Researchers may have found the answer to a chronically puzzling question: why do elephants rarely get cancer? The scientists were led by researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah and Arizona State University, and included researchers from the Ringling Bros. Center for Elephant Conservation. According to the results, published in the… Continue reading How Elephants May Help Treat Cancer
Tag: Staying Current
Standing at Work Burns Extra Calories
If you want to avoid sitting all day, try standing – at your desk. According to a new University of Iowa study, employees with sit-stand desks stood 60 minutes more a day at work compared to their co-workers with sitting desks, and they continued to do so long after their desks lost their novelty. Plus,… Continue reading Standing at Work Burns Extra Calories
Cancer Drug May Help with Alzheimer’s
New research shows that a cancer drug administered to rats improved their memory and made them more attuned to what they were hearing. And that could point the way to better treatment for Alzheimer’s. “Memory-making in neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s disease is often poor or absent altogether once a person is in the advanced stages… Continue reading Cancer Drug May Help with Alzheimer’s
Post-Concussion Symptoms More Serious in Older People
Older patients recover from concussion more slowly than younger ones, according to new research. Functional MR imaging (fMRI) showed different activation patterns during working memory (WM) performance tasks in younger and older patients, confirming the importance of age in the activation, modulation and allocation of WM processing resources after mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), according… Continue reading Post-Concussion Symptoms More Serious in Older People
Information Handling by Some Health Apps Not as Secure as It Should Be
Some health apps that have been clinically-accredited may not have been complying with principles of data protection, according to research published in September 2015 inthe open access journal BMC Medicine. In some instances health apps were found to be sending unencrypted personal and health information, which means users of these apps may have had their… Continue reading Information Handling by Some Health Apps Not as Secure as It Should Be
The Latest on Pain Relievers: Answers from the FDA
Here, a Q & A with Sharon Hertz, Deputy Director of FDA’s Division of Anesthesia, Analgesia, and Rheumatology Products, who has been with FDA for 15 years. Dr. Hertz graduated from SUNY Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, N.Y., and completed her residency in neurology at SUNY Health Sciences Center at Brooklyn. This Q&A reflects the… Continue reading The Latest on Pain Relievers: Answers from the FDA
5 Ways New FDA Rules Will Make Your Foods Safer
September is Food Safety Month. How will you and your family be protected by the new actions the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking to keep your food safe? The first two of seven rules proposed to implement the landmark FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) (the preventive controls rules for human and animal… Continue reading 5 Ways New FDA Rules Will Make Your Foods Safer
How Some Brain Cells Escape Aging
Researchers have discovered a mechanism that allows neural stem cells to stay relatively free of aging-related damage: A diffusion barrier regulates the sorting of damaged proteins during cell division. A group of scientists led by Sebastian Jessberger of the Brain Research Institute of the University of Zurich showed that the stem cells of the adult… Continue reading How Some Brain Cells Escape Aging
Link Between Air Pollution and Increased Risk of Death
In what is believed to be the largest, most detailed study of its kind in the United States, scientists at New York University Langone Medical Center and elsewhere have confirmed that tiny chemical particles in the air we breathe are linked to an overall increase in risk of death. A release from the university notes… Continue reading Link Between Air Pollution and Increased Risk of Death
Lack of Vitamin D Shows A Strong Link to Dementia
Researchers have found a strong link between Vitamin D insufficiency and memory loss that is associated with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. The effect of the insufficiency is “substantial,” according to the experts from the University of California Davis Alzheimer’s Disease Center and Rutgers University. They discovered that people with low vitamin D levels declined at… Continue reading Lack of Vitamin D Shows A Strong Link to Dementia
A Protein That Causes Muscle Loss
Researchers have discovered that a protein causes muscle weakness and loss during aging, according to a news release from the University of Iowa. The protein, ATF4, alters gene expression in skeletal muscle, causing reduction of muscle protein synthesis, strength, and mass. The Iowa study also identifies two natural compounds, one found in apples and one… Continue reading A Protein That Causes Muscle Loss
Melatonin and MS
The hormone melatonin, which helps regulates the sleep-wake cycle, may be the reason that multiple sclerosis symptoms improve during the shorter days of winter. A group led by Francisco Quintana, PhD, at the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) have found an explanation that could lead to a deeper… Continue reading Melatonin and MS
Intestinal Bacteria Could Be Clue to Aging
Analyzing intestinal bacteria may help predict health outcomes of aging people – and lead to treatments that could help delay physical decline. Researchers from UCLA discovered changes within intestinal microbes that precede and predict the death of fruit flies. The findings were published in the journal Cell Reports. “Age-onset decline is very tightly linked to… Continue reading Intestinal Bacteria Could Be Clue to Aging
A History of Grandmothers?
Did your grandmother ever encourage you to find a romantic partner? If so, she may be carrying out a tradition that reaches back to prehistoric times. University of Utah anthropologist Kristen Hawkes is known for the “grandmother hypothesis,” which credits prehistoric grandmothering for our long human lifespan. Now, Hawkes has used computer simulations to link… Continue reading A History of Grandmothers?
Chestnut Leaf Extract Disarms Deadly Staph Bacteria
Leaves of the European chestnut tree contain ingredients with the power to disarm dangerous staph bacteria without boosting its drug resistance, scientists at Emory University in Atlanta have found. The study was published in August 2015 in PLOS ONE. The team reports that a chestnut leaf extract, rich in ursene and oleanene derivatives, blocks Staphlococcus… Continue reading Chestnut Leaf Extract Disarms Deadly Staph Bacteria
Drivers Admit to Using Cellphones While Driving, Even with Kids in the Car
A study done at the University of California, San Diego and published in August 2015 in Journal of Transport & Health reveals that middle-aged drivers are at higher risk of crashes because they use their cellphone regularly while driving. The research reveals that most drivers admit to using their cellphones regularly while driving, even with… Continue reading Drivers Admit to Using Cellphones While Driving, Even with Kids in the Car
New Sepsis-Treatment Guidelines Can Help Save Patients
University of Pittsburgh researchers have developed guidelines that will help health care facilities comply with tough new regulations on treating sepsis. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body’s response to an infection injures its own tissues and organs. It occurs in more than 230,000 U.S. patients every year, with most initially… Continue reading New Sepsis-Treatment Guidelines Can Help Save Patients
Winning the Vaccination Debate
Instead of arguing with someone who doesn’t believe in vaccinations, it’s better to focus on reminding them of their child’s well-being, a study shows. The researchers report their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The widespread fear that vaccines causes autism began in 1998, when The Lancet medical journal published a… Continue reading Winning the Vaccination Debate