Tag: Staying Current

Researchers have developed a new technique that uses a so-called “energy molecule” to trigger the release of anti-cancer drugs directly into cancer cells. It may be especially effective in breast cancer treatment.

The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications.

Once inside the cancer cells, the molecule, adenosine-5’-triphosphate (ATP), releases its “payload”: a collection of molecules embed with an anti-cancer drug called doxorubicin, which targets the nucleus of the cancer cell.

There’s an app for everything – and now, there’s even one that can detect early signs of mood changes in people with bipolar disorder and other conditions.

The app, developed by researchers from the University of Michigan, still needs much more testing before it can be widely used. But, the researchers said, a study of a small group of patients indicated its potential. The six participants all had Type 1 bipolar disorder and a history of manic and depressive episode.

It could also help people with other conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

By Rose Haywood

You put more personal information online than you may think and you may be doing that unintentionally. Signing up for a contest, shopping online for the holidays, and online banking can create easy avenues for hackers to get the details they need about your online ID.

With so many companies and services moving to online-only mediums, it’s hard not to put some of your information out there to get the services you need.

Phosphate-rich foods such as processed cheese are known to increase the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease. Now scientists have found exactly why that’s so.

The culprit is the hormone FGF23 (Fibroblast Growth Factor 23). When the level of FGF23 is raised, putting strain on the cardiovascular system. FGF23 controls renal excretion of sodium, and that affects blood pressure.

The study, from researchers at Vetmeduni, Vienna, was published in the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine.

Reaching globally-agreed targets for health risks such as smoking and alcohol can prevent more than 37 million deaths by 2025, according to new statistics.

The study, led by researchers from Imperial College London, said the health risks are caused by the “big four” illnesses: cancer, diabetes, lung disease and cardiovascular disease.

The study, published in The Lancet, found that the majority of death prevention would be in low- to middle-income nations, while the reductions for smoking and blood pressure will lead to the largest benefits.

For the first time, scientists have grown fully functional human cartilage from human stem cells.

The experts, from Columbia University, said that the process could help repair cartilage defects in humans. It could also make a composite graft with bone.

The discovery was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Three studies from the University of Pennsylvania demonstrate new approaches to understanding and treating Parkinson’s disease, and eventually even staving it off.

The findings were to be presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

A previously overlooked group of cells may be contributing to a wide range of disorders, according to research from the University of California, San Francisco.

The star-shaped cells, known as astrocytes, might be a factor in illnesses such as Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS), autism and schizophrenia.

The finding was published in the journal Nature.

Scientists have discovered a crucial element in a cellular process that could help develop a new class of drugs for treating epilepsy, heart disease and cancer.

Researchers from the University of Waterloo, Ontario, found that T-type channels can shift the way they generate electrical signals to cells.

The rhythmic signals produced by a normal action of this process support the contraction of heart muscles as well as “firing” in parts of the brain

Editor’s Note: CoQ10 is a popular supplement that’s said to be effective in fighting everything from congestive heart failure to gum disease. But is it safe, and is there reliable evidence to support these claims? Before you reach for a bottle of CoQ10 on your next trip to the drugstore, read this information from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a division of the federal National Institutes of Health:

Researchers have identified a pathway that works to prevent new cells from getting too many or too few chromosomes. That presence of abnormal numbers of chromosomes has been directly linked to cancer and other serious illnesses.

Mark Hall, associate professor of biochemistry, Purdue University, discovered that when cells are nearly finished dividing, the enzyme Cdc14 activates Yen1, another enzyme. Yen1 helps repair the DNA breaks that lead to cancer in cells.

Just in time for National Parks Week, April 19^th t0 27^th 2014, the National Park Service (NPS) invites public comment on a proposed rule to revise regulations governing service animals in national parks. Last amended in 1983, federal statutes governing accessibility for persons with disabilities, as well as the use of service animals, have changed significantly.

Editor’s Note: The overwhelming growth of internet use and social media has made it clear how we need to think about conventional matters in new ways. One of these subjects is making your will. While traditional wills left physical objects to loved ones, or specified what should be done with those objects, digital wills deal with the text, photos, videos and music we have put on the Internet.  They can be just as important a part of our legacy as more conventional possessions, and should be treated as such.

Study: Scientists are coming closer to understanding exactly how variations in immune-system reactions can play a part in patients’ widely differing responses to Lyme disease.

The study, conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins and Stanford, was published in the journal PLOS One.

Among older people without depression, apathy may be an indicator of significant brain changes, according to new research.

 “Just as signs of memory loss may signal brain changes related to brain disease, apathy may indicate underlying changes,” said Lenore J. Launer, PhD, with the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

A major new discovery confirms the role of some virus-fighting enzymes in cancer development.

The research furthers the understanding of the biological processes that cause cancer.

One group of genes, the APOBEC family, controls enzymes that fight off viral infections. But scientists have speculated that these enzymes are also responsible for a distinct signature of mutations that is present in approximately half of all cancer types.

In a new assessment of the state of medical malpractice, the American College of Physicians (ACP) said that although the cost of liability insurance has leveled off, doctors still “fear litigation” and “expect lawsuits.”

Molly Cooke, MD, FACP, president of ACO, also said that physicians feel “the psychological burden of navigating the complex medico-legal system.”

In the wake of the error-plagued healthcare rollout that left millions of Americans struggling to log on to HealthCare.gov in order to get insurance, Kathleen Sibelius has resigned from the position of United States Secretary of Health and Human Services. On April 11^th 2014, President Obama nominated Sylvia Matthews Burwell to be Sibelius’ successor. Burwell, who will turn 49 in June, served as Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget beginning in April 2013 after a stint as president of the Walmart Foundation starting in January 2012.