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National survey looks at HIV/AIDS in South Africa

According to the results of a national survey conducted in 2008 and released Tuesday, HIV prevalence among South Africans between the ages of 15 and 24 dropped from "a high of 10.3 percent in 2005 to 8.7 percent last year, with the decreases most marked among teenagers," AFP/Google.com reports (AFP/Google.com, 6/9).

11 Jun 2009

Unique study into the health and wellbeing of seniors

A unique Network studying the health and wellbeing of older people is bringing together health, social science and mathematics experts in a revolutionary project which will help shape the long-term provision of health and social care services across the UK and ultimately benefit older people.

11 Jun 2009

Discovery of new appetite suppressant - potential anti-obesity treatment

Researchers at Imperial College London have identified a new appetite suppressant for promoting weight loss that they say works in rodents and may one day be used to develop an effective anti-obesity treatment. Results of the new study were presented at The Endocrine Society's 91st Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

10 Jun 2009

The 'hijacking mechanism' of HIV-1 pinpointed

Researchers at McGill University and the affiliated Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research at Montreal's Jewish General Hospital - along with colleagues at the University of Manitoba and the University of British Columbia - may have found a chink in the armour of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), the microorganism which causes AIDS. They have pinpointed the key cellular machinery co-opted by HIV-1 to hijack the human cell for its own benefit.

10 Jun 2009

Study reveals mechanism that could combat congenital limb defects like Holt-Oram syndrome

Gregg Duester, Ph.D., professor of developmental biology at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham), along with Xianling Zhao, Ph.D., and colleagues, have clarified the role that retinoic acid plays in limb development.

9 Jun 2009

Having flu when pregnant increases risk of schizophrenia in offspring

When mothers become infected with influenza during their pregnancy, it may increase the risk for schizophrenia in their offspring. Influenza is a very common virus and so there has been substantial concern about this association. A new study in the June 15th issue of Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier suggests that the observed association depends upon a pre-existing vulnerability in the fetus.

9 Jun 2009

New understanding of structure of bacteria responsible for traveler's diarrhea

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), the Naval Medical Research Center and the National Institutes of Health, have solved the structure of thin hair-like fibers called "pili" or "fimbriae" on the surface of bacteria that cause traveler's diarrhea.

9 Jun 2009

Under-representation of women in cancer research

Women continue to be under-enrolled in cancer clinical trials, according to a new review, published in the July 15, 2009 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study's results suggest that greater efforts are needed to ensure that oncologists know the true effects of treatments and medical procedures in female patients.

9 Jun 2009

Alcohol and smoking the culprits in bowel cancer

Each year, worldwide around one million new cases of bowel (colorectal) cancer are diagnosed and more than half a million people die from the disease.

4 Jun 2009

Eyes provide clues to a common cause of stroke

In a groundbreaking study researchers have concluded that evidence of the cause of "lacunar stroke" can be found by looking at the back of a patient's eyes.

4 Jun 2009

Alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking are key causes for bowel cancer

A new global study has found that lifestyle risk factors such as alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking are important risk factors for bowel cancer. Researchers have shown that people who consume the largest quantities of alcohol (equivalent to > 7 drinks per week) have 60% greater risk of developing the cancer, compared with non-drinkers.

2 Jun 2009

Blood pressure drug reverses liver damage

British scientists have discovered that blood-pressure drugs can reverse the effects of early-stage liver failure in some patients.

1 Jun 2009

Blood-pressure medicine shown to reverse the effects of early-stage liver failure

Newcastle University researchers analysed a small clinical trial of losartan, a drug normally prescribed for hypertension, on 14 patients in Spain, who had Hepatitis C.

31 May 2009

Genomic research lays groundwork for new approaches for treating, preventing skin diseases

The health of our skin - one of the body's first lines of defense against illness and injury - depends upon the delicate balance between our own cells and the millions of bacteria and other one-celled microbes that live on its surface.

28 May 2009

Exposure to interparental violence increases likelihood of mental health problems in later life

People with parents who were violent to each other are more likely to have mental health problems when they grow up, reveals research published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

27 May 2009

New mouse model provides insight into human neuronal diseases

Neurosensory diseases are difficult to model in mice because their symptoms are complex and diverse. The genetic causes identified are often lethal when transferred to a mouse.

26 May 2009

Inositol protects against the development of neural tube defects

Women of childbearing age can reduce the risk of having a child born with a neural tube defect such as spina bifida by eating enough folate or folic acid. However, folate prevents only about 70 percent of these defects.

25 May 2009

Scientists cure mice of muscle disease that causes a Floppy Baby Syndrome

In a world first, West Australian scientists have cured mice of a devastating muscle disease that causes a Floppy Baby Syndrome - a breakthrough that could ultimately help thousands of families across the globe.

25 May 2009

Scientists pinpoint molecular cause of Alzheimer's disease

A discovery made by researchers at McGill University and the affiliated Lady Davis Research Institute for Medical Research at Montreal's Jewish General Hospital offers new hope for the early diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

22 May 2009