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Secondhand smoke does damage lungs

It's not a smoking gun, but it's smoking-related, and it's there in bright medical images: evidence of microscopic structural damage deep in the lungs, caused by secondhand cigarette smoke.

27 Nov 2007

Scientists examine eons-old water for microorganisms

Researchers from the University of Delaware and the University of California at Riverside have thawed ice estimated to be at least a million years old from above Lake Vostok, an ancient lake that lies hidden more than two miles beneath the frozen surface of Antarctica.

27 Nov 2007

Researchers transfer immune response to myeloma patient

Researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) have for the first time transferred an immune response in a healthy individual to a patient with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow, showing promise for cancer vaccination.

27 Nov 2007

Research funders ask public what they really think about stem cell research

The UK's two biggest public funders of stem cell research have today launched a year-long national dialogue programme that aims to find out what the public really think about stem cell science.

27 Nov 2007

New disease model for Huntington's

Huntington's disease is a genetic time bomb: Programmed in the genes, it appears at a predictable age in adulthood, causing a progressive decline in mental and neurological function and finally death.

27 Nov 2007

Psychiatric advance directives enhance patient-doctor communication

In theory, psychiatric advance directives provide a way to improve medical decision making during a mental health crisis.

27 Nov 2007

Patient knowledge of heart risk profile may help improve cholesterol management

Patients who discuss their coronary risk profiles with their physicians may respond better to treatment for cholesterol disorders, according to a report in the November 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

27 Nov 2007

Ozone response greater with increasing BMI

A new study provides the first evidence that people with higher body mass index (BMI) may have a greater response to ozone than leaner people.

27 Nov 2007

Omega-3 fatty acids protect the brain against Parkinson's disease

Omega-3 fatty acids protect the brain against Parkinson's disease, according to a study by Université Laval researchers published in the online edition of the FASEB Journal, the journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

27 Nov 2007

Low levels of "good" cholesterol make it difficult to recover from stroke

People are at an increased risk of memory problems and greater disability after stroke if they have low levels of “good” cholesterol and high levels of homocysteine, an amino acid acquired mostly from eating meat.

27 Nov 2007

Nicotine patches can enhance cognitive function among newly recovering alcoholics with a history of smoking

Detoxified alcoholics in the early stages of recovery tend to have impaired cognitive functioning.

27 Nov 2007

Scientists bridge the "terahertz gap"

Going through airport security can be such a hassle. Shoes, laptops, toothpastes, watches and belts all get taken off, taken out, scanned, examined, handled and repacked. But "T-rays", a completely safe form of electromagnetic radiation, may reshape not only airport screening procedures but also medical imaging practices.

27 Nov 2007

HIV/AIDS in Serbia - stigma, loneliness and ostracism

Many people with HIV/AIDS in Serbia and Montenegro experience stigma, loneliness and ostracism, and can find it difficult to secure work and support themselves, according to new research findings.

27 Nov 2007

Adding water-soluble polymer to anti-cancer drug helps reach brain tumors

Bioengineers at Yale and Cornell have created a modified chemotherapy that more effectively reaches and remains at the site of brain tumors — by adding a water-soluble polymer to the anti-cancer drug, according to a report in the November-December issue of Bioconjugate Chemistry.

27 Nov 2007

Study of Mexican Americans shows that polymorphisms of the CYP2E1 gene enhance susceptibility to alcoholism

Mexican Americans make up 66 percent of the U.S. Hispanic population and, when compared to other ethnic groups, show high rates of heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems.

27 Nov 2007

Living donors may be best source of insulin-producing islets for diabetes treatment

According to a new study in Clinical Transplantation, obtaining islet cells (clusters of pancreatic cells that create insulin) from living donors may be a solution to the shortage of islets available for transplantation.

27 Nov 2007

Isotechnika granted Norwegian patent for lead immunosuppressive drug

Isotechnika Inc. has announced that the Company has been issued Norwegian Patent No. 324042 for its lead immunosuppressive drug, ISA247.

27 Nov 2007

Communication key to tackling cardiovascular disease

Despite the increasing evidence that managing high cholesterol reduces cardiovascular events, many people do not achieve recommended lipid levels.

27 Nov 2007

Do rural and non-rural single, young adults differ in their risk and protective HIV/STD behaviors?

Single young adults living in rural areas are no more inclined to engage in safe sex behaviors than their non-rural peers, according to a new analysis by Indiana University sexual health experts of a nationally representative survey.

27 Nov 2007

High-glycemic index carbs linked to greater type 2 diabetes risk in Chinese and African-American women

Eating foods high on the glycemic index, which measures the effect of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels, may be associated with the risk for developing type 2 diabetes in Chinese women and in African-American women, according to two studies in the November 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

27 Nov 2007