that in people with chronic moderate-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), atrophy (shrinkage) in the brain may be countered by participating in environmental enrichment - increased physical, social and cognitive stimulation.

24 Sep 2013

Rhythm starts RM-493 clinical trials in obesity patients with genetic deficiency

Rhythm announced today the initiation of the first of a series of clinical trials with RM-493, the company's novel melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) agonist, for the treatment of obesity in individuals with a genetic deficiency in the MC4R pathway.

24 Sep 2013

Caffeine intake results in delayed brain development

Humans and other mammals show particularly intensive sleeping patterns during puberty. The brain also matures fastest in this period. But when pubescent rats are administered caffeine, the maturing processes in their brains are delayed. This is the result of a study supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).

24 Sep 2013

Long-term hormonal therapy has no additional benefits in men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer

A secondary analysis of the historic RTOG 9202 prostate cancer trial examined results of men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer who had received long-term hormonal therapy after radiation therapy, and concluded that there were no additional benefits when compared to short-term hormonal therapy, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

24 Sep 2013

Discovery could help develop new treatments for blood diseases

Researchers in Melbourne, Australia, have found that even our immune system is subject to performance enhancement, with our bodies giving immune cells the boost they need to ensure the best team is selected to fight infections.

24 Sep 2013

Long-term abstinence from cocaine does not result in complete normalization of brain circuitry

It is often said that once people develop an addiction, they can never completely eliminate their attraction to the abused substance. New findings provide further support for this notion by suggesting that even long-term abstinence from cocaine does not result in a complete normalization of brain circuitry.

24 Sep 2013

Brains could process new situations by relying on method similar to "pointer" system

Our brains give us the remarkable ability to make sense of situations we've never encountered before-a familiar person in an unfamiliar place, for example, or a coworker in a different job role-but the mechanism our brains use to accomplish this has been a longstanding mystery of neuroscience.

24 Sep 2013

Lung cancer patients who received IMRT report less decline in their QOL

An analysis of quality of life (QOL) data of stage III lung cancer patients who received higher doses of radiation therapy (with chemotherapy) shows a significantly lower quality of life at 3 months after treatment compared to patients who received a standard dose of radiation (with chemotherapy), according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

24 Sep 2013

Protein linked with asthma severity in children with high diesel exposure

A new study shows that exposure to diesel exhaust particles from traffic pollution leads to increased asthma severity in children. Moreover, the study finds that this is due to increased blood levels of IL-17A, a protein associated with several chronic inflammatory diseases, in children with high diesel exposure.

24 Sep 2013

Tel Aviv University researchers develop spring-like fibers to help repair damaged heart tissue

The threat from a heart attack doesn't end with the event itself. Blockage of blood flow to the heart can cause irreversible cell death and scarring. With transplants scarce, half the people who live through a heart attack die within five years. Scientists are trying to address this problem by engineering cardiac tissue to patch up damaged areas.

24 Sep 2013

Proton radiotherapy proves to be cost-effective in treating pediatric brain tumors

Proton therapy, an external beam radiotherapy in which protons deliver precise radiation doses to a tumor and spare healthy organs and tissues, is cost-effective in treating medulloblastomas, fast-growing brain tumors that mainly affect children, when compared to standard photon radiation therapy, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

24 Sep 2013

Understanding genetic, physiological basis for metabolic diseases related to circadian function

A new study by a team of University of Notre Dame researchers, which appears in the Sept. 2 edition of the journal PLoS ONE, is a significant step in understanding the molecular genetic and physiological basis for a spectrum of metabolic diseases related to circadian function.

24 Sep 2013

Protecting stem cells around hippocampus in brain reduces rate of memory loss in cancer patients

Protecting the stem cells that reside in and around the hippocampus - a C-shaped area in the temporal lobe on both sides of the brain associated with the ability to form and store memories - substantially reduces the rate of cancer patients' memory loss during whole-brain radiotherapy without a significant risk of recurrence in that area of the brain, a new study shows.

24 Sep 2013

Medical Science News

MGH researchers identify rare gene mutations that appear to cause late-onset AD

Researchers identify molecular pathway linking ICU ventilation to brain damage

Simple traffic light test helps reduce drinking rates in people with risk of liver disease

DASH diet improves heart function, lowers blood pressure in heart failure patients

Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women

miR-31 in primary tumor cells predicts lymph node metastasis in NSCLC patients

Study shows how deadly Candida albicans might be rendered harmless

Environmental enrichment protects against atrophy in chronic stages of TBI

Rhythm starts RM-493 clinical trials in obesity patients with genetic deficiency

Caffeine intake results in delayed brain development

Long-term hormonal therapy has no additional benefits in men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer

Discovery could help develop new treatments for blood diseases

Long-term abstinence from cocaine does not result in complete normalization of brain circuitry

Brains could process new situations by relying on method similar to "pointer" system

Lung cancer patients who received IMRT report less decline in their QOL

Protein linked with asthma severity in children with high diesel exposure

Tel Aviv University researchers develop spring-like fibers to help repair damaged heart tissue

Proton radiotherapy proves to be cost-effective in treating pediatric brain tumors

Understanding genetic, physiological basis for metabolic diseases related to circadian function

Protecting stem cells around hippocampus in brain reduces rate of memory loss in cancer patients

Considerations for taking ASO discovery programs into animal models

Neurofilament light as a translational biomarker

How can machine learning accelerate neuroscience behavior studies?

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