Medical News

RSS

Study examines incidence of melanoma rates among California Hispanics over time

For the first time, scientists have identified a significant increase in the incidence rate of melanoma--an invasive form of an already deadly skin cancer--among California Hispanics.

23 Jan 2006

SSRI antidepressants may also affect human immune system

Drugs that treat depression by manipulating the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain may also affect the user's immune system in ways that are not yet understood, say scientists from Georgetown University Medical Center and a Canadian research institute.

23 Jan 2006

Chocolate compund that helps heart identified

In a multifaceted study involving the Kuna Indians of Panama, an international team of scientists has pinpointed a chemical compound that is, in part, responsible, for the heart-healthy benefits of certain cocoas and some chocolate products.

23 Jan 2006

Metabolic syndrome - a new risk factor for impaired kidney function

A three-year multi-center study of kidney-pancreas transplant recipients has identified a new risk factor for impaired kidney function, which may help physicians refine their treatment strategies.

23 Jan 2006

Ataxia gene identified

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have discovered the gene responsible for a type of ataxia, an incurable degenerative brain disease affecting movement and coordination.

23 Jan 2006

Histidine may be key to new therapies for cardiovascular disease

It's just one little amino acid, but it makes all the difference in protecting the heart from the harmful effects of heart attack and cardiac failure. Researchers from the University of Michigan Medical School suggest this amino acid, called histidine, could be the key to a new therapy for cardiovascular disease

23 Jan 2006

Robot designed to shoot X-ray video of sufferers of orthopedic injuries as they walk

The MRI and CT scan may one day have a robotic cousin capable of following and peering into patients as they move around.

23 Jan 2006

First genome-wide screen for protein complexes is completed

Researchers in Germany have finished the first complete analysis of the "molecular machines" in one of biology's most important model organisms: S. cerevisiae (baker's yeast). The study from the biotechnology company Cellzome, in collaboration with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), appears in this week's online edition of Nature.

23 Jan 2006

Palliative radiation cures some lung cancer patients

About one in a hundred patients with apparently incurable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) survive five or more years after being given relatively small doses of radiation therapy (RT) meant to ease symptoms, according to a new study.

23 Jan 2006

Identification of Gli protein degradation signals that directly affect tumor latency

Dr. Anthony E. Oro and colleagues (Stanford University) have identified two key Gli protein degradation signals that directly affect tumor latency in a mouse model of human skin cancer.

22 Jan 2006

Wine drinkers healthier than beer drinkers

People who buy wine also buy healthier food and therefore have healthier diets than people who buy beer, finds a study published online by the British Medical Journal.

22 Jan 2006

Novel compound stops brain cell degeneration in Alzheimer's disease

Drug discovery researchers at Northwestern University have developed a novel orally administered compound specifically targeted to suppress brain cell inflammation and neuron loss associated with Alzheimer's disease.

22 Jan 2006

Vitamin D helps prevent bone loss during osteoporosis

The risk of bone fracture resulting from falls increases as we age due to bone loss and osteoporosis. Physicians have routinely prescribed vitamin D and vitamin D- related drugs to retard bone loss, but until now, little was known about the specific targets of vitamin D in bone.

22 Jan 2006