Endocrinology News and Research

Latest Endocrinology News and Research

Obesity associated with a threefold increase in SCD1 expression in obese muscle

The gene encoding an enzyme that hinders muscle from burning fat manufactures three times more enzyme in the muscle of obese people than lean people, researchers from Duke University Medical Center and Louisiana State University have found. This causes the obese muscle tissue to both store more fat and burn less fat, the researchers said.

11 Oct 2005

Sleletal muscle findings highlight the importance of exercise in obese people

The findings suggest that muscle bears a metabolic memory of obesity, which may help to explain why sustained weight loss can be difficult despite cutting calories, according to the researchers. Exercise might more successfully override the aberrant metabolic program in muscle, they suggest, thereby improving the long-term prognosis of those prone to obesity.

11 Oct 2005

Disparities in breast cancer survival between blacks and whites remain

Black breast cancer patients have shorter survival than white breast cancer patients largely because of a higher rate of other disorders, such as diabetes and hypertension, according to a study in the October 12 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

11 Oct 2005

Natural cancer killing cells from the human embryonic stem cells

For the first time, stem cell researchers at the University of Minnesota have coaxed human embryonic stem cells to create cancer-killing cells in the laboratory, paving the way for future treatments for various types of cancers (or tumors).

11 Oct 2005

Rates for new cases of kidney failure have stabilized

After 20 years of annual increases from 5 to 10 percent, rates for new cases of kidney failure have stabilized, according to new research from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). At the same time, dramatic racial disparities persist.

11 Oct 2005

Vanadium may help prepare the body to recover speedily from infections

Dietary supplements containing vanadium are used by body builders to help beef up muscles and by some diabetic people to control blood sugar. New research now suggests the naturally occurring but easily toxic element may help prepare the body to recover speedily from infections from gram-negative organisms such as E. coli.

11 Oct 2005

Glucose test device for diabetics that does not involve pricking the finger

A Syracuse University chemistry professor has patented a device that aims to make painful fingerstick testing of glucose levels a thing of the past for diabetics.

11 Oct 2005

New treatments for health conditions related to abnormal iron metabolism

A new study conducted by scientists at Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute could help researchers develop new treatments for a variety of health conditions that are all related to abnormal iron metabolism. More than one million Americans have abnormal iron levels in their bodies.

10 Oct 2005

People only need to walk up to 12 miles per week or for about 125 to 200 minutes per week to improve their heart health

The amount of exercise may be more important than intensity to improve cardiovascular health, according to a new analysis of the first randomized clinical trial evaluating the effects of exercise amount and intensity in sedentary overweight men and women.

10 Oct 2005

Obesity linked to dementia and Alzheimer's disease

Individuals who were obese at midlife had an increased risk for dementia later in life compared to individuals of normal weight, according to an article in the October issue of Archives of Neurology.

10 Oct 2005

Top 12 health issues facing Australian children

Alarming levels of poorer health within indigenous children and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds tops a new list of 12 major issues threatening the future health of Australia.

10 Oct 2005

Eyes reveal risk of stroke

Looking into our eyes may help doctors predict who is at risk for stroke. A new study found that people with changes in the small blood vessels in their eyes are more likely to later suffer a stroke than people without these signs.

10 Oct 2005

Actos reduces the combined risk of non-fatal heart attacks, strokes in patients with type-2 diabetes

A study published in The Lancet shows that Takeda's Actos (pioglitazone HCl), an oral glucose lowering medication, significantly reduces the combined risk of non-fatal heart attacks, strokes and deaths by an additional 16% on top of standard medication

10 Oct 2005

Screening for cardiovascular risk by measuring blood levels of C-reactive protein should not be advocated

C-reactive protein (CRP) is released by the liver in response to inflammation related to an infection, injury, or conditions such as arthritis. Inflammation also has been associated with the cause and progression of cardiovascular disease, particularly in the build up of fatty deposits in the lining of arteries.

10 Oct 2005

Tonsils reveal information that helps understand lupus

By snipping out and analyzing tiny samples of patients' tonsils, scientists have identified a key cellular checkpoint that is somehow bypassed in lupus patients, where harmful immune cells that normally are squelched by the body are mistakenly granted access.

9 Oct 2005

Preventing Chronic Diseases: A Vital Investment

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) is calling for concerted action following the recent release of an important report of the World Heart Organisation (WHO).

9 Oct 2005

Obese Zucker rat model shares the symptoms of obesity with a growing number of Americans

A mutant rat that mimics a 400-pound human is helping scientists understand early vascular changes that make walking a pain for more than 2 million Americans.

9 Oct 2005

Specific gene on chromosome 15 regulates inflammation

A team of international researchers has discovered that a specific gene on chromosome 15 regulates inflammation, a finding with implications for a wide range of disorders, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, Alzheimer's, and infections. The findings are published in the October 9 online issue of Nature Genetics.

9 Oct 2005

Gut antibody could prove to be a promising drug target for Crohn's disease

A collaboration led by the Burnham Institute for Medical Research has found that an antibody which binds to an unusual sugar molecule residing in the gut halts the inflammation seen in Crohn's disease and other intestinal inflammations. The antibody could prove to be a promising drug target for these common chronic intestinal disorders.

9 Oct 2005