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Low-dose radiation therapy may increase uptake of therapeutic nanoparticles by brain tumors

A new study led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators finds that radiation therapy may increase the uptake of therapeutic nanoparticles by glioblastomas, raising the possibility of using both growth-factor-targeted and immune-system-based therapies against the deadly brain tumor.

28 Mar 2019

New discovery may explain low testosterone levels in men with diabetes

Scientists have mapped out how the body transports testosterone, and their surprising findings may explain low testosterone levels seen in men with diabetes or patients on certain medications.

28 Mar 2019

Lurie Children's introduces virtual reality into pediatric ICU

For the first time in a pediatric intensive care unit, patients get a chance to scuba dive, snowboard, and go on a safari or other adventures, all from their hospital bed.

28 Mar 2019

Portable mini microscope could improve scientists' ability to study brain disease in living mice

Working with mice, a team of Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers has developed a relatively inexpensive, portable mini microscope that could improve scientists' ability to image the effects of cancer, stroke, Alzheimer's disease and other conditions in the brains of living and active mice over time.

28 Mar 2019

Purdue engineers develop tiny glutamate sensors for spinal cord injuries

Your chances of getting a nasty migraine increase following a spinal cord injury, thanks to a chemical messenger in the brain that spikes to toxic levels, past studies have suggested.

28 Mar 2019

Survey suggests need for more systematic approaches to address drug shortages

Despite ongoing efforts to develop efficient, practical and ethical allocation systems for medication shortages, a national survey found that 81 percent of hospital pharmacy managers had experienced medication hoarding.

28 Mar 2019

Marijuana use during pregnancy may increase psychosis risk in offspring

Pregnant women who use cannabis may slightly increase the risk their unborn child will develop psychosis later in life, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

28 Mar 2019

Radiolabeled protein lights up tumor to reveal where cancer drugs are working

Experimenting with mice, Johns Hopkins researchers report they have successfully used positron emission tomography scans to calculate in real time how much of an immunotherapy drug reaches a tumor and what parts of a cancer remain unaffected.

28 Mar 2019

Using gene therapy strategies to rejuvenate aging cells and treat osteoarthritis

Aging is a risk factor for the development of osteoarthritis (OA), a chronic disease characterized by degeneration of articular cartilage leading to pain and physical disability.

28 Mar 2019

Study: Lack of physician guidance and fear of side effects are reasons for refusing statins

Despite national guidelines indicating that statins can lower risk of heart attack and stroke, many patients who could benefit do not take them.

28 Mar 2019

New computer program predicts risk of life-threatening arrhythmias

Combining a wealth of information derived from previous studies with data from more than 500 patients, an international team led by researchers from Johns Hopkins has developed a computer-based set of rules that more accurately predicts when patients with a rare heart condition might benefit--or not--from lifesaving implanted defibrillators.

28 Mar 2019

Exercise helps prevent cartilage degradation caused by osteoarthritis, study shows

Exercise helps to prevent the degradation of cartilage caused by osteoarthritis, according to a new study from Queen Mary University of London.

27 Mar 2019

Scientists untangle the brain's life-support network

The portion of the brain known as the hypothalamus is small but mighty -- it controls fundamental behaviors and physiology that are essential for survival.

27 Mar 2019

Low intake of red and processed meats may increase risk of mortality

A new study out of Loma Linda University Health suggests that eating red and processed meats -- even in small amounts -- may increase the risk of death from all causes, especially cardiovascular disease.

27 Mar 2019

Common drug may lead to obesity in offspring

Metformin,a common drug used to treat type 2 diabetes, is often used during pregnancy where the mother suffersfrom polycystic ovary syndrome.

27 Mar 2019

Researchers discover underlying cause of hereditary muscle disease

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have discovered the underlying cause of a hereditary muscle disease first characterised in a Swedish family in 1980. It proves to be the first identified disease caused by defective myoglobin, the protein that transports oxygen in muscle cells.

27 Mar 2019

Device-safety experts to FDA: Make data public

Medical device safety researchers are calling on the Food and Drug Administration to release hundreds of thousands of hidden injury and malfunction reports related to about 100 medical devices.

27 Mar 2019

Supermarket offers linked to rise in obesity rates

A new report by CRUK reveals that shoppers who look for special offers in the supermarket are more likely to be obese or overweight.

27 Mar 2019

Using connectomics to gain insight into epilepsy

Abnormalities in structural brain networks and how brain regions communicate may underlie a variety of disorders, including epilepsy, which is one focus of a two-part Special Issue on the Brain Connectome in Brain Connectivity, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

27 Mar 2019

Tumor-associated macrophages block activity of chemotherapy drug in pancreatic cancer

A frontline chemotherapy drug given to patients with pancreatic cancer is made less effective because similar compounds released by tumor-associated immune cells block the drug's action, research led by the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center found.

27 Mar 2019